Jennifer Garner reveals Mark Ruffalo almost quit '13 Going On 30' due to iconic 'Thriller' scene
Still feeling the feels in 13 Going On 30? Here’s a fun fact: Mark Ruffalo almost quit the chick flick after the first time rehearsing the iconic Thriller dance scene because it was “not for [him].”
His co-star, Jennifer Garner, made the revelation during his Hollywood Walk of Fame ceremony on Thursday, Feb. 8 in Los Angeles.
As she paid tribute to Ruffalo, The Adam Project star recalled how their movie together kicked off the former’s rom-com catalog and then asked his other co-stars namely, Reese Witherspoon, Jennifer Aniston, Gwyneth Paltrow, and Keira Knightley agree that Ruffalo “succeed” in the genre with his “scruffy hair, the untucked cute button down” which somehow made an “iconic look” for cute guys in the next years.
“I wonder if these esteemed ladies enjoyed Mark's anxiety as much as I did,” Garner quipped and then went on to reveal how fans almost lost an iconic pop culture moment.
“I wonder if he tried to drop out of their films, like he did out of ours after the first rehearsal of the Thriller dance where Mark went from kind of shocked that we actually had to do this, to antsy, to deathly quiet, to 'Bro, this is not for me,’” she continued.
In the said scene, Jenna attended a party where everyone seemed bored—not until she requested to DJ to play Thriller. She started dancing awkwardly, and then grabbed Matt (Mark Ruffalo) to join, encouraging everyone to join on the dance floor.
13 Going on 30 follows the story of Jenna Rink (Jennifer Garner), a 13-year-old girl who got her birthday wish of becoming “thirty, flirty, and thriving” granted overnight. She has then found herself in an adult life—having a luxurious apartment, a thriving career, and a boyfriend.
Its musical adaptation is slated to be released this 2024 to be helmed once again by the film’s original writers, Josh Goldsmith and Cathy Yuspa.
The show will be directed by Andy Fickman, while the music and lyrics will be written by Michael Weiner and Alan Zachary. Its cast is yet to be announced.