Sam Rockwell and Renee Zellweger both had horrible audition stories to share during their Variety Actors on Actors discussion.
Rockwell revealed that he went above and beyond for an audition for Dr. John Carter on “ER,” the role that eventually went to Noah Wyle.
“That was terrible. I came in with a lab coat. I kind of overdid it. Talk about gilding the lily,” he said, much to Zellweger’s amusement. “I did bring a hypodermic needle without the needle, just the plastic part. I think it freaked them out. They looked at me like I was from Mars.”
“Did you show a little too much expertise in knowing how to use it? Because that might give them pause,” she said after joking he could’ve brought a stethoscope and patient with him, too.
After at first saying she didn’t have many horrible audition stories, Zellweger recalled a failed tryout for the 1996 movie “Broken Arrow,” which starred John Travolta, Christian Slater and Samantha Mathis.
“It had one of those fight scenes where you had to fight, but there wasn’t anybody else in the room. So you had to improvise that you’re fighting,” she said. “In your brain there’s no getting around that you look stupid. And I’m not in that movie, so there you go.”
“Actors on Actors” will air on PBS June 18th and 20th.
