Up to about two months ago, the actor Jussie Smollett was pretty much an unknown personality to the world.
Unless you are a devoted “Empire” TV show fan, you probably had no idea who the 37 year-old actor who played the role of Jamal Lyon even was.
That, however all changed in the early morning of January 29, 2019.
From the neighborhoods of California to the busy streets of Mumbai, every single person now knows who Smollett is but not for all the right reasons.
As many of you already know (and for the remaining few that may not) the actor has been charged with 16 felony accounts (with plenty of evidence provided by the Chicago Police Department) for allegedly staging a “fake attack” in the early freezing morning of January 29 , 2019 at 2am in the middle of a polar vortex in Chicago. Holding a Subway sandwich (yes, that’s right, wealthy actors like Subway at 2am) Smollett stated that two individuals wearing president Trump’s famous slogan MAGA (Make America Great Again) hats doused him with bleach, beat him up and then put a noose around his neck all the while shouting “This is MAGA country” and some other derogatory and racists comments which I won’t print here.
The alleged attack was the prime news story on every single media outlet around the world. Support for the actor on social media was overwhelming. “Don’t let racist Trump’s America get to you” wrote one supporter while another wrote “#BlackLivesMatter Jussie! We are behind you.”
With no official video of the attack found (police searched through hours of security video and could not find anything), Smollett went on “Good Morning America” and spoke about his attack and even shed a few tears to anchor Robin Roberts. He also expressed his distaste for President Trump in the interview.
Smollett has been very vocal about his hatred towards “45” as he so gently puts its. His Twitter account has profanity laced and disrespectful tweets showing his deep contempt towards the Commander-in-Chief.
But as the sympathy factor started to slowly dwindle, the doubters began to surface when missing pieces of the story came into question with Smollett’s original scenario.
First, Smollett said he “broke” his rib then he said it was “bruised”. He refused to turn his cell phone records over to the police and the two “persons of interests” that the people found on some security footage, turned out to be Nigerian brothers & personal trainers who not only knew Smollett but also worked on “Empire” as extras. Soon afterwards, a video tape surfaced of the two brothers purchasing items at a local store (masks and MAGA hats) and then came the shocker- the brothers confessed that Smollett had in fact paid them $35oo to “stage” the attack…with a check.
The Chicago Police said that Smollett staged the horrible hate crime because he was “unhappy” with his salary (recorded at $100K per episode). Others close to the investigation said that the actor wanted attention and sympathy from the world so producers would give him a higher salary due to his “victimized” status.
The only problem with his Oscar worthy performance is that Smollett not only hurt himself, alienated friends and co-stars but also pretty much jeopardized his career in Hollywood as an actor, for now at least.
His final few scenes from the show were cut from the finale and his new songs (yes, Smollett is also an R&B aspiring singer) are not selling at the speed he and his team had hoped.
So the question one needs to ask is why would a wealthy, lucky and much-loved actor risk everything by creating a hoax just for the sake of wanting a higher salary? Why did Smollett concoct a racist hate crime scenario instead of a plain robbery or a mugging?
There are many theories surfacing out there in the media, so it is hard to pick just one. Some TV anchors said Smollett wanted to show that by being a victim of a hate crime, he would get more sympathy and therefore demand a higher salary. Others say the actor used his hatred for President Trump as an excuse to blame the current “Trump’s America” and the political climate. Some even went far as saying that Smollett was just plain greedy.
Who knows the real reason why he did what he did or for that matter, why people do the things they do. But one thing is for certain, in the process, Smollett harmed himself professionally and brought negative publicity to the show and created mistrust with cast members and fans.
What’s also interesting is that victims of actual hate crimes do not get anywhere near the kind of attention that Smollett’s story did which angered many local and national hate crime organizations.
According to The United States Department of Justice 2017 hate crime statistics, 8,437 crime offenses were reported in the United States. How many of those offenses received the kind of attention on the level that Smollett’s alleged attack received?
A week before the Chicago story happened, Smollett said he received a threatening letter which according to prosecutors, was not given the kind of response the actor has hoped for from the Empire producers. The authenticity of the letter is now part of the ongoing investigation.
I hope Jussie Smollett has learned from this ordeal and realizes that you can’t fake your way through life and expect to be rewarded. It catches up with you sooner or later and in Jussie’s case, it was much sooner than later.
The actor has pleaded “not guilty” at his March 14, 2019 Chicago court hearing to the 16 counts of disorderly conduct for allegedly staging a phony attack & for claiming he was the victim of a hate crime. Smollett is currently free on $100K bond.
The journey continues……
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