{"id":568083,"date":"2026-03-29T06:14:08","date_gmt":"2026-03-29T06:14:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/568083\/"},"modified":"2026-03-29T06:14:08","modified_gmt":"2026-03-29T06:14:08","slug":"david-alan-grier-explains-why-he-passed-on-ace-ventura-seinfeld","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/568083\/","title":{"rendered":"David Alan Grier Explains Why He Passed On ‘Ace Ventura’ & ‘Seinfeld’"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n\tDavid Alan Grier<\/a> has some regrets about certain casting choices.<\/p>\n

\n\tThe St. Denis Medical<\/a> star recently appeared on NBC\u2019s Today with Jenna & Sheinelle<\/a>, where he addressed why he passed on roles in Ace Ventura<\/a>: Pet Detective and Seinfeld<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cI passed on it because it was a bad script,\u201d the Tony winner and Grammy-nominated musician said of the 1994 comedy film. \u201cWhat I didn\u2019t see is what Jim [Carrey] saw, which was, \u2018Can I do anything?\u2019 They said, \u2018Yeah.\u2019 So he had total freedom. He took that script and he reinvented it. And that\u2019s why it was so successful.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tWhile the Carrey vehicle was largely panned by critics, it was a box office hit, spawning a cult following and a subsequent franchise, including a sequel, animated series and a made-for-TV standalone follow-up. (Funnily enough, Carrey and Grier worked prior to the film\u2019s release on the sketch comedy show In Living Color, which ran from 1990 through 1994.)<\/p>\n

\n\tGrier also noted his reason for passing on seminal sitcom Seinfeld was his assumption it wouldn\u2019t be successful.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cI auditioned for George Costanza. And I read with Jerry [Seinfeld] and it was like, [imitating Seinfeld] \u2018George, tell me about your day.\u2019 And I\u2019m like, \u2018Well, this man, he can\u2019t act. It\u2019s not funny. This will never be a hit,’\u201d he recalled of his thought process.<\/p>\n

He jokingly concluded: \u201cWell \u2026 wrong again! The bag was fumbled.\u201d<\/p>\n

The NBC show, famously billed to be about nothing, ran for nearly a decade from 1989 to 1998. Jason Alexander ultimately took on the role of the insecurity-riddled and neurotic Costanza.<\/p>\n

\n\tHowever, Grier found his way back onto the network after In Living Color with St. Denis Medical, the hospital-set mockumentary currently airing its second season. Already renewed for Season 3, Grier stars as Ron, a jaded ER physician.<\/p>\n