Jussie Smollett, one of the stars of the popular television show “Empire,” has been reportedly brutally attacked early Tuesday in what Chicago police are investigating as a possible hate crime.
The 36-year-old actor admitted himself to the hospital directly after what police called a “possible racially-charged assault and battery.”
Police received a report that Smollett, who is black and gay, was walking in the downtown Chicago neighborhood of Streeterville around 2 a.m. local time “when two unknown offenders approached him and gained his attention by yelling out racial and homophobic slurs towards him,” the city’s police department told NPR.
“The offenders began to batter the victim with their hands about the face and poured an unknown chemical substance on the victim,” authorities said. “At some point during the incident, one of the offenders wrapped a rope around the victim’s neck.”
Authorities say the two attackers fled on foot, and Chicago police are currently gathering video, identifying potential witnesses and trying to establish a timeline of events.
Twentieth Century Fox Television and Fox Entertainment said in a statement to NPR that it was “deeply saddened and outraged” at the news. “We send our love to Jussie, who is resilient and strong, and we will work with law enforcement to bring these perpetrators to justice. The entire studio, network and production stands united in the face of any despicable act of violence and hate — and especially against one of our own.”
