Fox’s Empire is adding a new guest star to serve as a rival to Lucious (played by Terrence Howard). The character is set to be portrayed by rapper, producer, and actor Alvin Nathaniel Joiner, better known as Xzibit, reports Deadline.
Xzibit’s character will be Leslie “Shyne” Johnson, who is described as “100% wolf and 100% gangster.” Shyne has tried his hand at many facets of the music business, from managing artists to starting record imprints, but it sounds like he has largely struggled to achieve the success he desires. In the meantime, he has been involved in some not-so-noble pursuits on the side — namely, drugs, guns, and extortion.
As far as how this affects Lucious, apparently Shyne feels the industry’s heavyweights have kept him out and has a lot of resentment, especially when it comes to the Empire Entertainment CEO. We would expect him to stir up trouble during his time on the show, however long that may be. There’s no word yet on how long fans can expect to see Xzibit on Empire.
Xzibit first made a name for himself as a rapper but later broke into acting. He has appeared in multiple movies, including 8 Mile, xXx: State of the Union, The Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans, and more. More recently, he guest starred on the CBS series Hawaii Five-O. His upcoming Empire gig adds him to the series’ growing list of guest stars, which includes Chris Rock, Vivica A. Fox, Alicia Keys, Ludacris, Rosie O’Donnell, and more.
Empire stars Howard, Taraji P. Henson, Jussie Smollett, Bryshere “Yazz” Gray, Trai Byers, Grace Gealey, Kaitlin Doubleday, Gabourey Sidibe, Ta’Rhonda Jones, and Serayah McNeill. The series was created by Lee Daniels and Danny Strong, both of whom executive produce alongside Brian Grazer, Ilene Chaiken, and Francie Calfo.
