Katt Williams is taking a tip from Tyler Perry's playbook and isn't shy about crediting who's to blame. The wisecracking icon, 56, has been busy promoting his new memoir. He visited "The Tonight Show," which stars Jimmy Fallon, to explain that Perry's historic contributions to film and television inspired his recent ambitious project, a giant studio project built on a former military installation in Alabama.
Williams, known for his no-holds-barred comedy and viewpoints, praised Perry for transforming Atlanta's historic Fort McPherson into Tyler Perry Studios. And now he's looking to do something similar, reminding us once and for all that his talents go well outside the purview of the stand-up stage.
"Instruction is why my life works, in golf and off the golf course," Williams told Fallon. "So if I see someone do a good job, I just want to do a good job. I'm going to take the cue from that.
And that example? Turning a military base into an entertainment powerhouse, a la Perry. Williams has reportedly turned his sights on a sprawling property in Alabama, the former Fort McClellan site. The campus covers an astonishing 90 acres and has nearly three million square feet of indoor space, with enough room to make his vision a reality. The details of what the studio will offer are still being kept under wraps; Williams plans to build a space that can compete with the most prominent players in Hollywood.
This isn't the first time Williams has acknowledged Perry. In an upcoming interview with GQ magazine in the spring of 2024, Williams expressed gratitude for Perry's influence on the industry, saying more Black creatives need ownership in Hollywood.
It's just not fair to put all that pressure on Tyler Perry, Williams said. "He can only do so much."
Perry's rise from struggling playwright to media mogul is one of the inspiring success stories in entertainment. His Atlanta-based studio, located on 330 acres of What was once utilized as military land, is become the largest African-American-owned film studio in THE U.S. It has 12 state-of-the-art soundstages, a replica of the White House, a fully functioning neighborhood, and a luxury hotel lobby set, among other facilities.
His influence has reached well beyond Williams, too. Rapper and TV mogul 50 Cent was inspired by a tour of Tyler Perry Studios, prompting him to launch G-Unit Studios in Shreveport, Louisiana. News of Williams heading to Hollywood comes when more artists are taking control of their destinies.
And although Williams' Alabama studio doesn't yet have an official completion timeline, fans are increasingly eager to witness how the comedian-to-mogul will manifest his vision. If his work is any indication, expect something big, loud, and unapologetically Katt Williams.
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