Tyler Perry’s belief in ownership has really paid off. The entertainment mogul has been added to the billionaires list by Forbes.
The magazine reported that he allegedly collected “more than $1.4 billion in pretax income since 2005.”
“Ownership changes everything,” he told Forbes. “I own the lights. I own the sets. So that’s where the difference is. Because I own everything, my returns are higher.”
The writer, director and producer has also doubled down on his investments since the beginning of his career even when it meant neglecting his personal finances.
“I love when people say you come from ‘humble beginnings,’ ” he said. “[It] means you were poor as hell.”
Perry used the wealth he acquired to build a stronger empire. He paid $30 million for the property where his studio sits in Atlanta, and invested $250 million into developing it into a full-blown studio, featuring several sets and sound booths.
And, as we all know, his studio is of historic importance since he’s the first Black person in the United States to own an independent film studio.
Perry credited his cluelessness about the entertainment industry with contributing to his success.
“The ignorance I had about Hollywood was so wonderful, looking back on it,” he said. “I mostly go on my gut and my instinct. I like to challenge the system and see what I can do differently.”
It seems different does a wallet good.