Tyler Perry Halts Studio Expansion After Discovering “Game-Changing” AI

Tyler Perry halted plans for studio expansion after seeing AI’s “game-changing” capabilities. During an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Perry disclosed how he and his production crews wouldn’t have to travel for work. With OpenAI’s new Sora model, Perry and his team could build images simply using text prompts. 

“Being told that it can do all of these things is one thing, but actually seeing the capabilities, it was mind-blowing,” he told the outlet. The Louisiana native put the $800 million expansion of his Atlanta studio “indefinitely on hold” after seeing the technology in action. However, his excitement came with a bit of pause. Perry is worried that Sora and other iterations of the tech could potentially put a lot of crew hands out “of jobs.” 

“I had gotten word over the last year or so that this was coming, but I had no idea until I saw recently the demonstrations of what it’s able to do. It’s shocking to me,” Perry expressed. “I no longer would have to travel to locations. If I wanted to be in the snow in Colorado, it’s text. If I wanted to write a scene on the moon, it’s text, and this AI can generate it like nothing.”

“If you could spend a fraction of the cost to do a pilot that would’ve cost $15 [million], $20 million or even $35 million if you’re looking at HBO, of course the bottom line of those companies would be to go the route of lesser costs,” he added. “So I am very, very concerned that in the near future, a lot of jobs are going to be lost. I really, really feel that very strongly.

Tyler Perry then offered an industry-wide lens to the AI discussion. The Mea Culpa director detailed how he and his peers are on their toes attempting to keep up with AI’s arrival. Perry then asserted that government intervention could help smoothen the bumpy road ahead. 

“I feel like everybody in the industry is running a hundred miles an hour to try and catch up, to try and put in guardrails and to try and put in safety belts to keep livelihoods afloat,” he said. 

“I think we’re all trying to find the answers as we go, and it’s changing every day—and it’s not just our industry, but it’s every industry that AI will be affecting, from accountants to architects. If you look at it across the world, how it’s changing so quickly, I’m hoping that there’s a whole government approach to help everyone be able to sustain.”

Elsewhere, Tyler Perry’s movie, Mea Culpa, released to Netflix on Friday (Feb. 23). The film stars Kelly Rowland and Trevante Rhodes (who would make an excellent Kang variant) in a new thriller from the mega-producer. 

Mea Culpa’s logline describes the story of a criminal defense attorney who takes on the case of an artist who may or may not have murdered his girlfriend in his quest to become partner.