The
pilot episode
A television pilot (also known as a pilot or a pilot episode and sometimes marketed as a tele-movie), in United States television, is a standalone episode of a television series that is used to sell a show to a television network or other distri ...
of the American musical drama
television series
A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite television, satellite, or cable television, cable, excluding breaking news, television adverti ...
''
Empire
An empire is a "political unit" made up of several territories and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the empire (sometimes referred to as the metropole) ex ...
'' premiered on
Fox
Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush'').
Twelve sp ...
on January 7, 2015. The show focuses on Lucious Lyon, the head of a
record label
A record label, or record company, is a brand or trademark of music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometimes, a record label is also a publishing company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the produ ...
who is diagnosed with
ALS
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as motor neuron disease (MND) or Lou Gehrig's disease, is a neurodegenerative disease that results in the progressive loss of motor neurons that control voluntary muscles. ALS is the most com ...
and given three years to live. While keeping his condition a secret, he decides to find a successor that will take over the company. Meanwhile, his ex-wife Cookie Lyon comes out of jail and demands a part of the company she founded. The episode was directed by
Lee Daniels
Lee Daniels (born December 24, 1959) is an American film and television producer, director and screenwriter. His first producer credit was '' Monster's Ball'' (2001), for which Halle Berry won the Academy Award for Best Actress, making Daniels ...
and written by Lee Daniels and
Danny Strong
Daniel William Strong (born June 6, 1974) is an American actor, film and television writer, director, and producer. As an actor, Strong is best known for his roles as Jonathan Levinson in '' Buffy the Vampire Slayer'' and Doyle McMaster in ''Gilm ...
. Over 12 original songs, produced by
Timbaland
Timothy Zachery Mosley (born March 10, 1972), known professionally as Timbaland, is an American record producer, rapper, singer, songwriter, and record executive. He has received widespread acclaim for his innovative production work and distinc ...
, were featured in the episode.
The episode premiered to an audience of 9.90 million viewers,
marking "the highest rated debut in three years" for the network. The episode was well received by critics, as well.
Plot
Veronika Bozeman (
Veronika Bozeman), a musical artist is in the middle of a recording take when her boss, Lucious (
Terrence Howard
Terrence Dashon Howard (born March 11, 1969) is an American actor. Having his first major roles in the 1995 films ''Dead Presidents'' and '' Mr. Holland's Opus'', Howard broke into the mainstream with a succession of television and cinema roles ...
), feels unsatisfied with Veronika's performance. Remembering his doctor's appointment, Lucious successfully encourages Veronika to perform better by making her remember her brother's tragic death; resulting in a better performance by Veronika. On a yacht, brothers Jamal (
Jussie Smollett
Jussie Smollett (, born June 21, 1982) is an American actor and singer. He began his career as a child actor in 1991 debuting in ''The Mighty Ducks (film), The Mighty Ducks'' (1992). In 2015, Smollett portrayed musician Jamal Lyon in the Fox Bro ...
) and Hakeem (
Bryshere Gray) perform a song during which they are observed by their brother, André (
Trai Byers
Trai Byers (born July 19, 1983) is an American actor. He is best known for playing Andre Lyon in the Fox television series ''Empire'' (2015–2020).
Early life
Trai Byers was born in Kansas City, Kansas. After a year of high school in Kansas Ci ...
) and his wife (
Kaitlin Doubleday
Kaitlin Janette Doubleday (born July 19, 1984) is an American actress. She played a number of supporting film roles in her early career, including in '' Waiting...'' (2005) and ''Accepted'' (2006). From 2015 to 2016, she starred as Rhonda Lyon in ...
). During a
press conference
A press conference or news conference is a media event in which notable individuals or organizations invite journalists to hear them speak and ask questions. Press conferences are often held by politicians, corporations, non-governmental organ ...
, Lucious announces that he “is proud to announce that Empire Entertainment has filed to become a
publicly traded company
A public company is a company whose ownership is organized via shares of stock which are intended to be freely traded on a stock exchange or in over-the-counter markets. A public (publicly traded) company can be listed on a stock exchange (l ...
”. Afterwards, Lucious holds a family meeting with his sons and announces that he is up to find a successor for the company and each son will be considered.
Cookie Lyon (
Taraji P. Henson
Taraji Penda Henson ( ; born September 11, 1970) is an American actress. She studied acting at Howard University and began her Hollywood career in guest roles on several television shows before making her breakthrough in '' Baby Boy'' (2001). Sh ...
), Lucious' ex-wife, comes out of jail after serving 17 years for
drug dealing
The illegal drug trade or drug trafficking is a global black market dedicated to the cultivation, manufacture, distribution and sale of prohibited drugs. Most jurisdictions prohibit trade, except under license, of many types of drugs throug ...
and visits her son, Jamal, where she finds him living with his boyfriend, Michael (
Rafael de la Fuente
Rafael de la Fuente (born November 11, 1986) is a Venezuelan actor and singer. He is known for his roles in the fantasy television series ''Grachi'' (2011–2013) and the soap opera reboot ''Dynasty'' (2017–present) as Sam "Sammy Jo" Jones. Hi ...
). She goes on to visit her ex-husband and threatens him that she's up to get a part of the company she helped find. Lucious, worried, sends Cookie’s cousin and his assistant, Bunkie (
Antoine McKay) to follow Cookie around and report everything she's doing to Lucious. Meanwhile, Cookie recognizes Jamal's talent and demands the right from Lucious to
manage him. After Lucious refuses to give Jamal to Cookie, she threatens him that she’ll disclose to the
SEC that the company was started with
drug money
The illegal drug trade or drug trafficking is a global black market dedicated to the cultivation, manufacture, distribution and sale of prohibited drugs. Most jurisdictions prohibit trade, except under license, of many types of drugs throug ...
; resulting in Lucious' application for an
IPO
An initial public offering (IPO) or stock launch is a public offering in which shares of a company are sold to institutional investors and usually also to retail (individual) investors. An IPO is typically underwritten by one or more investment ...
being “effectively denied”. Having no other choice, Lucious accepts Cookie’s terms and hands out Jamal to Cookie commenting that he never wanted him because of his sexual orientation.
Bunkie visits Lucious’ home and demands $3,000,000 and threatens Lucious. Later, Lucious meets Bunkie in a secluded area under a bridge and kills him. The following day, on a yacht party, Lucious announces that both of his sons are releasing albums.
Production
Background
![Danny Strong 2013 (cropped)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/71/Danny_Strong_2013_%28cropped%29.jpg)
Danny Strong was driving home in his car, when a song by
Jay-Z
Shawn Corey Carter (born December 4, 1969), known professionally as Jay-Z, is an American rapper, record producer, entrepreneur, and founder of Manhattan-based conglomerate talent and entertainment agency Roc Nation. He is regarded as one of ...
that was played on the radio inspired him to think about the “hip hop empire”. Strong pitched the idea to
executive producer
Executive producer (EP) is one of the top positions in the making of a commercial entertainment product. Depending on the medium, the executive producer may be concerned with management accounting or associated with legal issues (like copyrights o ...
Lee Daniels, originally as a film project. Daniels suggested that “it’s a television series”. The duo filmed the pilot episode in March 2014 and pitched it to Fox. Fox responded positively to the episode and picked up the series on May 6, 2014.
Casting
Terrence Howard's lead role was announced on February 19, 2014.
Shortly afterwards, Taraji P. Henson was announced as the female lead and Jussie Smollett was announced in a starring role.
On March 10, 2014 Gabourey Sidibe was announced in a recurring role, having previously worked with Daniels on ''
Precious''.
Grace Gealey
Grace Byers (née Gealey; born July 26, 1984) Note: While some sources give her birthplace as the Cayman Island, Gealey says she was born in Butler, Pennsylvania. See interview in LumiereMagazine.com, below. is a Caymanian actress, known for her r ...
and Trai Byers were announced in regular roles, and shortly afterwards Bryshere Gray and Malik Yoba were announced in starring roles. A few months before the season premiere, singer
Courtney Love
Courtney Michelle Love (née Harrison; born July 9, 1964) is an American singer, guitarist, songwriter, and actress. A figure in the alternative and grunge scenes of the 1990s, her career has spanned four decades. She rose to prominence as t ...
was set to make a special appearance and model
Naomi Campbell
Naomi Elaine Campbell (born 22 May 1970) is an English model, actress, singer, and businesswoman. She began her career at the age of 15, and established herself amongst the most recognisable and in-demand models of the past four decades. Cam ...
was also cast in a recurring role.
Music
After casting his roles, Daniels focused on the music. Having little to no knowledge about the current music trends, Daniels turned to his children for advice. His son and his daughter urged him to hire ''
Timbaland
Timothy Zachery Mosley (born March 10, 1972), known professionally as Timbaland, is an American record producer, rapper, singer, songwriter, and record executive. He has received widespread acclaim for his innovative production work and distinc ...
'', known for working with artists like
Missy Elliott
Melissa Arnette Elliott (born July 1, 1971), better known as Missy Elliott or Missy “Misdemeanor” Elliot, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and record producer. She embarked on her music career with R&B girl group Sista in the earl ...
,
Madonna
Madonna Louise Ciccone (; ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. Widely dubbed the " Queen of Pop", Madonna has been noted for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, songwriting, a ...
,
Brandy
Brandy is a liquor produced by distilling wine. Brandy generally contains 35–60% alcohol by volume (70–120 US proof) and is typically consumed as an after-dinner digestif. Some brandies are aged in wooden casks. Others are coloured with ...
,
Justin Timberlake
Justin Randall Timberlake (born January 31, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, and actor. He is one of the world's best-selling music artists, with sales of over 88 million records. Timberlake is the recipient of numerous awards and ac ...
,
Jay-Z
Shawn Corey Carter (born December 4, 1969), known professionally as Jay-Z, is an American rapper, record producer, entrepreneur, and founder of Manhattan-based conglomerate talent and entertainment agency Roc Nation. He is regarded as one of ...
,
Nelly Furtado
Nelly Kim Furtado (; ; born December 2, 1978) is a Canadian singer and songwriter. Furtado has sold over 40 million records worldwide making her one of the most successful Canadian artists.
She first gained fame with her trip hop-inspired deb ...
and
Aaliyah
Aaliyah Dana Haughton (; January 16, 1979 – August 25, 2001) was an American singer and actress. She has been credited for helping to redefine contemporary R&B, pop and hip hop, earning her the nicknames the "Princess of R&B" and " ...
. Timbaland eventually agreed to work on the project and shortly after he started working with the writers of the show. Eventually, 12 songs were produced for the pilot out of which two were included in the
season's soundtrack.
Reception
Ratings
The series debut was watched by 9.90 million viewers,
marking the highest debut for a television series in three years on the network.
Critical reception
The episode was well received by critics.
''
The A.V. Club's'' Joshua Alston gave the episode a rating of A− stating "there is no unused space, there are only new places for Cookie to prop her feet up". He went on to praise Henson's character stating "my money’s on Cookie".
Max Nicholson
Edward Max Nicholson (12 July 1904 – 26 April 2003) was a pioneering environmentalist, ornithologist and internationalist, and a founder of the World Wildlife Fund.
Early life
Max Nicholson, as he was known to all, was born in Kilternan, Ir ...
from ''
IGN
''IGN'' (formerly ''Imagine Games Network'') is an American video game and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa distri ...
'' called the episode "
high end family feud" and praised the show for the "dynamics between the characters" and the music stating "the songs range from R&B pop to straight freestyle rap, and all of it, in my opinion, is really well-executed". He gave the episode a 7.9 out of 10 rating concluding that the "series premiere offers a promising start to Fox's new music-themed drama". Tim Goodman from ''
The Hollywood Reporter
''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film industry, film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade pap ...
'' liked the episode concluding that "despite the flaws,
he episodeis entertaining as hell with a strong story base and great music".
Accolades
References
{{Empire
2015 American television episodes
Empire
An empire is a "political unit" made up of several territories and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the empire (sometimes referred to as the metropole) ex ...
Empire (2015 TV series)