Lee Daniels Confirms 'Empire' Spinoff: Series to Be Based on Taraji P. Henson's Character Cookie Lyon

The musical television smash, "Empire," is now getting a spinoff. During the Television Critic's Association summer press tour on Thursday, executive producer Lee Daniels gushed that FOX's highest-rated show will be granted a companion series, due to the rich character development.

"There is going to be a spinoff from 'Empire,' without question," he said. "There so much ripe story there that we've talked about already -- about Cookie's family, what makes her her. That in itself is fascinating to me."

Daniels then revealed the spinoff would delve into the world of a younger Cookie Lyon in Philadelphia, answering more questions on how she became the tough and dangerous matriarch pictured on "Empire."

"Here Cookie is now, but how did she get to where she's at right now? Let's go back and understand her mother, her sisters.... Let's understand the makings of her...  It'd be like a prequel," he said after the open panel, via TVline.com.

At this time, Fox has not officially announced a spinoff, however Daniels is in the works on a second FOX series.

While on the tour, "The Butler" director also discussed the number of celebrity cameos coming to the second season. He confirmed the appearance of Mariah Carey, while adding that as fun as a celebrity appearance is on the show, he wants to keep the focus on the Lyon clan. "The more celebrates and stars I put on the show, the more it takes away from the family," he said.

Showrunner Ilene Chaiken stressed the importance for season 2 remaining on storytelling. "Once you go to work, you just think about the stories you're telling. We want to continue to make the audience gasp and laugh and scream and cry," he said.

Season 2 will be much longer than the first, according to Variety. Viewers can expect the first half of the season to contain 10 episodes with a remaining 8 to air in the Spring. "I was a little nervous in the beginning because of the actors. It's hard to turn out that kind of work -- they're not horses, you know," said Daniels. "But FOX has put a schedule together that has made me less terrified.