Why Lee Daniels Describes Empire as "Absolutely the Worst Experience"

"I was capable to enactment my kids done assemblage and s--t," helium added. "So that successful itself was worthy it."

E! News has reached retired to FOX for comment, but has not heard back.

And although Empire—which starred Terrence Howard and Taraji P. Henson—had a lasting effect connected different TV shows and movies, the Paper Boy director admits he didn't spot the imaginativeness astatine the time.

"I didn't recognize what we were doing erstwhile I made Empire," helium shared. "I truly didn't. I was excessively engaged astir Cookie's chapeau and the euphony chapeau I was trying to get to recognize that I was shifting, literally, the culture. That I had single-handedly shifted it with my show."

He added, "There wouldn't person been a Black Panther, that determination wouldn't person been an Insecure. There wouldn't person been a Black-ish. All of that s--t happened due to the fact that I did what I did."

Still, adjacent with the interaction helium feels he's made, erstwhile it comes to his aboriginal projects—like his latest movie for Netflix, The Deliverance—he's lone focusing connected ones wherever helium is the eventual deciding factor.

"I person last chopped astatine Netflix," helium explained, "because different I wasn't funny successful doing the film."

But the Oscar nominee did find himself butting heads with the streamer astatine times, arsenic helium said Netflix asked for much "tension" successful the fearfulness film—which Daniels did yet relent to.

"I gave up a small spot and conscionable said, 'Okay, fto maine conscionable springiness them what they privation a small spot due to the fact that it's a Lee Daniels film, but it's besides a Netflix film,'" helium said. "I sold retired a small spot due to the fact that we're not successful the satellite of cinema. We're successful the satellite of clicks where, if they're not invested successful the archetypal 5 oregon 10 minutes, they'll crook that s--t off."