Bill Murray: ‘I did something I thought was funny, and it wasn’t taken that way’

In April, production was suspended on Being Mortal because of Bill Murray’s behavior. We found out soon enough that Murray had behaved inappropriately with women on set, and that he was (according to sources) too “handsy.” Murray has a long history of being inappropriate, predatory and just a world-class jackass to all kinds of people, so I completely believe his behavior rose to the level of needing an in-house investigation and a suspended production (it’s still suspended, by the way). But how does Murray justify it? Well, he was interviewed on CNBC at the Berkshire Hathaway Annual Shareholders Meeting and he said many words.

Murray did not provide specifics on what happened, but instead talked about how he was coping with the fallout from it. Murray characterized it as a “difference of opinion” with a woman on the set.

“I did something I thought was funny, and it wasn’t taken that way,” Murray said. “The company, the movie studio, wanted to do the right thing, so they wanted to check it all out, investigate it. and so they stopped the production. But as of now, we’re talking and we’re trying to make peace with each other. I think that’s where the real issue is, between our peace. We’re both professionals. We like each other’s work. We like each other, I think, and if you can’t really get along and trust each other, there’s no point in going further working together or making a movie as well.”

He allowed that he’s been spending the time since production was halted doing not much else beyond thinking about what happened, adding that “It’s been quite an education for me… And I feel like if I don’t see that, you know, the world is different than it was when I was a little kid. You know, what I always thought was funny as a little kid isn’t necessarily the same as what’s funny now. Things change and the times change, so it’s important for me to figure it out. And I think the most important thing is that it’s best for the other person. I thought about it, and if it’s not best for the other person, doesn’t matter what happens for me.”

Murray said he pondered, “How could I misperceive? How could I be so inaccurate and so insensitive when you think you’re being sensitive to some sensibility that you’ve had for a long time? So we’re talking about it. We’re, I think we’re gonna make peace with it. I’m very optimistic about that.”

He added that he is trying to learn from what happened. “I really think that’s a really sad puppy that can’t learn anymore. I don’t want to be that sad dog and I have no intention of it. I’ve, what would make me the happiest would be to, you know, put my boots on and for both of us to go back into work and be able to trust each other and work at the work that we’ve both spent a lot of time developing the skill of, and hopefully do something that’s good for more than just the two of us, but for a whole crew of people, a whole crew of movie makers. and the movie studio as well.”

[From Deadline]

He’s absolutely saying that he behaved inappropriately with a female costar, right? That’s exactly what it sounds like. I immediately checked IMDB to see which actresses were attached to the film and there’s only one woman listed in the cast: Keke Palmer. Did Bill Murray put his hands on Keke? That explains a lot about why the studio is taking this so seriously and why the production is still suspended. I hate that Murray basically outed Keke as his victim though, because you know he’s putting a target on her back. All of Murray’s bro-defenders are going to go after her as “the bitch who couldn’t take a joke” or worse. It f–king sucks, all of this.

Photos courtesy of Instar and Avalon Red.