Cooper Koch shares more about his jailhouse encounter with Erika Menendez.
“Preparing for his role was, in a way, preparing to meet him at the same time,” the actor, 28, who played Erik in the Netflix film Monsters: The Story of Lyle and Erik Menendez told Deadline. “Because in preparing to play him, I developed such care and truth – I care so much about him.”
He added: “I trust him, I think he’s an amazing human being. And so, after playing with him, getting to know him was so rewarding and special and one of the most amazing experiences I think I’ll ever have in my life.”
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Erik and Lyle Menendez in 1989.
Ronald L. Soble/Los Angeles Times via Getty
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Koch’s comments come after he revealed Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen earlier this month, meeting the Menendez brothers in real life “wasn’t super scary.”
“I’d say they get on my nerves more because I’ve known about them for so long and I care about them so much,” he continued. “It was kind of nerve-racking, but when I got there, everything was great.”
Koch visited the brothers in prison along with Kim Kardashian, Khloé Kardashian and Kris Jenner, just days after Monsters pre-produced.
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Last month, Koch told PEOPLE he was “so nervous” ahead of a meeting in San Diego at the Richard J. Donovan Correctional Facility.
“I talked to both of them, so I knew we already had a friendship, and they knew what I was about. I told them I supported them and I trusted them,” he said. “I had a feeling they would welcome me with open arms, but I was still so nervous to meet someone you listen to and inspire you.”
Adding that there was an “immediate connection,” Koch continued, “I got to hug them both and I was sitting next to Erik in this circle with all the other inmates telling their stories, and they were both so kind. They’re amazing people.”
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Copper Koch as Erik Menendez in ‘Monsters’.
Miles Crist/Netflix
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Monsters: The Story of Lyle and Erik Menendez tells the story of brothers Lyle and Eric Menéndez, who killed their parents José and Kitty Menéndez in 1989 and have been serving life sentences in prison since 1996.
While the prosecution argued that José and Kitty were killed because of the family’s fortune of more than 14 million dollars, the Menendez brothers claimed that they killed their parents after continuous mental, physical and sexual abuse.
In 2005, Erik told PEOPLE, “I’m not saying what I did was right or justified. I had to go to jail. But put another child in my life and see what happens.”
“I felt it was either my life or my parents’ life… Being arrested was such a relief. My life was over and I was glad. I didn’t want the money,” he added.
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