Jussie Smollett
Justin "Jussie" Langston Mikha Smollett (born June 21, 1982 in Santa Rosa , California ) is an American actor and singer . He became known through the television series On Our Own (1993–1994) and through the role of Jamal Lyon in the Fox musical television series Empire (since 2015).
Life
Smollett was born in Santa Rosa , California , in June 1982 to Janet and Joel Smollett . He grew up with his three brothers Jojo, Jake and Jocqui and his two sisters Jazz and Jurnee . He graduated from high school in Paramus , New Jersey .
On March 9, 2015, Smollett came out to Ellen DeGeneres as homosexual .
Alleged attack on Smollett in 2019
On January 29, 2019, Smollett told the police that he was attacked late one night near his apartment in Chicago by two masked men who called him racist and homophobic and identified themselves as supporters of President Donald Trump . A threatening letter addressed to him had previously been sent to his place of work. This sparked a wave of solidarity and outrage, including from politicians and celebrities.
Two weeks later, police questioned two Nigerian-American acquaintances of Smollett's who had been near the alleged crime and announced that the direction of the investigation had changed. The media reported that the police had received information that Smollett had orchestrated the attack on himself with the help of his acquaintances. On February 21, Jussie Smollett was officially charged with felony disorderly conduct , which can be punished with up to three years in prison , for providing false information to the police . The deposit was set at $ 100,000.
On February 22nd, the producers of Empire announced that Smollett had been suspended and banned from producing the final two episodes of Empire's fifth season.
On March 26th, the prosecution surprisingly dropped the charges after Smollett had already attended several court hearings. Smollett's lawyers made a deal with the prosecutor. The conditions are that Smollett is doing community service and cannot reclaim $ 10,000 on the deposit. Mayor Rahm Emanuel and the Chicago Police Chief distanced themselves from the prosecutor's decision and said it was not fair. Both called dropping the charges an abuse of the legal system.
District Attorney Kim Foxx said of the case, "Based on the facts and evidence, we believe we can prove his guilt." Foxx turned the case on to her deputy Joe Magats after contacting the Smollett family in the days following the alleged January 29 attack. Tina Tchen, a friend of Foxx, the former chief of staff of former First Lady Michelle Obama, had previously campaigned for Smollett at Foxx.
US President Donald Trump called the case "a complete disgrace" ( an absolute embarrassment ) and stated that he had directed to take the federal accurate investigations. The FBI was investigating the prosecutor's confidentiality with Smollett.
Career
Smollett began his acting career as a child actor in films such as A Little Slice of Heaven (1991) and Mighty Ducks - The Superteam (1992). On the side of his five siblings, he played from September 1993 to April 1994 in the short-lived ABC - sitcom On Our Own the lead role of Jesse Jerrico.
After a break of several years, he returned to television in 2012. He appeared in roles in television series such as The Mindy Project and Revenge, as well as in films such as Born to Race: Fast Track and Ask Me Anything , before his international breakthrough in 2015. The musical television series Empire , launched in January 2015, made Smollett known worldwide in the role of Jamal Lyon.
In addition to his film career, Smollett is also active as a singer and has released several records since his debut EP in 2012.
Filmography
- 1991: A Little Piece of Heaven (TV movie)
- 1992: Mighty Ducks - Das Superteam (The Mighty Ducks)
- 1993: Queen ( Alex Haley's Queen , Miniseries, Episode 2)
- 1993: With heart and joke ( Coach , TV series, episode 6x07)
- 1993–1994: Cro (dubbing voice, 20 episodes)
- 1994–1995: On Our Own (TV series, 20 episodes)
- 2012: Skinny (The Skinny)
- 2012: The Mindy Project (TV series, episode 1x09)
- 2014: Born to Race: Fast Track
- 2014: Katie's Blog (Ask Me Anything)
- 2014: Revenge (TV series, episode 4x03)
- 2015-2019: Empire (TV series, 82 episodes)
- 2017: Alien: Covenant
- 2017: Marshall
- 2017: Star (TV series, episode 2x01)
Discography
Albums
- 2018: Sum of My Music
Singles
year | Title album |
Top ranking, total weeks, awardChart placementsChart placements (Year, title, album , rankings, weeks, awards, notes) |
Remarks | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
DE | AT | CH | UK | US | |||
2015 | Keep Your Money Empire Season 1 (OST) |
DE91 (1 week) DE |
- | - | - |
US99 (1 week) US |
First published: February 2015
|
You're So Beautiful Empire Season 1 (OST) |
DE42 (2 weeks) DE |
- | - | - |
US47 (4 weeks) US |
First published: March 2015
with Yazz |
|
Conqueror Empire Season 1 (OST) |
DE87 (1 week) DE |
- | - | - |
US42 (2 weeks) US |
First published: March 2015
with Estelle |
|
Good Enough Empire Season 1 (OST) |
DE25 (9 weeks) DE |
AT54 (2 weeks) AT |
CH55 (2 weeks) CH |
- | - |
First published: June 2015
|
|
Money for Nothing Empire Season 1 (OST) |
DE94 (1 week) DE |
- | - | - | - |
First published: July 2015
with Yazz |
More singles
- 2015: No Apologies (with Yazz)
- 2015: I Wanna Love You
- 2015: Powerful (with Alicia Keys )
- 2015: Ain't About the Money (with Yazz)
- 2015: No Doubt About it (with Pitbull )
- 2016: Chasing the Sky (with Terrence Howard and Yazz)
- 2016: Good People (with Yazz)
- 2018: Freedom
- 2018: Catch Your Eye (with Swizz Beatz )
- 2018: Hurt People
Web links
- Jussie Smollett in the Internet Movie Database (English)
Individual evidence
- ↑ Bobby Ilich 02/16/19 AT 11:30 PM: Who Is Jussie Smollett? 'Empire' Actor Faces Police Questions About Possible Staged Attack. February 16, 2019, accessed February 18, 2019 .
- ^ Timeline of key moments after alleged attack on Jussie Smollett in Chicago. February 17, 2019, accessed on February 18, 2019 .
- ^ Greg P: Top 30 old tweets from journos, celebrities and Dem politicians on Jussie Smollett. February 17, 2019, accessed on February 18, 2019 .
- ↑ Ryan Young, Brad Parks and Dakin Andone CNN: Police sources: New evidence suggests Jussie Smollett orchestrated attack. Retrieved February 18, 2019 .
- ^ Brothers tell police that Jussie Smollett paid them to stage attack, official says. February 16, 2019, accessed February 18, 2019 .
- ↑ Brothers told police Smollett was upset threatening letter didn't get enough attention, staged attack. February 18, 2019, accessed February 19, 2019 .
- ^ Jussie Smollett a suspect in criminal investigation for filing false police report, police say. February 20, 2019, accessed February 20, 2019 .
- ↑ Jussie Smollett staged attack because he was 'dissatisfied with his salary,' police say. February 21, 2019, accessed on February 21, 2019 .
- ↑ Joe Otterson, Joe Otterson: Jussie Smollett Removed From Final 'Empire' Season 5 Episodes Following Arrest. In: Variety. February 22, 2019, accessed on February 22, 2019 .
- Jump up ↑ Jussie Smollett: charges against US star dropped. In: ORF.at . March 26, 2019, accessed March 26, 2019 .
- ↑ Julie Bosman, Sopan Deb: Jussie Smollett's Charges Are Dropped, Angering Mayor and Police . In: The New York Times . March 26, 2019, ISSN 0362-4331 ( nytimes.com [accessed March 27, 2019]).
- ↑ Christiane Heil, Los Angeles: After the charges are dropped: FBI is investigating the Jussie Smollett case . ISSN 0174-4909 ( faz.net [accessed March 28, 2019]).
- ↑ Veronica Stracqualursi / Jeremy Diamond: Trump calls Jussie Smollett case 'an absolute embarrassment'. In: CNN . March 28, 2019, accessed March 29, 2019 .
- ↑ Christiane Heil, Los Angeles: After the charges are dropped: FBI is investigating the Jussie Smollett case . ISSN 0174-4909 ( faz.net [accessed March 28, 2019]).
- ↑ Jussie Smollett's Debuts EP | :: RANDOM TANDEM ::. October 24, 2014, accessed February 21, 2019 .
- ↑ Chart sources: DE AT CH US
personal data | |
---|---|
SURNAME | Smollett, Jussie |
ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Smollett, Justin Langston Mikha (full name) |
BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American actor and singer |
DATE OF BIRTH | June 21, 1982 |
PLACE OF BIRTH | Santa Rosa , California |