Entertainment

Report: Jussie Smollett Loses Lead Role On Broadway Following Alleged Hate Crime Hoax

REUTERS/Kamil Krzaczynski

Katie Jerkovich Entertainment Reporter
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Jussie Smollett reportedly is out as the lead in a show on Broadway called “Take Me Out” following his alleged hate crime hoax and trouble with the city of Chicago.

The 36-year-old actor reportedly was being considered for the lead role that would have been his debut on Broadway in the Tony-winning drama, per the Daily Mail Tuesday. But sources with knowledge now tell the outlet he will no longer appear in the play, despite charges being dropped against the “Empire” star. (RELATED: Jussie Smollett’s Episode of ‘Drop The Mic’ Has Been Pulled)

2017 BET Awards Photo Room Los Angeles, California, U.S., 25/06/2017 - Jussie Smollett. REUTERS/Danny Moloshok

2017 BET Awards Photo Room Los Angeles, California, U.S., 25/06/2017 – Jussie Smollett. REUTERS/Danny Moloshok

“Everything was set to go and the producers were planning to announce that Jussie [Smollett] and Zachary Quinto were starring in the play last month,” one Broadway insider said. (RELATED: Police Chief ‘Furious’ At Smollett Case Dismissal)

“Everyone was so supportive after the attack and then suddenly, everything shifted,” the source added. (Realted: Jussie Smollett Vacations in Hawaii After Charges Dropped.)

“Here is a kid who is on a hit television show, has made a name for himself, and gets the chance of a lifetime,” another source shared. “He would have come off the sixth season of Empire and kicked off the next leg of his career with a role on Broadway.” (RELATED: Charges Against Jussie Smollett Dropped)

“And not just that, the lead role in one of the best plays of the century in his Broadway debut,” the insider added. “Why on earth would someone throw that all away?”

It all comes after Smollett’s alleged hate crime hoax and in light of him being sued by the city of Chicago after he failed to pay $130,106 for what he cost the city investigating the alleged hoax.

Smollett reportedly participated in a reading for the part just 12 hours before he claimed he was attacked on the streets of his home in Chicago by two men who he said threw a rope around his neck and poured a bleach-like substance on him. They also reportedly yelled racist and homophobic slurs at him.

But at the end of the investigation, police concluded the attack on Smollett was a hoax in effort to raise his profile.

He was arrested and faced 16 felony counts of disorderly conduct for making a false police report. Then last month, all charges against him were dropped by the State Attorney’s office.