Leanne Morgan turned late-blooming sitcom stardom into a joyride, but the pressure behind LEANNE nearly sent her packing.
“I just feel His presence in everything. I know He’s with me,” the comedian and actress said on THE WOMEN OF JOY SHOW while describing how faith steadied her through the first season.
Morgan opened up in a new hourlong interview released Tuesday, two days before Season 2 of LEANNE premieres Thursday, Aug. 27, on Netflix. The streamer’s official trailer promises more family upheaval, changing roles and the sharp sisterly banter that anchored the show’s first run.
Netflix describes LEANNE as the story of a Southern woman who starts over with her family’s support after her husband leaves her for someone else. Morgan stars as the title character and co-created the comedy with television producers Susan McMartin and Chuck Lorre.
The first season gave Morgan a dream she had chased for decades, but it also handed her a brand-new job with very real stakes. She told THE WOMEN OF JOY SHOW that she had never taken acting classes, felt responsible when 250 crew members thanked her for the work and sometimes wondered whether she should return to stand-up comedy.
“I really relied on my faith and would pray, you know, ‘God, get me through this.’ I mean, and He did,” Morgan said.
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She also worried that the show might miss her voice or speak badly about Christians. Netflix treated her well, she said, but the weight of protecting what mattered to her still followed her onto the set.
“I just had to rely on the Lord and know that He had me there. There’s a reason for me to be there,” Morgan said.
When the host asked how viewers could pray for her ahead of the new season, Morgan grew emotional. She said she wants God to shine through her work and hopes to leave her grandchildren a legacy they can proudly carry.
“When I look back at all the no’s and the door shut on me, that was His protection over me and my children,” she said.
Morgan’s patience has become part of her appeal. Netflix’s Tudum noted that her 2023 special, I’M EVERY WOMAN, ranked among the platform’s Top 10 comedy specials before the 16-episode first season of LEANNE arrived in 2025.
Her success came after more than 25 years of building an audience from comedy clubs to theaters, according to her official biography. Morgan now calls the timing — at 60 and as a grandmother — the time of her life, but she refuses to let the career become her foundation.
Morgan said she would remain grounded even if the opportunities stopped tomorrow.
“I’ve got the Lord and I’ve got my family,” she said.
The unexpected success has also given Morgan a chance to give back. She said she bought calculators for students in grades six through 12 at the rural Tennessee school she attended, a practical gift for children whose needs can be easy to overlook.
“That has been a joy for me,” Morgan said.
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