Tyler Perry, an entertainment mogul who frequently incorporates Christian themes into his films and TV shows, has been sued for $260 million by an actor accusing him of sexual assault. Perry, who has long professed to be a Christian, has denied the allegations, with his lawyer describing them as a “scam” that is motivated by money.
For background, Tyler Perry has been a mainstay in the film and TV industry since the early 2000s and has a reported net worth of $1.4 billion. The actor, who has been outspoken about his faith, was accused on June 18, 2025, by actor Derek Dixon of sexually assaulting him while Dixon was working as an actor in two of Perry’s TV shows, The Oval and Ruthless.
Furthermore, according to press accounts, Dixon claims that he met Perry in 2019 at an Atlanta, Georgia, event, and that the entertainment Titan began making sexual comments and comments about wanting to have a sexual relationship with Dixon. According to the lawsuit, Dixon rejected Perry’s advances.
Moreover, in his legal complaint against Perry, Dixon reportedly described the pair’s professional relationship as containing “a sustained pattern of workplace sexual harassment, assault, and retaliation perpetrated by Tyler Perry” and is suing the filmmaker for alleged quid pro quo sexual harassment, work environment harassment, and more.”
In addition, as reported by ABC News, the lawsuit accuses Perry of promising Dixon “career advancement and creative opportunities” in exchange for a relationship. However, Dixon claims that Perry subjected him to “escalating sexual harassment, assault and battery, and professional retaliation when Mr. Dixon did not reciprocate Mr. Perry’s unwanted advances.”
The lawsuit also claims that when Dixon tried to ignore calls and texts from Perry, the filmmaker became increasingly aggressive “until finally Perry offered Dixon a part in a new show called ‘The Oval.'” In addition, Dixon explained that he “put up” with Perry’s behavior, as he “immediately understood that his job security depended on his ‘relationship’ with Perry.”
In response to the accusations, Matthew Boyd, an attorney for Perry and his production company, said of Dixon, “This is an individual who got close to Tyler Perry for what now appears to be nothing more than setting up a scam. But Tyler will not be shaken down, and we are confident these fabricated claims of harassment will fail.”
Furthermore, after Dixon’s lawsuit was made public, a video of actor Christian Keyes accusing a “powerful man” in Hollywood of sexually harassing him reportedly resurfaced, leading many to speculate that Keyes was referring to Perry. Keyes described his experience with the unnamed man as follows: “You get a grown-a– man that knows you’re heterosexual and you’re sleeping off Hennessey in his guest room, because he says it’s safe…I’m five full Hennesseys down and not short Hennesseys either. And this dude tries to climb in the bed with you, so you spaz out, push him out,”
Watch coverage of the accusations against Perry:
Featured image credit: screengrab from the embedded video