https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GRGRhi_WOu4&feature=youtu.be
Believe it or not, tomorrow night, it’s already time for the 2-hour season finale of Empire on Fox at 8p. We know a lot about the characters, but how much do we know about the behind-the-scenes for television’s biggest show in decades. Last week, I was on a conference call with the show’s co-creator, Danny Strong, and he had some shocking reveals about the nighttime soap that people can’t stop talking about.
Empire almost didn’t become television show:
Danny Strong: “When I came up with the idea, it was as a movie, and I thought it could be this really cool hip-hop movie musical that I pitched to Lee Daniels. Then he called me the next day and said, ‘I can’t stop thinking about it, but I think it’s a TV show.’ And, I instantly knew he was right, because it was about a family, and great TV shows are about families.
And then we instantly started talking about Dallas and Dynasty. So it was this, it just kind of, organically come from the concept; as opposed to me setting out wanting to do something different, I, kind of really don’t work that way. I don’t thing about—I’m just idea driven. So, whatever the idea is, so what’s the best genre for that idea, what’s the best place to do it, etc., kind of how I work.”
Before Empire premiered, they had problems getting people to guest star on the show:
DS: “When the show first premiered, I mean, before the first show premiered, we had shot, I think, nine or ten episodes, and getting guest stars was not so easy, I mean, we were getting passed on all over the place, all of the time, and we ended up with some really cool guest stars during that period. Courtney Love, is a perfect example of someone who just kind of stepped up, leap of faith for having not seen the show, who joined us, right; but there were many people that wouldn’t.
“So, after the show premiered is when we started casting the season finale, and it was a very different, very exciting situation, where, when it was just tons of no’s, it turned into not only lots of yes’s, but incoming calls of people who wanted to be on the show. So, that’s when we ended up with the season finale with all of these amazing performers, and it’s really cool. I mean it’s really, really cool; there’s just going to be a ton of great musical numbers in the finale.”
What can we expect from the season finale:
DS: “It’s a very explosive finale, not surprising, right, given the nature of our story telling, and many things go down, many things will be resolved, alliances will shift, and yet, it may or may not, be completely resolved by the time it’s over.”
What it was like having the legendary Debbie Allen direct part of the season finale”
DS: “Debbie was so cool. I grew up watching Fame, and I co-wrote with Ilene Chaiken that episode that Debbie directed, so I was on set for a bit, and she’s sort of everything you’d imagine her to be. She’s just super cool, super hip, really smart, really talented, and I remember there was this cat fight that she was directing, and at one point she yelled out this direction, ‘Now toss the b!tch,’ and I just remember thinking, ‘That is, I think, the greatest piece of direction I’ve ever heard in my career.'”
Empire was picked up for a second season, but does that mean we will get 22 episodes?:
DS: “I don’t know what we are doing at this point, it hasn’t been decided, but I don’t think 22 is a discussion.”
