Jim Belushi is an iconic American actor who sings and also does comedy. We may all recently know him from his cannabis show Growing Belushi, which is pretty relevant in our new world as it starts to embrace cannabis. The actor, however, has had a long successful career. To show this, he has a very impressive net worth of $50 million.
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His brother was the late sensation John Belushi. He played a significant role in Jim’s success and also some of his downfalls. Jim has played a role in more than 150 TV shows and films. Some of the most prestigious are Saturday Night Live from 1983 to 1985 and According to Jim between 2001 and 2009.
Jim got a Primetime Emmy nomination for Outstanding Writing in a Variety or Music Program in 1984 for his exceptional Saturday Night Live writing. However, his journey with Saturday Night Live has been far from smooth, and here is a small highlight of how.
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The Reasons Jim Belushi Got Fired from SNL
John Belushi, Jim’s big brother, was among SNL’s original members, so the actor always had a close relationship with the show. Despite his fear that people would always compare him to his brother, Jim still saw no other path more appealing. A year after John’s death in 1983, Jim began his journey with SNL. This was also four years after John had quit the show.
From 1983 up to 1985, Jim did an excellent portrayal of Hank Rippy from “Hello, Trudy!” What then happened to make things go so wrong?
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Jim Threw a Fire Extinguisher at the Executive Producer
You just can’t get away with some things, no matter how famous you are or, in Jim’s case, who your big-shot brother might have been. Well, throwing a whole fire extinguisher at your boss is undoubtedly one thing. Unfortunately, the incident where he threw the extinguisher at executive producer Dick Ebersol wasn’t the only misconduct case.
Jim had already gotten a negative reputation because of being difficult. He later describes that he was out of control and, for the most part, out of his mind.
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Jim Belushi Still Struggled with His Brother’s Death
Losing someone you loved and looked up to your whole life is among the most painful things. For Jim, it became much worse because of the tragic way his brother died by overdose at the young age of 33. When he joined Saturday Night Live, only a year after his brother’s death, the icon was still in grief and depression.
It was so sad that when his career had taken the best turn was also the same time he was facing the most challenging moment of his life. Jim Belushi described that the loss of his inspiration marked his entire life. As a result, Jim, a man who is now known for his hard work and his relentless determination, became difficult and eventually created history by becoming the first person to get fired from the SNL.
How Jim Got Rehired in Saturday Night Live
Sometimes, our darkest moments shape us to become the best version of ourselves and Jim’s darkest time was when he got fired. He described the experience as the best thing that happened to his life, but he barely survived it. When you actually think about it, throwing a fire extinguisher at anyone, in particular, is very dangerous. Jim got lucky because the executive producer understood that he was in a dark place and didn’t press any charges.
To make things even better for Jim, he got himself rehired, something that almost never happens. In an interview with vulture, the icon said, “I went back to him with my tail between my legs. I dropped the ego, got humble, and I stopped drinking the rest of that season.” Things definitely took a brighter turn for Jim when Dick dared to put him in his place and fire him.
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How Jim Got Fired A Second Time
Okay, I know you must be wondering how on earth it could happen again, but this time it wasn’t Jim Belushi’s fault. In an interview, the actor recalled what his brother said when he quit SNL. This was a great anchor for him as he exited SNL for the 2nd time. John had said that it was like high school. After senior year, you have to move on. And so Jim did after Lorne Michaels, the new executive producer, hired an all-new cast.
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