A Former Empire Star Has Just Been Arrested
Empire star, Bryshere Gray, has been arrested for violating his parole.
According to TMZ, former Empire star Bryshere Gray has been arrested for allegedly violating his probation. The arrest follows several alleged incidents where Gray had run-ins with law enforcement that he failed to notify his probation officer about. The most recent incident was in Maricopa, AZ where a woman that claims to be dating Gray called the police, saying “his behavior was escalating and she was concerned for her safety.”
In 2021 Bryshere Gray pled guilty to felony aggravated assault in Arizona after police responded to a domestic violence call that led to Gray barricading himself in his house and eventually surrendering to a SWAT team and crisis negotiators. According to the original reports, Gray’s wife had numerous visible injuries and claimed that Gray strangled her. Gray’s wife was treated for her injuries and Gray was charged with felony aggravated assault (strangulation), misdemeanor assault (domestic violence), and misdemeanor disorderly conduct.
Following the 2021 incident, Bryshere Gray was given ten days in county jail and three years of probation. It remains to be seen if he’ll be found guilty of violating probation. If so, it seems likely that he would have his probation extended or possibly face jail time.
Bryshere Gray is best known for playing Hakeem Lyon on Empire, one of the sons of fictional hip-hop mogul and Empire Entertainment founder Lucious Lyon (Terrence Howard). Lyon’s other sons, Jamal and Andre, were played by Jussie Smollet and Trai Byers. Hakeem was a rapper, Andre was the Empire CFO, and Jamal was an R&B singer-songwriter that Lucious pit against each other to take over the top spot in the family business.
Along with Bryshere Gray, Howard, Smollet, and Byers the series starred Taraji P. Henson, Grace Byers, Kaitlin Doubleday, Gabourey Sidibe, Ta’Rhonda Jones, Serayah, Malik Yoba, and Vivica A. Fox. The Lee Daniels and Danny Strong co-created series ran for six seasons and received solid reviews and ratings throughout. The musical drama hired Timbaland as the executive music producer and the series features numerous original songs and musical performances by the actors.
After getting his breakout role in Empire in 2015, Bryshere Gray would star in several projects from 2017 to 2018, including The New Edition Story, Honey: Rise Up and Dance, Canal Street, and Sprinter. Empire ended in 2020 and since then Gray has yet to take on another role, likely due to complications involving his probation. If this alleged probation violation ends with more jail time or extended probation, it seems likely he won’t be taking on too many new projects in the near future.
Bryshere Gray isn’t the only Empire cast member facing legal troubles right now, as his on-screen brother Jussie Smollett was sentenced in March of this year to 30 months of felony probation and 150 days in jail after being found guilty of felony disorderly conduct for making false reports about hate crime. Though Smollett maintained his innocence throughout the legal proceedings, the investigation revealed that Smollett allegedly staged the hate crime where he was attacked by two men. Smollett served six days of his sentence before being released on bond, and he is now waiting to appeal his 150-day sentence.
