Brace yourselves: Cookie is back. So are Lucious, Andre, Jamal, and Hakeem, but as usual, the leading lady of the Lyon family has our utmost attention. On August 6, Fox released a teaser for season 2 of Empire — the hit musical drama about a wildly talented family whose lives are fueled by a love of hip hop and R&B, and a determination to succeed, no matter the costs.
That same day, executive producer Lee Daniels — who's clearly not letting this year's Emmy snub get to him — shared that an Empire spinoff is definitely happening. Best news ever? We think so.
“There is going to be a spinoff from Empire, without question,” he said during the Television Critics Association summer press tour in Beverly Hills. “There’s so much ripe story that we’ve talked about already — about Cookie’s family, what makes her. That in itself is fascinating to me.”
Hear hear, Daniels! There’s no such thing as too much Cookie. In the meantime, we’ll allow the trailer to soothe our anticipation. The first season of Daniels’ drama ended with a bang, as Lucious was finally arrested for the death of Marcus "Bunkie" Williams (his former wife, Cookie’s cousin). It’s hard to tell where season two will lead, but we do know it all starts behind bars. “You always were a ride-or-die. Always,” Lucious says to Cookie during a visit.
In addition to that love chat, there’s a #FreeLucious concert. But not everyone is on the fictional hip hop mogul’s team. Case in point: his eldest son Andre, who’s focused on removing Lucious Lyon as CEO of Empire.
Meanwhile the rivalry between Jamal and Hakeem still stands. When Jamal promises to bury his younger brother’s album, Hakeem responds by saying he’s going to be a bigger artist than Jamal and their dad Lucious. Alas, it wouldn’t be Empire without overwhelming drama.
Even if you're sick of the family feuds, the guest appearances never disappoint. Although stars like Oprah and Pitbull are said to be on the upcoming season, we have visible proof of Chris Rock, Ludacris, and Marisa Tomei stopping by thus far. Take a look at the trailer below.
Empire returns on September 23. Let the music, madness, and epic Cookie one-liners commence.