‘Empire’ Will Take Production Hiatus for Writers to Regroup

Fox’s hit drama Empire will pause production so executives can rework its scripts for the back half of season four, Deadline reports.

The filming break will begin Tuesday after the cast and crew completes filming of episode 409, the halfway point of the 18-episode season.

During the break, which is expected to last 2-3 weeks, writers will regroup to change or tighten up the season’s final episodes, especially since viewers are expressing negative thoughts about some of the series’ current storylines.

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Show runner Ilene Chaiken and the writing team will be joined by the show’s co-creators and executive producers Danny Strong and Lee Daniels, plus Imagine executive producers Brian Grazer and Francis Calfo, to finalize the direction of the drama.

Fans of the Fox show shouldn’t worry about the production hiatus; it has taken similar breaks for script changes in the past.

The complex nature of the show with its large cast, original musical numbers and dramatic stories required executives to press pause on production to craft the strongest episodes possible to round out the season, a studio executive told Variety.

The break will also not stall Empire‘s current broadcast schedule, which is to air new episodes on until its fall finale in mid-December. The show will return to the schedule in March with the back half of season four.

The show is currently the network’s heavyweight drama series, averaging 10.5 million multi-platform viewers, despite posting declining ratings each year and hitting a series low this season.

Empire airs Wednesdays at 8 p.m. ET on Fox.