Trending Topics

‘I Had to Take a Minute to Take That In’: How Tyler Perry Became Godfather to Meghan Markle and Prince Harry’s Daughter 

Award-winning filmmaker Tyler Perry is sharing some very private details about his personal life, including his latest title as godfather to Meghan Markle and Prince Harry’s daughter, Lilibet Diana.  

The 54-year-old Hollywood mogul revealed the exciting piece of detail during the final installment of the couple’s new Netflix film, “Harry & Meghan: Becoming Royal,” an intimate six-part detailing never-before-heard stories of the first year of marriage and subsequent exit from the Royal family and the UK altogether triggered by bad press and alleged racist treatment toward the former “Suits” actress. 

How did Tyler Perry become the godfather?  

Tyler Perry Became Godfather to Meghan Markle and Prince Harry’s Daughter 
Perry says after the birth of their second child, Meghan Markle and Prince Harry asked him to be the godfather. (Photo by Phillip Faraone/Getty Images for Baby2Baby)

Those closely watching the unprecedented event unfold were shocked to hear mentions of the “Madea’s Family Reunion” director and the critical role he played in the former royal couple’s transition to the states. In 2020, after the couple announced their plans to “step back” from their senior royal duties, it was reported that Tyler offered them his California mansion to live for as long as they needed. They stayed there for six weeks before the paparazzi found them.

The playwright revealed that the following year, after the birth of their second child, the couple asked him to be the godfather, noting that they “were pretty serious on the phone,” a significant difference from their usual lighthearted calls.   

“I go, ‘Okay, what’s going on?’ They said, ‘Well, we’d like for you to be Lili’s godfather.’ I go, ‘Whoa,’ ” Perry continued. “I had to take a minute to take that in.” ​​”And I thought, ‘I’d be honored. I’d absolutely be honored,’ ” he added.

How Tyler Perry met Meghan and Harry? 

Tyler hadn’t met Meghan and Harry before moving them into his home. He had only sent the Duchess of Sussex a handwritten note ahead of her 2018 Royal wedding, “praying for her just to be able to move through it and hold on,” following an incident involving her estranged father, Thomas Markle. 

In his interview, the director said, I couldn’t even imagine this woman finding the man that she loved, the man of her dreams, and him being a prince, and then to walk into all of that madness and need the security of family and then have your father do some horrible things.” 

“When my life changed and success started to come, family members became different people, and I know how hurtful and horrible it can be,” he said, adding that he “immediately empathized” with Meghan.

In another scene, Prince Harry is speaking on his phone, saying: “This is the current situation. Thanks to another amazing friend who we’ve never met but who believes in us and wants to help.”

“I was just crying and crying,” says Meghan on her and Perry’s eventual meeting. “Sometimes it’s easier to just open up to someone who knows nothing at all, and that was that moment with me and Tyler.”

What is Tyler Perry’s net worth, and does he make his money? 

Tyler rose to fame from his troubled past as an actor, filmmaker and playwright, creating stage plays during the 1990s and early 2000s. However, he’s perhaps best known for his alter ego, the street-smart and tough elderly woman named Mabel “Madea” Earlene Simmons.  

In 2021, the film and TV studio mogul made his debut on the Forbes annual billionaires list at $1 billion, ranking at number 2,677. The financial outlet did a complete breakdown noting that he earned the status thanks to his total ownership of his “creative output, including more than 1,200 episodes of television, 22 feature films, and at least two dozen stage plays, as well as a 330-acre studio lot at the edge of Atlanta’s southern limits.” 

Back to top