Ryan Murphy has created a new anthology limited series, this time focused on the life and crimes of NFL football player Aaron Hernandez. The show is the first entry in Murphy’s new American Sports Story franchise, following in the footsteps of his American Crime Story series.
Jake Cannavale (The Mandalorian) has been cast as Hernadez’s love interest, so we know the show will explore his sexuality as well as his murder conviction. The show won't premier until late 2023 and details are scarce, but let’s dive into what we do know.
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The limited series is based on the popular Boston Globe and Wondery podcast Gladiator: Hernandez and Football Inc. and will cover Hernandez’s life, his conviction for murder, his time in prison, and his eventual suicide. Each season of the scripted anthology series will tell the story of an event involving a prominent sports figure from multiple perspectives and re-examine it through a modern lens.
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Josh Andrés Rivera will play Hernandez opposite Cannavale. Arnold Schwarzenegger's son Patrick Schwarzenegger (Gen V) will play former NFL star Tim Tebow alongside Catfish Jean (To Leslie) as Hernandez’s close friend Ernest “Bo” Wallace.
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The New England Patriots star tight end was convicted of the murder of semi-professional football player Odin Lloyd in 2015 and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Hernandez was suspected of other murders but only faced one conviction. It is rumored that Hernandez committed the crime to keep his homosexuality a secret. Wallace was also convicted of being an accessory after the fact and sentenced to four and a half to seven years in prison. In 2017, Hernandez took his own life while he was behind bars.
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