Kelly Clarkson and the late Jerry Springer share one major thing in common: Both found success as daytime talk show hosts, although Springer’s show was known for being considerably more wild and controversial.
Before his passing, Springer appeared as a guest on “The Kelly Clarkson Show” in 2020, where the two discovered they shared another, much more unexpected connection.
The famous TV host and the “American Idol” winner shared a laugh when they discovered that they had both starred in movies that turned out to be major box-office flops.
Kelly Clarkson Once Bonded With Jerry Springer Over Their Movie Flops
When Jerry Springer was a guest on “The Kelly Clarkson Show” in 2020, the famed TV host found an unexpected similarity between him and the “American Idol” winner. The two learned that they both starred in movies that turned out to be major box office bombs.
After winning “American Idol,” Clarkson starred in “From Justin to Kelly,” a musical comedy alongside Justin Guarini, the season one runner-up.
“Wait, and you also made a movie,” Clarkson tells Springer, who then shares, “And so did you, fancy pants.” However, Clarkson noted that her film “was contractual” and “horrible” before the two gave each other high-fives.
As the two spoke about their movie flops, Springer joked that his film was “two hours too long.” According to Nicki Swift, Springer played a fictional version of himself in the 1998 film “Ringmaster.” Both Clarkson’s film and Springer’s movie pulled in far less than their original budget.
In fact, both stars were nominated for a Razzie Award when their films were released. Clarkson was nominated for Worst Actress and Worst On-Screen Couple, but both awards went to Jennifer Lopez for “Gigli,” per the Awards Checklist. As for Springer, he won the award for Worst New Star in 1999.
Clarkson Openly Shared How ‘Miserable’ She Felt Having to Make ‘From Justin to Kelly’
Clarkson has never shied away from sharing how much she disliked having to make her “American Idol” film, noting that if she wasn’t contractually obligated to do so, she would have never starred in the 2002 movie.
Speaking to the Los Angeles Times in 2019, Clarkson expressed, “It was a very miserable time of my life. I feel like it’s one of those things where, ‘There are plenty of people that would love to do this—why don’t you ask one of them?'”
The singer even admitted that she tried whatever she could to not star in the film. ““I cried,” she said. “I talked to many lawyers and could not get out of the movie.”
In 2017, Clarkson admitted in an interview with Howard Stern (via E! News) that she even got drunk during the movie’s premiere night to help her get through it all. “I cried so hard because I didn’t want to do that movie…I got very drunk at that premiere. I literally ended up in a fountain, soaked!”
Kelly Clarkson & Jerry Springer Bonded Over the Embarrassing Thing They Have in Common