In anticipation of the Season 2 premiere of Starz’s hit series Power, the show’s lead actor talks to BuzzFeed News about his breakout role and his next project: a Gil Scott-Heron biopic that he’ll produce and star in.
Omari Hardwick as Ghost in Power.
James Minchin Iii / Starz
At first glance, 41-year-old actor Omari Hardwick is a bit of a walking contradiction.
His athletic build hints at his former life as a professional football player — he was cut from the San Diego Chargers after suffering a career-ending knee injury — but he won't be forced into some athlete stereotype. Hardwick is also known for throwing people off guard by speaking in iambic pentameter. But the words and their delivery don't seem at all contrived. He's a poet, and when the mood strikes, he's quick to spout verses of swoon-worthy spoken-word deliciousness.
In nearly every facet of his life, Hardwick has two sides. "I would say, as loving as I am … I am definitely an extremely temperamental man who has a very large temper," he told BuzzFeed News. But his job pulls it all together. "Acting is the art of being and existing, and not being fake," he added.
And after appearing alongside marquee names like Whitney Houston (in her final role, 2012's Sparkle) and Janet Jackson (in 2010's For Colored Girls), Hardwick is now enjoying his biggest role yet: James "Ghost" St. Patrick, one of New York City's most powerful drug dealers, on Starz's dynamic, sexy (and sexed-up) series Power.
The show, created by Courtney Kemp Agboh and produced by rapper and actor Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson, has given Hardwick an opportunity to use his own complexities to bring the multilayered Ghost to life. "The thing is, Omari has everything that Ghost has. Very intelligent — he's able to do a lot of things: he's a poet, he's an athlete, he's an actor," Kemp Agboh told BuzzFeed News. "You need someone who is hyper-intelligent, really sexy, really strong, and a little scary. There are plenty of actors that have one or two of those. I was looking for the whole package."
And that's just what Hardwick offered Power, helping the series grow its ratings steadily over the course of its initial eight-week run in 2014 and leading to a second season, which premieres on June 6.
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