OWN Greenlights Fifth Season of ‘Queen Sugar’

OWN will bring back its Ava DuVernay-produced drama series Queen Sugar for a fifth season, the network said Thursday.

The Warner Horizon Scripted Television-produced drama --which will return in 2020 -- is currently averaging 1.6 million total viewers for season four, and is the most watched original series across all of broadcast and cable among total viewers and African-American women, according to OWN. Current season four showrunner Anthony Sparks will return for the fifth season.

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“Every character feels like family, said OWN CEO Oprah Winfrey. “I am excited to see what Ava has unfolding next for the Bordelons.”

Added DuVernay: ““I’m thrilled to further explore the beauty, pain and triumph of this African-American family, with hopes that their story will continue to resonate with audiences who see themselves in the Bordelons. It’s a real honor to create this work with Warner Horizon and OWN as their support is rock-solid and wonderful.”

R. Thomas Umstead

R. Thomas Umstead serves as senior content producer, programming for Multichannel News, Broadcasting + Cable and Next TV. During his more than 30-year career as a print and online journalist, Umstead has written articles on a variety of subjects ranging from TV technology, marketing and sports production to content distribution and development. He has provided expert commentary on television issues and trends for such TV, print, radio and streaming outlets as Fox News, CNBC, the Today show, USA Today, The New York Times and National Public Radio. Umstead has also filmed, produced and edited more than 100 original video interviews, profiles and news reports featuring key cable television executives as well as entertainers and celebrity personalities.