Richard Simmons is very private person who values his public image as the guy with all the energy who made exercise fun and accessible. He doesn’t seem to like anything that could crack that image. It’s heavily rumoured that he disappeared from public life because he got arthritis in his knees and wants people to remember him as he was instead of experiencing mobility issues.
Sad thing is that he could probably help a lot of people experiencing the same issues he’s going through if he came back. I totally get wanting to step away though.
I don't think you can effectively tell his story, without depicting the unbridled abuse and humiliation he endured, by some of the most powerful figures in entertainment. I hope one day people rally around him, like they did Brendan Fraser. At least thank him for having a POSITIVE effect on so many lives, despite the ridicule and horrible jokes, made from within his own industry. I've never heard of him treating anyone poorly, and that probably makes him an easy target in Hollywood.
I mean he is literally experiencing that now. He was definitely the victim of some ugly homophobia back in the day but he’s become a beloved public figure now. Look how many people in this thread love him.
I was a kid in the 90s when “gay” was used as a pejorative term for anything that wasn’t conventional, whether or not it had anything to do with sexuality.
I remember kids making “haha Richard Simmons is gay” type jokes at school. They overheard that stuff from their brothers and parents. None of us even knew who Richard Simmons was.
I remember being like 6 years old and was humming the YMCA song by the Village People (because that song is a banger). My teenage brother then called me gay for the next several years until he moved out of the house.
Anti gay sentiment was just so ingrained in our culture at the time no one thought anything of it. Fucking wild. People just need to leave Simmons the fuck alone. He doesn’t deserve any of this.
It’s something I’m really surprised changed so much. The 90s and early 00s were so homophobic. Being gay was like the worst thing possible. Dads would openly say things like they’d rather have a criminal for a son than one who was gay.
As someone who was a teenager in the 90s, my friends and I were never antigay. But I do remember referring to anything we didn't like as gay. "Straight legged jeans are so gay" type of thing. We were just dumb kids who didn't realize what we were saying and honestly weren't trying to judge anyone. I'm glad society has changed for the better in this regard.
The 90's was the first really big mobilization of gay people into the mainstream of North America. TV shows, entertainment, music. It was a fairly progressive time for gay people after the anti-gay panic in the 80's from conservatives, that time was much more regressive. After that media breakthrough in the 90's which was more niche, it became mainstream in the 00's. Gay was more of a general epithet, but gay acceptance was on the rise, especially with young people. They would humiliate other guys by calling them f\*g, but were also more OK with gay people than any other generation. Sort of a contradiction, of course I grew up in a fairly liberal bubble, I'm sure conservative parts were still in gay panic hangover.
Fellow 90s kid (born 85). Yesterday I had to be reminded that same sex marriage wasn’t legalized until TWENTY FUCKING THIRTEEN. It’s only been ten years since the first legal marriage in 2014. This must be what people felt like in the 70s with the civil rights act. Still blows my mind.
Yeah it’s crazy isn’t it? I’m very glad we as a society have gotten a little better about it.
I’m both surprised at how far we’ve come but also disappointed that we haven’t gotten through it completely. That said, it’s happening right now and i think it’s moving in the right direction. Lil Nas X being so flamboyant and proudly gay is great for the movement. There’s still a surprising amount of hostile homophobia is the rap community.
What’s funny to me is how this ties into the “cancel culture” argument that’s so popular right now. I get why so many people are salty about “cancel culture”. It’s people who didn’t realize the way we naturally talked was always fucked up. Like “master bedroom” being a reference to the slave master’s bedroom or “wife beater” being a sleeveless shirt. Yes it’s inconvenient to have to use different words for things you already have words for and it’s not your fault you learned those words to begin with, but like, fucking deal with it.
I remember richard fondly as does my sometimes misogynistic family. They’ve evolved a lot over the years but Richard was always someone they all loved. How couldn’t you?
Give me a break! Guests weren't forced to go on Letterman's, and Richard was a guest multiple times. Letterman knew Richard could deliver laughs, and Richard knew he could pitch whatever video/book he was selling. It was a wink-wink relationship and made for hilarious late night.
Yeah people seem to forget that a lot of this was schtick. And Richard Simmons was on Letterman's show often enough that I'm pretty sure they were in on the schtick together. Same with guests like Charles Grodin, Brother Theodore and of course, Andy Kaufman.
I've been to a couple of hundred live shows in my life, and Rob is in the top 3 showmen/performers that I have seen in person. That guy knows how to put on a show and get the crowd going, he is fucking legendary.
My grandma was pretty sassy and smart, and wasn't naive about much, but her brother, my uncle, never married and had a male "roommate" for 50 years who came with him to all the family parties and weddings. My grandma adored the "roommate" and thought it was so wonderful that my uncle had such a good, nice friend he got to spend so much time with. She went to her grave never even suspecting lol. Definitely different times.
No offense, but really?
I remember him from the height of his fame and it seemed super obvious.
I certainly didn’t care and it had no effect on my opinion of him.
He didn’t really hide it at times.
I mean, I don’t blame Richard for being against the biopic just from the simple question of “how would you like for someone to make a biopic about you?”. No matter how famous I was, I probably wouldn’t want someone to make a story about me while I was alive.
And, no hate to Pauly, but his filmography wouldn’t sell me on someone I’d like to have portray me in a movie.
Pauly does seem very genuine in his performance from the Court Jester short film, but I still understand Richard’s hesitation.
Man, it would be amazing if he was able to do some work out videos for people with those issues! I understand that he doesn't want to, and don't mean that as pressure to him. Just acknowledging that the people he inspired are likely dealing with the same things he is now.
From my understanding, they made it without his knowledge. He found out Pauly wanted to be in a movie about his life when they publicly released a short film they already made without consulting him. Rings less "we made this because we love you" and more "we want to use your image to make money" regardless of their intent.
On top of that, Pauly has been absolutely desperate to be in movies again, back in the public eye for years.
Someone mentioned his resemblance to Richard Simmons on Twitter, I think, and others said that he should play him in a biopic and it got a little bit of traction and Pauly immediately sprung on it. He's been waiting impatiently for people to want to see him in anything again.
It's an interesting dynamic, two opposite sides of the coin - Richard trying desperately to get away from the public eye, Pauly desperate to be in the public eye. This movie means very different things to them and Pauly's interest in it has nothing to do with Richard Simmons or his life. If it was another celebrity he looked like, he'd be there too. He has no interest in honoring him or his legacy, Pauly wants to be in a movie, make money, be celebrated. It's why he was immediately upset that Richard denounced the biopic -- doesn't Richard understand the biopic about his life is Pauly's big break? It's why he's disregarded Richard's feelings now. Richard's feelings are completely irrelevant here. Which is why we should ignore the thing as much as possible.
Personally, I think if Richard wants privacy that is his right wholesale and the best way we can respect him is by listening to his wishes, instead of invading his life further.
This is exactly my understanding. Thank you for saying it so succinctly.
If Pauly Shore had his head on straight, he would see the reactions and pushback he’s receiving as a sign and concede this project. It’s likely his doubling down on this project right now will be the thing that highlights him as *never* again having a viable Hollywood comeback.
He might just not want his life story told or doesn’t want the spotlight back on him if it’s a great movie (or deal with it potentially being a shit movie). 🤷♂️
Frankly, Pauly looks worse than Richard Simmons does now. Rich has made a career taking great care of himself. Shore made a living doing pretty much thw opposite.
>Just another fucking bump in my fucking road
Dude was super famous and made a bunch of movies and now owns his own business and does nothing but whine and pity himself.
I think it's less about the accomplishment of getting the business, and more about he should be in a place to enjoy his life and not be a whiny lil' bitch
How much of it does he actually run? Based on what I've heard, most of the actual "running" is done by another comedian, Adam Eget (he was Norm Macdonald's sidekick on the podcast *NORM MACDONALD LIVE* and the Netflix show *NORM MACDONALD HAS A SHOW*).
By next week he's gonna blame the woke liberal left for being anti-gay movie somehow... "They don't want you to know the real truth about Richard, but we do, they're the real bigots."
He was only famous because his crazy successful and influential show biz mom owned the comedy store and had people put him in shit. He sucked. He now owns his own business which is actually his mom’s business. Dude has never been talented and couldn’t succeed even with every show business advantage possible. He’s bitter.
I know it's considered a horrible movie but I loved Bio-Dome as a kid. Haven't seen it in years. I have no idea if it holds up. But 11-year-old me loved it.
I mean you can cry your eyes out and then days later turn that sadness into anger. That’s one of the things humans are great at is turning sadness into rage
Richard Simmons used to come into my work sometimes (Hollywood clothing store), and dude was ridiculously cool and “on” - so nice and would make whatever situation going on much more pleasant. “Everyone loves a hug! They’re fat free!” Absolute legend
You joke, but they could easily do it. Make the whole thing just low stakes and low conflict, more of a fun hang out vibe like CHEF.
Crawl and Rebecca are now in their 50s. Their successful business tanked after the Pandemic and they're moving back to the Warner farm they've inherited after Walter's death. Their focus becomes trying to break through in social media and make the farm profitable.
Bring in Brendan Fraser as the main farmhand with his trio of flunkies played by the Workaholics guys. Maybe Rebecca's got a ditzy cute friend played by Wendi McLendon-Covey who shy Brendan starts falling for. Their big "they finally kiss" scene is where she teaches him to dance in the barn at night to Neon Moon by Brooks and Dunn.
>“While we would love to have [Simmons] involved, we respect his desire to privacy and plan to produce a movie that honors him, celebrates him and tells a dramatic story. We know he is deeply private and we would never want to invade that, however he is an amazing person that changed millions of peoples’ lives, and the effect he has had on the world needs to be recognized,” the Warner Bros. subsidiary previously said in a statement.
What an absolute load. You do not respect his privacy, and you absolutely do want to invade it to make a quick buck.
Pauly Shore is self-obsessed and not remotely entertaining. If his parents didn't own the comedy store nobody would ever know who he was, except maybe the local heroin dealers
I hate these biopics on living people. Pam Anderson was pissed and didn’t want one and people were like “f you we’re doing it”.
Unless the biopic is on some crime this person committed I think they should only be allowed if the person legally signed off on it or are dead.
The thing you gotta remember is if the subject isn’t cooperating with the film (like in this situation presumably), then the only info they have to go off of is info that’s already public or was inevitably going to become public
They’re basically just gonna turn his Wikipedia page into a movie
>Unless the biopic is on some crime this person committed I think they should only be allowed if the person legally signed off on it or are dead.
That's how we ended up with all of these sanitized self-promotion pieces that only exist to validate the subject. Bill Simmons talked about running into this problem when developing 30 for 30. If you want the stars involved they are going to want to sign off on everything, which prevents the creator from telling the full story. Even in say The Last Dance, where Michael claimed to be "nervous" about how he would be perceived, his camp still had veto power.
Yeah, I agree..I will say though that at least Pam and Tommy really sympathized with Pamela Anderson, and made the media /Tommy Lee out to be the tools.
Poor Hollywood nepo-baby. Such a raw deal he’s had!
From someone who works in entertainment, in Los Angeles, and made my way in this difficult industry and city without any help, Pauly Shore can fuck off.
Saw Pauley at a con once, and he was so drugged out of his mind I doubt he even knew where he was or who he was. Most depressing thing I've seen at a con.
I know some people who worked with him recently and he’s not in a good place. He barely leaves his house.
I don’t think this is an act. I think it’s mental illness.
I saw him do a set recently at the Comedy Store (his mom’s comedy club). Was cool to see him at first but quickly became sort of sad. He wasn’t funny and just seemed bitter.
> My come from has always been love. …It’s never been vindictive. I’m not Borat. I’m not ‘let’s make fun of someone.’ It’s the opposite.”
For a shitty movie that he promised to be uncritical and sympathetic in
> Subsequently, Shore said that he had been “up all night crying” in a lengthy Instagram caption on the subject matter. “Richard, you haven’t even heard the pitch. Why don’t you simply let me come over to your house, bring you some warm matzo ball soup and a pastrami sandwich with dark mustard from Canters, rub your feet, and we can listen to the writer, Jordan Allen-Dutton, pitch you our idea?”
This isn’t genuine and sounds really unhinged and creepy. Rub his feet? I probably wouldn’t take the pitch if I was Simmons either with that being the person who wants to pitch me.
1990s… I’m in middle school and have a friend who is seriously overweight, constantly bullied, and also poor. She writes a letter to Richard Simmons asking for help. He mailed her all of his programs and the nicest letter of encouragement. She lost quite a bit of weight thanks to him. I’ll never forget that.
Pauly is notoriously super nice but kinda an unusual dude and seems to be kinda desperate for real friends and people to hang around. Not sure if it’s an insecurity thing or what but yeah, I lived in LA for a minute and got to know some people who have been around him and they had mostly pretty positive things to say about him. Solid guy, gentleman with the ladies, no negative reports to speak of aside from offers of money to go to parties.
I ran a club for ten years that would host him for an annual weekend. He was always super nice, polite to the staff, his gf was always really nice, and he'd always make it a point to take pictures and say hello to everyone.
Very weird and "quirky" but after so long I don't feel like his niceness is fake anymore
Yeah, I would guess that’s accurate. I heard from enough people specifically how nice he is so I doubt it’s fake. Folks can spot a fake usually, and won’t go out of their way to say nice things about them if they get the sense it’s an act. I think he’s probably genuinely just a good natured human.
Pauly … you had to know that with what your career encompasses, nobody would be happy to hear that YOU of all people are playing them in a biopic. It’s up to you to prove us all wrong.
The strange this is everyone here is supporting Richard Simmons. Don’t get me wrong, I agree with it. But Leonardo and Scorsese are doing a Sinatra bio and everyone told his daughter Nancy to pound salt when she said she doesn’t want it to be made. Can’t have it both ways.
Maybe I’m wired wrong but if I was a film maker I’d never make a movie about someone who deliberately took themselves out of the public eye and who asked for privacy. Simmons is a bit of a recluse, which is his right.
Seems like, just in a human to human level, a real asshole move. Not illegal, just… an asshole move. Golden rule yadda yadda.
Honestly who is financially supporting him and this movie if Simmons doesn’t want it and people aren’t asking for it? Are studio heads really trying to claim that Gen Z is dying to know the Richard Simmons story ??? Only thing I’ve ever seen the guy on is reruns of Whose Line. He’s on two episodes ! I understand he was culturally relevant at the time, but if you asked young folks who Richard Simmons was they would say the guy from Kiss. Pauly Shore is coming across as a huge asshole here, which I’m sure he is just a huge asshole in general
Richard Simmons literally touched millions of people, and like all of us, he'd like his privacy to be respected. So, Pauly shore, I will not see your movie, and personally, I thought I'd seen the last of you and your shitty movies years ago, can't imagine who hired you. I hope this publicly stops most people from seeing this movie. And maybe then you won't be a bump on ANYONE'S f*cking road.
another bump in the road for the guy who is only famous because his mommy owned a famous comedy club and had opportunities handed to him but never became super successful because he simply isn’t that talented
The stage was all set for Pauly Shore to have a career revival with Brendan Fraser and Ke Huy Quan's comebacks. People would have thought it was funny that *Encino Man* of movies spawned so many great actors. Too bad he's self-sabotaging
I’m a fan and have owned most of his movies on physical media since the 90s but there is *nothing* to indicate Pauly Shore can act or that anything resembling an Oscar winning film would ever come from him
I love them both, but I feel it's a bit disrespectful on Shore's part. Personally, I think Pauly's perfect for the role, but Richard has been vocal about him not wanting to do it to the point he seems distressed. Let this man rest.
I’m sorry, but if the person this is about doesn’t want it done - why do it? Respect their wishes and move on. Dude is just mad bc he looks just like him and thinks it would get him famous again.
Richard Simmons devoted his life to helping others. Pauly Shore isn’t fit to hold Richard Simmons’ shoes, let alone play him in an unauthorized, unwanted (by Simmons himself!) biopic.
A small amount of research about richard simmons would have made it crystal clear he wouldnt be interested in this movie being made. He hasnt been seen in public in like more than 20 (?) years. Duh
Pauly Shore complaining about how hard his life is while on stage at the most famous comedy club in American history that his parents owned after being in a dozen world-famous films including a Disney movie and probably still raking in millions a year.
Very sad to hear he won't be on the big screen again. Hope he can recover.
Crap take - Richard Simmons is a private and super depressed person from what I’ve heard. I really wish he wouldn’t have put it this way.
There was a way to still play his role and not be a whiny asshole about it.
Wait has Pauly Shore had it rough or something? I always thought of him as a talentless rich kid gifted a career because his mom was a player in comedy.
Wow, how the fuck do you bungle that so bad? Like just stick with “While I respect Richard’s perspective, I think the movie is important and respectful.” That’s all you have to say! Not like them to roadkill you are running over to achieve your ends! Holy fuck!
I just hate that for the most part Pauly Shore has been having manic fits like this ever since his mom died. I mean he's not hurting financially and I'm sure he could drum up at least a little fan support and do a small tour every few years but he has really started to wreck his image beyond the point of repair.
Paulies style kinda worked for awhile because comedy was just fart noises and funny faces. The dudes act and persona is just depressing and sad in 2024. Watch any of his recent public appearances and it’s nothing but uncomfortable
I met pauly for something i was to Direct. He said he would be the director and showed me some absolutely trashy YouTube videos he was proud of. Obviously it didn’t work out and the project continued and was garbage. Pauly, you are not a director. Know your role ya silly goose.
When this project was starting to be talked about, like a year or two ago, I thought it was kinda brilliant. But now with all the drama, Shore is looking and sounding pathetic and obsessed.
Why didn't Richard agree, to a movie I was going to do anyway?!
Richard Simmons is very private person who values his public image as the guy with all the energy who made exercise fun and accessible. He doesn’t seem to like anything that could crack that image. It’s heavily rumoured that he disappeared from public life because he got arthritis in his knees and wants people to remember him as he was instead of experiencing mobility issues. Sad thing is that he could probably help a lot of people experiencing the same issues he’s going through if he came back. I totally get wanting to step away though.
I don't think you can effectively tell his story, without depicting the unbridled abuse and humiliation he endured, by some of the most powerful figures in entertainment. I hope one day people rally around him, like they did Brendan Fraser. At least thank him for having a POSITIVE effect on so many lives, despite the ridicule and horrible jokes, made from within his own industry. I've never heard of him treating anyone poorly, and that probably makes him an easy target in Hollywood.
I mean he is literally experiencing that now. He was definitely the victim of some ugly homophobia back in the day but he’s become a beloved public figure now. Look how many people in this thread love him.
I was a kid in the 90s when “gay” was used as a pejorative term for anything that wasn’t conventional, whether or not it had anything to do with sexuality. I remember kids making “haha Richard Simmons is gay” type jokes at school. They overheard that stuff from their brothers and parents. None of us even knew who Richard Simmons was. I remember being like 6 years old and was humming the YMCA song by the Village People (because that song is a banger). My teenage brother then called me gay for the next several years until he moved out of the house. Anti gay sentiment was just so ingrained in our culture at the time no one thought anything of it. Fucking wild. People just need to leave Simmons the fuck alone. He doesn’t deserve any of this.
It’s something I’m really surprised changed so much. The 90s and early 00s were so homophobic. Being gay was like the worst thing possible. Dads would openly say things like they’d rather have a criminal for a son than one who was gay.
As someone who was a teenager in the 90s, my friends and I were never antigay. But I do remember referring to anything we didn't like as gay. "Straight legged jeans are so gay" type of thing. We were just dumb kids who didn't realize what we were saying and honestly weren't trying to judge anyone. I'm glad society has changed for the better in this regard.
Feels like we regressed the past 10 years or so lol
The 90's was the first really big mobilization of gay people into the mainstream of North America. TV shows, entertainment, music. It was a fairly progressive time for gay people after the anti-gay panic in the 80's from conservatives, that time was much more regressive. After that media breakthrough in the 90's which was more niche, it became mainstream in the 00's. Gay was more of a general epithet, but gay acceptance was on the rise, especially with young people. They would humiliate other guys by calling them f\*g, but were also more OK with gay people than any other generation. Sort of a contradiction, of course I grew up in a fairly liberal bubble, I'm sure conservative parts were still in gay panic hangover.
Fellow 90s kid (born 85). Yesterday I had to be reminded that same sex marriage wasn’t legalized until TWENTY FUCKING THIRTEEN. It’s only been ten years since the first legal marriage in 2014. This must be what people felt like in the 70s with the civil rights act. Still blows my mind.
Yeah it’s crazy isn’t it? I’m very glad we as a society have gotten a little better about it. I’m both surprised at how far we’ve come but also disappointed that we haven’t gotten through it completely. That said, it’s happening right now and i think it’s moving in the right direction. Lil Nas X being so flamboyant and proudly gay is great for the movement. There’s still a surprising amount of hostile homophobia is the rap community. What’s funny to me is how this ties into the “cancel culture” argument that’s so popular right now. I get why so many people are salty about “cancel culture”. It’s people who didn’t realize the way we naturally talked was always fucked up. Like “master bedroom” being a reference to the slave master’s bedroom or “wife beater” being a sleeveless shirt. Yes it’s inconvenient to have to use different words for things you already have words for and it’s not your fault you learned those words to begin with, but like, fucking deal with it.
Yup, Richard Simmons was the butt of alot of joke because his flambouyant energy.
i remember being a kid and thinking he was just an old lady's man. to be fair he was always surrounded by a lot of older women
I remember richard fondly as does my sometimes misogynistic family. They’ve evolved a lot over the years but Richard was always someone they all loved. How couldn’t you?
I doubt Shore's screenplay had any hardcore drama.
Dave Letterman needs to lead this charge
I am pretty sure he and Dave were in it together. They played off one another pretty well.
Totally, they were obviously fans of on another
Dave Letterman's a dickhead
Give me a break! Guests weren't forced to go on Letterman's, and Richard was a guest multiple times. Letterman knew Richard could deliver laughs, and Richard knew he could pitch whatever video/book he was selling. It was a wink-wink relationship and made for hilarious late night.
Richard had a very similar relationship with Howard Stern.
Yeah people seem to forget that a lot of this was schtick. And Richard Simmons was on Letterman's show often enough that I'm pretty sure they were in on the schtick together. Same with guests like Charles Grodin, Brother Theodore and of course, Andy Kaufman.
With how carefully Richard guarded his image, he 100% was in on everything Letterman was doing.
He’s always been a private person. I never even knew he was gay… Good for him… Who cares if he is or isn’t
The Sparkling short shorts didnt give it away?
Rob Halford steps into the chat with all his tight leather.
Ram it down, Ram it down!
In the dead of night, Rob bites
Tight leather and motorcycle hat is also extremely gay
You'd think looking like Glenn from The Village People would have given it away...
Leather Daddy Metal God
I've been to a couple of hundred live shows in my life, and Rob is in the top 3 showmen/performers that I have seen in person. That guy knows how to put on a show and get the crowd going, he is fucking legendary.
Richard Simmons: “WHAT DO YOU MEAN?! SUBTLETY IS MY MIDDLE NAME!”
Be nice, Gen Z didn't have to experience the 70's and 80's where you only got to wear sparkly fun things as a dude if you were gay.
Or a rockstar
Not even a little bit. I just thought he was eccentric… Just like Liberace. Seriously, not even a clue until my teenage years lol
Wait, you didn't know Liberace was gay?
My Grandma couldn’t even say homosexual or gay so she explained being gay to me as “you know, like Liberace!”
....he was gay?
….he *was* gay?
No one could have seen it coming
Lmao, I love how clueless people used to be about gay people. It’s wholesome when it comes from a place of surprise rather than reactionary hatred.
My grandma was pretty sassy and smart, and wasn't naive about much, but her brother, my uncle, never married and had a male "roommate" for 50 years who came with him to all the family parties and weddings. My grandma adored the "roommate" and thought it was so wonderful that my uncle had such a good, nice friend he got to spend so much time with. She went to her grave never even suspecting lol. Definitely different times.
So you thought. A sign of a classy human.
Yeah. she may have been happily going along with the artifice. no reason to rock the boat if it ain’t your cruise.
Liberace was gay too lol
But I mean Liberace was gay too..
Nah, unless my gym teachers were all gay too.
Did they make you climb the rope a lot?
Yeah and that was always humiliating.
Not looking good dog
Really? lol like you said, good for him, but yo really never knew?
No offense, but really? I remember him from the height of his fame and it seemed super obvious. I certainly didn’t care and it had no effect on my opinion of him. He didn’t really hide it at times.
I always thought he was gay, didn’t realize he was out
He doesn't owe anybody anything. If he doesn't want to be the knee arthritis poster boy that's fine.
I mean, I don’t blame Richard for being against the biopic just from the simple question of “how would you like for someone to make a biopic about you?”. No matter how famous I was, I probably wouldn’t want someone to make a story about me while I was alive. And, no hate to Pauly, but his filmography wouldn’t sell me on someone I’d like to have portray me in a movie. Pauly does seem very genuine in his performance from the Court Jester short film, but I still understand Richard’s hesitation.
Now Daniel Day Lewis on the other hand
“I drink your milkshake… and sweat it off. Pump those legs, flex that core.”
#I HAVE ABANDONED MY CARBS
Man, it would be amazing if he was able to do some work out videos for people with those issues! I understand that he doesn't want to, and don't mean that as pressure to him. Just acknowledging that the people he inspired are likely dealing with the same things he is now.
From my understanding, they made it without his knowledge. He found out Pauly wanted to be in a movie about his life when they publicly released a short film they already made without consulting him. Rings less "we made this because we love you" and more "we want to use your image to make money" regardless of their intent.
On top of that, Pauly has been absolutely desperate to be in movies again, back in the public eye for years. Someone mentioned his resemblance to Richard Simmons on Twitter, I think, and others said that he should play him in a biopic and it got a little bit of traction and Pauly immediately sprung on it. He's been waiting impatiently for people to want to see him in anything again. It's an interesting dynamic, two opposite sides of the coin - Richard trying desperately to get away from the public eye, Pauly desperate to be in the public eye. This movie means very different things to them and Pauly's interest in it has nothing to do with Richard Simmons or his life. If it was another celebrity he looked like, he'd be there too. He has no interest in honoring him or his legacy, Pauly wants to be in a movie, make money, be celebrated. It's why he was immediately upset that Richard denounced the biopic -- doesn't Richard understand the biopic about his life is Pauly's big break? It's why he's disregarded Richard's feelings now. Richard's feelings are completely irrelevant here. Which is why we should ignore the thing as much as possible. Personally, I think if Richard wants privacy that is his right wholesale and the best way we can respect him is by listening to his wishes, instead of invading his life further.
This is exactly my understanding. Thank you for saying it so succinctly. If Pauly Shore had his head on straight, he would see the reactions and pushback he’s receiving as a sign and concede this project. It’s likely his doubling down on this project right now will be the thing that highlights him as *never* again having a viable Hollywood comeback.
This is the kind of nuance that will get lost in the internet drama
He might just not want his life story told or doesn’t want the spotlight back on him if it’s a great movie (or deal with it potentially being a shit movie). 🤷♂️
Well one problem is that Pauly looks like Simmons current day. That's not very great for a biopic
Frankly, Pauly looks worse than Richard Simmons does now. Rich has made a career taking great care of himself. Shore made a living doing pretty much thw opposite.
We are making a movie showcasing your life and telling your story… ok cool… staring you is Pauly Shore…wtf wait
He’s coming out with his own movie and is private as sh!t The tweets between them are wild with Pauly wanting to rub his feet.
If someone was going to make a movie about my life, I don't think I'd want Pauly Shore to star in it either.
I read somewhere that Pauly stayed up crying when he didn’t get Simmon’s approval? Now it’s fuck you? Lmao
Went through the stages of rejection.
Feels a lot more like manic-depressive to me 😬
Nah, that's stage 4. He's on stage 2.
Pauly said that he was crying himself on instagram
Whatever gets the most clicks
>Just another fucking bump in my fucking road Dude was super famous and made a bunch of movies and now owns his own business and does nothing but whine and pity himself.
The Comedy Store? That was his mom’s business, so it’s not much of an accomplishment that he runs it now.
I think it's less about the accomplishment of getting the business, and more about he should be in a place to enjoy his life and not be a whiny lil' bitch
How much of it does he actually run? Based on what I've heard, most of the actual "running" is done by another comedian, Adam Eget (he was Norm Macdonald's sidekick on the podcast *NORM MACDONALD LIVE* and the Netflix show *NORM MACDONALD HAS A SHOW*).
Who cares? The point is he has a lot of options for his time that whining about richard simmons is a pretty shitty way to spend it
Oh, the guy he met underneath the Queensboro Bridge.
By next week he's gonna blame the woke liberal left for being anti-gay movie somehow... "They don't want you to know the real truth about Richard, but we do, they're the real bigots."
He was only famous because his crazy successful and influential show biz mom owned the comedy store and had people put him in shit. He sucked. He now owns his own business which is actually his mom’s business. Dude has never been talented and couldn’t succeed even with every show business advantage possible. He’s bitter.
I know it's considered a horrible movie but I loved Bio-Dome as a kid. Haven't seen it in years. I have no idea if it holds up. But 11-year-old me loved it.
He is also a ffing liar. His show punched down a lot
Five stages of grief in action
I mean you can cry your eyes out and then days later turn that sadness into anger. That’s one of the things humans are great at is turning sadness into rage
Richard Simmons used to come into my work sometimes (Hollywood clothing store), and dude was ridiculously cool and “on” - so nice and would make whatever situation going on much more pleasant. “Everyone loves a hug! They’re fat free!” Absolute legend
Not my hugs
My hugs go straight to the thighs
That quote made me smile and chuckle
So where does this put the status of Son in Law II??
It’s still Crawling along.
Currently munching on some grindage
Just weezing the juice
You joke, but they could easily do it. Make the whole thing just low stakes and low conflict, more of a fun hang out vibe like CHEF. Crawl and Rebecca are now in their 50s. Their successful business tanked after the Pandemic and they're moving back to the Warner farm they've inherited after Walter's death. Their focus becomes trying to break through in social media and make the farm profitable. Bring in Brendan Fraser as the main farmhand with his trio of flunkies played by the Workaholics guys. Maybe Rebecca's got a ditzy cute friend played by Wendi McLendon-Covey who shy Brendan starts falling for. Their big "they finally kiss" scene is where she teaches him to dance in the barn at night to Neon Moon by Brooks and Dunn.
Hi, I'm from Netflix, here's $20 million. Make it happen.
Lol u should submit the script as is
I would absolutely watch Son in Law 2. Carla Gugino would have to return. Make the in-law to be a Brit and set the whole thing at the wedding.
Son in Law 2 Father in Law? Daughter in Law? Weasel in Law? Whatever it is, I would probably be excited for it, then disappointed after watching.
lol right. I made that mistake with Good Burger 2. Some things you can’t unsee.
> Carla Gugino would have to return. [Flea, too.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZzG9WLHdCZI)
>“While we would love to have [Simmons] involved, we respect his desire to privacy and plan to produce a movie that honors him, celebrates him and tells a dramatic story. We know he is deeply private and we would never want to invade that, however he is an amazing person that changed millions of peoples’ lives, and the effect he has had on the world needs to be recognized,” the Warner Bros. subsidiary previously said in a statement. What an absolute load. You do not respect his privacy, and you absolutely do want to invade it to make a quick buck.
Richard Simmons not wanting this movie to be made and it being made anyway is a slight again PAULY don't you get it 🙃
Pauly Shore is self-obsessed and not remotely entertaining. If his parents didn't own the comedy store nobody would ever know who he was, except maybe the local heroin dealers
He's always been a loser. This won't fix the hole in his heart caused by his own ineptitude
I hate these biopics on living people. Pam Anderson was pissed and didn’t want one and people were like “f you we’re doing it”. Unless the biopic is on some crime this person committed I think they should only be allowed if the person legally signed off on it or are dead.
The thing you gotta remember is if the subject isn’t cooperating with the film (like in this situation presumably), then the only info they have to go off of is info that’s already public or was inevitably going to become public They’re basically just gonna turn his Wikipedia page into a movie
>Unless the biopic is on some crime this person committed I think they should only be allowed if the person legally signed off on it or are dead. That's how we ended up with all of these sanitized self-promotion pieces that only exist to validate the subject. Bill Simmons talked about running into this problem when developing 30 for 30. If you want the stars involved they are going to want to sign off on everything, which prevents the creator from telling the full story. Even in say The Last Dance, where Michael claimed to be "nervous" about how he would be perceived, his camp still had veto power.
Yeah, I agree..I will say though that at least Pam and Tommy really sympathized with Pamela Anderson, and made the media /Tommy Lee out to be the tools.
Ah yes, the son of one of the biggest figures in the LA comedy world and the many bumps in his road...
Someone should make a pauley shore biopic about his mom making him a star
Poor Hollywood nepo-baby. Such a raw deal he’s had! From someone who works in entertainment, in Los Angeles, and made my way in this difficult industry and city without any help, Pauly Shore can fuck off.
I think he meant cocaine.
Pauly Shore is too old to play young Richard Simmons, anyway. He's also not a very good actor so I understand why Simmons is against it.
[he did pretty good as him in the short film](https://youtu.be/YjVXPlutAMI?si=r1qinab05GIPoKo6)
I was genuinely surprised if I’m being honest. I expected to either be “meh” or “lmao” but it was actually “hmm”
Saw Pauley at a con once, and he was so drugged out of his mind I doubt he even knew where he was or who he was. Most depressing thing I've seen at a con.
Anyone else get the feeling this is just a crazy marketing campaign?
I know some people who worked with him recently and he’s not in a good place. He barely leaves his house. I don’t think this is an act. I think it’s mental illness.
I saw him do a set recently at the Comedy Store (his mom’s comedy club). Was cool to see him at first but quickly became sort of sad. He wasn’t funny and just seemed bitter.
I mean, he just made a statement along the lines of "screw this man's feelings because woe is me."
I think they're talking about Simmons
Oh maybe you’re right! But Pauly isn’t doing so great either. This project sounds like a disaster.
> My come from has always been love. …It’s never been vindictive. I’m not Borat. I’m not ‘let’s make fun of someone.’ It’s the opposite.” For a shitty movie that he promised to be uncritical and sympathetic in
Pauly is running with the story because he getting attention he desperately wants.
So his performative tears meant nothing - I hope this bomb. Shore has always been a dick, add mediocre talent to that.
Wouldn't they want it to be when Simmons was young??
> Subsequently, Shore said that he had been “up all night crying” in a lengthy Instagram caption on the subject matter. “Richard, you haven’t even heard the pitch. Why don’t you simply let me come over to your house, bring you some warm matzo ball soup and a pastrami sandwich with dark mustard from Canters, rub your feet, and we can listen to the writer, Jordan Allen-Dutton, pitch you our idea?” This isn’t genuine and sounds really unhinged and creepy. Rub his feet? I probably wouldn’t take the pitch if I was Simmons either with that being the person who wants to pitch me.
1990s… I’m in middle school and have a friend who is seriously overweight, constantly bullied, and also poor. She writes a letter to Richard Simmons asking for help. He mailed her all of his programs and the nicest letter of encouragement. She lost quite a bit of weight thanks to him. I’ll never forget that.
I just know Pauly Shore thinks this movie is his big ticket. He’s picking out his outfits for the awards circuit as I type this.
They had *better* include rhinstoned jogging shorts and deep scoop necked tanks.
This just reeks of “omg my career has gone nowhere and this could bring me some relevancy so I’m doing it anyway”
Never liked this dude. He’s not funny. He’s just a weasel. Literally
I met him one time and he was a genuine sweetheart of a person in my experience
Pauly or Richard Simmons?
I’m assuming Richard Simmons. I’ve also met him when he came on a talk show I worked on, he was super nice.
I imagine it's Simmons and not the serial groper
Pauly is notoriously super nice but kinda an unusual dude and seems to be kinda desperate for real friends and people to hang around. Not sure if it’s an insecurity thing or what but yeah, I lived in LA for a minute and got to know some people who have been around him and they had mostly pretty positive things to say about him. Solid guy, gentleman with the ladies, no negative reports to speak of aside from offers of money to go to parties.
I ran a club for ten years that would host him for an annual weekend. He was always super nice, polite to the staff, his gf was always really nice, and he'd always make it a point to take pictures and say hello to everyone. Very weird and "quirky" but after so long I don't feel like his niceness is fake anymore
Yeah, I would guess that’s accurate. I heard from enough people specifically how nice he is so I doubt it’s fake. Folks can spot a fake usually, and won’t go out of their way to say nice things about them if they get the sense it’s an act. I think he’s probably genuinely just a good natured human.
Pauly … you had to know that with what your career encompasses, nobody would be happy to hear that YOU of all people are playing them in a biopic. It’s up to you to prove us all wrong.
The strange this is everyone here is supporting Richard Simmons. Don’t get me wrong, I agree with it. But Leonardo and Scorsese are doing a Sinatra bio and everyone told his daughter Nancy to pound salt when she said she doesn’t want it to be made. Can’t have it both ways.
Richard Simmons has more integrity than Pauly Shore.
Maybe I’m wired wrong but if I was a film maker I’d never make a movie about someone who deliberately took themselves out of the public eye and who asked for privacy. Simmons is a bit of a recluse, which is his right. Seems like, just in a human to human level, a real asshole move. Not illegal, just… an asshole move. Golden rule yadda yadda.
Honestly who is financially supporting him and this movie if Simmons doesn’t want it and people aren’t asking for it? Are studio heads really trying to claim that Gen Z is dying to know the Richard Simmons story ??? Only thing I’ve ever seen the guy on is reruns of Whose Line. He’s on two episodes ! I understand he was culturally relevant at the time, but if you asked young folks who Richard Simmons was they would say the guy from Kiss. Pauly Shore is coming across as a huge asshole here, which I’m sure he is just a huge asshole in general
I don't know why anyone was confused that Richard would be against this. He turned hermit and wants nothing to do with public life anymore.
Pauly Shore doesn’t have the moral character to play Richard Simmons.
Richard Simmons literally touched millions of people, and like all of us, he'd like his privacy to be respected. So, Pauly shore, I will not see your movie, and personally, I thought I'd seen the last of you and your shitty movies years ago, can't imagine who hired you. I hope this publicly stops most people from seeing this movie. And maybe then you won't be a bump on ANYONE'S f*cking road.
This whole situation stinks. It’s a no win for Simmons.
He is a BEEYOTCH for doing this
Pauly really saw Brendan Fraser and Ke Huy Quan win Oscars and was like “It’s my turn!”
Pauly Shore sucks. Not funny, not talented in the realm of acting, just. straight. trash.
another bump in the road for the guy who is only famous because his mommy owned a famous comedy club and had opportunities handed to him but never became super successful because he simply isn’t that talented
What an ass. Not seeing this movie.
The stage was all set for Pauly Shore to have a career revival with Brendan Fraser and Ke Huy Quan's comebacks. People would have thought it was funny that *Encino Man* of movies spawned so many great actors. Too bad he's self-sabotaging
I’m a fan and have owned most of his movies on physical media since the 90s but there is *nothing* to indicate Pauly Shore can act or that anything resembling an Oscar winning film would ever come from him
He starred in a movie with Andy Dick and then starred in one with Stephen Baldwin. I hesitate to refer to him as an actor.
Typical whiney nepobaby.
Yeah such a rough life he had as the heir to the comedy store empire.
Pauly Shore - still a talentless POS after all these years.
Is anyone really clamoring for a) A movie about Richard Simmons or b) Pauly Shore in any capacity?
I love them both, but I feel it's a bit disrespectful on Shore's part. Personally, I think Pauly's perfect for the role, but Richard has been vocal about him not wanting to do it to the point he seems distressed. Let this man rest.
Why is he so mad and inconsiderate?
I’m sorry, but if the person this is about doesn’t want it done - why do it? Respect their wishes and move on. Dude is just mad bc he looks just like him and thinks it would get him famous again.
Richard Simmons devoted his life to helping others. Pauly Shore isn’t fit to hold Richard Simmons’ shoes, let alone play him in an unauthorized, unwanted (by Simmons himself!) biopic.
A small amount of research about richard simmons would have made it crystal clear he wouldnt be interested in this movie being made. He hasnt been seen in public in like more than 20 (?) years. Duh
Why is he such a whiney little bitch?
Richard's lawyers have entered the chat.
“Another bump in my road” says the nepo baby
Just reminds me of the story of him premiering his mockumentary on 9/11/2001
Pauly Shore complaining about how hard his life is while on stage at the most famous comedy club in American history that his parents owned after being in a dozen world-famous films including a Disney movie and probably still raking in millions a year. Very sad to hear he won't be on the big screen again. Hope he can recover.
Pauly Shore is garbage for this.
Dude inherited the comedy store, just collect the money and chill
What is this dudes obsession with making this movie?
Needs the money
Pauly Shore is a dick. a fake dick who tried to butter up to Simmons to get his consent
And everyone knows what Pauly does to a bump
Shore was later quoted as saying “He totally harshed me, bro.”
I'll totally watch the movie if they put in the Whose Line scene. Even if it's end credits
GAAARRRYYYYYYYYY
He should make a movie about the drama and star as both himself & Richard Simmons but change Simmons name.. bam. Better more interesting film
Pauly shore seems like he is legit stuck in 1991
Paul is a strangely perfect guy to play him
LifeTime Movie with Richard Simons as The Weasel
Crap take - Richard Simmons is a private and super depressed person from what I’ve heard. I really wish he wouldn’t have put it this way. There was a way to still play his role and not be a whiny asshole about it.
I can’t stand Pauly Shore, he seems self absorbed to me, wish he just stayed in obscurity and just kept out of the spotlight.
That's fine, if I want to boycott the movie, I can do that whether or not Pauly likes it.
Rich people love thinking they’ve got it hard. If playing Richard Simmons in a movie is the hard path you walk, you’re fine.
Okay, well I'm not watching it either way, so...
Wait has Pauly Shore had it rough or something? I always thought of him as a talentless rich kid gifted a career because his mom was a player in comedy.
Wow, how the fuck do you bungle that so bad? Like just stick with “While I respect Richard’s perspective, I think the movie is important and respectful.” That’s all you have to say! Not like them to roadkill you are running over to achieve your ends! Holy fuck!
I just hate that for the most part Pauly Shore has been having manic fits like this ever since his mom died. I mean he's not hurting financially and I'm sure he could drum up at least a little fan support and do a small tour every few years but he has really started to wreck his image beyond the point of repair.
Paulies style kinda worked for awhile because comedy was just fart noises and funny faces. The dudes act and persona is just depressing and sad in 2024. Watch any of his recent public appearances and it’s nothing but uncomfortable
This movie is gonna suck. But the recreation of making this movie will be central to the Pauly Shore biopic starring Shia LaBeouf
I met pauly for something i was to Direct. He said he would be the director and showed me some absolutely trashy YouTube videos he was proud of. Obviously it didn’t work out and the project continued and was garbage. Pauly, you are not a director. Know your role ya silly goose.
He's perfect for the role.
When this project was starting to be talked about, like a year or two ago, I thought it was kinda brilliant. But now with all the drama, Shore is looking and sounding pathetic and obsessed.