Huffington Magazine Issue 5 | Page 33

Voices Perry’s signature character Mable Simmons, better known as Madea — cue urban colloquialisms, race-based humor and predictable culture-clashes. While the picture brought in $25 million for its opening weekend and resurrected Perry’s legion of loyal fans, it also drew what have quickly become the typical Perry critiques — he’s an amateur, he lacks cinematic skill and is reinforcing racial stereotypes. Critics and Spike Lee rants aside, there’s no denying Perry’s innate ability to appeal to his audience or garner a hefty return on investment (the filmmaker is notorious for creating films on a shoestring budget with profits often doubling production costs). But when looking at Perry’s success, one must wonder a few things. First, after his years of blockbuster hits and discovery of a foolproof formula, why hasn’t Hollywood followed Perry’s lead? Say it three times fast and it sounds like quite the Socratic question. With less than ten movies released so far this year for black audiences, one must wonder, does Hollywood care about the black moviegoer? Judging from the success of CHEVONNE HARRIS HUFFINGTON 07.15.12 Perry and his “for us, by us” philosophy, it’s hard to overlook the profit Hollywood stands to gain by tapping into black moviegoers’ pockets. Since his debut film, Tyler Perry’s Diary of a Mad Black Woman, hit theaters in 2005, Perry has proven the power of the black dollar time and time again, yet for some reason Hollywood continues to ignore the giant cash cow in the room. In an industry driven by the bottom line, it’s After difficult to figure out years of why the light hasn’t blockbuster gone on in some corhits and a porate exec’s head foolproof to add a little more formula, mahogany to the why hasn’t screen — if not for Hollywood the blacks, then why followed not for the bank? Perry’s lead?” On the few occasions major black films are released domestically, the results often exceed expectations. The Kevin Hart comedy Think Like a Man opened to roughly 2,000 screens earlier this spring — 1,000 screens fewer than the Zac Efron romance, The Lucky One — yet still managed to nab the No. 1 spot on opening