Lifetime Movie ‘Forever’ Features a Taye Diggs Performance You’ve Never Seen Before…and Diggs Agrees

Taye Diggs talks to The Contending about reuniting with Meagan Good for the Lifetime movie Forever and why he’d like to see it as a series.

Taye Diggs has been acting in TV and movies for 30 years, but Bart Baker’s script for Terry McMillan Presents Forever hit him differently.

“I’ve done stuff in this film I’ve never done before,” says Diggs. “Where I am in my own personal life and being single and having been married and having to play some of those moments, I’m very proud of this movie and of the work Meagan [Good] and I have done.”

The Lifetime movie Forever stars Diggs as a veteran who connects with a single mother Carlie, played by Good. Believe it or not, the last time they were in a project together was 20 years ago.

“We worked together when she was just a pup on the show Kevin Hill. I was this hot-shot lawyer who adopts this baby girl, and I have to change my life. It was on UPN back in the day. She played the mother who wanted to come back and take her child back with Wayne Brady. It’s full circle because I’m going back to Broadway to do Moulin Rouge with Wayne Brady!”

While Kevin Hill only lasted a season, the friendship with Good withstood the show, making it easy to develop chemistry with his on-screen love interest.

“The way the relationship was written and being single, it made me miss having a partner! She played the role so wonderfully. Very rarely will you find this in certain African American stories. This one highlights all of the positives in the relationship because of how it ends. I thought that was beautiful, and it reminded me how great certain healthy relationships could be.”

Diggs also remarks how strong Good’s character is, as she juggles being a cop with being a single mother. In one scene, Diggs’ Johnie says that she makes him feel like a man.

“Black women I’ve known in my life and the black woman in this piece can be very strong and they’ve had to be. They’ve had no choice but to be in certain situations. The mother and the father and the preacher and the nanny and the teacher. To be blessed enough to come in contact with a woman who knows when to let you lead but still be there and support you, that’s when I feel most masculine. The character empowers my character and that’s huge.”

Spoilers for Terry McMillan Presents Forever

Johnnie marries Carlie and stays dutifully by her side when she undergoes cancer treatment. However, on her first day back on the job as a cop, she gets shot by her daughter’s ex-boyfriend in a convenience store robbery. Johnnie discovers her body where she spelled out she loved her family in her own blood.

“Those are the times I hate acting. And thankfully, our director [Charles Murray] didn’t overshoot it, which is great. It was the best situation ever because they were so so quick. They spent time on the scenes that needed a little more time, but everyone knew that we needed to hit something hard and get off it. I can’t stand emotional scenes like that. I think it was two takes, and they got it, and I was so relieved. I’ve never played a scene like that in my life, and I didn’t know what was going to come out. I don’t remember what I did, but I had always heard of people reaching a place where they don’t even remember and that was one of those moments. I’m 54. There’s not a lot of stuff I haven’t experienced, but that was brand-new. As paintful as it was, I was excited to experience something new and different.”

At Carlie’s funeral, her ex-husband Lamar returns, wanting to take the children away. Johnnie puts a plan in place so Lamar can raise the girls in the house they grew up in, and he himself can help financially support their dreams of marriage and college.

When it comes to his perspective on acting, Diggs says he tries not to judge any of the characters.

“The first time I read [the ending], I was like, I don’t like this! I tried to take myself out of it. It goes to show when you truly love someone or something, you want to do what’s best for them. The girls being with their father, he didn’t want to take away that chance for a relationship. You have to be really empathetic and forgiving. I don’t know if I have that love to take myself out of a situation and think big picture, but that’s what Johnnie did. It was something I aspire to.”

The final scene shows Johnnie walking the eldest daughter Leslie (Leesie Pinto) down the aisle at her wedding. And while Johnnie still pines for his late wife, Diggs says he’d be interested in seeing where the story goes next.

“I want it to be a series! I fell in love with everyone of [the cast members]. I’m down for that.”

Terry McMillan Presents Forever is available on Lifetime.