American Sports Story

American Sports Story is an American sports drama anthology series developed by Stu Zicherman, who also serves as an executive producer alongside Ryan Murphy, Nina Jacobson, Brad Simpson, Alexis Martin Woodall, Eric Kovtun, Hernan Lopez, Marshall Lewy, Linda Pizutti Henry, and Ira Napoliello. The series serves as the fourth installment in the American Story media franchise, and is broadcast on the cable network FX.
The first season, titled American Sports Story: Aaron Hernandez, is focused on the rise and fall of former NFL player Aaron Hernandez, and premiered on September 17, 2024.
On August 13, 2021, it was announced that FX had ordered a new spin-off limited series American Sports Story. The series, which is based on the podcast Gladiator: Aaron Hernandez and Football Inc. from The Boston Globe and Wondery, focuses on the rise and fall of former NFL player Aaron Hernandez. Specifically, the series explores the disparate strands of Hernandez's identity, his family, his career, his suicide and their legacy in sports and American culture.
By January 2023, John Landgraf stated that the series was "heading toward production" as there was a "fairly complete set of scripts" from Stu Zicherman, although no premiere date was set. In November 2023, it was reported that Josh Andrés Rivera, Patrick Schwarzenegger, Lindsay Mendez, Tony Yazbeck, Jake Cannavale, and Catfish Jean had joined the cast.
Principal photography began on April 3, 2023, in Jersey City, New Jersey. Filming was suspended in July due to the 2023 SAG-AFTRA strike, and resumed in December. Filming continued further in March 2024 at Camping World Stadium in Orlando, Florida.
The first season premiered with its first two episodes on FX on September 17, 2024. After the two-episode premiere, the series was released one new episode weekly leading up to the finale in November. New episodes of American Sports Story: Aaron Hernandez were made available to stream on Hulu after the 10 PM FX premiere on Tuesdays. Internationally, the series was released on Disney+.
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the first season of American Sports Story has an approval rating of 70% based on 20 reviews, with an average rating of 7.10/10. The website's critical consensus states, "American Sports Story dramatizes the tragic case of Aaron Hernandez with slick efficiency and some debatable insinuations about his motivations, with Josh Rivera's terrific performance giving the sad saga a compelling core." Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 72 out of 100 based on 14 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.
Amy Amatangelo of The A.V. Club complimented American Sports Story for offering a fresh perspective on Hernandez's downfall, focusing on broader themes such as the football industry's impact on players and the cultural pressures surrounding masculinity. She highlighted the show's exploration of Hernandez's struggles with repressed sexuality, childhood trauma, and the physical toll of playing football, including CTE, without offering excuses for his actions. Amatangelo appreciated Rivera's portrayal of Hernandez, capturing both his charm and volatile nature. She noted the series' dramatic license, which adds new layers to the story, and its ability to put football itself on trial, questioning the industry's responsibility for its players. Keith Phipps of TV Guide said that American Sports Story avoids sensationalizing Hernandez's life, instead providing a nuanced portrayal of his downfall. He appreciated Rivera's performance, highlighting how the actor balances the character's anger, paranoia, and vulnerability, showing Hernandez as both a victim and a villain. Phipps found that the series effectively examines the various factors influencing Hernandez, including a demanding father, a history of abuse, drug dependency, his sexuality, and the long-term effects of concussions. He appreciated how the show delves into such themes without resorting to exploitative treatment, particularly in episodes dealing with Hernandez's relationship with Tim Tebow.
Alex Kirshner of Slate praised American Sports Story for its portrayal of Hernandez's life, particularly its casting, which he found to be realistic, with characters like Rivera as Hernandez and Yazbeck as Urban Meyer receiving particular attention. He appreciated the series' attention to detail, especially in depicting college football and the NFL, and how it successfully paints an engaging picture of Hernandez's environment, including the flaws in his support systems. Kirshner noted that the show provides a plausible interpretation of the factors that may have contributed to Hernandez's downfall, though it does not break new ground in terms of understanding his motivations. However, he found the writing occasionally overemphasized certain aspects, such as Hernandez's college celebrity. Matthew Creith of TheWrap appreciated American Sports Story's portrayal of Hernandez's troubled life, emphasizing his struggle with a closeted identity and the impact of cultural attitudes toward masculinity in the early 2000s. He highlighted Rivera's performance as a vulnerable Hernandez, noting his physical transformation and emotional depth. While he found the show engaging, Creith pointed out that it sometimes oversimplifies certain aspects, such as the representation of real-life figures like Bill Belichick and Robert Kraft, turning them into caricatures. He also acknowledged the series' risk-taking in addressing sensitive topics but felt it leaned too heavily on sensational moments, with the issue of head injuries and CTE only treated as a secondary concern.
In 2024, American Sports Story debuted at No. 1 on Hulu's "Top 15 Today"—a daily updated list of the platform's most-watched titles—on its first full day of release and remained on the list for ten consecutive days as of October 1, alongside other Ryan Murphy-produced series like Grotesquerie and Doctor Odyssey. It later ranked No. 3 on Hulu's "Top 15 Today" list on October 4. The show reclaimed the No. 1 spot on Hulu in November 2024, nearly two months after its premiere. According to market research company Parrot Analytics, which tracks consumer engagement across streaming, downloads, and social media, American Sports Story had an audience demand 6.1 times higher than the average show in the United Kingdom in December 2024, placing it in the top 8.6% of all tracked titles. Audience demand for the show in the UK increased by 49.7% in December. Its peak demand reached 13.4 times the average. The UK accounted for 42% of the show's U.S. demand.
American Sports Story garnered attention after a scene featuring Laith Wallschleger as Rob Gronkowski went viral on social media. This was notably observed on "NFL Twitter," where the clip was shared by NFL writer Dov Kleiman and others. The comedic exchange between Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez led to widespread sharing and commentary online. Gronkowski acknowledged that Wallschleger, who serves as his body double in various projects, effectively embodied his persona in a manner that aligned with the style of the series.