Superbad star Michael Cera recalls how the fame that came with starring in the hit comedy had a number of negative side effects, which had him debating his entire career choice. Released in 2007, Superbad is directed by Greg Mottola and produced by Judd Apatow. The film stars Cera as Evan and Jonah Hill as Seth, two high school seniors navigating the final weeks of school and preparing for a party that they hope will get them ready for college.

Now, more than 15 years after the release of Superbad, Cera opens up about the fame that came with the movie in a recent interview with The Guardian. According to the actor, the fame experience following the release of the film was so negative that it made him question whether he even wanted to be an actor at all. Check out Cera’s full comment below:

“That was sort of overwhelming. I didn’t know how to handle walking down the street. Fame makes you very uncomfortable in your own skin, and makes you paranoid and weird. There were lots of great things about it, and I met a lot of amazing people, but there’s a lot of bad energies, too, ones that I was not equipped to handle.
“Drunk people would be a classic example. You know, if people are drunk, and they recognise you, and they’re very enthusiastic, but it can be kind of toxic too. When you’re a kid, people also feel they can kind of grab you – they’re not that respectful of you or your physical space. I didn’t know how to respectfully establish my own boundaries.
“There was a point where I wanted to stop taking jobs that would make me more famous. I was kind of having a bit of a crisis … I was really not enjoying the level of heat. I really didn’t know if I was going to keep being an actor. I was already committed to [starring in Scott Pilgrim vs. The World], and went and did it, and obviously feel so grateful that that happened.
“I knew that it wasn’t just like constantly fanning the flames to get bigger and bigger. I knew that wasn’t really my goal. I think I wanted to be a working actor who can enjoy my day-to-day life, and the world that I’ve created for myself. I think that was the overall thing I was trying to figure out.”

Just How Popular Was Superbad?

An actor achieving an uncomfortable level of global fame from a comedy movie sounds far-fetched today, but it’s important to remember that the entire movie landscape was different in the mid-2000s. Studio comedies, at the time, got theatrical releases and could go on to be big hits. Superbad, for example, was made on a budget of $20 million and went on to earn over $170 million at the box office.

The film was also a hit with critics, and currently holds an impressive 88% on Rotten Tomatoes. Just about everyone involved would go on to enjoy very successful careers, including the likes of Hill, Seth Rogen, Bill Hader, Emma Stone, and Christopher Mintz-Plasse. The film was also co-written by Rogen and Evan Goldberg, and the duo would subsequently become a staple of the comedy movie landscape. Speaking to just how popular the movie was and still is, there are continued calls for Superbad 2 even now, more than it’s 15 years later.

Following Superbad, Cera would appear in Juno, Year One, and Scott Pilgrim vs. The World. More recently, the actor would lend his voice talents to The Lego Batman Movie before then appearing in Molly’s Game. This year, Cera appeared in an episode of Black Mirror and is set to play Allan in Barbie. While Superbad may have caused Cera to question his career as an actor, the movie business is evidently better for it that he decided to stick around.

Source: The Guardian