Lee Daniels TV Series The Empire The series ran for six seasons on Fox, but the director admitted that the behind-the-scenes filming process wasn't his favorite. In a new interview with movie theaterDaniels insisted that he “just did it.” The Empire Just so I could see what that experience was like.
As it turns out, it wasn't great, as Daniels described the process of making The Empire “As a horrible experience,” he added, “it was the worst experience ever. Horrible! But what happened? Damn that money, money, money! I was able to send my kids to college and stuff. So it was worth it in and of itself.”
The series, created by Daniels with Danny Strong, premiered in 2015 and starred Terrence Howard as hip-hop mogul Lucious Lyon. The final season was shut down due to the Covid pandemic and the series has faced a number of setbacks over the years, including Jussie Smollett being removed from the show and accusations of plagiarism.
Daniels explained that he was interested in working for larger studios after spending years making independent films. “When I got into television, I really wanted to be able to respond to lawsuits,” he said. “I wanted to know what that was like. All my friends get notes and stuff like that. And I’m like, ‘What was that like?’ You know what I mean? Because every single one of my movies has been independent. Everything I’ve done has been independent.”
“As you know, my first film was developed with drug money,” he added. Monster Ball“I won an Oscar as the first black woman. All my films are independently financed so I can do what I want without anyone interfering in my affairs.”
The director has previously spoken about his frustrations while working on The EmpireAfter the show was canceled, Daniels said, eagle That he was called into HR “at the same time as the Harvey Weinstein case.”
“I think they said to me, ‘You can’t look people in the eye for too long. Be careful with touching,’” he recalls. “These are all things I do in my room when I work. And then they said, ‘And you can’t say the N-word.’ I was shocked. That led to a bigger conversation about my fear of being myself on set and how I make my films. I said, ‘I can’t have this conversation. I need to know who I can call. Because you’ve provoked me. You’re not going to play these games with me.’”
Daniels' new movie, SalvationAvailable now on Netflix. The film is a horror film about a family living in Indiana who discover strange and demonic occurrences that convince them that their home is a gateway to hell. Andra Day plays a single mother named Ebony, while Glenn Close co-stars as her mother and Mo'Nique plays a social worker. The cast also includes Onganui Ellis Taylor, Omar Epps and Caleb McLaughlin.
