Tyler Perry Reportedly In Talks To Buy Majority Stake Of BET Media From Paramount Global

Tyler Perry Reportedly In Talks To Buy Majority Stake Of BET Media From Paramount Global

It looks like Tyler Perry may be entering a new deal with BET.

Tyler Perry is reportedly in talks to purchase a majority stake of BET Media Group amid reports that parent company Paramount Global is exploring a sale. Perry’s deal with Paramount, which began in 2017, is reportedly coming to an end. If this BET purchase occurs, this would give him ownership of the brand that airs many of his shows.

Tyler Perry currently has a minority stake in the operation and also produces a large portion of the programming available on BET and streaming service BET+, which he helped launch in 2019. Tyler Perry currently has a list of TV shows available on BET and BET+ including “House of Payne,” “Sisters,” “The Oval,” “Ruthless,” “Zatima” and “Assisted Living.”

Paramount, for its part, has been pretty clear about its desire to explore opportunities to raise cash, including an attempt to sell publisher Simon & Shuster.

 In 2017, the filmmaker ventured on a long-term film deal with Paramount and a TV deal that began in May 2020. The partnership has been a successful endeavor for Perry, Paramount Global president and CEO Bob Bakish, and BET Networks president Scott Mills.

According to The Wall Street Journal, which was the first to report Paramount Global is interested in selling off BET,

“The decision to consider selling a majority stake of the assets, which cater primarily to Black audiences, is part of the entertainment giant’s effort to shore up resources to bolster its flagship Paramount+ streaming service and its advertiser-supported free streaming platform Pluto TV, some of the people said.”

BET was founded by Robert Johnson in 1980 and is the first cable channel to cater to Black audiences. It was acquired by Paramount (then known as Viacom) in 2001 in a deal worth $3 billion.

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