‘Power Book III: Raising Kanan Preview: EP Courtney Kemp Says No Ghost

Fans of the franchise who hoped to get to know the younger versions of Ghost and Tommy in the Power prequel Book III: Raising Kanan will have to keep dreaming. This story takes place after the characters’ bedtime.

Instead, when the canon’s third offer goes on this Sunday at 8 / 7c on Starz, a 15-year-old Kanan (played by Kirby Buckets‘Mekai Curtis) will present viewers with a gritty world filled with wanking kids, local boys, and queens and kingpins in 1991’s Jamaica, Queens. Raq, Kanan’s mother (Madam Secretary‘s Patina Miller) is a drug kingpin, and although she and her brothers are street icons, she wants better for her crafty son.

“Power fans have been asking for a prequel for a very long time, ”executive producer Courtney Kemp, who created the original series, passionately told TVLine. “Many people thought they wanted to see Ghost and Tommy as children. But that’s not an interesting story for me. With Ghost and Tommy, you know they’re going to live.

“We are really entering what 50 Cent calls the golden age of drug trafficking in South Queens, Jamaica,” Kemp explains. “You can visit this period, and I thought it was a much more interesting way to do it.”

Kemp also points out that Kanan’s character is five years older than his potential proteges / traitors, and Book of Power III takes place while the duo were still in elementary school. While urban dramas such as Thread explore kid’s crooks, it’s not that show, she adds emphatically.

“I just hate being asked about Ghost and Tommy in the prequel,” Kemp said. “Ghost and Tommy are 10 years old at the start of this series. We don’t need to have a conversation about them right now, as they’re fifth grade kids. And i know everything Power the universe is going to be like, ‘Where are Ghost and Tommy?’

“But it’s not a Ghost and Tommy origin story. It’s boring. Who cares?” she asks. “If you think about it, it’s not exciting. I rolled my eyes because this is not a new story to tell. I will continue to tell people that they are 10 years old and their long division is fragile. They have keeper trappers and reporters. They are not yet in the game. They are still literally playing games.