The new Hulu/FX limited series American Sports Story: Aaron Hernandez will feature a dramatized portrayal of Tom Brady, the 7-time Super Bowl Champion and former teammate of Aaron Hernandez. Josh Rivera leads the American Sports Story cast as Hernandez, the former collegiate and NFL superstar tight end who was convicted of murdering semi-pro football player Odin Lloyd in 2015. Lloyd was just one of several criminal acts of violence that Hernandez was either directly a part of or implicated in throughout his football career as a member of the University of Florida Gators and the NFL’s New England Patriots.

American Sports Story portrays several NFL players and coaches, including superstar tight end Rob Gronkowski, legendary Patriots head coach Bill Belichick, and the Patriots’ billionaire owner Robert Kraft. The first two episodes of American Sports Story capture a basic understanding of Aaron Hernandez’s complicated upbringing, tumultuous family life, and accelerated path to becoming a Florida Gator after initially committing to UConn. New episodes of American Sports Story air every Tuesday at 10 PM ET/PT and will be available to stream exclusively on Hulu.

Brady Opened Up About CTE & “Tragic” Aaron Hernandez Story In 2017

Brady called it a “horrible thing” on a Boston sports radio show

Brady hasn’t made too many comments to the public about Aaron Hernandez but has opened up in brief moments over the years. In a televised interview from July 2013 that can be seen in Netflix’s Killer Inside docuseries on Hernandez, Brady said to the press, “I think everyone had a certain range of emotions, whatever they might have been. Those were really personal and I dealt with them. At some point, you have to move forward and I think we as a team are doing that.”

It wasn’t until 2017 that Brady answered another question about Hernandez again. “I don’t think about him very often. It’s just very tragic, for everyone involved,” he said on the Boston-based radio station WEEI. “To have a teammate who we were all in the huddle with, played some great games with. For everybody involved, it’s just a horrible thing. I don’t know what to make of it. It’s just very, very, very sad. There’s been a lot of awareness towards [CTE]. I understand the risks. I can only do the best I can possibly do to try to take care of my body in the ways that I believe work for me.” This came soon after Hernandez was discovered to have stage 3 CTE by Boston University.

Brady Joked About Hernandez At Netflix’s The Roast Of Tom Brady In 2024

He was not alone in poking fun at Hernandez during the Netflix special

Although Brady was in the hot seat taking most of the punchlines in Netflix’s The Roast of Tom Brady, he snuck in a jab at Hernandez during his closing speech. Speaking about Gronkowski, Brady said, “Gronk was actually pretty useful on the field, although the bar for a Patriots tight end was pretty low back then: Block, catch, don’t murder.”

Hernandez’s ex-fiancee Shayanna Jenkins responded to Brady’s diss by saying, “It’s sad that I’m trying to raise my children in such a cruel world.” (via TMZ). For the record, Brady was not Hernandez’s only former teammate to make a lewd comment about him during the Netflix special. Future episodes of American Sports Story should depict more of their dynamic as teammates.

Source: Netflix, WEEI, TMZ