Twitter Can't Stop Talking About O.J. Simpson's Appearance

OJ Simpson appeared before the Nevada Board of Parole Commissioners to plead for his early release on Thursday. Simpson has served around eight years of a thirty-year prison sentence, stemming from his role in a 2007 armed robbery in Las Vegas. As the 70-year-old former football player appeared before the parole board, some viewers on the livestream seemed convinced that OJ Simpson has lost weight since he last appeared in public four years earlier.

Simpson last went before the parole board in 2013, where he was granted paroled on several of the minor charges stemming the 2007 incident. That was also his last public appearance, and when he arrived on Thursday, some look note of his eight. TheWashington Post noted that he "appeared far slimmer and more fit than he did" in 2013, while CNN's Don Lemon noted on Twitter that "#OJ lost weight." Many, many, many others on Twitter echoed the sentiment.

In 2014, the Daily Mail reported that the former running back weighed 300 pounds and was making a concerted attempt to lose weight in prison. A similar report surfaced in 2016, but as the Wrap noted at the time, prison records from May of that year indicated that Simpson only weighed 235 pounds.

"OJ appears to have lost weight in prison," journalist Chris Daniels noted.

"The Juice is really slimming up these days," wrote Josh Sanchez at Campus Sports Net.

"OJ looks slim and trim, getting ready for that TV comeback," user Ryan Papaserge quipped.

In 1995, Simpson was acquitted of the double murder of Nicole Brown, his wife, and Ron Goldman, a friend of Brown's. But in 2008, he was tried and convicted of armed robbery, kidnapping and other charges, thanks to a 2007 incident in which Simpson and some associates allegedly tried to procure footballs and other sports memorabilia from two dealers in Las Vegas. He was sentenced to 33 years in prison; a co-defendant, Clarence "CJ" Stewart, was given 15 years.

Simpson's 1994-95 trial was one of the most high-profile court cases in decades, with round-the-clock coverage and a cast of memorable witnesses filling television airwaves for over a year. The case gained renewed interest around its 20th anniversary, thanks in large part to a documentary and TV series about the trial, both of which were critically acclaimed.

OJ Simpson: Made In America was a multi-part ESPN documentary that examined the trial through the broader lens of race and police brutality in 20th-century America, while The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story was a Golden Globe-winning FX series that depicted the trial itself, with Cuba Gooding Jr. playing the titular role.