What Do Tyler Perry, Jerry Bruckheimer, Steven Spielberg, Elton John And Simon Cowell Have In Common? $$$

COMMENTS (19)

• Elton John & Steven Spielberg have made many people happy with the music & movies they have created. The other 3 just make crap, granted it’s good looking crap that many sheep buy. Hence why they are here in the first place.

  Comment by dee-dee — Monday September 12, 2011 @ 5:10pm PDT  Reply to this post

  • Apparently the others have made and continue to make people “happy” with THEIR products, too. And their success makes it ABUNDANTLY CLEAR that they DON’T need YOU to be one of the many they make “happy.”

    Comment by CAM Jr — Monday September 12, 2011 @ 5:44pm PDT  Reply to this post

  • So you’re saying Jerry Bruckheimer has just made crap? Hahaha im sorry, but that’s just stupid.

    Comment by maze — Monday September 12, 2011 @ 5:57pm PDT  Reply to this post

• Elton? What’d he do?

  Thanks.

  Comment by N — Monday September 12, 2011 @ 5:12pm PDT  Reply to this post

• Well, it’s official: tyler perry is a PLAYA. (and I am sure the Playa Haters are going to come out in full force!) I have to confess that I am not the biggest fan of his work, per se, but if celluloid hacks such as Michael Bay can make gads of money with transforming metal scrap heaps and jive-talking robots, then Perry can do his thing as well. For at the end of the day, $$$ is what makes Hollywood go round.

  Right?

  I just hope and pray that Perry DIVERSIFIES and hires people to do the kind of work that makes his movie studio artistically great — in addition to being a cash cow. His ascendancy to power broker has been nothing short of meteoric, inspiring and amazing.

  Comment by bobby the saint — Monday September 12, 2011 @ 6:07pm PDT  Reply to this post

  • So true. I’m not a Perry fan (I’ve never even seen his work– the trailers are bad enough to keep me away) but I still have respect for the man. The way people on this site absolutely hate that man is funny to me. They can not tolerate him for some very strange reason, and the fact that he makes crap doesn’t account for the level of vitriol directed at him. I’ve seen more warmth directed at The Situation than this cross dressing black man who has won the hearts of a whole section of the population heretofore neglected by Hollywood.

    But hey, I’m sure it’s nothing to do with race.

    But I agree with you… I hope he uses his powers for good.

    Comment by monique — Monday September 12, 2011 @ 7:53pm PDT  Reply to this post

    • I’m sick of folks bringing out the race card. I’m a black man who can’t stand TP’s work. Is that racist? No. It just means I don’t like his work. When you put your work out there, you have to prepare yourself for the fact that some will love it, while others will hate it. Nothing wrong with that. It comes with the territory.

      Comment by Chad — Tuesday September 13, 2011 @ 12:31am PDT  Reply to this post

    • Here’s my perspective on why people “hate” Tyler Perry (the term “hate,” by the way, is overused, terribly reductive and should be used sparingly): over the last few years, Perry has been the ONE black writer/director who has had his work widely distributed. It is therefore endlessly irritating to many—including black folks like me—that our ONE guy produces consistently mediocre work. By all objective film criteria (story structure, character development, use of subtext, camera placement, etc.) Perry’s films are low quality and don’t appear to be getting any better. THAT’S what people hate.

      Moreover, he appears tone deaf to ALL criticism, even that which is constructive. He’s surrounded by enablers who don’t have the spine to tell him that his ideas aren’t always great (the block party/wedding reception at the end of “I Can Do Bad All By Myself” is an excellent example. According to the extras on the DVD, he pulled that idea out of his ass and his team scrambled to make it happen. Did anyone ask if it best served the story?). Imagine an athlete who didn’t improve with each season and made the same mistakes over and over again. Would you support such an athlete simply because he or she was making a lot of money?

      I’ve never heard Perry discuss his film influences. He appears to have an affinity for Cicely Tyson & Sidney Poitier, but who are his favorite filmmakers? Whose work has influenced his own? I’m confident that Perry couldn’t answer those questions because he’s not a film-lover. Instead, he’s using film to work through his personal traumas and to promote his Jesus-heals-all-problems worldview. (It reminds me of Spike Lee’s criticism of Matty Rich, “He don’t love cinema.”)

      Perry’s made a lot of money. Good for him. Bravo.

      Perry will be a footnote in film history because his contribution to the industry and the art form will ultimately be judged second-rate at best.

      Comment by Marie — Tuesday September 13, 2011 @ 8:50am PDT  Reply to this post

      • Couldn’t have said it better myself. I’m a black man who LOVES quality cinema…and it pains me to see talented black filmmakers get minimal support at all to churn out good material, yet Tyler Perry seems only intent on enriching himself without giving a hoot about the quality of his films..I agree with Spike Lee when he says that Perry’s buffoonery onscreen is nothing but a step backwards for all black people in the business…

        Comment by Anonymous — Wednesday September 14, 2011 @ 6:16am PDT  Reply to this post

• Tgese Forbes figures are impressive but also amount to guestimates based on reported deals and a meager amount of confirmed background details. No way did TP actually outgross Spielberg, who has equity in everything he has touched in the last 30 years. Doesn’t he even have a piece of the Universal backlot/theme park revs?

  Comment by INterested Observer — Monday September 12, 2011 @ 8:10pm PDT  Reply to this post

  • You’re absolutely right. Forbes must just be counting what they made on current projects or something like that, which is asinine. I’m sure Perry’s doing well, more power to him. But Spielberg has boasted that he doesn’t take a salary on his films, instead he gets backend. So I can’t imagine his backend on all his blockbusters is less than what Perry has made in however many few years he’s been in the biz.

    And really, Perry’s TV outgrossed Bruckheimer’s TV and his films? Just doesn’t make a whole lot of sense.

    Comment by NFW — Monday September 12, 2011 @ 8:55pm PDT  Reply to this post

• It’s just a disgusting amount of money for an individual to have. Hasn’t Spielberg been making a 100 million dollars per year for the past 20 years?

  Hopefully they use it wisely: take care of their obligations to friends/family and give the rest back to their employees and community.

  Why are you laughing at me?

  Comment by Mr Greed — Monday September 12, 2011 @ 9:30pm PDT  Reply to this post

• Who knew you would make so much money with such mediocrity?

  Comment by DPB — Monday September 12, 2011 @ 10:07pm PDT  Reply to this post

• Perry’s ascendency is crazy. More than anything, he is obviously savvy. That said, you would have to pay a lot of people in order to convince them to see his fare.
  He has a monopoly over a portion of the population which he has exploited brilliantly.

  I can name 30+ Bruckheimer and Spielberg projects each, but can only name 3-4 Perry projects.
  Well done.

  Comment by Sam — Monday September 12, 2011 @ 11:54pm PDT  Reply to this post

  • SAM, I suspect you can name 30+ Bruckheimer & Spielberg projects and “only” 3-4 Perry projects because you look MUCH MORE like Bruckheimer & Spielberg than you do Perry. And, if there’s ONE thing I know for sure, it’s that “some” people in this country simply AREN’T INTERESTED in watching ANYBODY on screen who doesn’t look like THEM. Now, feel free to scurry to your next SPRAY TAN appointment.

    Comment by CAM Jr — Wednesday September 14, 2011 @ 1:24am PDT  Reply to this post

• I have to admit, I would have thought

  Comment by John — Tuesday September 13, 2011 @ 1:23am PDT  Reply to this post

• You gotta give Tyler Perry his due respect. The man came from absolute nothing ad is an industry of his own. I’m not the biggest fan of his movies, but they are funny at times and his last one showed some real style. Honestly, I think his bio is a must read for every up and coming film director and even established ones as well. $130 million in one year, ask Spike Lee if he’s ever seen even 1/20th ofthat the next time you see him teaching film 101 over at NYU.

  Comment by dapeople — Tuesday September 13, 2011 @ 2:50am PDT  Reply to this post

  • I think Spike Lee would rather leave this world with the film’s HE’S done over the CRAP that Tyler Perry has done. I know I’d rather leave this world watching Spike Lee’s thought-provoking films than Tyler Perry’s “Amos ‘N Andy’s” re-enactments.

    Comment by Leroy Jenkins — Wednesday September 14, 2011 @ 2:12pm PDT  Reply to this post

• All the power to him for making money, but Tyler Perry’s work without a doubt brings us back to the Amos ‘N Andy days. As a minority and as a watcher/worker of Television production, it’s clear that his reinforcement of minority stereotypes brings us back, instead of forward. He makes money off of the public’s “want” for more standard African American television. But word for word, if you watch his stuff, you just pick up the ignorance that has backtracked minority humor since the idiot box was invented.

  I wish he was more creative with all of that money.

  Comment by Leroy Jenkins — Wednesday September 14, 2011 @ 2:09pm PDT  Reply to this post