{blackbabes} Why Empire Star Taraji P. Henson Doesn't Date Costars: 'You Have to Stay Professional'

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Empire: Taraji P. Henson Doesn't Date Costars

When it comes to her dating life, costars are off limits for Taraji P. Henson.

"I always wanted to be known for my work. Not who I dated. Not who I slept with. ... I have a gift, and my gift is acting," the Empire star tells Allure in the magazine's July issue.

"I started in the business at 26 with a kid, so I was smart enough to know reality from fantasy," adds Henson, who's mom to 21-year-old son Marcel. "I didn't want to blur the lines. This is a job that I have to do. I cannot get caught up in it. And if I sleep with these guys, why would they want to work with me again?"

As for why actors wouldn't want to work on another project with her? "The conquest is up," Henson, 44, explains. "Now I'm just used-up."

Why Empire Star Taraji P. Henson Doesn't Date Costars: 'You Have to Stay Professional'| Couples, Empire, TV News, Taraji P. Henson

And Henson – who decided to leave Washington, D.C., to try and make it big in Hollywood with $700 and her son by her side – admits, "You have to stay professional. It is a business."

"I'm not letting no knucklehead dude come between my hard work and my money," she says.