50 Cent wants to work with Taraji P. Henson after learning that she dismissed her whole crew for failing to capitalize on her “Empire” character, Cookie Lyon.
On Instagram today (Dec. 26), the rapper uploaded a screenshot of a Deadline piece. “They dropped the ball,” the caption said. [Taraji P. Henson]: F**k them. I’m ready to go to work. “Let’s go get it!”
Henson came out earlier this month about Hollywood’s wage discrepancy and being underpaid as a Black actor. During an interview with the SAG-AFTRA Foundation, she voiced disappointment with her production team’s inability to capitalize on the popularity of the role.
The Golden Globe winner specifically chastised them for not having any post-“Empire” plans, like as endorsements or commercial partnerships.
“Firing everybody after Cookie,” Henson stated. What’s my deal? What happened to my commercial? Cookie was on top of the fashion world. Where is my support? They had nothing planned.”
She also discussed a Cookie-centric program, which she was amenable to if done well. However, the actress eventually rejected the plan owing to her displeasure with the progress.
It came after a heartbreaking conversation with Gayle King on SiriusXM, in which Henson discussed her frustration with being devalued and underpaid in the business. “I’m tired of working so hard, being gracious at what I do [and] getting paid a fraction of the cost,” she said.
I’m sick of hearing the same stuff from my sisters repeatedly. You get exhausted. People say to me, ‘You work a lot.’ I have no choice. “The math isn’t working.”
“We don’t do this alone,” she concluded. There’s a big crew behind us. That’s why we’re up here. They must be compensated. So, when you hear someone claim, ‘Oh, such and such earned $10 million,’ that money did not end up in their account.
Understand that Uncle Sam will get 50% of the proceeds, OK? Do the arithmetic; we now have $5 million.” The SAG member discussed the financial reality of supposedly substantial payouts, such as crew expenditures and taxes.
Keke Palmer and Gabrielle Union have since shown their support for Henson. Meanwhile, 50 Cent has executive produced many TV episodes, including “Power Book II: Ghost,” “Power Book III: Raising Kanan,” “BMF,” and “Power Book IV: Force.”
