Brittney Cooper

Because the thing that I loved about Tyler Perry's movies is that he rides hard for working class black girls, the girls that work behind the counter at Waffle House, the church ladies, right? The grannies that press $20 into your hand when you come home from school. Those are the kind of folks that raised me. And I wanted to be recognizable to them.

Because the thing that I loved about Tyler Perry's movies is that he rides hard for working class black girls, the girls that work behind the counter at Waffle House, the church ladies, right? The grannies that press $20 into your hand when you come home from school. Those are the kind of folks that raised me. And I wanted to be recognizable to them.

Because the thing that I loved about Tyler Perry's movies is that he rides hard for working class black girls, the girls that work behind the counter at Waffle House, the church ladies, right? The grannies that press $20 into your hand when you come home from school. Those are the kind of folks that raised me. And I wanted to be recognizable to them.

So I'm thinking about all this and Tyler breaks in. Brittany, something urgent just came up. Can I call you back? I'll call you back in 20 minutes. And I'm like, okay. So we get off the phone, I run to Pete and then I'm sitting in my house going, damn, like he not gonna call me back because I was blowing this conversation and maybe being a little bit of a jerk.

So I'm thinking about all this and Tyler breaks in. Brittany, something urgent just came up. Can I call you back? I'll call you back in 20 minutes. And I'm like, okay. So we get off the phone, I run to Pete and then I'm sitting in my house going, damn, like he not gonna call me back because I was blowing this conversation and maybe being a little bit of a jerk.

So I'm thinking about all this and Tyler breaks in. Brittany, something urgent just came up. Can I call you back? I'll call you back in 20 minutes. And I'm like, okay. So we get off the phone, I run to Pete and then I'm sitting in my house going, damn, like he not gonna call me back because I was blowing this conversation and maybe being a little bit of a jerk.

But like he said, 20 minutes later, the phone rings. Tyler, this is Brittany. Where were we? So with my 20 minutes of hindsight and hastily gained wisdom, I say, here's the thing I'm really trying to say, Tyler. Is it possible for you to uplift working class black girls in your films without throwing the educated sisters under the bus because educated girls love your movies too?

But like he said, 20 minutes later, the phone rings. Tyler, this is Brittany. Where were we? So with my 20 minutes of hindsight and hastily gained wisdom, I say, here's the thing I'm really trying to say, Tyler. Is it possible for you to uplift working class black girls in your films without throwing the educated sisters under the bus because educated girls love your movies too?

But like he said, 20 minutes later, the phone rings. Tyler, this is Brittany. Where were we? So with my 20 minutes of hindsight and hastily gained wisdom, I say, here's the thing I'm really trying to say, Tyler. Is it possible for you to uplift working class black girls in your films without throwing the educated sisters under the bus because educated girls love your movies too?

And he says, you know what? That's profound. Can I uplift one group without demonizing another group? I'ma think about that. And so then I said to him, now, if you wanna keep talking about this, I'm a professional critic and I'm happy to offer these. Nope, he says, I'm never calling your ass again. And we both screamed because it was like the realest moment in this conversation.

And he says, you know what? That's profound. Can I uplift one group without demonizing another group? I'ma think about that. And so then I said to him, now, if you wanna keep talking about this, I'm a professional critic and I'm happy to offer these. Nope, he says, I'm never calling your ass again. And we both screamed because it was like the realest moment in this conversation.

And he says, you know what? That's profound. Can I uplift one group without demonizing another group? I'ma think about that. And so then I said to him, now, if you wanna keep talking about this, I'm a professional critic and I'm happy to offer these. Nope, he says, I'm never calling your ass again. And we both screamed because it was like the realest moment in this conversation.

But he said, I always like to talk to my critics. I learn a lot from them. And I said, fair enough. And we hung up. And I was left thinking that The thing that connects Tyler Perry and me is that we're both working class Southern folks who in our respective fields have quote unquote made it. And we want to do the kind of work that always honors the places where we come from.

But he said, I always like to talk to my critics. I learn a lot from them. And I said, fair enough. And we hung up. And I was left thinking that The thing that connects Tyler Perry and me is that we're both working class Southern folks who in our respective fields have quote unquote made it. And we want to do the kind of work that always honors the places where we come from.

But he said, I always like to talk to my critics. I learn a lot from them. And I said, fair enough. And we hung up. And I was left thinking that The thing that connects Tyler Perry and me is that we're both working class Southern folks who in our respective fields have quote unquote made it. And we want to do the kind of work that always honors the places where we come from.

And I realized that his work called up for me the fear that maybe I would be losing touch with the folks that meant the most to me. But what I also thought was that I'm used to men dismissing me. because I have loud opinions and I'm brash and unapologetic and I'm a feminist.

And I realized that his work called up for me the fear that maybe I would be losing touch with the folks that meant the most to me. But what I also thought was that I'm used to men dismissing me. because I have loud opinions and I'm brash and unapologetic and I'm a feminist.

And I realized that his work called up for me the fear that maybe I would be losing touch with the folks that meant the most to me. But what I also thought was that I'm used to men dismissing me. because I have loud opinions and I'm brash and unapologetic and I'm a feminist.

But when this millionaire filmmaker read the little old blog of a not even thousandaire professor and heard me say that the way he represented girls like me in his movies essentially hurt my feelings, he didn't ignore me or act like he hadn't seen it or heard it.

But when this millionaire filmmaker read the little old blog of a not even thousandaire professor and heard me say that the way he represented girls like me in his movies essentially hurt my feelings, he didn't ignore me or act like he hadn't seen it or heard it.