Renée Lawless-Orsini (born November 30, 1960) is an American actress and singer. She is best known for starring as the bitter and distant matriarch, Katheryn Cryer, in the

Oprah Winfrey Network Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN) is an American multinational basic cable channel jointly owned by Warner Bros. Discovery and Harpo Studios that launched on January 1, 2011, replacing the Discovery Health Channel. The network is led by talk show h ...

prime time soap opera '' The Haves and the Have Nots''.

Life and career

Lawless was born in Knoxville, Tennessee, and moved with her family to Jacksonville in at age 19 and graduated from Sandalwood High School, Stetson University, and University of Cincinnati – College-Conservatory of Music. She began singing in church and school plays and later in regional theater. As of the mid 1990s she appeared primarily in stage productions, like national touring of '' Beauty and the Beast'', and '' Wicked'' for five years. In 2013, Lawless began starring as Katheryn Cryer in the

prime time soap opera '' The Haves and the Have Nots''.

Filmography

Film

Television

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Lawless, Renee Living people 1960 births American musical theatre actresses American stage actresses American television actresses American soap opera actresses Musicians from Knoxville, Tennessee Actors from Knoxville, Tennessee Actresses from Atlanta Stetson University alumni University of Cincinnati – College-Conservatory of Music alumni 21st-century American women