Kevin Smith Says Kelsey Grammer is One of the Rudest Celebrities He's Met
Kevin Smith Says Kelsey Grammer is One of the Rudest Celebrities He's Met
B MundMon, August 17, 2026 at 9:41 PM UTC
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Kevin Smith has spent three decades trading stories with actors on convention floors and film sets and most of those encounters end up making him a bigger fan. One did not. On a recent episode of Jay & Silent Bob Are In The Hizzouse, Smith told cohost Jason Mewes that Kelsey Grammer, the actor behind Frasier Crane on both “Cheers” and “Frasier,” gave him one of the coldest receptions of his career.
The story dates back to a stretch when Smith produced quick celebrity bits for “The Tonight Show,” then the highest rated show in late night. He and a producer he worked with would travel to the Aspen Comedy Festival and the Sundance Film Festival to grab three or four minute segments with stars in town for the events, most of whom were happy to play along for a few quick, joke filled minutes on camera. Smith remembered meeting John Goodman this way, an encounter he says later helped lead to Goodman’s role in his film “Red State.” He also recalled bumping into Kelsey Grammer at one of these same stops, expecting a similarly easy conversation with an actor he had admired for years.
Grammer was a different story. Smith said the actor showed no real interest in participating once the cameras started rolling, responding to the pitch with flat indifference instead of the enthusiasm most guests brought to the segment. Mewes, listening to Smith recount it, summed up the mismatch simply: “Buddy, just say no.”
He “almost came off like Frrasier except he didn’t have Fraiser tone,” Smith said. “Like Frasier sounds smart. This guy didn’t sound smart. He just sounded like a bully.”
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Smith said the interview yielded almost nothing usable, just a few seconds of Grammer reacting to a line, and that the entire exchange left him surprised given how recognizable and beloved the Frasier Crane character already was by that point.
Grammer originated Frasier Crane on “Cheers” in 1984, then carried the character into his own long running spinoff, “Frasier,” which aired on NBC from 1993 to 2004 and became one of the most decorated comedies in Emmy history. He later revived the role for a Paramount+ continuation that debuted in 2023, running two seasons before the streamer opted not to move forward with a third.
Smith has built a career, and now several podcasts, out of turning offbeat industry encounters into stories audiences want to hear. He and Mewes have spent years narrating their nearly four decade friendship across shows including “Jay & Silent Bob Get Old” and now “Hizzouse,” and brief, prickly run-ins with stars remain some of their most requested material. Grammer’s five minutes, by Smith’s account, still stands out among them.
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This story was originally published by Parade on Aug 17, 2026, where it first appeared in the News section. Add Parade as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
