OWN Renews 'Queen Sugar' for Third Season, Ava DuVernay Inks New Deal With Harpo
It's official: "Queen Sugar" will go on for a third season. The renewal comes as the series approaches its season 2 finale.
Reports noted that the pickup is not much of a surprise since "Queen Sugar" regularly ranks among the top five most-watched cable programs. It also continues to receive positive reviews from critics and fans.
"I'm so proud of [co-creator] Ava [DuVernay] and her ability as a filmmaker to challenge the status quo and push for inclusiveness onscreen and behind the camera," Oprah Winfrey, CEO of both OWN and Harpo Films, said in a press release following the renewal announcement. "I love, love, love the work we have been able to create so far. I am looking forward to developing many more meaningful projects together."
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Having debuted in 2016, "Queen Sugar" follows the Bordelon siblings living in Louisiana. The show's second season debuted in June with its highest-rated episode ever among female and adult demos. In delayed viewing, it is currently averaging 2.4 million viewers every episode.
Other stars joining later this season are Michael Michele, Roger Guenveur Smith and Beverly Todd. Michele and Smith have been tapped to play the estranged parents of Darla (Bianca Lawson), while Todd will take on the role of a matriarchal activist in the ninth ward.
DuVernay has also signed a new deal with Harpo Films for television and digital media. Deadline noted that the first project under DuVernay's deal is a five-part Netflix limited show titled "Central Park Five." The series will center on a true story about the men who were wrongfully convicted for the rape of a female jogger in the popular NYC park in 1989.
"There is fresh air and room to roam," DuVernay revealed in a press statement. "There is an artist-driven atmosphere and an intention to share stories that nourish. There is a spirit of inclusivity and imagination moving at all times. This is the new era of OWN."
The third season of "Queen Sugar" is expected to premiere sometime next year on OWN.
