Stephen Baldwin has claimed that he was fired from the 1998 film “Love” because he was “funnier” than co-star Jennifer Aniston.
On Sunday’s episode of the One Bad Movie podcast, Baldwin revealed that he was originally cast to play Vince McBride, Aniston’s Nina Borowski’s boyfriend, in the romantic comedy directed by Nicholas Hytner.
“Once I get there, I’m me,” he said. “Jennifer is cute and everything’s fine. We’re having a girl. She’s doing great.”
The 60-year-old actor said a producer came to his trailer on the second day of filming and said, “We have a problem.”
“He said, ‘There’s no one funnier than Jennifer,'” Baldwin recalls. “I thought, ‘Is this a joke? This is a comedy movie! Are you about to get a flat tire? What does that mean?'”
Baldwin stressed that he is not sharing this story to “shatter anyone,” but rather to prove that he is “Hollywood’s Hollywood.”
The “Usual Suspects” star compared the producer’s criticism to “King Wolverine punching me in the face” and “I’m paralyzed.”
He said that when he returned to the set after being “comedically castrated,” he toned down his comedic delivery.
“You hired me to play a role, and now you’re telling me not to play that role,” he recalled thinking to himself.
Baldwin said he was removed from the film after that date.
“They let me go. They said I could go home,” he said. “It was all great. But it’s just awkward.”
The role of Vince was ultimately cast by Mad About You star John Pankow.
Page Six has reached out to Aniston’s representatives for comment.
“The Object of My Affection” tells the story of Nina (Aniston), a New York social worker, who becomes pregnant by her boyfriend (Pankow), but decides she wants to raise the child with her gay roommate, George (Paul Rudd).
Aniston and Rudd, 57, co-starred again on “Friends,” which aired from 1994 to 2004, and on the 2012 comedy “Wanderlust.”
In a March 1998 interview with Bobby Wygant, Aniston said that she initially felt “challenged and intimidated” by her role in The Of My Affection.
“This is a very complex situation and it is very necessary to tell the truth and give it everything it deserves,” she said about the film’s plot.
Aniston said working on the film was “the most amazing experience I’ve ever had as an actress.”
