Robert De Niro Could Barely Film This Hilarious 2008 Scene Because He Kept Breaking Character

Robert De Niro has built a career around serious performances, but one of the funniest moments of his career came from a movie that many people have forgotten. The actor recently revealed that one scene from the 2008 black comedy What Just Happened was so funny that he struggled to keep a straight face while filming it.

The film may not have been a major success, but De Niro still has fond memories of making it. In What Just Happened, he played Hollywood producer Ben, a man trying to save his career while dealing with a failing movie, difficult actors, and the chaos of the entertainment industry.

The satirical drama featured an impressive cast, including Bruce Willis, Kristen Stewart, Sean Penn, Stanley Tucci, and John Turturro. Some of the actors even appeared as fictional versions of themselves, creating a behind-the-scenes look at Hollywood that mixed comedy with industry criticism.

Despite its big-name cast, the movie struggled when it was released. Made with a reported budget of around $25 million, What Just Happened earned only about $6.7 million at the box office. Critics were also not impressed, with many describing the film as slow and disappointing.

However, for De Niro, the experience was still memorable because of the moments that made him laugh the most. During an interview with The Times, the actor explained that one particular joke involving Mickey Mouse completely broke him.

The scene featured a joke about the famous Disney character doing something extremely dark and unexpected. De Niro admitted that the line was almost impossible for him to deliver without laughing.

“The line about Mickey Mouse dousing himself with petrol and setting himself on fire. I was hysterical. I could never say that line straight. It cracked me up every time,” De Niro told The Times.

That was not the only part of the movie that De Niro found amusing. He also enjoyed some of the film’s more shocking moments, including a scene involving a dog’s death and another sequence where his character pushes a screenwriter into an open grave.

While audiences did not respond strongly to What Just Happened, the movie arrived during a difficult period in De Niro’s career. Around that time, some of his projects struggled at the box office. His 2006 film The Good Shepherd, which he directed, failed to perform financially, while 2008’s Righteous Kill, which reunited him with Al Pacino, received poor reviews.

Things eventually changed when De Niro returned to one of his most popular comedy roles. The 2010 sequel Little Fockers became a major box office success, earning around $200 million worldwide despite negative reviews from critics.

Years later, De Niro is returning to that same comedy world once again. The actor is set to reunite with Ben Stiller for Focker-in-Law, a new entry in the Meet the Parents franchise expected to arrive in theaters in November.

Although What Just Happened may not be remembered as one of De Niro’s biggest hits, his story about the film shows that even unsuccessful movies can create unforgettable moments behind the scenes. For the actor, a strange joke about Mickey Mouse became one of the funniest lines he ever had to deliver.

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