by The weasel is ready for his own Hollywood comeback.
This year’s Oscars were all about the comeback. Brendan Fraser won the Lead Actor category for his role in The Whale after years of hiding from the spotlight. And Ke Huy Quan, a child star, returned to Hollywood after a 20-year hiatus and won the Oscar for his supporting role in Everything Everywhere All at Once.
The two co-starred in the 1992 comedy Encino Man, and Jimmy Kimmel pointed out this fun Hollywood fact in his opening monologue at the 95th Academy Awards Sunday night.
“Two actors from ‘Encino Man’ are nominated for Oscars,” said Kimmel. “What an incredible night this must be for both of you, and what a difficult night it must be for Pauly Shore.”
Well, Pauly Shore, who also starred in Encino Man, was watching — the stand-up comedian had publicly promoted his old co-stars the week before the big event — and he had a few things to say about, to be the butt of an Oscars joke.
“We love to hate people when they’re at the top. People wanted to smack me and they did,” Shore, 55, told Page Six. “I’ve always been nice to everyone, always cool, I’ve put my heart into all my films.
“You buy and sell a person,” he added while working in the entertainment industry. “People have feelings, it’s not like selling real estate.”
Ahead of the ceremony, Shore posted old footage of Fraser and Quan to Instagram with an encouraging caption: “So very proud of Brendan Fraser and @KeHuyQuan Really really happy. Must be an amazing feeling to be knighted with elf dust by @TheAcademy. I’ll cheer for you both big time. Your old pal, Stoney Brown from Encino Man, Pauly Shore,” he wrote. “I love you both and beat her to death this Sunday night.”
The ’90s comedy star, best known for ‘Jury Duty’, ‘Bio-Dome’ and of course ‘Encino Man’, told Page Six that he’s happy for his old pals. But he also spoke about how bittersweet it can be to sit on the sidelines.
“I really miss acting and I miss being on set…hopefully it happens. … [I]It’s all about dreaming and hoping,” he said. “People always say, ‘We want you back!'”
Shore is hoping for his chance to surprise audiences with something they’ve never seen him do. And wait for the call that will allow him.
“The directors and producers are the ones with the vision. Someone out there is going to say, ‘You know what, we’re going to do something you wouldn’t expect — we’re going to put Pauly in this role that nobody would expect,'” Shore said. “That’s where my heart beats.
“I won’t stop,” he continued. “I will continue. I know I’ll get that call and I’ll get that opportunity. It’s all about this.”
On Monday, Shore posted a video clip of Kimmel’s monologue to Instagram with the caption, “I don’t know if y’all saw the Oscars last night but @jimmykimmel made fun of me in the monologue. If you haven’t seen it yet, check out this clip. Very funny – I really loved it. But what I REALLY loved is that my old pals from back then Brendan Fraser and @KeHuyQuan took home the Oscars. What a story. I mean really guys what a story.
“If we can all learn something from this, never give up on your dreams. Keep dreaming, work hard and put in the time, and when your stars line up and you’re in the entertainment business, someday Hollywood will hit you over the head with pixie dust like Brendan and Ke did.
