‘Empire’ producer Daniels says US actors feel free to go off script, but Brits ‘freak out’

LOS ANGELES, Calif. – Two prominent TV producers say that American actors don’t always stick to the script the way their British counterparts do, but that’s OK.

Lee Daniels, who produces Fox’s hit drama series “Empire,” said Wednesday that British actors “really freak out” when faced with the freedom to change their lines.

But Daniels said actors can contribute to a script because they are more aware of their character’s “truth” than the writer.

Sarah Treem, producer of Showtime’s series “The Affair,” said the drama’s British actors practice and perfect the text.

In contrast, American star Maura Tierney will improvise and find something more natural than what’s in the script, Treem said.

Daniels and Treem took part in a Hollywood Radio and Television Society “hit-makers” panel that included other producers of notable TV shows.