Who are some of the most famous male actors in Tyler Perry movies?
Tyler Perry’s films are a force to be reckoned with in the entertainment industry, with some of his titles, such as Madea, generating a cult following. This popularity has seen several actors star in his movies, some famous and others just starting out.

Below is a look at some of the most popular male actors who have featured in Tyler Perry Movies over the years.
1. Tyle Perry

One of the most famous male actors in Tyler Perry’s films is the man behind the movies—Perry himself.
Perry has acted in several of his films, including Diary of a Mad Black Woman, Madea’s Family Reunion, Why Did I Get Married, Meet the Browns, The Family That Preys, Madea Goes to Jail, I Can Do Bad All By Myself, and many others.
Perry is an actor, writer, director, and producer in several of his films. He also tends to portray several characters in his films, including iconic ones such as Madea, Uncle Joe, and Brian Simmons (Madea’s nephews).
Tyler Perry has also written, directed, produced, and/or acted in several TV shows, including House of Payne, Love Thy Neighbor, Meet the Browns, For Better or Worse.
In addition, he has appeared in several other (non-Perry) films and TV shows, such as Star Trek, Alex Cross, Gone Girl, Brain on Fire, The Star, Vice, and The Passion: New Orleans.
2. Steve Harris

Steve Harris is one of the memorable male actors in Tyler Perry movies. He appeared in Diary of a Mad Black Woman (2005) as Charles McCarter, a rich lawyer who lets his success go to his head, causing him to mistreat (and cheat on) his wife.
In addition to the Tyler Perry film, he is famous for portraying lawyer Eugene Young in the legal TV show The Practice and Detective Isaiah Freeman in NBC’s Awake.
He also has several other dozen roles in films and TV shows such as King of the World (2000), Protect and Serve, The First Purge, The Batman, Eli Stone, Friday Night Lights, Legends, Heist, Law & Order: Organized Crime and Black Mafia Family.
3. Shemar Moore

Shemar Moore is another famous actor in Tyler Perry movies. He starred in 2005’s Diary of a Mad Black Woman, playing Orlando (Helen McCarter’s romantic interest).
Moore is also famous for roles such as Malcolm Winters in the daytime soap The Young and the Restless, Sergeant Hondo in CBS’ S.W.A.T, Agent Randal in the film Sonic the Hedgehog 2, and Derek Morgan in the police procedural series Criminal Minds.
Other notable roles by Shemar Moore include films and TV shows such as the Justice League animated franchise, Mama Flora’s Family, The Bounce Back, Birds of Prey, Reversible Errors, and Soul Train.
4. Henry Simmons

Henry Simmons is another top actor who has starred in Tyler Perry films. He features in 2006’s Madea’s Family Reunion, where he portrays the role of Issac, Madea’s nephew.
However, Simmons is most famous for his roles as Baldwin Jones in the police TV show NYPD Blue and Agent Alphonso Mackenzie in the superhero show Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
Other notable roles by Simmons include movies and TV shows such as Above the Rim, Georgia O’Keeffe, No Good Deed, Another World, Shark, Man Up, Ravenswood, Cherish The Day, and The Emperor of Ocean Park.
5. Michael Jai White

Michael Jai White is one of the most recognizable male actors in Tyler Perry Movies, having appeared in Why Did I Get Married (2007), Why Did I Get Married Too? (2010), the 2008 sitcom Tyler Perry’s House of Payne, and the 2011 comedy series, Tyler Perry’s For Better or Worse.
In the Tyler Perry films, White portrays Marcus William, a husband to Angela (Tasha Smith), a couple who argue constantly. He is also famous for other roles, such as Seth in Universal Soldier, Mike Tyson in Tyson, and Jax Briggs in Mortal Kombat: Legacy.
Michael Jai White has also appeared in several other movies and TV shows, including Spawn, Black Dynamite, Blood and Bone, Falcon Rising, S.W.A.T.: Under Siege, Wonderland, Clubhouse, Arrow, and Kingdom Business.
6. Brian J. White

Brian J. White is another famous male actor in Tyler Perry Films. He appeared in 2014’s Good Deeds, where he played Walter Deeds, the younger, irritable, spoilt, and entitled brother of Wesley Deeds (Tyler Perry).
In addition to the Tyler Perry film, J. White is famous for other roles, such as Patrick Thomas in The Family Stone (2005), Evan Lancaster in the drama TV show Ambitions, and Sylvester in Stomp the Yard (2007).
He has also appeared in several other films and TV shows, including The Matchmaker, Moesha, The Parkers, Spyder Games, The Shield, Second Time Around, The Game Plan, 12 Rounds, I Can Do Bad All Myself, Men of Certain Age, Beauty and the Beast, and Scandal.
7. Cory Hardrict

Cory Hardrict features in one of Tyler Perry’s latest movies, 2024’s Divorce in the Black. He plays the antagonist character of Dallas, an abusive husband from a family with a criminal background.
Hardrict is a famous actor known for other roles, such as Frankie Crocker in Lovelace, Dandridge in American Sniper, Jue in Brotherly Love, November Criminals, and Coach Marcus Turner in CW’s TV shows All American and All American: Homecoming.
He has also appeared in several other movies and TV shows such as Warm Bodies, Spectral, Walk of Fame, All Eyez on Me, City of Lies, American Outlaws, Lincoln Heights, The Oath, S.W.A.T., and The Chi.
8. Gary Anthony Sturgis

Gary Anthony Sturgis is another of the top male actors in Tyler Perry movies. He has appeared in Diary of a Mad Black Woman and Daddy’s Little Girls.
He plays villainous roles in both films: career criminal Jamison Milton Jackson in the former and gangster Joe in the latter.
In addition to the Tyler Perry films, Sturgis is famous for other roles, such as Franklin in the 2007 biographical film Pride, Caz in the TV soap opera Port Charles, and Julius in the 2023 supernatural drama Wicked City.
Sturgis also boasts of several other dozen credits as an actor, writer, producer, and director in films and TV shows such as Joshua Tree, Dance Fu, The Stuff, America’s Most Wanted, Static Shock, Hot in Cleaveland, 5th Ward, The Social Experiment, Pimp, and The Sin Within.
9. David Mann

David Mann is an actor who has appeared in several Tyler Perry movies, such as Meet the Browns, Madea Goes to Jail, Madea’s Big Happy Family, and A Madea Homecoming. In the films, he plays Leroy Brown, the father of Madea’s daughter, Cora.
Apart from the Films, Mann has also played the role of Leroy Brown in several of Tyler Perry’s stage plays, including I Can DO Bad All By Myself, Meet the Browns, Madea’s Family Reunion, What’s Done in the Dark, and Madea’s Class Reunion.
He has also appeared in Tyler Perry’s TV shows, such as House of Payne, Meet the Browns and Assisted Living.
In addition, he has been featured in other films and TV shows, including In the Meantime, It’s a Mann’s World, The Mans, The Veggie Tales Show, and First Impression.
10. Idris Elba

Idris Elba may not be a fan of some Tyler Perry characters, but he is one of the most famous actors to appear in a Perry movie. The iconic English actor appeared in Daddy’s Little Girl, playing Monty Jams, a hardworking father struggling to provide for his children.
Elba is also famous for other roles, such as Stringer Bell in the HBO crime drama The Wire, Nelson Mandela in the biographical film Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom, and DCI Luther in the BBC One thriller Luther.
The actor has also appeared in several movies and TV shows, including the Thor franchise, The Suicide Squad, American Gangster, Pacific Rim, Zootopia, Prometheus, Sonic the Hedgehog 3, Beasts of No Nation, and The Mountain Between Us.