Original subtitles

[gospel piano music]

[God] It's beautiful, isn't it?

But can you save it?

[unsettling music]

[Man] Hey.

What they got you in for?

Corey Carr. How do you plead?

[slow-motion low echo]

Objection, Your Highness!

This man is not an attorney.

-He's a clown. -I'm not a clown.

I'm an angel.

[indistinct]

[Man 2] Hey, don't look over here.

[slow-motion low echo] Don't look over here.

Don't look over here.

See, that's your problem.

You always over somebody's business.

Nosy, nosy, nosy.

Your charges, Corey.

Where do we start?

Start with his big head.

What he doin' with his head?

You can't get into heaven with a carry-on like that.

Ooh.

[demonic singing] ? Happy birthday to you ?

[wicked laughter]

[watch alarm beeping]

[sighs]

? Churchy ?

? I'm going to church today ?

? 'Cause I need Him ?

? Yeah, I need Him

? Churchy ?

[Bree] I think he looks great

for his big town hall speech today.

No, Bree.

Listen, I need you to keep it real with him, okay?

He needs to hear the truth before we spend

all this money on these clothes.

Okay, okay. Now, I have been tuning

into the livestreams of your service on Sundays.

-You have? Mm. -I have. Yes.

And I also have to admit...

-Say it, girl. -Okay.

You wear the same suit every weekend.

And over and over and over.

All right. I knew the devil was in them.

But you let the devil get in you?

That familiar spirit. See?

What?

See, I'm telling you, every big event in this man's life,

he wears that same JCPenney's preacher suit.

I'll have you know that Newsweek says it's a sign of genius

to wear a daily uniform.

See, that's the problem right there.

Getting your fashion advice from Newsweek

tells me all we need to know.

What are you proposing?

Hoo-hoo, I thought you'd never ask.

See, I'm thinking we go with something big.

You know, something bold.

Let the clothes make a statement before you say anything.

[Sharon] Now, I can get on board with that.

I agree. We need to make a statement.

You need to have a suit

that's, like, tailored and clean and distinguished.

You know?

I'm thinking like navy blue, right?

You know, it exudes dependability and maturity

and security and control of your emotions.

Girl, he trying to save the church from getting demo-ed.

Not beat a capital murder case.

Whatever. Corey, I'm sure you have an opinion.

-What say you? -Of course.

J.Bolin, houndstooth-

Thank you, Corey. Uh, Bree, thoughts?

Okay. I think that he should just wear

his heart on his sleeves,

go in there, and just speak his mind.

Okay? Ultimately, it's the man that makes the clothes.

Not the clothes that make the man.

-See? -Yuck.

And I thought we were on the same page, Bree.

-[Rodney] Yeah, uh, Sharon? -[Sharon] Yeah?

-We got Corey's sizes, right? -We sure do.

We'll be taking care of this.

[gospel organ sting]

Knock, knock.

-All packed, I see. -Yep.

[scoffs] I can't believe it.

It's not over yet.

Yes, it is.

I haven't seen you this down since Kamala started talking

about cooking greens in a bathtub.

Don't even get me started on that.

Soaking collard greens in a bathtub

like they had had a long day.

Yeah, well, in her defense, those greens had been toiling

in the hot sun all day.

[both laughing]

I don't know.

Stinney, I know how these city council meetings end.

They all end the same.

Heartbreak.

Not everything ends in heartbreak.

[gentle organ music]

Will I see you at the city hall this afternoon?

I'll think about it. I, I don't know.

Very well. I'll get out of your hair.

Everything's gonna be all right.

I believe in Corey.

You should, too.

-Oh! -Yes, sir.

That's my boy with the Rodney chain.

-All right. -I see you.

I trusted y'all.

Y'all got me looking like a Cheetah Girls manager.

What? No.

Corey, you look good.

You know what? You didn't even sound confident in that.

-[Sharon] I mean... -Come on, now.

Sharon, where's my regular suit?

[Sharon] Corey, trust me. This-

Sharon, where is my regular suit?

Fine, Corey. Here.

You don't gotta push me like that.

Big baby. Take them little cheap shoes.

[Corey] Thank you.

I told you.

It was worth a try.

Mmm. Hm-hm-hmm.

Wanna be a news anchor so bad.

-So bad. -Bro, you a preacher.

-Not a reporter. Ugh. -Thank you.

Stay in your lane.

-ABC 7 News. -Ugh.

-Look at you. -Don't ugh.

-This is a good suit. -Bro, it's blah.

Like, you need something that says, "I'm a winner."

This don't say that?

You need something that says, "Voila."

Ah! I got it. I have got it.

I'll be right back.

? I'll be right back ?

I'll be right back, I'll be right back.

Ah, ha, ha, ha! Yaas, honey, yaas!

They're not gonna be able to keep their eyes off you.

[Corey] Y'all sure about this?

-Absolutely. -Absolutely.

[funky music]

[Kenneth] Pastor Carr.

It is my understanding that your church is at risk

of being demolished first thing tomorrow morning.

Now, now, now Teddy here

arrived early to City Hall,

prepared, clearly laying out his plans

in favor of this rezoning,

showing myself and this council the requisite respect due.

And then there's you.

Now, it would seem to me that someone

with this much at risk would handle this situation

with the integrity of the severity

of the consequences at stake.

So I'm gonna ask you again for everybody in this room,

do you think these proceedings are a joke?

No.

I don't know what would give you that impression.

I am here to fight for my church.

That's it. That's all.

Well, come on, then. Let's go.

Now, why did y'all go and put that lace front on that boy?

Man, that was Sharon idea.

Uh-uh. Don't put that on me.

I ain't got nothing to do with that.

I kind of like it. I might get one for myself.

Mayor Wilson, Council-

Actually, if I may...

Pastor to pastor.

You gotta get those, don't you?

I'd like to remind you that this decision

offers Bethlehem Temple a new chapter.

It allows you and your church

to let go of your financial burdens

and move forward with dignity.

And in many ways,

this is a blessing in disguise for all of us.

As my dearest Aunt Jeannie used to say,

God rest her soul,

God's plans are bigger than our own.

Deep within my heart, I can feel God's fingertips on this plan.

Thank you.

Mm-mm-mm-mm-mm-mm-mm. Words of wisdom.

Thank you so much for that, Pastor Teddy.

And I'm sorry for your loss.

If we can do anything to help, you have our support.

I am right here.

Continue.

Mayor Wilson, Council,

Crystal. [keys clacking rapidly]

I want to talk about a nine-letter word

that sits at the center of why we're all here today.

Dead only has four letters, Pastor.

Webster's Dictionary defines community

as people living in a particular area with common interests.

Objection, Your Honor!

Calvin, this ain't court!

Oh, I know.

I just always wanted to do that. Where Corey at?

Whoo! [laughing hysterically]

[indistinct]

Hey, you want me to roast you now or later?

You see we're in the thing, man?

[clearing throat threateningly]

My apologies, Your Majesty.

Just one second, one second. Let me get my...

Hey, y'all, come over here.

Come on, grab a seat, grab a seat, come on.

What's...

[chanting] Bethlehem. Bethlehem.

[All] Bethlehem. Bethlehem.

-[Calvin] What? -[All] Bethlehem.

-Come on! -[All] Bethlehem.

All right, all right. Settle, settle.

You're in my tabernacle now.

-Come on, let's go. -My bad.

You know what?

Calvin's right.

Let's just address the elephant in the room.

Look at this.

I mean, come on, y'all. This ain't me.

This wig?

I let my friends convince me

that I needed to look like a winner.

And it reminded me of David and Goliath.

He about to blame that terrible wig

on the Bible, watch.

Saul thought David should wear hisarmor

because that's what hewould do.

But that armor wasn't made for David.

It didn't fit him.

Are we having a council meeting or a church service?

Well, the Bible says, "Where two or three are gathered-"

[speaking in tongues] You in the book, doc.

Amen.

All right, all right. English only in this proceeding.

Let's do it.

[Corey] So here's the thing.

When you're too busy trying to fit into someone else's mold,

it strips you of your purpose.

And before you know it,

you're so far off the path that God designed just for you.

And who would know this better than me?

Because when I first came to Lubbock,

all I wanted to do was prove my dad wrong.

I wanted to be a pastor of my own church

to show him who's boss.

What I thought I needed was to lead a church.

But what I truly needed was to be a part of thischurch.

I needed Mother Jean

to be strict and dedicated to excellence.

Yes, you did.

I needed Pastor Stinney to believe in me.

Amen.

I needed Rodney to have my back always.

You already know, bro.

I needed Calvin,

because being around Calvin taught me patience.

We gettin' on his nerves.

And I needed Bree because she saw the best in me.

And her seeing the best in me

allowed me to see the best in everyone.

And it don't hurt she fine in the mug.

-You see it? Huh? -Okay.

Bigger than manna. You see it?

Bow the ponytail. Do the ponytail.

Stay focused.

Okay, okay. Okay, that's my bad.

But she was fine. You know what I'm saying?

And Sharon. Shoot.

-Sharon, y'all. -Corey, really?

She will fight for you.

-She may fight you, too. -Huh, that's right.

[Corey] But she will fight for you,

and that helped me to fight for this church.

The church isn't something you achieve.

It's a community you build.

A community you're a part of.

Not some notch on your belt that you view

from your sacred perch atop the world.

All I want is a chance to show up for this church

the way they've shown up for me over the past year.

And the way they've shown up

for this entire community the last 50.

Jumpy Joyland was pitched to you as this blessing in disguise.

This flashy, profitable answer

to all of Lubbock's economic prayers.

-Because it is. -[Corey] At what cost?

The cost of community?

Jumpy Joyland's not a place that's gonna help

an inmate who feels like the world's given up on him.

Jumpy Joyland's not a place where two older lovers

can connect again.

Jumpy Joyland's not a place where children can go

and have fun during the day.

That's exactly what it is.

No, I mean, like, but could you leave your kids there,

like, for Vacation Bible School

during the day while you do something else?

You can leave them there depending on how old they are.

No-I mean, well, technically, yeah,

but, but, but waivers, though.

You gotta sign the waivers. You gotta sign the waivers.

Yeah.

A trampoline can't give an ex-con

his first big contract as an event planner,

Big Ray of Big Ray's Pest Control.

And tent rental.

Or find me the big brother I never knew I needed.

It's kind of weird, but it's almost like we're related.

-I feel the same way. -They're not related.

Nothing to see here.

Hey, that boy needs a father.

I need you to shut up.

He took my tent.

Uh, that was, um,

only to bring awareness to the community about serving

the unhoused population of Lubbock.

Unhoused?

I was housed before he took my tent.

Pastor Corey, he's a good man.

Oh, okay, okay.

Dare I ask, who are you people?

I am Bethlehem Temple.

I am Bethlehem Temple.

I am Bethlehem Temple.

Why are they standing up so slow?

I am Bethlehem Temple.

[Congregation] I am Bethlehem Temple.

I am annoyed!

Are we getting rid of Corey's church or not?

Whoa. You're at a 10. We need you at a two or three.

Thank you, Pastor Carr, for this overcooked after-school special.

Now, in the matter of the rezoning

of Bethlehem Temple,

I would ask the clerk to lead us to the vote

for the proposal of the 12-57 Amendment.

Is everybody done talking?

Jesus, I hope so.

Corey, you can have a seat. Just sit on down.

We move to vote

on the Amendment 12-57 for the proposed rezoning

of Bethlehem Temple from a religious to commercial use.

All those in favor, by show of hands, say aye.

-Aye. -[Crystal] Five ayes.

Man of his word. Well done.

The rezoning amendment has been adopted.

The Bethlehem Temple property

will be rezoned first thing 6:00 am tomorrow morning.

Ah. Not so fast.

By show of hands, how many of you have a personal story

where Pastor Carr has went out of his way to make your day

just a little bit brighter?

Hmm.

Excuse me.

Thank you, Crystal.

I have sat here today, and I have listened to both sides,

but I must admit that there is something that Pastor Corey

mentioned that struck me.

-I heard him say- -Now, I'm sorry now.

What is going on here? We done had the voting.

We done been to Bethlehem. The major got on the donkey

and rode all the way to the boat.

The voting is closed! What's going on?

Well, what's going on is you'll be back

to managing the Chili's where I found you

if you interrupt me again, Kenny.

Now, as I was saying,

I respect the council's swift decision-making process, okay?

But as our lovely clerk, Crystal,

has just confirmed for me,

we have overlooked some significant information.

Now, Pastor Corey, you said that Bethlehem Temple

has been here for 50 years.

Yes, Mayor.

And it was founded by Black residents of Lubbock.

Yes, Mayor. Yes, it was.

Well, then that would make Bethlehem Temple

a historical Black church, now wouldn't it, Kenny?

Well, technically,

the church would need to fill out the proper paperwork to-

Oh, isn't it funny how you overlooked that?

It's all right, though, because as mayor,

I have the authority to make that designation.

So effective immediately, Bethlehem Temple

is Lubbock's newest protected landmark.

That means no rezoning,

no demolition, and absolutely no Jumpy Joyland.

[excited screaming and cheering]

Oh, now you can go ahead and slam your gavel.

And I also believe that there is a generous amount

of grant money set aside to help preserve history

like this in our community.

And I want you to see to it that the necessary funds

are allocated to Pastor Corey's church immediately.

They can use the breathing room.

You'll be lucky if your name's on the ballot next election.

You've picked the wrong fight, Wilson.

You know, you see, that's the problem, Pastor Teddy.

You're so busy picking fights instead of just doing your job

serving the Lord.

But you know what?

I want you to have a good day today, okay?

But even if you can't have a good one,

don't you dare go messing up nobody else's, hear?

[cheering]

Oh, Teddy, you lose again.

You lose again. Aw.

Hey, you know what it is? It's big Corey Crooks

up in here.

-And it's Roddy Rod. -Make it quick, Roddy Rod.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Listen, Westside Ridge,

this for all my homeboys still locked down.

Big Otis, you know this is for you!

Yo, yo, yo, for my ex-girlfriend.

Hey, yo, you can come back to the church now

because we got a grant. We got money.

Oh, and we got brand-new church fans.

New communion.

-The MLK's out- -Communion.

Yeah, new communion plates.

And it's real alcohol this time.

You did it.

No, wedid it.

I gotta admit, I didn't think you had it in you.

Now, that's a weird way to say congratulations.

Corey, it's not that I doubted your heart.

It's just that Bethlehem Temple is not an easy ship to steer.

God knows you came in like a storm.

-[Stinney] Mm. Mm. -[Mother Jean] Didn't he?

A storm?

Corey, sometimes storms come to clear the air.

Wash away all of the things that have been holding you back.

But now I see that maybe that's what we needed.

Wow.

Oh, that feels good, Mother Jean.

That feels...

I'm gonna put that under my pillow tonight.

Go and celebrate with your little friend.

Pastor Carr.

-We did it. -I'm so proud of you.

-Thank you. -[both chuckling]

-[Corey] You ready? Let's do it. -I'm ready. Let's go.

We out here-

All right, thank you, guys. That's good.

All right.

...for my boy! He came from a hard life-

-All right! Move! -Okay, all right.

Oh, my God, you need to get saved.

Move to the right! All right.

Corey, you put on quite the show in there

and even got the W from Mayor Wilson.

Tell us, what was going through your mind?

I mean, it was nerve-wracking for sure,

but I just wanted to make sure that-

Wait a minute. What's that?

Is this something worth reporting?

-Seems like breaking news. -Maybe.

He still has to take me on that proper first date, though.

-Oh, no, you didn't, girl. -[Corey] No, she didn't.

Tell me more.

No, no, we ain't telling you nothing else.

You've been in my personal business

entirely too much this year.

-Just doing my job, Pastor. -Fair.

Come on, Lee, let's pack it up. We got some leads to catch.

Now, why would you put me on blast on live TV like that?

No, it's not like that. I just...

I got to keep you on your toes, Mr. Fresh Cut.

See, I knew I shouldn't have let them talk me into wearing this.

-No, I really like it, though. -No, you don't.

I do. I just wanna run

my fingers through it and sing Soul Glo to you.

It's going to come off if you do that.

-You like it for real? -I do. I like it.

Oh, I'm going to put hot glue on when I get home.

-All right, well, let's do it. -I'm going to keep it forever.

Well, no, listen, I'm really, really proud of you.

-Thank you. -Yeah.

Hm-hm-hmm! Y'all think y'all slick.

See, y'all been down at that diner getting nasty.

Okay.

Well, as the head of the church's PR-

Not the head of PR.

I am, and all future First Ladies must go through Roddy Rod

publicity training.

[Corey] Whoa, future First Ladies?

We holding hands for the first time!

[Rodney] That's how it starts.

If you're holding hands, you can get married.

? I'm going to church today 'cause I need Him ?

? Yeah, I need Him ?

? Let's head to the church today 'cause we need Him ?

? Churchy ?

[music]

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