We all knew it wouldn’t be long before the beef between Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson and Omari Hardwick enveloped the rest of the “Power” Universe. Now, leading lady Naturi Naughton is weighing in on the situation.
During an interview with TMZ, Naughton, who played Tasha throughout the show’s six season run and also appeared on “Power Book II: Ghost,” expressed her support for Hardwick, calling Jackson’s assessment of her co-star “insane.”
“Omari is, literally, the epitome of ‘Power,’” she said. “Omari Hardwick started this amazing journey, and I don’t know all of what happened with 50 and O, but I’ll say this; I love Omari Hardwick, he’s an amazingly talented human, and he’s also a good person, but there would be no ‘Power’ without Ghost, right? So, I hope that they can find love and peace between each other, because much love to 50 and to O.”
Naturi also addressed Hardwick’s previous comments about how much he was paid during the Starz drama’s run. He told “The Pivot Podcast” that he made $150,000 per episode, explaining that he doesn’t think he’s been paid what he’s worth.
For her part, Naughton doesn’t have an issue, as she thinks she was “definitely” compensated fairly, revealing that Courtney A. Kemp, the series’ Black female showrunner, fought for her. She made sure to let everyone know 50 is “super cool” and that she thinks the two men can find a way to reconcile their issues at some point.
To the surprise of no one, Jackson wasted no time responding to the actress’ comment, writing on Instagram, “I was minding my business then here we go again ! SMH 🤨I don’t have a problem with a problem, do we have a PROBLEM!”
As previously reported by The Root, while appearing on “The Breakfast Club,” Fif—an executive producer on the franchise—discussed his dispute with “Power’s” leading man. In addition to his thoughts that the actor “overvalues himself,” he also questioned why Hardwick hasn’t been in more projects since the series ended.
“If there was noise going on, if he was that big of a draw, then we would see noise, we would see new things happening, we’d see you out where you’re actively in a place where they’re looking for you,” Jackson said.
It’s worth noting that Omari is set to co-star alongside Oscar winner Michelle Yeoh in the TV movie, “Star Trek: Section 31,” which premieres on Paramount+ Jan. 24.