Hollywood has no shortage of artists who can go to great lengths to acquire some amount of spotlight in order to save their ailing careers.
A lot of them come out in the open about their struggles with substance abuse, alcoholism, and even physical and racial abuse in some cases.
But, what happens when someone decides to put these ghastly issues to their own benefit? The answer to that is a $145,000 fine and 150 days of jail time.
That’s what happened almost two years ago when Fox drama series actor and Birds of Prey (2020) star Jurnee Smollett’s brother had to face due to his actions.
Read more: Birds Of Prey Actress Recalls Advice From MCU’s Samuel L. Jackson
Who Is Jurnee Smollett’s Brother And What Happened To Him?
In 2015, Fox aired a music industry-focused series called Empire, starring big names like Terrence Howard as Lucious Lyon and Taraji P. Henson as Cookie Lyon. They played a power couple.
The series saw Jurnee Smollett’s brother Jussie Smollett in his breakthrough performance as their son Jamal Lyon.
Four years later, in January 2019, the actor suddenly took the media world by storm as he was surrounded by police officials and faced severe charges for staging a hate crime against himself, according to The Guardian.
The publication reported that the Birds of Prey star’s brother was not satisfied with his payday and called upon two of his friends who worked on Empire to attack him.
What Hate Crime Did Birds of Prey Star’s Brother Stage?
Smollett reportedly contacted Abindola Osundairo and Olabinjo Osundairo, two brothers, to jump him on the night of 28 January.
The brothers were paid a sum of $3500 to pounce on him near his New York apartment, the authorities reported. He asked them to attack him and throw racial slurs, all near a surveillance camera on purpose.
The jury, according to CNN, found Smollett guilty of filing false charges and he was indicted on 16 counts of felony misconduct in March.
In a surprising turn of events, the charges were dropped a couple of days later. That led to the court appointing another state prosecutor who reinvestigated the case from August 2019 onward.
Dan Webb (State Prosecutor) submitted serious evidence against Jussie Smollett. The Los Angeles Times also reported that the case was paused due to Covid pandemic. According to CNN, Smollett was proven guilty of the self-inflicted hate crime in December 2021. He was sent to jail shortly after.
Birds of Prey’s Jurnee Smollett supported her brother, according to a Variety report, by posting #FREEJUSSIE on her Instagram handle.
Source: CNN, The Guardian
