(Stacey Wilson Hunt’s and Lacey Rose’s article first appeared in the May 22 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine; via the Drudge Report.)
Six hit show creators, from 'House of Cards' to 'Good Wife,' gather for a heated, candid talk that reveals the state of opinion on Hollywood's touchiest subjects.
Just because the television business has made notable inroads in the realm of diversity this year doesn't mean the subject is any more comfortable to discuss. So when Lee Daniels, co-creator of Fox's Empire, recently questioned a table full of drama writer-producers about the racial makeup of their writers rooms, the group grew tense. But doing so ultimately led to an important discussion about the industry's shortcomings — as well as the challenges of collaboration, their frustration with critics and the day that Beau Willimon, showrunner of Netflix's House of Cards, danced shirtless on set with Russian punk-rock group Pussy Riot. Daniels, 55, and Willimon, 37, were joined April 28 in Hollywood for a frank conversation about the pressures and rewards of running TV's hottest dramas by Damon Lindelof, 42 (HBO's The Leftovers), Alex Gansa, 54 (Showtime's Homeland), Michelle King, 53 (CBS' The Good Wife), and Sarah Treem, 34 (Showtime's The Affair).
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/lee-daniels-damon-lindelof-a-794430