Lethal Weapon was a big hit for Fox when it hit the airwaves back in fall of the 2016-2017 TV season, and a big part of what made the show work was the seemingly easy comradery and chemistry between leads Clayne Crawford and Damon Wayans, who brought the legendary Martin Riggs and Roger Murtaugh to the small screen. We now know that not everything was easy and nice between the two actors. One of their clashes was recorded while the camera was rolling (although both men were off-camera), and their words were rather shocking and seriously not safe for work. Here's what was recorded while the two men were on set:
- Clayne Crawford: You're the biggest crybaby pussy I've ever met in my life.
- Damon Wayans: Well suck this pussy's dick.
- Clayne Crawford: How does it feel to only be in the game because your fucking brothers are in the game?
- Damon Wayans: Fuck you, fuck you.
This verbal altercation took place while the two actors were filming Episode 20 of Season 2, which was directed by Clayne Crawford. The context of the insults seems to stem from Damon Wayans being injured by a piece of shrapnel hitting him in the head after a special effects explosion gone wrong. Wayans evidently wasn't happy about the incident, and Crawford evidently wasn't happy with Wayans' reaction.
The recording of the altercation, which can be watched via Variety, indicates that there was a lot more going on between the two actors than viewers could have ever guessed just by watching the shenanigans of Riggs and Murtaugh.
The actors didn't bury the hatchet after exchanging words. Damon Wayans apparently stated that he was uncomfortable doing any stuntwork in Clayne Crawford's episode, so his stunt double stood in for him in a gunfight scene. When Crawford went to try and speak to Wayans, he reportedly got into a scuffle with Wayans' assistant, and a number of people -- including Wayans, executive producer Mark Miller, and studio security -- had to intervene and put an end to the conflict. The rest of the episode was rewritten to enable Crawford and Wayans to complete their work without sharing any scenes.
The clash between Clayne Crawford and Damon Wayans wasn't the only instance of bad behavior that was caught on camera, although Wayans is absent in the other recording. While filming a scene at a Los Angeles area public pool, Crawford grew incensed at the background noise that kept interrupting filming. The crew was forced to reset a key scene over and over again due to the fact that the show didn't have a full lock on the pool. The area was supposed to be closed to patrons, but Crawford's shouts seem like overkill. Here's what he had to say on that particular day:
Shut the fuck up! Goddamnit Newman, fucking they're right here! Get somebody in here with a fucking walkie and shut 'em the fuck up! Or did we not pay for this fucking place? If we did, shut 'em the fuck up!
It was after this incident at the pool that Clayne Crawford agreed to undergo counseling at the request of the studio. Warner Bros. also withheld $40,000 from Crawford's salary for the episode to compensate the director, who left the episode the day after the incident without finishing the job. All things considered, these recordings make it all the more understandable that Lethal Weapon would replace Crawford with another actor for Season 3.
We'll have to wait and see what Lethal Weapon looks like with Seann William Scott stepping in to costar with Damon Wayans in Season 3. Lethal Weapon will return to Tuesday nights at 9 p.m. ET on Fox in the fall. For what you can watch in the meantime, check out our summer TV premiere guide.
