Tyler Perry says marriage is not for him at 57, so he won’t marry, that he hasn’t dated in 30 years, and he is moving to Puerto Rico

The filmmaker made the remarks during a TODAY interview promoting the third installment of his Why Did I Get Married franchise

Tyler Perry said on TODAY with Jenna & Sheinelle that marriage is not a good idea for him at his age. The interview clip shows Perry in a dark jacket and glasses seated across from correspondent Justin Sylvester. He said there will be no marriage for him. When Sylvester joked about announcing that on a first date, Perry said he has not been on a date in 30 years and could not tell you what was said on the first one.

The interview is part of the press cycle for Why Did I Get Married Again?, the third film in the franchise Perry created about married couples. The movie was released on Netflix on September 9, 2026. Meanwhile, Perry’s interview clip has gained hundreds of thousands of views.

What Perry Said About Marriage and Dating

Perry’s delivery was conversational. He smiled and used hand gestures. His tone was measured and matter-of-fact rather than defensive. Sylvester’s questions were light and probing. The exchange was framed as wry red-carpet banter, not a prepared statement.

He did not attack marriage as an institution for others. Instead, he presented his choice as practical and self-protective. He said that when he wrote the first Why Did I Get Married film he thought marriage might be a good idea at some point. Watching the stories of the characters — ugly starts, fights, and hard-won peace — contributed to his current view.

A concurrent appearance on The Jennifer Hudson Show produced a different justification. Asked about marriage in light of his films, Perry said, “Nope.” He said it is not the marriage that bothers him. It is the divorce. He said everybody he knows who did well and then went broke did so because of a divorce. He said he is good just being free. Those remarks were widely reported alongside the TODAY clip.

Questions About Tyler Perry’s Baby Mama Arose

The claim that he has not been on a date in 30 years drew immediate scrutiny. Perry’s longest public relationship was with Gelila Bekele. They reportedly met at a Prince concert in 2007 and began dating around 2009. Their son, Aman Tyler Perry, was born November 30, 2014. The relationship ended in 2020.

A literal reading of 30 years from 2026 would place the last date around 1996. That is well before the Bekele relationship. It is also before the birth of his son. Regardless, since their split Perry and Bekele have remained close friends and committed co-parents. They appeared together at public events. The numerical claim does not align with that record.

Perry has previously discussed delaying personal relationships while building his career. In a 2019 interview he said that for 10 or maybe 15 years he got lost in the madness of his career, did not date, and did not want kids until he felt financially comfortable. Earlier comments include that he was not sure what kind of husband he would be given his work ethic, but that he knew he would be a great father.

Revisiting the Why Did I Get Married? Franchise

Why Did I Get Married Again? reunites characters now in their 50s. The cast includes Perry, Richard T. Jones, Taraji P. Henson, Sharon Leal, Tasha Smith, Michael Jai White, and Lamman Rucker. The first film was released in 2007 and the sequel followed in 2010. The franchise follows a group of couples who reconvene to examine their marriages.

Perry has made other projects that examine divorce and relationships in Black communities. The press tour placed him in the position of promoting stories about marriage while stating he would not enter one. So, that contrast is not new. Already, his bachelor status and post-breakup projects appeared to be an aversion to the institution of marriage.

In the same TODAY interview, Perry announced he is moving to Puerto Rico at the beginning of 2027 and pulling back on work. He attributed the decision to getting older and said it is time to slow down and enjoy more time with his son. He discussed raising his 11-year-old with an emphasis on chores and responsibility. The marriage comments sit inside this larger narrative of scaling back and prioritizing time with his son.

X Dissects the Timeline Tyler Perry Laid Out

On X, the post by @laflame_xq reached 320,000 views, several hundred likes. In addition, it received dozens of reposts and dozens of replies. Meanwhile, parallel clip accounts posted longer versions with captions emphasizing that watching his own movie scared him out of marriage.

A large share of replies treated the 30-year claim as incompatible with having an 11-year-old son and a documented his long relationship with his son’s mother. Users asked how a relationship and a child occur without dating. Others posted photos of Perry with Bekele. That line of response was among the most repeated.

There were another group of people who treated the comments as evidence related to sexuality rumors. So, those posts stated that he should come out or that the marriage refusal is a cover. Then, there were those who pushed back that refusing marriage does not determine orientation and that straight men also decline marriage for financial or personal reasons. These threads often mixed the dating claim with older Madea jokes.

Finally, there was a group focused on professional consistency. One widely engaged post argued that heading the conversation on Black relationship dynamics without participating in dating or marriage is itself noteworthy. Others asked why a person in that position writing scripts about marriage is problematic. Humor appeared in shortened recaps and in the interviewer’s first-date joke being repeated.

The Psychology Behind the Decision

The statements place a highly visible Black filmmaker whose catalog repeatedly stages marriage, infidelity, reconciliation, and divorce in the position of declining the institution for himself. His personal refusal invites comparison between the values depicted in the work and the choices of the author. So, that comparison is not new. However, his recent comments make the contrast more explicit because they coincide with a new installment and with an announced life change.

The financial argument reflects a documented pattern among high-net-worth individuals who treat marriage as a legal and economic contract with downside risk. Perry’s version is anecdotal rather than statistical. He does not propose policy change. He describes a personal risk calculation and a preference for remaining free. At 57, with an established studio and a child whose upbringing he describes as grounded in chores and limited entitlement, the choice is presented as late-life prioritization of autonomy and fatherhood.

The 30-year claim, if taken at face value, conflicts with the publicly reported timeline of a multi-year relationship and the birth of a child. Possible interpretations include hyperbole or a narrow definition of date as distinct from a long-term partnership. The discrepancy itself became part of how the clip was received. Combined with longstanding rumors and pending lawsuits, the remarks feed existing public narratives about privacy, sexuality, and power in his career. Those narratives are not resolved by the interviews.

Final Thoughts

When taking a look at the collectiveness of Tyler Perry, he’s accomplished quite a lot with quite a little. Simply the fact that Why Did I Get Married? is a franchise is something that was viewed as impossible two decades ago. Instead of giving into impossibilities, Tyler Perry created several franchises, with Why Did I Get Married? being among the fan favorites.

Through this franchise, the world got to see Janet Jackson and Jill Scott in starring dramatic roles. In addition, these films laid the groundwork for the likes of Lamman Rucker and Taraji P. Henson becoming household names. Along the way, the success of these films also cast a larger spotlight on Tyler Perry. To his credit, he hasn’t run from this when he’s had ample opportunity over the span of 20 years to do so.

Knowing he’d face further scrutiny, Tyler Perry explained on TODAY why he’s not getting married and elaborated that he is moving to Puerto Rico early next year.

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