‘Empire’ Cast Stands With Jussie Smollett, Submits Letter to Disney, FOX Asking for Actor’s Return

Before the Chicago State’s Attorney’s Office dropped all charges against “Empire” star Jussie Smollett last month, the FOX television network and producing studio 20th Century Fox Television, now under the ownership of The Walt of Disney Company, had already announced that the actor would be dropped from the remaining two episodes of the show’s fifth season. In a letter dated April 19, Deadline is reporting that the cast has asked executives at Disney, FOX, co-creators Lee Daniels and Danny Strong, among others, to consider bringing back the actor for the show’s sixth season, should there be one.

Just two weeks after its premiere, FOX has ordered a second season of “Empire,” created by Lee Daniels (“Lee Daniels’ The Butler,” “Precious”) and Danny Strong, it was announced today by Dana Walden and Gary Newman, Chairmen and CEOs, Fox Television Group, during the FOX portion of the Winter Television Critics Association press tour in Pasadena. Emerging as the #1 new series of the television season in Adults 18-49, “Empire” is averaging a 5.3 rating in Live+3, according to current Nielsen Media Research ratings data.