Is Tyler Perry a Christian? Inside the Entertainment Mogul’s Religious Background

Fans of Tyler Perry are well-versed in his work in both television and film throughout the last 20 years. However, they may be less informed about the details of his personal life, such as his religious background. Following a recent social media post, many are now taking a closer look at his Christianity. Let’s dive in.

,Although he has spoken about his faith multiple times in the past, Tyler Perry’s post on X, formerly known as Twitter, where he shared that he “grew up in the AME church” where his aunt and uncle were pastors, has brought about renewed interest in his religious background.

In short, yes, the Hollywood mogul is a Christian. This is something that he spoke at length about when he made a prior guest appearance at Joel Osteen’s Lakewood Church.

“I was running from poverty, and failure wasn’t an option,” Tyler said of his journey to eventual success. “I knew there was something higher for me, and I had to go with everything I had. “I had to risk everything, I had to put everything on the line.”

He went on to stress the importance of faith in his life, and how it can be consistently found in his work. “In order to get into the studio you’ve got to drive through the gates,” Tyler said of the structure of his movie and television studio. “And to go through the gates you’ve got to pass through the arms and the handle.”

“Buried under that, when you’re going in and coming out, is the open word of God,” he continued. “I’ve buried the Bible at the gates of the studio. So you can’t come in without crossing the Word and you can’t leave out without crossing the Word.”

In 2014, Tyler announced that he was expecting his first child with ex-girlfriend Gelila Bekele out of wedlock, leading some of his Christian fans to label him a hypocrite.

"I have to admit that I am disappointed in you, not that you care, you don't even know me and probably never will, but if you're speaking all this religious stuff then you should be doing the religious stuff,” one fan wrote on social media at the time, per the Christian Post.

"You know, the greatest gift that I'm being given right now is the opportunity to give the little boy in me everything I never had,” Tyler said after announcing the baby news. “So that's what I'm so excited about.”

“This beautiful human being that God has allowed to come into my life, for me to get to know, because they come in their own personalities and who they are, and just shepherd and usher him into whatever the child is supposed to be is what, I'm gonna do," he added.