It may have been one of the finest coming-of-age films ever made, but Superbad's success was not all good news, as one of the film's stars, Michael Cera, has revealed in a new interview.
Cera, who will return to the big screen with a role in the upcoming Barbie movie, initially rose to prominence on cult classic sitcom Arrested Development between 2003-2006, before starring in Superbad in 2007 alongside the likes of Seth Rogen, Bill Hader, Emma Stone, and Jonah Hill.
The film was a huge hit and continues to be beloved by fans to this day. Yet the success had a few downsides for Cera, personally, as he admitted he struggled with his newfound level of fame.
"That was sort of overwhelming," the 35-year-old revealed in a recent interview with The Guardian. "I didn’t know how to handle walking down the street.
"Fame makes you very uncomfortable in your own skin, and makes you paranoid and weird."
"There were lots of great things about it, and I met a lot of amazing people, but there’s a lot of bad energies, too, ones that I was not equipped to handle," he admitted.
Cera was only 19 when the film was released and in addition to that, he also had a starring role in Juno in the same year, propelling him further towards the top of Hollywood's A-List.
During his spare time, the then-teenage actor struggled to deal with the trappings of fame, as strangers invaded his personal space on a regular basis.
"Drunk people would be a classic example. You know, if people are drunk, and they recognize you, and they’re very enthusiastic, but it can be kind of toxic too. When you’re a kid, people also feel they can kind of grab you – they’re not that respectful of you or your physical space.
"I didn’t know how to respectfully establish my own boundaries."
The side effects of such success led Cera to be more selective with his roles, even turning down the opportunity to host Saturday Night Live.
"There was a point where I wanted to stop taking jobs that would make me more famous. I was kind of having a bit of a crisis… I was really not enjoying the level of heat.
"I really didn’t know if I was going to keep being an actor."
In addition to his role in Barbie, the Canadian actor has also starred in the latest season of Black Mirror this year as well as Hulu series Life and Beth, alongside Amy Schumer. Cera is also set to star in Dream Scenario with Nicholas Cage next year, while a Scott Pilgrim anime series is also in the works - a spin-off of Cera's other wildly popular hit Scott Pilgrim vs The World.
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