{"id":850242,"date":"2026-08-08T05:18:11","date_gmt":"2026-08-08T05:18:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/850242\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T05:18:11","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T05:18:11","slug":"raising-kanan-series-finale-how-raq-dies-and-origins-spinoff","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/850242\/","title":{"rendered":"‘Raising Kanan’ Series Finale: How Raq Dies and ‘Origins’ Spinoff"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n\tSPOILER ALERT: The following story contains plot details from the series finale of \u201cRaising Kanan\u201d now streaming on Starz<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\n\tThe final curtain has closed on the hit 1990s-set crime series \u201cPower Book III: Raising Kanan<\/a>.\u201d The show has been the origin story of Kanan Stark (Mekai Curtis<\/a>), who, by embracing the very business his drug-queenpin mother, Raquel Thomas (an incomparable Patina Miller<\/a>), desperately wanted to keep him away from, becomes the monster who rips his entire family apart. The fifth and final season has not only depicted a young man at odds with his mother, but also his willingness to decimate his own family.<\/p>\n

\n\tFans of \u201cPower\u201d \u2014\u00a0Courtney Kemp\u2019s original series \u2014 have always known how Kanan\u2019s story ends, but his background has been somewhat of a mystery until now. His story is one rife with terror, pain and a sweltering rage that has usurped everything around him.<\/p>\n

\n\tIn \u201cPower,\u201d adult Kanan (Curtis \u201c50 Cent\u201d Jackson) viciously murders his cousin Laverne \u201cJukebox\u201d Thomas (Anika Noni Rose). Viewers could never reconcile this ending, considering how close the cousins appeared to be. However, series creator Sascha Penn has always promised \u201ca full and complete answer to that question.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cOne of the things that\u2019s so interesting about \u2018Power\u2019 is the notion of reliable narrators and people\u2019s recollections and how they differ from the fact,\u201d Penn tells Variety. \u201cSomething we played with quite a bit across the series is who told the truth. For Ghost [Omari Hardwick] in the original \u2018Power,\u2019 the story is always shifting with him in terms of who killed Breeze [Shameik Moore] and who was there, who wasn\u2019t there, who knew?\u200b\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tIn the final moments of the series finale, \u201cUnconditional Love,\u201d that nagging question has finally been answered. In retaliation for Kanan murdering her father Marvin (London Brown), Jukebox (Hailey Kilgrove) kills Raq, the woman who raised her. \u201cWatch until the end of the credits,\u201d Penn says.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u200bWith this chapter of the \u201cPower\u201d Universe officially over,Variety chats with Penn, Miller and Curtis about the series finale, Raq\u2019s shocking death and how the story will continue in Penn\u2019s upcoming Starz series, \u201cPower: Origins.\u201d<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"\"<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tCara Howe<\/p>\n

\t\tSascha, did you know that this is how the chips would fall for the Thomas family?\t<\/p>\n

\n\tSascha Penn<\/a>: I kind of did. I mean, I didn\u2019t know exactly when all this stuff would happen. I always knew Raq would most likely die in the final episode. That I knew. But I will say this: I did go back and forth quite a bit about that over the years. I think people forget we are telling the origin story of perhaps the most diabolically evil character in the history of the \u201cPower\u201d Universe. So when people are up in arms about Kanan killing Uncle Marvin, I mean, I\u2019m always sort of surprised because it\u2019s like, did you see the character I saw on \u201cPower\u201d? Because that guy was a monster.<\/p>\n

\t\tWhat was the alternative ending for Raq?\t<\/p>\n

\n\tPenn: I thought for a little while she could get away like Unique [Joey Bada$$]. I thought that was a possibility. But I\u2019m going to be honest with you, I don\u2019t know that I felt like she deserved that ending, both in terms of the story that we set out to tell, but also in terms of the character. One of the most amazing things about this experience is entirely because of Patina Miller. People have really gravitated toward Raq in the same way they gravitated toward Tony Soprano. Both characters are monstrous in their own ways.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\t\tMekai, killing Lou (Malcolm Mays) was an accident for Kanan, but when he kills Marvin, that\u2019s very deliberate. Do you think that\u2019s a pivotal moment of change for him?\t<\/p>\n

\n\tMekai Curtis: Absolutely. I think they both are, because one doesn\u2019t necessarily happen without the other. Kanan\u2019s becoming a man. I think everything that he\u2019s run into, everything that he\u2019s been exposed to, everything that he\u2019s learned has led him to this moment. Again, we\u2019re talking about the pursuit of power. We\u2019re talking about the pursuit of being great in this world. And that\u2019s simply what sacrificing Uncle Marv is about for Kanan in that moment. It\u2019s nothing more, nothing less. Kanan, more so than ever, is about his business. He understands all of the seeds that he has sown.<\/p>\n

\t\tAfter Lou\u2019s death and then again after Marvin is killed, we begin to see glimmers of Raq\u2019s humanity for the first time in a long time. Patina, how did you navigate showcasing this as the walls are closing in on her?\t<\/p>\n

\n\tPatina Miller: I think her having her little family, which she\u2019s a matriarch of, really meant so much to her. So having the pieces start to fall around her is devastating. She\u2019s been able to work and survive in this world because of the family unit she helped create and protect. To have her brothers, whom she desperately loved \u2014 and I know sometimes it might look like she didn\u2019t, but everything she\u2019s done shows that she loved her brothers \u2014\u00a0to have them gone, the only people she has are her niece and her son. Navigating that was exciting for me. There\u2019s never really time or space for Raq to be vulnerable because of the world she\u2019s in. Raq never gets the opportunity to sit with her feelings because it all comes at a cost. For the first time, you get to see her actually deal with herself, her humanity and the people around her.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"\"<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tCara Howe<\/p>\n

\t\tWe have to talk about Shameik Moore\u2019s performance as Breeze, because he\u2019s a wild boy. What was it like working with Shameik? Does Kanan admire him, especially because Breeze is under the impression that they\u2019re actual blood brothers?\t<\/p>\n

\n\tCurtis:\u00a0It\u2019s Kanan doing what Kanan does. He\u2019s applying what he\u2019s learned from Raq early on: Get what you can from who you can, hold your information until you very much need it, and just let the cards play out. Kanan is a very observant person, and I know it becomes a topic of discussion for people, especially given how emotionally charged and almost impulsive Kanan seems a lot of the time. But he\u2019s a bit more calculated in why he does those things.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\t\tOne of the quotes that sticks out this season is when Joaquin (Goya Robles) tells Raq that her issue is that she has no boundaries. Do you think that\u2019s true of the character?\t<\/p>\n

\n\tMiller: Oh, absolutely. I think she\u2019s willing to do whatever, whenever, however. I think she\u2019s so focused that she loses sight of what\u2019s in front of her. In the beginning of this journey, it\u2019s like, \u201cYeah, Raquel, there\u2019s this woman. She\u2019s in a man\u2019s world, and she\u2019s doing all this for legacy, legacy, legacy.\u201d But then it starts to get a little iffy in the way she uses her power and manipulates the people she loves. She does lose sight of it, but I don\u2019t think it\u2019s because she wants to. I think she still thinks that she\u2019s doing this for a purpose. She\u2019s doing this because she has to. But Joaquin was 100% right about that for sure.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\t\tSpeaking of manipulation, do you think that Raq ever anticipated telling Marvin the truth about who killed Lou? Or was it something she just did as a reaction?\u00a0\t<\/p>\n

\n\tMiller: I think it was a reaction. I think that one thing you can know about her is she\u2019s good at keeping a secret. I think she would\u2019ve protected that secret the entire time. But as the stakes grew even higher and she knew Kanan was in a dangerous space and had become an enemy, she needed her brother on her side. She\u2019s always so good at having a card to play. She knows that she can\u2019t do this really, truly without her brother. I don\u2019t think she means to pull it out, but in that moment she saw an opening, and she took it.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\t\tBefore he dies, Marvin accuses Raq of never really caring about him in Lou. How do you think that affects Raq in the final days of her life?\t<\/p>\n

\n\tMiller: Raq has always been so good at keeping the traumas and all of the hurt at bay. It\u2019s not because she doesn\u2019t want to feel; she knows she doesn\u2019t have the space to feel.\u00a0 I think that it\u2019s a hurtful thing for Marvin to say that because, for her and in my own opinion, it\u2019s like, \u201cI have shown you so many times that I love you. Yes, I\u2019m hard on you, but I went to war twice for you.\u201d There have been so many opportunities where you could have seen if she really hated her brothers. With Lou, she loved him. She really did love him. Obviously, she loves the game, and she loves that they\u2019re in it with her, but she raised [Marvin\u2019s] daughter for him. That\u2019s the ultimate act of love for me. So I think she\u2019s feeling the words, and I think she\u2019s realizing that even though she does love them, they feel this way. And it\u2019s a lot.\u00a0She\u2019s just trying to put the pieces together and coming to terms with that. It\u2019s devastating. It\u2019s heartbreaking for her in the end, and then to lose him. I think she knows her time is coming. I think she\u2019s ready for it. I think she\u2019s not going to back down from it, which makes it even more devastating.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"\"<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tCara Howe<\/p>\n

\t\tIn the penultimate episode, just before Kanan kills Marvin, Marvin tells him that he will eventually meet a lonely, tragic end.\u00a0It\u2019s something that Juke reiterates when she reveals that she\u2019s killed Raq. Do you think that disturbs him at all?\u00a0\t<\/p>\n

\n\tCurtis: A little bit. But at the end of the day, this story is about a mother and son. By the time Juke and Marvin are telling him the things that they\u2019re saying, he already knows it. It\u2019s more of a catharsis for them because they\u2019ve been holding on to it. They\u2019ve been just cleaning up his mess this entire time.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\t\tLondon Brown\u2019s performance as Marvin this season is phenomenal; the character development is astounding. Did you always know that Marvin would get this sort of redemption story?\t<\/p>\n

\n\tPenn: London is an unbelievable talent. I\u2019ve been screaming this for as long as I\u2019ve been doing this: all these actors deserve Emmy nominations. What people don\u2019t really remember at this point is that in Episode 8 of Season 1, Marvin put his hands on his daughter because she\u2019s a lesbian. London and I had many conversations about it, because he really felt like Marvin was irredeemable. He\u2019s like, \u201cAnyone who puts their hands on their daughter for that, how can anyone ever like him again?\u201d And I said to him, \u201cWe can do it. I\u2019m telling you we can do it, because here\u2019s the thing about people in general: they have an incredible capacity for forgiveness.\u201d I think that\u2019s what\u2019s happened with the audience: They forgave Marvin. He\u2019s flawed, but he acknowledges his flaws, which, by the way, there aren\u2019t many characters in this show that do that.<\/p>\n

\t\tSascha, do you think Raq is a good mother?\t<\/p>\n

\n\tPenn: I\u2019m always sort of intrigued when people talk about Raq as a mother. She\u2019s not a good mother in any way. She uses her son to justify so many awful things. \u201cI\u2019m doing this for you\u201d is the ultimate form of manipulation. During their final conversation, she still needs [Kanan] to say, \u201cI love you.\u201d She still is trying to get that. You see Kanan\u2019s maturation in that moment where he says to her, \u201cNo, we\u2019re past all that. That doesn\u2019t matter anymore.\u201d And Raq can\u2019t get past it. She\u2019s a narcissist, and she needs that, and she can\u2019t get it.<\/p>\n

\t\tPatina, do you think Raq anticipated that Juke would take her out?\t<\/p>\n

\n\tMiller: I don\u2019t think she ever would\u2019ve thought in a million years, just like Marvin would\u2019ve never thought in a million years that Kanan would ever do that to family. That would\u2019ve never crossed her mind, especially for someone she raised, accepted, was there for and loved. I know it\u2019s devastating for her. But even in that split second where she realizes this is happening, there\u2019s nothing she can do about it. And again, she never backs down. Those last few seconds of her going for her gun. I don\u2019t even know if she would\u2019ve ever used it had she gotten to it, but that\u2019s just that thing in her that is never willing to back down.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"\"<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tCara Howe<\/p>\n

\t\tMekai, when Kanan goes to Raq\u2019s house and sees her body on the floor, what was that like for you?\t<\/p>\n

\n\tCurtis: It\u2019s devastating, but it is poetic; Raq\u2019s not super innocent. We all love to root for her. She\u2019s the ultimate antihero, but she\u2019s also done her own wrongs. I think as Mekai, I went into that last episode trying to play an overhanging grief, knowing that that was going to happen. Not necessarily having control of it, but understanding what Kanan did and how this was going to come back to him.<\/p>\n

\t\tRaq is one of the most iconic characters I\u2019ve ever seen on television, and her journey has been phenomenal to watch.\u00a0 What have you learned from her these last five seasons?\t<\/p>\n

\n\tMiller: I think what I\u2019ve learned from her is, honestly, her perseverance. I\u2019ve learned to own my voice. I\u2019ve learned how to walk in my power. I\u2019ve learned to trust myself more, honestly. I gained so much confidence from the very first season through the last episode of season five. I\u2019ve learned to trust my gut, trust my instincts. I\u2019ve learned, even through the craziness and messiness of her relationship, what it truly means to be bonded to someone. Loving my child the way that I do. When I first started the show, I was a new mom, and I just desperately wanted to be a good mother. Raquel\u2019s battling that same thing of just not really knowing how, but wanting to be in her version of being a good mom. I\u2019ve learned to give myself grace, but I think the biggest thing is the confidence to walk into spaces, own them and be yourself.<\/p>\n

\t\tAs the narration says, as this series closes, this is in many ways just the beginning for Kanan. We\u2019re going to see him again in \u201cPower: Origins,\u201d the Tommy and Ghost origin story. Can you share anything about what we can expect to see of the character and how this will continue for you?\t<\/p>\n

\n\tCurtis: Just buckle up. I had a lot of fun putting those 18 episodes together. I said it about \u201cRaising Kanan,\u201d but literal blood, sweat and tears stretched me in ways that I didn\u2019t know were possible. But I\u2019m extremely proud. I feel accomplished and ready for the world to see it. Not just my performance, but the entire show. There\u2019s something different to it. I think with every spinoff that we\u2019ve gotten to do and every spinoff that Sascha\u2019s been a part of, he continues to up the ante. \u201cOrigins\u201d is very much up there. We\u2019re constantly pushing the boundary. We\u2019re just trying shit, but I think it all worked out. I\u2019m excited for people to go on that ride with us.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tPenn: It\u2019s a true privilege to be able to continue the story. First and foremost, tonally the show is very different than \u201cKanan.\u201d \u201cKanan,\u201d I think we can agree, is pretty dark. \u201cOrigins\u201d is a lot more fun. I sort of crafted it as much more of a two-hander like \u201c48 Hours.\u201d It has a real levity. Not to say there isn\u2019t any darkness, and there is obviously violence and action. We do see Kanan more as the 50 Cent version than the \u201cRaising Kanan\u201d version. But the heart and soul of the show is the relationship between Ghost [Spence Moore] and Tommy [Charlie Mann]. I think this is what the \u201cPower\u201d fan base has really been clamoring for. This is their story. The access point to \u201cOrigins\u201d is like, just flip it on. You\u2019re along for the ride. You don\u2019t have to have watched \u201cPower\u201d before.\u00a0 It\u2019s just another incredible ensemble cast we\u2019ve assembled. Again, it is not dark like \u201cRaising Kanan,\u201d and it\u2019s not as glitzy and glamorous as \u201cPower.\u201d It\u2019s somewhere in between. We\u2019re still in South Jamaica.<\/p>\n

\n\tThis interview has been edited and condensed.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"SPOILER ALERT: The following story contains plot details from the series finale of \u201cRaising Kanan\u201d now streaming on…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":850243,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[29],"tags":[49,48,75,295745,295746,295747,295748,25271,348],"class_list":["post-850242","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-tv","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-entertainment","tag-mekai-curtis","tag-patina-miller","tag-power-book-iii-raising-kanan","tag-sascha-penn","tag-starz","tag-tv"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/850242","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=850242"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/850242\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/850243"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=850242"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=850242"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=850242"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}