Jim Parsons Says He Owes His Part In Spoiler Alert To A Coincidental Meeting With Michael Ausiello
Jim Parsons is both the star and a producer on Spoiler Alert, based off Michael Ausiello's memoir of the same name.
Plenty of movies claim to be based on a true story, with some a bit closet to reality than others. Michael Showalter’s new drama Spoiler Alert aims to be as authentic as possible, as it’s an adaptation of the memoir of the same name by Michael Ausiello. In both the book and movie we follow an 11-month period where his late partner Kit Cowan was diagnosed with terminal cancer, and their final times together as a couple. Jim Parsons plays Michael in the movie, in addition to serving as a producer. And the Big Bang Theory alum revealed to CinemaBlend that he owed his role(s) in Spoiler Alert thanks to a coincidental meeting with Ausiello himself.
Michael Ausiello released Spoiler Alert: The Hero Dies back in 2017, and received acclaim for its emotional, truthful depiction of family and loss. I had a privilege of speaking with the cast and Ausiello himself ahead of the movie adaptation’s release, where I asked Jim Parson about his collaborative relationship with the author/journalist. As you can see in the video above, he revealed how his involvement in the Spoiler Alert movie seemingly came by chance, telling me:
How cool is that? While they might not have thought much of it at the time, Jim Parsons getting involved in a Spoiler Alert Q&A opened up the door to him bringing the story to life on the big screen. Not only did he end up playing Michael Ausiello, but he worked closely with him as a producer on the upcoming drama. Sometimes you’re really in the right place at the right time.
Later in our same conversation, Jim Parsons shared his thoughts about what it was like working with Michael Ausiello on the Spoiler Alert movie. Obviously the movie is something that’s got deep real-life emotions attached to it, and the cast is playing people who are still alive and likely grappling with the complicated emotions that accompany grief. The Emmy-winning actor told me:
As you can see in the video above, many cast members from Spoiler Alert leaned on Michael Ausiello throughout the movie’s filming process. Chief among them is actor Ben Aldrige, who plays his late husband Kit. Ausiello specifically helped him keep track of his character’s physical state, and how much pain he was in during various points of the movie’s runtime.
Aside from Jim Parsons and Ben Aldridge, there’s a number of familiar faces in the cast of Spoiler Alert, who help adapt this story for the screen. The great Sally Field plays Kit’s mother, while stage and film actor Bill Irwin plays his father. Other cast members include Queer Eye’s Antoni Porowski, The Book of Mormon actress Nikki M. James, and actor/comedian Jeffrey Self (Search Party, The High Note).
Spoiler Alert will arrive in select theaters on December 2nd, before hitting more screens on December 9th. In the meantime, check out the 2022 movie release dates to plan your final trips to the movies before the New Year.
CINEMABLEND NEWSLETTER
Your Daily Blend of Entertainment News
Corey was born and raised in New Jersey. Graduated with degrees theater and literature from Ramapo College of New Jersey. After working in administrative theater for a year in New York, he started as the Weekend Editor at CinemaBlend. He's since been able to work himself up to reviews, phoners, and press junkets-- and is now able to appear on camera with some of his favorite actors... just not as he would have predicted as a kid. He's particularly proud of covering horror franchises like Scream and Halloween, as well as movie musicals like West Side Story. Favorite interviews include Steven Spielberg, Spike Lee, Jamie Lee Curtis, and more.