Jeremy Piven and Chris Kattan reportedly had it out back stage at MTV. Find out why, and see photos and video here.
A mercury-poisoning joke gone wrong may have set off a heated argument between Entourage star Jeremny Piven and former SNL cast mate Chris Kattan. But why sushi?
It all started late last year when Piven dropped out of production of Speed The Plow, claiming he had mercury poisoning from bad sushi. He is currently in a dispute with producers, who allege that he faked his illness in order to get out of the contract.
According to reports, when Chris Kattan ran into Jeremy Piven, he cracked a joke about the play, asking him “So, what are you here to promote, your Broadway play?”
This apparently really miffed Piven, and his reply was a bit personal: “Well, what are you here to promote? Mango?” He was alluding to an old SNL character of Kattan’s in what seems to be a stab at his career.
That’s where the accounts of the incident begin to vary. According to Chris Kattan, it was all a joke, just two comedians being wise guys. But Piven reportedly didn’t see it that way, and continued making personal comments. Finally he slammed the door in Kattan’s face a few times before storming off.
Here’s a portion of what a source told the New York Daily News about what happened next:
“Chris felt really badly about the whole thing, so about 15 minutes later he tried to approach Jeremy again to apologize, to tell him he was just kidding and that he didn’t mean to offend in any way. But Jeremy wasn’t having it at all. He slammed the door in Chris’ face AGAIN.”
At that point Kattan began to realize Jeremy Piven was actually upset. To add to the confusion, Piven’s rep seems to deny it was real, saying:
“Jeremy and Chris did see each other at MTV and they were joking around backstage before a talk show appearance, as many actors do. If it was interpreted as a fight, someone wasn’t paying attention.”
Do you think their dispute was real? Let us know in the comments section below.
See more photos and video below.
Photos: www.wenn.com/Joseph Marzullo/FayesVision