How 50 Cent changed tactics and sold 'Power' after a string of rejections from networks like HBO and Showtime
- 50 Cent says HBO, Showtime, Paramount, and Hulu passed on "Power."
- The show became a hit at Starz.
"Power" has been a smash hit for Starz and spawned a universe of spin-offs, but it faced some early challenges getting off the ground, according to co-creator Curtis Jackson (aka the rapper 50 Cent).
Jackson said he and Courtney Kemp pitched the show to HBO, Showtime, Paramount, and Hulu — but they all passed.
"We went to all these organizations in the early stages," Jackson told Vulture. "They probably had something else they felt was similar, or it wasn't what they was looking for. I'm sure now they wish they didn't pass on it."
Jackson said he then took a different approach to the script and project.
"I recorded six songs because I knew the main character, Ghost, and his arc so well," he said. "And when we went back to reboot the pitch, we'd play a minute and 30 seconds of a song, stop, and Courtney would talk about a piece of the character. It's so different from what they were hearing in any other pitch because you don't have someone there as experienced or as successful in music — exclusive music that is fit for the show. And the drug dealer making it to the top of the drug trade or feeling like he's at the top of his neighborhood, it's a universal theme."
Eventually they sold it to Starz, and the rest is history.
But don't think Jackson scored a huge payday for the original series. He said he got paid $17,000 an episode to act, executive produce, and make music for the show.
"All those things for $17,000 per episode?" he said. "I get paid more to go to the nightclub and wave. But I wanted to make the show. I wanted to make it so bad."
Jackson is also a producer on the Starz show "BMF" and previously had an overall deal with the network. Earlier this year, he signed a non-exclusive broadcast deal with Fox.