Pauly Shore is responding to Richard Simmons’ public disapproval of his casting in a biopic about the fitness personality.
Shore shared a screenshot of a tweet from Simmons posted on April 24. The message was shared across his social media pages and read in part, “I just read that a man that I don’t know is writing my bio pic starring Pauly Shore.”
“I do not approve this movie,” the post continued. “I am in talks with major studios to create my own bio pic with some help. Wait for this movie.”
Shore addressed the post on Instagram on April 25, sharing with fans that he was “up all night crying” about the message.
“Richard, how do you not approve of this movie? I mean, really, who’s better to play you in a movie than ME?” Shore wrote in part in the caption. “I’m perfect. Everyone already thinks I’m you. We’re the same. Beautiful, inside and out. Hellll yea!”
Shore noted that Simmons had not yet heard the pitch for the biopic and offered to personally go to his house and pitch him the idea.
The actor also shared that he and Simmons “used to hang out back in the day” and would see each other at The Comedy Store.
“You’re my old buddy. Richard, you’re going to love our movie,” Shore wrote. “We’re going to make the most beautiful cinematic masterpiece that’s going to honor you in a way that you’ll drop to your knees and cry with joy and happiness.”
In his response to Simmons, Shore congratulated the fitness personality on talking directly to studios about making a biopic about himself, calling the news “amazing.”
“The more movies about you, the better!” Shore wrote. “You deserve it. There should be hundreds made.”
On Facebook on April 26, Simmons wrote that he had gotten a fourth offer from a studio wanting to collaborate on a biopic. He wrote in part, “I have so many ideas swimming in my head. I am writing the outline now. Wish me luck!”
Shore noted at the end of the caption that biopics are often made without the subject of the film agreeing to participate in the project, citing Stephen Hawking, Steve Jobs, Marilyn Monroe, and Elvis Presley as examples.
“Some of them turned out good, some of them turned out bad. Mine is going to turn out amaze-balls,” Shore wrote. “So... let me know when you want me to come over with yummy food from Canters, and Jordan and I will pitch you in your living room. I love you, Richard, and so did my mom.”
Shore portrayed Simmons in a short film called “The Court Jester,” which premiered at The Cabin in Park City, Utah, on Jan. 19 and then worldwide on YouTube later that night.
Shore is also set to play Simmons again in a potential biopic that's currently in development at the Wolper Organization.
A teaser trailer for “The Court Jester,” written and directed by Jake Lewis, dropped Jan. 17. The teaser shows Shore dressed in Simmons’ signature workout attire: short shorts and a sparkly tank top. His attitude brims with Simmons’ trademark compassion and positivity.
"What's my first rule?" Simmons asks a crew member on a TV set. "Like yourself. Your weight doesn't matter. If you like yourself, you're going to be fine.
"But I've been where you are right now," Simmons continues. "And where I am right now, is I just love myself. Every part of myself.
"And I think I can show you how to get here," he adds, tenderly touching the crew member's nose.
Here's everything to know about what Shore and Simmons have said about “The Court Jester” and the potential biopic.
What Pauly Shore has said about the biopic
Shore opened up about his enthusiasm for the biopic project in a statement to TODAY.com.
"I’m really excited about sharing Richard Simmons’s life with the world. We all need this biopic now more than ever," said Shore.
"Simmons represented mental health, getting people in shape and being his authentic silly self! Whenever he was on TV you could never take your eyes off of him and he brought such a joy to his appearances that represented nothing but a good time," he added.
Shore told Entertainment Weekly that he got the idea to play the now-reclusive Simmons, 75, after fans on social media pointed out how much he physically resembled the curly-haired fitness legend.
But Shore said his similarities to Simmons, who shot to fame in the 1980s with his “Sweatin’ to the Oldies” workout videos, go beyond their looks.
“I am him,” Shore told EW. “I like helping people. I like health. I like putting that energy out there. ... I help comedians and people, and so I really relate to Richard.
"And I’ve been going to the gym since I was a kid. And I think I’m a little over the top as well, so I feel like I connect with him. And I’ve known him for years from back in the day. I started in the ‘90s ... I used to always see him and I was always giving him hugs and high-fives and stuff," he added.
Shore posted a video Jan. 17 on Instagram explaining how he came to portray Simmons on-screen. (Warning: Shore’s video contains profanity.)
Shore tells fans in the clip that there’s no reason he shouldn’t take on the role of Simmons, noting that his “Encino Man” co-stars Brendan Fraser and Ke Huy Quan both won Oscars last year.
“Sometimes people just need opportunities. That’s what life’s about, opportunities,” he says. “And if I get the opportunity to star in a Richard Simmons biopic, I will deliver because I take things very seriously. I will immerse myself in the body, soul and spirit of Richard Simmons.”
Is Richard Simmons involved in the biopic?
Shore told Entertainment Weekly that Simmons himself is not involved in the projects, although he had previously communicated with reps for Simmons.
“His people responded and they said that he loves me and he loves my mom (legendary Comedy Store owner Mitzi Shore) and the Store and all that stuff, but at this time he just wants to lay low and not really be involved,” he said.
What Richard Simmons has said about the biopic
A message on Simmons' verified Facebook page, signed by Simmons, posted on Jan. 17 addressed the movie news, stating, "You may have heard they may be doing a movie about me with Pauly Shore. I have never given my permission for this movie. So don’t believe everything you read. I no longer have a manager, and I no longer have a publicist. I just try to live a quiet life and be peaceful. Thank you for all your love and support."
A statement from the Wolper Organization obtained by NBC News read, “While we would love to have him involved, we respect his desire to privacy and plan to produce a movie that honors him, celebrates him and tells a dramatic story.”
The statement added, “We know he is deeply private and we would never want to invade that, (however) he is an amazing person, that changed millions of people's lives and the effect he has had on the world needs to be recognized.”
Simmons' reclusiveness for the past decade has made headlines. For years, Simmons exercised regularly with fans at his Beverly Hills fitness studio, Slimmons. However, Simmons closed the studio less than 10 years ago and has vanished from the public eye, worrying friends and fans.
Simmons' elusiveness inspired the popular podcast “Missing Richard Simmons,” which aimed to figure out why Simmons had disappeared.
After rumors began swirling online that Simmons was being held hostage by his longtime housekeeper Teresa Reveles, Simmons called in live to TODAY in March 2016 to debunk the chatter.
“No one is holding me in my house as a hostage,’’ Simmons told Savannah Guthrie on the air. “You know, I do what I want to do as I’ve always done so people should sort of just believe what I have to say because, like, I’m Richard Simmons!”
“Teresa Reveles has been with me for 30 years. It’s almost like we’re a married couple,” he added at the time.
During the call, Simmons also commented on his health, revealing that knee problems had slowed him down. “I just sort of wanted to be a little bit of a loner for a little while,’’ he told Savannah.
"I’ve taught, like, thousands and thousands of classes, and, you know, right now I just want to sort of take care of me," he explained.
In August 2022, Simmons communicated publicly again for the first time in years after TMZ released a documentary focusing on his mysterious disappearance called “TMZ Investigates: What Really Happened to Richard Simmons."
“Thank you, everyone, for your kindness and love! Love, Richard,” Simmons wrote in a Facebook message. Simmons’ spokesperson at the time confirmed to TODAY.com at the time that Simmons posted the message.