Terrence and Taraji Explain Why They Never Dated

Terrence Howard and Taraji P. Henson have some crazy good chemistry. They had it in Hustle & Flow, they had it when they hosted the Soul Train Awards, and they have it now on their hit Fox show, “Empire.” It’s that chemistry and connection that they have, which was behind Henson vouching for Howard to star alongside her on “Empire” as Lucious Lyon. Howard and Henson cover the new issue of Entertainment Weekly, and inside, she explains how the “deep love” Cookie and Lucious have is similar to the love she and Howard have for one another.

“I just knew it had to be him. When I read the script, I was like, ‘This is that deep love that you can’t explain, that you just see, and Terrence and I have that for each other.”

So with that in mind, why haven’t the pair tried to connect romantically? Or at least, why didn’t they date in between Howard’s 15 marriages? (kidding!) Howard says it’s because Henson didn’t look at him in that way, and he realized this while they were working on 2005’s Hustle & Flow.

“We’re like father and daughter, mother and son, brother and sister. We’ve never been lovers. When I was doing Hustle & Flow, I was like,  ‘I know I’m playing this character right if all my female co-leads want to sleep with me.’ Taraji was the only one that didn’t want to.”

Well, as Tyrese said, Henson isn’t one of those actresses out here trying to sleep her way to the top. She’s pure talent, and the biggest reason why “Empire’s” ratings continue to grow from week-to-week. So if you were hoping for Taraji + Terrence, you’ll just have to settle for Cookie + Lucious. We’re just fine with that, because it’s so entertaining to watch!