“The Hollywood Reporter” suggested in a Wednesday article that the stress of Hollywood could be the real reason “Empire” actor Jussie Smollett allegedly faked a hate crime.
Smollett alleged that two supporters of President Donald Trump assaulted him and poured a bleach-like substance on him while shouting racist and homophobic slurs last month. He was arrested for allegedly filing a false police report earlier this month.
2017 BET Awards – Photo Room – Los Angeles, California, U.S., 25/06/2017 – Jussie Smollett. REUTERS/Danny Moloshok
The article is titled, “‘I’m About to Break’: Jussie Smollett and the Pressure of Hollywood Fame.”
“The ‘Empire’ actor claimed to be the victim of a heinous crime that played perfectly into Hollywood’s worst fears about hate in America,” the lede of the article reads. “Did the pressures of childhood fame or a struggling music career play a role in causing him to concoct what police are now deeming an elaborate hoax?” (RELATED: Here All The Politicians Who Rushed To Judgment On The Smollett ‘Hate Crime’)
The article continues in part:
One question is whether the pressures and anxieties of modern fame played any role in Smollett’s seemingly inexplicable behavior. “One of the darkest corners of fame is that it becomes addictive,” says Donna Rockwell, a clinical psychologist who specializes in fame and celebrity, “and then you are so afraid of becoming a has-been or yesterday’s news that you might do something desperate.”
It goes on to explain Smollett’s childhood and how he got his start in acting and singing. The article also discusses Smollett’s seemingly deteriorating mental health.
If he’s convicted, Smollett faces a one- to three-year prison sentence and potentially fines of up to $25,000.