If Loving You Is Wrong

Overview

If Loving You Is Wrong takes its loose inspiration from Tyler Perry's 2014 movie The Single Moms Club. Zulay Henao returned to play Esperanza, a role she originated in the film, though the TV series gave her character and story a fresh rewrite. The show skipped a pilot and went straight to series on January 9, 2014. It debuted on the Oprah Winfrey Network on September 9, 2014, with the first half of its season one finale airing on November 4, 2014.

That premiere became the highest-rated in OWN history, beating the record set by The Haves and the Have Nots. The second half of season one arrived on March 24, 2015. A 22-episode second season was ordered on February 27, 2015, premiering on September 22, 2015, with its second half starting on March 15, 2016. OWN picked up a third season, which began on September 13, 2016.

On January 7, 2020, OWN announced a fifth season was "coming soon." By February 5, 2020, they confirmed that season would be the last; it premiered on March 31, 2020, and ended on June 16, 2020. A cast reunion special called "Oh So Right" was announced on June 25, 2020, and aired on June 30, 2020.

Cast and characters

Amanda Clayton played Alex Montgomery, a housewife whose husband Brad, a British businessman, had a vasectomy after they had two children, Peter and Paisley. Alex had an affair with their next-door neighbor Randall, which destroyed her friendship with Randall’s wife Marcie and drove Brad to leave her. She later had a third son. At first she thought Randall was the father, but a DNA test suggested the child could belong to one of the lovers she took while using the dating alias “Jennifer Peppa.”

Matt Cook portrayed Joey Blackman in seasons one through three, the oldest son of Natalie. After getting out of jail, Joey worked at his mother’s Burger Fast restaurant, where she often hovered over him. He was romantically interested in Faun, the boss’s daughter and a childhood friend. In season three, he ended up back in jail after using a gun to shoot Quan, which broke his probation.

Edwina Findley played Kelly Isaacs, a single mother raising a young son named Justice. A man named Travis pursued her even though he was engaged to someone he met in Haiti. Kelly started to have feelings for a new neighbor, Ramsey, but he was later murdered in his home, and she became the main suspect. After Travis stalked her, she shot and killed him.

While in jail, she could not cope and attempted suicide; Lushion found her hanging in her cell. She survived and was placed on suicide watch, tied to her bed. Tiffany Haddish appeared in season one as Jackie, Natalie’s business-savvy assistant at Burger Fast. Heather Hemmens played Marcie Holmes, a real estate agent and Randall’s unhappy ex-wife.

Furious at Alex for the affair, Marcie got revenge by having an affair with Brad, and she eventually fell deeply in love with him. She demanded a divorce from Randall, but he refused because he still loved her and also loved Alex. In season three, Marcie was pregnant with Brad’s child, though the season three finale hinted Randall might be the father. By the end of season four, Marcie finally got her divorce from Randall but then suffered a miscarriage.