Jussie Smollette, receives death threats for acting gay in Empire TV series

Portia Arthur

June 1, 2015 4:07 PM

Executive Producer, Lee Daniels added, the television show will give more highlights on the realistic version of how black people interact

Jussie Smollett

Empire TV series, co-creator and Executive Producer, Lee Louis Daniels, has unveiled that he and show star, Jussie Smollett have received death threats for creating a gay black man in the hip-pop drama.

Daniels, 55, disclosed the information at an entertainment industry conference held in Los Angeles.

“I have to relate to these people honestly,' he said of the show’s diverse audience. That trash can scene? It happened”, he said.

Daniels was referring to a scene in which rapper turned music mogul,Lucious Lyon, puts his young son Jamal (played as an adult by Smollett) into a bin for wearing his mother’s clothes.

"Homophobia is real. It exists… Jussie and I both get death threats. But we will continue to do our thing until homophobia is done", he added.

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Portia Arthur