Tyler Perry says he won’t get married: ‘It’s not the marriage that bothers me, it’s the divorce’

While promoting “Why Did I Get Married Again?,” Perry reflected on why he no longer sees marriage as part of his future.

Tyler Perry has spent much of his career putting marriage, relationships and the complications of love at the center of his stories. But the filmmaker says watching those stories play out on screen may have helped convince him that marriage is not for him.

Perry, 57, recently opened up about his decision while promoting “Why Did I Get Married Again?,” the third installment in his “Why Did I Get Married?” franchise. The new film reunites the original characters for a destination wedding in Italy, where old secrets and relationship challenges resurface.

In an interview with “Today,” Perry acknowledged that his perspective on marriage has changed since he made the original 2007 film.

“When I wrote the first one, I thought, ‘You know, marriage might be a good idea at some point,’” Perry said, according to Parade.

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That thinking, however, has changed with age.

“But at this age, that’s not a good idea for me,” Perry continued. “So, no, there won’t be any marriage for me.”

When asked whether he had essentially scared himself out of marriage by watching his own movies, Perry had a simple response: “By watching my own movie.”

The filmmaker also offered another explanation during an interview with Jennifer Hudson, saying his concern isn’t necessarily marriage itself but what could happen if the marriage ends.

“It’s not the marriage that bothers me, it’s the divorce,” Perry said.

He explained that he has watched people he knows lose significant wealth following divorces.

“Everybody that I know, that did well, and went broke, it was because of a divorce,” he said. “So, I’m good just being free.”

Perry’s comments come as his latest film revisits many of the same relationship questions that have defined the franchise. “Why Did I Get Married Again?” stars Perry alongside Janet Jackson, Jill Scott, Tasha Smith, Michael Jai White, Richard T. Jones, Sharon Leal and Lamman Rucker.

Despite his decision to remain unmarried, Perry has experienced long-term relationships and is the father of one son, Aman, whom he shares with model and filmmaker Gelila Bekele. The couple dated for years before separating in 2020 and continue to co-parent.

And, true to form, Perry may already have another story in mind.

He joked that he could make a movie called “Why Did I Never Get Married.”

For now, though, Perry appears comfortable leaving that particular question unanswered in real life.