It is impossible to talk about the African American film industry without mentioning Tyler Perry. Perry is a multi-faceted actor, director, producer, and actor; and he recently got a new studio and production company.
As an African American, it is a great leap to own and control a media house. Having influence over how your story is told is quite powerful. And Tyler Perry has used this to launch the careers of countless black actors.
Tyler Perry recently revealed that he writes all his shows himself. He also boasted of his work ethic, of him finishing eight TV series in one year. 2020 is going to be a busy year for black actors.
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So why would I hate Tyler Perry movies? Am I just a hater and a mad black woman or do I have some valid points? Stick around and we’ll touch on this a little.
Why I Hate Tyler Perry Movies
1. Depiction of black people
Blackness is not synonymous with adversity but Tyler Perry seems to constantly draw parallels between the two. There’s always someone going through something terrible that their lighter-coloured counterparts cannot relate too.
And while hardship is a part of life and racial differences do exist, Tyler Perry’s plotlines are often far-removed from the realities of black people today.
2. Hatred of women
Speaking of hardship, Tyler Perry really loves to pile it up on black women. It’s either illness or domestic violence or drug abuse. Or if she steps out of line, the consequences for her are always far more fatal.
This is most likely because a majority of his fans are church-goers and the church has not been known to historically favour women.
So when a woman does something wrong, she receives divine retribution, whereas male counterparts repent or get a slap on the wrist.
There is also this harmful portrayal of black women as exceptional pillars of strength. And while it seems flattering on the outside, it is just an excuse to dehumanize them and pile on more pain.
As someone who centres black women in the majority of his stories, Tyler Perry tells their stories so carelessly and haphazardly, like an ignorant stranger from the outside looking in; which in reality he is.
3. Playing on stereotypes
Tyler Perry is a traitor to black people. He portrays them in a horrendous racist light. Not all black men are deadbeats or cheaters or have drug problems. Not all black women are angry or loud or ratchet or self-sacrificing.
He uses the same archetypes of underdeveloped characters in all his movies because he knows people would rather dumb their brains and buy into that mess than see black people as the wildly diverse and complex individuals that they are.
4. Not funny
Let’s quit pretending we love to see a black man dress up as a caricature of a black woman and drop unfunny one-liners for 2 hours on end. Madea movies are not funny.
Maybe they were funny the first or second time around. But why not cast a funny woman instead of reinforcing the stereotypes of black women being manly and loud?
5. Exclusion of black writers
I understand how big a deal it is for a black person to own and control an entire production company. But why make a table if you’re the only one sitting there?
Tyler Perry writing all his shows himself is a good explanation for why his movies are recycled. The storylines are weak and he writes only from his own perspective. Is it not weird how he has a show called “Sistas” with no black women contributing to the creative process?
This is short-sighted and egotistical. But seeing as he clearly puts quantity over quality, he doesn’t seem to mind much. Not getting the opinions of others before putting out a story is how repetitions and plot holes happen.
6. Quantity over quality
Tyler Perry is the ‘fast fashion’ of Hollywood, spewing out the same poorly-written stories and only shuffling actors and settings around. As a writer myself, I know for a fact that if you can write all that work in one year, you’re definitely writing hot garbage.
Does he do it out of greed? Most likely yes. Is it because he’s controlling? Yes. Could it also be as a result of his obsession with being self-made in the most literal sense of the phrase? Also yes.
It is clear that Tyler Perry has not matured in his art or even grown an inch since he surfaced in the industry. It’s astonishing how he doesn’t realize that a fresh perspective could be all he needs to actually tell a worthwhile story and send a message.
But this seems to be profitable, so he won’t change a thing. It is quite a disappointment.
Tyler Perry is a stunted by-product of hustle culture, narcissism, and individualistic capitalism. It is sad at best and disturbing at worst.
