Union Editorial, Ventureland & The Cut Drive OJ Simpson Documentary to #1 on Netflix
Simultaneously working on 2 seasons, the team utilized 12,858 pieces of archival footage from 682 archival vendors for this season alone.
Directed by Floyd Russ, AMERICAN MANHUNT: OJ SIMPSON debuted January 29 on Netflix, and has swiftly risen to #1 in the streamer’s TV Shows Top Ten. Featuring new interviews with prosecutor Christopher Darden, police detective Mark Fuhrman, and others, this 4-part documentary series investigates the shocking murder case that became a cultural phenomenon, with many feeling justice has not been served for victims Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman. Union Editorial’s Katherine LeBlond is a producer on the project, supported by Supervising Editor Jim Haygood and a vast Union team that combed through 12,858 pieces of archival footage from 682 archival vendors in bringing this story to the screen.
AMERICAN MANHUNT: OJ SIMPSON arrives on the heels of successful Union-Netflix collaborations such as OUTSTANDING: A COMEDY REVOLUTION and HOUSE OF SECRETS: THE BURARI DEATHS. Netflix approached Union in the summer of 2023 to join forces and to collaborate with production companies Ventureland and The Cut, who are behind the inception of the series as well as Season 1 of the American Manhunt series (THE BOSTON MARATHON BOMBING.)
“We began filming OJ several months before he passed away in April 2024,” LeBlond recalled. “While the timing was ill-fated, it did allow us to secure some high-profile interviews that would likely not have happened otherwise.”
LeBlond cited the dedication and expertise of the team, noting that, “At times, our crew were on four different continents working together. This was a Herculean group effort, particularly from our assistant edit team, Roman Petrov, Daniel Horne, and our Industry Standard Experience Resident, Carmen Bartolome.”
Decider, in a ‘Stream It’ recommendation, said that AMERICAN MANHUNT: OJ SIMPSON excels at “filling in the blanks of where both the LAPD and the District Attorney’s office fell down on the job, especially as they talk to witnesses that were never called to testify or point to photos of blood and other physical evidence that was never collected by police.”
Credits
Client: Netflix
Production Companies: Ventureland, The Cut, Tillerman Films
Post Vendors: Union Editorial, Alchemy, Skyline Finishing
Director: Floyd Russ
Executive Producers: Aaron L. Ginsberg, William Green, Ali Brown, Kerstin Emhoff, Floyd Russ, Tiller Russell
Producers: Michael Rudutzky, Alec MacRae, Katherine LeBlond
Co-Executive Producer: Tina Gazzerro Clapp
Supervising Editor: James Haygood
Editors: David Tillman, Patrick Nelson Barnes, Will Butler (freelance, through Union)
Asst Editors: Roman Petrov (Union staff), Daniel Horne (freelance), Carmen Bartolome Valls (Union editing resident through the Industry Standard Experience Residency)
