Jussie Smollett, who is accused of carrying out a racist and homophobic attack on herself in 2019 and lying to Chicago police about it, is appealing her 2021 disorderly conduct conviction before the Illinois Supreme Court Review, Jussie Smollett returns to the big screen in lost vacationwhich he stars in, directs, co-writes and produces.
The film will be released in select AMC theaters on September 27th. empire Jason Holliday (Jason Holliday) is a married couple whose husband Damien Holliday (Jabari Red) died suddenly. As Jason deals with the loss, he also meets Damien’s estranged mother, Cassandra (Viveca A. Fox), who is shocked to discover that her son is married.
Ahead of a preview screening in Harlem last month, Smollett, Foxx and the film’s cast and producers appeared ready to move beyond the legal troubles that have dogged Smollett since claiming he was assaulted in early 2019.
Smollett reflected on the past nearly six years, during which he was arrested, charges dropped and refiled before he was convicted of five felony counts of disorderly conduct, “attempting” and “making trouble” . But he said he continued to express himself creatively during this difficult time.
“I never stopped doing what I loved to do. I know, to an outsider, it seemed like I took a long pause, but I never stopped. I was always recording; I was always writing; I was always It’s directing things; things that haven’t come out yet; things that have come out,” Smollett told hollywood reporter. “I’m always creating things.”
and Smollett, who makes his feature directorial debut in 2021 hip hop boy bluessaid that in the future he would like to continue acting, directing, writing, producing and making music.
“I wanted to completely incorporate all the elements,” Smollett added. “I don’t feel like I have to act in every movie; I don’t feel like I have to direct every movie, but I know that I’m going to have some creative input, if you will, in everything I do.
At the time of the screening, Fox and producer Teresa Azarrell Smallwood said they had no hesitation in working with Smollett despite his recent legal woes.
Fox, who has known Smollett since she was a kid and directed “Empire” under his direction, quickly signed on when Smollett asked her to take part.
“When he called me and said, ‘Viveka, I need you.'” I said, “Let me know when you’re ready to go.” You never turn your back on your family. lost vacation,Tell THR. “I’ve known him since he was 8 years old, and I know his heart.”
Smallwood was contacted by producer Mona Scott Young, who had worked with Smollett. hip hop boy blues“I feel like everyone deserves a second chance,” he said of working with Smollett. “We live in a society where everyone wants to cancel you and just throw you away instead of really listening to the person.” Opinion. He’s got to work like everyone else. I think he’s made his point. Sometimes you have to put your arms around people and give them a second chance. , what you do as a nurturer.
Smallwood and Scott Young both said they were impressed by the script.
“I literally cried,” Smallwood said of her reaction to the script, noting that she read a lot of it. “I laughed; I knew I had to ask for forgiveness for the things I had done wrong, and I needed to say to people, ‘Oh my God, I’m so sorry. “It just gave me a whirlwind of emotions.
But it took a while to get the story right, Smollett tells THR The journey to the big screen, which spanned more than a decade (eight of which were spent in development), has been an “enjoyable undertaking.”
In AMC’s theatrical partnership, Scott-Young said he hopes word of mouth will lead to wider distribution.
“We’re excited to see it playing across all theaters. AMC has been great to work with and given us the opportunity to bring this project to the big screen,” she told us THR. “We’re very grateful. We hope that we can gain momentum and get people watching the movie, loving the movie, talking about the movie and getting us into more theaters.
