The Haves and the Have Nots is Tyler Perry’s soap opera that premiered on The Oprah Network back in 2013. It’s currently on its sixth season and is still going fairly strong. The Haves and the Have Nots is considered to be one of OWN’s most successful shows, having set records in its premiere. The show follows the stories of three families in Savannah, Georgia–the Cryers, the Harringtons, and the Young family. The first two families make up the Haves, while the Young family makes up the Have Nots in the show. Meet the original cast that has portrayed the primary members of the families in this soap opera.
1. Tika Sumpter — Candace Young
Sumpter plays the role of Candace, the estranged daughter of Hanna and Benny’s older half sister. She’s also the mistress of Jim Cryer. Her character is very mischievous and manipulative. Sumpter is also known for her role in the Ride Along franchises and for playing Layla Williamson in One Life to Live from 2006 to 2011.
2. Crystal Fox — Hanna Young
Fox plays Hanna, the mother to both Candace and Benny. Her character is also a maid in the Cryer household. Hanna is nurturing and compassionate, but she also has a dark past. Apart from this role, Fox is also known for portraying Elizabeth Howard in the TV series Big Little Lies.
3. Tyler Lepley — Benjamin Young
Lepley plays Benny in the show, the son of Hanna and Candace’s younger half brother. Less troublesome than Candace, Benny is a hard worker and is quite personable. Lepley is a fairly new actor, and Benny Young is his biggest role to date.
4. Renee Lawless — Katheryn Cryer
Lawless plays the Cryer wife, Katheryn, who can easily be described as passive-aggressive yet completely sensitive and caring. Katheryn was born into one of the wealthiest families in Savannah. Lawless only has 5 acting credits to her name. She managed to acquire the role of Katheryn and have proven to be talented enough to carry the role well.
5. Jaclyn Betham — Amanda Cryer
Betham played the role of Amanda in the first two seasons. Her character, a good friend of Candace, dies in the season 2 finale.
6. Aaron O’Connell — Wyatt Cryer
O’Connell is Wyatt in the show, the son of Jim and Katheryn Cryer. Cryer is a troubled young man who is in and out of rehabilitation for his drug and alcohol problems. O’Connell’s role of Wyatt Cryer is his biggest role to date, but he’s also done a few projects since he started on the show.
7. Peter Parros — David Harrington
Parros plays the patriarch of the Harrington Family, David. David is a judge in the show and a good friend of Jim Cryer. David is in constant battle in his relationship with his wife Veronica. Parros is a soap opera veteran, having played characters in shows such as One Life to Live and As the World Turns.
8. Angela Robinson — Veronica Harrington
Robinson plays the matriarch of the Harrington family, Veronica. Veronica may be the symbol of refinement on the outside, but she’s seething with malice on the inside. Robinson’s career literally just started with her role in the show, but she did have two other guest appearances on TV prior to this one.
9. Gavin Houston – Jeffrey Harrington
Houston plays the role of Jeffrey, the son of David and Veronica. He later on conspires with Candace to kill Quincy, which they both successfully do and have to hide. Houston has been a regular in a few other TV series before including Guiding Light, General Hospital, and The Bay.
10. Eva Tamargo — Celine Gonzales
From season 1 to season 3, Tamargo portrayed the role of Celine, a former maid in the Cryer home with whom Jim had an illegitimate son with. The character was fired from the Cryer household in season 3 and she never again returned. Tamargo is known for her roles in Saints & Sinners, Passions, and No Me Hallo.
11. John Schneider — James Cryer
Schneider plays the role of Jim Cryer in the show, the head of the Cryer household. He is a judge in Savannah. He is known for his power plays and philandering, Jim Cryer is just one of Schneider’s many roles to date. While he’s been in more than 150 acting projects, one of his most famous roles include Jonathan Kent in Smallville, And who could forget him in Dukes of Hazzard?
Follow Us
