Season 4 of Ryan Murphy's crime anthology series, "Monster," features Ella Beatty in the lead role of Lizzie Borden. Beatty, 26, is the daughter of veteran actors Warren Beatty and Annette Bening, and her aunt is Shirley MacLaine.
Beatty told E! News in September that her parents' primary advice for her role was to "listen" and to "get interested rather than be interesting." She added that they advised her to "never want to be the smartest person in the room."
Warren Beatty and Annette Bening, who married in 1992, share four children: Stephen, Ben, Isabel, and Ella. During a May 2024 interview, Ella shared that she and her siblings had recently watched "Bugsy," a film her parents met on, and found it "romantic" to see them falling in love.
She also mentioned that her father would be "devastated" if she hadn't seen his films, adding that she has "definitely [more] to go" in catching up on his work. Beatty expressed inspiration from her parents, hoping to "carry the torch on."
"Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story" dramatizes the infamous 1892 case in which Borden was accused of murdering her father and stepmother with an axe. The series also stars Charlie Hunnam as Borden's father and Rebecca Hall as her stepmother.
This is not Beatty's first foray into a Ryan Murphy production. She previously appeared in "Feud: Capote Vs. The Swans" and made her film debut in the 2025 movie "If I Had Legs I'd Kick You." Beatty also performed on Broadway in 2024's "Appropriate," stepping in for Elle Fanning.
Annette Bening, speaking on "The Kelly Clarkson Show" in 2024, described Ella as "very disciplined," "hardworking," and someone who "knows what she's doing."
Ella has expressed a desire to work with her mother, calling Bening "my favorite actress in the world and my hero and my best friend."
Ryan Murphy's "Monster" series has a history of casting children of famous figures, including Emma Roberts, Billie Lourd, Kaia Gerber, and Homer Gere. "Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story" is now available for streaming on Netflix.