Unexpected pair tie the knot and a fight leads to a death in the season 2 finale of the FOX music drama.
- May 19, 2016
AceShowbiz - Rhonda's fate is once again left hanging on "Empire", but hers is not the only one this time. In the second season finale, [SPOILER ALERT!] Rhonda and Anika fought on the edge of a balcony after the former was convinced that it was Anika who pushed her down the stairs in the midseason finale. Andre tried to intervene, but the episode ended as he yelled, "No!" and a woman was heard screaming.
That wasn't the only jaw-dropping moment in the finale. Earlier in the episode, Laura left Hakeem at the altar, but another pair tied the knot. At what was supposed to be Hakeem's wedding, Anika got served with a subpoena to testify against Lucious. Anika threatened to kill herself by jumping off a balcony, but Cookie convinced her to drop the plan.
While Lucious earlier made it semi clear that he still loved Cookie, he married Anika to prevent her from testifying against him. "I did not save this b***h's life so she could ruin mine!" said Cookie, who declared that she was done with Lucious for good.
So who died in the season finale? Showrunner Ilene Chaiken, of course, won't give away the answer, but she does say that at least one person is going to die. "All we have to go on right now is the sound of that scream and the look on Andre's face - and that, to me, says somebody went over that railing. And it would be ludicrous to say that would be a survivable fall!" she says with a laugh.
O-M-G. #Empire #EmpireFinale pic.twitter.com/kc20v7vaVE
— Empire (@EmpireFOX) May 19, 2016
Chaiken says there were a lot of things they considered before deciding whom they're going to kill off between these two characters. She shares to TVLine, "We talk about what would be the best and most delicious story to tell in the next season. But we love both of these characters and both of these actresses - and it's hard to think about losing either one of them. In this instance, there's no character motivation to consider: One of them is simply going to win the fight, and the other is likely to be gone. It's in the hands of the gods, and whoever survives is going to have quite a story."
On that surprise wedding, Chaiken claims they had known since the beginning that "Laura would leave Hakeem at the altar" and "we wanted someone else to get married in Hakeem's place - probably Lucious."
Chaiken also says that Anika's suicide attempt was just "manipulation." She explains, "Anika is wily - and that was her way to get sympathy from the Lyons. And she got them just where she wanted them." And Lucious and Anika's wedding was too much for Cookie because "she was ready to have happiness." Chaiken says, "I don't think there was ever a moment where Cookie believed they'd [reunite]. But in this moment, she was ready - and he was, too - to make a clean start."
Things were not good for Hakeem either, after being dumped by Laura and his father married his baby mama. "Hakeem is going to be messed up. He suffered humiliation after humiliation over the course of season 2," Chaiken says. "So, first and foremost, Hakeem needs to regain his dignity, and hip-hop is going to play a big part of that. Given who Hakeem is, though, you can expect him to get into some trouble."
The episode also revealed that Jamal did survive the shooting, but he vowed to never sing again until his family ends their violent ways. Chaiken tells THR of how the recovery process changes him in season 3, "It changes him and impact him in huge and small ways. ... As I said, physical pain, emotional trauma and all of the revelations that come to a head in this finale about who his family is and whether or not that's who they're destined to be."
