In the Netflix documentary “The Truth About Jussie Smollett?”, police, lawyers, journalists, investigators, and Smollett rehash the events of January 29, 2019 — the infamous day when the former “Empire” actor reported that he was a victim of a violent hate crime in the streets of Chicago. The world eventually came to believe “the crime” was a hoax orchestrated by Smollett.
According to Netflix’s logline, the 90-minute doc tells the “shocking true story of an allegedly fake story that some now say might just be a true story.” In reality, the film doesn’t provide any answers. Instead, director Gagan Rehill combines court evidence and conflicting narratives to tell Smollett’s story. The outcome is a documentary that does the unexpected by allowing viewers to decide for themselves who is telling the truth.
“We collated and collected the 360 perspectives of the story,” says Rehill. “We got that and laid them against each other.”
In 2019, Smollett alleged that after buying a sandwich from a Subway store in Chicago in the early hours of the morning, two white men hurled racial slurs at him, poured an unknown chemical substance on him, and wrapped a rope around his neck. The incident was first met with an outpouring of public support. But that all changed when Chicago police released surveillance images of the supposed perpetrators, identifying the men as Nigerian American brothers who worked as extras on “Empire.” Evidence that Smollett had orchestrated the attack and paid the brothers $3,500 later surfaced.
Smollett was initially indicted on 16 counts of felony disorderly conduct, but the charges were dropped. A year later, Smollett was re-indicted, and after a high-profile trial in 2021, the actor was convicted on five felony counts of disorderly conduct. He was sentenced to 30 months probation, including 150 days in jail, plus fines totaling more than $120,000. In 2024, the conviction was reversed on procedural grounds, as the Illinois Supreme Court found that the re-prosecution violated due process. In 2025, Smollett settled with the city of Chicago, and he continues to deny that he staged the attack.
Variety spoke with Rehill about “The Truth About Jussie Smollett?” which is now streaming on Netflix.
The case and what actually happened, depending on who you speak to, is pretty ambiguous. Did that make it a difficult documentary to maneuver?
Rehill: It was difficult in terms of acknowledging that and realizing that early on in the process. This (film) isn’t (about) the justice system. It’s about a moment in time. There are bigger themes that this (doc) addresses to help convey that.
Was one of those themes society’s relationship with the truth, which seemed to take a turn in 2019?
That’s exactly the lens I wanted to look through. The people who are in favor of Jussie are tied to a distrust of the police. All of this was happening at a time when Black Lives Matter was emerging. We were becoming more divided as a society. So the film speaks to a post-truth society that we live in.
Is it fair to say that everyone interviewed in the doc, including law enforcement, Smollett, and the Nigerian American brothers, who allegedly were hired to beat him, are unreliable narrators?
I’m really happy with this cast of characters in this film. I think it’s what makes it unique. They are all larger than life. As we were making the film, we were amassing this cast and their dynamics. Their counterpoints to each other were becoming part of what was compelling about the film. It has been key for me to align all their perspectives together in a respectful way.
Were any of the subjects paid to participate in this documentary?
So, I know that Jussie wasn’t paid. There are a lot of people who were involved in the pool of access before I came along. But what I understood and was key to me was that Jussie wasn’t paid.
The doc is being released during a time when Smollett is making forays into rebooting his career as an actor, a director, and a recording artist. Do you look at the film as a stepping stone for him?
This is certainly not the purpose of this film. It’s not a miscarriage of justice film in any way. It’s more an opportunity for people to watch, watch him, and see what they believe. So, no. It’s certainly no intention of the film or mine to help rehabilitate his career in any way.