Overview

• Derek Dixon filed a civil suit in Los Angeles Superior Court on June 13 seeking $260 million in damages for alleged sexual harassment, assault and retaliation by Tyler Perry.
• The complaint details incidents beginning with Perry’s advances after meeting Dixon in 2019 and includes alleged assaults in Perry’s Atlanta home in January 2020 and June 2021.
• Dixon says Perry leveraged roles on BET series Ruthless and The Oval and promised to produce his pilot Losing It as a means to coerce compliance, then never advanced the project.
• According to the lawsuit, Dixon endured severe emotional distress—including depression, anxiety and a PTSD diagnosis—and reported the harassment to the EEOC in June 2024 before his contract was terminated.
• Perry has denied all claims, with his attorney calling the suit a scam and expressing confidence that the allegations will be dismissed.