The Oscars To Honor Tyler Perry With Humanitarian Award
This is Tyler Perry’s season as he continues to flourish in his career. The 51-year-old filmmaker is set to be recognized by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the governing body of the Academy Awards, during the 2021 ceremony on April 25th.
Perry will receive an honorary statuette, the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award for his philanthropic and charitable work at this year’s Oscars. His humanitarian work includes efforts to get the entertainment industry safely back to work during the coronavirus pandemic, the Academy announced Thursday.
“Tyler’s cultural influence extends far beyond his work as a filmmaker,” Academy President David Rubin said in a statement to Variety.
“He has quietly and steadily focused on humanitarian and social justice causes from the beginning of his career, caring for people who are most often ignored.”
The entertainment mogul set up a self-contained, 330-acre (133-hectare) production “campus” at a Civil War-era Confederate military base in Atlanta, Georgia. This has ensured that the hundreds of employed individuals could work and stay while Covid-19 shut down productions in Los Angeles and elsewhere.
Perry has also spearheaded greater diversity in Hollywood, produced dozens of films and TV shows starring mainly African American actors, and last year paid funeral costs for victims of police violence including George Floyd.
The producer, actor, writer, and director first achieved mainstream US success with his outspoken grandmother character Madea in the 2005 movie Diary of a Mad Black Woman. Since then he’s found success with the Madea franchise as well as several films under the Tyler Perry brand.
In September 2020, Perry was honored at television’s Emmys with the Governor’s Award.
The Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award has been handed out by the Academy for most years since 1957, and previous winners include Angelina Jolie, Oprah Winfrey, and Elizabeth Taylor.
Other Stories You May Be Interested In:
- Bow Wow Receives Backlash For Performing At Packed Club Amid COVID-19 Pandemic
- Mattel Honours Maya Angelou With a Barbie Doll
