20th Century Fox Television is is evaluating its options after "Empire" star Jussie Smollet was charged Thursday on the suspicion of filing a false police report.
This news comes more than three weeks after Smollett alleged he had been the victim of a hate crime.
Chicago police Superintendent Eddie Johnson said the "Empire" actor "took advantage of the pain and anger of racism to promote his career" during a news conference Thursday.
"We understand the seriousness of this matter and we respect the legal process," Fox said in a statement. "We are evaluating the situation and we are considering our options."
Johnson said Smollett sent a threatening racist and homophobic letter to himself at the Fox studio lot before the attack, noting that the actor had been dissatisfied with his salary.
According to HuffPost, Smollett was paid $65,000 per episode for co-starring in the series.
On Tuesday, it was reported that Smollett's scenes in episodes of "Empire" had been rewritten and reduced.
Smollett was charged Wednesday with felony disorder conduct. He turned himself in on Thursday morning.
"Like any other citizen, Mr. Smollett enjoys the presumption of innocence, particularly when there has been an investigation like this one where information, both true and false, has been repeatedly leaked," Smollet's attorneys said in a statement.
Smollett had told police in January that he was attacked by two masked men as he was walking home around 2 a.m. The actor, who is black and gay, said he was beaten, had racist and homophobic comments shouted at him, had a chemical substance poured on him and a rope was looped around his neck before the attackers fled the scene.
Ola and Abel Osundairo were arrested last week for allegedly being connected to the attack. They were later released without charges. The Osundairo brothers, one of which appeared on "Empire," told police that they were paid $3,500 to carry out the attack.
from Top News & Analysis https://ift.tt/2V9p8p1via IFTTT
No comments:
Post a Comment