Tyler Perry’s new film, A Jazzman’s Blues, is set to make its Netflix debut later this month. The film had its official premiere at the Toronto Film Festival on Sept. 11.
A Jazzman’s Blues tells the story of Bayou, a young jazz singer living in Louisiana during the 1940s who rekindles a childhood romance with a married woman passing as white in a small town. The drama stars Joshua Boone
, Solea Pfeiffer, Amirah Vann, Austin Scott, and Ryan Eggold.The Toronto Film Festival described the drama as a “murder mystery” and a “testament” to Black music and storytelling.
“A Jazzman’s Blues is a testament to Black American music, resilience, and storytelling.”
According to Perry, he had trouble casting the epic because of the popularity of his Madea movies. “There is a generation that has come up that grew up on the Madea movies and enjoyed them but got a little older and they think, ‘This is so low brow,’” he said. “In that frustration, I thought, ‘Wait a minute, they have never seen you do anything like this.’ I don’t know if they think Madea is going to pop out from behind a tree.”
Perry ultimately cast Boone and Pfeiffer in the lead roles. The film was reportedly Perry’s first screenplay and was written more than 25 years ago. Perry shared several pictures from the film on Twitter with a caption celebrating the film’s cast. “I love helping and discovering new talent and then introducing them to the world,” he wrote. “Meet Joshua Boone and Solea Pfeiffer. They are the leads in this incredible cast. #AJazzmansBlues.”