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Edinburgh Live
01-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Edinburgh Live
Jim Carrey reveals role that was 'like torture' but he'd like to play again
Our community members are treated to special offers, promotions and adverts from us and our partners. You can check out at any time. More info Jim Carrey has revealed his desire to revisit a beloved character "one more time". The comedian, known for a huge variety of memorable roles ranging from the everyman Truman Burbank in The Truman Show to the darkly intriguing lead in The Cable Guy, has a particular part that resonates with him. At 62, Jim, who had previously hinted at retirement, decided to step back into the Sonic the Hedgehog series. Jim returned as Doctor Robotnik in the third film based on SEGA's iconic video game character, despite having indicated that his involvement in the sequel would be his final role. The star, celebrated for performances in hits like Yes Man, Bruce Almighty, and Liar Liar, has now divulged which character he's keen to play again. In a recent chat, Jim was asked "Is there any one character that you'd love an opportunity to play one more time?" Jim seemed momentarily taken aback, uttering "gosh," before revealing his choice, reports the Mirror US. (Image: PA) Admirers of the festive favourite 'The Grinch' will be thrilled, as Carrey seems open to donning the green suit again. He said: "If we could figure out The Grinch. That'd be difficult." While crafting a follow-up to Ron Howard's yuletide blockbuster might pose challenges, the interviewer humorously suggested that someone would "try and figure it out now". Jim added: "You know, the thing about it is, is that on the day I had to do that with a ton of makeup and I could hardly breathe and I went, you know, it was an extremely excruciating process. The children were in my mind all the time. 'It's for the kids, for the kids, the kids.' "And now with motion capture and things like that, I could be free to do some other things. But, you know, anything's possible in this world. Anything's possible." Jim has talked openly about his difficulties portraying The Grinch, admitting in past interviews that he underwent CIA training to endure breathing in the costume. He even considered walking away from the 2003 film until Oscar-winning producer Brian Grazer intervened. Brian introduced Jim, who felt as though he was "buried alive" in the suit, to a CIA contact. On his first day, Jim revealed that getting into the suit took "eight-and-a-half hours" after which he returned to his trailer and "put [his] leg through the wall" in frustration. (Image: Liverpool Echo) In his book A Curious Mind: The Secret to a Bigger Life, Grazer recounts, "One of the CIA people I'd talked to years before specialized in training US agents to survive torture if they were captured. We had an actor being held prisoner by his costume - he was being tortured by his makeup." In an interview with chat show presenter Graham Norton, Jim Carrey spoke candidly about his daunting experience while filming The Grinch. He revealed that a mix of breathing exercises and a smoking habit saw him through the challenging shoot. Jim admitted: "If you're freaking out and spiralling downward, turn the television on, change a pattern, or have someone you know come up and smack you in the head, punch yourself in the leg, or smoke - smoke as much as you possibly can." His methods clearly paid off, as the film is now considered a timeless favourite, and fans are eager to see if he might don the Grinch's costume once more.
Washington Post
15-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Washington Post
‘Friendship': Tim Robinson and Paul Rudd poke fun at men who bond
Tim Robinson, who has become a cult comedic star with his show 'I Think You Should Leave,' possesses the hulking, humorously awkward physicality of a socially inappropriate goofball who's just big enough to be dangerous. In 'Friendship,' his breakout feature turn, Robinson plays Craig Waterman, a good-natured lummox living in a dreary Nowheresville called Clovis, USA — which could easily be a stand-in for suburban Detroit, where Robinson grew up. Craig works for a generic tech company called Universal Digital Innovations, where they create addictive apps for corporations and political candidates. Craig lives in his own hyper-screened, self-satisfied world, even when he's in the cramped split-level house he shares with Tami (Kate Mara), a recent cancer survivor who runs a flower-arranging business out of their dining room, and their teenage son Stevie (Jack Dylan Grazer). Tami worries about her disease recurring and whether she'll ever orgasm again; at a cancer support group, Craig blithely shares that 'everything is awesome' and that he's 'orgasming just fine.' In other words, Craig exists in a goldfish bowl brimming with blissful oblivion: That's not privilege or entitlement he's swimming in, it's just water. But Craig's complacency will get a considerable sloshing when he meets Austin (Paul Rudd), who has just moved in down the street. Taking a page from the observational humor of the late Lynn Shelton, with nods toward the Apatovian School of Modern Male Anxiety and the cringe comedy of Larry David, 'Friendship' chronicles the morphology of a middle-aged man crush, from its besotted onset of beers, boxing and a brotastic version of 'My Boo' to its ignominious flameout. There's a thin line between the campy antics of 'I Love You, Man' and the far darker malignancy at the heart of 'The Cable Guy': 'Friendship' lives in that liminal space, mining its queasiest, quirkiest nuances for absurdist laughs and less comfortable squirms. Written and directed by Andrew DeYoung, making his feature debut, 'Friendship' possesses the ungainly pacing and structure of one of Robinson's sketches extended beyond its comfort level: When a character takes a (very funny) hallucinogenic trip, the set piece feels of a piece with the choppy dream logic of a movie in which time and space are flattened, and characters pop up out of nowhere. (I'm still not sure the audience was properly introduced to Austin's wife, played by Meredith Garretson in a thankless role.) For every scene that feels daring and boldly spontaneous, another feels on-the-nose or falls oddly flat. Rudd brings his reliable commit-to-the-bit resolve to a role for which he's supremely well-suited, and he brings his own history: It turns out that Austin is a local TV weatherman, giving 'Friendship' the vibe of 'Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy' fanfic. (Which, when you think about it, isn't such a bad idea.) DeYoung has enlisted an able supporting cast to provide services as foils for Craig's more bizarre behavioral doglegs. But 'Friendship' is clearly intended as a showcase for Robinson, whose manic focus and imposing stature — made all the more hegemonic by an enormous parka — lend him an air of lumbering, untethered menace: This dad bod can been weaponized. His everyman with an edge keeps the audience continually guessing. Is Craig creepy or just refreshingly unfiltered? Are we rooting for him or mentally taking out a restraining order? Is this a message from the skeptical outer reaches of the manosphere? Or a cry for help from its loneliest inner craw? It's just that constant sense of instability that 'Friendship' is going for; in the meantime, it offers a modestly sharp-eyed critique of the materialist excesses and aspirational deceits of 21st-century American life. To their credit, Robinson and DeYoung know their limits. They don't overreach or stay past their welcome, and they stick the landing with unexpected finesse. 'Friendship' is primarily a movie for Robinson's hardcore fans, but, for the Tim-curious, it serves as an amusing — if haphazard and uneven — introduction to his distinctive sensibility. If you like your mortification with a side of unassuming Midwestern brio, you just might have a friend in Clovis, USA. R. At AMC Georgetown 14, Alamo Drafthouse Cinema DC Bryant Street and Angelika Film Center Mosaic. Contains profanity and some drug content. 101 minutes.
Fox News
10-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Fox News
Ben Stiller knew he had to quit 'Saturday Night Live' after four episodes
Ben Stiller knew he had to walk away from "Saturday Night Live" after just four episodes. "I just knew that I wasn't a great live performer," the comedian told The Hollywood Reporter. "It got me nervous," he explained. "I get stressed out even thinking about it, and making movies is the opposite of that. You get to do it over and over again." Bob Odenkirk, who also worked on the variety show at the time, thought this move was unthinkable. "He was ballsy as h--- to walk away from 'SNL' and to be able to say with confidence about himself and his career, 'This isn't going to work for me. I have to leave here,'" Odenkirk told the outlet. After quitting "Saturday Night Live," Stiller was given the opportunity to continue sketch comedy – just not live. "The Ben Stiller Show" first aired on MTV and later on Fox. Afterward, he landed roles in "Reality Bites," "Heavyweights" and Jim Carrey's "The Cable Guy." Stiller's big break came with a role in "There's Something About Mary." Since then, the actor has starred in huge productions, including "Meet the Parents," "Zoolander," "Along Came Polly," "Starsky & Hutch," "Night at the Museum" and "Tropic Thunder." Stiller's acting career didn't sway his kids' interest in the industry. His children, shared with actress Christine Taylor, want to be actors. Ella and Quinlin both had minor voice roles in "Madagascar." "I feel probably what my parents felt," Stiller told The Hollywood Reporter regarding his children's interest in show business. "I recognize their talent and their desire to do it, and I support it a hundred percent. And I also know it's a tough business, and as a protective parent, you don't want your kids to have to suffer the slings and arrows." "I'm glad that for all of the things that I did wrong as a parent or being too caught up in my work, it's not like they were like, 'I don't want anything to do with this,'" he added. Stiller has actually been finishing up a project featuring his own parents. The "Severance" producer was raised by Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara, two actors in their own right. Stiller lost Anne in 2015 and Jerry passed away in 2020. "I'm thinking I'm going to miss working on it," Stiller said of the documentary. "I have an excuse to just sit and watch my parents all day." As for what's next, he's not quite sure. "It'd be fun to work on a story that's just like two hours," he said.
