“We’re turning the final season of Empire into a large television event,” Collier said of the Tuesday-bound drama.
Despite losing half of its audience vs. last season, Empire will end the current season as Fox’s No. 2 scripted series (behind 9-1-1).
Fox buried the lede when it renewed Empire last month: The series’ upcoming sixth season will also be its last, the network announced on Monday (and it’s moving to a new night).
During a conference conference call with reporters, Fox CEO Charlie Collier elaborated on the decision to end the Taraji P. Henson-Terrence Howard soap with Season 6, side-stepping questions about what role — if any — the real-life drama surrounding embattled cast member Jussie Smollett played into it.