A Cook County grand jury returned 16 counts against Smollett for allegedly staging a hate crime against himself.
Authorities say Smollett hired two men to help stage a bigoted attack against him in Chicago in part because he was unhappy with his salary.
Smollett told the police that he was assaulted at 2 a.m. by two men who shouted homophobic and racial slurs and put a noose around his neck. In the more detailed account, he claimed that he fought back, and that one of the attackers was white, according to prosecutors.
"16 felony counts of disorderly conduct for filling a false police report"
If convicted of all charges, he could face up to 64 years in prison (each count carries a maximum of four years behind bars).