The “fucked up” meeting that inspired Jim Carrey’s greatest role
America’s most decorated comedy actor, Jim Carrey, enjoyed a meteoric rise to stardom as the goofy face behind such iconic characters as Ace Ventura, Stanley Ipkis, the Joker, Lloyd Christmas and Ernie ‘Chip’ Douglas, the Cable Guy. As the American response to Britain’s Rowan Atkinson, Carrey made his millions through an innate ability for physical humour and clever silliness.
Carrey’s degree of facial muscle control and slapstick sense of humour put him in good stead for a career in comedy from early childhood. Although he was well aware of his abilities, it would take a hard graft over the 1980s before the real rewards were reaped. However, a significant setback for Carrey’s early career was a failed audition for Saturday Night Live.
After bouncing back, Carrey grew from strength to strength to become one of the most prolific and popular comedy actors of the 1990s. Approaching the millennium, Carrey began to broaden his cinematic scope, taking on more serious, dramatic roles in films like Man on the Moon, The Truman Show and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. Such titles brought crucial balance to Carrey’s oeuvre and proved that his skill set scales far beyond physical comedy.
Carrey’s more serious roles over the past 20 years have proven his versatile acting talent and undoubtedly held some of his greatest performances. Arguably, the greatest of his career was that opposite Kate Winslet in Michel Gondry’s 2004 science fiction romance Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.
In the emotional movie, Carrey portrays Joel Barish, a heartbroken man who undergoes an experimental procedure to erase all memories of his relationship with his ex-girlfriend, Winslet’s Clementine. Man on the Moon and The Truman Show had mixed serious themes with comedy, but Carrey’s more compelling, sentimental side was exhibited for the first time in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.
During a past interview with IGN, Carrey was asked how he got the unlikely role in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. “I don’t remember,” he said. “Someone gave me the script, and I read it, and I thought it was incredible, and I couldn’t believe that I was being offered [it]. So, I was just very, very happy.”
“It’s one of those things, you sit back,” the actor continued. “I read that, and I had this guilty feeling of, like, how’d I get this one and Truman Show, man? Two very interesting and original movies. I’m really happy about it. It’s great to be a part of, and the cast is amazing. It’s unbelievable on many levels.”
Despite Carrey’s obvious pride in the project, he endured a somewhat strained relationship with Gondry while working on set. During a particularly “fucked up” casting meeting with the director, Carrey once recalled Gondry telling him, “You’re so beautiful. You’re so broken. Please don’t get well.”
The comment ostensibly alluded to Carrey’s highly publicised mental health struggles. In response, Carrey admitted that this realisation may have helped him attain the utmost authenticity for the role. “That’s how fucked up this business is,” he reflected.
Watch the trailer for Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind below.
