When Madea calls, it’s worth a listen.
Filmmaker Tyler Perry offered a job Tuesday to “The Cosby Show” alum-turned-Trader Joe’s cashier Geoffrey Owens.
A photo of Owens, 57, working at Trader Joe’s accompanied by job-shaming coverage recently went viral, prompting Owens to defend himself on “Good Morning America.” “No one has to feel sorry for me,” said Owens, who played Elvin on the hit 1984-1992 sitcom. “I’m doing fine. ... Every job is worthwhile and valuable.”
Perry, perhaps best known for playing the cranky grandma Madea in his popular film series, wrote on Twitter that he respected actors “who hustle between gigs,” so he offered Owens a job on “OWN’s number one drama.”
“Come join us!” Perry wrote.
Deadline reported that the filmmaker was referring to “The Haves And The Have Nots,” a Perry creation about the intersecting lives of the rich and poor that has aired since 2013.
Owens called the offer “encouraging.”
“That was kind of cool,” Owens told Entertainment Tonight. “I mean, that kind of sounded like he was saying, ‘Come work with me.’ I’m so, like, skeptical. Like, really? Are you actually saying come work with me? Because we’ve never worked together before. So, that’s a very, very generous thing for him to say. And we’ll see what happens with that. But, that’s encouraging.”