@Richard Simmons -Genius Album
Richard Simmons has made a rare public statement to denounce the short film The Court Jester, in which Pauly Shore plays him, EW is reporting. The fitness personality shared his discontent about the project after the digital magazine revealed footage of the star playing him in the biopic.
When Simmons saw the photos, poster and trailer from the movie that feature Shore, the fitness instructor wrote on Facebook: “Hi Everybody! 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.”
Simmons also mentioned why he wasn’t involved in The Court Jester. “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,” he said.
Shore previously told EW that he tried to contact Simmons in order to discuss The Court Jester, but they never actually spoke to each other. “His people responded and they said that he loves me and he loves my mom [the late Mitzi Shore] and the [Comedy] Store and all that stuff, but at this time he just wants to lay low and not really be involved. That was his response,” the comedian said.
The Encino Man star also said that he hopes the fitness personality will eventually see and appreciate the project. “He has written a book and there’s a lot of stuff out there, so if we stay consistent to his story, once we start writing it, I think he’ll be all right,” the actor told EW.
“But my attitude is: If we build it, he’ll come. That’s my hope. My hope is that he sees that it looks good, it feels good, it’s right. And then he might just say, f— it at some point — ‘I’m down. I’ll help you guys, I’ll be part of it, and I’ll hold your hand.’ We’ll all hold each other’s hands and we’ll work together. Richard Simmons was a very, very, very special man, and he had a huge message. And I think that message now is even bigger than it was back then. I just do,” Shore added.
The Wolper Organization, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. that is developing a feature unrelated the short, said in a statement: “While we would love to have [Simmons] involved, we respect his desire to privacy and plan to produce a movie that honors him, celebrates him and tells a dramatic story. We know he is deeply private and we would never want to invade that, however he is an amazing person, that changed millions of peoples lives and the effect he has had on the world needs to be recognized.”
Little is known about what parts of the fitness personality’s life and career the feature-length biopic will focus on. But Wolper Organization executive Mark Wolper said in a statement that the production company is in “serious discussions with a major writer to develop this as a dramatic and heartfelt feature in the tone of Little Miss Sunshine.”
The Sweatin’ to the Oldies host has been out of the public eye for so long that in 2017 police where asked to investigate his whereabouts. Officers ultimately shoot down a rumor that the exercise expert had been kidnapped by his housekeeper.
Simmons, who built his fitness empire in the 1980s and was known for his enthusiastic personality during his career, has remained out of the public spotlight since the 2017 investigation. Over the summer, his now-former publicist shared a rare update into his private life in honor of his 75th birthday.
‘This is a big milestone,” Tom Estey told Entertainment Tonight about his former client’s milestone age. “I just want to see him happy, which he is.”
The Court Jester is set to premiere at the Sundance Film Festival tomorrow, January 19. It will then be available to stream tomorrow night on YouTube.