Jussie Smollett breaks his silence on his relationship with Lee Daniels after the film creator’s comment.
The Empire actor spoke about his current relationship with Smollet during an appearance on The Breakfast Club in August where he called the embattled actor “a son” and stated that he is willing to cast him again in another film or TV series. Daniels also shared his thoughts on Smollet’s alleged hoax hate crime in which law enforcement says the actor paid two men to assault him. The film director called that situation “complicated” and stated that he wasn’t sure what to believe.
TMZ has since caught up with Jussie Smollett and asked him for a reaction to what Lee Daniels said last month.
“I talk to Lee [Daniels] often,” Smollett began. “It’s something that– I love Lee very much, but here’s the thing, I don’t talk about it. Lee is somebody that I love. He gave me an opportunity that I’ll always be grateful for, but at the same time, it’s a relationship that’s really important to me, so I don’t feel the need to mediate that in the public.”
The actor added, “Lee is also a little bit more of an open book, so he’ll say things, but I love him so much. And, he knows that. We’re always gonna be good.”
Jussie Smollett was one of the main casts on Lee Daniel’s Empire TV series with Terrence Howard, Taraji P. Henson, Bryshere Gray, Serayah McNeill, and Trai Byers. The series, which aired between 2015-2020, was a massive success, but after six seasons, the show came to an end following the hoax hate crime incident.
Daniels says at the time he was busy with the TV production after realizing that he was pioneering a new movement in the film industry.
“I was so busy, worried about Cookie’s hat and the music that we were playing [on Empire], this was before Insecure, this was before Black Panther,” Daniels said. “We started it. I was so worried about getting everything right that I didn’t know what was happening in the zeitgeist.”
Whether or not Jussie Smollett and Lee Daniels will work together again on another project only time will tell. Nevertheless, it’s good to see them on good terms despite the impact the unfortunate incident had on Empire.
