Jussie Smollett returns to the public eye as Netflix’s new documentary questions the truth behind his 2019 hate crime report.
Jussie Smollett and the polarizing saga surrounding his 2019 hate crime report are back in the spotlight as Netflix prepares to release a new documentary that reopens the case and questions everything the public thought they knew.
Titled The Truth About Jussie Smollett?, the film drops August 22 and dives headfirst into the high-profile investigation that gripped headlines and fueled national debate.
Directed by Gagan Rehill and produced by RAW—the team behind Don’t F**k With Cats and The Tinder Swindler—the documentary features interviews with police officials, legal experts, journalists and Smollett himself.
The film promises to shed light on what some claim is newly uncovered evidence.
Smollett, who rose to fame on the hit series Empire, made headlines in January 2019 when he told Chicago police he was the victim of a racist and homophobic attack.
He said two MAGA men used slurs, poured a chemical on him and placed a noose around his neck.
In the trailer, former Chicago Police Department detective Melissa Staples recalls her initial reaction.
“They see an actor called Jussie Smollett with a noose around his neck. He says he was the victim of a hate crime. I thought it was a horrible crime at first until it started to fall apart,” she said.
Then-superintendent Eddie Johnson also expressed doubts early in the case.
“Some elements struck me as a bit peculiar. We were experiencing a polar vortex at that time. Who would be outside in such frigid conditions,” Johnson said.
After a lengthy investigation, Chicago police concluded Smollett staged the attack and hired two brothers to carry it out. He was charged with felony disorderly conduct for filing a false report.
In a controversial move, the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office dropped the charges after Smollett forfeited a $10,000 bond and completed community service. A special prosecutor later refiled charges, citing “substantial abuses of discretion.”
A jury convicted Smollett in December 2021 on five counts of lying to police. But in November 2024, the Illinois Supreme Court reversed the convictions, ruling that the second prosecution violated his due process rights based on the original agreement with prosecutors.
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