Paul Rudd Recalls Trying To Audition For Another Clueless Character

Paul Rudd looks back on his early career, recalling the time he asked Clueless producers if he could audition for another role entirely.

Despite Paul Rudd’s turn as the mild-mannered Josh in 1995’s Clueless transforming him into a Hollywood heartthrob, the beloved actor recalls the time he tried to audition for another role altogether. Written and directed by Amy Heckerling, Clueless starred Alicia Silverstone, Stacey Dash, Donald Faison, and the late Brittany Murphy. A teen comedy loosely based on the Jane Austen novel Emma, the plot follows Silverstone’s Cher Horowitz, a popular Beverley Hills high-school student who makes it her mission to provide Murphy’s Tai with a much-needed makeover. Along the way, Cher also decided to seek out her own love interest, ultimately discovering feelings for her former stepbrother Josh.

Gaining a cult following in the years since Clueless‘ original release, Rudd is still regularly associated with his first major motion picture role.

Nonetheless, during a recent interview with GQ, Rudd recalled being less than impressed with the role he was being asked to audition for and instead wanted to read for the role of Murray, which was ultimately played by Faison in the film. Revealing that he was not aware it was written as an African-American role, Rudd reveals that he asked if he could read for Murray as it was funny. Check out his comments below:

“When I first read the script for Clueless, I though, okay, this is gonna be another movie about a bunch of kids. And [it] seemed pretty smart. I was really kind of into it as I was reading it and I thought all the characters were unique.

I’d been asked to read for Josh for that, for the part that I played. But when I went into the audition, I said, you know this part’s really, there’s nothing really funny about this part that I’d love to read for this one. They said sure, read for whatever, whatever you want. But I said, well Murray’s really funny. And then they said, well actually that’s an African American part. I said, okay, well then I won’t read for that one, but uh.. Then they said, well would you, would you read for Josh? The one that you were supposed to read for at the first place?”

Related: How Old Cher & Josh Are In Clueless

How Clueless Helped Launch Paul Rudd’s Career

For years, Paul Rudd has been associated with the contemporary film for playing Josh – a modern counterpart to Mr. Knightley in Emma, which Clueless was based on. Apart from his current roles in both the Ghostbusters franchise and Marvel Cinematic Universe, Rudd also boasts a string of appearances in popular comedies from his long-time collaborator Judd Apatow. Known for his sense of easy-going charm and youthfulness, he was also crowned the Sexiest Man Alive by People magazine in 2021.

However, long before he donned Ant-Man’s famous shrinking suit, it was his breakout role in Clueless that set him firmly on the path to stardom. Initially making his acting debut in a 1991 Super Nintendo commercial, Rudd would soon land a recurring role on the ‘90s family drama Sisters. After landing the coveted role of Josh opposite Silverstone’s Cher, Rudd departed his television role and would go on to cement his enduring legacy as “kind of a Baldwin.”

While it has now been almost 28 years since Rudd made his first big-screen appearance in Clueless, it is clear that he still owes a great deal to the role. Thankfully his initial misgivings about the character did not prevent him from landing the part, despite his wish to play another character entirely. It would be hard to imagine any moment in which Rudd was never given his first big break.

More: Clueless Real Inspiration For Cher & Josh’s Romance Explained

Source: GQ