It’s not always a cherry blossom for every celebrity. Showbiz can be hurtful at times which often leads some celebrities to take desperate measures for desperate times and Taraji P. Henson just did that. The Empire star fired her entire team.
It is an idea well-known to Hollywood, previously Dwayne Johnson fired his agents over the vexation with the roles he was getting, a tough choice indeed. But is it a step for a remedy to uplift the career prospects? Certainly, they had something in mind that propelled them to come to such decisions.
Taraji P. Henson Fired Her Entire Team
Since her debut in the 1998 film Streetwise, Taraji P. Henson has evolved to be a refined actor with well-decorated titles to her credit in her career spanning over two decades. However, following the success of the Fox series Empire, the actor was struggling to get a role to stand out. Henson’s Empire character Cookie Lyon was getting a spin-off as it was in development, however, it was canceled prematurely. Still, Henson believes “Firing everybody after Cookie,” was her best business decision.
“Everybody had to fucking go. Where is my deal? Where’s my commercial? Cookie was at the top of the fashion game. Where is my endorsement? What did you have set up for after this? That’s why you all haven’t seen me in so long. They had nothing set up. All they wanted was another Cookie show,” Henson said (via Variety).
One thing is certain, Henson puts her soul into the roles she plays and she is a self-made star. On this note, it is worth mentioning that wrestler-turned-actor Dwayne Johnson also admitted that firing his agents saved his career.
Also read: “The math ain’t mathing”: Taraji P. Henson Regrets 1 Kevin Costner Film Didn’t Get Her Oscar Nod
Taraji P. Henson Explained The Reason For Her Bold Move
It was courageous to fire the entire team but Henson was aware of what she was doing and the frustration took her to the place of the decision that was meant to reshape her career in the coming days. A new resolution, maybe? Henson candidly explained that her previous team was obsessed with another Cookie show. “All they wanted was another Cookie show,” she told Variety adding, “And I said, ‘I’ll do it, but it has to be right.”
“The people deserve…she’s too beloved for y’all to f*ck it up.’ And so, when they didn’t get it right, I was like, ‘Well, that’s it,’ and they had nothing else. ‘You’re all f*ckin’ fired.’ It took me years to get there…you are the prize. Don’t you ever forget that. You are the talent. You are the check. Don’t ever forget that. They work for you. If they are not…somebody else will do it. I stayed with the same team for years.”
It would be interesting to see what the future holds for Henson. The 53-year-old recently appeared in Blitz Bazawule’s The Color Purple playing Shug Avery in the musical drama. The Color Purple is currently showing in theater.
