History Series / ThePeopleVOJSimpson

Creator/CubaGoodingJr. stars as Simpson himself, while the cast is rounded out by Creator/SarahPaulson as Marcia Clark, Creator/CourtneyBVance as Johnnie Cochran, Sterling K. Brown as Christopher Darden, Creator/JohnTravolta as Robert Shapiro, Creator/DavidSchwimmer as Robert Kardashian, Selma Blair as Kris Jenner (née [[Series/KeepingUpWithTheKardashians Kardashian]]), Nathan Lane as F. Lee Bailey, and Billy Magnussen as Kato Kaelin.

Cuba Gooding Jr. stars as Simpson himself, while the cast is rounded out by Creator/SarahPaulson as Marcia Clark, Creator/CourtneyBVance as Johnnie Cochran, Sterling K. Brown as Christopher Darden, Creator/JohnTravolta as Robert Shapiro, Creator/DavidSchwimmer as Robert Kardashian, Selma Blair as Kris Jenner (née [[Series/KeepingUpWithTheKardashians Kardashian]]), Nathan Lane as F. Lee Bailey, and Billy Magnussen as Kato Kaelin.

** While Clark was raped, in real life it happened while she was in college in the U.S. (rather then when she was underage and in Italy like in the show) and she never pressed charges against her attacker out of fear.

* RefugeInAudacity: "Conspiracy Theories" focuses on this as the defense try to bring up theories on the killers like Colombian drug dealers. When Clark scoffs at how outrageous they are, Darden tells her the jury will listen as it sounds far more exciting than a simple domestic dispute gone wrong.

* AnachronismStew: Almost every shot of B-roll and outdoor scenes in Downtown Los Angeles depict landmarks that were built after the trial[[labelnote]]Including but not limited to: the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels (2002), red brick crosswalks (2002-03), The elevated tracks of the Metro Gold Line (2003), L.A. Live (2007), Grand Park (2012), the First Street Federal Courthouse (2016), and Wilshire Grand (2016). The last of these actually replaced the Intercontinental Hotel, where the jury was sequestered.[[/labelnote]].

** In Episode 2, F. Lee Bailey says to Bob Shapiro something to the tone of "this is going to make us [the lawyers] huge". Not only was he, along with Johnnie Cochran, the only well known personality in OJ Simpson's defense team[[note]]Bailey, for instance, successfully defended Patty Hearst, and he also has a huge string of movie and TV (mainly game shows and news commentary) appearances[[/note]], he would be the one to decline the hardest after the Simpson trial. He was disbarred in 2001 in Florida and in 2003 in Massachusetts after embezzeling stocks from a pharmaceutical company that were supposed to be handed over to the IRS into paying for personal expenses in the criminal trial of drug dealer Claude DuBoc where he was the defense attorney, got bankrupt, and went to Maine where he now owns a business consulting firm, operating above his girlfriend's nail salon. He has uncessfully tried to enter the Maine Bar several times. He's also the last of The Juice's defenders, having written a lengthy essay defending his innocence.

** In Episode 2, F. Lee Bailey says to Bob Shapiro something to the tone of "this is going to make us [the lawyers] huge". Not only was he, along with Johnnie Cochran, the only well known personality in OJ Simpson's defense team[[note]]Bailey, for instance, successfully defended Patty Hearst, and he also has a huge string of movie and TV (mainly game shows and news commentary) appearances[[/note]], he would be the one to decline the hardest after the Simpson trial. He was disbarred in 2001 in both Florida and California after perjuring in another criminal trial where he was the defense attorney, got bankrupt, and went to Maine where he now owns a business consulting firm, operating above his girlfriend's nail salon. He has uncessfully tried to enter the Maine Bar several times. He's also the last of The Juice's defenders, having written a lengthy essay defending his innocence.

** In Episode 2, F. Lee Bailey says to Bob Shapiro something to the tone of "this is going to make us [the lawyers] huge". Not only was he, along with Johnnie Cochran, the only well known personality in OJ Simpson's defense team[[note]]Bailey, for instance, successfully defended Patty Hearst, and he also has a huge string of movie and TV (mainly game shows and news commentary) appearances[[/note]], he would be the one to decline the hardest after the Simpson trial. He was disbarred in 2001 in both Florida and California after perjuring in another criminal trial where he was the defense attorney, and went to Maine where he now owns a business consulting firm. He has uncessfully tried to enter the Maine Bar several times. He's also the last of The Juice's defenders, writing a lengthy essay defending his innocence.

** In Episode 2, F. Lee Bailey says to Bob Shapiro something to the tone of "this is going to make us [the lawyers] huge". Not only was he, along with Johnnie Cochran, the only well known personality in OJ Simpson's defense team[[note]]Bailey, for instance, successfully defended Patty Hearst, and he also has a huge string of movie and TV (mainly game shows and news commentary) appearances[[/note]], he would be the one to decline the hardest after the Simpson trial. He was disbarred in 2001 in both Florida and California after perjuring in another criminal trial where he was the defense attorney, and went to Maine where he now owns a business consulting firm. He has uncessfully tried to enter the Maine Bar several times.

** While the show has many other minor departures and alterations from its source material, "The Run of His Life" by Jeffrey Toobin, one of the more major ones may very well be the portrayal of Robert Kardashian. The show depicts him as a well-meaning, slightly naive and [[ConflictingLoyalty morally conflicted]] [[TrueCompanions loyal friend]] of Simpson's, while Toobin in his book views Kardashian as a frantic, obsessive sycophant clinging to media attention out of envy for his ex-wife's Kris Jenner's success in the media. Of course, others have also taken issue with Toobin's book and argued that many of the details in his book are flat out wrong (including members of the prosecution team). The basics of Kardashian's character arc, coming to doubt Simpson's innocence during the trial and their friendship dissolving afterwards, are undoubtedly true. So this is one instance where the TV adaptation may actually be more true to real life than the source material was.
** Similarly, the portrayals of Marcia Clark and Christopher Darden are more sympathetic than in Toobin's book, as he paints the prosecutors as arrogant (Clark) and incompetent (Darden), whereas the show opts for a much more nuanced characterization of both.

** In "The Race Card", when the jury visits Simpson's house, some members are shown in his trophy room aweing at his accomplishments out loud. In reality the jury was specifically told not to speak at all and the trophy room was off limits for the tour.

** Judge Ito is shown facepalming when he sees a TV parody of him. In real life Ito actually found the parodies of him very flattering. This may be shorthand for Ito's post-trial reluctance to engage with the media; to this day, he regularly refuses interviews and is one of the few major figures in the Simpson case not to write a book or memoir about it.
** The scene where Darden and Clark snap at Ito and the defense for turning the trial into a media circus actually did happen, but it occurred much earlier during testimony from a different detective. Also, Darden's outburst occurred during a sidebar discussion with Ito and Cochran rather than while he was actually questioning the witness.
** That said, the show exaggerates the behind-the-scenes tensions between the two legal teams for RuleOfDrama. There was real heat between Johnnie Cochran and Chris Darden (who, naturally, didn't appreciate the former's race-baiting), but Clark says that she mostly got along well with Cochran and the other defense attorneys even though she deplored their heavy-handed courtroom tactics. By Clark's account, she and Darden were far angrier with Judge Ito for not reining in the defense, blaming him in large part for the trial's outcome.
** Johnnie Cochran's famous line "If the glove don't fit, you must acquit" was actually written by Gerald Uelmen, another Simpson attorney who is not depicted in the miniseries.
** Although "The Verdict" makes it seem as if the jury's four-hour deliberation happened in just one day (forcing the legal teams to cancel plans that they were en route to), it wasn't as fast in real life. The jury was dismissed after closing arguments on September 29, and were allowed to spend the weekend in their hotel. The jury started deliberations at 9 AM on October 2, and reached a verdict at 3 PM (four hours not counting re-listening to some testimony); Judge Ito then announced that the verdict would be read the following morning. So while the decision was, in fact, abnormally fast, it wasn't quite the dramatic turn-around fiasco that happened in the series.
** While Marcia Clark was raped, in real life it happened while she was in college in the U.S. (rather then when she was underage and in Italy like in the show) and she never pressed charges against her attacker out of fear.
** The Bill Clinton speech on race relations watched by Cochran and his law firm was actually given a year after the trial had finished and had nothing to do with the verdict.

** Contrary to what Darden in the show says, Marcia Clark had to put Fuhrman on the stand. While Fuhrman may not have been the one who entered the glove into evidence, he was the one who found it at the crime scene. If the prosecution didn't call him to testify, the defense would have.
** In one scene Johnnie Cochran gives an inspiring speech to OJ, mentioning a great game OJ had against the Atlanta Falcons in 1978, where OJ was so good it inspired Johnnie to continue practicing law. OJ remarks "Yeah, I even scored a touchdown in that game." Juice's real life stats for that game: five carries for 15 yards, and no touchdowns.

* SelfDeprecation: When the Dream Team is told the history behind the Fuhrman tapes: they were recorded by a female scriptwriter who was researching a police drama script she as trying to pitch to major California studios. No one was willing to buy her script, however, so she eventually moved back to North Carolina to teach a scriptwriting class at a local college. All of Simpson's defense lawyers at the meeting are overjoyed that the tapes exist, but Scheck remains visibly confused, and then asks how someone who couldn't write a successful screenplay is now charging other people money for scriptwriting lessons - eliciting a groan from the rest of the room. The writers on ''American Crime Story'' were clearly poking fun at themselves.

* PromotedToScapegoat: In "The Race Card", Cochran orders Douglas to claim a procedural mistake [[TheMillstone of Shapiro]] as his own, just to throw a curve ball at the prosecution team. [[DidntSeeThatComing It causes Hodgman a heart attack.]]

** After Simpson is found not guilty, Cochran talks of it being a great thing for black people. Darden rips into him that he has done nothing to help their race but in fact hurt it as he's simply helped a rich man get away with murder. History indeed proved Cochran was wrong

* PyrrhicVictory: While O.J. is acquitted, the finale makes it clear that he has become a pariah in the eyes of many, with Robert Kardashian, arguably his biggest supporter at the start of the case, breaking off all ties with him following the verdict.

* ConflictingLoyalty: Robert Kardashian is close friends with both O.J. and Nicole, and is initially O.J.'s staunchest supporter, but as the trial progresses, he increasingly doubts O.J.'s innocence, especially after DNA evidence is introduced. By the end of the series, Rob has ended his relationship with O.J., and according to the epilogue, they don't speak with each other again before Rob's death in 2003.

* BeautyInversion: Sarah Paulson's Marcia Clark is styled very frumpily, despite the former's obvious good looks.
* BetterThanSex: Marcia references this trope by name in "The Dream Team", telling her co-workers that trials are better than having it.

* ConflictingLoyalty: Robert Kardashian is close friends with both O.J. and Nicole, but in episode 7, he began to have increasing doubts about defending O.J., especially after DNA evidence was introduced. By the end of the series, Kardashian ends his relationship with O.J. after O.J. announced his intention to search for the real killers, and according to the epilogue, they didn't speak with each other again before his death in 2003.

* EverythingIsRacist:

* BasedOnATrueStory: Each season is intended to [[{{Dramatization}} dramatize]] a real-life crime; season one is about the O.J. Simpson murder trial.

* OneSteveLimit: {{Averted}} - ''Robert'' Shapiro and ''Robert'' Kardashian (both of whom went by the nickname "Bob" in real life) were both significant figures in the proceedings, so changing their names for the series would be out of the question. More often, Shapiro is referred to as "Bob" and Kardashian as "Bobby," with a little "Rob" thrown in for the latter as he's being [[EarlyInstallmentWeirdness introduced in the first episode]]. There was actually a third Robert on the defense team in real life (Robert Blasier) but he didn't get depicted in the series.
** There's also the young Robert Kardashian Jr., who goes by "Rob" in real life. One episode has his father referring to him as "Bobby."

-->'''Mechanic''': They should bring Kato back on the show. He was so great.

* YourCostumeNeedsWork: In a hilarious RealLife instance, some viewers failed to realize that the actor playing Larry King in the fourth episode was actually Larry King playing himself. {{Subverted|Trope}} in that they generally complimented the show for its effects and/or characterization, though.

-->--'''Johnnie Cochran'''

* ShipTease: With Marcia and Chris Darden in "Marcia, Marcia, Marcia".
** This continues in "Conspiracy Theories", where Marcia and Chris go away on a trip and very nearly sleep together while drunk.
* ShoutOut: In "A Jury in Jail", the sequestered jury can't watch outside TV, so they're limited to renting movies and television that came out before the trial started. Moreover, they can only choose one thing at a time which they watch as a group, so they have to vote on what to rent. This leads to a heated argument, as all of the black jurors want to watch ''Series/{{Martin}}'', but all of the white jurors want to watch ''Series/{{Seinfeld}}''. The black jurors can't stand ''Seinfeld'', however, causing the tall one to shout, "Seinfeld ain't about ''nothing''!"

* TakeThatUs: When the Dream Team is told the history behind the Fuhrman tapes: they were recorded by a female scriptwriter who was researching a police drama script she as trying to pitch to major California studios. No one was willing to buy her script, however, so she eventually moved back to North Carolina to teach a scriptwriting class at a local college. All of Simpson's defense lawyers at the meeting are overjoyed that the tapes exist, but Scheck remains visibly confused, and then asks how someone who couldn't write a successful screenplay is now charging other people money for scriptwriting lessons - eliciting a groan from the rest of the room. The writers on ''American Crime Story'' were clearly poking fun at themselves.

* YourCostumeNeedsWork: In a hilarious RealLife instance, some viewers failed to realize that the actor playing Larry King in the fourth episode was actually Larry King playing himself. [[SubvertedTrope They generally complimented the show for its effects and/or characterization, though]].

** When Kardashian shows Shapiro the suicide letters that O.J. gave him right before the ongoing Bronco chase, Shapiro is how shall we say...baffled, at the wildly discordant tone of its contents:
--->'''Shapiro''': Jesus Christ...Who the hell signs a suicide note with a smiley face?!
*** Simpson signed the note "O.J." and put two dots and a semicircle in the "O" to make it a smiley face. In case you were wondering, no, this isn't just how Simpson normally makes his signature in autographs.

** Although he is acquitted of the murders, O.J. ends up being shunned by the Brentwood neighborhood and his golfing buddies, and in the latter case, he is no longer welcome at the Riviera Country Club. His party was attended by people he's never seen before, who just came for the novelty that the televised trial created around him. He also loses his friendship with Robert Kardashian. The final shot of the episode has him sadly looking at the statue of himself, reminiscing about his GloryDays as a football player, and realizing that he's all alone.
*** And, of course, there's the knowledge that O.J. later did ultimately wind up sentenced to 33 years in prison for a different crime, where he remains to this day.

* BookEnds:

Cuba Gooding Jr. stars as Simpson himself, while the cast is rounded out by Creator/SarahPaulson as Marcia Clark, Creator/CourtneyBVance as Johnnie Cochran, Sterling K. Brown as Christopher Darden, Creator/JohnTravolta as Robert Shapiro, David Schwimmer as Robert Kardashian, Selma Blair as Kris Jenner (née [[Series/KeepingUpWithTheKardashians Kardashian]]), Nathan Lane as F. Lee Bailey, and Billy Magnussen as Kato Kaelin.