Movies - TV
Not Everyone Working On Ace Ventura Thought Jim Carrey Could Pull It Off
By CHRISTIAN GAINEY
Throughout his early career as a stand-up comedian and his stint on “In Living Color,” Jim Carrey tailored his uniquely exaggerated comedy shtick. However, when it came time for Carrey to star in “Ace Ventura: Pet Detective,” many of Carrey’s coworkers — and even Carrey himself — weren’t sure that audiences would enjoy his
over-the-top comedy.
When Carrey accepted the role of Ace Ventura, he didn’t let the transition from television to film change his style. In an interview with the LA Times back in 1994, Carrey said, “I wanted to be unstoppably ridiculous, and they let me go wild.” While this approach to comedy is now classic Carrey, back then film crews didn’t know how to react.
Remembering his time on set, cinematographer Julio Macat said “The stuff [Carrey] was doing was so over the top, I truly thought [it] was gonna be the biggest piece of sh*t ever.” Even Carrey had his doubts, admitting, “I knew this movie was going to either be something that people really went for, or it was going to ruin me completely.”
While audiences loved the film and all of Carrey’s follow-up films, critics weren’t sure what to make of it. Roger Ebert gave the movie one star and declared Carrey “a poor man’s Jerry Lewis.” However, when Carry’s “Dumb & Dumber” came out later the same year, Ebert called him “a true original,” solidifying Carrey’s unique
comedic appeal.