Serayah & Tyler Lepley Go Country in New Tyler Perry Movie | Interview
ComingSoon Senior Editor Brandon Schreur spoke to Ruth & Boaz stars Serayah and Tyler Lepley about the new Tyler Perry Netflix movie. The two of them discussed what drew them to the project, getting to sing alongside Babyface, and more.
“Rising Atlanta hip-hop artist Ruth Moably gives up the glamorous life to start anew in rural Tennessee, where she cares for Naomi, her surrogate mother, and meets the man of her dreams,” the logline for the movie reads.
Ruth & Boaz will be available to stream on Netflix on September 26, 2025.
Brandon Schreur: Serayah, I thought you gave a great performance in this movie. Like, a really great performance. Can you tell me a little bit about what brought you to this project and how you tapped into this character’s, Ruth’s, headspace? What were you most excited to portray in this character?
Serayah: What brought me to this project was definitely my agent saying, “Hey, there’s this new film with DeVon Franklin.” I had already worked with DeVon before on a show called Kingdom Business. So I was like, “Oh my god, I love DeVon.” Tyler Perry, oh my gosh. Cool. Netflix, I was like, “Ah! It’s my dream!” I want to do Netflix so bad. So I was like, “Oh my gosh, this is perfect!”
So I get to do the audition and everything like that. Once reading the script and kind of diving into the character, I was definitely drawn to it. To me, it was such a sweet love story. Although it had real moments of characters going through their own hurdles and things like that, I loved how it was very sweet. I don’t want to use the word innocent, but almost just like pure. It felt very pure. I think showcasing that and showcasing Black love, I was like, “Yes, sign me up.”
Totally. That leads into what I wanted to ask you, Tyler. I think one of my favorite things about this movie is how your character comes across. I know this is an adaptation of the Bible, but I liked how there wasn’t any dark or sinister twist to your character. There’s nothing evil lurking underneath; he’s just a good guy the whole time. That was really sweet. What made you want to join this movie, and what stood out to you most when you were reading through the script for the first time?
Tyler Lepley: That is something that brought me to the project, that I really enjoyed shooting about it. Boaz is a genuine dude, you know what I’m saying? What you see is what you get. He’s not — his love isn’t conditional, it’s not transactional. So when you see him show up like that, there isn’t a dark, underlying thing that’s attached to it. He is who he is. I felt like that was refreshing to see a man show up for a woman like that. Not needing anything in return.
Serayah: Yes, me too.
Lepley: Besides for her to just be her best self. That’s what he wanted.
Sure. I loved the cowboy hat look, too. I thought that was great.
Lepley: [Laughs] Me too, I appreciate it.
Serayah, a lot of your character in this movie involves music. Whether it be performing in the karaoke bar or when you’re singing alongside Babyface, I feel like it’s such an important aspect to this movie. Obviously, you’re no stranger to that world; you’ve had a very successful musical career. But how much fun was it to be able to play in that space and show off that side of the character?
Serayah: It was really fun because I got to do it in a way that I haven’t done before. What I mean by saying that is that I got to play with the country genre, which I’ve never recorded or never sang. Although I love it. So, I had a lot of fun singing these different types of records that required a different place in my voice. Also, obviously, doing that with a legend like Babyface and being able to really kind of visit those moments and having those special things brought across on screen. But, yeah, it was awesome. It’s definitely familiar to me, like you said. But I think the little nuance of the country music was a new thing that was pretty exciting.
Thanks to Serayah and Tyler Lepley for taking the time to discuss Ruth & Boaz.
Source: Comingsoon.net