Trevor Noah says Jussie Smollett deserves an Emmy if he's lying about attack

While reports continue to suggest that Empire star Jussie Smollett could have possibly orchestrated the racial and homophobic attack against him, Trevor Noah is starting an Emmy campaign for the actor.

During Monday’s episode of The Daily Show, the host weighed in on the “weird” story that has been unfolding over the past few weeks. After Smollett reported on Jan. 29 that he was the victim of a violent attack, new evidence has “shifted the trajectory of the investigation,” according to Chicago police, with a number of outlets reporting that investigators now believe that Smollett paid a pair of brothers to stage the incident. Through his lawyers, the 36-year-old has denied such allegations.

“There’s a certain part of this story that was always a little weird,” admitted Noah. “Who are the MAGA supporters who hate gay people, who hate black people, but also happen to watch Empire? Like, I’ve heard of hate watching, but that s— would be next level.”

Noah went on to play a clip of Smollett’s tear-filled interview on Good Morning America, in which he emphatically dismissed the idea that he could have embellished or made this story up. The comedian deemed the performance awards-worthy. “Either this guy’s telling the truth or he deserves an Emmy for that interview,” said Noah. “Because if all of that is just a performance, I don’t care what he’s lying about, you can’t cancel him. He’s too good to not be on TV!”

Watch the full video above.

Related content:

• Jussie Smollett responds to reports he may have paid men to attack him
• Jussie Smollett details his assault in first interview since Chicago attack
• Empire is killing off a major character — Fox insists it isn’t Jussie Smollett