There’s an added benefit to doing an Oprah Winfrey Network show: You might meet Oprah Winfrey.
Well, maybe not a three-dimensional, in-person Oprah, during this social-distancing era. But there’s her image, talking to you on your computer screen.
“It was like some angel landed in the Zoom,” said Maahra Hill (shown here), who has the title role in “Delilah,” at 9 p.m. Tuesdays (starting March 9) on OWN.
Jill Marie Jones, who co-stars, recalled the first such Zoom call: “She had her Oprah voice that was just so golden goodness. And then she said my name in her Oprah voice and I just died.”
Winfrey has conquered many worlds, from daytime talk to occasional forays into movies and (with her Meghan-and-Harry interview) primetime CBS. But launching an entire cable network has been a challenge; after a decade, OWN is still only No. 55 in viewership, Nielsen says.
It has found some success, however, by occasionally detouring into scripted shows. There were five series from Tyler Perry, who has since moved to BET. (One of his shows, “The Haves and Have Nots,” remains, starting its final season May 25). And it has branched out to other producers.
“Ambitions” and “Love Is …” were canceled after one season apiece, but “Greenleaf” – set in a Black mega-church – had a five-season run and “Queen Sugar” (8 p.m. Tuesdays) is in its fifth season. “David Makes Man” – which has its second season this summer – won a Peabody. Award
Now comes a new effort from “Greenleaf” producer Craig Wright. “I was really excited to work outside the church and start to look at issues that were a little more secular and a little broader,” he said.
