Fox Suspends Production of “Empire” Until Jussie Smollett Gets Better

Fox has temporarily suspended the production of their hit show Empire. Show star, actor Jussie Smollett was viciously attacked on Tuesday in Chicago in an apparent hate crime. He was in the city to film Empire‘s fifth season.

According to E! News, the television network announced that their decision to hold off on the filming of the show was not solely related to the attack. Production has also been halted for Fox’s other show Proven Innocent. Harsh weather conditions in Chicago may be a factor.

Read More: Chicago Police release details of Jussie Smollett’s brutal attack, celebs and “Empire” fans react

This announcement came one day after news broke about the attack, where two white men in masks reportedly yelled homophobic and racial slurs at the actor after he was leaving a Subway restaurant late at night.

Fox sent out a statement to express support for Smollett, stating that they are working with law enforcement to bring the perpetrators to justice. Reports state that the network has further increased security around the show’s production in Chicago.

Read More: REPORTS: Police spot persons of interest in Jussie Smollett attack on surveillance video

Since the incident, far-right extremists are now asserting that the attack on Smollet is a hoax.

According to Raw Story,  extremists are saying that the attack is a left-wing plot to discredit Donald Trump’s presidency and that Smollett is lying.

A Trump supporter posted on The Donald, a pro-Trump Reddit page, that the actor and singer “got mugged and is trying to turn himself into a race martyr while another stated the attack as “another phony hate crime.”

A few far-right publications and conservatives have expressed skepticism about the incident, referring to it as “fake news.”

Read More: Kamala Harris calls attack on Jussie Smollett “modern-day lynching”

Contributor Andrew Aleksi-Lankinen from The Conservative Daily News wrote, “The claim that two Trump supporters were just waiting with rope and bleach at 2 a.m. for some celebrity to attack makes absolutely no sense whatsoever. This could all just be a P.R. stunt by Smollett.”

Smollett has been discharged from Northwestern Memorial Hospital. The story regarding the incident is still developing.

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