Power (TV series)

Last updated

Power
82-822817 power-photo-gallery-power-tv-show-logo.png
Genre Crime drama
Created by Courtney A. Kemp
Starring
Opening theme"Big Rich Town" by 50 Cent and Joe
Composer Jeff Russo
Country of originUnited States
Original languages
  • English
  • Spanish
No. of seasons6
No. of episodes63 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producers
Producers
  • Bart Wenrich
  • Shana Stein
  • Heather Zuhlke
  • Raphael Jackson, Jr.
  • Damione Macedon
  • Denise Pinckley
  • Michael Rainey Jr.
Running time51–82 minutes
Production companies
Original release
Network Starz
ReleaseJune 7, 2014 (2014-06-07) 
February 9, 2020 (2020-02-09)
Related

Power is an American crime drama-thriller television series created and produced by Courtney A. Kemp in collaboration with Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson. [1] It aired on the Starz network from June 7, 2014 to February 9, 2020.

Contents

Upon release, Power gained positive reviews and is one of Starz's highest-rated shows and one of cable's most-watched shows. [2] [3] Prior to the fifth-season premiere, Starz renewed the show for a sixth and final season, which premiered on August 25, 2019. [4] [5]

Overview

Power tells the story of James St. Patrick, an intelligent, smooth yet ruthless drug dealer who goes by the alias of "Ghost." He wishes to leave the criminal world to pursue legitimate business interests as a nightclub owner. St. Patrick aims to balance those two lives, while also avoiding police capture, trying to navigate his crumbling marriage and manage shifting economic alliances.

The show features James' family, which consists of his wife Tasha, twins Tariq and Raina and baby Yasmine. Power also follows James' criminal partner and best friend Tommy Egan, love interest and criminal prosecutor Angela Valdes, friend-turned-rival Kanan Stark, protege and rival Andre Coleman, and Angela's colleague, Cooper Saxe. Defense attorney Joe Proctor, district attorney John Mak and politician Rashad Tate also appear in the show's later seasons.

Power utilizes episodic cliff hangers as plot devices to carry its story forward.

Episodes

SeasonEpisodesOriginally aired
First airedLast aired
1 8June 7, 2014 (2014-06-07)August 2, 2014 (2014-08-02)
2 10June 6, 2015 (2015-06-06)August 15, 2015 (2015-08-15)
3 10July 17, 2016 (2016-07-17)September 25, 2016 (2016-09-25)
4 10June 25, 2017 (2017-06-25)September 3, 2017 (2017-09-03)
5 10July 1, 2018 (2018-07-01)September 9, 2018 (2018-09-09)
6 15August 25, 2019 (2019-08-25)February 9, 2020 (2020-02-09)

Cast and characters

ActorCharacterSeasons
123456
Omari Hardwick James "Ghost" St. Patrick Main
Lela Loren Angela Valdes Main Main [lower-alpha 1]
Naturi Naughton Tasha St. Patrick Main
Joseph Sikora Thomas "Tommy" Egan Main
Andy Bean Gregory "Greg" Knox Main Does not appear
Adam Huss Joshua "Josh" Kantos Main Recurring Does not appear
Kathrine Narducci Frankie Lavarro Main Guest Does not appear
Luis Antonio Ramos Carlos Ruiz Main Does not appear
Greg Serano Juan Julio Medina Main Does not appear Recurring Does not appear Recurring Does not appear
Sinqua Walls Shawn Stark Main Does not appear
Lucy Walters Holly Weaver Main Does not appear
Shane Johnson Cooper Saxe Recurring Main
J. R. Ramirez Julio Romano Recurring Main Does not appear
Rotimi Akinosho Andre "Dre" ColemanDoes not appear Main
David Fumero Miguel "Mike" SandovalDoes not appear Main Does not appear
Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson Kanan Stark Recurring Main Main [lower-alpha 2]
Michael Rainey Jr. Tariq St. Patrick Recurring Main
Jerry Ferrara Joseph "Joe" ProctorDoes not appear Recurring Main
Callan Mulvey Dean/MilanDoes not appear Main Does not appear
Alani "La La" Anthony Lakeisha Grant Recurring Main
Matt Cedeño Diego "Cristobal" MartinezDoes not appear Recurring Main Does not appear
Sung Kang John MakDoes not appear Main Guest
William Sadler Anthony "Tony" TeresiDoes not appear Main Does not appear
Brandon Victor Dixon Deleterious "Terry" SilverDoes not appear Recurring Main Does not appear
Larenz Tate Rashad TateDoes not appear Recurring Main
Michael J. FergusonFrancis "2-Bit" JohnsonDoes not appear Recurring Main
Mike Dopud Jason MicicDoes not appear Recurring Main
Monique Gabriela Curnen Blanca RodriguezDoes not appear Recurring Main
Cynthia Addai-Robinson Ramona GarrityDoes not appear Main
Evan Handler Jacob WarnerDoes not appear Main

Notes

  1. Credited as starring only when present
  2. Credited as starring only when present

Main

Recurring

Special guest appearances

Broadcast

In Australia, all episodes are available to stream after their US airing on Stan. [6] The show is available weekly after its US airing on Netflix in the United Kingdom and Ireland. [7] [8] [9] In Scandinavia and Finland, all episodes are available to stream on HBO Nordic. [10]

Accolades

YearAwardCategoryNominee(s)Result
2015 Women's Image Network Awards [11] Actress Drama Series Naturi Naughton Nominated
Outstanding Show Written by a Woman Courtney A. Kemp Nominated
2016 47th NAACP Image Awards [12] Outstanding Drama Series PowerNominated
Outstanding Actor in a Drama Series Omari Hardwick Nominated
Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series Naturi Naughton Nominated
NAMIC Vision Awards [13] Best Performance – Drama Naturi Naughton Nominated
Best Performance – Drama Omari Hardwick Won
Women's Image Network Awards [14] Actress Drama Series Naturi Naughton Nominated
2017 48th NAACP Image Awards [15] Outstanding Drama Series PowerNominated
Outstanding Actor in a Drama Series Omari Hardwick Nominated
Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series Naturi Naughton Won
Black Reel Awards for Television [16] Outstanding Drama SeriesPowerNominated
People's Choice Awards [17] Favorite Premium Drama SeriesPowerNominated
2018 49th NAACP Image Awards [18] Outstanding Drama Series PowerWon
Outstanding Actor in a Drama Series Omari Hardwick Won
Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series Naturi Naughton Won
Outstanding Performance by a Youth (Series, Special, Television Movie or Limited Series) Michael Rainey Jr. Nominated
Black Reel Awards for Television [19] Outstanding Actor, Drama Series Omari Hardwick Nominated
NAMIC Vision Awards [20] Best Performance – Drama 50 Cent Nominated
Best Performance – Drama Michael Rainey Jr. Nominated
DramaPowerNominated
9th Hollywood Music in Media Awards [21] Outstanding Music Supervision – Television Jennifer RossWon
2019 50th NAACP Image Awards [22] Outstanding Drama Series PowerWon
34th Annual Imagen Awards [23] Best Actress - Television Lela Loren Nominated
2020 51st NAACP Image Awards [24] Outstanding Actor in a Drama SeriesOmari HardwickWon

Reception

Critical response

Season 1

Season 1 of Power received mixed reviews from critics. Review aggregator Metacritic gives the season a score of 57 out of 100, based on 15 reviews, indicating a mixed reaction to the series. [25] Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes gives the season a score of 44%, based on 18 reviews, with an average rating of 5.7/10. The site's consensus states, "Power suffers from excessive plotting and the use of overly familiar by-the-numbers story elements." [26]

Tim Goodman of The Hollywood Reporter observed in his review, "Power seemingly wants to be a show that tells a big, complicated, meaningful story about, well, the perils and problems of power and how one man deals with them." [27] Critic Brian Lowry of Variety states in his review, "The three previewed episodes of the show, created by The Good Wife alumna Courtney A. Kemp, move briskly enough, but they're still only moderately compelling. And while 50 Cent's participation provides some promotional heft (he has a cameo in a later episode), the allure of such behind-the-scenes marquee names is usually limited. Mostly, this is undemanding escapism with all the requisite pay-TV trappings, along the lines of what Cinemax is offering in episodic form. While that might be a formula to keep Ghost visible for some time to come, creatively speaking, it leaves Power a touch low on juice. [28]

Season 2

Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes gives the season a score of 100%, based on 9 reviews, with an average rating of 7.8/10. [29] Review aggregator Metacritic gives the season a score of 75 out of 100, based on 4 reviews, indicating a generally favorable reaction to the series. [30] The New York Daily News staff writes in their review, "Power hits on all cylinders as it returns for its second season. Throw a couple of great women into Ghost's life—his wife, Tasha (Naturi Naughton), and his recently resurfaced lifelong flame Angela (Lela Loren)—and you have drama that's hard not to keep watching." [31]

Season 3

Rotten Tomatoes gives the season a score of 78%, based on 9 reviews, with an average rating of 6.3/10. [32]

Season 4

Rotten Tomatoes gives the season a score of 83%, based on 6 reviews, with an average rating of 8/10. [33]

Season 5

Rotten Tomatoes gives the season a score of 100%, based on 6 reviews, with an average rating of 8.8/10. [34]

Spin-offs

With the conclusion of the original series, it was announced that Starz had planned four upcoming spin-offs in the same universe as Power. These begin with Power Book II: Ghost, which, following shortly after the events of the original series, focuses on Ghost's son Tariq navigating his new criminal life and intending to shed his father's legacy while dealing with mounting pressure to protect his family, including his mother Tasha. The series co-stars Mary J. Blige and Method Man. [35] The other spin-offs include: Power Book III: Raising Kanan, a prequel into the life of Kanan Stark (50 Cent); Power Book IV: Force, which follows Tommy Egan (Joseph Sikora) originally headed to Los Angeles, California and ending up in the city of Chicago; and Power Book V: Influence, a sequel set in the political world centering on Councilman Tate's (Larenz Tate) ruthless rise to power. [36] [37] The development of Power Book V: Influence was cancelled in August 2022 and the series would not be moving forward. [38] In March 2024, a prequel series, Origins, which will follow the beginning story of characters Ghost and Tommy, was confirmed to be in development. [39]

Power Book II: Ghost premiered on September 6, 2020, [40] and has aired four seasons, ending on October 4, 2024.

Power Book III: Raising Kanan premiered on July 18, 2021, [37] and has aired three seasons. In November 2023, ahead of the third season, the series was renewed for a fourth season. [41] In March 2024, ahead of the fourth season, the series was renewed for a fifth season. [42]

Power Book IV: Force premiered on February 6, 2022, and has aired two seasons. [43] In December 2023, the series was renewed for a third and final season. [44]

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