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Television

Sarah Paulson in “final talks” to play Aileen Wuornos in Monster season 4

WORDS BY SAM DAMSHENAS

7th November 2025

In a genius casting move, Sarah Paulson has been tapped to play Aileen Wuornos in Monster.

According to Variety, the Emmy-winning actress will once again reunite with Ryan Murphy for the fourth season of Netflix’s anthology series, which has previously dramatised “monstrous” figures such as Jeffrey Dahmer, the Menendez Brothers and Ed Gein.

Unlike those figures, however, Wuornos won’t be the central focus this time.

The new season will instead centre on Lizzie Borden and the infamous axe murder of her father and stepmother. Ella Beatty will portray Lizzie, while Charlie Hunnam — who recently played Ed Gein — takes on the role of her father, Andrew Jackson Borden.

Wuornos was a prolific serial killer who murdered seven men between 1989 and 1990. Her story was famously brought to the screen in the 2003 film Monster, which earned Charlize Theron the Academy Award for Best Actress.

More recently, Netflix revisited her life and crimes — as well as her queer romance with partner Tyria Moore — in the documentary Aileen: Queen of the Serial Killers.

Monster adds to Paulson’s long list of collaborations with Murphy, which includes Nip/Tuck (2004), American Horror Story (2011–present), American Crime Story (2016–2021), Feud (2017), Ratched (2020), and All’s Fair (2025).

Last week, it was also announced that Paulson will return to American Horror Story for its upcoming 13th season, joining franchise mainstays Evan Peters, Angela Bassett, Kathy Bates, Gabourey Sidibe, Emma Roberts and the iconic Jessica Lange.

Paulson’s collaborations with Murphy have often earned critical acclaim: she’s received five Primetime Emmy Award nominations for American Horror Story, and won Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited Series or Movie for American Crime Story’s lauded first season, The People v. O.J. Simpson.

However, All’s Fair — boasting an ensemble cast of Glenn Close, Niecy Nash, Naomi Watts, Teyana Taylor, and Kim Kardashian — has been savaged by critics. Even so, Paulson’s turn as ruthless divorce lawyer Carrington Lane has won over fans, particularly the queers, with her sharp-tongued scenes racking up millions of views online.

See what we mean below:

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