During Faris’ podcast “Unqualified,” the actress said that Reitman “slapped my ass” during production on the 2006 romantic comedy “My Super Ex-Girlfriend” and “yelled” at her on her first day on set (via Deadline). Faris felt “angry, hurt, and humiliated” by the encounter. “Ghostbusters” director Reitman died in February 2022 at age 75. “One of my hardest film experiences was with Ivan Reitman,” Faris told Lena Dunham during the podcast episode. “I mean, the idea of attempting to make a comedy under this, like, reign of terror, he was a yeller. He would bring down somebody every day…and my first day, it was me.” “My Super Ex-Girlfriend” also starred Luke Wilson, Rainn Wilson, Uma Thurman, and Reitman’s daughter, Catherine Reitman, who went on to create Netflix comedy “Workin’ Moms.”
Faris said that she had to repress tears after first meeting Reitman after she was late to set. Guest Dunham told Faris, “Don’t think you’re the first person who’s reported that. And I’m so sorry you had that experience. And did no one step in and say, ‘No?’” Faris replied, “No. It was, like, 2006.” The “Overboard” star previously opened up about her #MeToo experience in 2017 without naming Reitman. “I was doing a scene where I was on a ladder and I was supposed to be taking books off a shelf and he slapped my ass in front of the crew so hard. And all I could do was giggle,” Faris said, citing her instinct to use humor to cope with the situation. “I remember looking around and I remember seeing the crew members being like, ‘Wait, what are you going to do about that? That seemed weird.’ And that’s how I dismissed it.” Faris continued, “I was like, ‘Well, this isn’t a thing. Like, it’s not that big of a deal. Buck up, Faris. Like, just giggle.’ But it made me feel small. He wouldn’t have done that to the lead male.” She also claimed the director told her agent she was hired because of her “great legs” and not her acting ability. “I remember that same director telling my agent, who told me, that I had great legs and that was one of the reasons that I got hired,” Faris said. “And listen, that’s a fucking great compliment. I like my legs. But that sort of informed my whole experience with that whole project. I don’t think the male lead got hired because he had great legs. Therefore I felt like I’m hired because of these elements — not because of [talent].” Sign Up: Stay on top of the latest breaking film and TV news! Sign up for our Email Newsletters here.
