Cable network TNT pulled an upcoming Drop the Mic episode featuring Jussie Smollett the same day the Empire actor was arrested by Chicago Police for allegedly orchestrating a fake hate crime.
The episode, which was set to air February 6 but was rescheduled to March 6 after the purported attack was first reported, featured Smollett engaging in a rap battle with Orange Is the New Black‘s Danielle Brooks, TV Line reported.
Drop the Mic executive producer and head writer Jensen Karp announced the cancellation of the episode on his Twitter account saying, “We had an episode of Drop the Mic this season with Jussie that you’ll now (correctly) never see.”
We had an episode of Drop The Mic this season with Jussie that you'll now (correctly) never see, but sadly it will shelve @clayaiken, WHO WAS A VERY GOOD RAPPER (at least for now)
— Jensen Karp (@JensenKarp) February 21, 2019
For now, YouTube still has the episode posted for sale at $1.99.
Jussie Smollett was arrested in Chicago weeks after he reported being attacked by two men who yelled homophobic and Donald Trump slogans at him then beat him up. Thursday, Chicago Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson slammed the actor for using the “symbolism of a noose to make false accusation.”
“Bogus police reports cause real harm. They do harm to every legitimate victim who is in need of support by police and investigators as well as the citizens of this city … I’m offended by what happened, and I am also angry,” Johnson said.
Follow Warner Todd Huston on Twitter @warnerthuston.
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