Tyler Perry has been accused of sexual harassment, workplace gender violence and sexual assault in a lawsuit from an actor who said the media mogul used his influence and power to create a “coercive, sexually exploitative dynamic”.
In the suit filed in Los Angeles last week and first reported on Tuesday, Derek Dixon, who worked on Tyler Perry’s shows Ruthless and The Oval, said Perry promised career advancement but subjected him to “escalating sexual harassment, assault and battery”.
Dixon alleges he was subjected to harassment and abuse by Perry while he “held direct control over his employment, compensation, and creative opportunities” and that he faced retaliation when he did not respond favorably to his advances.
Perry, the billionaire star of the Madea film series, is one of the most powerful figures in Hollywood with his own massive film and TV studios in Atlanta and a partnership with the Oprah Winfrey Network. Major studios frequently film movies on his lot.
He has denied the allegations and his lawyer described it as a “shakedown”.
“This is an individual who got close to Tyler Perry for what now appears to be nothing more than setting up a scam,” Matthew Boyd, Perry’s attorney, said in a statement to media. “But Tyler will not be shaken down and we are confident these fabricated claims of harassment will fail.”
The lawsuit alleges that Perry has “a troubling pattern of exploiting vulnerable male actors and employees” and that like “Harvey Weinstein, Bill Cosby, R. Kelly, Sean “P-Diddy” Combs… Mr. Perry’s success has led him to believe that money and influence can get him whatever he wants.”
“Tyler Perry has been using his power and influence to molest, abuse, and sexually assault impressionable and vulnerable employees and actors who look to him for guidance and mentorship,” the lawsuit states.
Credit: THEGUARDIAN