Greenleaf (TV series)

***Greenleaf*** is an American weekly prime time soap opera mystery television series created by Craig Wright and executive produced by Oprah Winfrey. It was produced by Lionsgate Television and aired for five seasons on the Oprah Winfrey Network from June 21, 2016 to August 11, 2020.

## Premise

The show follows the unscrupulous world of the Greenleaf family with scandalous secrets and lies, their palatial family mansion compound, and their sprawling Memphis megachurch with predominantly African-American members. The lead characters are Bishop James Greenleaf and Lady May Greenleaf, the patriarch and matriarch of the family, and Grace Greenleaf, their estranged daughter who has returned home after twenty years following the mysterious death of her sister, Faith. Deep down, the family cares for and loves each other, but secrets, lies, adultery, sibling rivalry and other issues swarm the family as they try to keep themselves together. There are a variety of people who try to run the family out of their beloved church, but they lay it all on the line to keep each other tight and close like any family.

## Cast

* Keith David as Bishop James Greenleaf - The charismatic and strong leader of Cavalry Fellowship World Ministries and Greenleaf family patriarch.
* Lynn Whitfield as "First Lady" Daisy Mae Greenleaf - Bishop's first wife, First Lady of Cavalry Fellowship and family matriarch.
* Merle Dandridge as Pastor Grace "Gigi" Greenleaf - Mae and Bishop's eldest child. She returns home after twenty years after escaping from the family. Her mother and siblings consistently deplore her "desertion." She proudly serves as Executive Pastor of Minister at Cavalry Fellowship under her parents' leadership.
* Desiree Ross as Sophia Greenleaf - Grace's teenage daughter who shares her mother's charms and whose deep religious faith is challenged.
* Lamman Rucker as Pastor Jacob Greenleaf - The second-born child and only son of the Bishop. He resents Grace for abandoning the family and leaving him to take her place in the ministry, crushing his dream of a career in professional baseball. He previously and proudly served as Associate Pastor of Discipleship, and now serves as Senior Pastor of Triumph Fellowship Church.
* Kim Hawthorne as Kerissa Greenleaf - Jacon's ambitious and controlling wife and headmistress of Excellence Academy.
* Deborah Joy Winans as Charity Greenleaf - The youngest child of the family and Minister of Music at Cavalry Fellowship. Being the youngest, she is furious at being left out of family situations, and, like Jacob, resents Grace for leaving the family, forcing her to stay bound to her family's church.
* Tye White as Kevin Satterlee - Charity's husband and director of Outreach at Cavalry Fellowship (seasons 1-3)
* Gregory Alan Williams as Robert "Mac" McCready - Lady Mae's brother (recurring season 1; main season 2)
* Lovie Simone as Zora Greenleaf - Kerissa and Jacob's rebellious teenage daughter (recurring season 1; main seasons 2-5)
* Rick Fox as Darius Nash - A journalist for the Tennessee Statesman (recurring seasons 2 & 5; main season 3)

## Episodes

Main article: *List of Greenleaf episodes*

 1
 2
 3
 4
 5

## Reception

*Greenleaf* received mainly positive reviews from critics, who praised Dandridge, Whitfield and David's performances. Maureen Ryan of *Variety* stated, "Dandridge is naturalistic in her portrayal of a practical, cautious woman re-examining her family history and her own choices and mistakes, while Whitfield has the imperious aura of a grand soap opera diva in the tradition of Joan Collins." Daniel Fienberg from *The Hollywood Reporter* wrote in his review "effectively balance the melodrama, vast ensemble and church details and contribute a level of technical proficiency that goes far beyond what the Tyler Perry Factory brings to *The Haves and the Have Nots*, OWN's biggest scripted hit." Matthew Gilbert of *The Boston Globe* compared the show with primetime soaps like *Revenge* and the similarly black cast *Empire*."

The series premiere drew 3.04 million viewers, making it the No. 1 series debut in OWN history.