Anika’s fate in Empire, explained

Spoilers for Empire season 4 below.

Anika Calhoun (Grace Byers) was a formidable player in Empire For years, but all her scheming and plotting came back to bite her in the end. First appeared in the Empire pilot, Annika was a debutante from New Orleans, Louisiana, and was dating Lucious Lyon (Terrence Howard) at the beginning of the series. However, when she discovers Lucious in bed with his ex-wife Cookie (Taraji P. Henson), her love for Lucious turns to hatred mixed with obsession. Although Lucious eventually proposed to Anika, she instead took up with his son, Hakeem (Bryshere Grey).

For the rest of EmpireOr at least the rest of the time she spent on the show, Anika plots the downfall of Empire EntertainmentFailed at it, plot again, and failed, in a continuous cycle that made her more and more unlikeable throughout the series. Grace Byers’ performance as Anika is, of course, excellent, and despite how miserable the character becomes, it’s hard not to look away from her thanks to Byers’ electric and committed acting. Anika “Boo Boo Kitty” finally got what she deserved, but it was a wild ride to get there.

Anika Dies in the Empire Season 4 Finale

Andre drugs Anika at an investor event

In the season 4 finale of EmpireEpisode 18, “The Empire Unpossess’d”, which aired on May 23, 2018, several characters meet very early ends, although one’s fate is not revealed until the next season. The beginning of season 4 finds Anika in prison after being framed for the murder of Lucious’ half-brother, Tariq Coussins (Morocco Omari). She gets out of jail and gains custody of her and Hakeem’s daughter, Bella, but she quickly loses it when Hakeem threatens to expose her wrongdoing, especially that she had a hand in Bella’s kidnapping.

Instead of learning from her time on the inside and dealing with the suffering she’s caused, Anika once again tries to bring down the Lions and Empire Entertainment. This time, she teams up with Eddie Barker (Forest Whitaker). However, everything unravels for Anika in the season 4 finale. She and Eddie nearly gain control of Empire Entertainment and Anika and Andre (Trai Byers) seemingly call a truce.

This is a fakeout on Andre’s part, however, and before Anika is set to speak at an investor meeting, Andre slips powdered pills into her drink. As she talks, Anika begins to feel a sense of euphoria that quickly dissolves into paranoia as she has hallucinations of the deceased Rhonda (Kaitlin Doubleday) stalking after her. In her drug-induced panic, Anika stumbles over a balcony and plummets many floors belowCrashing through a glass table in full view of everyone. It’s a dramatic end for a dramatic character.

Anika’s death came at the right time for the show

Anika has completed her character’s arc

After four seasons of revenge, failure and intrigue, The end of season 4 was the right time for Anika to exit the series. Her closeness to the family meant that she would always have to be close to the story while she lived, but at the same time, as the villain, she would constantly need to be against the Lions. While this is a fascinating dynamic for a few seasons, it threatens to get implausible if it goes on too long.

Anika has done some pretty terrible things over the course of EmpireBut killing Rhonda Lyon (Kaitlin Doubleday) and her unborn child to secure Bella’s status as the only Lyon heir is probably the most horrific. That she wasn’t really punished for her crime and that Rhonda’s husband, Andre, never got his revenge always meant that Anika’s time on the show was short. Her death at the end of season 4 also mirrors Rhonda’s as Anika pushed her off a balcony when she killed her. in a way, Annika’s death was Andre and Rhonda’s revenge.

The meaning of Anika’s fate in Empire

Anika’s death meant the end of one of the Lions’ greatest enemies

Anika’s death is the first to happen to a main character in Empire Since Rhonda’s, ironic considering Annika’s role in the murder. It is a major moment in the series that at one point positioned Anika as a major player in the show. The writing was on the wall with this character, however, and her refusal to back down, even after being humiliated and sent to prison, indicated that There was only one way to stop Anika for good.

It is notable that Anika’s death happens during the first meeting after Kelly Patel buys Empire Entertainment. The first thing the shareholders see of the new owners is someone who suddenly suffers from a drug-induced panic attack and throws himself off a balcony. Not a great start for the new management. Anika’s death also allows for something of a reset for the show, and season 5 picks up two years later. Yes, the Lions lost control of their company, but at least one of their most personal and formidable enemies is gone, and they can begin to pick up the pieces of their lives.

Cast & Crew reactions to Anika’s death

Showrunner Brett Mahoney knew it was time for the character to go

When it came to Anika’s death, Empire Showrunner, Brett Mahoney, tells TVLine his thoughts

“I feel like Anika’s storyline has reached its peak [conclusion]. She achieved what she wanted to over the course of the series, first missing Lucious and then just missing Empire. She got everything she wanted, but it came at a great price. Karma finally caught up with you. She ascended the throne, but then she had to pay for everything she did in the past.”

Anika played the game of Empire Hard and fast. Sometimes she won, and sometimes she lost, but her concern only for herself became her undoing. There were many times she could have stopped, but she chose not to and ended up paying for all the trouble she caused over four seasons. Although Andre is ultimately responsible for killing Anika, Mahoney made it clear that it was unintentional,

“Of course, the rivalry between Anika and Cookie was there [legendary] And we wanted them to have that moment in the restaurant where Anika finally wins a confrontation with Cookie. But in terms of what she has the most aggravated? It was Andre. She took his wife. took his child. And Andre made a promise to Rhonda to take her down, and that’s what he did. Now, Andre didn’t On purpose Kill her. He just wanted to know what happened to the press conference. He wanted to embarrass her. He could not have predicted that she would die.”

Although Andre may have been drugging Anika, It was her regret that she plummeted over the side of the balcony. Grace Byers seems to agree that Anika had her death coming, saying about some of the things her character did on the show (via JemeleHill),

“If Anika does this, there’s literally no coming back from that you guys.”

Anika Calhoun has quite a run on Empire And her dramatic exit from the series in season 4 is well-earned and fitting for such an explosive character.