before the premiere of his latest work jazz blues at Toronto International Film Festival , Tyler Perry sits down for extensive conversation about the long road to making a costume drama And his hopes for diversity in the entertainment industry.
“I’m very excited about what’s going on. Diversity, choice, opportunity,” Perry said in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter in a conversation with editorial director Nekesa Mumbi Moody. “But I’m concerned because I’m finding that in this situation, the push for diversity and hiring people of color is so great that some [who] can be pushed into seats they’re not ready for.”
Perry highlights the need for training and mentoring to create sustainable diversity in Hollywood. “I don’t want to put us as black people in seats that we’re not ready for and then have non-black people get out of those seats and say, ‘Look what a terrible job they’re doing.’ Along the way, we also provide time and training to make sure we can do well.”
Jazzman logo With Perry’s first film premiere at the Toronto Film Festival. As a period drama, it’s a deviation for the filmmakers who made their name in bold comedies like the Madea movies. 1235209940
This movie is about Bayou, a young black man from Louisiana 1940 who Having achieved success as a jazz singer but rekindled a childhood romance with him, he is now a married woman and becomes white, ultimately pitting him against the racist leadership of a small southern town.
Perry talks about the difficulty of casting, he came out to Hollywood’s rising star only to get the actor to turn down the movie because he was poor, Perry The movie was well received. “There’s a generation of people who grew up on Madea movies and loved them, but got a little older and they thought: ‘This is vulgar,'” Perry said.
(The phone starts ringing in the audience, at which point Perry slips into his Madea character and says, “Whose phone is that? Whose phone is ringing? “The character won a big round of applause. He smiled and said, “I’m trying to talk about jazz and take a class.”)
Perry continued: “In that frustration, I thought, ‘Wait a minute, they’ve never seen you do something like this.’ I don’t know if they thought Madea would jump out of the tree. “Perry did star in newcomers Joshua Boone and Solea Pfeiffer.
When asked if he had considered relinquishing the reins of Jazzman , Perry asserted, “Never. Not The Jazz Player . Not this movie because I cling to it like a kid.” 1235209940
Netflix is behind Jazzman , who worked with the director on the last Madea movie A Madea Homecoming . “I do think the franchise has room to grow and become huge in streaming,” Perry noted. As for what’s next, he joked that it would be “Madea going to Toronto.”
Perry pointed out that it was just as important to him to make the jazz people , “The audience It’s just as important in itself” was by my side, and they were satisfied. “I would never deny or leave the audience that brought me here,” he said. ”
Jazz Blues coming to Netflix in September 23.
