***SPOILERS AHEAD***

In a finale charged with betrayal and raw emotion, Patina Miller and Sascha Penn take us inside Raising Kanan’s unforgettable family clash and that shocking character reveal.

In the high-stakes season finale of Power Book III: Raising Kanan, audiences witnessed a long-awaited revelation and a devastating fracture in the Thomas family, culminating in a tense standoff between mother and son that may prove impossible to walk back.

The fourth season of the STARZ series closed with Kanan Stark (Mekai Curtis) pulling a gun on his mother, Raquel “Raq” Thomas, played by a fiercely compelling Patina Miller.

Miller, who has spent the last four seasons crafting one of the most calculating, powerful women in the Power universe, told BOSSIP about the moment Raq’s façade of control crumbled.

“I think it’s when her son walked in with a gun on her,” said Miller. “Even the most tough—she can be tough, she can be so powerful—but to have her son of all people walk in with a gun trained on her, there’s fear, there’s sadness. There’s so many different emotions that she is sort of trying to suppress, but she can’t suppress any of that in this moment.”

That moment, arguably the most electrifying of the series thus far, comes after a season-long unraveling of Kanan’s psyche, as grief, betrayal, and manipulation swirl around him.

The death of his girlfriend Crystal, the (false) rumors of Raq killing Famous, and the shocking news that Raq euthanized his grandma, explained to him by his Uncle Lou, finally snapped what little trust remained between him and his mother.

“It was meant to be an insight into who Rock is,” Penn explained. “But all Kanan hears is: ‘Your mom killed your grandmother.’ He’s inclined to only think the worst of her — and for good reason. So in his mind, the mercy killing of his grandmother is yet another brick in the wall in terms of why he has no faith or trust in his mother.”

“He’s looking for someone to blame,” added Miller. “And his mom being who she is, she’s the easiest person to put that blame on.”

Penn added,

“He’s 17 years old. He’s a kid—and all kids, they’re idiots,” said Penn. “And also, the one person he’s looked up to the most in his life is someone who has betrayed him at every turn. Frankly, the smartest thing Kanan does is not trust his mother.”

“People can say, as they do, it is always amazing when you see 45-year-olds apply their 45-year-old logic to a 17-year-old kid,” Penn said. “But he’s dumb. I don’t know what to say.”

Branford “Breeze” Frady Finally Revealed

As the show pushes Kanan to a dark turning point, Raising Kanan also ushers in a long-awaited figure in the Power Universe: Branford “Breeze” Frady.

Introduced in the final moments of the Season 4 finale, Breeze is played by Dope star Shameik Moore, who joins the cast as a series regular for the upcoming fifth and final season.

Fans have speculated for years about when Breeze, the drug kingpin who employed a young Kanan, James St. Patrick, and Tommy Egan, would make his debut, and Moore acknowledged the pressure of playing such a pivotal character.

“The Power Universe fans have been patiently anticipating this moment, and I’m honored to step into the iconic role of Breeze,” Moore said in a statement shared with BOSSIP. “I jumped into a story that is already alive with such strong characters, but it was a fun challenge to find Breeze’s unique identity, and I can’t wait for fans to see how Breeze will shift dynamics in the story. It’s gonna be a wild ride.”

In the finale, it’s street legends Snaps (Wendell Pierce) and Pop (Erika Woods) who introduce Kanan to Breeze, setting the stage for a new alliance that may forever alter the series’ trajectory and Kanan’s rise into the man we meet in the original Power.

“He is such a seminal character in the Power universe,” said Sascha Penn about Breeze. “I had always felt like I wanted him to be in the final season of this series so fans could really sort of live with him and get to know him.”

Penn told BOSSIP that Moore was the only actor ever considered for the role, and after seeing him size up Kanan as Breeze, it’s easy to see why.

 “He’s inherently charismatic, but also able to tap into a darkness that’s really interesting,” he said. “For me, he checked all the boxes.”

As the series moves toward its conclusion, the divide between mother and son has never been deeper, and the arrival of Breeze promises to only accelerate Kanan’s transformation. All four seasons of Power Book III: Raising Kanan are currently available to stream on STARZ, with the fifth and final season set to deliver an explosive end to this gripping Southside Jamaica, Queens saga.

The post ‘Raising Kanan’ Finale Exclusive: Patina Miller & Showrunner Sascha Penn Talk Kanan & Raq’s Shocking Standoff & That BIG Breeze Reveal appeared first on Bossip.