Steven Spielberg's Reaction To A Fabelmans Scene Had Seth Rogen Thinking He Was Fired

"The Fabelmans" — Steven Spielberg's latest masterpiece — is a phenomenal movie that unlocks the legendary filmmaker's entire career, a beautifully personal ode to messy parents, to creativity, to the love of cinema, but also a movie about how much it can mess someone up to be as big of a cinema prodigy as Spielberg is.

The movie, a fictionalized story about Steven Spielberg's upbringing, follows Sammy Fabelman, a kid growing up in Arizona who learns how the power of film can expose truths about his family he did not want to know, like his parents' crumbling marriage. Spielberg unsurprisingly amassed a great ensemble of character actors, including Michelle Williams and Paul Dano in the roles of his parents, Mitzi and Burt. And he also cast Seth Rogen as Bennie, the man who cuckolded his best friend, Burt, and had an affair with Mitzi.

Rogen, not necessarily an actor you'd associate with Spielberg, was surprised to be cast in the film, even if it seems Spielberg is actually a fan of his work — which he doesn't see as stoner movies. Indeed, Rogen was convinced he would get fired from the job, particularly after one particular reaction from Spielberg.

"I didn't know what kind of feedback he would give and how that would go," Rogen said on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. "So the first day, we start shooting and we do a take and I go back to where he's standing, and I'm looking for feedback." Then, Rogen saw Spielberg "sobbing uncontrollably."

"I thought, 'Oh no, I'm so bad he's crying and he's going to fire me right now,'" Rogen said. "But no, it's such a deeply personal movie that he cried a lot, actually. When the scenes were happening, you would go back, and he would be weeping. I never thought it would feel great to make Steven Spielberg cry all the time, but it did — it felt wonderful. It was really strange and emotional."

Rogen is fantastic in the film and he really sells the role of the man who helped shape Spielberg's childhood, and form his life as a director. The actor is the right amount of disarmingly funny, with just a little hint of untrustworthiness. This is a man who would clearly be considered an uncle by the family, who Mitzi would clearly see something special in, yet also a man who recognizes what his affair is doing to the family, and most importantly, who recognizes the artistic talents of Sammy and helps him out in a pivotal moment.

It's no wonder Spielberg had such an emotional reaction to his performance, given how important the inspiration for the character was to his upbringing. This is the most emotionally raw Spielberg has been in decades, and yes, Rogen is a big part of why.

Rogen's fears regarding his role in "The Fabelmans" did not start and end with that incident. Instead, it started the moment he got the role. Rogen has spoken about getting the first call from Spielberg, and thinking it was the Oscar-winner wanting to yell at the comedian for some dumb joke he had told in the past.

"I was a little nervous. As I'm sure you relate to this, we make a lot of jokes out here. And I make jokes about people that I forget I make," Rogen told Jimmy Kimmel Live. "Instead, it was like, 'No, I want you to play my uncle in this movie.' Which was much better."