Nicole Brown Simpson had been living in fear of her legendary running back husband O.J. Simpson before her infamous 1994 murder, sister Denise Brown says, according to an upcoming documentary.
Last month, Simpson’s family announced via Twitter/X that he died of prostate cancer at 76 years old. He lived in Nevada in the twilight of his life, and also served time in prison there for an armed robbery and kidnapping that were unrelated to his wife’s murder, Fox News Digital previously reported.
Although much of the public believed the former football star was responsible for the double-murder of his wife and her friend Ron Goldman, he was acquitted after his highly publicized trial. Now, Nicole’s surviving family members have broken their silence for an upcoming Lifetime documentary, hoping to shed light on what their sister experienced before her mysterious death.
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Simpson once portrayed Detective Nordberg in “The Naked Gun” crime-spoof franchise flicks. (Paramount)
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The two parts of “The Life and Murder of Nicole Brown Simpson” are slated to air on June 1 and 2.
Brown’s sisters Denise, Dominque and Tanya recount in a trailer for the documentary some of the abuse she allegedly underwent at Simpson’s hands before her death. Brown even kept a journal chronicling each instance, the sisters said.
“She always thought he was going to hurt her,” a voiceover of one of Brown’s sisters can be heard playing in the trailer over footage of the late woman’s life. “She always knew it.”
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Brown called the police on Simpson multiple times during their seven-year marriage. The football star was only arrested once, pleading “no contest” to spousal abuse – but Brown dropped the charges against him.In 1992, Brown filed for divorce citing irreconcilable differences, but the abuse allegedly continued.
O.J. Simpson, Nicole Brown Simpson, Jason Simpson, Sydney Brooke Simpson and Justin Ryan Simpson at the premiere of the “Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult” in which O.J. starred on March 16, 1994, in Los Angeles. (Vinnie Zuffante/Getty Images)
In the highly anticipated release, Brown’s family aims to tell their relative’s side of the story, which they felt was overshadowed during Simpson’s heavily publicized trial.
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“Who is Nicole? Who is she? Because she got lost in this whole thing,” one sister says.
Another sister adds, “She wasn’t just a headline of a tragedy – she was so much more.”
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O.J. Simpson and Nicole Brown Simpson during the premiere of “When Harry Met Sally” at the Academy Theater in Los Angeles. (Jim Smeal/Ron Galella Collection via Getty Images)
The fate of Brown and Simpson’s children – who lived in Simpson’s custody after he was acquitted of their mother’s murder – are also a subject in the documentary. Brown’s parents continued to fight for custody of the children until 2006, when the eldest child turned 18, the BBC reported.
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The sisters told The Hollywood Reporter earlier this month that they hope the documentary will help other victims of abuse move on before things escalate.
Christina Coulter is a U.S. and World reporter for Fox News Digital. Email story tips to christina.coulter@fox.com.