Few Hollywood stars have inspired as many legendary horror stories as Chevy Chase, and now filmmaker Marina Zenovich is adding her own to the pile. The director behind “I’m Chevy Chase, and You’re Not” has branded the comedy icon the rudest celebrity she has ever interviewed, describing an encounter so abrasive it immediately confirmed his long-standing reputation.
Chevy Chase attends SNL50: The Homecoming Concert at Radio City Music Hall on February 14, 2025 in New York City. (Photo by Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images)
Zenovich admitted she was initially nervous about sitting down with the 82-year-old actor, fully aware of his history of being difficult. Those fears were realized almost instantly when Chase was openly rude during their very first interaction.
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When Zenovich told Chevy, “I’m just trying to figure you out”, he replied: “It’s not going to be easy for you. You’re not bright enough”.
Recalling the moment in an interview with Variety, Zenovich said: “I’d never done an interview where someone was so rude to me. But I was so worried going into that first interview with him about how I was going to say to him, like, ‘Everyone thinks you’re an a******.’ I thought if I did, he would throw me out of his house. So the minute he said that to me, I had a way in.”
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COMMUNITY — “Advanced Intro To Finality” Episode 411 — Pictured: Chevy Chase as Pierce — (Photo by: Vivian Zink/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images via Getty Images)
Chase’s turbulent on-set history includes clashes with “Saturday Night Live” writer Terry Sweeney and the entire cast of NBC comedy “Community.” Zenovich said her aim was to “figure out who was the real” Chevy Chase beneath the surface.
She explained: “I wanted to figure out who was the real person behind the conflicted, guarded and somewhat fragile man we see on camera. What was behind the surface of his slightly intimidating superstar bravado? Was there any self-awareness there? Having interviewed Chevy at length, I have to say that yes, it’s all there – and a whole lot of pain and heartache too.”
Chevy Chase attends the premiere of CNN Films “I’m Chevy Chase and You’re Not” at Crosby Street Hotel on December 04, 2025 in New York City. (Photo by Noam Galai/Getty Images for CNN)
The documentary also revisits Chase’s fallout with Sweeney, SNL’s first out gay cast member. Sweeney later told The Hollywood Reporter: “[he is just] making himself look more like the ass he is!!! It all reflects rightly horribly on him. Boohoo poor screwed up kid so THAT’s why he’s so rotten!!!!!!!”
The film about the complicated actor, “I’m Chevy Chase, and You’re Not,” premieres New Year’s Day, 8 p.m. ET/PT on CNN.
