(Photo Credit: Kevin Winter/Getty Images)
In 2015, Lee Daniels scored a hit with the television series Empire on Fox.
The end of its fifth season came and went, with a late shocker when it was first reported that Jussie Smollett who plays Jamal Lyon was attacked outside a Subway in Chicago. Smollett was eventually arrested after Chicago P.D. and charged with felony for filing a false police report after an investigation into the attack allegedly turned into questioning whether he fabricated the attack.
Due to the arrest and outrage following its actions, Daniels decided to remove Smollett’s character Lyon from the final two episodes of the season.
Throughout the past month, Daniels had not spoken on the incident. Until today (Mar. 21) in which he broke his silence on Instagram.
“These past couple of weeks have been, a freaking roller coaster,” he said. “Me and my cast have experienced pain and anger and sadness and frustration and really don’t know how to deal with it. Because it happened… everything has happened, which you are seeing tonight, happened prior to the incident. And this was not what the show as made for. The show was made to bring America together. To talk about the atrocities that are happening right now in the streets.”
There is yet no word on the future status of Smollett on the show.
Watch below.