Look back at Ryan Murphy's 'The People v. O.J. Simpson' following athlete's death
O.J. Simpson's death on Wednesday is resurging interest in the 2016 series "The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story," which originally aired on FX.
Simpson's death was due to cancer, according to a post Thursday by the athlete and actor's family on X, formerly Twitter.
Ryan Murphy's "The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story" is based on Jeffrey Toobin's book "The Run of His Life: The People v. O.J. Simpson," which asserts Simpson murdered his ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend Ronald Goldman, although the 10-part series does not take a definitive stance on the 1994 criminal trial.
Executive producer Nina Jacobson told USA TODAY in April 2016, producers wanted "to take a polarizing case and give people emotional access, (to) see the people who were at the center as human beings and not as caricatures. And, we felt it was more important to give the audience access than to take a position."
'The People v. O.J. Simpson' cast
- Cuba Gooding Jr. as O.J. Simpson
- David Schwimmer as Robert Kardashian
- Nathan Lane as F. Lee Bailey
- Sterling K. Brown as Christopher Darden
- Courtney B. Vance as Johnnie Cochran
- Sarah Paulson as Marcia Clark
- Steven Pasquale as Mark Fuhrman
- John Travolta as Robert Shapiro
'The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story' review: What USA TODAY had to say about the series
"The risk for FX’s 'The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story' is that it could seem inaccurate or old hat to those who know the story, dull or impenetrable to those who don’t, and cheap and exploitative to all. Yet against all odds, this tightly written, sometimes stunningly performed 10-part drama avoids all those pitfalls, capturing the tenor of the time and breathing life into the participants. Not to mention re-creating a crackling good courtroom drama that fiction can only envy," Bill Keveney wrote in a 2016 review for USA TODAY.
He continued, "Simpson is not about the murder itself, which we do not see. … It's about the people involved in the trial, and the startling contrasts surrounding a case in which perceptions of guilt and innocence seemed to divide along racial lines. All of which would be an academic exercise without a script that keeps the story's multiple pieces moving in sync and a set of Emmy-worthy performances."
"The heart and soul of the series, however, belongs to Courtney B. Vance's defense attorney, Johnnie Cochran, and Sarah Paulson's prosecutor, Marcia Clark — two great actors in two great roles," Keveney wrote. "Vance and Paulson take the trial's two main combatants, who became heroes to some and buffoonish villains to others, and humanize them in a way that allows us to see them anew, and admire them both. Oh, and if Paulson doesn't break your heart in the sixth hour, you should have it checked."
What 'The People v. O.J. Simpson' cast said about the ending
Simpson was acquitted of two counts of murder during a televised trial that gripped America. A jury in a civil trial found Simpson liable for the double murder of Brown Simpson and Goldman, and he later served nine years in prison for his role in a botched armed robbery. However, the FX series does not focus on the civil trial.
Rather than simply retelling the events of the trial, Vance told USA TODAY in April 2016, "People are watching to find out the human element."
Larry Karaszewski, who wrote the miniseries with fellow executive producer Scott Alexander, said the prospect of ending with with a universally recognized outcome initially made them nervous.
"Strangely enough, knowing how it ends almost gives it more power," Karaszewski told USA TODAY. "You're watching this slow-motion train wreck. You’re watching how it happens and all these lives being destroyed."
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Gooding Jr., who portrays Simpson, added that the evolution of his character is interesting.
"You see the brilliance of his star power at the beginning," he said. "You see that deteriorate during the trial. And, I think in the last images of him, you see this broken shell of a man and … how it’s affected his demeanor, posture and soul."
Where to watch 'The People vs. O.J. Simpson'
The series is available to stream on Hulu as well as Disney+. It is also available for purchase on Prime Video.
How to watch, streamFX’s 'The People v. O.J. Simpson' and ESPN’s 'O.J. Made in America'
Other notable shows about O.J. Simpson to stream
ESPN took a documentary approach in 2016 with the five-part 30 series, "O.J. Made in America." It is available on Watch ESPN and to stream on Hulu.
Contributing: Bill Keveney
