Cameron Diaz Knew She Had to Be inThere's Something About MaryAfter She ‘Fell off the Bed’ Laughing at This Line

Mar. 15, 2025

Cameron Diazis reflecting on one of her most iconic movies.

Diaz, 52, explained how she ended up signing on to the 1998 filmThere’s Something About Maryin a new video forVogue. And she was attracted to the flick — which also starred Matt Dillon, Ben Stiller and W. Earl Brown as Mary’s brother — because she found the script hilarious.

“The first time I read the script, I literally fell off my bed laughing,” Diaz explained. And she still remembered what scene sent her over the edge.

“There’s a description of this scene when my brother Earlpunches[Dillon’s character] in the throat,” Diaz said. “For some reason, the thought of him punching him in the throat was the funniest thing to me. I started laughing so hard I literally fell off the bed, and knew I had to do the movie."

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In the movie, Stiller’s Ted has been in love with Mary since high school but has lost touch with her. He hires Dillon’s character Healy, a private investigator, to track her down, but he, too, falls in love with Mary. Brown’s Earl punches Healy in the throat when he touches Earl’s ears, which he is repeatedly warned not to do.

There’s Something About Mary— which married romantic comedy beats with more raunchy, R-rated comedy — grossed more than ​​$360 million at the box office and was the fourth-highest-grossing movie of 1998. Diaz’s performance was particularly lauded, and she received a Golden Globe nomination and won the New York Film Critics Circle Award for best actress.

She went on to star in movies likeBeing John Malkovich,Charlie’s Angels,Shrek,The HolidayandGangs of New York, among many more. Diaz retired from acting after she starred in multiple movies in 2014 but makes her return this month inNetflix’sBack in Action.

Cameron Diaz in 2025.Dave Benett/WireImage)

Dave Benett/WireImage)

But Diaz has said that she’snot sure that the film will mark a full return to acting. “I reserve the right to say no to doing a movie ever again, and I reserve the right to say yes if I decide to,” she toldEmpirein December.

“I’m not defining anything. I’m just open to whatever makes sense for me and my family at any given moment,” the mom of two said. She added that she’ll be doing “no more romcoms, only momcoms.” Diaz also said that her biggest reason for returning this time around was working withJamie Foxxagain.

“People don’t even realize how long we’ve been friends,” Foxx said ina clipthe duo shared to social media in December. Diaz said, “True. Since we were inAny Given Sundaytogether, which was in 1999!” They also starred together in 2014’sAnnie.

source: people.com