In the early 2000s, Kevin Hart, a then up-and-coming comedian, was dead set on landing a role on HBO’s popular series “Entourage,” a comedy-drama loosely based on experiences of actor Mark Wahlberg. Wahlberg was executive producer of the series about a young actor and his friends living out their dreams in Hollywood. Recently Kevin opened up about not getting the part that was ultimately given to rapper and actor Bow Wow.
“It’s big deal. It’s f-cking ‘Entourage.’ Dude, this would be great for my career,” the 43-year-old said to Wahlberg in a new interview from the comedian’s Peacock series “Hart to Heart.” “My manager calls me ‘Hey, they got a part. This part’s gonna run over about three episodes. They wanna see you,’ ” he added.
By then, Wahlberg had started visibly shifting around in his chair as if the memories were all coming back to him. He chuckled, before telling the “Jumanji” star, “I remember. I don’t want to say no names; I don’t want to hurt your feelings.”
Hart continued, “I go ‘Oh my god.’ I go read for Sheila Jaffe,” he said of the production’s casting director. “I come back; I got a call back. They call me back. I call my manager ‘Dave, they want me to come back.’ ” The manager, according to Hart, responded with, ‘That’s a call back. That’s good, dude. You got this.’ [I’m like,] ‘F-cking right, I got it. I’m big. I’m confident.”
The star’s confidence would soon be tested after he spotted the “Like Mike” star in the auditioning room. “I walk in the room, Bow Wow’s in the room. I’m like, ‘What the f-ck is Bow Wow doing here right now?’ ” Hart said. “I’ll never forget it. Bow Wow had on a big jersey and a do-rag. ‘What the f-ck is Bow Wow doing here?’ This part, I didn’t know you had to wear a jersey; nobody told me to wear a jersey; I came here wearing a regular T-shirt.”
Still, the comedian thought for sure the role would be his until he went to leave. Hart continued, “I remember going in, I f-cking kill. I leave [like,] ‘All right, see you later, man.’ I don’t know Bow Wow at the time. I’m walking out. I’m probably on the third step walking out. Bow Wow walks in the room. All I hear is ‘Hey!’ ”
He added, “What the f-ck is going in there? Is he reading? I stay on the steps for a second; they’re dying; they’re going through the roof. He was reading with Kevin [Connolly].”
Hart never got the call, but he told Wahlberg, “I just remember watching ‘Entourage’ and seeing Bow Wow do the scene, and I was like, ‘I lost the part to f-cking Bow Wow. Bow Wow, a real talented guy, but it hurt me.”
Hart and Wahlberg ultimately did get to work together later in their upcoming film “Me Time,” set to stream on Netflix on Aug. 26, but that didn’t stop the comedian from giving his co-star a couple of playful “F-you’s” for not picking him for “Entourage.”
