Fox used to be tagged as the network that canceled shows too quickly, and it’s currently “the network with series that can’t seem to stop adding guest stars.” Gotham now has an entire city’s worth of people for Season 2, and Empire is similarly on a neverending streak to build its cast up. The newest addition? Vivica A. Fox.
Thankfully, Fox’s role isn’t just someone who pops into the lives of the Lyon family in a meaningless way. She’ll be playing the oldest sister of Cookie Lyon, so you just know she’ll be about 17 shades of trouble for everyone she crosses paths with. At this point, it’s unclear of what it is that brings the still-unnamed character back into Cookie’s life, but something tells me Cookie’s success at Empire Entertainment will have something to do with it. And then you can bet that Jamal and Hakeem will instantly put together a song about gold diggers, and then maybe Jamie Foxx would guest star, making this a Fox(x) trifecta.
Fox will make her first appearance on Empire during Episode 8, according to THR, and that is just two episodes before Season 2 will go on a midseason hiatus, so I’m betting she makes a huge splash as soon as we see her. As if this show could possibly introduce a character that didn’t make an immediate impact. We already met Cookie’s younger sister Carol (Tasha Smith) last season, so we know that this particular bloodline is one that runs hot and dirty.
Perhaps Lee Daniels and Danny Strong are trying to introduce as many of Cookie’s family members as possible so that viewers know exactly what they’re dealing with if the Cookie-based spinoff ever gets off the ground. Not that people would have trouble dealing with completely new characters, so long as they carried the same kind of spark. Even though the actresses presumably won’t be playing their younger selves in a secondary series, it’ll still help to have those personalities set in stone.
Vivica A. Fox is no stranger to television, having starred in plenty of series over the years. (Though not necessarily smash hits, if Mr. Box Office is proof of anything.) She was quite memorable opposite Larry David as Loretta Black on Curb Your Enthusiasm some years back. Most recently, she’s been seen primarily in features like Assassin’s Game and Mercenaries, with more of the same kind of B-movie thrillers like 4Got10 coming in the next year or two. She’ll also reprise her role for Independence Day: Resurgence, so a lot of people are likely to catch her in that as well as Empire.
Other actors, actresses and celebs coming to Empire this year include Marisa Tomei, Mariah Carey, Pitbull, Lenny Kravitz, Al Sharpton, Alicia Keys, Chris Rock, Ludacris, Kelly Rowland and more. Find them all when Season 2 premieres on Wednesday, September 23.
