Does Tyler Perry have wife and children? All we know as actor Derek Dixon details alleged sexual assault in interview

Actor Derek Dixon recently detailed his allegations against Typer Perry during his first televised interview since filing a lawsuit against the actor. Tyler Perry, who has a 10-year-old son named Aman Perry with ex-girlfriend Gelila Bekele, has never been married. The couple separated in 2020 and co-parent Aman.

Dixon, who appeared in Perry's BET drama series The Oval for five seasons, filed a $260 million lawsuit in Los Angeles Superior Court on June 13, 2025. In the lawsuit, Dixon accused Perry of sexual assault and harassment during the show's production.

Dixon alleged that Perry fostered "a coercive, sexually exploitative dynamic" between them during the show's production, initially promising him "career advancement and creative opportunities such as producing his pilot and casting him in his show." However, when he did not reciprocate Tyler's "unwanted advances," he subjected him to "escalating sexual harassment, assault and battery, and professional retaliation."

Tyler's attorney, Mathew Boyd, declined Dixon's remarks in a statement to People Magazine, claiming that he is someone who got close to Tyler "for what now appears to be nothing more than setting up a scam."

"But Tyler will not be shaken down and we are confident these fabricated claims of harassment will fail," he added.

Meanwhile, during his recent interview with ABC News on Tuesday, September 9, Dixon shared that it's been "hard" for him and that he did not "want to stay silent about it anymore," even though "it's a vulnerable thing to talk about."

"There's a lot of shame around it. Just trying to think what you could have done better and having to deal with the judgment of how you could've ended it better without being in that situation," he added.

He also emphasized that this portion of the $260 million is meant to compensate him for what he lost professionally and financially.

"The other part of that is a deterrent for how do you stop a billionaire who won't stop themselves from doing this," the actor added.

He added that he hopes Perry takes "accountability" for what he did to him and that the lawsuit taught Perry not to treat "your employees this way and to never use someone's dream to coerce them into a relationship that's not professional."

When did Derek Dixon first meet Tyler Perry?

According to the lawsuit, Derek Dixon met Tyler Perry in September 2019 in Atlanta, Georgia, at a studio opening party while working for an events company. Perry allegedly asked Dixon if he was an actor, gave him his number, and told him, "We'll talk about this."

Perry often texted Dixon over the next few months and eventually offered him a role in Ruthless in November 2019. Subsequently, in January 2020, Perry invited Dixon to his home in Georgia and allegedly sexually assaulted him.

According to the lawsuit, Perry offered him several drinks and invited him to stay in a guest room. Later that night, Perry allegedly came to Dixon's bed and began groping him.

"Dixon kept informing Perry that he was not into sex in order to keep Perry at bay while at the same time not insulting the person who was dangling his career in front of him," it read.

Subsequently, in February 2020, Dixon was offered a role in The Oval.

Several instances of Perry allegedly sexually assaulting Dixon are detailed in the lawsuit, including one occasion when Perry invited Dixon to his trailer, pinned him to the wall, and began "aggressively groping Dixon's buttocks in a sexual motion."

"Mr. Perry made it clear to Dixon that if Dixon ignored Perry or failed to engage with the sexual innuendos, Dixon's character would 'die' in the next season. Indeed, Dixon's character 'Dale' was shot four times in the chest at the end of his first season on 'The Oval,' and Perry always held this over Mr. Dixon's head, implying that 'Dale' would survive if Dixon kept Perry 'happy,'" it read.

Derek also visited a physician in December 2020, who prescribed him an antidepressant. The physician "indicated that Dixon's exhibited severe symptoms of acute stress, insomnia, stomach issues, and dangerously low cortisol levels due to the sexual harassment and assault."

Dixon left The Oval in the final season, which reportedly cost him approximately $400,000 in lost income.

According to Dixon, justice would be achieved if "something like this won't happen to another actor that works for him or another actor in the industry."