These days Paul Rudd is sworn to secrecy regarding the upcoming Marvel movies he’s in but, of course, every big star’s career has a beginning. When it comes to Rudd, his earliest cinematic hit was Clueless. Today, the movie is viewed a classic and has become something of a cultural phenomenon. Amy Herkerling’s film may now be viewed as a sweet ’90s time capsule but, at the time, it apparently didn’t boost Rudd’s professional profile right away.
It’s wild to think Clueless was Paul Rudd’s first movie, but I can’t imagine anyone else in the role of Josh (even if Ben Affleck and Zach Braff also auditioned for it). The movie was a sleeper hit at the box office when it hit theaters in 1995, and it actually opened second to Apollo 13 at the time. Despite that success and his iconic Nintendo commercial, Rudd says he “didn’t really feel so famous” after the movie was released, and there are a few reasons for that:
I didn’t really feel so famous. I was a working actor and I still had a regular job when I was doing this commercial the first time. And then as it slowly started to, as I started getting more work, occasionally someone would say, ‘Hey, Clueless!’ or whatever. But it wasn’t — nothing felt so different really.
Rudd shared the thoughts above during an interview with People. Given how beloved he is now, it’s honestly hard to think of a Hollywood landscape in which Paul Rudd isn’t a household name. The actor, who was 26 when the movie hit theaters, kept his head down and continued to work. He landed roles in movies like Halloween 6, Romeo + Juliet and Wet Hot American Summer, slowly becoming a recognizable face. As for one of the key differences between now and the time at which he was rising through the ranks, Rudd said this:
And, you know, I think just the very nature of the time when there was no social media, there was no internet — everything just went by just a little bit slower.
It’s true. Nowadays, when an actor appears in something, their face seemingly becomes splashed everywhere on social media, and they gain popularity quite quickly. Rudd came up in the sweet spot when the digital age was definitely emerging, but before social media had been born. If Clueless had come out in this day and age, he might have become famous at a much quicker rate.
Paul Rudd had a lot of luck on his hands when it came to the roles that fell into his lap in the ‘90s and early 2000s. During the latter stretch of time, he was also part of the final two seasons of Friends – even getting to be part of the finale despite feeling like he shouldn’t be there given all the intimate emotion happening on set that day. He played Mike Hannigan, who ended up being the man Phoebe Buffay married by the end of the show.
Few would deny the fact that Rudd is still a heartthrob, considering he was named Sexiest Man Alive in his 50s. He also continues to work consistently and, when it comes to that, he’s currently avoiding Avengers: Doomsday spoilers. Here’s hoping he continues to thrive — and that he appears in that Clueless TV show that’s in the works with Alicia Silverstone.