Coming out this week is another hilarious film from writer-director-producer Tyler Perry, 'Tyler Perry's A Madea Christmas,' starring Perry, Kathy Najimy, Chad Michael Murray, Anna Maria Horsford, Tika Sumpter, Eric Lively, JR Lemon, Alicia Witt, Lisa Whelchel, and Larry the Cable Guy.Madea gets coaxed into helping a friend pay her daughter a surprise visit in the country for Christmas, but the biggest surprise is what they'll find when they arrive. As the small, rural town prepares for its annual Christmas Carnival, new secrets are revealed and old relationships are tested while Madea dishes her own brand of Christmas Spirit to all.
This marks the eighth time Perry has played Madea on the big screen. His last Madea film, 2012′s 'Madea's Witness Protection,' brought in over $65M, making it his second highest grossing film behind 2009′s 'Madea Goes to Jail,' which tallied a little over $90M.
Besides what he does in the film world, Perry is also enjoying success on TV with his 'The Haves and Have Nots' and 'For Better or Worse' sitcoms bringing in record ratings for Oprah Winfrey's OWN Network.
Blackfilm.com recently spoke with Perry exclusively on 'A Madea Christmas,' his upcoming film with director David Fincher, and the success of his TV shows, and his thoughts on Black cinema in 2013.
This was different from the stage play. What was the process in writing a different story?
Tyler Perry: Often times, they're different from the stage play because the characters have the opportunity to go to different worlds. The stage play was about a maid who works for a rich family and Madea shows up. I had just written "The Haves and Have Nots" about a maid and a rich family so I decided to go in a different direction.
Well, the cast is mixed, which you did recently in "Witness Protection" as well as in "The Family That Preys." Can you talk about bringing in Anna Maria Horseford and Larry the Cable Guy?
TP: I just wanted a different cast and when Kathy Najimy and Larry the Cable Guy said yes to it that was all I needed and they are so hysterical, man. Having Anna Maria is just a great mix of the old and the new, the diversity, it's all really wonderful, so I'm super excited about it.
Having a holiday film is almost easy for Madea, because when she's in the red and white costume, it already makes people crack up. How easy was it to do this particular film?
TP: Once the story came to me it's really simple; it's all about diving in and doing it. Since I've been doing a lot more television than film I had the opportunity to do it. I've been wanting to do it for awhile but the timing was never right. Everything lined up for the time to be right.
Source: Black Film | Wilson Morales
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