Famed director and producer Lee Daniels sat down with The Breakfast Club for a 40-minute interview this morning. The creator of Empire and Star arrived with young protegee Jordan E. Cooper and discussed the future of the television series. Empire, which features Jussie Smollett as the character "Jamal Lyon", quickly became part of the gossip surrounding the Smollett scandal.
Smollett was indicted on sixteen felony counts for filing a false police report. Herein, the star stated having been target to what was then believed to be a racist and homophobic attack. Since then, Smollett faced intense backlash for allegedly lying and even more so when the prosecution dropped all charges against him. The latest update on Jussie stemmed from his brother, who claims the actor has been experiencing night terrors since the ordeal. Smollett's brother also continues to argue his innocence.
Amidst the tension, Lee Daniels showed compassion on the radio show by highlighting his bond with the actor. The executive producer chimed in "I'm standing by him [...] because regardless of the outcome, I can't discard someone...It's like discarding my son." While the revelation does reveal Daniels' stance, it failed to provide clarity with regards to Jussie's fate on the show. The producer further went onto adding that the show was deeply impacted by the Smollett case and serious talks were in order. Though when asked by Charlamagne whether or not he thought Jussie lied, the producer had a lenghty pause before stating his opinion didn't matter.
What do you think? Is Jussie Smollett telling the truth?