Actor, writer, director Tyler Perry to move to Puerto Rico
Will look to slow down,
recalibrate in 2027
By THE STAR STAFF
Tyler Perry, long rooted in Atlanta and synonymous with the entertainment empire he built there, says he is preparing for a dramatic shift in his life and work. Fresh off his 57th birthday, the filmmaker revealed that he plans to relocate to Puerto Rico, a move he describes as both intentional and overdue.
In a recent televised conversation with TODAY, Perry said the decision came as he began reassessing his priorities.
“Yes, I am officially -- you’re the first to hear this -- I am officially moving to Puerto Rico,” he said. “No, this is real.”
He said he expects to make the transition in early 2027.
For Perry, the move is less about geography and more about pace. After decades of nonstop production -- more than two dozen feature films, 17 television series, and a studio complex that reshaped Atlanta’s creative landscape -- he says it’s time to slow down.
“Oh, getting older,” he said. “It’s time to slow down a little bit, enjoy more time with my son, and just take it all in.”
His son Aman, now 11, is central to the shift. Perry has spoken openly about how fatherhood has helped him confront and heal from childhood trauma, a theme explored in the 2023 documentary “Maxine’s Baby: The Tyler Perry Story,” co‑directed by Aman’s mother, Gelila Bekele. In one scene, an 8‑year‑old Aman asks his father why he works so hard. Perry answers gently: “Because I want you to have a really good future and I want us to have a really good life.” When Aman tells him, “You’re my hero,” Perry replies, “Aw, you’re my hero. I love you.”
Perry and Bekele ended their long relationship in 2020, but he has continued to praise her as an “incredible mother.” He has also remained protective of Aman’s privacy. “My son’s not famous,” he told AARP. “I want him to have as normal a life as he can.”
Before he packs up for Puerto Rico, Perry is still working at full speed. His latest film, “Why Did I Get Married Again?,” began streaming on Netflix on Sept. 9, completing a trilogy he started in 2007. The project, he said, helped him reach clarity about his own life stage.
“When I wrote the first one I thought, ‘You know, marriage might be a good idea at some point,’” he said. “But at this age, I’m like, ‘No, that’s not a good idea for me.’”
What awaits him in Puerto Rico, he suggests, is not retirement but recalibration -- a slower rhythm, more time with his son, and a chance to live differently than the man who spent decades building an empire.
“I’m pulling back a whole lot,” he said.
The island, with its warmth, pace, and distance from the machinery of Hollywood, appears to be the place where he intends to do it.
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