Netflix’s Bad Trip sees two friends, played by Eric Andre and Lil’ Rel Howery, embark on a prank-filled road trip from Florida to New York City. If you’ve seen the trailer, you know the pair get into more than a few crazy situations, which are all witnessed by unsuspecting bystanders. The film, however, actually included a number of other pranks that didn’t make the final cut. This includes one particular prank featuring none other than actor and comedian Chris Rock.
With any film, it’s almost a given that some things will be left on the cutting room floor and, when I recently spoke with Eric Andre and Lil’ Rel Howery about their work on Bad Trip, they revealed some of the pranks that didn’t make it into the film. Andre recalled an interesting one with Chris Rock before revealing a spooky-sounding stunt:
Yeah, there was a lot of stuff. We did a prank with Chris Rock, in it where we try to prank a hitchhiker, and the prank just fell apart. Another prank where we go to a haunted motel for the night and I get possessed by a demon. And Rel corralled this real pastor into the hotel room to perform an exorcism, and I’m like levitating. We have all of these practical effects set up, so I’m like levitating in the bed and like blood’s coming out of the walls and we got this preacher to do a real exorcism with Rel as his exorcist apprentice.
Eric Andre, Chris Rock and Lil’ Rel Howery are formidable comedic talents, so it’s surprising that such a prank couldn’t be pulled off. Nevertheless, things can be tricky when it comes to hidden-camera pranks, as unforeseen circumstances can sometimes derail plans.
Aside from the Chris Rock prank, the demon possession stunt also sounds crazy. It seems the two really committed, especially since they were even willing to bring in a clergyman. Lil’ Rel Howery opened up about the prank even more, and it sounds like the man of the cloth was heavily affected by the faux supernatural experience:
He really believed what was happening too, that’s what’s crazy. He actually thought he did something. It felt like he left and couldn’t wait to tell the congregation like, ‘I told y’all I was the greatest priest of all time!’ That was his energy to us. And I was cursing, and he was getting mad. He’d read off scriptures for me to say, and I’ll curse within the scriptures. He’s like, ‘No don’t say that, you gotta say it this way.’ But I kept cursing anyway, it was so funny.
With such an over-the-top prank, one has to wonder why it was ultimately cut out, but we can probably just chalk it up to the creative process. But who knows, maybe Eric Andre and Lil’ Rel Howery’s deleted sequences will get to see the light of day at some point in the future.
Bad Trip hits Netflix on Friday, March 26.
