If you’ve been missing good ol’ Madea, fret no more. Returning in a brand-new Halloween themed movie entitled Boo! A Madea Halloween, fans of the pistol toting Grandma will get their fill and you have Chris Rock to thank for it
Speaking in Los Angeles Tuesday night Perry, who currently has numerous other projects in production and in development (not to mention the opening of a new movie studio lot in Atlanta), appeared to have no interest in doing another Madea movie until Rock pitched a way to make the elderly, gun-toting, cussing Granny fresh and interesting. Not to mention he came with the backing of a studio.
When I got the call from Lionsgate saying, ‘Tyler, have you ever thought about a Halloween movie?’ I was like, ‘There’s no way.’ I don’t do Halloween — witches, demons… I don’t do that kind of thing. But one day I was watching YouTube videos of people getting pranked, and I thought, ‘Oh, I found a way to do it.’ And that’s how it all evolved for me.
Along with a new, prank drive format upgrade, Perry sought out actors who may be familiar to audiences on the web but are entirely new to the big screen. Joining Madea for the just under two hour ride are YouTube stars Diamond White, Yousef Erakat, Liza Koshy and “Mr. Man Bun” Brock O’Hurn to blow a breath of fresh air into the long celebrated franchise.
“It’s so much fun and for new fans, it’s a younger, hipper, sleeker movie,” said Perry at the film’s L.A. premiere on Monday, where he was joined on the red carpet by Oprah Winfrey.
“I researched people on YouTube and other social media influencers I thought were great actors, and if given the right opportunity, could expand into other platforms.”
Will this Halloween be the end of the Madea? Only time will tell so in the meantime, enjoy the ride while you can and duck when she pulls out her pistol.
“Boo! A Madea Halloween” opens in theaters on Friday, Oct. 21.
