Tyler Perry, who has an Atlanta production studio and is at work on a new facility, is urging Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal to veto a religious liberty bill that has drawn threats of boycotts from some Hollywood studios and condemnation from an array of media companies and corporations.
A Tyler Perry Studios spokeswoman said, “At Tyler Perry Studios, we believe in inclusion and equality for all people. We do not tolerate bigotry, division and discrimination. We have tremendous confidence in Governor Deal’s leadership and ability to continue to lead our great state forward and urge him to veto this bill.”
Perry opened Tyler Perry Studios in 2006, and last year announced he had purchased the closed Fort McPherson army base for a new facility.
An MPAA official said earlier this week they were confident that Deal would not sign the legislation, while Disney and Marvel released a statement threatening to shun the state for productions should the legislation become law.
There now is a move afoot to put pressure on North Carolina, where the governor signed legislation late Wednesday that invalidates local LGBT anti-discrimination ordinances. Late on Thursday, the MPAA issued a statement opposing the move.
Ted Johnson | © 2016 Variety Media, LLC, a subsidiary of Penske Business Media; Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC