Everything We Know About Power Book II: Ghost

Power ended its six-season run in February, but the cult crime story will live on through four spin-offs in the works — the first of which, Power Book II: Ghost, was initially due in summer 2020. Of course, 2020 has proven to be even more unpredictable and devilish than James St. Patrick (Omari Hardwick) himself, throwing all plans out the window. Coronavirus caused production to shut down earlier this year, and though New York is just beginning to creep back to life, there’s been no word on when the show will resume shooting. 

That doesn’t mean everything related to Power Book II: Ghost is at a complete standstill though. Executive producer and showrunner Courtney Kemp has indicated that writing for Season 2 is already underway. So what can we expect when we finally do get the first spin-off we’ve been waiting for? Here’s everything we know so far. 

We know the premise. According to the official description, Power Book II: Ghost will pick up just days after the Power finale. The sequel then follows Tariq navigating his new life, in which his desire to shed his father’s legacy comes up against the mounting pressure to save his family. As revealed in the teaser, Power Book II: Ghost focuses on Tariq’s (Michael Rainey) life in college, which he must complete in order to get his inheritance. Presumably, one of his first missions will be an attempt to get his mom, Tasha (Naturi Naughton), out of prison, where she found herself after trying to frame a guy she was dating for Ghost’s murder. 

Its release has been delayed. Originally scheduled for a summer 2020 release, production was halted earlier this year as coronavirus shut down New York, where the show films. Some episodes had been filmed, but it’s unclear as of now when production will resume or if Starz will wait until the entire season has been filmed before rolling some episodes out. (Power, in the past, would sometimes still have episodes left to shoot while a season was already on the air.) As of now, Power Book II’s release is TBD. 

Several cast members have been announced. Mary J. Blige stars as a “businesswoman,” named Monet. She’s a street-smart, Queens-based businesswoman who rules her terrain with an iron fist. An early look revealed to Entertainment Weekly showed Monet as a sharp-dressed type, seen below speaking with her daughter Diana (LaToya Tonodeo). 

Also on board is Method Man (Clifford Smith) playing a serious, hard-driving prosecutor named Davis Maclean, a character who is attracted to the NYC underworld run by Blige’s character. His shaky past may make his work complicated. He is, according to Kemp, brilliant, ethically challenged, and addicted to winning despite being embedded in a world rife with drugs and murder. 

Other cast members include Daniel Bellomy as Ezekiel “Zeke” Cross, Paige Hurd as Lauren, Melanie Liburd as Caridad “Carrie” Milgram, and Justin McManus as Jabari Reynolds. 

We’ll see familiar faces. Shane Johnson continues his role as the somewhat inept investigator Saxe, while Quincy Tyler Bernstine continues playing the fierce attorney Tameika Robinson. Gianni Paolo stars as Tariq’s roommate Brayden, and Alix Lapri continues her role as Tariq’s girlfriend Effie. She seemed to disappear after tattling on Tariq for selling drugs, but Kemp says we should expect to see her again. 

New characters offer a slight clue about the story. Woody McClain stars as Cane Tejada; Lovell Adams-Gray is playing Dru Tejada; and as mentioned above, LaToya Tonedeo plays Diana Tejada. Since Diana is Monet’s daughter (Blige) and presumably shares the same last name as her mother, that could mean that Cane and Dru are also Monet’s children, suggesting Monet could be the head of a family syndicate. 

Michael Rainey Jr., TariqPhoto: Starz