Secrets About Star From Jude Demorest, Benjamin Bratt, Amiyah Scott, and Lee Daniels

If you haven’t watched the sneak preview of Lee Daniels’ new drama, Star, then I ask you this: What are you waiting for? The companion series to Daniels’ other series—Empire—premiered to strong ratings earlier this month when FOX aired a special preview. And you know what other show debuted in a similar manner from Daniels, airing on FOX, and only continued its rise towards TV dominance? Yep, Empire.

Before Star returns for its official run next month, I paid a visit to the Atlanta set to uncover some fascinating stories behind the scenes. (Including this interview with Queen Latifah about her own journey to stardom.). As Daniels told me during our time together, “I don’t think we’re prepared for the price that fame pays.” His cast—both veterans and newbies—might definitely have something to say about that. Here, 10 secrets we learned from set.

Creator Lee Daniels never calls the actors on his shows by their real name. “Never!” he says. “When I create the character, that’s who they are. I [still] call Helen Mirren from Shadowboxer [by the name of her character] ‘Rose.’ The only person I don’t call is Oprah [by the name] ‘Gloria’ [from The Butler].”

There’s a reason why Daniels wanted to cast a “badass white chick” on the show. “Star is sort of a healing,” he says. “For me, it was a healing process. She represents someone that can help heal the country in some sick way. I can’t explain it. She’s cool for black people, and she’s cool for white people, and like, how dare a white girl say, ‘You’re a racist, bitch?’ We’re flipping the script!”

How did Daniels know Jude Demorest was the girl to play Star? It all came from a feeling, he says. “[Jude] scared me,” Daniels now admits. “She terrified me so much that I told her to her face, ‘I don’t like you.’ Poor thing! What comes out of my mouth during these auditions! It scared [me] that she jumped off the page. To write someone and for her to come in and be that person?! And to know that person as good as I know that person?! She thought I didn’t like her. She didn’t think she had the job. [Laughs] It was scary [for me] because it had never happened to me before.”