Bradley Cooper Says He Almost Quit Acting Before ‘Licorice Pizza’

Actor Bradley Cooper has revealed he nearly quit acting before being offered a role in hit film Licorice Pizza. 

In a new interview with Mahershala Ali for Variety, Cooper, who plays film producer Jon Peters in the 2021 film, said the only reason it hadn’t quit acting was because director Paul Thomas Anderson offered him a role in the movie.

“The reason that I didn’t give up acting is Paul Thomas Anderson. When he called me to maybe be in his movie, Mahershala, I mean really, I think I’d open up a door in his movie. I’d do anything,” he said.

The film, which hit theatres in December, was Cooper’s first time shooting since the COVID-19 pandemic began.

“That was the first movie back from Covid. And (character) Jon Peters was the beginning of the movie, so I started with everybody else, which was wonderful, rather than coming in when everybody’s already downriver.”

The actor also revealed that he and Anderson spent three weeks together, so that the director could teach him new skills on set.

“I spent three and a half weeks with Paul. I watched all the camera tests. He was teaching me all about lenses, things I never knew. He’s incredible,” Cooper concluded.

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