Tyler Perry Went From Being Poor And Homeless To Becoming Hollywood’s Latest Billionaire

Tyler Perry was once poor and homeless, living on the streets of Atlanta, Georgia, but is now one of Hollywood’s most powerful filmmakers, writers, producers and even actors.

Forbes magazine, known for keeping track of celebrities’ net worth, announced on Tuesday that Tyler Perry is officially a billionaire.

The details of his success are written about in a long-form article entitled From “Poor As Hell” to Billionaire: How Tyler Perry Changed Show Business Forever.

According to Forbes, the 50-year-old filmmaker has earned in excess of $1.4 billion since 2005. “I love when people say you come from ‘humble beginnings,’ ” he said to the outlet. “It means you were poor as hell.”

The Magazine broke down Perry’s wealth with a graph showing $300 million resides in investments and cash, $60 million comes from his stake in BET, $280 million comes from the value of his studio lot, and $40 million resides in his homes and personal material assets, or “toys” as the publication refers to them.

The largest source of Perry’s wealth comes from his library of film and TV media rights, which the publication values at $320 million.

From “poor as hell” to billionaire: Here's how Tyler Perry changed show business forever https://t.co/9ZIe370Lq6 by @MadelinePBerg pic.twitter.com/dzgb4C7EHh

— Forbes (@Forbes) September 1, 2020

Forbes estimates Perry has earned more than $1.4 billion in pretax income since 2005, which he used to buy homes in Atlanta, New York, Los Angeles and Jackson Hole, Wyoming, as well as 2 planes pic.twitter.com/F2Di8Xiavi

— Forbes (@Forbes) September 1, 2020

The mogul joins a group of Black billionaires that includes Robert F. Smith, Michael Jordan, Oprah Winfrey, David Stewart, Jay-Z and perhaps Kanye West.

KanyiDaily recalls that Kanye West officially achieved his billionaire status four months ago, making him the second rapper to do so after Jay-Z.