Tyler Perry’s Lawyer Calls Sexual Assaul Lawsuit a “Money Grab”

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Another actor has accused Tyler Perry of sexual misconduct.

Actor Mario Rodriguez, known for his role in the 2016 movie Boo! A Madea Halloween, is suing filmmaker Tyler Perry for $77 million. Court documents obtained by People magazine claim Perry made unwanted sexual advances towards Rodriguez between 2016 and 2019.

The lawsuit claims Rodriguez turned down Perry’s advances and decided to take legal action after Derek Dixon, an actor from The Oval, filed a sexual harassment lawsuit against the entertainment executive in June.

Just like Perry’s lawyer, Matthew Boyd, who said his client wouldn’t give in to demands, Alex Spiro, representing Perry, described Rodriguez’s lawsuit as another effort by Dixon’s lawyer to get a payout.

After a recent unsuccessful case involving Mr. Perry, Spiro stated to Deadline that the same lawyer is now pursuing another old claim, which he believes will also be unsuccessful and simply an attempt to get money.

TopMob News contacted Spiro and his attorney, Jonathan Delshad—who is representing both Rodriguez and Dixon—for a statement, but they haven’t responded yet.

Delshad explained to People magazine that even though the legal case filed by Dixon has been transferred from a Los Angeles court to a federal court in Georgia – where Perry’s studio is based – the claims made in the lawsuit are still active and haven’t been dismissed.

According to People, Rodriguez claims a gym trainer connected him with Tyler Perry in 2014. Perry then suggested he try out for Boo! A Madea Halloween, one of the many Madea films Perry wrote, directed, and starred in as the character Madea.

According to the lawsuit, after Rodriguez was hired, Perry invited him to his home, where he allegedly made unwanted sexual contact with Rodriguez while they were watching a film. This was the first of several alleged incidents of sexual misconduct described in the complaint. The lawsuit also claims Perry gave Rodriguez $5,000 following two of these alleged incidents, apologized, and asked him to leave.

According to the lawsuit, their last meeting in April 2019 demonstrated that Mr. Perry would act however he pleased, disregarding boundaries and repeated rejection.

Actor Raymond Dixon, who starred in Tyler Perry’s BET series The Oval from 2021 to 2025 after appearing in two episodes of its spin-off Ruthless, filed a lawsuit in June claiming Perry made unwanted advances and inappropriate comments about his sexual orientation. Dixon alleged Perry groped him multiple times and offered him work in exchange for silence.

According to a lawsuit obtained by TopMob News, in January 2020, Dixon stayed overnight at Perry’s home in Georgia after they had been drinking. The lawsuit claims Perry then went into Dixon’s bed and touched him. After Dixon sent texts about the incident, Perry allegedly offered him a role on his show, The Oval.

Dixon is seeking $260 million in punitive damages.

According to court documents obtained by TopMob News, the lawsuit claims Dixon repeatedly told Perry he wasn’t interested in a sexual relationship to discourage him, while also trying not to offend someone who had significant control over his career.

According to Perry’s lawyer, Boyd, Dixon attempted to befriend Perry, seemingly to set up a fraudulent scheme. Boyd stated that Perry wouldn’t give in to the demands and they believed the harassment accusations were false and wouldn’t hold up in court.

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2025-12-28 01:24