With a career spanning the comedy, drama, and action genres, Mark Wahlberg is undoubtedly one of Hollywood’s finest leading men. Making his acting debut in the thriller drama Martin Donovan’s film The Substitute in 1993, he is a true Hollywood icon. But hidden in the pages of his booming journey is a terrifying story that almost put an end to his acting career.
There was once an untidy fallout between Madonna and Wahlberg after the Uncharted star got into a fight with some of the Queen of Pop’s close people. But he insisted that he was not the one who initiated the argument. Well, what appeared to be a tense encounter quickly escalated into a heated moment that tried to derail Wahlberg’s promising acting career.
The actor, 52, reflected on the incident in 2012, sharing that it nearly cost him his big-screen debut role in 1994’s Renaissance Man.
Mark Wahlberg’s Scuffle with Madonna Nearly Cost Him a Role in Renaissance Man
In the early nineties, Mark Wahlberg had just finished his music career as a rapper. He was going to pursue an acting career in films instead of continuing with his hip-hop group. But shortly before he was chosen for the lead role in Penny Marshall’s Renaissance Man, Wahlberg encountered some challenges. The BAFTA Award-winning actor got into a brawl with a few people who were close to Madonna. Wahlberg, however, insisted that he was not the one who initiated the fight.
The actor reflected on the incident in an interview with Shortlist in 2012, saying:
“I almost didn’t get the part. I got into a fight at a party in LA with three guys and broke a guy’s nose. It was a few of Madonna’s people, so she called the f****** cops on me. Told everybody this bulls*** story that I was doing s*** that I wasn’t.”
Fortunately, Wahlberg continued to receive support from the film’s director, who stated that she was still giving him the “part anyway”:
“Penny [Marshall, the director] called me saying, ‘What the f*** did you do?’, but then she was like, ‘F*** that, I’m giving you the part anyway’. After that experience, I was on set every day. I wanted to know who was who and what they were doing. I became fascinated by it.”
It is likely that Wahlberg’s acting career would not be where it is now without that role, as he was already trying to make it big as an actor. Nonetheless, the reviews for Renaissance Man were primarily negative. Despite a $40 million budget, the film brought in $24 million in revenue.
The Influence of Mark Wahlberg’s Childhood on His Previous Actions
Mark Wahlberg is very different now from the mindset of the young adult he used to be. However, like most people, the actor claimed to be a product of his upbringing. He previously discussed his upbringing with The Guardian:
“When I walked out my door — violence is also all that was there.”
The actor continued by saying that people around him had an impact on him as he was constantly having “trouble”:
“I always in trouble, and I was kind of little. In the circumstances where I was being preyed upon, at times, I had to protect and defend myself. It’s not an easy thing to navigate as a teenage kid who’s 5’2, 120 pounds, with grown men.”
Wahlberg discussed the reasons behind his breakup with then-girlfriend Jordana Brewster in a 2011 Vanity Fair feature. He honestly found it difficult to identify with the kind of person who spoke of “living on Fifth Avenue and having housekeepers”. That kind of childhood never existed for him, who feels that he was “better off growing up in the world [he] did” because it gave him the skills necessary to “survive anything”.
Despite his turbulent past, Wahlberg is currently one of Hollywood’s most successful actors and has acted in several big-budget films. In addition to numerous honors, he was bestowed with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2010.
Next, we will see him in Flight Risk, Arthur the King, and Our Man from Jersey.
Meanwhile, Renaissance Man is available for rent on Apple TV.
Also read: 3 Tips That are Mark Wahlberg’s Mantra to Getting Ripped at 52
