Tyler Perry Wraps ‘Ruthless’ After Positive Check-in COVID Test, Starts Production On ‘Bruh’ At His Atlanta Studio
Production wrapped yesterday on Tyler Perry’s BET+ drama series Ruthless, a spinoff of his popular BET White House drama The Oval. Starting today, Perry began taping new episodes of his BET+ comedy series Bruh, I have learned.
Perry has been filming new seasons of his series at his Tyler Perry Studios in Atlanta amid the coronavirus pandemic with week-long breaks between the shoots. Because Bruh is a short order, I hear Perry and his crew stayed in continuous production.
Perry employs a quarantine bubble model, sequestering cast and crew on the lot for the duration of a shoot. The production follows a 30-page document that outlines the plan in great detail. It involves check-in testing as cast and crew arrive at the studio, with everyone staying in their rooms until test results come back.
I hear a cast member of Ruthless tested positive during the check-in test. The person self-isolated off the premises and was retested, producing three consecutive negative results. The production schedule was rearranged to accommodate the absence. The quarantined actor was allowed back for the last two days of production after their third negative test, and was able to complete their scenes, sources said.
Perry’s quarantine bubble has held up during production of his shows so far. The previous positive COVID cases also came during check-in for Sistas.
“We had four positives in our initial check-in before anyone was allowed to leave their room,” Perry told Deadline at the time. “We had those people leave and got them the help they needed.” The positive tests (4 out of 360 people) did not involve cast; two of them were extras, two were crew.
Over the last couple of months, Perry successfully filmed new seasons of his BET series The Oval and Sisters, followed by Ruthless, at his Atlanta studio.
More from Deadline
Best of Deadline
Sign up for Deadline's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
Solve the daily Crossword
