*We’ve got more news on that remake of “Terms of Endearment” from Lee Daniels and Oprah Winfrey. In the revised production, Winfrey will take on the Shirley MacClaine role, but it appears that beyond that, we’re talking a whole different look. In fact, one of the storylines will include black men giving AIDS to their female partners, but the setting will still be the 80s.
Talking with the Hollywood Reporter’s Stephen Galloway at Loyola Marymount’s Hollywood Masters series on March 22, the man behind “Empire” franchise gave some specific plot points regarding the new vision for the classic film.
“I’ve got to tell stories that are important to me, and so many African-American women died,” said Daniels. “I want to make Flap [played by Jeff Daniels in the 1983 film] gay and infect the Debra Winger character. And then we explore the ’80s in a different way.”
In other Lee Daniels news, you’ll be interested to know that the “Empire” spinoff will be Las Vegas-set and revealed that he’s begun therapy. “They say it works,” he mused. “I’ll find out.”
Speaking of the “Empire” spinoff, back in January he told THR this about the project:
“We’re in talks,” Daniels told THR. “We’re finally figuring it out. It takes a minute, you know? We just really had to build the foundation of Empire, so we then try to figure out what that B-chorus is. It looks like it’s going to happen.”
Pressed for details, Daniels remained mum on whether the spinoff could be for this current pilot season or if it would be a planted episode that serves as a back-door pilot. Also unclear is the firm premise, though there had been talk in August 2015 that a spinoff could serve as a prequel revolving around Taraji P. Henson’s character Cookie.
“It could be,” Daniels told THR about a prequel series. “We really are in deep talks about it, and we’re having all these ideas thrown around to figure it out. But I can officially say that we will be having a spinoff.”
The bottom line is that “Empire,” which was renewed for a 4th season back in January, continues to rank as broadcast’s top-rated drama. There is a strong contender, however. That would be NBC’s “This Is Us.”
