The idea stuck with Perry, who saw potential in expanding the Madea universe into the horror-comedy genre. By January 2016, Lionsgate had officially slated the film for release, taking the joke from the silver screen and turning it into a full-fledged production. The film holds a unique place in the franchise as the eighth entry and only the second Madea movie to not be adapted from one of Perry's stage plays, the first being 2012's Madea's Witness Protection . This allowed Perry and his team to craft a story tailored specifically for the big screen and the Halloween season.

In 2014, Chris Rock released his critically acclaimed comedy Top Five . In the film, Rock’s character encounters a fictional, absurdly over-the-top movie franchise installment: Boo! A Madea Halloween . It was meant to be a throwaway parody of Hollywood’s obsession with endless sequels and seasonal cash-ins. However, Lionsgate executives saw actual box office gold. They approached Tyler Perry with the idea, and two years later, the fictional joke became a cinematic reality.

Interestingly, the idea for Boo! A Madea Halloween didn't come from a stage play, as many of Perry's earlier films did, but from a joke. In Chris Rock's 2014 film Top Five , a character pitches a film called "Madea's Haunted House on Halloween," which is a thinly-veiled jab at Perry's prolific output. Rather than taking offense, Perry embraced the concept. Lionsgate approached him about developing it, and Perry shot the entire movie in a swift six days at his new studio in Atlanta, which contributed to its reported $20 million budget. As the eighth film in the Madea franchise, it was also the second not to be adapted from a stage play.