American Sports Story is an American sports dramaanthology 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 Storymedia 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.[1]
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.[20] 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.[21]
The first season premiered with its first two episodes on FX on September 17, 2024.[26] After the two-episode premiere, the series was released one new episode weekly leading up to the finale in November.[27] New episodes of American Sports Story: Aaron Hernandez were made available to stream on Hulu after the 10 PM FX premiere on Tuesdays.[28]
American Sports Story debuted at No. 1 on Hulu’s "Top 15 Today" list on its first full day of release and remained on the list for ten consecutive days as of October 1, 2024, alongside other television series made by Ryan Murphy, including Grotesquerie and Doctor Odyssey.[29] It reclaimed the No. 1 spot on Hulu in November 2024, nearly two months after its premiere.[30]
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."[31]Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 72 out of 100 based on 14 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.[32]
American Sports Story garnered attention after a scene featuring Laith Wallschleger as Rob Gronkowski went viral on social media.[33][34] This was notably observed on "NFL Twitter," where the clip was shared by NFL writer Dov Kleiman and others.[35] The comedic exchange between Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez led to widespread sharing and commentary online.[36] 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.[37]