Addison Rae plays Evelyn Hartley, a babysitter whom Netflix’s Monster: The Ed Gein Story depicts as a target of Ed Gein. The historical record is more uncertain: the real Hartley disappeared in 1953, and Gein was never officially linked to her case. The controversy is best understood as a question about the series’ use of a real missing person—not evidence of a broad backlash against Rae’s casting.
Who does Addison Rae play in Monster: The Ed Gein Story?
Rae portrays Evelyn Hartley in Netflix’s eight-episode 2025 series, an installment of the Monster anthology. Netflix describes the character as a babysitter whom Gein targets. In an interview about preparing for the role, Rae said, “There’s actually not much about her. They don’t really know exactly what happened in real life.” Netflix Tudum, October 7, 2025
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Did Ed Gein really kill Evelyn Hartley?
There is no established historical finding that Gein killed Hartley. She disappeared in 1953, but Netflix’s interview notes that he was never officially linked to her case. Fact-checking coverage by TheWrap and Rolling Stone Australia likewise distinguishes the show’s account from what authorities established. So the series’ depiction should be read as dramatization, not proof that Gein was responsible for her disappearance.
What is controversial about the character?
The sourced concern is that the show places a real missing person into a fictionalized account that presents Gein as responsible, even though no official link was established. Netflix’s interview says information about the real Hartley is limited, and its editorial note makes clear that Gein was never officially connected to her case. That distinction matters when a dramatization turns an unresolved disappearance into part of a killer’s story.
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The available reporting does not establish that Rae’s casting itself prompted a broad or central controversy. Criticism of the show’s historical license is separate from a judgment about Rae’s performance or casting; a RogerEbert.com review addresses critical reception of the series, not evidence of widespread opposition to Rae.
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Monster: The Ed Gein Story is an eight-episode 2025 series streaming on Netflix, according to Netflix Tudum.
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