Following the news of O.J. Simpson dying of cancer, celebrity reactions to the controversial figure’s death began pouring in.
In a statement shared by the Simpson family on Thursday morning, it was announced that on Wednesday, the former football player, who became better known for being accused of murdering his ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend Ronald Goldman amid an infamous televised car chase and trial, “succumbed to his battle with cancer” while surrounded by his children and grandchildren.
Caitlyn Jenner, who married Kris Jenner shortly after the Kardashian matriarch’s divorce from Robert Kardashian, who was Simpson’s defense attorney during the murder trial, was among the first to react on social media. “Good Riddance #OJSimpson,” she tweeted.
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Mia Farrow also took to X (formerly Twitter), writing, “Thinking of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman – and their families.”
Gloria Allred, the attorney who represented Nicole Brown Simpson’s family in Simpson’s trial, also made time to “remember the victims.”
“Of course I immediately feel sorry for his children. O.J. Simpson did kill Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman, may they rest in peace,” she said. “In the civil case which followed, he was found liable, responsible for her wrongful death. So, it’s fair to call him a killer. But in any event, I don’t mourn for O.J. Simpson. I do mourn for Nicole Brown Simpson and her family. They should be remembered. The system failed.”
On The View, the women started off Thursday’s episode by discussing Simpson’s death. Whoopi Goldberg shared the news with viewers, and Sunny Hostin chimed in that the “trial of the century” was the reason why she became a prosecutor. “For me the tragedy was the injustice,” she noted.
Alyssa Farah Griffin added, “I was 5-years-old [during the infamous police car chase], my parents had it on. That and Princess Diana’s death are ingrained in me.”
“I hope it gives some peace to the family of the victims,” she continued. “I agree it was a miscarriage of justice. I hope it helps them to find peace.”
In his Thursday monologue on The Tonight Show, Jimmy Fallon told the crowd, “As we speak, someone is trying to write the most impossible eulogy of all time.”
On Jimmy Kimmel Live!, the host wasted no time joking about Simpson’s death, interrupting the audience’s applause as he took the stage to say, “it was a tough day. God, I miss O.J. so much—already! I really do.”
Kimmel continued, “As most of you probably know, the big story was that O.J. Simpson went to Hell today. … Turns out not much different than Florida. It’s rare that a celebrity as famous as O.J. was doesn’t get an outpouring of love after news of his death, but it makes sense.”
The host moved on to other, current topics in his monologue but returned to Simpson at the end, airing some highlights of the show’s coverage of Simpson’s robbery and kidnapping trial, which resulted in the former football star spending nine years behind bars.
On The Daily Show, guest host Michael Kosta made a quick quip about Simpson, saying news of the Arizona Supreme Court ruling earlier this week allowing the state to enforce an 1864 near-total abortion ban was “being received as well as O.J. Simpson at the pearly gates.”
Seth Meyers didn’t address Simpson’s death on Late Night, and Stephen Colbert’s Late Show was a repeat on Thursday night.
Others reacted with more sympathy for Simpson. “Cookie and I are praying for O.J. Simpson’s children Arnelle, Aaren, Justin, Jason, and Sydney and his grandchildren following his passing,” Magic Johnson wrote on X. “I know this is a difficult time”
David Zucker, who directed Simpson in two Naked Gun movies, wrote on Instagram: “R.I.P. Nordberg. ‘His acting was a lot like his murdering: He got away with it, but no one believed him.’”
See more reactions to Simpson’s death below.
