Aaron Paul Was Originally Supposed To Cameo In The Weird Al Biopic

Back in 2010, Aaron Paul ("Breaking Bad") starred in a Funny Or Die sketch written by Eric Appel that was a fake trailer for a film called "WEIRD: The Al Yankovic Story." It was really funny, with Olivia Wilde as Madonna, Gary Cole and Mary Steenburgeon as Al's parents, and Patton Oswalt as Dr. Demento. 

Years later, we're actually getting that film from Roku, directed by Appel, who co-wrote the script with Yankovic himself. Daniel Radcliffe is set to star, and considering the comedy work from his series "Miracle Workers" alone, this casting is absolutely perfect. And according to an interview Aaron Paul did with CinemaBlend, the "Breaking Bad" star supposed to make a cameo in the film as well.

Paul first praised not only Appel, but Radcliffe's casting. He said:

"It's so great. I loved doing that. I love Al [Yankovic], I love Eric Appel, who wrote the skit for Funny Or Die and directed it. And he wrote the film with Al, and he's directing the feature as well. I read that script years ago and it was just so over the top beautiful. It was just when they were kind of poking around seeing if they could get this thing made, and I was really excited to see it finally kind of come together, and obviously Daniel [Radcliffe] is amazing. And so I think he's absolutely going to crush it."

Not only is that a delight to hear, but he's right. I would never in a million years have thought of Radcliffe for the part, but now that he's cast, I can't imagine anyone else doing it. I, like every kid of the 1980s, loved Weird Al and his accordion. I mean, the thing to do on the playground was sing "Eat It" and know all the lyrics. (This was a time before the internet so to figure those out, you had to keep listening to the song or buy the cassette tape. No, you're old.)

So, why isn't Paul going to do a cameo? Yankovic himself asked Paul to do one, but after getting a Covid test before the shoot, he got bad news. He'd tested positive. Paul said, "I go, 'Oh, no!' So I couldn't do it, and then I was just out for like 10 solid days. I have never felt more sick in my life. And so we couldn't do the cameo, which I just absolutely was crushed about."

I'm pretty crushed to hear this as well. I hope they find a way to get him in somehow. I'm really excited for this film, and now I have to go listen to some Weird Al songs to get over my sadness. 

Here is the synopsis for "WEIRD: The Al Yankovic Story:"

The biopic holds nothing back, exploring every facet of Yankovic's life, from his meteoric rise to fame with early hits like "Eat It" and "Like a Surgeon" to his torrid celebrity love affairs and famously depraved lifestyle. WEIRD: The Al Yankovic Story takes audiences on a truly unbelievable journey through Yankovic's life and career, from gifted child prodigy to the greatest musical legend of all time.

The film is produced by Yankovic with Mike Farah, Joe Farrell, and Whitney Hodack for Funny Or Die, with Tim Headington, Lia Buman, and Max Silva for Tango. Henry Muñoz III from Funny Or Die and Neil Shah from Tango will executive produce.

There is no release date for "WEIRD: The Al Yankovic Story" yet, but we'll keep you updated as soon as one is announced.