Sarah Paulson details the specific reason she played Aileen Wuornos in The Lizzie Borden Story

Ahead of her return to American Horror Story, Sarah Paulson dipped her toes back into the murky depths of Ryan Murphy’s waters by playing Aileen Wuornos in Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story. 

Admittedly, the inclusion felt a little forced in a TV show set in the 1800s, but those involved have argued that it demonstrated the breadth of female rage. 

“The show is exploring a legacy of female rage and reaction to the set of circumstances that they are presented with,” Lizzie’s actress, Ella Beatty, said. “I think there’s a connection that Ryan and Ian were interested in mapping and exploring.”

Though I can’t say I understand the connection, I’ll never complain about seeing Sarah Paulson on the screen. 

Credit: Netflix

So, why did Sarah Paulson decide to play Aileen Wuornos? 

Sarah Paulson has played countless iconic characters in American Horror Story, from chain-smoking Hypodermic Sally to chain-smoking Billie Dean Howard. Do you see a theme? 

Most Read

I went on a night out with Bonnie Blue – it was uncomfortable and she’s dead behind the eyes

Bonnie Blue’s video birthday messages to 16-year-olds are the final nail in the coffin

Meet OnlyFans’ gay ‘golden boy’ Ashton, and the thirsty clip that’s earned him 33 MILLION views

The legendary horror actress hadn’t taken part in Monster before, so what changed? For Sarah Paulson, it was the one-dimensional way people viewed Aileen Wuornos, and people like her. 

“I’m coming on to do a particular thing that I can’t talk about. But I’m always going to be interested in the why of human behaviour. If there’s any opportunity for me to get inside something that has been predetermined by society and have a little look at it through my own particular lens, I’m always going to want to do that. Ryan knows that,” she told Variety. 

Sarah, who said yes to the role before reading a script, has a long history of playing real-life people, and it allows her to fall down a “rabbit hole” doing her own research. 

“It sort of taught me that I like to immerse myself in another person’s experience, in the reality of it,” she added. 

Though her performance proves that research was worthwhile, it also proves why we shouldn’t consider Monster true crime. It’s simply not true, with the actors able to offer their interpretations of historical figures, rather than the facts. 

Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story is streaming now. For all the latest Netflix news and drops, like The Holy Church of Netflix on Facebook. 

Featured image credit: Netflix and Rob Latour/Shutterstock