Lee Daniels talks about creating and producing the hit series 'Empire' for Fox, saying he found the experience 'horrible,' but one he doesn't regret: 'Money, money, money.'
moneyboosted Daniels into a new stratosphere of Hollywood clout and creative opportunity, but surmises that it was the money"in itself" that made the experience"worth it."
Daniels began his career in Hollywood as a casting director and ultimately talent manager. His breakthrough as a below-the-title credit was 2001'sIt was Daniels' early experiences in independent filmmaking that got him curious about working for studios like Fox and Netflix. "I don’t like staying in the same lane just as a creative," he recalled. "When I got into television, I really just wanted to be able to answer to suits. I wanted to know what that experience was like.
He remembered that "all of my friends, they get notes and s---. And I’m like, 'What is that like?' You know what I mean? Because every film of mine had been independent." Daniels enjoyed being able to "do my thing" where "nobody is in my head." "There’s so many filmmakers and writers that I respect that have to answer to people," he said. Working onallowed him to see what it's really like working within the heart of the system, and to Daniels, it was "horrible."Daniels recounted being called into Fox's human resources department "around the time of the whole Harvey Weinstein thing.
"I said, 'Okay.' And I think they said, 'You can’t look people in the eyes too long. Be careful with touching.' These are all things that I do in my room when I work. And then they said, 'And you can’t say the N-word.' I was shook," he told Vulture. "It led to a bigger conversation of me being afraid to be me on the set and how I make my movies. I said, 'I can’t have this conversation. I need to know who I can call on you.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Empire Creator Lee Daniels Would Work With Jussie Smollett After Hoax'Empire' creator Lee Daniels admitted his friendship with Jussie Smollett remains 'complicated' after the actor was found guilty of disorderly conduct
Read more »
‘The Deliverance’ review: Lee Daniels’ supernatural thriller doesn’t deliverFilmmaker Lee Daniels is less interested in terrifying viewers and more concerned with nudging them to find faith with “The Deliverance.”
Read more »
Empire creator Lee Daniels says he'd work with Jussie Smollett again after hoax: 'He was a son to me''Empire' creator Lee Daniels says he'd work with Jussie Smollett again after hoax. 'He was a son to me,' Daniels notes.
Read more »
What to watch: Lee Daniels’ solid ‘Deliverance’ delivers the shiversIt’s undeniably entertaining and powered by over-the-top performances.
Read more »
Lee Daniels' Exorcism Horror Thriller Fails to Live Up to Its Promised ScaresCaleb McLaughlin sitting on a porch with a gray hoodie and earbuds as Andra Day sits next to him in The Deliverance,
Read more »
Lee Daniels brought in daily prayers, a real-life 'deliverer' for The Deliverance'Nope, not today, Satan,' Daniels said, citing famous instances of problems on sets of exorcism-based films like The Exorcist
Read more »