| Season Number: | 6 |
| Bgcolor: |
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| Network: | Fox |
| Num Episodes: | 18 |
| Episode List: | List of Empire episodes |
The sixth and final season of the American television drama series Empire premiered on September 24, 2019, in the United States on Fox.[1] The season was ordered on April 30, 2019.[2] [3] The show is produced by 20th Century Fox Television, in association with Imagine Entertainment, Lee Daniels Entertainment, Danny Strong Productions and Little Chicken Inc. The showrunners for this season are Mahoney, Danny Strong and Lee Daniels.
See also: List of Empire episodes.
After allegations that Smollett staged his own attack, on April 30, 2019, it was announced that although Fox Entertainment had extended his contract for season six, there were no plans for the character to appear during the season.[4] [5]
On June 4, 2019, series co-creator Lee Daniels officially announced that Smollett would not be returning for the sixth and final season.[6]
On September 3, 2019, it was announced Katlynn Simone, Meta Golding, Wood Harris, Mario and Vivica A. Fox had been promoted to series regulars for the final season.[7]
In April 2020, it was confirmed that the series would conclude with its 18th episode, instead of the 20th, which was originally set to be the series finale. Episode 18 was the final episode that had completed production before the COVID-19 pandemic caused Hollywood productions to be shut down. Footage from the uncompleted nineteenth episode was included in the final aired version of the eighteenth episode in an attempt to provide closure.[8]