Source: Emma McIntyre / Getty
Tyler Perry may be one of the most powerful men in Hollywood, but when it comes to his almost 5-year-old son, the media juggernaught is simply “dad.”
During an interview with the hosts of “The Real,” the Madea creator opened up about the first time he had to discipline his son. It ended up being an emotional moment for the 50-year-old, who explained he has to father his son, without ever having been fathered himself.
“He was really rude to the nanny, and he was in the bathroom arguing, and Gelila calls me and I go in. I get down to his level and I’m talking to him eye-to-eye and I’m like, ‘Listen, what are you doing? We don’t behave this way. You don’t do this. This is unacceptable. You’re not going to disrespect her. You’re not going to disrespect your mom. You’re going to do what I say to do. And do you understand that? And he’s just crying and crying, ‘Yes Papa, yes Papa.’ And as he’s crying, and I’m down on his level, I’m trying to hold my tears. I get up and I leave out of the room, and Gelila goes, ‘You okay?’ Because nobody talked to me as a five-year-old like that,” Perry recalled.
Continuing, “Nobody had a conversation with me. Nobody talked to me like a person. Here I am having the opportunity to heal my little boy self, by talking to my son like a person.”
Earlier in the conversation, Tamera asked if his son knows that his dad is Tyler Perry, and if he would want his son to go into acting.
“I’m encouraging him to be who he is. He’s so creative. He loves music. He loves to play. But he just loves me. And the thing about it is, he doesn’t care about who I am.”
Adding, “He centers everything. He makes everything stop for me.”
Beautiful to see fatherhood be so healing for Perry. You can watch more below.
