Diddy had gridiron Hollywood dreams of starring in Any Given Sunday, but his athletic ability apparently failed him at the audition.
Actor/comedian Bill Bellamy — who starred in the 1999 film — recalled Puff’s failed audition during a recent episode of Top Billin with Gary Owens.
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The Bad Boy boss was reportedly director Oliver Stone’s first choice to play quarterback Willie Beamen, but Stone pivoted to Jamie Foxx for the role after witnessing Diddy’s football-throwing ability.
“The first offer was out to Puffy,” Bellamy said. “We have a workout at USC. There is no way you can be in Any Given Sunday if you’re not an athlete. I don’t give a fuck what’s on your résumé. You could’ve said you played.
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“But here we go, we’re on the field. If you’re going for the quarterback, you gotta be able to throw. If I’m wide receiver, I gotta be able to run, I gotta be able to catch.
“So they said, ‘Okay, Sean Combs. Sean, let’s go!’ He gets under the quarterback. He’s gonna be mad when I say this, thisi shit is crazy.
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“So they said, ‘Hut!’ And he goes back. You know how you throw with your left hand, with your weak hand? That was his regular hand. They said, ‘Thank you.’ I was like, ‘He’s not gon make it.’ We was like, ‘Uh oh, not today.'”
Watch the hilarious clip below.
Oliver Stone previously recalled Diddy’s less-than-impressive audition in an interview with Entertainment Weekly, where he pointed to his arm strength being the primary issue rather than his acting.
“[Diddy] was not really a natural athlete, so we waited him out. The bigger issue was the arm,” he said. “He just didn’t have the throwing ability, and you can’t double him, because it’s going to look phony.”
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Despite missing out on Any Given Sunday, Puffy would go on to make his Hollywood debut the following year by portraying an NYC crime boss in the 2000 flick Made.
Stone eventually found his Any Given Sunday QB in Jamie Foxx and the film proved to be a hit, grossing $100 million at the box office on a $55 million budget. However, the picture wasn’t devoid of drama as Foxx reportedly fought co-star LL COOL J on set.
“I sat on the story for 20-something years ’cause it was hilarious at the time that this really, truly happened,” Bellamy recalled during a 2022 appearance on Drink Champs. “Everybody was gassed up, but the reality of the movie was the context — its conflict of egos with these players”.
The comedian then suggested that LL was getting annoyed with Foxx’s humorous remarks, exclaiming: “You can’t be a rapper hanging around comedians tryna snap.”
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Things escalated when Foxx “turns around, ‘boom’, punches [LL’s] face, busts his lip” during a scene, Bellamy continued. “[LL] was so mad and it just seemed like he was growing […] His voice changed and everything. He said, ‘On everything I love, ain’t nothin’ you gon’ do to get me to stop what’s gonna happen to you.'”
The pair then brawled, with Foxx winding up in hospital: “Jamie cuts his tongue, has to go to the hospital, he’s got to get 16 stitches…we can’t film right now because we don’t know what’s going on with Jamie. When he comes back from the hospital. The tension is crazy!”
