Entertainment network Lifetime has announced new creative partnerships with Queen Latifah and Taraji P. Henson, who will executive produce a slate of original films for the network.
The announcement was made during Lifetime’s annual upfront presentation, where executives revealed upcoming projects, talent deals and a new digital storytelling initiative.
Under the agreement, Queen Latifah will executive produce three new Lifetime original movies through her production company Flavor Unit Entertainment alongside longtime producing partner Shakim Compere.
Henson will oversee two original films through her company TPH Entertainment in partnership with Fox Entertainment Studios. Production will be supervised by her head of production and development, Jamila Jordan-Theus.
Lifetime programming executive Elaine Frontain Bryant said the network is eager to collaborate again with both stars.
“Queen Latifah and Taraji P. Henson are extraordinary talents and dynamic producers who share Lifetime’s passion for telling powerful stories about women,” Bryant said. “Both have helped shape our legacy with impactful, culturally resonant projects.”
The network has previously partnered with several high-profile creators, including Mary J. Blige, Toni Braxton and journalist Robin Roberts.
Lifetime Expands into Micro-Drama Format
Lifetime also announced its first venture into short-form vertical storytelling with a micro-drama titled Tides of Temptation, connected to the upcoming film Terry McMillan Presents: Paradise with You.
The series will be executive produced by actor Taye Diggs and will star creator and musician Q Stenline, along with Troy Brookins, Mea Wilkerson and David John Craig.
Set on the Caribbean island of Nevis, the story centers on a young woman trapped in a dangerous relationship whose life changes when she falls for an ambitious athlete entering her world.
Network executives say the project reflects an effort to reach viewers through new digital formats while expanding the storytelling universe of its feature films.
New “Love of a Lifetime” Films in Development
Lifetime also unveiled three films for its Love of a Lifetime franchise. Among them is Love, Again, starring Valerie Bertinelli and Henry Czerny, which follows a long-married couple navigating life after a diagnosis of early-onset Alzheimer’s disease.
Another film, When I Said I Do, tells the story of a widowed search-and-rescue K-9 handler who unexpectedly finds love again after meeting a fellow rescue specialist.
Meanwhile, Terry McMillan Presents: Paradise with You features Diggs as a retiring professional football star seeking a fresh start in the Caribbean, where romance becomes complicated when he and a woman he meets are competing for the same property.
Film Inspired by 9/11 Survivor Story
Outside the romance banner, Lifetime has also greenlit Angel in the Rubble, a film executive produced by Roberts that recounts the survival story of Genelle Guzman, the final survivor rescued from the rubble of the September 11 attacks.
The film will star Sherri Shepherd as Guzman, a New York City transit worker who was trapped beneath the collapse of World Trade Center Tower One for 27 hours before being rescued.
Lifetime executives say the new slate reflects the network’s ongoing focus on emotionally driven storytelling centered on women’s experiences and resilience.
