Overview

• The Truth About Jussie Smollett? begins streaming on Netflix on Aug. 22 and assembles key participants, case files and previously unseen footage.
• Smollett says early public support after his report of an attack made him feel like he was being eulogized and “extremely emasculated.”
• The actor maintains his innocence and says a $3,500 payment to the Osundairo brothers was for an illegal herbal supplement, while the brothers say he paid them to stage an assault.
• The documentary presents disputed jail footage and reporting that raise questions about interactions between the brothers and Chicago police, which the brothers and their lawyer deny amounted to any deal.
• A jury convicted Smollett in 2021 for making false reports, he served six days of a 150-day sentence, and the Illinois Supreme Court overturned the convictions in 2024 on procedural grounds.