By Emmanuel Morgan
The saga of Aaron Hernandez has riveted the sports world and beyond for more than a decade. An NFL star on one of football’s best teams killed a man in 2013 even as he chased fame and glory on the field.
Two years after his conviction in 2015, Hernandez hanged himself in prison, leaving unexplained his descent into crime, rumors about his sexuality and how he was able to hide his off-field life while thriving at America’s most popular sport.
Hernandez has been the subject of multiple books, true crime podcasts and documentaries. But his story is getting the Ryan Murphy treatment in a new 10-part anthology series, “American Sports Story: Aaron Hernandez,” which premiered Tuesday on FX and Hulu. Its showrunners are trying a playbook similar to one used for dramatizations of other well-known scandals like “The People v. O.J. Simpson” and “Impeachment,” about former President Bill Clinton’s sexual improprieties. But this time, they’re grappling with new terrain: pro football.
Nina Jacobson, an executive producer of “American Sports Story,” said showrunners hoped to offer viewers a “more subjective experience,” rather than a rehashing of previously reported events.
“I think we try, in all of these shows, to find a way to put people in the shoes of the characters and put themselves in the eye of the storm — not in a way to excuse anybody’s voices or behaviors,” she said, “but to give people a chance to maybe see them in a different light.”
With the first installment now available for viewing, here are the key points to know about Aaron Hernandez’s football career and murder case, and the TV drama that will depict them.
How good was Aaron Hernandez at football?
From 2007 to 2009, Hernandez played college football at the University of Florida, where his team won a national championship. He was voted the nation’s best tight end, and played alongside quarterback Tim Tebow and under the direction of head coach Urban Meyer. (The team was later profiled in the Netflix documentary series “Untold: Swamp Kings.”)
But Hernandez also ran into trouble. As a 17-year-old freshman, an altercation at a Florida bar ended in a deferred prosecution agreement for Hernandez. In 2007, according to a report, he was questioned by police investigating a shooting that injured two men. And he was suspended by the team in 2008 after a positive test for marijuana.
Despite his talent, many NFL teams were concerned enough about his behavior to pass him over. He was not selected until the fourth round of the 2010 NFL Draft, joining the New England Patriots. Led by quarterback Tom Brady and head coach Bill Belichick, the Patriots were one of football’s most popular and successful teams, and their selection kept Hernandez, raised in Bristol, Connecticut, close to home.
Hernandez became a key force, helping the Patriots to a Super Bowl appearance in 2012. That year, the team’s owner, Robert Kraft, signed Hernandez to a $40 million contract, a record at the time.
What happened in Hernandez’s murder case?
In 2013, Hernandez was charged with first-degree murder, accused of fatally shooting Odin Lloyd, a semiprofessional football player who had been dating the sister of Hernandez’s fiancée. Lloyd’s body was found at an industrial park near Hernandez’s home, and prosecutors said Hernandez had been angered that Lloyd spoke with people Hernandez did not like at a bar.
The Patriots released Hernandez shortly after his arrest, and while awaiting trial, he was separately charged with murder in the 2012 drive-by shootings of two men in Boston.
Hernandez was convicted of Lloyd’s murder in 2015 and sentenced to life in prison, but acquitted of the other charges in 2017. Days after his acquittal, prison officers said Hernandez hanged himself in his cell with a bedsheet. He was posthumously diagnosed with a severe case of chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE, a degenerative brain disease that has been found in many football players.
In media accounts after Hernandez’s death, a childhood friend, Dennis SanSoucie, said he and Hernandez had a sexual relationship as teenagers. Hernandez’s brother, Jonathan, said Aaron had come out to their mother shortly before his death.
How was the FX series made?
It is based on “Gladiator: Aaron Hernandez and Football Inc.,” a 2018 podcast from The Boston Globe and Wondery. Jacobson and Brad Simpson, another executive producer, said they also relied on court transcripts and game footage to keep the series accurate. Domonique Foxworth, a former NFL player and current ESPN analyst, wrote an episode. Simpson said he had been particularly insightful regarding locker-room culture.
Who plays Hernandez and his teammates?
Though the “American Crime Story” franchise has frequently used well-known actors in Emmy-nominated performances, much of the cast are relative unknowns.
Hernandez is portrayed by Josh Rivera, 29, known for supporting roles in “West Side Story” and “The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes.” Simpson said Rivera put on about 30 pounds for the role.
Tom Brady and Rob Gronkowski are played by Ross Jirgl and Laith Wallschleger, former college football players; and Tim Tebow by Patrick Schwarzenegger, a son of Arnold Schwarzenegger.
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