James “Ghost” St. Patrick, portrayed by Omari Hardwick, was the focus of the Starz television series, Power.
It tells the story of a young man from Queens who fled his impoverished upbringing by turning to drug sales and hustle, then became a prosperous club owner and politician.
The character took great pride in the plot, which described the complex lives of numerous black men in America.
Nevertheless, fans and even Hardwick at one point disagreed with some of the choices the writers had Ghost making.
In a recent interview with Rolling Out, Omari Hardwick reflected on his time as Ghost and opened up about his views regarding the show’s finale and direction change by Season 6.
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The 50-year-old stated his disgust with how Ghost was finally killed off in the series’ tragic finale.
“Ghost didn’t get to die with anybody,” he said. “Ghost died alone. The n-ga died on the floor. The cold floor. That hurt me. That’s not good. That’s not a statement that we should make to the black community… or other communities,” Hardwick noted.
When asked if he discussed his worries with the show’s creator, Courtney Kemp, Hardwick answered, “Yes. My only issue was that. I had no issue with him dying.”
He claimed “the story started going” in a direction that he did not agree with. “I had an issue with the way the story started,” Hardwick confessed.
“That’s not the way the story started, but the story started to make Ghost an anti-hero. He was originally the anti-hero’s hero. He started becoming less heroic. That wasn’t what I signed up for.”
“It took a direction I wasn’t too keen on,” he continued, “and many of the fans who have obviously spoken were not keen on it either.
“Power” had one of the highest ratings on the Starz network when fans first got excited about it, but they didn’t sign up for that either and began to lose interest.
Some even made jokes about canceling their Starz subscription because they couldn’t bear to separate from Hardwick’s character on the adored show.
He expressed gratitude to 50 Cent for bestowing upon him “the beautiful gift” of the Ghost character, describing it as a man who “didn’t have opportunities” and had to take “left turns” rather than “right turns.”
Hardwick already stated that he disagreed with Ghost’s transformation as the villain. Following the 2020 series finale, he opined:
“At the end of the day, I was a strong black father figure who wanted the best for his family, especially his children and their future.”
If Hardwick had it his way, he would have his character appearing in season 7 to redeem him.
Fans even petitioned to have his character brought back, asking showrunners to find the money and a storyline that made sense.
Omari Hardwick said in 2023 that he had been “asked… to come back,” but he and the team could not agree on his compensation.
Hardwick has acted in several films after leaving Power, he appeared in the Jennifer Lopez-starring picture The Mother and the Fantasy Football film starring Marsai Martin and Kelly Rowland.