Woman of the week: Taraji P. Henson

Taraji P. Henson has been acting since the late ’90s – even picking up an Oscar nomination in 2010 for her role in The Curious Case of Benjamin Button – but it wasn’t until she returned to television in 2015 as the epic, outrageous and delectably-cutting Cookie Lyons in Fox series Empire that her true force was felt. Henson’s powerful portrayal of the businesswoman and matriarch made her the first woman of color to win a Critics’ Choice Television Award for Best Actress in a Drama Series, as well as earning her a Golden Globe and successive Emmy nominations. One more reason to love her? Her support for close friend Mary J. Blige: on the 2018 Oscars red carpet, she used every opportunity to praise her twice-nominated pal. This month, Henson stars in Proud Mary, where she plays a woman working in organized crime who faces a reckoning, while the fourth season of Empire is back on screens March 28.

“Everyone knows how difficult this industry has been for women, and my hope is that all of these unspeakable events ignite true change in the treatment of women in this entertainment business. True art can only be created in an environment of vulnerability and trust. If you continue to decimate the trust, you lose the beauty of the art.”

“When I first saw Taraji as Cookie in Empire, I was in love […] She is a breath of fresh air. Rarely do I meet people in this industry who are as down-to-earth and real as she is. The first time we met was in London at a fitting for the Met Gala, and within the first five minutes I felt like I'd known her for a lifetime. She doesn't take fashion or this industry too seriously, and I love her for that.” Alexander Wang, Harper’s Bazaar, 2015

Proud Mary is out in UK cinemas on March 23; Season 4 of Empire continues on Fox on March 28; Tyler Perry’s Acrimony is out in US cinemas on March 30.