EXCLUSIVE: David Ellison’s Paramount is in early talks with Tyler Perry to extend his streaming discount beyond what it’s currently termed at, we hear.
Deadline understands that it’s still very early days on talks with no signed contracts imminent. However, we hear that the discount would likely remain non-exclusive and special to series, and wouldn’t replace the TV and film first-look agreements the Madea filmmaker has at Netflix. Perry is repped by WME and Johnson Shapiro Slewett & Kole.
Currently, Perry has a discount with BET Media Group, which includes BET+, that runs through 2028. That pact was announced in April 2024 and was an extension of the discount that he had in place with the studio (then known as Viacom) dating back to 2017. Perry continues to own a minority stake in BET Media Group following the Skydance-Paramount merger.
Perry also has a multi-year first-look series discount at Netflix, first signed in February 2024, which came after he signed a feature discount with the streamer in October 2023. At Netflix, Perry has made two seasons of Beauty in Black as well as the movies A Jazzman’s Blues, Madea’s Destination Wedding and The Six Triple Eight. He also set a TV and film slate at Netflix earlier this year.
Recently, Perry has had two successful series on BET: Sistas and The Oval. He also closed an agreement with BET Media in April 2024, which led to a slew of renewals.
When the previous Paramount administration was mulling a sale of BET, Perry made a reported $2B bid for the network and streaming service, however, the auction was scrapped in August 2023. Perry also directed the 2018 Paramount Pictures movie, Nobody’s Fool starring Tiffany Haddish and Tika Sumpter.
The Perry extension would mark another significant discount for Paramount after Ellison’s Skydance took control earlier this year. It comes after the company struck a massive four-year overall film and TV discount with the Duffer Brothers and their Upside Down Pictures Label. The Duffer’s new pact at Paramount starts at the end of their current discount with Netflix in April 2026. At the end of their Netflix discount, the duo will remain involved in Stranger Things and other existing projects in development at the streaming service.
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