Billionaire filmmaker and actor Tyler Perry has ruled out marriage, saying his biggest concern is not the institution itself but the financial consequences that can come with divorce.
The 57-year-old made the revelation during an appearance on The Jennifer Hudson Show, where he was asked whether marriage was something he could see himself pursuing.
His response was direct: “Nope.”
Perry, however, explained that his position was shaped by what he has witnessed happen to people who built significant wealth only to lose much of it following divorce.
“It’s not the marriage that bothers me. It’s the divorce,” he said, explaining that several financially successful people he knows ended up losing their fortunes after their marriages broke down.
“For me, I’m good just being free,” he added.
His comments are particularly striking given that marriage and romantic relationships have featured prominently throughout his career. Perry wrote and directed the popular Why Did I Get Married? in 2007, followed by Why Did I Get Married Too? in 2010, with the latest instalment, Why Did I Get Married Again?, now streaming on Netflix.
Perry has also built a vast entertainment empire around his creative work, with much of his wealth linked to ownership of his intellectual property and production ventures.
He owns Tyler Perry Studios in Atlanta and has maintained ownership of a significant portion of his film, television and stage catalogue. Forbes has estimated his fortune at about $1.4 billion.
For Perry, that financial independence appears to be one of the reasons he is choosing to remain unmarried, despite the irony of having built a career telling stories about love, marriage, family and relationships.
