The recent death of O.J. Simpson has reignited the cultural conversation around the former football player and actor’s unprecedented rise and fall. Simpson, who died on April 10th, 2024, was arrested on suspicion of the murder of ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and Los Angeles restaurant waiter Ron Goldman, who was at Brown’s house at the time, leading to a highly-televised car chase with police in June 1994.
Simpson was famously acquitted on the charge of both murders, although DNA evidence linking Simpson to the crime scene and Simpson’s history of domestic violence and stalking against Brown made the verdict dubious from the start. In the years since, the court of public opinion has increasingly leaned towards O.J.’s guilt over the years, even across racial lines that were highly polarized at the time of the trial.
O.J. Simpson was sued by the family of Goldman and Brown in a subsequent civil wrongful death suit, in which the families were awarded over $33 million in damages, and Simpson was found liable for their deaths in civil court. A 2006 lawsuit also gave Goldman’s parents the rights to If I Did It, a book Simpson wrote where he allegedly hypothesized how he would have carried out the murders. The Goldmans later changed the stylization of the title to read as “I Did It”, adding a new addition to the book, titled “He Did It”.
Simpson’s financial obligations from the suit were funded by the selling of his collected sports memorabilia, causing Simpson to attempt an armed robbery in a Las Vegas hotel and casino to retrieve his sold memorabilia. His arrest and conviction for the robbery, thanks to charges of kidnapping and possession of a firearm, led to a 33-year prison sentence, which Simpson served nine years of, between 2008 and 2017. It was this sentence where the ESPN 30 for 30 documentary O.J.: Made in America begins its eight-hour odyssey into the star’s life and legal troubles. Here’s all you need to know about the acclaimed work, and where you can relive – or learn for the first time- about Simpson’s story.
O.J.: Made in America synopsis
O.J.: Made in America, an Oscar and Emmy Award-winning documentary directed by Ezra Edelman, chronicles O.J. (born Orenthal James) Simpson’s early exceptionalism as a college football player of unmatched athletic ability, eventually becoming a household name as a running back for the Buffalo Bills and San Francisco 49ers, and eventually transitioning into an acting career and brand spokesmanship.
The documentary also explores the darker side of Simpson’s early years in the spotlight, in particular his violence towards women and his internalized racism, and how the systems in place helped facilitate and enable what would eventually become O.J.’s suspected role in the murder of his ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman.
O.J.: Made in America analyses the racial divisions that shaped the polarized opinions regarding the former footballer’s potential role, as the then-recent Rodney King riots permanently altered race relations in America, in Los Angeles in particular, with Simpson’s murder trial and media circus acting as a snapshot of American culture in the lead up to the 21st century.
Where to stream the documentary O.J.: Made in America
O.J.: Made in America is available to stream on Disney Plus, as ESPN is a Disney property. The documentary is available to all Disney Plus subscribers, and an ESPN bundle is not necessary. Also accompanying the documentary is the FX drama series The People v. O.J. Simpson, as Disney Plus also owns the rights to various FX shows.
Spectrum subscribers can also stream the documentary on the platform, although Disney are known to remove their properties from the platform due to a dispute between the two parent companies.
Where to purchase and rent OJ: Made in America
In the U.S., O.J.: Made in America is available for purchase or rental on most major video platforms, including Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV, Google Play, and Vudu. Availability may vary.
It should be noted that O.J.: Made in America was initially a theatrical release, clocking in a 467-minute (seven hours, 47 minutes) runtime. In subsequent releases, the documentary has been divided into episodes of various quantities — for example, the BBC version consists of three episodes, whereas the Disney Plus release has five episodes. Different platforms may offer more episodes of the same series, or just one, almost-eight-hour version of the documentary. Be sure to shop around on various platforms for the best deal before purchasing.