Killing Eve actress Sandra Oh has reflected on working with late comedy star Paul Reubens in “what turned out to be his last film”.
Reubens, best known for his character Pee-wee Herman, died in July after a six-year private battle with cancer.
Before his death, he appeared in a cameo role playing himself in the American comedy film Quiz Lady starring Oh and Awkwafina as sisters who want to get rich quick by appearing on a game show.
Reubens’ cameo was played because of his physical resemblance to actor Alan Cumming, as he had to disguise himself as the Scottish actor with the accent to make a superfan’s dream come true – played by Holland Taylor.
Oh told People magazine that her favorite memory on set was “the first day of filming with Paul Reubens and (Holland Taylor)”.
“It’s so special that we were able to spend this time with him for what turned out to be his last film,” the Grey’s Anatomy star said.
“But oh boy, he came on set and he was like, I don’t know… He really, really brought it and had such a great spirit around him.”
Awkwafina described it as a “cool day” and said that while some parts of the script were open to change, Reubens’ appearance was not.
“That was a part of the script that … was in it from the get-go,” he said.
“That never changed, especially his cameo.”
It comes after Oh shared a behind-the-scenes selfie with Reubens during his early days on set along with a posthumous message for the late star.
“(Love) to our dear friend Paul (Rubens),” she captioned it.
“We were so so lucky to have him, know him and share in the joy he brought to everyone.
Reubens, known for wearing an overly tight gray suit, chunky white shoes and red bow tie as Pee-wee Herman, was hailed a “comedy genius” after his death by stars such as Tim Burton, who directed the 1985 film Pee-wee’s Big Adventure.
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