Is Jussie Smollett Innocent? The Complicated True Story Behind The Hate Crime Scandal

In 2019, Empire actor Jussie Smollett claimed he was the victim of a racially motivated attack in downtown Chicago by two masked men. His account came under scrutiny when the alleged perpetrators said the TV star paid them to stage a hate crime. Six years later, what do we know about the case, and was Smollett telling the truth or lying?

Netflix’s new documentary, The Truth About Jussie Smollett, has propelled the controversial case back into the spotlight. Directed by Gagan Rehill, the film includes exclusive interviews with Smollett, Chicago investigators and the two men who claimed they were hired to stage the attack. The project marks Smollett’s first on-screen discussion of the incident since his 2019 Good Morning America interview with Robin Roberts.

ForbesJussie Smollett Says He Is ‘Further Victimized’ By False Rumors Regarding His AssaultBy Adrienne Gibbs

Smollett is best known for starring in Fox’s hit hip-hop drama, Empire. From 2015 to 2019, he portrayed Jamal Lyon, a gay singer-songwriter who is estranged from his father because of his sexuality. Beyond acting, Smollett is also an R&B singer and an advocate for H.I.V./AIDS prevention and racial justice. According to The New York Times, in 2019, he served on the boards of four charitable organizations, including the Trayvon Martin Foundation and the Black AIDS Institute.

However, Smollett’s life took a dramatic turn in early 2019 when he reported being the victim of a hate crime. Here’s what to know about the case, including what Smollett revealed in the documentary and the evidence for and against him.

What Happened To Jussie Smollett?

On Jan. 29, 2019, Jussie Smollett told the Chicago Police Department that he was attacked around 2 a.m. near downtown Chicago. He alleged that two white men assaulted him, poured an unknown liquid on him, put a noose around his neck and yelled racist and homophobic slurs, including that it was “MAGA country,” referring to President Donald Trump’s campaign slogan. The actor was treated at a hospital but did not have serious injuries.

“Overnight the Chicago Police Department received a report of a possible racially charged assault and battery against a cast member of the television show Empire,” the original CPD statement read. “Given the severity of the allegations, we are taking this investigation very seriously and treating it as a possible hate crime.”

In response, CPD investigators worked to locate the two alleged attackers by following leads and reviewing surveillance footage. The actor also claimed that a week earlier, he received a racist letter on the set of Empire addressed to him. The envelope contained an unknown powdery substance and ransom-note style lettering, according to CBS News.

In the days following the incident, Smollett received widespread support from celebrities and political figures, including actor Viola Davis, singer John Legend and then-former Vice President Joe Biden. President Trump called the news “horrible,” and former Vice President Kamala Harris said, “This was an attempted modern day lynching.”

Meanwhile, Smollett continued to claim that everything he told police was true. “I am working with authorities and have been 100 percent factual and consistent on every level,” he said in a statement in early February 2019. “Despite my frustrations and deep concern with certain inaccuracies and misrepresentations that have been spread, I still believe that justice will be served.”

That same month, he gave his first interview on GMA, where he reiterated his innocence. “It feels like if I had said it was a Muslim, or a Mexican, or someone Black, I feel like the doubters would have supported me much more,” Smollett told Roberts. “A lot more.”

When Did Investigators Begin Questioning Jussie Smollett’s Story?

Ultimately, Chicago authorities discovered evidence that showed Smollett had possibly staged the incident. They obtained CCTV footage and ride-share records that show that the alleged attackers were actually two Nigerian American brothers named Ola and Abel Osundairo, who were extras on Empire.

During their interviews, the Osundairo brothers told police that Smollett had hired them to stage the attack. They claimed he orchestrated the crime after the cryptic letter sent to the Fox studio failed to generate attention. According to CBS News, one brother allegedly purchased the rope used in the incident at Smollett’s request. They further claimed that during the staged attack, one brother held the rope and poured bleach while the other wore a plain red hat and shouted slurs at Smollett.

“I believe he wanted to be the poster boy of activism for Black people, for gay people, for marginalized people,” Bola Osundairo said in the documentary.

Ola Osundairo added that when Smollett asked them to “beat him up,” he “thought it was crazy.” “But at the same time, I’m like, ‘It’s Hollywood.’ This is how it goes,’” he said in the documentary.

The brothers even told detectives that they rehearsed the attack with Smollett days before it occurred, and that he paid them $3,500. Sources told ABC News that the payment was disguised for fitness training to prepare for an upcoming music video. The $3,500 check reportedly covered a five-week program, consisting of $600 weekly for workouts and $100 weekly for nutrition planning.

ABC News also published text messages allegedly exchanged between Smollett and one of the Osundairo brothers, whom he referred to as “Bon.” These messages contained discussions about exercise routines and meal plans in the days leading up to the alleged attack.

In the documentary, Smollett claimed that the text exchange was code for him requesting drugs — specifically an herbal steroid to lose belly fat that is illegal in the U.S. He also said the $3,500 check was actually for personal training sessions led by Bola.

Was Jussie Smollett Arrested?

Smollett was charged with felony disorderly conduct for filing a false crime report. He was arrested just hours after the grand jury heard evidence that Smollett falsely reported being attacked. He was released on $100,000 bail and returned to the Empire set in Chicago.

In response, Chicago Police Superintendent Eddie T. Johnson criticized Smollett for exploiting the pain and anger associated with racism while wasting resources that could have been used to investigate actual crimes. “I just wish that the families of gun violence in this city got this much attention,” he said, according to The Times.

Shortly after, the producers of Empire announced that the actor’s character would not appear in the final two episodes of the show’s fifth season. “While these allegations are very disturbing, we are placing our trust in the legal system as the process plays out,” the producers said in a statement. “We are also aware of the effects of this process on the cast and crew members who work on our show and to avoid further disruption on set, we have decided to remove the role of ‘Jamal’ from the final two episodes of the season.”

In March 2019, Smollett was indicted by a Chicago grand jury on 16 felony counts, and Smollett pled not guilty. But a few weeks later, Chicago prosecutors dropped all charges against Smollett, resulting in backlash from Johnson and former Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel. Chicago Police Department Commander Ed Wodnicki told NBC Chicago that the reversal of charges was a “punch in the gut.”

“We worked closely throughout our three-week investigation to get to the point where we arrested the offender,” Wodnicki said. “For the state’s attorney at this point to dismiss charges without discussing this with us at all is just shocking.”

However, Smollett’s freedom didn’t last long, because in late 2019, a special prosecutor was appointed to review his case. The actor was indicted on Feb. 11, 2020 by a grand jury in Chicago. In the second indictment, he faced six counts of disorderly conduct for allegedly making false police reports, in addition to his existing lawsuit with the city.

What Happened At Jussie Smollett’s Trial?

On Dec. 9, 2021, Smollett was found guilty of five of the six charges of felony disorderly conduct for falsely telling police that he was assaulted in the hate-fueled attack, per NBC News.

In March, the actor was sentenced to 150 days in jail and 30 months of probation. He was ordered to pay around $120,100 in restitution to the city of Chicago and was fined $25,000, which was the maximum amount.

He only spent six days in jail before the Empire star was released on bond pending an appeal. However, an appeals court later upheld the disorderly conduct convictions, the Associated Press reported at the time. He was ordered to complete the 150-day jail sentence.

Why Did The Illinois Supreme Court Overturn Smollett’s Conviction?

The most significant development in the case came in November 2024, when the Illinois Supreme Court overturned his conviction, ruling that Smollett had been wrongfully charged after entering into a non-prosecution agreement with the Cook County state’s attorney.

“Nevertheless, what would be more unjust than the resolution of any one criminal case would be a holding from this court that the State was not bound to honor agreements upon which people have detrimentally relied,” the ruling said, according to NBC News.

Special Prosecutor Dan K. Webb, who brought the second case against Smollett, released a statement disagreeing with the Illinois Supreme Court’s decision. “Make no mistake — today’s ruling has nothing to do with Mr. Smollett’s innocence,” he said.

“The Illinois Supreme Court did not find any error with the overwhelming evidence presented at trial that Mr. Smollett orchestrated a fake hate crime and reported it to the Chicago Police Department as a real hate crime, or the jury’s unanimous verdict that Mr. Smollett was guilty of five counts of felony disorderly conduct,” Webb continued. “In fact, Mr. Smollett did not even challenge the sufficiency of the evidence against him in his appeal to the Illinois Supreme Court.”

The city of Chicago and Smollett finally settled their lawsuit on May 1, 2025. In an Instagram post, the actor explained that he was offered the opportunity to have the suit dismissed in exchange for a charitable donation. He donated $50,000 to the Building Brighter Futures Center for the Arts and committed to an additional $10,000 donation to the Chicago Torture Justice Center.

What Evidence Supports That Jussie Smollett Was Telling The Truth?

In The Truth About Jussie Smollett, the former Empire star maintains his innocence. But what evidence supports Smollett’s claim that he was telling the truth about his assault?

There are two witnesses can corroborate parts of Smollett’s account, according to the film. A security guard at the Sheraton reported seeing a white man running down the street around the time of the alleged attack. Additionally, a neighbor in Smollett’s building saw a man with a rope hanging from his coat while walking her dog in front of the building. “I thought to myself, this is it, this is going to exonerate me,” Smollett explains in the documentary.

Two freelance journalists who examined the police videos showing the alleged attackers also claimed that the person running down the street appears to be white, not Black like the Osundairo brothers.

“Why would Jussie hire two Nigerian guys to do an attack that he was going to say was perpetrated by white guys, if it was going to be caught on tape?” questioned Tina Glandian, attorney at Geragos and Geragos, who represented Smollett.

Smollett added that during the investigation, he was “playing whack-a-mole with rumors, with lies.” However, “at a certain point, it’s too many, and you can’t catch them all,” he said.

At the end of the documentary, the actor concluded by saying, “At the end of the day, it doesn’t matter whether someone likes me or doesn’t like me. It doesn’t matter whether you like the way I’m giving this interview. It doesn’t matter whether you like the way I look right now or not.”

He continued, “Doesn’t matter whether you love my performances or can’t stand them. That’s unimportant. What is important is, regardless of what you think about me, flaws and all, flaws and greatness, whatever you think, joy and sorrow. I didn’t do that [fake a hate crime] and that’s all that matters.”

The Truth About Jussie Smollett is streaming on Netflix. Watch the official trailer below.