Q&A: Tyler Perry on directing his 1st script, 26 years later

By JAKE COYLE
AP Film Writer

TORONTO (AP) — Tyler Perry has directed his first screenplay, 26 years after writing it. “A Jazzman’s Blues,” which is premiering at the Toronto International Film Festival, was Perry’s first stab at screenwriting long before Madea made him a media mogul, back when he was pouring what little money he had into less successful Atlanta stage shows. After directing numerous films, dozens of TV episodes and expanding his Tyler Perry Studios empire in Atlanta, Perry has returned to that old script, without hardly changing a word, for his first film for Netflix. “A Jazzman’s Blues” begins streaming Sept. 23.