Naturi Naughton & Omari Hardwick: Power Puzzlers

Considering the many dramatic plot twists and turns, you'd think that actors Omari Hardwick and Naturi Naughton from the Starz show Power would race to the end of the script to make sure their characters make it through the episode alive. Hardwick plays Ghost, a nightclub owner leading a double life as a drug kingpin trying to go straight. Naughton plays his wife, Tasha, who is power hungry in her own right. But now that the show is in its third season, they are not as anxious to read the scripts. "Sometimes you don't wanna know that far ahead. You want to be where you are in that episode," Hardwick told host Ophira Eisenberg. Naughton continued by praising the show's writing team, who involve them in their process. When the writers asked her where she wanted to see Tasha develop, Naughton told them outright, "I want Tasha to have a new side piece this year. I mean, cause they done killed my boo, Shawn! RIP Shawn!"

While watching movies like Casino and TV shows like The Sopranos for inspiration, Naughton noticed that the male leads are all "supported by these really strong, badass women...whether it's about drugs, or whatever--the Mafia--you see their women are just as gangster." Hardwick, however, stayed away from visual inspirations and focused on thematic connections to inspire Ghost, who is, "if anything, a narcissistic nut, who [is] so insecure in ways, that he [doesn't] take anyone's 'no' for an answer." So Hardwick turned to Hemingway and read Moby Dick. "This crazy quest for a whale...made a lot of sense to me. I tried to draw some odd parallels to the guy just to bring something different to him."

The two share a love for 90s R&B music--Naughton was even a part of the girl group 3LW--so we crafted an Ask Me Another challenge just for them. Jonathan and Ophira read lyrics from classic 90s R&B hits, and they had to sing out the title of the song, which happens to be the next lyric.

HIGHLIGHTS

Naturi Naughton on if couples should watch Power together

Yes! You should watch this together. You might get turned on by seeing us, you might want to try it at home!...Why not?

Heard on Naturi Naughton & Omari Hardwick: Power Puzzlers

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