There were the “#OscarsSoWhite” protest and the complaints over the years that the Academy Awards’ lack of diversity is a problem in Hollywood. Entertainers have spoken openly about how they believe the Academy has snubbed actors, filmmakers, and movies considered to be “of color,” but if you ask Tyler Perry about the controversy, he’ll let you know that he doesn’t want any part of it as he minds his business in the ATL.

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The studio head caught up with CBS This Morning last week to chat about his recently released Netflix thriller A Fall From Grace. He praised the streaming platform for their diverse staff who met with him when they negotiated the film’s release, but when questioned about the Oscars, he didn’t care to get involved.

“I think that Jennifer Lopez should have been recognized. I think that Awkwafina should have been recognized, absolutely,” he said. “But I don’t have an opinion of it either way. Whereas I said before, build your own table so that you don’t have to keep asking someone to sit at theirs. I think that the Academy has tried to invite more people of color into the voting process.”

With his hands up in the air as a sign of retreat, Perry added, “I’m down in Atlanta doing my own thing. I don’t even want to focus on it. God bless ’em. I wanna let it go and I want to encourage everybody else to be owners, entrepreneurs that take the bull by the horns, become more producers, writers, and direct themselves.” Check out his clip below.

At the beginning of the month, Tyler Perry tweeted out a video showing off the tall stacks of scripts he has lined up for 2020. While he was trying to prove his impressive "work ethic", many harshly replied with a reminder that quantity does not equate to quality. This incident ended up being a foreshadowing of the response to his new Netflix movie, A Fall From Grace, as was the movie's title.  

Perry's dedication to being super prolific has at times been at the expense of his work. He bragged about shooting A Fall From Grace in just five days and that admission is now coming back to haunt him because the thriller is filled with slip-ups. Twitter is picking apart Perry's first Netflix feature - which stars Cicely Tyson and Phylicia Rashad - for inconsistent shots, wonky wigs and glaring plot-holes. After this dragging, hopefully Perry will take some more time when bringing to life the slew of scripts he has in the stash. He just built a $250 million studio in Atlanta, so the quality should match the budget, no?

Amid the rollout for his new flick, Perry responded to another criticism that his movies have received - that they exploit black women. You can see the critiques of A Fall From Grace below, though. 

Tyler Perry is a famed film director who achieved a great milestone last year when he opened a film lot in Atlanta dubbed the Tyler Perry Studios. The 300-acres property was built by slaves and was formerly a Confederate army base but now serves as a home for Black films to be made with 12 soundstages named after great Black successors. Denzel Washington, Oprah Winfrey, Halle Berry, Sydney Poitier, Della Reese, Spike Lee, Harry Belafonte, Cicely Tyson, Whoopi Goldberg, Diahann Carroll, and Will Smith all have a lot named after them.

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Tyler made his Netflix debut today (January 17th) when his film A Fall From Grace hit the platform and during his red carpet appearance he discussed past remarks made about his movies and denied exploiting women. “I’m always trying to send a message that you don’t have to deal with this s–t,” Tyler said, detailing how the usual plotline is a reflection of the abuse his mother suffered by his father.

He added: “It’s not about making money off of a woman’s pain — it is about telling a story. And I wish that people, especially black women, would get off the fact of saying, ‘Oh, he’s making money off of black women.’”