Adam Driver Walked Out of an NPR Interview When They Played a Marriage Story Clip
Adam Driver was scheduled to have an interview with Terry Gross air today, but according to the Daily Beast, it won't ever hit the airwaves. Driver walked out of the interview, which had been recorded earlier this month when producers started to play a clip from his movie, Marriage Story. It's common knowledge that Driver has an aversion to hearing himself on screen, so Gross instructed him to remove his headphones for the segment. He did, but he took a break while the clip — it was specifically a segment where he sang "Being Alive" from the musical Company — and he left.
Fresh Air's executive producer, Danny Miller, confirmed that Driver never finished the interview. He clarified that Driver was conducting his end of the interview in New York City, while Gross was based in Philadelphia.
"We don't really understand why he left," Miller said in an email to the Daily Beast. "We were looking forward to the interview — Terry thinks he's a terrific actor, he was a great guest when he was on [Fresh Air] in 2015 — so we were disappointed that we didn't have a new interview to share with our listeners about Marriage Story."
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Before today's show, Gross mentioned that Fresh Air "had promised you an interview with actor Adam Driver today, but unfortunately, we weren’t able to do it as planned."
Listeners and fans were split. On Twitter, many users called out the show, saying that Driver made it clear that he didn't want to hear his performance. Some called the situation bullying and noted that Driver removed himself from the situation without insulting or offending anyone.
Y'all need to leave Adam Driver alone. He experienced some mental discomfort during an interview and removed himself from the situation. He took care of himself in that moment. He didn't insult or offend or hurt anyone. We shouldn't stigmatize mental health like this.
— Charlotte Clymer🏳️🌈 (@cmclymer) December 17, 2019
They knew perfectly well it made him uneasy and did it anyway. For shits and giggles, for the off chance he'd walk out and then they could be all WE DON'T KNOW WHAT HAPPENED *wink-wink* It's disingenuous bullying.
— I never finish anyth (@NathalieGray) December 17, 2019
Others stated Driver was promoting his film and he had to have known that he'd be put in a situation that could involve him hearing his movie played back.
I can understand Adam Driver not wanting to see or hear clips with him in it. I don't like seeing videos or hearing audio of me either. BUT...in his line of work it is a given that there are cameras and microphones in his face all the time.
— Uncle Mac (@johndough2018) December 17, 2019
No, that’s like an athlete walking out during his filming session cuz he doesn’t wanna see themselves, like grow up
— Adelle Alkandi (@AlkandiAdelle) December 17, 2019
Driver voiced his disdain for listening to his work when he appeared on Fresh Air in 2015.
"I don't want to hear the bad acting that probably was happening during that clip," Driver said at the time.
"Does it throw you off to hear yourself?" Gross asked.
"Yeah, no, I've watched myself or listened to myself before, then always hate it," Driver responded. "And then wish I could change it, but you can't. And I think I have, like, a tendency to try to make things better or drive myself and the other people around me crazy with the things I wanted to change or I wish I could change."
