Will Packer knows that diversity in movies is good business.

The producer has become a standout in Hollywood, making films with mostly Black casts that cater to an underserved audience — and that audience has rewarded him for it. His 2017 film “Girls Trip,” starring Tiffany Haddish, Regina Hall, Queen Latifah and Jada Pinkett Smith, was the highest- grossing comedy of that year. Comedies “Think Like a Man” and “Ride Along” have also seen massive success at the box office.

Packer has since branched out into projects for streaming, documentary features and TV, diversifying his slate at a time when the industry is seeing upheaval in its business model. His next project is “Fight Night,” a true-story limited series for Peacock that chronicles the biggest heist in the state of Georgia’s history, starring Kevin Hart, Samuel L. Jackson and Taraji P. Henson. But Hollywood’s contraction shouldn’t mean that diverse projects should be abandoned in favor of the bottom line, he said.

“It takes folks pushing the industry to see the economic benefit of doing organically diverse content,” Packer said. “And I like to think that I’m one of the people that is doing the pushing.”

This interview with Packer has been edited for clarity and length.

Q: This year is the 10th anniversary of Will Packer Productions. What are you most proud of?

A: Sustainability and longevity in the context of a very fickle industry where not a lot of companies last that long. As the ever-changing industry has continued to shift, we have somehow been able to stay relevant and valuable to our media partners and to audiences, which is most important.

Q: What has helped you stay relevant?

A: I like to think it’s because two of the things that I really try to focus on are commerciality and authenticity. We focus on things that will be appealing to our core audience and do it at a time when we realize they don’t have to consume your stuff. It’s laughable to me how self-important as an industry we can be. And I have peers who think that if you build it, they will come. And it’s like no, not at all.

Q: What more needs to be done for diversity?

A: There definitely has been progress — you look at the voices in front of and behind the camera, and they’re more diverse than ever before. Even though I’m optimistic, I don’t have any delusions of thinking that we’ve turned some incredible corner. If anything, when you have a constriction of content now, studios pulling back, the first things that get cut are things that are considered, you know, diversity initiatives. I’m living proof that diverse content is good business. Unfortunately, we’re seeing it become tougher for diverse filmmakers, because it’s tougher for all filmmakers, but it always hits the marginalized voices first and hardest. And we’re seeing it now.

June 30 birthdays: Actor Nancy Dussault is 88. Bassist Stanley Clarke is 73. Guitarist Hal Lindes is 71. Actor David Alan Grier is 68. Actor Vincent D’Onofrio is 65. Actor Monica Potter is 53. Actor Lizzy Caplan is 42. Singer Cole Swindell is 41. Singer Fantasia Barrino is 40. Actor Sean Marquette is 36.