50 Cent And The Drama With The Starz Network
At some point, it has to stop. Curtis Jackson (50 Cent) has proven himself to be more than a power player in the music industry. He’s now just as important in the land of TV. With his shows on the Starz Network, 50 Cent has made not only himself a household name but his shows as well. But not evening is glitter is gold. If you let 50 tell it.
For the past 2-3 years, 50 and Starz have been in a verbal war of such. Truth be told, it’s been mostly 50. He feels as if Starz is taking advantage of him and what he brought to their table. In 2014, 50 Cent and Courtney Kemp debuted Power in conjunction with Starz. No one knew the impact it would have but it did so well, that the power duo was able to squeeze three spinoffs (Power Book 2: Ghost, Force, and Raising Kanan) from the original.
I have the number 1,2,3, and 4 top Tv shows in African American, and Latina households and i hate that i did them with the wrong people. I’m not doing any BMF spin offs or selling any other shows to STARZ. ✌🏽GLG🚦GreenLightGang #bransoncognac #lecheminduroi pic.twitter.com/65yBgYDpuZ
— 50cent (@50cent) April 13, 2023
While Power lasted 7 seasons, Power Book 2 has been greenlighted for a 4th season, Force is set to debut its 2nd, and Raising Kanan is set to drop its 3rd, all on Starz. And not to be finished, his new show, BMF just completed its 2nd season with a third already greenlit. 50 Cent is winning in the TV game, but there are still issues.
We all know 50 as a master troll when it comes to social media but is he hurting or helping his brand by doing so? He has gone on record as threatening to pull his shows off the network but nothing has happened? Since his contract has run out near the end of 2022, 50 has since inked a new deal with Fox to bring new content. But what will happen with his shows at Starz?
It’s nothing out of the normal for producers or actors to have issues with networks or look to leave for better deals and leave their creations in the hands of others. Look at Shondra Rhimes and ABC and what she did with Grey’s Anatomy and Scandal. But 50 is different. He has the urban audience in his back pocket and Starz may screw everything up. 50 is teaming up with Nicki Minaj to bring Freevee an animated series titled “Lady Danger.”
To further that, 50 also hinted that he could also bring the masses at least 3 different BMF spinoffs. With the show on Starz, how will the brass feel about seeing one of their top shows on another network? 50 is holding the cards here but the bigger question is will he lose the quality of his shows if they were to move to another network?
At some point, Starz and 50 Cent will need to sit down and map out a plan for the future. Although his contract is up, it’s clear that the Power Universe is still in the hands of Starz. We’ve never known 50 Cent to leave money on the table like that. Something has to give.
Mark has been covering Sports and Entertainment for the past six years. His work has been featured on Bleacher Report, ESPN, Fox Sports, Teen Vogue, and many other websites.
