Bobbi Christina Tyler Perry - H 2012
Getty ImagesWhitney Houston’s daughter Bobbi Kristina found herself at the center of yet another media storm on Wednesday, after reports surfaced that the 19-year-old had tearfully exited the set of Tyler Perry’s For Better Or Worse.
“Not true,” says Tyler Perry. The auteur took to his personal website to clear up reports and defend the teen, whom he says is still grieving the loss of her mother.
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“I woke up this morning to my publicist calling me saying that there were reports that Bobbi Kristina walked off the set of For Better Or Worse. NOT TRUE AT ALL PEOPLE!!!” writes Perry. “There is no way that she could have walked off the set because we have finished taping the season.”
The 42-year-old was specifically referencing a story by Radar Online, which quoted a source close to production as saying that Bobby Kristina suffered a “private breakdown” and decided that she “couldn’t handle doing the show right now” since she was still in mourning. The report also stated that she and Perry had a private conversation about her recurring role, and that Perry was forced to “do a lot of restructuring work” on the series.
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“After Whitney’s funeral, Krissi and I spent a long time talking about her goals and dreams. She said she wanted to act. That’s when I decided to write her into For Better Or Worse,” Perry explains. “I thought that there would be no better way for me to help her move through the grieving than by giving her something to focus on. The one thing that I learned after my mother’s death is that you have to keep busy and you have to be around people who you can trust, so that when you do grieve you can do it in the safety and privacy of people that care.
“Were there tough days for her? Yes of course. Not because of the acting or any job-related issues but because of the fact that she had just lost her mother.”
Perry then issued some strongly emphasized words to his audience: “PLEASE LEAVE THIS BABY ALONE!!!! AND SHE IS A BABY!!! Please stop the lies and give this child some room to breathe and grieve.”
In February, TBS ordered 35 additional episodes of the comedy, which stars Michael Jai White, Tasha Smith, Kent Faulcon, Crystle Stewart, Kiki Haynes and Jason Olive. The story centers on the ups and downs of various relationships.
