Eugene Levy Almost Rejected American Pie Offer | On-Screen Fathers | The Graham Norton Show

a lot of people will know you as H Jim's dad in American Pi yes and but you didn't want to do that you said no to that oh I said no initially yeah because um uh you know I read this I got the script and uh reading the script you get to you know page four and you know somebody is uh masturbating in to a glass of beer and then somebody else unknowingly picks up the beer and then you know kind of drinks it and then there's uh and then two pages later there's somebody kind of uh you know performing oral sex on a can I just say I can only apologize I no idea this is where he going to go I'm building up to a point here I didn't want to do it I didn't even like the part The Way It Was Written Jim's dad because it was kind of written as a uh nudge nudge wink wink kind of thing with the with the dad trying to be friends kind of a hip friend with his son and I said uh I I don't want to play that I think a Dad should be the kind of dad that nobody wants to hang around with right when they're a kid just a square dad trying to do the right thing and uh so we they allowed me to improvise do all the scenes take them out and improvise before before we started shooting uh before I committed to do it and then I liked the way the improvisations were going it was kind of turning out the way I wanted it too so I I said okay but the casting does seem perfect the the four of you as a kind of you know follow we think so sure I I assume the dysfunctional purveyor of tough love or as I am just sloppy sentimental brimming over with emotion and is that you it well it's a sort of extreme version of me I I'm I'm a little bit sentimental myself you know but you're that's what connects that's what connects us I I can always crying I can cry insurance I found myself uh crying on a commercial airline flight watching The Parent Trap and my wife looked over me I was like what is going on and I'm like cuz you know you know what's going to happen they're all going to get back together but I I just I couldn't help it tears were just streaming down my face snot everything yes John apparently you made yourself crying a plane I was watching Terms of Endearment for the first time in many years a movie that I was in I it's a weird version of narcissism at your WR performance I'm so damn good great release right you're breaking my heart damn you John lithco you did it to me again but I mean Terms of Endearment is oh that's so upsetting it's a completely sort of no fault tearjerker it never fails and and Mark I've heard you saying that as you get older you are getting more emotional you do more more boohoo yes H apparently even no no there's more apparently even Disney's got to you now do tell didn't you cry watching a film with your kids or maybe you weren't watching with your kids maybe you're just watching it I don't know I have I no I I get very sentimental you know that the biggest ads that get me now I yes Shrek makes me cry all those things well that's CU I'm in it I didn't know I didn't realize the other day I was Lord Fara a very very very moving performance let's just leave it at that you worked together before Pursuit of Happiness now this picture look at that that how old are you there six seven I'd say a solid seven solid seven you were so little man that's half of my life right now yeah that's oh how depressing is that you know what I'm saying when I'm like 17 I'll be like yeah I've been acting for a decade someone will slap you it might be me but since then the Smith family sci-fi Adventure epic After Earth I like how you said that the Smith family SciFi EP EP epic epic but now because it's it opens here on the 7th of June so what do people need to know about it what do you tell us what I tell you well you know it the the the movie is really you know the Epic Sci-Fi Action adventure with all the I said that one yeah I know that I was reiterating Graham no but it's all it has all of that stuff but really what's great is at the center of it it's a a father and son story you know it's a a father and son struggling for survival so it's to be able to get that level of drama and acting at the center of a you know a popcorn movie is is fun and real it's a tough relationship between the two of you yes yes it's um my character I play in the movie in the movie in real life in real life it's what the it's that it's the thing but I love this idea that that will you've been kind of training Jaden to be a movie star absolutely like didn't you teach him a special movie star run well it's not it's not a special like what happens is only movie stars run like Jaden moves run well no you you know you know what I'm talking about like if you there's a certain way your body has to look when when when you run you know so I was I I had him train with a sprinter cuz that's the most athletic looking run cuz if you know you know in let's [Applause] let's I'll save you sweetheart I'll save you it's that guy's not a movie star that guy's not a movie star but take it is one of those films where one speech becomes legendary and like even on the poster they use the speech you know the one you're on the phone oh yes you know I I don't know who you are and that do get loads of fans Comm asking you to say that um occasionally I do my my eldest boy is a boarding school he sometimes call up and say Dad um could you uh leave a message on the Charlie's voicemail and do you oh yeah I do yeah well you do I can never remember the words so well listen we've have a very special lady in the audience and now uh her name is Joe where's Joe oh there's Joe now you don't know Joe I don't think he doesn't know no no but she claims to be no don't worry daughter lover that victim good game good game she be your first fan oh yeah yeah now why do you think you're his first fan um I saw Liam acting in a miniseries about nearly 30 years ago and I wrote you were fan letter and you sent me back a sign photo and a letter saying it was your first ever fan letter and I've got it [Music] here what did he say what did he say he says thanks for your Charming letter oh stop you there thank well listen uh weirdly cuz it's like channeling your son uh Joe contact us uh saying she she would like you to do something for her uh now so basically she wants would you leave uh an answer phone greeting on her phone sure yeah would would you do you mind okay so what she she sent us in your number uh so I call your phone's off right okay fine yeah okay so otherwise that'll be annoying and stupid uh 907 7 7 7 a lot of people will call up to hear this okay this should be BR hello this is Joe please leave a message please enter your PIN followed by the hash key okay okay you're at the O2 greetings and mailbox settings menu to listen to your messages want to key to you're at the O2 greetings menu to listen to your please record your personal greeting to end recording key Z so you press zero read that and then you press zero again show me where zero is zero is that one please your personal greeting I start yeah I don't know who you are if you don't let my daughter go now I will find you I will kill you please leave a message work that's it work hang on hang on okay uh Team let's just call it back and just see if we it was successful 9 0 7 7 seven that's so many sevens six S I don't know who you are but if you don't let my daughter go now I will find you I will kill you please leave a message please leave your message after the tone to re-record your message key hash at any time hi it's Alan Davis here if you've got my daughter um she's two you can keep her I'm going on tour to get away from her she's a nightmare and she's also got chicken poox good luck than you for oh [Music]