Elizabeth Hurley Responded To Matthew Perry's Memoir And Said He Was A "Nightmare" To Work With

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You know Elizabeth Hurley.

closeup of elizabeth
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Maaaaaybe you remember her 2002 comedy with Matthew Perry, Serving Sara — but I won't blame you if you don't, the movie was anything but a success.

elizabeth and matthew for the movie promo
Paramount / courtesy Everett Collection

In a recent interview with Yahoo Entertainment, Elizabeth talked about her experience of working with Matthew on the film — and it didn't sound like everything went great.

closeup of Elizabeth
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Elizabeth said that she had "fond memories" of Matthew, but "To be honest, it was a nightmare working with him at that time and, as it's now known, our movie was shut down because of his addiction."

elizabeth and matthew in the movie
Paramount / courtesy Everett Collection

"We were in a force majeure and had to all sit at home twiddling our thumbs for some time."

matthew and elizabeth on a farm in the movie

"Force Majeure" is an insurance liability clause that frees multiple parties from responsibility when it comes to unforeseen circumstances halting production.

Paramount / courtesy Everett Collection

Matthew has recently talked about making Serving Sara as well, including in his memoir Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing.

closeup of matthew
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In the book, Matthew says that he'd "pissed off" the film's director, Reginald Hudlin, by "ruining his movie" — and that Elizabeth "never got to do another movie" afterward, either.

matthew with a costar in the movie

Matthew isn't quite right on that last claim: Elizabeth has starred in a few films between Serving Sara and now — but when it comes to her film career, she never really had another highly visible role again to date.

Paramount / courtesy Everett Collection

He also told Diane Sawyer in a recent interview that, after returning from rehab, he had to re-voice what he'd shot the first time around because he was slurring his words during his initial takes.

Elizabeth says that he was "obviously...having a tough time" while working on the film, but he was still "charming" and "lovely" even though "you could see he was suffering for sure."

closeup of matthew
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She also said she read excerpts of Matthew's book that she found "quite interesting" — and Elizabeth had plenty of praise for his acting talents, as well.

closeup of elizabeth
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"He's a very funny writer like he's a very funny man. He's an incredibly gifted comedian...his way with words is fantastic."

closeup of matthew
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You can read the entire interview with Elizabeth here.

If you or someone you know is struggling with substance abuse, you can call SAMHSA’s National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357) and find more resources here.