Tyler Perry with The Family That Preys stars Taraji P. Henson and Sanaa Lathan.
At this point it’s fair to say that Tyler Perry, whose new film The Family That Preys is now in theaters, is no longer an enigma.
Since making the transition from successful playwright to filmmaker in 2005 with Diary of a Mad Black Woman, Perry has had a string of critically panned but financially successful films, many based on his popular stage plays.
And they’ve all made money. Three of his first five films including Diary, Madea’s Family Reunion and Why Did I Get Married? won their opening weekends, each raking in more than $20 million. His other two films, Meet the Browns and Daddy’s Little Girls, opened at No. 2 and No. 5 respectively. All of these films cost under $20 million to make and the returns have been massive.
But even with those numbers, his record-shattering TBS sitcom "House of Payne" and lucrative new deals with Lions Gate to do at least three more films and another TBS series based on Meet the Browns, many Hollywood insiders are still baffled by Perry’s success.
So why has he been so successful?
"He’s simply serving an underserved audience," says Reuben Cannon, Perry’s producing partner at Tyler Perry Studios in Atlanta. "The thing he cares most about is his audience and they know that. That’s why they support him. He’s giving them what they want. He’s giving them these portraits of themselves or people they know that they’ve never seen on screen before."
All of that makes sense, but conventional Hollywood wisdom suggests that there’s no market for films chronicling the urban experience—especially ones with strong, positive messages about the power of forgiveness, or those featuring a tall black man in drag. But Perry’s alter ego Madea, a cantankerous busybody, resonates with Perry’s core audience and has helped make Perry a very wealthy man.
"The Tyler Perry brand is a brand that represents and means family, it means forgiveness, it means God, it means hope," says Perry, who has written, produced, starred in and occasionally directed all of his films. "Whenever anyone has come to see a play or come to see a movie, these are the things that they know they are buying. For this particular brand I’m very clear of the box it has to stay in and who created the box for me to play in."
Consider this: The films Perry has made without Madea—Married and Little Girls have made less money than the ones that include her. And even though critics tend to favor the films that she’s not in, Perry will resurrect the beloved matriarch in all of her outrageous splendor in his next film Madea Goes to Jail (February '09).
"I think it is genius actually," says Blair Underwood, one of the stars of Family Reunion. "He’s caught lightning in a bottle and created a character that people respond to en masse."
Another key to Perry’s success is that he doesn’t play by the rules. His operation is based in Atlanta, where he recently built a 70,000-square foot studio. He rarely screens his films for critics, often puts up his own money for his projects, owns 100 percent of his product and never compromises his vision.
"The great thing about Tyler is that he wasn’t reared in Hollywood," Cannon says. "Therefore, his dreams and his thoughts about what is possible are non-conventional."
With The Family That Preys, Perry is slightly deviating from the themes of his previous films, and it’s his first film with white protagonists. Starring Alfre Woodard, Kathy Bates, Sanaa Lathan, Rockmond Dunbar, Cole Hauser, Robin Givens and Perry, Preys focuses on universal issues that can cause dissension between families and friends. This could prove to be a risky move, particularly if the film doesn’t resonate with the Perry faithful who are looking for the same sort of redemptive message he always conveys. Perry, however, sees it as an extension of his brand.
"There’s the silliness of movies like Browns and Madea, but then there’s another side of me that likes to do things like Married, Daddy’s Little Girls and now this," said Perry. "There are just so many different sides of me as a man and a person. I just want to tell different stories."
Inarguably, there has never been a more powerful mogul of color in Hollywood. That’s why Lionsgate production chief Michael Paseomek says extending Perry’s deal with the Santa Monica-based studio was a no-brainer. "He is one of the most original, prolific and successful creative voices in the entertainment world today," Paseomek said. "The Tyler Perry franchise is a unique global phenomenon."
They feel the same way over at TBS. "House of Payne," which is now in syndication, has consistently shattered ratings records for the cable network. Perry actually financed the first 10 episodes himself and TBS responded with an unprecedented order for 100 shows. It’s been win-win for all. "The reach it has to the African American audience –we’re getting to people who hadn’t been tuning into the network as regularly as before," said Ken Schwab, TBS/TNT vice-president of programming. "On Labor Day in the afternoon, one of the episodes did almost 1.4 million, 18-49 (demographic). Those are big numbers in cable, but this was a daytime encore!"
Despite Perry’s Midas touch, it’s still difficult for other minority filmmakers who want to create similar fare to find new opportunities, which tend to come and go in waves.
"It’s his time right now, but the problem is that the industry sees it as a specific success story," said Gina Prince-Bythewood, director of The Secret Life of Bees. "It does not transcend to making more black films."
There’s no denying, however, that Perry is providing more opportunities for black actors. He helped Oscar nominee Cicely Tyson resurrect her career, broadened the appeal of Kimberly Elise, provided Keke Palmer with a nice career boost, gave actors such as Boris Kodjoe and Shemar Moore the opportunity to play leading men and made Tasha Smith a star. "What I love about working with him is that he’s always looking for an opportunity to make you shine,' said Smith, who appeared in Little Girls and Married. "He’s always got your back. He knows how to use his talent. He puts his money where his passions and his dreams are. For him it’s not about what the critics say or getting an Oscar. He wants people to be touched by what he’s creating."
And now, the prolific New Orleans native who was once homeless will allow others to tell their stories under his banner. Perry’s 34th Street Films, a subsidiary of Tyler Perry Studios, is currently accepting scripts and proposals from emerging filmmakers. "It will give them an opportunity to stay true to their vision and achieve their dreams," Perry said. "I’ve been very blessed and I want to share that. I know that this is what I'm supposed to do. Thank God it's been received well and they’ve all done extremely well. But if people don’t receive it, it will still be OK because there was no one giving me notes, nobody telling me what to change. It all came through me."
Miki Turner is an award-winning writer and producer in Los Angeles who has written for various publications and websites including MSNBC.com, Ebony, Essence, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Orange County Register and the Chicago Tribune. She can be reached at devodiva1@aol.com.
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