'American Crime Story' Season 1 News, Spoilers: Cuba Gooding, Jr., Director on Portraying O.J. Simpson Trial
Though everyone who is familiar with the infamous 1995 Nicole Brown murder case has his or her own opinion on O.J. Simpson's innocence or guilt, actor Cuba Gooding, Jr. says that he tried to portray the incarcerated former football star from a "blank-slate frame of mind."
The actor, who took on the role of Simpson for the first season of FX's anthology crime series "American Crime Story," paid host James Corden a visit on Corden's "Late Late Show" on Monday, March 28. While there, Gooding, Jr. spoke about how he approached his lead role in the series, saying, "I try to play him with a blank-slate frame of mind."
"American Crime Story: The People v. O.J. Simpson," which will air its season finale next week, has been commended for not forcing its own opinion on whether Simpson is guilty or not. Instead, the FX series has portrayed the trial as accurately as possible without taking a stance.
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"It's dangerous when you either deitize or demonize a character you're portraying," Gooding, Jr. told Corden. "I had an agreement with [executive producer] Ryan Murphy where could do some takes innocent, some takes guilty, so that way when Ryan got into the editing room, he has a plethora of emotions to play with."
Director Anthony Hemmingway, who directed five out of the ten episodes of "The People v. O.J. Simpson," also spoke about how they managed to portray the trial, which occurred more than two decades ago, for today's audience.
According to Hemmingway, it was all about trying to depict the events accurately while also making it "relatable" and "relevant."
"We were looking to figure out the best way to breathe humanity into these characters, into this world and this time," he told Mashable.
In the season finale, titled "The Verdict," closing statements will be given and the jury will hand over its verdict.
"American Crime Story" airs its final episode on Tuesday, April 5, at 10 p.m. ET on FX.
