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Empire

Lee Daniels Fox Pilot Drama STAR Casting Central Characters Including: Transgender Woman!

Photo Credit: HutchinsPhoto.com

Photo Credit: HutchinsPhoto.com

On the heels of the smash hit primetime sudsy drama Empire, creator Lee Daniels and Fox are hard at work putting together the pilot for his next TV project, Star!

At the epicenter of Star ia the story of four young woman trying to make it big in show business with big dreams and aspirations.  According to the official description from the network on the series concept:  “It will feature the choices with which these artists are faced along the way, while showcasing the allure and heartache of the cut-throat music scene, and exploring cultural themes from a new perspective. What will they do to rise to the top?”

Now according to TV Line, casting is already underway for the four core characters which include: a transgender woman named Cotton, 20, who is a half-black, half-Spanish with a “stunning look” and a “keen eye for fashion.”  The other woman are described as:  “Star”, an 18-year-old white woman with a “badass attitude.”   Then there is “Simone”, 16, who is Star’s half-white, half-black sister.  She’s simply described as “tragic and adorable.”  And finally, Alexandra, a black woman around the age of 20. Though she’s described as “elegant” and “classic,” she wants to abandon her “material world” in the hopes of making “real, authentic music.”

So, what do you think of the concept of Star and the characters? Daniels, who is always a trendsetter and one to shed light on an under-represented part of the population is putting a transgender character to the mix, as the trans community has been garnering more media attention of late.  Finally, who would you suggest to the play the four lead characters? Put your casting director hats on, and then share your thoughts below!

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New characters will be good..
This season #2 has been over kill of Cookie ..
Cookie, Cookie, Cookie ..
More of Lucious- I like him better than Cookie..
Jamal, I really like him, but all his songs sound much the same ..
Hakeem, I really like him and his songs /music is really good.
Empire is AWESOME!
Looking forward to the new four core characters 🙂

su0000, these four characters are for a different show. But I totally agree with you about the Cookie overkill. Too much of a good thing is … well… a bad thing.

Su0000 read the article before commenting. Is a new show casting the PILOT with four characters in the world of entertainment. .. it’s not four characters for empire .. LOL. ..SMH

these characters will be for his new show titled star – they are not for empire………

The casting is for a “NEW” show called Star.

ooops on me!
thanks for the correction ..

You knew what you were doing su0000 knock it off lol

EMPIRE is getting a little one note with its sole focus on the music business — surely Lucious has holdings in some other sort of businesses to mix up the plot a bit.

STAR would do well to focus on the worlds of film and modeling as well as music to open up as many story avenues as possible for its characters.

Yes, so tired of all the singing. I get it’s about the music biz, but come on! Stop trying to sell me an album.

Oh please not another show shoving a trans character down my throat. If I want a quality show on the issues of the transgender community I will keep watching “Transparent” on Amazon. And Lee Daniels is getting a little cocky. Empire is phenomenal but the last thing any one wants is Empire Another Perspective….

Nobody is shoving anything down your throat. If you want to turn a blind eye to a segment of humanity, change the channel or shut off your TV. There are, oh, about 10,000 shows that don’t feature any transgender characters so you should be able to find something to suit your tastes.

You don’t have to watch the new show. No one is forcing you to do so. All you have to do is use your remote to change the channel.

You’re right I do not have to watch anything I choose not to, however….my feelings on the situation are less valid regardless of the lame admonitions I am receiving for speaking my mind. Your feelings are yours and you are entitled to them. However I stand by mine and if I choose to change the channel or turn off my television it will be MY decision and mine alone. Not any one else’s so keep your passive aggressive directions aimed at you or your family and leave me to express my feelings as I see fit. Point and match.

We’ll see. I think he needs to concentrate on Empire though. The premiere ep this season wasn’t good. It has improved, but there are areas of improvement. Several of my co-workers who used to love the show are saying they’re going to stop watching.

I like Empire. I think it is still good. The season is now 18 episodes so it can’t move as fas paced as last season. Terrence and Taraji are still bringing it and I am loving the focus on Andre. Shows have to develop and can’t be bang, bang every week but like I said, I have no issue with it and I love the music. It’s about a music company and both Timbaland and Neyo are handling the music so I expect to see performances. But to each its own.

Oh god now here comes more crappy shows in the works, just wait. We had cop shows, hospital shows, talk shows, reality shows, now empire and another show in development. If I misses something please.

Empire

Taraji P. Henson Says She Fired Her Entire Team After They Failed to Capitalize on Her Success as ‘Empire’s’ Cookie Lyon

When Fox’s hit primetime soap opera, Empire, hit the air it became a smash hit, especially due to its lead female character, Cookie Lyon, as played by Taraji P. Henson.

The actress played Cookie for all she was worth and the some becoming one of the more original soap and television characters. After all, Cookie went to jail for 17 years before being released, and was the wife of former drug dealer, now music mogul, Lucious Lyon played by Terrence Howard.

Now, Taraji revealed all was not kosher behind the scenes during a sit-down interview for the SAG-AFTRA Foundation (see below). It was there, she revealed that she had to fire her entire PR team and more, because of how they failed to capitalize on her rousing success at the time as Cookie.

Photo: Fox

The moment came about during the Q&A Henson was asked what was the best business decision she ever made.  She swiftly answered: “Firing everybody after Cookie,” adding, “Everybody had to f**ing’ go. Where is my deal? Where’s my commercial? Cookie was at the top of the fashion game. Where is my endorsement? What did you have set up for after this? That’s why you all haven’t seen me in so long. They had nothing set up.”

Empire fans recall that a ‘Cookie’ prequel had been in the works to continue the character after the series was canceled after six seasons, but nothing happened. At the time reports shared, Danny Strong, co-creator of the Empire was said to be co-writing the series, and it would come through Henson’s new production banner.

Taraji explained what went down behind the scenes: “All they wanted was another Cookie show, and I said, ‘I’ll do it, but it has to be right. The people deserve, she’s to beloved for y’all to f**k it up.’ And so, when they didn’t get it right, I was like, ‘Well, that’s it,’ and they had nothing else. ‘You’re all f**ng fired.”

Photo: JPI

Henson added that she felt like she had Stockholm Syndrome from the entire situation, which is defines as a syndrome ‘where hostages sometimes develop a psychological bond with their captors.’ (Think Kevin, Y&R!) The moral of Henson’s story was to make sure the people you pay and who work for you, understand that you are the talent and nothing happens without you including them collecting a paycheck off you.

Henson can currently be seen in the musical version of The Color People in movie theatres everywhere.

Check out her emotional and enlightening conversation with the SAG-AFTRA Foundation below.

Now let us know, do you think Cookie Lyon was one of the best TV characters and should have either been spun off into her own show, or Henson should have appeared in more commercial and endorsement deals given the popularity of the character? Weigh-in via the comment section.

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Empire

Jussie Smollett Releases New Rap Single ‘Thank You God’ Speaking On the Injustice of His Court Case

Now that former Empire star, Jussie Smollett (Ex-Jamal Lyon) is out of jail while appealing his conviction for the 2019 Chicago hate crime hoax, in which he was at the epicenter, the singer/actor wasted no time dropping a rap single.

On his Instagram account, Smollett posted a short clip of a new rap song, which speaks about his court case and the injustices brought down upon him by the system.

The track entitled,“Thank You God,” features Smollett rapping lyrics like: “You think I’m stupid enough to kill my reputation?”  He also raps, that there will come a day when he can sit down and talk with his followers.  He gives a mention to “D.L.” who many believe is CNN anchor, Don Lemon, who was originally one of Smollett’s main advocates.

Jussie served 10 days of jail time of his sentence of 150 days before being released . He also has 30 months of probation ahead of him and was ordered to pay $120,106 to the city of Chicago and a $25,000 fine for his actions.

Smollett says any funds raised for “Thank You God” will be donated to the Illinois Innocence Project, Rainbow Push, Secure The Bag Safety.

Check out Jussie’s Instagram post containing the rap below/

Now let us know, what do you think about Smollett releasing this track and still defending his innocence? Comment below.

 

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A post shared by @jussiesmollett

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Breaking News

‘Empire’ Star, Jussie Smollett, Sentenced to 150 Days In Jail For Fake Hate Crime Attack

Late Thursday, former Empire actor and singer, Jussie Smollett, was sentenced in Chicago more than three months after being found guilty on five felony counts to the alleged 2019 hate crime hoax that made national headlines, and got the actor fired from the former Fox primetime drama series.

In the sentencing, Smollett was sentenced to 150 days starting immediately.  In addition, he received 30 months’ probation, and has to pay the city of Chicago $120,106 in restitution, plus Jussie received an additional $25,000 fine.

Cook County Judge James Linn, who levied the sentence, came down hard in his words on Smollett due his actions noting he was, “selfish, arrogant and narcissistic.”  The judge added, “You wanted to make yourself more famous throwing a national pity party for yourself. You’re just a charlatan, pretending to be the victim of a hate crime.”

Linn went in on Smollett for his ‘performance’ and ‘pure perjury’ when the actor took to the witness stand in his own defense last year.

At the end of his sentencing, Smollett pulled down his mask to speak. He then let everyone in the courtroom know that he feels he is innocent, adding, “Your honor, I respect you and I respect the jury, but I did not do this. And I am not suicidal. And if anything happens to me when I go in there, I did not do it to myself. And you must all know that.”

Just before he was taken into custody, Smollett yelled again that he was innocent and raised a fist in the air as he exited.

Watch the sentencing of Jussie Smollett below, then weigh-in.  Did Smollett get enough of a sentence for his crime? Share your thoughts via the comment section.

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