Mo’Nique Fires Back at ‘Empire’ Creator Lee Daniels, Produces Emails About Cookie Role

In the ongoing saga over whether Mo’Nique was ever offered the coveted role of Cookie Lyon on the hit Fox series “Empire,” Mo’nique says yes — and she has proof.

The Oscar-winning actress sat down for an interview on the SiriusXM radio show “Sway in the morning” Monday and she arrived armed with ammunition.

Mo’Nique told host Sway Calloway that last year, “Empire” executive producer and writer Lee Daniels called her saying, “You got the role, but you know, there’s some technical stuff — ‘I aint’ never done TV before, so you gotta go through the technical part.”

Mo’Nique then produced printed-out emails she said were sent a short time later by Daniels’ camp asking her representatives to coordinate a screen test, before they later announced the deal was dead.

Also Read: 'Empire' Co-Creator Disputes Mo'Nique's Claim She Was Offered Taraji P. Henson's Breakout Cookie Role

Below are some of the emails as read aloud by Sway:

Also Read: 'Empire' Star Trai Byers Talks Mo'Nique-Cookie Debate and Why Andre Isn't a Villain

The issue first arose earlier this year when Mo’Nique said in an interview that Daniels told her she was meant to play Cookie. That wasn’t the only project the actress said her “Precious” director promised her. She also claimed she had previously been in talks with Daniels to play the character that Oprah Winfrey ultimately portrayed in the critically acclaimed 2013 civil rights drama “The Butler.”

But “Empire” co-creator Danny Strong, who also wrote and executive produced “The Butler,” tweeted a statement on Feb. 28, saying the exact opposite. “Mo’Nique was never offered roles in Empire or The Butler. #SettingRecordStraight,” he wrote.

The actress, who will next appear on screen in the independent drama “Blackbird,” also took issue with Strong’s tweet and a comment he made about her when he previously sat down with Sway.

Also Read: Mo'Nique on Why Black Hollywood Actors Shunned Gay-Themed 'Blackbird': 'Everyone Was Afraid of It'

“When I heard that Danny Strong had come on the [Sway in the Morning] show, and, you know, was adamant that Mo’Nique was never offered that role, and he had gone on other places and said it, and I tweeted that brother and I said, ‘Will you speak as loudly when you understand that you’re telling something that’s not correct?'” she said.

“When people were making it seem like I was just pulling something out the air, and I was trying to attack this brother, I’m like, ‘Guys, I have the emails, the communication, going back and forth, with Lee Daniels,'” Mo’Nique continued, adding, “When he began to say things that just weren’t true, that’s when I had to say, “brother, I can’t allow you to do that.”

Representatives from Fox did not immediately return TheWrap’s request for comment.

Watch the video of Mo’Nique’s conversation with Sway.

The post Mo’Nique Fires Back at ‘Empire’ Creator Lee Daniels, Produces Emails About Cookie Role appeared first on TheWrap.

Related stories from TheWrap:

Mo'Nique Says Hollywood Treated Her Like She 'Just Got Off the Greyhound Bus' After Oscar Win

Mo'Nique Fires Back at Lee Daniels: I Wasn't Blackballed, the Offers Didn't Make Sense (Video)

'Empire' Creator Lee Daniels on Mo'Nique's Fall From Grace: 'You've Gotta Play Ball' (Video)