Lee Daniels Walks Back Calling Time on Fox’s Hit Series ‘Empire’ the “Worst Experience”

As a fan who’s been following Lee Daniels‘ career since his groundbreaking work on shows like “Empire” and films like “Precious,” I must admit that this rollercoaster of opinions has left me feeling a bit like a passenger on said ride!

Maybe Empire wasn’t so bad after all?

A few weeks following Lee Daniels’ harsh criticism of his time on the popular Fox series “Horrible… worst experience” (as expressed to The Film Stage), the show’s co-creator has since retracted those remarks, stating “that’s not true” when questioned about making such comments initially.

During an interview on Andy Cohen Live, a program on SiriusXM, Daniels was questioned about his controversial remarks that gained attention in early September. The topic of discussion was his Netflix film, The Deliverance. Andy Cohen inquired, “I heard you referred to Empire as your worst experience. Is that accurate?

Daniel countered by saying something along these lines: “I must correct you, what I actually meant was that it was my most challenging experience because for the first time, I had to take direction from others since all of my films were independently produced and I didn’t have anyone giving me directions before.

Later, Cohen inquired whether the network had provided Daniels with numerous suggestions regarding the series. “Yes, and I’d expect that, you understand, studios usually offer such feedback. But it felt strange, almost shocking to me,” he added.

Daniels initially shared with The Film Stage that he took on the Empire project solely for the sake of experiencing such feedback firsthand. He explained his motivation by saying, “There are countless filmmakers and writers whose work I admire who have to respond to people’s opinions.” After describing it as a terrible experience, he went on to say, “But let me tell you, that money, money, money! It allowed me to send my children to college. So in itself, it was worth it.

Back in the days when Empire ruled the airwaves, I’d tell my buddy Cohen that there weren’t any Black writers or directors in the picture. You know, we’re talking about the show with Taraji P. Henson, Terrence Howard, and Jussie Smollett, which aired from 2015 to 2020.

Insecure debuted in 2016, while the Black Panther franchise launched in 2018.

Daniels continued, expressing that he felt he had an exceptional encounter with [Fox]. He believed they recognized the need for change, which was significant. Furthermore, it was unprecedented for someone to tell him not to dictate his Blackness, a sentiment that resonated as “Enough is enough,” and “Stop the madness.” This was a novel experience for everyone involved, making it difficult initially but ultimately rewarding. In simpler terms, Daniels found [Fox] understanding of change refreshing, and he appreciated the unexpected assertion against racial stereotyping, which made for a challenging yet beneficial interaction.

2024-09-24 22:56

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