There was a time when O.J. Simpson was a beloved athlete turned part-time actor. There was a time when Johnnie Cochran wasn’t internationally famous. And there was even a time when no one had any idea what a Kardashian was.
Twenty-two years ago, that changed with the brutal murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend, Ron Goldman. While police were fairly quick to suspect Nicole Brown Simpson’s ex-husband, O.J. Simpson; the general public wasn’t quite ready to accept that this sports hero and movie star could possibly have killed anyone, much less the mother of his children. The early aftermath of the Simpson/Goldman murders was so bizarre that people were actually cheering Simpson on during his infamous slow-speed white Bronco chase that ended with his arrest.
While several high profile criminal cases have been called “the trial of the century,” the O.J. Simpson trial may have actually lived up to its billing. Social media didn’t exist in the ‘90s, but the media’s fixation on this case was beyond intense. Soon enough, the trial took on a circus-like atmosphere as Simpson’s “Dream Team” of attorneys attempted (and succeeded) in creating reasonable doubt within the minds of the jury. Public opinion about Simpson’s guilt or innocence differed greatly, but Simpson’s reputation never recovered from the trial and he was treated like a pariah. Thirteen years later, Simpson was convicted of kidnapping and armed robbery in Nevada. But his downfall always came back to his trial for murder.
FX’s new true crime anthology series, American Crime Story: The People v. O.J. Simpson is the most comprehensive Hollywood adaptation of the trial to date. As you may have guessed by the title, there is a connection to American Horror Story. AHS co-creators Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk are executive producing American Crime Story, which will follow the American Horror Story model of switching casts and storylines every season.
Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski co-created American Crime Story, and they’re expected to write all 10 episodes of the first season. The series has a very impressive cast that includes Cuba Gooding, Jr. as O. J. Simpson, John Travolta as Robert Shapiro, Nathan Lane as F. Lee Bailey, Jordana Brewster as Denise Brown, David Schwimmer as Robert Kardashian,Courtney B. Vance as Johnnie Cochran, Connie Britton as Faye Resnick, and American Horror Story veteran Sarah Paulson as Marcia Clark, the lead prosecutor of the case.
Judging from tonight’s series premiere of American Crime Story, Alexander and Karaszewski are attempting to humanize the people in this story who were reduced to media caricatures during the course of the original trial. So far, it’s actually quite good. But given that the outcome of Simpson’s trial is widely known, the real mystery of American Crime Story is this: where will it end? With Simpson’s acquittal? Simpson’s subsequent loss in the wrongful death civil trial? Or perhaps even the Las Vegas robbery case that finally sent Simpson to prison? We’ll find out in about ten weeks.
The O.J. Simpson trial featured a truly unique set of circumstances and outrageous, larger-than-life personalities. And no one emerged from it unscathed or unchanged. Scroll down below to the slideshow if you want to know what happened to six of the trial’s major players during the subsequent two decades.
American Crime Story: The People v. O.J. Simpson airs Tuesday nights on FX.
Photo Credits: FX Networks
Whatever Happened To The Major Players From The O.J. Simpson Trial?
Whatever Happened To The Major Players of the O.J. Simpson Trial?
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John Travolta as Robert Shapiro
Robert Shapiro was famous for being a "lawyer to the stars" even before he joined Simpson's "Dream Team" of defense attorneys.
Later in his career, Shapiro began to specialize in civil litigation, and he wrote several legal books. Shapiro also co-founded LegalZoom.com and he remains active in his chosen field.
Photo Credit: FX
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Courtney Vance as Johnnie Cochran
It's often forgotten that Johnnie Cochran worked in the Los Angeles District Attorney's office as the first African-American A.D.A. in LA. Eventually, he struck out on his own.
Cochran found fame and fortune as a fierce litigator in his private practice, especially when his cases involved police brutality and civil rights abuses.
The O.J. Simpson trial gave Cochran a national audience to demonstrate his gift of alliteration and his skills as a lawyer. Simpson himself credited Cochran with his acquittal.
Cochran’s last case was in 2002, when he defended Sean "P. Diddy" Combs from weapons charges. Cochran passed away in 2005 after suffering from a brain tumor.
Photo Credit: FX
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David Schwimmer as Robert Kardashian
Robert Kardashian was friends with O.J. Simpson for almost two decades prior to Simpson’s murder trial. Technically, Kardashian was a “volunteer assistant” on Simpson’s legal team; but the trial also elevated Kardashian’s fame as well.
Although Kardashian passed away from cancer in 2003, his ex-wife and their children found their own fame through reality shows and tabloid culture. You may have heard of them.
Photo Credit: FX
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Sarah Paulson as Marcia Clark
Marcia Clark was the head prosecutor of the O.J. Simpson trial, and though she lost the case, she proved that Simpson’s attorney’s weren’t the only ones willing to make a profit from their involvement with the trial.
Clark took a leave of absence from the District Attorney’s office to write a book about her experiences on the Simpson trial and she never went back. Clark went on to become a TV legal correspondent and wrote four additional books.
Photo Credit: FX
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Billy Magnussen as Kato Kaelin
Nobody parlayed their way to fame quite like Kato Kaelin. Even during the Simpson trial, Kaelin was widely mocked for his minor celebrity and for being a “professional houseguest” who was staying in Simpson's guest house. At the trial, he testified as a “hostile witness,” and he wasn’t especially helpful to either side in the case.
Amazingly, Kaelin managed to stretch his 15 minutes of fame into over 20 years of comedy appearances, reality TV shows, and even a few hosting gigs.
Photo Credit: FX
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Cuba Gooding, Jr. as O.J. Simpson
Simpson was ultimately found not guilty by the court of law, but the court of public opinion quickly branded him a pariah. It didn't help Simpson's image when he put his name on a book called "If I Did It," which he claimed was a fictionalized version of what occurred the night that Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman were murdered.
Because Simpson had previously lost a wrongful death civil case to the Goldman family, the book was turned over to the Goldmans and published with the added subtitle "The Confessions of the Killer."
In 2008, Simpson was convicted of kidnapping and armed robbery charges stemming from a 2007 incident in Las Vegas. Although initially sentenced to 33 years in prison, Simpson could be released from prison as early as 2017.
Photo Credit: FX
