As the Chicago PD continues to investigate the alleged attack on Jussie Smollett a month ago, FOX is feeling a bit of pressure and has decided to cut him from episodes of Empire while the Chicago PD determines what really happened.
According to Deadline, scenes involving the actor have been slashed significantly from filming this week. The series is back at work in Chicago today after the long holiday weekend but Smollett will be a rare presence on set. He was supposed to have about 9 scenes and a big musical number in the second to the last episode of this season but that has been reportedly cut to 5 scenes and his musical number has also been axed. This also puts a lot of pressure on the writers who have been busy making edits to adjust to the change. In the past 24 hours, the script has undergone multiple revisions.
Smollett has also been a rare presence for the Chicago PD. As they investigate things further, Smollett has not made himself available to them since the alleged assault on January 29. The main reason that they want to speak with him again is that Smollett has become the subject of deeper inquiries as more of the story comes to light. It’s becoming more clear that the Chicago PD believes the attack may have been preplanned and that its original depiction of it being a “hate crime”, may be false. The widely condemned attack was previously described as a racist and homophobic barrage that left Smollett beaten, drenched in bleach and with a rope slung around his neck. Openly gay, Smollett portrays the openly gay Jamal Lyon on Empire.
What’s beginning to come out is playing more like an episode of the show. While Smollett is not considered a formal suspect at present, prosecutors and law enforcement authorities are seeking to be enlightened by him about his private relationship with Olabinjo and Abimbola Osundairo. The brothers were previously described by Chicago police as “potential suspects” in the attack and arrested last week. Identified as the individuals in the photos of “persons of interest” in the Smollett case, the two were held without charge for 48 hours and then let go. It was then reported that the brothers admitted that they were paid $4,000 by Smollett to stage the attack. At this point, it has become a case of their word against his. Formerly Empire extras, the Osundario siblings, at least one of whom had been Smollett’s personal trainer, are now “fully” cooperating with authorities. They have sat for a number of interviews with police in recent days. Their cooperation and Smollett’s lack of cooperation with the police has only made him look even more suspect as the story plays out.
According to TMZ, a grand jury is about to convene to hear evidence as to whether Smollett should be indicted on the felony charge of filing a false police report. According to “ABC News”, the two brothers who were interrogated by police claim they helped him concoct the assault after he became upset that a letter threatening him originally sent to Empire‘s studio did not get enough attention.
Jussie Smollett has, of course, denied allegations that the beating was a hoax orchestrated with his involvement. He feels he is being further victimized by the PD and press which have suggested that he was complicit in the crime committed against him.
