behind their success, but as the oldest child, Andre feels like taking over the company is his birthright. Characterization Trai Byers described Andre "ivy league educated business man" who wants to help take his family's company to the "next level." As the oldest child, facing off with his two younger siblings for the company, Andre feels shut out and will do whatever it takes to get what he feels is rightfully his. According to Byers, Andre "dwells in the darker places of me, so I do a lot of shifting through emotions involving abandonment, guilt, and hurt." Andre also has suffered from depression. Much like Byers himself, Andre has a strong sense of loyalty. Though the creators always intended for Andre to be mentally ill, it was show runner Ilene Chaiken that pushed for Andre's condition to be more defined and they eventually agreed on bipolar disorder. Chaiken had previously worked on the ABC drama The Black Box which focused heavily on the disorder. While Chaiken and the creators wanted to explore the disorder again, "we also wanted to give Andre his own internal struggle, and that was the struggle that he presents with." While Byers is also a talented singer in his own right, Andre is not musical at all. Byers praised the decision to make Andre the "straight man in the middle of all of the pizzazz, the fame and fortune." "He is one of the most tragic characters, if not the most tragic character on this show" Byers said of Andre. Byers actually studied the disorder through a family member who also has the disorder. "I feel much more committed knowing somebody and more responsible to him and others like him." Byers declared "Our Dancing Days" as the "beginning of Andre's story." Not only is Andre in the process of trying to make sure the IPO goes off without a hitch, he is off his medication and the news Lucious is dying from ALS pushes him to the brink. Byers explained "So it's all those different emotions, and the fact that he's bipolar, just trying to manage everything. It just kind of failed him." The actor described the scenes in which Andre breaks down in the shower after learning of Lucious' impending demise as "cathartic" for him as an actor because Andre had been sort of lingering in the background. In preparation for his portrayal of Andre's