With Halloween just over a week away, here’s a really frightening thought: Tyler Perry has had conversations with both DC and Marvel about directing a superhero movie. The relief is that Perry actually has no interest in the idea. It’s natural that the big franchises would seek to capture some of Perry’s appeal. His films, most famously the ‘Madea’ comedies in which Perry plays a tough granny, are made with shoestring budgets but make millions. And Perry is a true self-made man, serving as director, producer, writer and actor (in multiple roles) in his productions.
But even though his films make many times more than they cost to produce, they are critically loathed. Last year at this time, ‘Boo! A Madea Halloween’ made $73.2M on a budget of $20M, despite a 20% rotten rating on Rotten Tomatoes. This past weekend, the sequel, ‘Boo 2! A Madea Halloween’ made $23.5M on a $20M budget, with an even worse 8% rotten rating.
So from that stance, it makes sense that Marvel and DC might see him as a strong collaborator, but it turns out, that’s not Perry’s style:
“I’ve had a couple conversations, but I would always say, ‘I’m not the guy to do this’. I’m not the guy that can bring this vision to life cause it takes such a village to pull it together, and I’m not a guy that can work with fifty other directors and producers telling you what to do, how to do it, when to do it. That doesn’t work for me. I saw that in a couple of the sci-fi movies that I’ve been apart of and I think, ‘Uhh, I’m not doing that’.”
Perry has ventured into the realm of big budget films, but as an actor, usually in smaller roles. He may be best remembered for his small role as Admiral Richard Barnett in J.J. Abrams’ first ‘Star Trek’ (left). He also portrayed Baxter Stockman in 2016’s ‘Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows’. In a non-genre role, he appeared as attorney Tanner Bolt in David Fincher’s ‘Gone Girl’. Rob Cohen attempted to launch an action franchise with Perry in the lead as ‘Alex Cross’ based on the best selling James Patterson novels, but the film was a disappointment and no sequels emerged.
Perry is a money-making machine, so it makes sense that Marvel and DC might want to tap into that, but the films he has directed have universally been trashed by critics. His hit comedies may appeal to his fans and make lots of money but they are somewhat slapstick-y and give no indication that he’d be right for an action film, even one with comedic moments. Unless he’s pratfalling in a fat suit in drag, there’s no real indication that just any film he directs would be a huge hit just because his name is attached. And I for one don’t really want to see Madea squeezed into a Black Widow catsuit.
Are you a fan of Perry’s films? Would you like to see him take a stab at a super flick?
Source: Screen Rant
