‘A Madea Family Funeral’: Tyler Perry Mourns in Grim New Photo

A Madea Family Funeral will be released in just a few short months, and a grim new photo from then film shows Tyler Perry‘s iconic character in mourning.

In the photo, Perry’s Madea is seen donning all black and standing behind a casket adorned with flowers while a church choir sits behind her.

According to a synopsis of the film, “A joyous family reunion becomes a hilarious nightmare as Madea and the crew travel to backwoods Georgia, where they find themselves unexpectedly planning a funeral that might unveil unsavory family secrets.”

Fans will be sad to know that Perry has announced that this will be Madea’s final outing, as he is retiring the character for good, joking in a recent interview, “It’s time for me to kill that old b—. I’m tired, man.”

“We’re going to say goodbye in ’19,” Perry added. “I just don’t want to be her age playing her.”

Interestingly, Indiewire recently pointed out that this is not the first time Perry has made similar comments, as he did so back in 2009, which was just four years after his first film outing as the character.

“I would love to see Madea die a slow death in the next film,” Perry reportedly said during an interview at that time. However, his explanation for why he wanted to do away with Madea was more about logistics than creative issues.

He said that while Madea is “a whole lot of fun to watch…to do it is a nightmare.”

“It’s all one suit that I’m zipped into, so it’s all heavy. The hips are heavy. And the more I sweat, the heavier it gets,” he continued, then quipping, “I see why women have back problems who have large breasts. Holding those things upright can be tough.”

He then went on to make what some could call a prophecy about Madea’s future, though it would be of the self-fulfilling variety.

“As long as they want to see her, she’ll stay around,” he stated. “But, I’m telling you, if they ever stop coming, she’s going to die a quick death. ‘Madea’s Funeral.’ That’s what you look forward to.”

Now, with A Madea Family Funeral coming out soon, many have wondered if this means the character will meet her demise. The notion is certainly plausible, but somewhat unlikely, as the film is not about Madea’s death, but rather another member of her family.

However, anything is possible and fans will just have to wait until the film is released on March 1, 2019 to see if Madea has a happy ending.