It's time to bid farewell to "Empire": Fox has announced that the show's upcoming sixth season will be its last.

The news was revealed during a call with reporters ahead of Fox's upfront presentation on Monday, in which new Fox Entertainment head Charlie Collier said that the network would be pulling out all the stops for the music drama's final bow.

“We are turning the final season into a large TV event — we are trying to go out guns a-blazing,” Collier said, according to Deadline. “You allow fans to lean in and have the ending they deserve.”

Season six will consist of 20 episodes. Though the writers room has yet to meet to begin breaking stories for the end of "Empire," one character who will almost certainly not be back is Jamal Lyon, played by scandal-plagued star Jussie Smollett.

Smollet had been written out of the final two episodes of season five, following the controversy from his claim that he was the victim of a hate crime back in January in Chicago, where "Empire" is filmed. Local authorities believed that Smollett staged the attack on himself, and he was subsequently charged with multiple felony counts of filing a false police report.

The actor maintained his innocence throughout, and the charges against him were ultimately dropped, in a surprise decision by the local state's attorney's office in March. The city of Chicago is now pursuing a civil case against the actor, to recoup the costs of its investigation.

"Empire" was renewed for season six earlier this month, and at the time, Fox said that there were "no plans" for Smollett to return, despite the support of his costars. In his call with reporters on Monday, Collier reiterated that stance, saying, "There’s an option to have Jussie in the series but we have no plans for that."

No word yet on a season six premiere date. The show will be moving back to its original timeslot -- and up against NBC juggernaut "This Is Us" -- on Tuesdays at 9 p.m. EST.

[via: Deadline]