Tyler Perry, the media mogul, has joined the list of Celebrity Billionaires, with a net worth of $1 billion. The highly decorated African American actor, producer, director, and writer has an estimated net worth that runs into seven digits, according to the business magazine. His Madea franchise alone netted him $660 million. As a result, he was named to Forbes’ Billionaire List.
Tyler Perry has directed 30 films, 20 plays, and 8 television series during the course of his career. With this success, the actor was able to rise from poverty to become a multi-billionaire. According to Forbes, he owns a 330-acre property called Tyler Perry Studios, which is valued at $280 million and receives 25% of its revenue from BET+’s streaming services. He also owns TV programs and films worth $320 million.
Tyler Perry is a role model for people who aspire to be self-made billionaires. To be able to create his business, he has put in a lot of effort. He did not inherit his money because he grew up poor and worked hard for everything he has. All of his possessions are the consequence of his efforts.
Begin small.
Emmitt Perry Jr. was born to Emmitt Perry Sr. and Willie Maxine Perry in New Orleans, Louisiana, and has three siblings. His carpenter father had abused him since he was a child. He attempted suicide in his youth to escape the pain and torture he was experiencing. His mother, on the other hand, values and loves him, and takes him to church every week, where he feels at ease and secure.
Climbing Out of His Hole
To disassociate himself from his abusive father, he legally changed his name from Emmitt to Tyler when he was 16 years old. His mother swears that he is the son of Emmitt Perry Sr., but he has always suspected that the father he grew up with is not his true father. He ultimately underwent a DNA test with his brother shortly after his mother died in 2009, and the findings proved that they did not have the same father. Later, he did a test with Perry Sr., and it was determined that he is unrelated to him. He is still looking for his biological father to this day.
Perry went on to expose more of his childhood traumas. He said that three men molested him after gaining courage from the film Precious, and that he was molested again by the mother of his friend when he was ten years old; it was later revealed that his father had also molested his friend. He began writing to relieve his miseries and discovered that he had a talent for art. Writing stories became therapeutic for him, and he eventually decided to pursue a profession in this industry.
Perry dropped out of high school but obtained his GED and began doing odd jobs to supplement his income. He used to work at the Windsor Court Hotel, which hosts the annual meeting of the National Association of Television Program Executives. Using discarded badges from the guests, he gained admission to the event. He was able to meet Pat Sajak, the Wheel of Fortune host, during this occasion.
He used to sell automobiles and even work as a bill collector to supplement his odd jobs and save money for his debut play. He could ultimately create and perform his first play, I Know I’ve Been Changed, in the late 1990s with $12,000 on hand. The drama is based on a child’s horrific experiences. Even though the play was a hit, life is still difficult for him; he was homeless and lived in his car at the time. He began there and continued until he gained a large following, which led to the publication of his first film, Diary of a Mad Black Woman, in 2005. The film became a sensation, earning him more than $50 million.
Arriving at His Big Break
Fortunately for Perry, Oprah Winfrey was able to see one of the film’s touring performances in Los Angeles, sparking a lovely friendship and subsequently a business alliance. The film affected Oprah, and she was determined to see Perry, so she invited him to appear on her show in 2011. Perry was able to maximize the profitability of his initiatives with the help of Winfrey, resulting in $100 million in ticket sales, $30 million in videotaped performances, and $20 million in merchandise sales. Soon after this triumph, he began launching enterprises left and right. He subsequently assumed control of all of his ventures, making him a billionaire.