Netflix is determined to get to the bottom of what happened to Jussie Smollett, the “Empire” actor who claimed to be a victim of a hate crime. The streamer announced that its upcoming documentary, “The Truth About Jussie Smollett?” will premiere on Aug. 22.
If you need a refresher, Smollett was best known for starring in the Fox drama “Empire.” In 2019, Smollett said he was the victim of a hate crime, but the police alleged that he staged the attack. The actor was charged with filing a false police report, charges which were later dropped after Smollett completed his community service requirements and paid $10,000. That was followed by a complicated legal battle over the past several years, leading to Smollett being sentenced to jail and the Illinois Supreme Court reversing that decision. Now Netflix is offering its take on this viral news story.
“The Truth About Jussie Smollett?” comes from RAW, the producers of buzzy Netflix documentaries “Don’t F**k with Cats” and “Tinder Swindler.” The documentary promises to feature interviews with police, lawyers, journalists and investigators who claim to have uncovered new evidence as it tells “a shocking true story of an allegedly fake story that some now say might just be a true story,” a press release reads. The documentary will also feature an interview with Smollett himself.
“This story is a thrilling ride, and we were lucky enough to have access to the key players. I wanted this documentary to balance their competing narratives and to also use their compelling, colourful testimonies to thread the light and shade of the story through the film,” director Gagan Rehill said in a statement to press. “But much more than that, I wanted this film to speak to the particular moment of rapid cultural change when this takes place in 2019; when, as a society, we were becoming more combative, more polarised, more divergent over our shared reality – when we began to lack a common singular Truth.”
The 90-minute film from RAW Productions is executive produced by Tom Sheahan and Tim Wardle.
