I believe that Paul Rudd is one of the most versatile actors on the planet. He broke into the movie business in 1995, starring in both a classic high school comedy (Clueless) and a horror movie (Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers), and is now known as the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Ant-Man, whom he is reprising in the upcoming Marvel movie, Avengers: Doomsday. Plus, like many other professionals of his craft, he has also been known to perform in theatrical productions.
Based on his experiences in the theatre that he shared with hosts Will Arnett, Jason Bateman, and Sean Hayes on their podcast, Smartless, it appears that the artistic medium is a breeding ground for anecdotes that blow almost anything to come from “Hollyweird” out of the water. I mean, for instance, a death occurred during one of Rudd’s plays, but that is not even the most insane story that he shared on this podcast episode, as far as I am concerned.
However, it is the tale I will recall first, below…
An Audience Member Died During Paul Rudd's Performance In The Last Night Of Ballyhoo
About 40 minutes into Paul Rudd’s Smartless episode, Jason Bateman brings up how the star of the upcoming A24 movie, Friendship, has performed in the theatre many a time. However, Bateman (who co-starred with Rudd in the 2006 comedy, The Ex – read CinemaBlend’s review here) really wants to hear about anything “weird” that happened while he was onstage, which prompts him to bring up a time when an audience member passed away in the venue.
It was in the late ‘90s when Paul Rudd was originating the role of Joe in Alfred Uhry’s World War II-era period dramedy, The Last Night of Ballyhoo, during which one gentleman in the crowd, for reasons the actor does not specify, died near the end of the show. However, according to Rudd, no one seemed to notice until after the play concluded and the attendees had left their seats and made their way out of the building… save one person. Rudd himself would only be informed of what took place after the fact when the deceased had been removed from the premises.
A Person Regurgitated On The Audience From The Balcony During Paul Rudd's Performance In Grace
Paul Rudd’s recollection of the man who passed during The Last Night of Ballyhoo was actually delayed by a few minutes because he was apparently a little more eager to tell a story of a separate incident from years later. In 2012, he was starring in a play called Grace and acting in a scene opposite Academy Award nominee Michael Shannon, who was delivering a long monologue when the following took place, in Rudd’s own words:
We hear this noise. We’re both aware that, like, there’s a commotion, but usually it dies down and it’s getting louder and louder. And Michael is pissed off and starts screaming his lines toward the direction of the noise to make a point… Of course, when Michael Shannon is yelling at you, like, it’s the most terrifying thing ever. It’s the thing that did make everybody kind of quiet down.
I must say, I certainly sympathize with Shannon, who previously portrayed himself in an acclaimed A24 movie called A Different Man, in this situation. I can only imagine how frustrating it must have been to have his own signature moment of the night suddenly interrupted like that.
However, the conversation dramatically shifts when you discover what the cause of the commotion was. Rudd continues and explains what really happened here:
And then, after this scene, I have to rush over to the wings to do a costume change, and I asked the stage manager, I said, ‘What the hell’s happened? What happened out there?’... Somebody was drunk and threw up over the balcony, and it puked onto about 10 different people.
Now, I cannot help but feel especially sorry for the audience members who must have been frightened by Shannon's infuriated reaction, considering how they were already traumatized by being regurgitated on from above.
The Audience Caught A Sight Of Paul Rudd's Balls During The Shape Of Things
If you were assuming that Michael Shannon’s furious reaction to his monologue being interrupted by a person puking from a balcony is the highlight of Paul Rudd’s theatre memories on Smartless, think again. He tells another story, coming from when he starred in the 2001 production of Neil LaBute’s The Shape of Things (two years before starring in the film adaptation) opposite Academy Award winner Rachel Weisz, that makes even that and the story of the dead audience member seem tame.
Once again, I will let Rudd describe what took place below:
I was lying on top of a bed… and I was wearing boxer shorts and a T-shirt and, all of a sudden – this had never happened before – I heard the audience laughing, and I’m like, ‘What is going on?’ I realized it’s because I was lying on the bed, I had my leg up… and I realized my balls were hanging out.
As if the embarrassing story could not be any funnier, soon after, Will Arnett cannot help but point out the hilarious irony that the audience was given a full view of Rudd’s globes during a show called The SHAPE of Things. The former Arrested Development Gob Bluth actor doubles down on his joke by adding that the production's poster should have been a close-up image of Rudd’s privates.
Rudd had one other brief, but wild, theatre story involving a person who lost control of their bowels and “went to the bathroom in the fourth row,” which the actor quickly became aware of due to its scent. He was also courteous enough to let the Smartless hosts know that this event and the audience member's death were two separate incidents.
Now, after learning about these unbelievable stories, all I can say is that I hope Paul Rudd continues to do more theatre. He seems to be a magnet for intriguing events occurring on or near the stage, and I cannot imagine anything as amusing as these happening on the set of Avengers: Doomsday, which is now in production. Then again, stranger things have happened, so we will just have to see.
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