In Netflix’s chilling series Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story, Nicholas Alexander Chavez portrays Lyle Menendez, delving deep into the complexities of the character. A significant aspect of Lyle’s portrayal is his hairpiece, or toupee, which becomes a symbolic “mask.” But why did Lyle Menendez wear a wig in the first place? The answer is rooted in a combination of familial pressure and personal insecurity stemming from hair loss, likely triggered by immense stress.
The Toupee as a Mask of Perfection
Nicholas Alexander Chavez, in his preparation for the role, recognized the toupee as more than just a cosmetic choice. He interpreted it as a “mask” imposed upon Lyle by his demanding father, Jose Menendez. This “mask” represented the perfectionist standards Jose enforced, leaving no room for vulnerability or perceived flaws.
“I really saw this wig as mask of sorts,” reflects Chavez to Deadline. “It’s not one that he imposes on himself. It’s imposed by his father and the perfectionist standard that Lyle has to live up to. It’s a mask that hides a deeply, deeply wounded inner child who surfaces in episodes four.”
This perspective highlights the psychological weight the toupee carried. It wasn’t merely about vanity; it was about adhering to a father’s rigid expectations and concealing inner turmoil. The hairpiece became a visual representation of the facade Lyle was forced to maintain.
Hair Loss and the Pressure to Conform
Episode 4 of Monsters, titled “Kill or Be Killed,” sheds light on the origin of the toupee. In a revealing scene, Lyle discovers his hair is thinning in the shower. This moment of vulnerability is quickly intercepted by Jose, who takes Lyle to a specialist and insists on a hairpiece.
Jose’s dialogue underscores the superficial values he instilled in his son: “You look great in that,” Jose states in the show. “You want to succeed in business? You wanna go into politics? Then you’ve got to have a good head of hair.” When Lyle questions the wig, Jose’s stern reply, “You’re wearing a wig. That’s the way it’s going to be,” solidifies the lack of choice and the imposed nature of this “mask.”
Stress-Induced Hair Loss: A Likely Cause
While the series doesn’t explicitly state the cause of Lyle’s hair loss, Chavez suggests a plausible explanation: stress. The immense pressure Lyle was under, coupled with the trauma he endured, could very well have manifested physically as hair loss.
Though it’s never articulated in the limited series, Chavez acknowledges the hair loss was likely due to the profound amount of stress that Lyle was under. “I can only imagine it must have been such an anxiety-inducing experience. When aspects of the way you present yourself start to fall apart … when you don’t have these external validators of your identity to lean on … it really brings out nasty realities that might be living inside you. So I felt like maybe subconsciously, when the mask of who he pretended to be started to slip, the child underneath started to come through more and more.”
This interpretation connects Lyle’s physical appearance to his internal state, suggesting the hair loss was a symptom of deeper psychological distress. The toupee, in this context, becomes a desperate attempt to regain control over his image and conceal the visible signs of his suffering.
The Wig in Production: Real Hair vs. Toupee
Interestingly, Nicholas Chavez revealed that he didn’t actually wear a wig for most of the filming. The production team styled his real hair to mimic the appearance of a toupee.
While shooting the limited series, Chavez admits that he never actually wore a wig. “They used my real hair for almost the entire production, but styled it to look like it was a toupée by teasing it. The only time where it’s not my real hair is if there’s a gag. So if the wig comes off, like the scene at the dinner table, or the scene where it gets snatched off while I’m in the prison showers, they would put the bald cap on.”
This detail underscores the visual importance of the toupee in portraying Lyle’s character, even to the point of styling the actor’s own hair to achieve the desired effect. The deliberate choice to use a real wig only for specific “gag” scenes highlights the symbolic nature of the hairpiece as something that can be removed or exposed.
The Dramatic Removal of the Toupee
A pivotal moment in both the series and real-life events is when Kitty Menendez rips off Lyle’s toupee during a family argument. This act, based on Lyle’s own court testimony, was deeply humiliating for him.
And yes, the moment when Kitty snatches off the toupée is based on real-life events. Lyle Menendez actually testified in court that “she reached, and she grabbed my hairpiece and she just ripped it off.” That’s when his brother, Erik, learned the grim truth. He “didn’t know I had a hairpiece. I was completely embarrassed in front of my brother,” according to the testimony.
In Monsters, this dramatic unveiling of the toupee serves as a catalyst. It occurs during a heated family dinner and prompts the brothers to finally confront their shared trauma and abuse, ultimately leading to their confession to each other about their father’s actions and their decision to murder their parents.
In conclusion, Lyle Menendez’s lack of hair and subsequent toupee were not mere superficial details. They were deeply intertwined with his character, representing the pressure he was under, the “mask” he was forced to wear, and the underlying stress and trauma that plagued him. The wig, therefore, becomes a powerful symbol in understanding the complexities of Lyle Menendez’s story as portrayed in Monsters.
