The television show Empire had its first episode aired since actor Jussie Smollett was arrested in Chicago on charges of making false statements to police. After the well-publicized arrest, Smollett was removed from the show pending the outcome of his upcoming trial. This decision to remove him from the series was made even after he had personally appeared before the cast of Empire and claimed his innocence.
The ratings are in, and it is reported that this first show sans Smollett had the second lowest rating in the history of the show. As certain as the sun rises in the east, you can count on there being two sides of the story as to the reason for the precipitous drop in ratings. Whatever side of the story you read, and both will be presented here, it is generally agreed upon that if Smollett did do what he is accused of it requires some type of punishment from the legal system.
The first argument is that Empire is suffering a ratings loss because of Smollett himself. One case being made is that people love Smollett’s character and without him the storyline or interest in the series takes a serious hit. Fans of a number of actors are quick to forgive the shortcomings of their favorites because they willingly make a disconnect between the actor’s personal life and what they do on the job. We may take this position ourselves in our daily lives, especially when it comes to our own personal life.
Another Smollett connection to the failing ratings is that a segment of those same people are protesting the show in support of Smollett. It is a common response by the public these days to affect change by attempting to hit the powers-that-be where it hurts the cost — in advertising dollars. Smollett is free to continue his role on Empire but the powers-that-be have decided for whatever reasons to avoid any potential negative publicity on Jussie and have banned him from the show.
The other side of the argument deals with Smollett’s perceived egregious actions that, according to the Chicago Police Department, have wasted the valuable time of detectives and attempted to divide a troubled city even further along racial lines. The accusation is that Smollett’s actions were designed to promote his own career by using homophobic and racist remarks directed towards him, fueling the outrage of people seeking gender and racial equality across the country. The supporters of the anti-Jussie group maintain that the reason for the falling ratings of Empire are a rejection of the series as a whole despite excluding Smollett from further episodes.
The people in this group are making the case that the presence of Smollett, especially as a favorite character, only emphasize what is actually going on behind the scenes. Smollett is only a symptom of a larger problem whose arrest has brought a different kind of light to the show. The exclusion of Jussie was only a way to prevent further exposure of the cultural and political motives behind the series, with the result that people woke up and tuned out.
What is unfortunate in this peek at the motives of these different groups is that everything is politicized these days. Even though Smollett’s actions are alleged to have been connected to the show and money, as stated earlier, most of us prefer to live our lives this way. The fact that Jussie makes his living in the public arena should not require him to give up his private life to make a living. No one was making inquiries into his gay lifestyle or his per-show salary prior to his arrest.
On the other side of the political arena are those who say that using racism to advance one’s career is deplorable, no matter who the person happens to be. Most reasonable people would agree with this. But because the discussion about Smollett is connected with the show, and the show now has become connected to politics, the focus shifts to individual personalities rather than the show itself. Smollett supporters fire back that certain politicians have made race an issue in keeping their careers afloat, and this comes from both sides of the political aisle.
What is required here is patience, waiting to see how the ratings over the next few weeks of the show turns out. It is safe to say that one episode does not constitute a trend, nor does it reflect the quality of the show itself. Every television show has had its share of bad episodes, and judging Empire any differently is just wrong. The writers are optimistic that the series will return for a sixth season, and writers can adjust the storyline as necessary to accommodate the future presence or continues absence of Smollett’s character. What is hard to believe is that the entire success of Empire rests on a single character or actor.
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