| Andre Lyon | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Empire character | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Portrayed by | Trai Byers | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| First appearance | "Pilot" (2015) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Created by | Lee Daniels and Danny Strong | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Andre Martin Lyon is a fictional character from the American musical drama Empire , on Fox. Portrayed by Trai Byers, Andre is the oldest son of hip-hop mogul Lucious (Terrence Howard) and his wife Cookie (Taraji P. Henson).
Andre, the college-educated executive in the company, is pitted against his two younger brothers, Hakeem Lyon (Bryshere Y. Gray) and Jamal (Jussie Smollett), for control of the family business after their father's developing illness. He is portrayed as the son with the most business acumen and unlike his younger siblings does not want to follow in the Lyon family's musical footsteps. This creates tensions with Lucious, who likes to push him aside.
He is afflicted with bipolar disorder, and is on a spiritual journey to find his identity. He is the one Lyon "son" who chooses business over singing. He was in an interracial relationship, married to scheming character Rhonda (played by Kaitlin Doubleday). This created further troubles with his father Lucious who disapproves of the relationship. Rhonda, who is pregnant, is pushed down the stairs by a mystery character in the mid-season finale of season 2, causing her to lose her unborn child. She is later killed in the season finale by Andre's stepmother Anika (Grace Byers), who pushes her from a 30-floor building. Andre avenges his wife's and unborn child's deaths in the season 4 finale when he spikes Anika's champagne. She hallucinates, seeing Rhonda's ghost, panics, and plunges through a glass ceiling to her death.
On March 10, 2014, it was announced that Trai Byers known for his recurring roles on All My Children and 90210 had been cast in the role of Andre Lyon, the oldest son of Lucious (Terrence Howard) and Cookie Lyon (Taraji P. Henson) described as a "brilliant and compelling guy with a dark side." [1] Byers had several auditions before he booked the role of Andre. [2] When Lee Daniels and Danny Strong created the character of Andre, they agreed that he would have some sort of depression. [3] Co-creator Danny Strong said Byers booked the role "partially by walking in and identifying Andre as Iago." [4] Daniels likened Byers to Denzel Washington. "Pure genius" he said of the actor. [5] "He's kind of legitimized [his family]" Byers said of his character Andre. It was his efforts that raised the company to the Fortune 500 level. Not only does he feel he is the brains behind their success, but as the oldest child, Andre feels like taking over the company is his birthright. [6]
Trai Byers described Andre "ivy league educated business man" who wants to help take his family's company to the "next level." As the oldest child, facing off with his two younger siblings for the company, Andre feels shut out and will do whatever it takes to get what he feels is rightfully his. According to Byers, Andre "dwells in the darker places of me, so I do a lot of shifting through emotions involving abandonment, guilt, and hurt." Andre also has suffered from depression. [2] Much like Byers himself, Andre has a strong sense of loyalty. [5] Though the creators always intended for Andre to be mentally ill, it was show runner Ilene Chaiken that pushed for Andre's condition to be more defined and they eventually agreed on bipolar disorder. Chaiken had previously worked on the ABC drama The Black Box which focused heavily on the disorder. While Chaiken and the creators wanted to explore the disorder again, "we also wanted to give Andre his own internal struggle, and that was the struggle that he presents with." [3] While Byers is also a talented singer in his own right, Andre is not musical at all. Byers praised the decision to make Andre the "straight man in the middle of all of the pizzazz, the fame and fortune." [4] "He is one of the most tragic characters, if not the most tragic character on this show" Byers said of Andre. [7]
Byers actually studied the disorder through a family member who also has the disorder. "I feel much more committed knowing somebody and more responsible to him and others like him." [8] Byers declared "Our Dancing Days" as the "beginning of Andre's story." Not only is Andre in the process of trying to make sure the IPO goes off without a hitch, he is off his medication and the news Lucious is dying from ALS pushes him to the brink. Byers explained "So it's all those different emotions, and the fact that he's bipolar, just trying to manage everything. It just kind of failed him." The actor described the scenes in which Andre breaks down in the shower after learning of Lucious' impending demise as "cathartic" for him as an actor because Andre had been sort of lingering in the background. In preparation for his portrayal of Andre's disorder, Byers said "I researched everything I could on paper." The actor also studied two separate cases of "manic episodes," both extremes, but total opposites; the first person was "very fast, so fast that he induced a stutter... Another one was really mellow, not depressed, though, still in a manic state, but just really, really slow." [6] Byers wanted to find a balance for Andre between the two. [7] Most significantly, during the filming of the movie Selma, Byers attended a family reunion in which he witnessed his uncle "talking to himself for an hour, almost in a different voice. It was very disturbing, coming from this brilliant man -- he's a genius outside of his disorder. It really caught me off guard, and later I found out that my character is bipolar as well, so that really served me." [6]
In his quest to rise to the top of the company, Andre has his wife Rhonda (Kaitlin Doubleday) by his side. Byers described the dynamic between the two as a "modern day Macbeth." [2] While there is an initial belief that Rhonda has ill motives, Byers said "I don't think that she does." He agreed with the show creators' assessment that the relationship between Andre and Rhonda "is actually the most pure, fully functional [one] on the show." While the relationship can appear to be very "twisted," they are "ride or die." Rhonda only serves as an "instigator" to keep him motivated as he goes against his family. [6] Andre sees a kindred spirit in Rhonda because "They both had to work for where they are" and they have a "similar background." Of the pairing, Byers said "They're actually the greatest love story on this show. They're the only two people who genuinely love each other and have each other's back through it all."After Rhonda faced a terrible death in Season 3, Andre was heart-broken and weak without her, because of his Bipolar Disorder, she returns to him in hallucinations. [7]
Terrence Dashon Howard is an American actor. Having his first major roles in the 1995 films Dead Presidents and Mr. Holland's Opus, Howard broke into the mainstream with a succession of television and cinema roles between 2004 and 2006. He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor for his role in Hustle & Flow.
Ilene Chaiken is an American television producer, director, writer, and founder of Little Chicken Productions. Chaiken is best known as being a co-creator, writer and executive producer on the television series The L Word, and was recently an executive producer on Empire, The Handmaid's Tale, and Law & Order: Organized Crime.
Taraji Penda Henson is an American actress. She studied acting at Howard University before she began her career acting in film and television. She has received a Golden Globe Award as well as several award nominations including for an Academy Award, four Primetime Emmy Awards, and two Daytime Emmy Awards.
Andre Royo is an American actor, producer, and writer. He is best known for his role as Reginald "Bubbles" Cousins on the HBO crime drama series The Wire, and his appearances on Fringe, Party Down, How to Make It in America, and the 2013 film The Spectacular Now. Royo also appeared as Lucious Lyon's defense attorney Thirsty Rawlings on the FOX drama series Empire.
Zosia March is a fictional character from the BBC medical drama Holby City, played by actress Camilla Arfwedson. She first appeared in the series fifteen episode "The Kick Inside", broadcast on 10 September 2013. Zosia arrives at Holby City hospital to start her first year of the Foundation Programme. She has a vested interest in psychiatry and has worked on both Darwin and Keller wards mentored by Elliot Hope and Sacha Levy respectively. She is characterised as a forthright, intelligent and unafraid to challenge the hospital hierarchy. The show soon introduced Zosia's estranged father, Guy Self. They share a dysfunctional relationship following the death of her mother. Their feud jeopardises Zosia's career and on one occasion she is thrown off Keller following a rude confrontation. Other storylines revolve around close colleagues Arthur Digby and Dominic Copeland and romances with Sebastian Coulter and Oliver Valentine, whom she later married.
Empire is an American musical drama television series created by Lee Daniels and Danny Strong for Fox that ran from January 7, 2015, to April 21, 2020. It is a joint production by Imagine Television and 20th Century Fox Television and syndicated by 20th Television. Although it is filmed in Chicago, the show is set in New York. The series centers on the fictional hip hop music and entertainment company Empire Entertainment, and the drama among the members of the founders' family as they fight for control of it. It stars Terrence Howard, Taraji P. Henson, Bryshere Y. Gray, Jussie Smollett and Trai Byers as members of the Lyon Family, along with a supporting cast including Grace Byers, Kaitlin Doubleday, Gabourey Sidibe, Ta'Rhonda Jones, Serayah, Malik Yoba and Vivica A. Fox.
Trai Byers is an American actor. He is best known for playing Andre Lyon in the Fox musical television series, Empire (2015–2020). In 2020, Byers co-wrote and starred in the historical drama film, The 24th.
Grace Byers is an American actress. She starred as Anika Calhoun in the Fox music-industry drama series, Empire from 2015 to 2018. In 2021, she began starring as Quinn Joseph in the Amazon Prime Video comedy series, Harlem. In 2022, Byers played the leading role in the comedy horror film, The Blackening.
Lucious Lyon is a fictional character from the Fox drama series Empire, portrayed by Terrence Howard. Lucious is the main protagonist and anti-hero of the series. Created by Lee Daniels and Danny Strong, Lucious is the founder and CEO of Empire Entertainment, a world-famous and renowned record company that he runs with his family. Realizing he will need a successor after he is diagnosed with ALS, Lucious pits his three sons: the college-educated executive Andre Lyon, the talented and gay singer-songwriter Jamal, and youngest, rapper Hakeem, against one another. The story has parallels to William Shakespeare's King Lear and James Goldman's The Lion in Winter. Lyon is married to former drug dealer and ex-con Cookie Lyon. rapper and music mogul, is loosely based on several real-life figures, including rappers, record producers and politicians.
Loretha "Cookie" Lyon is a fictional character from the American musical drama Empire on Fox. Portrayed by Taraji P. Henson, Cookie is one of the main characters within the series, the queen bee and the wife of former drug dealer turned hip-hop mogul, Lucious Lyon who gets released from prison and strikes out to lay claim to half of their multimillion-dollar record label, which was initially funded by her drug money.
Jamal Joseph Lyon is a fictional character from the American musical drama, Empire on Fox. Portrayed by Jussie Smollett, Jamal is the middle son of hip-hop mogul Lucious and his wife Cookie. Jamal, a talented R&B singer and songwriter, struggles to gain his father's approval, but is able to overcome this adversity with Cookie's support. He initially expresses resentment towards fame and is hesitant to be in the limelight, but he gradually embraces it once Cookie begins to manage his career. Jamal engages in what was once a friendly competition against his younger brother and best friend Hakeem to determine who is more musically gifted, while maintaining a cold distance from his older brother Andre for his perpetual scheming. Jamal struggles with his father's objection to his homosexuality, which was inspired by Empire creator Lee Daniels' own relationship with his father.
Hakeem Lyon is a fictional character from the original FOX musical drama Empire played by Bryshere Y. Gray. Hakeem, one of the main characters within the series, is the youngest and once-favorite son of hip-hop mogul Lucious and his wife Cookie. Hakeem has the star quality to become a superstar like his father, but lacks the discipline and guidance he needs. He also has a strained relationship with Cookie.
The pilot episode of the American musical drama television series Empire premiered on Fox on January 7, 2015. The show focuses on Lucious Lyon, the head of a record label who is diagnosed with ALS and given three years to live. While keeping his condition a secret, he decides to find a successor that will take over the company. Meanwhile, his ex-wife Cookie Lyon comes out of jail and demands a part of the company she founded. The episode was directed by Lee Daniels and written by Lee Daniels and Danny Strong. Over 12 original songs, produced by Timbaland, were featured in the episode.
The first season of the American television series Empire premiered on January 7, 2015, and concluded on March 18, 2015, on Fox. The series centers around a hip hop music and entertainment company, Empire Entertainment, and the drama among the members of the founders' family as they fight for control. The show aired on Wednesdays at 9:00 pm ET. The season consisted of 12 episodes.
The second season of the American television drama series Empire premiered on September 23, 2015, in the United States on Fox. The season was ordered on January 17, 2015. The show is produced by 20th Century Fox Television, in association with Imagine Entertainment, Lee Daniels Entertainment, Danny Strong Productions and Little Chicken Inc. The showrunners for this season are Ilene Chaiken, Danny Strong and Lee Daniels. The season aired on Wednesday at 9:00 pm, the same slot as the previous season. The season concluded on May 18, 2016, and consisted of 18 episodes.
The third season of the American television drama series Empire premiered on September 21, 2016, in the United States on Fox. The third season was ordered on January 15, 2016. The show is produced by 20th Century Fox Television, in association with Imagine Entertainment, Lee Daniels Entertainment, Danny Strong Productions and Little Chicken Inc. The showrunners for this season are Ilene Chaiken, Danny Strong and Lee Daniels. The season aired on Wednesday at 9:00 pm, the same slot as the previous seasons. The season concluded on May 24, 2017 and consisted of 18 episodes.
The fourth season of the American television drama series Empire premiered on September 27, 2017, in the United States on Fox. The fourth season was ordered on January 11, 2017, consisting of eighteen episodes. The show is produced by 20th Century Fox Television, in association with Imagine Entertainment, Lee Daniels Entertainment, Danny Strong Productions and Little Chicken Inc. The showrunners for this season are Ilene Chaiken, Danny Strong and Lee Daniels. The season aired on Wednesdays at 8:00 pm, a new slot. The premiere of the season also had a crossover with other Lee Daniels-created Fox series Star. The season concluded on May 23, 2018.
The fifth season of the American television drama series Empire premiered on September 26, 2018 and ended on May 8, 2019, in the United States on Fox. The season was ordered on May 2, 2018, consisting of eighteen episodes with Brett Mahoney taking over as showrunner from Ilene Chaiken. The show is produced by 20th Century Fox Television, in association with Imagine Entertainment, Lee Daniels Entertainment, Danny Strong Productions and Little Chicken Inc. The showrunners for this season are Mahoney, Danny Strong and Lee Daniels.
The sixth and final season of the American television drama series Empire premiered on September 24, 2019, in the United States on Fox. The season was ordered on April 30, 2019. The show is produced by 20th Century Fox Television, in association with Imagine Entertainment, Lee Daniels Entertainment, Danny Strong Productions and Little Chicken Inc. The showrunners for this season are Mahoney, Danny Strong and Lee Daniels.