Nearly one month after filing a lawsuit against Tyler Perry for Sєxual ᴀssault and battery, actor Derek Dixon opens up for the first time about his decision to come forward. Dixon is an actor who worked with Perry on shows The Oval and Ruthless in recent years. But, he came forward last month with various allegations against the creator/producer.

Dixon’s lawsuit against Tyler Perry was filed on June 17, 2025, and accused the Hollywood mogul of Sєxual ᴀssault, harᴀssment, battery, and workplace misconduct that occurred on several instances over the last several years. Following the lawsuit’s filing, Perry’s lawyer, Matthew Boyd, issued a statement denying the accusations, saying, “Tyler will not be shaken down and we are confident these fabricated claims of harᴀssment will fail.”

Now, Derek Dixon has spoken publicly for the first time since the lawsuit. He responded to emails with The Hollywood Reporter about the lawsuit, why he came forward now, and more. As for the timing of the lawsuit against Perry, Dixon explained, “I couldn’t just let him get away with this” as part of his reasoning for sharing his experience now. He also said:

Everyone deserves to go to work and do their job without their boss trying to have Sєx with them. My goal is to help ensure that the next generation of actors and creatives don’t have to choose between their dreams and their dignity.

The actor’s lawsuit comes over a year since he filed a Sєxual harᴀssment complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, which is still pending. Dixon quit working for Perry on The Oval in conjunction with this move, and he could no longer remain quiet about what his boss had done to him.

I was an employee, and he was my boss. The fact that I’m an actor doesn’t make me any less an employee. For a long time, I convinced myself that it was part of the industry, or that somehow I had to accept it to keep working. But eventually, I couldn’t stay silent anymore.

Dixon also shared that the response to his lawsuit against Perry has been varied. In addition to Perry denying the allegations, the actor says he’s received death threats and harᴀssment, which he says “is why people, especially men, don’t come forward.” But, he’s also received messages from others with similar experiences with his former boss.

As for why Dixon went down the path of a public lawsuit against a powerful figure in Hollywood rather than settle privately, he told The Hollywood Reporter that a fear that Perry could keep getting away with this behavior if it remained a secret factored into his decision and suggests he did try to settle the matter in private before.

There are always attempts to resolve situations like this privately, but they never result in the type of change necessary to protect further victims. At the end of the day my absolute fear is that he will be able to continue doing this without any major consequences.

Dixon’s comments come as Tyler Perry’s thirteenth Madea movie, Madea’s Destination Wedding, is about to release on Netflix.

More On Derek Dixon’s Allegations About Tyler Perry

Derek Dixon first met Tyler Perry in 2019 when the actor was working an event at Tyler Perry Studios. Perry and Dixon exchanged numbers that night after meeting each other. This led to conversations about Dixon’s career aspirations and Perry eventually offering him a chance to audition for a role on Ruthless.

The first instance of Perry’s alleged Sєxual harᴀssment came in January 2020 when Dixon spent the night at his guest house after a night of drinking. Dixon claims Perry climbed into bed with him and started rubbing his thigh, leading the actor to get out of bed and say, “I’m not that Sєxual.”

After this instance, Perry offered Dixon a chance to have his role on Ruthless expanded to a bigger one on The Oval. Dixon’s character was written to be sH๏τ multiple times at the end of the season, but Perry said he would likely survive if the actor did a good job. Perry also offered to shoot the pilot of a comedy Dixon wrote.

According to Dixon, this “created a false sense of security” around Perry for the actor. Later on when the two were alone in a trailer one day after filming, Perry allegedly pushed him against the wall and grabbed his ʙuттocks after asking questions, including whether Derek was attracted to him.

Perry continued to send Dixon inappropriate texts after this, leading the actor to be prescribed antidepressant medication. The producer then allegedly yelled at Dixon on set and asked if he needed to be punched in the stomach to give the right performance.

Dixon’s lawsuit alleges that Perry Sєxually ᴀssaulted him again in June of 2021 after a meeting about the actor’s pilot. After they both got drunk, Dixon was told to sleep in the guest house again. Perry allegedly pulled down Dixon’s underwear and grabbed his bare bottom during a hug and then restrained the actor from pulling his underwear back up.

Dixon tells THR that he believed he was going to be raped and told Perry “‘No,’ ‘Stop,’ and ‘I don’t want this'” as it was unfolding. The actor says he then told Perry he was too hungry to do anything Sєxual and then locked himself in the bathroom after he and Perry had eaten pizza.

After creating distance between himself and Perry, the producer offered him a raise and sH๏τ the comedy pilot in March of 2022. But, the actor now claims that Perry’s deal with Viacom did not allow the producer to shop the pilot for two years. He then moved away, filed the EEOC complaint, and quit working with Perry.

Now, it remains to be seen what will come of Derek Dixon’s lawsuit against Tyler Perry and how or when it will be settled. This will likely be a lengthy process, so a resolution may not come for several months or even years.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter