Katherine Heigl’s mother is her manager. This, one could easily assume, would probably be the making of a nightmare. What if things go south? Can you easily fire the lady that pushed you out of her lady sac? Sorry, ma. I know you ensured I remained alive for the first 18 years of my life, but someone who can do a better job managing my career is replacing you.
Heigl was at one time pretty successful commanding $12 million a movie. She had a starring role on Grey’s Anatomy and then became a star by appearing in the box office hit Knocked Up. But between her hideous behavior on set and the constant annoyance of her mother people started to grow tired of working with her. She publicly referred to her first hit film Knocked Up as “sexist” and then later that year stated she would not seek an Emmy for her performance in ABC’s Grey’s Anatomy because the writing wasn’t good enough. Oh, snap.
Hollywood Reporter explores in a new article how the actress could go from huge movies to starring in Nyquil ads. For example, remember that movie Life As We Know It she did with Josh Duhamel? An insider on the project said working with her caused difficult situations. ”She can cost you time every single day of shooting,” said the source. “Wardrobe issues, not getting out of the trailer, questioning the script every single day. Even getting her deal closed at Warners was hard. She hit that point of ‘no.’ ”
But nothing was more challenging then working with her mother. ”I have never experienced anything like Nancy Heigl,” says this source. “It’s about the mouth. ‘F— you. You are a f—ing liar.’ … Whatever you’d say, you were an idiot. The call would be, ‘This is the worst craft service we’ve ever had! There’s nothing to eat! This is the worst wardrobe!’ You knew that every day, you were going to get slammed. The frustrating part is [Heigl] is incredibly talented and smart.” Then she made 27 Dresses and when it came time to promote the movie she became a different person. ”There were movie-star demands — big rooms, the mother there, all the stuff,” says this person. ” ‘We need the presidential suite at The Bristol!’ It was just a sense of entitlement. The biggest stars don’t do that kind of thing.”
So as work projects started to dry out she tried to get back onto television. Grey’s Anatomy would not take her after she slammed the show before leaving in 2010. Her name made the rounds for several seasons for various pilots. “On many levels, she would have been perfect for the role, but all of us said, ‘She’s not worth it”, said another insider.
Now she has an upcoming show this fall where she plays the CIA’s chief liaison to the President. But until then she is playing the lead on a Nyquil commercial.
For those of us who don’t make $12 million for work on a two-month film set it’s hard to imagine how one could blow that sort of opportunity. Maybe it’s time to hire Uncle Frank or Aunt Janis?
- Kate Casey
* Kate Casey is a Pop Culture Lover. PR Pro. Soon-to-be New mom again. Comedy nerd. Celebrity gossip fan. Follow her on Twitter
