Lee Daniels Mourns Death of His Sister Lydia, Who Inspired Taraji P. Henson'sEmpireCharacter Cookie

Mar. 15, 2025

Lee Daniels on Nov. 17.Photo:Gilbert Flores/Variety via Getty

Gilbert Flores/Variety via Getty

Lee Danielsis mourning the death of his younger sister Lydia Ruth Daniels-Rooks.

“As the fires are burning, so is my heart. My younger sister Lydia has passed,” the Oscar-nominated director, 65,wrote on Instagram Friday, Jan. 10.

“She was also my best friend,” he added, noting that she helped inspire the larger-than-life matriarchTaraji P. Hensonplayed onDaniels’ 2015–2020 Fox seriesEmpire. “InEmpire, the character of Cookie was based partly on her life. She’s left four beautiful children and five grandchildren behind. RIP Girly…I LOVE YOU FOREVER.”

Daniels did not specify a cause of death for Daniels-Rooks, who was 64.

Lee Daniels and his sister Lydia in a Jan. 10 Instagram photo.Lee Daniels/Instagram

Lee Daniels/Instagram

Daniels, one of five siblings raised in West Philadelphia,previously opened up toAd Weekabout competing with his brothers and sisters for attention during their childhood. “When you have a lot of siblings, you always do something to feel special. I was beating my sisters up — I was a total jerk,” he told the outlet.

Taraji P. Henson in ‘Empire’ (left) and Lee Daniels’s sister Lydia (right).FOX via Getty; 60_baddi/Instagram

FOX via Getty; 60_baddi/Instagram

Daniels said at the time thatEmpire’s Cookie was based on his sister as well as his mother and grandmother. “My grandmother was a corrupt politician in the ’60s. She had many of the judges in her pocket in Philadelphia — and she carried a gun,” he said.

“Cookie scared the hell out of me. [I was] like, ‘Hip-hop? Oh my God, what are they trying to do? Fox is going to pick this up? This isn’t HBO?’ And then I got nervous and started pacing the floor. ‘Oh my God, Cookie is bigger than life. You will love her or hate her,’ ”Henson said.

source: people.com