Oprah Winfrey will be producing a new television drama called "Greenleaf," which is based on the lives of the family of a megachurch pastor in Memphis, Tennessee.

"Lost" alum Craig Wright, who also produced "Dirty Sexy Money" and "Tyrant," will be writing the scripts for the show's 13 episodes, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

"To tell this potentially explosive story with Oprah, a partner who has as much respect and affection for the church as I do, whose entire body of work is infused with what I would call a faith-based humanism, is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, a blessing, even," said Wright.

"When I first read the script, I instantly felt an affinity for the characters and loved Craig's creative vision for a fictional drama on an epic scale," added Winfrey. "This show is going to be a fun ride and will hopefully have viewers on the edge of their pews week after week."

The show will centre on the lives of the members of the Greenleaf family whose head is in charge of the Memphis megachurch with predominantly African-American members. They might be considered as the community's pillars of religious righteousness, but they still struggle with greed, adultery, sibling rivalry, conflicting values, and many other sins.

The series has been described as a "multi-generational matrix of deception that involves the church's founding family and extends to its congregation, prominent members of the Memphis community and beyond. Yet, amid the mayhem and deception, the power of something greater persists, calling everyone to conscience for their sins."

It will be the Oprah Winfrey Network's (OWN) second original scripted series that is not written by Tyler Perry, who is the brains behind other OWN shows such as "The Haves and the Have Nots," "If Loving You Is Wrong," "Love Thy Neighbor," and "For Better or Worse."