‘Beyond The Gates’ Brings Excellence To The First Black-Led Soap Opera

Beyond the Gates follows the prestigious Dupree family

Written By Janeé Bolden

For decades, daytime soaps have been a staple of American television, delivering romance, betrayal, and family drama in ways that keep audiences coming back for more. But for all the scandalous secrets and passionate love affairs, one thing has been glaringly absent—a Black-led soap opera. That all changes on Feb. 24, 2025, when Beyond the Gates makes its historic debut on CBS.

Set in an affluent Black gated community just outside Washington, D.C., Beyond the Gates follows the prestigious Dupree family—Black royalty navigating power, love, and long-buried secrets. With a powerhouse cast and an all-star creative team, this is more than just another soap opera—it’s a long-overdue cultural moment.

Sheila Ducksworth, president of CBS Studios/NAACP Venture and executive producer of Beyond the Gates, has spent years working to make this vision a reality. “This project is four years in the making at this point. But it had been something that I dreamed of for decades, quite frankly,” Ducksworth shared.

Ducksworth, alongside creator and showrunner Michele Val Jean (General Hospital, The Bold and the Beautiful), has meticulously crafted a show that authentically represents the Black experience at the highest levels of success. “Having a Black family that’s affluent in a setting where it really does exist—this DMV area with predominantly Black gated communities and the influence of Howard University—it just had not been done,” Ducksworth explained.

For Val Jean, the chance to helm a brand-new soap opera was as unexpected as it was groundbreaking. “When I started writing, there were 13 shows on the air. Now there are four, and one is on streaming,” she noted. “Networks have been canceling soaps, not greenlighting them. So nobody was more surprised than I was when Sheila called and said, ‘We got a go.’”

The magnitude of this moment isn’t lost on the daytime TV world. “The support that I have felt from the daytime community—everybody is so excited and so happy that this new soap is launching,” Val Jean said. “It’s good for the genre, and it’s about time.”

The heart of Beyond the Gates is the Dupree family, played by an incredible ensemble cast. Tamara Tunie, Clifton Davis, Daphnee Duplaix, and Karla Mosley bring to life the kind of complex, layered Black characters rarely seen in daytime drama.

Tunie, a legend in her own right (Law & Order: SVU, As the World Turns), steps into the role of Anita Dupree, the formidable matriarch of the family. “Anita Dupree is my mother,” Tunie said, revealing her primary source of inspiration. “She is a fierce mama bear, righteous, talented, et cetera, et cetera.”

She also pulled from two of the most glamorous women in entertainment history. “I had the privilege of working with Lena Horne when I first came to New York, and Lena remained a force in my life,” Tunie shared. “I also had the privilege of knowing Ms. Diahann Carroll. And, of course, Dominique Deveraux is one of the iconic, classic forces in soap opera.”

Clifton Davis (Amen, Madam Secretary) plays Vernon Dupree, the proud patriarch of the family, and he drew inspiration from civil rights icon John Lewis. “He was personally involved; he took the beating on the Edmund Pettus Bridge, and then he became a congressman,” Davis said. “That relates a lot to Vernon Dupree.”

However, Davis also found personal meaning in the role. “I thought, here I’ll get a chance to be the me I wasn’t. I got a chance to live out the love of my family in a better way than I did in my real life,” he admitted. “This character really loves these two girls and that incredible wife of his. He will commit and do anything to protect them, defend them, and support them. I drew actually from my father — and I try to make the difference that a lot of African American men don’t always have the opportunity to–means and money stand in the way of some of our fathers being the better fathers. It’s sad, but it’s true. I wanted to embody what Michele had written on the page, and I think I’m doing it.”

Daphne Duplaix, who plays Dr. Nicole Dupree Richardson, originally had her eyes on another role. “When the audition first popped up, I actually wanted to play Dani,” Duplaix admitted. But fate had other plans. “I talked to Sheila and Julie, and they were like, ‘The minute we saw your tape, we knew you were Nicole.’”

At first, Duplaix wasn’t sure. “I was like, ‘Alright, I’ll do what I can with this,’” she said, laughing. “But as I got through the scripts, I realized—holy cow—this is more like me than I realized. Who she is, what she says, all of those things. So yes, I’m having as much fun as I possibly can, with the help of my writers crafting incredible storylines for us, but when it comes down to it, I am Nicole, so I am my own inspiration.”

For Karla Mosley (Guiding Light, The Bold and the Beautiful), playing Dani Dupree has been an experience of deep connection. “I find that characters come at just the right moment,” Mosley said. “They sort of find you in the place where you’re needing to stretch. And that’s what’s exciting about sharing this show—I think these characters will feel close, they’ll feel known. People will see themselves and their families reflected on screen.”

With Beyond the Gates, CBS Studios and the NAACP are making history by launching the first Black-led daytime soap opera and the first new network soap since Passions premiered in 1999.

“This started as one idea—‘this would be great to have on air’—and now more than 200 people are devoting every bit of their talent and spirit to making it happen,” Ducksworth said. “It takes a village.”

That village is committed to ensuring Beyond the Gates isn’t just a moment but a movement. “We look forward to the longevity that we know soaps typically have,” Ducksworth said. “And with Paramount+ taking it global, this isn’t just for viewers here in the U.S.—this is for the world.”

A Black soap opera led by a Black creative team and centered on an affluent Black family? It’s about time.

Beyond the Gates premieres Monday, Feb. 24, 2025, and airs on CBS weekdays from 2:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. EST and 1: 00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. PST.