Pauly Shore and Richard Simmons’ family are clashing over a proposed biopic of the late fitness icon that is supposed to star Shore. The actor and comedian told Entertainment Tonight in an interview published July 30 that he was still developing the movie following Simmons’ death last month. Shore also cast doubt on Simmons’ own disapproval of the unauthorized biopic.
Pauly Shore Pays Tribute to Fitness Guru Richard Simmons: 'I Hope You're at Peace and Twinkling Up in the Heavens'
“I know he wanted me to do it,” Shore told ET. “I don’t even know if that was him tweeting [disapproval] the whole time, to be quite honest. I don’t know who that was.”
Simmons’ staff and brother, Lenny, took to the late entertainment figure’s X/Twitter account to set the record straight and to continue to stress that Simmons never gave Shore his blessing for the biopic.
“Pauly Shore has recently made comments to Entertainment Tonight concerning his attempts to proceed with an unauthorized movie about Richard. You’ve seen here on Richard’s account what he had to say about the biopic,” Simmons’ staff wrote.
Lenny added: “Dicky absolutely wrote his own posts. He worked on them a week in advance, going over and over them to get the right message. He would often read them to Cathy and I beforehand. What he has NOT done was to text, email or call Pauly with anything; not even to wish him ‘Good Luck’ as Pauly has stated many times.”
News of Shore’s biopic broke in January. Simmons was dismissive of the project from the start and commented on the film in a Facebook post that read: “You may have heard they may be doing a movie about me with Pauly Shore. I have never given my permission for this movie. So don’t believe everything you read.”
Shore told Variety at the time that his Simmons movie is “all about love,” with or without the real Simmons’ blessing.
“It’s never been vindictive. I’m not Borat. I’m not, ‘Let’s make fun of someone.’ It’s the opposite. At this point, it’s an unauthorized biopic and they’re made every day,” Shore said. “Yes, I want him to put his pixie dust on this and say, ‘Go for it, Pauly.’ We don’t want to bug him. We want him to be left alone and we don’t want to bug him. We want to pay homage to him and kiss his feet and say he’s done beautiful stuff.”
Fitness Guru Richard Simmons Dies at 76
Simmons later revealed that he was talking to film studios about making his own biopic. Shore wrote on Instagram that he was “up all night crying” after Simmons continued to publicly distance himself from the actor’s unauthorized biopic.
“I just read that a man that I don’t know is writing my bio pic starring Pauly Shore,” Simmons posted. “I do not approve this movie. I am in talks with major studios to create my own biopic with some help. Wait for this movie.”
Shore responded: “I was up all night crying regarding Richard Simmons’ tweet. Richard, how do you not approve of this movie? I mean, really, who’s better to play you in a movie than ME? Leonardo DiCaprio’s not gonna play you. Brad Pitt’s not gonna play you. I’m perfect. Everyone already thinks I’m you. We’re the same.”
“I also heard the good news that you’re in talks with studios to do a biopic about yourself,” Shore added. “That’s amazing! The more movies about you, the better! You deserve it. There should be hundreds made. But as you know, many biopics are made without the subject agreeing to be part of it: Elvis, Stephen Hawking, Marilyn Monroe, Steve Jobs and many, many more. Some of them turned out good, some of them turned out bad. Mine is going to turn out amaze-balls.”
Following Simmons’ death in July, Shore took to social media to remember the star and wrote: “I hope you’re at peace and twinkling up in the heavens. Please give my mother Mitzi and my father Sammy a big hug and a kiss for me. You’re one of a kind, Richard. An amazing life. An amazing story. They broke the dolphin shorts when they made you. Rest in peace, my friend. Rest in peace.”
Shore’s unauthorized Simmons biopic is in development at Warner Bros. subsidiary The Wolper Organization from writer Jordan Allen-Dutton.
Pauly Shore Says He's Starring in Richard Simmons Biopic 'Whether He Likes It or Not': 'Just Another F--ing Bump in My F--ing Road'
Most Popular
Comments / 0