What did Chris Rock say about Nicole Brown Simpson’s murder?
THE murder of Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend Ron Goldman has gripped international attention since 1994.
Chris Rock casually mentioned the murder in one of his comedy shows, which attracted backlash from Nicole Brown Simpson’s sister.
What did Chris Rock say about Nicole Brown Simpson’s murder?
Chris Rock used one of his comedy shows to talk about the murder of Nicole Brown Simpson.
He was doing a show in 2022 at the Arizona Financial Theatre in downtown Phoenix when he reportedly said he declined an offer to host the 2023 Oscars following his altercation with Will Smith.
Previously that year, Will Smith walked onto the Oscars stage and slapped Chris Rock after the comedian joked about Smith’s wife Jada Pinkett’s medical condition.
In his comedy show, Chris Rock compared accepting the job to returning to the scene of a crime, referencing the murder trial of OJ Simpson.
According to a report from the Arizona Republic, he said hosting the Oscars would be like asking Nicole Brown Simpson “to go back to the restaurant” where she left her eyeglasses before being killed.
How did people react to the comment?
Nicole’s sister Tanya Brown described the joke as “distasteful”.
Taking to her Instagram page, she released the statement: “Nothing Is more lovely then to wake up on a Tuesday morning (Not) with TMZ calling you saying Chris Rock made a horrible ‘joke’ about Nicole.
“BEYOND distasteful!”
She then went on to talk about when Chris called Jada Pinkett Smith “GI Jane” when he hosted the Oscars.
Tanya added: “Nothing funny about his joke towards Jada as she suffers from a physical condition and nothing funny about equating an Oscar host invitation to a double homicide.
“I always thought he was funny, but he crossed the line with this one.
“In other words, Y’all!!!! Stop using my sister, OJ and Ron part of your cricking comedy act. There are families behind this tragedy!”
Who was Nicole Brown Simpson?
Nicole was the ex wife of OJ Simpson.
She was found dead outside her house alongside her friend Ron Goldman on June 12 1994.
The pair were both found with multiple stab wounds by police.
OJ went to trial for the murders but was acquitted after nine months.
He was later found liable for both deaths in a civil lawsuit in 1997.
OJ Simpson's Trial Timeline
A look at why The People of the State of California v. Orenthal James Simpson is regarded as the murder trial of the century.
On June 12, 1994, OJ Simpson’s estranged wife Nicole Brown Simpson, 35, and her friend Ronald Goldman, 25, were stabbed to death outside her Los Angeles condo.
Their bodies were found two days later.
On June 17, Simpson was charged with their murders and arrested following a livestreamed car chase.
He pleaded not guilty to the charges on July 22.
By November 3, an initial jury of twelve was selected.
They would be sequestered for 265 days throughout the proceedings.
Simpson wished for a speedy trial, and his team worked tirelessly on their defense before opening statements began on January 24.
Prosecutors painted Simpson as a savage killer who lashed out at his wife in a murderous rage because he couldn’t control her.
They said a bloody glove was recovered at the crime scene, and that blood spatters were seen on Simpson’s white Ford Bronco.
Meanwhile, the defense accused Mark Fuhrman, a Los Angeles Police Department detective who was working the case, of racism.
They claimed Fuhrman used racist language to describe Black people and tried to paint him as an illegitimate witness.
Three days after the opening statements, Simpson released his tell-all book I Want to Tell You where he spoke out about the deaths and accusations.
On February 3, Nicole’s sister Denise Brown testified that Simpson was abusive, claiming he called Nicole a “fat pig” when she was pregnant.
On June 15, Simpson tried on bloody gloves that were found at the scene of the crime and demonstrated that they did not seem to fit in a dramatic court scene.
On October 3, the jury found Simpson not guilty of two counts of murder.
In 1997, Simpson was found liable for Nicole and Goldman’s deaths in a civil suit filed by the victims’ families.
When did OJ Simpson die?
OJ’s family announced on Thursday April 11, 2024 that he had died at the age of 76 after being diagnosed with cancer.
The statement said: “On April 10th, our father, Orenthal James Simpson, succumbed to his battle with cancer. He was surrounded by his children and grandchildren.
“During this time of transition, his family asks that you please respect their wishes for privacy and grace.”
It was reported in February 2024 that OJ had been diagnosed with prostate cancer.