Disclaimer: This article contains mentions of murder. Reader discretion is advised.
Over the years, several O.J. Simpson documentaries have covered the tragic events that began in 1994. In June of that year, the murders of his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend Ron Goldman shocked the world. Both Brown Simpson and Goldman were stabbed to death outside the former’s Brentwood home on June 12, 1994. The following events then derailed the American sports world as the former NFL star was accused in the double murder case.
Simpson’s trial began in November 1994 and was 11 months long. It only concluded the following October when a jury acquitted him on all charges. His defense team was comprised of world-renowned lawyers, including Johnnie Cochran, Robert Shapiro, and Robert Kardashian. The trial was considered both controversial and sensational.
Eventually, the case of O.J. Simpson marked a crucial point in popular culture as the athlete-turned-actor became a subject of such works himself. Later, more and more documentaries, films, and series began covering the case. Below are a few such documentaries that provide key insights from the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman and Simpson’s trial.
O.J.: Made in America
The five-part documentary series from Ezra Edelman premiered in 2016 and bagged an Academy Award for Best Documentary category a year later. AP News stated that O.J.: Made in America is the longest documentary to win an Oscar. According to Decider, it chronicles O.J. Simpson’s life as a Hall of Fame athlete and NFL star while also including insights from his years in college football.
Per the outlet, director Edelman included several hours of interviews with Simpson’s close ones, including friends and colleagues. The docuseries also breaks into the former athlete’s notoriety following the murders of his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend, Ron Goldman. It also covers racial tensions in the country that heavily impacted the trial, making it one of the most remarkable O.J. Simpson documentaries.
According to IMDb, a synopsis for O.J.: Made in America reads, “A chronicle of the rise and fall of O.J. Simpson, whose high-profile murder trial exposed the extent of American racial tensions, revealing a fractured and divided nation.” It is now available to stream on ESPN+.
June 17th, 1994
Another one of O.J. Simpson documentaries by ESPN Films’ 30 for 30, June 17th, 1994 partly delves into the infamous slow-speed car chase between Simpson and the police. According to AP News, on June 17, 1994, the former NFL star led police on a car chase in his white Ford Bronco. ABC News reported that the incident resulted in a massive standstill in the Southern California freeways. Moreover, at least 95 million Americans witnessed the event live as news helicopters followed Simpson in his Branco. He ultimately surrendered to authorities.
The documentary, June 17th, 1994, also covered other important sports events that occurred on that day besides Simpson’s arrest. These events included Arnold Palmer’s final U.S. Open round and the start of the World Cup. This Brett Morgen directorial premiered on June 16, 2010, and is now available to stream on ESPN+.
A synopsis, per IMDb, says, “Documents on how the events on the day OJ Simpson was pursued and arrested on charges of murdering his ex-wife and her boyfriend overshadowed and took precedence over other sporting events from around the country by the media. No additional footage or voiceover was shot and the entire documentary is encapsulated in sound bites from various feeds on the day.”
O.J. Simpson: The Lost Confession?
In March 2018, Fox aired one of the most shocking O.J. Simpson documentaries. The documentary titled O.J. Simpson: The Lost Confession? covers an interview from 2006 in which the former athlete, per prosecutor Christopher Darden, confesses to the 1994 double murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman, reported NBC News. Simpson sat for the said interview with publisher Judith Regan and discussed the murders hypothetically.
An IMDb synopsis for the documentary reads, “In recently rediscovered recordings of an interview by Judith Regan, O.J. Simpson shares a hypothetical account of what happened on the night his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend, Ron Goldman, were brutally slain.”
Recently, a CBS 48 Hours episode also covered the decades-old case following Simpson’s death on April 10, 2024. Other popular works include the TV drama The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story and The Run of His Life: The People v. O.J. Simpson.
