ATLANTA — Thousands of people jammed roads for miles in Atlanta on Sunday to try to get boxes of food and gift cards donated by entertainer Tyler Perry.

What You Need To Know

  • On Sunday, thousands of people in Atlanta lined up in their cars to get free Thanksgiving food thanks to media mogul Tyler Perry

  • Tyler Perry Studios said they had enough boxes of canned vegetables and $25 gift cards for 5,000 families to drive through and pick up

  • The demand for food was so great that the studio said it was out of food by 10 a.m. Sunday

The producer, actor, and director had announced on Thursday that his company, Tyler Perry Studios, would be giving away food items to people in need in the Atlanta area.

In a tweet, Tyler Perry Studios said they had enough boxes of canned vegetables and $25 gift cards for 5,000 families to drive through and pick up.

 

According to local reports, people began lining up in their cars the day before Perry's food giveaway was set to take place. The line started forming Saturday and at one point stretched for 5 miles south of downtown Atlanta, media outlets reported. Some of the food included in the gift boxes were canned cranberries, boxes of cornbread, and stuffing, per local outlets.

The demand for food was so great, in fact, that the studio said it was out of food by 10 a.m. Sunday. The giveaway was originally set to end at 12:00 p.m. 

In order to mitigate the spread of the coronavirus, recipients were required to stay in their cars to maintain social distancing. Volunteers in protective equipment were handing out the food and gift cards.

This is hardly the first time Perry has helped those in need amid the coronavirus pandemic. 

In April, it was reported that the "Madea" creator paid the grocery bills for hundreds of seniors at multiple grocery stores across Georgia and Louisiana.

“Senior and higher-risk Kroger shoppers in metro Atlanta did receive a nice surprise at the register this morning when they learned Tyler Perry had paid their grocery tab in full,” Felix Turner, the Atlanta spokesman for Kroger, told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution at the time. “We would like to join our customers in thanking Mr. Perry for his kindness and generosity during this unprecedented pandemic.”

Perry's latest generous donation comes amid a surge of coronavirus cases across the country, a dangerous time for a spike as millions of Americans have begun to travel for the Thanksgiving holidays. The Centers for Disease Control advise against traveling in order to mitigate the spread of the virus, and are also recommending that Americans limit their Turkey Day celebrations to only those in their immediate household. 

The Associated Press contributed to this report.