"Dark Tourism" Finds New Destination In Los Angeles Murder Mansion

From the Hindenburg crash site in New Jersey to the spooky hiking trails in Colorado, a lot of places historically associated with death and tragedy have now become popular spots for "dark tourism" in the United States. A new addition to the list is a Beverly Hills mansion in Los Angeles.

The house came into the spotlight after the release of Netflix's popular show Monsters and the documentary The Menendez Brothers. Now, the mansion has been transformed into a huge tourist destination, with tour buses and rental vehicles continuously stopping by to catch a sight of the place, reported CNN.

Netflix's true crime anthology series Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story, based on the Menendez brothers case, was released in September. A month later, the streaming giant released a two-hour documentary called The Menendez Brothers, which included fresh audio conversations with the siblings. A new generation was exposed to a case that had their parents and grandparents glued to television screens during the trials in 1993.

The trial was one of the first of its kind to be televised. The country was captivated by the story of two charming but disturbed young men who appeared to have it all before they suddenly snapped and killed their parents with shotguns.

Since the release of the Netflix series and documentary, TikTokers have turned the house's resurrected celebrity status into a treasure trove of viral material, filming the mansion and replaying the graphic details of the murder scene for viewers online. In recent months, tourists have begun pouring onto the crime scene.

CNN interviewed visitors who travelled from near and far to see the house. Toni Ricci, who owns a dance class in the area, claimed she came with her five coworkers who followed the case. But the neighbours aren't as thrilled with the influx of people.

A local, who spoke to CNN, is eager for the hype to subside but is aware that it won't happen anytime soon. He said, "We're probably now going to have to wait another decade or two for it to calm down again, and hopefully there won't be another documentary in 20 years' time."

The Menendez family no longer owns the mansion. Exactly 28 years after the jury convicted the brothers, the house was sold for $17 million in March 2024, according to the Realtor. The names of buyers have not been disclosed.

Currently unoccupied, the mansion is being renovated. However, that hasn't hindered its appeal at home or abroad.