Why is The Boondocks trending online? Tyler Perry episode connection explored in wake of Derek Dixon lawsuit scandal
Shortly after the news of actor Derek Dixon's lawsuit for battery, workplace sexual harassment, and sexual assault against filmmaker Tyler Perry surfaced, the animated adult sitcom The Boondocks began trending online.
The parallels between one episode of The Boondocks and Derek Dixon's lawsuit have led netizens to mention the adult sitcom across social media platforms, resulting in the series currently trending.
The Boondocks ended after four seasons, despite having a massive fan following. Fans of the sitcom blamed Tyler, alleging he was involved in the network's decision to cancel the show. For those unfamiliar, episode no. 8, titled Pause from the sitcom's third season, features a character named Winston Jerome, who is rumored to be based on Tyler Perry.
As per Boondocks fandom's synopsis of the episode, the character of Grandad gets an opportunity to play the lead in a play called Ma Dukes Finds Herself a Man by actor and screenwriter Winston Jerome. After the play ends, Jerome offers Grandad a leading role in the film adaptation of the play, demanding sexual favors in return. At that moment, Grandad realizes that Winston's theatrical cult serves as a front for having sex with men.
According to a TMZ report dated June 17, 2025, Derek Dixon claims in his lawsuit that Tyler singled him out from a crowd during an event in 2019 and asked for his number to offer him a role. Dixon eventually secured a role in the filmmaker's project titled Ruthless.
Furthermore, Dixon alleged that the filmmaker made sexual advances toward him when he was invited to Tyler's Atlanta residence in 2020, among other instances of reported sexual harassment mentioned in the lawsuit.
Netizens, particularly fans of The Boondocks, took to X to highlight speculations about the sitcom's episode, Pause, being descriptive of Tyler in relation to Dixon's lawsuit:
"Damn the Boondocks were right about Tyler Perry all along" an X user commented.
"Tyler Perry being down low isn’t surprising… The Boondocks predicted it 😭" a netizen remarked.
Did Tyler Perry file a lawsuit against The Boondocks? Details explored as sitcom trends amid filmmaker's legal scandal
According to Cracked's February 2024 report, while Tyler Perry did not comment on Pause or the speculations regarding Winston's character resembling him, he threatened to end his relationship with Turner Broadcasting if they did not censor the episode.
The Boondocks premiered on Cartoon Network's Adult Swim programming block, which is associated with Turner Broadcasting. This reportedly resulted in Pause being taken off the air, ultimately leading to The Boondocks coming to an end in 2014.
Shortly after speculation that Winston Jerome's character was based on Tyler went viral, rumors began circulating about the filmmaker suing the adult sitcom series. In June 2010, MediaTakeout published a rumor claiming that Tyler had filed a lawsuit against the sitcom's creator, Aaron McGruder.
However, according to Atlanta Magazine's June 2010 report, Tyler Perry's spokesperson, Ken Sunshine, refuted the rumors, stating:
“There’s not much to say. Just don’t believe anything you read on the blogs. But we’re always happy to speak with legitimate journalists who are interested in doing actual reporting.”
Additionally, Tim DeClaire, Cartoon Network's Adult Swim spokesperson, emailed the publication to say that he was not aware of any lawsuit filed by Tyler.
According to a report by The Mirror dated June 17, 2025, Tyler Perry's attorney, Mathew Boyd, denied the credibility of Derek Dixon's allegations against his client, using words like "scam" and "fabricated claims" to describe the actor's lawsuit.
