‘Empire’ season 4 update: Director Lee Daniels optimistic about series spinoff as fourth season surplus

Critical hit with multiple Emmy Awards to its name, the “Empire” TV series is slated to return for a fourth season, said show creators at the 2017 Television Critics Association (TCA) winter press tour. According to ratings, the show ranks number one in US TV drama and has a massive outreach of adult viewers within the 18-49 demographic. Actors Terrence Howard and Taraji P Henson will be seen again in the upcoming “Empire” season 4, which has been scheduled to premiere on FX on March 22.

“Empire” writer-director Lee Daniels recently talked about his plans of expanding the hit US hip-hop drama with a brand new spinoff series. The music-themed series features Terrence Howard as a rap mogul, and counterpart Taraji P Henson plays his ex-wife-turned-record label executive.

Earlier, “Empire” director Lee Daniels told the Hollywood Reporter at the TCA press tour that the studio further plans to create another “Empire” related series. “We’re in talks,” Lee said. “We’re finally figuring it out. We just really had to build the foundation of ‘Empire’… It looks like it’s going to happen.” It has also been reported that Lee was promoting his latest TV drama series, “Star” at the TCA tour when he confirmed the series spinoff.

Nonetheless, an official announcement has yet to be made regarding the “Empire” spinoff. Also, no details about what the planned spinoff will be has been released, although Lee didn’t seem reluctant in vaguely accepting the idea of using the spinoff in exploring Taraji’s character Cookie Lyon’s backstory.

“It could be (about a young Cookie),” said the thoughtful Lee. “We really are in deep talks about it, and we’re having all these ideas thrown around to figure it out. But I can officially say that we will be having a spin-off.”

Meanwhile, a US chaw show “The Talk” recently revealed that Taraji, who won the 2016 Golden Globe for Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series Drama, was initially reluctant in signing up for the role of Cookie, according to All HipHop News. The character was similar to others she had previously played onscreen, she cited was the reason.

“I’ve been deemed as the edgy one in Hollywood sometimes,” Taraji said to “The Talk.” “In your career, when you’re building, you’re trying not to pigeonhole yourself and so I’ve been the girl in the hood, I’ve been the pregnant prostitute, I’ve done the woman that could be stereotypical and so Cookie scared me.”

In the US, “Empire” season 4 premieres March 22 on Fox. An Australian release date is not available yet. Terrence Howard and Taraji P Henson play the lead characters, with sidekicks including Trai Byers, Jussie Smollett, Bryshere Y Gray, Grace Gealey, Ta’Rhonda Jones, Serayah McNeill and Gabourey Sidibe.