John Leguizamo has not forgotten his bad experience with Steven Seagal, whom he worked with on the 1996 action film Executive Decision. The actor recently revealed that he used Seagal as an inspiration to play a “failed actor” and a “washed-up action star” in his latest movie The Menu.
In an interview with ComicBook.com, Leguizamo said that he hated Seagal and that he had a “bad run-in” with him on the set of Executive Decision. He claimed that Seagal was arrogant and violent, and that he slammed him with an aikido elbow against a brick wall for laughing at his self-important speech.
Leguizamo also told Entertainment Weekly that Seagal was a “horrible human” and that he would show up early on days where Seagal’s death scenes were shot on purpose. He said that he had met many stars like Seagal before they were “washed up” and that he based his character in The Menu on him.
The Menu is a dark comedy that follows a celebrity chef and his crew as they prepare a lavish meal for a group of wealthy guests at a remote island. Leguizamo plays an actor who is hired to entertain the guests, but things go horribly wrong. The movie also stars Anya Taylor-Joy, Ralph Fiennes, Nicholas Hoult, and Hong Chau.
The interviewer mentioned that Daniel Radcliffe was originally supposed to play Leguizamo’s character as a version of himself, but Leguizamo said that he would not have done it as himself. He said that he did not want to spoof himself as a failed actor and that he thought Seagal was perfect for it.
The Menu premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival last November and is currently streaming on HBO Max. Leguizamo is also doing press for the Prime Video series The Power, which also stars Toni Collette.