Kelly Clarkson Reveals How She Really Felt About Office Bomb ‘From Justin to Kelly’
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Original American Idol winner Kelly Clarkson is getting real about the movie she did with runner-up Justin Guarini. The 2003 release, From Justin to Kelly, was a box office bomb and received terrible reviews.
As Clarkson revealed to Andy Cohen during an interview on her talk show, she didn’t even want to do the movie in the first place. Thankfully, she still went on to become a superstar despite the questionable project.
Kelly Clarkson Spills About ‘From Justin to Kelly’
Cohen has a new show titled For Real: The Story of Reality TV, in which he explores series like American Idol. The topic got them talking about Clarkson’s time on Idol and she revealed that no one knew if the show would take off at the time.
“The fact that you made it as big as you did not only is a testament to your talent, but a testament to how huge American Idol was just out of the gate,” Cohen said, asking Clarkson if she could have predicted how big her career would be.
Clarkson revealed that she thought she would be “the most famous cocktail waitress in Texas.” She said she “begged Simon Fuller” to release her first single “Miss Independent” before the movie’s release. Clarkson said otherwise she would “have no chance at a career.”
She went on to say that she “cried so hard to get out of that” as she never wanted to be an actress unlike co-star Guarini. He apparently did want to do the movie, while Clarkson thought she had “no business doing it.”
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Clarkson’s Nanny Loves the Movie
Clarkson revealed to Cohen that her nanny apparently loves From Justin to Kelly.
“I totally judge her on her taste, but it’s fine,” she joked, adding she “yelled it from a mountaintop” how much she didn’t want to do the movie.
And who can blame her? The movie had a budget of $12 million, and grossed less than $5 million at the box office. It currently has a 10% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Clarkson was nominated for Worst Actress at the Razzie Awards.
It’s no surprise that American Idol did away with the tradition of winners starring in movies after this first season. As Cohen pointed out, Clarkson was smart for putting her first single out before the movie. Who knows what would have happened if it was the other way around.
