The 2024 Paley Center Honors celebrated Tyler Perry on Wednesday (Dec. 4).
Held at The Beverly Wilshire Hotel, Perry received the center’s highest honor surrounded by his close friends and colleagues. Meghan Markle, Kerry Washington, Tika Sumpter, Debbie Allen, Debra Lee, Tina Knowles, Nicole Avant, and more all showed up to give the entertainment mogul his flowers.
“Throughout my career, I have strived to bring people together and to give a voice to those often underrepresented in media,” said Perry in a statement when the recognition was first announced. “Media has served as a vital platform for this mission, and I’m honored to receive this award from The Paley Center for Media, an organization that has dedicated itself to spotlighting the power and importance of media.”
Maureen J. Reidy, President & CEO of The Paley Center for Media, added, “Through his acclaimed and prolific body of work, Tyler Perry has solidified his place as one of media’s greatest and most impactful figures. With each new project, he continues to move our industry, and our culture, forward, and it is our great privilege to present Tyler with our highest honor, The Paley Honors Award.”
Perry’s acceptance speech was described as “passionate,” according to PEOPLE. He began his speech by apologizing to the press for not finishing the red carpet because he was caught off guard emotionally after seeing a photo of him as a child that his late mother had taken.
“It’s been 15 years, almost to the day, that she passed, so this time of year is really, really difficult for me,” he explained. “When he showed me that picture, I want to apologize to you guys because I lost it […] But I’m here.” He spoke on his recent experience attending intensive therapy for the first time, admitting that “I was able to really start to deal with something: the effects of trauma in my life.”
Perry detailed how him being sexually assaulted as a child while dealing with physical abuse at home “did not steal my compassion” or “rob me of my heart and my care for others, and they could not grip away my ability to heal.” He urged and challenged the audience to “not let anybody steal your ability to heal” and to reclaim one’s power and strength.
Perry’s next film, Six Triple Eight, premieres on Netflix on Dec. 20.
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