It's hard to imagine John Goodman would regret playing any role he's taken in his life. He's one of our greatest working character actors. Some might remind him for his voice acting on Monsters Inc. or The Emperor's New Groove. A lot of his best work lies with the Coen brothers' classics like The Big Lebowski or Raising Arizona. With such an extensive of films under his belt, where could he possibly take issue? Apparently, one of his big roles coincides with a particularly dark moment in his life. Consequently, Goodman wishes that things were just a little bit different.
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In an interview with Business Insider in 2024, he gets particularly candid about his mental health woes. For a long time, the O Brother, Where Art Thou? actor battled alcoholism and deep depression. Combine that his daughter getting terrible sick at the time, his time acting in Martin Scorcese's Bringing Out the Dead was a nightmare.
John Goodman Recalls His Bad Mental State While Filming Scorcese's Bringing Out the Dead
"Oh, I was in a bad place," Goodman admits. "My wife brought my daughter up for the shoot, and she got appendicitis. I got home from work at about six in the morning. She had been up all night. We brought a doctor in. We had to get her to a hospital in midday Manhattan, and it was impossible."
To make matters worse, he couldn't sleep for the life of him either. As a result, his close friend Dan Aykroyd would take care of his daughter while he was on set. Ultimately, Goodman feels like he dropped the ball on what could've been a recurring gig for himself with Scorcese. Thankfully, he's forgiven himself and doesn't hold it over his head like he used to back then.
"I wish I would have been present for the film because I feel I wasted a great opportunity," Goodman shrugs. "I don't even think he even considers me to have burned a bridge. I'm not worried about that. I had some problems going on at the time."
