Actors often have to take it on the chin for their roles. But few have had to deal with the kind of physical humiliation Ed Helms has suffered while playing Stu in three "Hangover" movies -- losing a tooth in the first film and getting a face tattoo in the second. And as he told TODAY's Matt Lauer Tuesday, the worst comes in the series' final installment, "The Hangover III."
"Every time I pick up a new 'Hangover' script I'm terrified what might happen to Stu. 'III' was no disappointment in that way," he said. "I can't say what happens, but ... when I read (the script), I was mortified because I'm kind of a conservative guy. And I was like, 'There's no way I'm going to do this!'"
Fortunately, he got over any concerns. But there's a lot of wrapping up going on in Helms' career at the moment -- in addition to it being the end of the "Hangover" movies, the TV series he's starred on and produced, "The Office," is about to end after nine seasons.
But he can't say much about what happens on the finale, either.
A fan asked Helms whether Andy, his character on "The Office," would end up a success in showbiz -- and he answered, "That's sort of the big answer for the finale. So I can't really answer that. Let's say Andy grows as a person, and hopefully it's chaotic and funny."
Then he added, "Terrible dodge of a question!"
Check out "The Hangover III," which opens in theaters on May 23, and the series finale of "The Office" on NBC on Thursday, starting with a special retrospective, at 8 p.m.