Jussie Smollett’s employers released a statement of support for the “Empire” actor after prosecutors dropped all charges against him.
“Jussie Smollett has always maintained his innocence, and we are gratified on his behalf that all charges against him have been dismissed,” 20th Century Fox Television and Fox Entertainment said in a statement Tuesday, Vox reported.
Illinois state prosecutors announced Tuesday they would be dropping all charges related to Smollett’s accusations that he was the victim of a hate crime.
In January, Smollett, who is black and gay, filed a police report, which Chicago police later claimed was false, that alleged he was attacked by two men in January that yelled racist and homophobic slurs at him.
He was charged with 16 felony counts, including falsifying a police report.
Writers for “Empire” have supported Smollett from the time that police indicated the hate crime was faked.
Last month, producers of the TV show said that Smollett’s character was being written out of the final two episodes of the current season.
“While these allegations are very disturbing, we are placing our trust in the legal system as the process plays out,” the executive producers of “Empire” said. “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.”
