O.J. Simpson's 'confession' to wife's murder infuriates fans but reportedly fails on several fronts

The interview that was shelved fearing public outroar did not manage to get high ratings when it was finally aired.

As reported in an article published by Entertainment Daily, Fox aired an old interview of OJ Simpson in a 2-hour special Sunday night episode titled The Lost Confession?.

But the show did not match the ratings like its rival ABC which aired the premiere of American Idol 16.

TV experts believed that Fox's decision of airing the interview opposite American Idol's 16th season's premiere was a desperate attempt to lure the viewers and fans of the popular singing competition.

American Idol was a part of Fox for 15 seasons since it first aired on June 11, 2002. Its 15th season ended on April 7, 2016. ABC revived the show by airing its premiere on March 11.

When the ratings numbers came out on Monday, Simpson's old interview could not compete with the high viewership of ABC's American Idol.

American Idol led the charts with a viewership of 10.3 million while The Lost Confession? managed to capture an audience of 4.4 million viewers.

Fox's troubles did not end there. The episode was widely scrutinized on social media and it received bad reviews from television critics. The interview was shot in 2006 where publisher Judith Regan interviewed Simpson.

The interview was meant to publicize a book titled If I Did It. Regan had helped Simpson release the book. It discussed the murders of Simpson's former wife, Nichole Brown Simpson, and her friend, Ronald Goldman.

Simpson was acquitted of the murders in 1995 but was later found liable in a civil trial. The trial had ordered Simpson to pay Brown and Goldman's families a sum of $33.5 million in damages.

The special Sunday episode was hosted by former CNN anchor Soledad O'Brien. The interview was interrupted by various clips including commentary by a host of panelists with O'Brien.

Simpson had said in the interview that Brown was a confrontational woman an acted inappropriately for her age. He added that she had several affairs while being in the marriage.

Simpson enlisted the hypothetical methods of the murders of Brown and Goldman if he had committed the crime. He mentioned that he blacked out due to rage when he saw the two people together.

When he returned to consciousness, Brown and Goldman were lying dead soaked in blood. Many people and various publications deemed the interview to be gross, chilling and disturbing.