Why Kevin Smith's Daughter Harley Turned Down Female Lead in His New Movie to Play a 'Hooker Nun' Instead (Exclusive)

Mar. 15, 2025

Kevin Smith and Harley Quinn Smith in Los Angeles on Jan. 14, 2019.Photo:Paul Butterfield/Getty

Paul Butterfield/Getty

Harley Quinn Smithturned down a lead role in dadKevin Smith’s new movie for a very specific reason.

Compared to Zajur, who was an immediate yes, “Harley was a little bit more reticent and didn’t call me back right away,” Smith, 54, recalls of his only child, 25.

“And then finally she sent me this long beautiful text, well reasoned out, where she’s like, ‘I love that you want to include me and I loveworking with you, but the idea of playing your high-school girlfriend, I’m just bumping into it,’ " he adds.

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Kevin Smith, Harley Quinn Smith and Jennifer Schwalbach Smith in Hollywood, California, on Oct. 14, 2019.Kevin Winter/Getty

Kevin Winter/Getty

Smith says Harley suggested he get a different actress for the role, which eventually went to Siena Agudong. At first, the filmmaker says he “chafed, where I’m like, ‘What the hell?’ "

“But then I’m like, I love that this kid is strong enough to be like, ‘You’re one of thepeople in this world I lovethe most, but I could still say no to you, even if you’re my father,’ " he tells PEOPLE. “That made me happy not just as a filmmaker, but as a father, as a human being who’s like, ‘Oh my God, the kid’s already better than me’ — a generation removed, and she’s learned to kind of put herself first, and not in that selfish way, but [to] protect your head and heart. It’s a long life.”

“So her maturity as an actor and as a person always capture my imagination, but I’ve spent the better part of 25 years now just trying to make this kid laugh, and it’s one of my favorite things in the world to do,” theMallratsdirector adds.

While Harley doesn’t play Melody, she does have a cameo inThe 4:30 Movie— as Sister Sugar Walls, the “hooker nun” in a fictional trailer that plays at the movie theater in the film.

“She was like, ‘I want to play Sister Sugar Walls.’ And I was like, ‘That makes me even happier than you playing Melody Barnegat, for heaven’s sakes,’ " Smith says. “The guy that madeDogmato have his daughter play the hooker nun in the fake trailer. Absolutely.”

Austin Zajur, Kate Micucci and Siena Agudong inThe 4:30 Movie(2024).Ralph Bavaro

Ralph Bavaro

Smith, who shares Harley with his wife of 25 yearsJennifer Schwalbach Smith, has often had his daughter in his films, beginning with 2001’sJay and Silent Bob Strike Back.

Her roles have included a co-lead withLily-Rose DeppinYoga Hosers(2016), plus smaller roles inJersey Girl(2004),Clerks II(2006),Jay and Silent Bob Reboot(2019) andClerks III(2022).

“It’s always fun to be able to sit there and make pretend with your kid,” Smith tells PEOPLE. “It’s on a movie and it’s a larger scale and she’s 25 and I’m 54, but at its root, it’s some variation of us playing hide-and-seek or video games together when she was a little kid.”

“The fact that we still get to play together is pretty sweet. Breathing pretty rare air,” he adds.

source: people.com