Empire Bosses Reveal Hope They May Get To Shoot Original Finale

Maybe this isn’t the way the Cookie crumbles? The coronavirus has caused many TV shows to shut down production early this spring including Empire. The show’s last episode is set to air next week — or is it?

Empire May Get Their Real Ending

Empire executive producers Lee Daniels and Danny Strong released dual statements that appeared on The Wrap that revealed that there’s a chance they may one day get to film the original ending they had in mind for the hit primetime soap set in the music world.

“The success of Empire and bringing the Lyon family to broadcast television will always be one of the proudest achievements of my career,” said Daniels. “This show is the definition of breaking barriers.

“Thank you to our incredible cast, especially Terrence [Howard, Lucious] and Taraji [P. Henson, Cookie], along with our amazing writers and tireless crew, for all of their hard work and bringing this story to life. I think there’s more to do with these characters, and I’m heartbroken we aren’t getting to shoot the finale we wanted–at least not yet. But you know what they say in television? Stay tuned! To the Empire!”

Strong added: “We’re so proud of this show and of everything this incredible cast – led by Taraji and Terrence- and crew accomplished over six seasons. The episode airing on April 21 was never meant to be the series finale, but due to current events it will likely be the last one our fans will see for a while.

Oh That Ending

“We had an ending for the series planned that we all loved, and hopefully someday we’ll be able to film it and give the series its proper conclusion,” Strong continued. “But we hope everyone tunes in to our last original episode, because the work done by our cast and crew deserves to be seen by the widest audience possible. Big thank you to Fox for being our home for these many years. And here’s hoping this isn’t the end!”

Empire’s finale is titled “Home Is on the Way.” Watch for Cookie to reflect on her life and the woman she’s become. Meanwhile, Lucious finds its impossible to deny his feelings for Cookie as he prepares for battle. Empire airs Tuesdays at 9 p.m. ET on Fox.