David Spade thinks they should have 'unplugged' Chris Farley's black sheep from the start

"Black Sheep" was intended as a slapstick comedy, firmly in the wheelhouse of Spade and freshly hot Farley merchandise. But the latter was tired of being the butt of weight-based gags and eager to show off his characterization skills – it would become a point of creative contention between the longtime friends, who would in turn fight with the director over her frequent headbutts. with the screenwriter. Tom Farley's "The Chris Farley Show: A Biography in Three Acts" reveals that Wolf was fired three times and eventually banned from the set.

Spheeris got the gig because of his handling of "Wayne's World," the most successful "SNL" picture to date. Throw in Gary Busey and "Animal House" alumni Tim Matheson and Bruce McGill among the cast and the same screenwriter behind "Tommy Boy," and the movie had all the makings of a blockbuster laugh fest - "We we've all had," Spade lamented Uproxx. He continued:

"Penelope told us right away that she didn't like 'Tommy Boy' and that she knew how to make Chris and I funny. That's when someone should have pulled the plug. Then she ripped forty pages out of our script and said she'd fix it with her writer. She and Fred had a few bad meetings and he was basically kicked off the project from there.

For his part, Spheeris acknowledges Paramount's desperation and alludes to a cynicism toward jump goofball comedy. In Tom Farley's biography of his late brother, the 'Suburbia' director admitted the $2.75 million salary was what appealed to him. "I hate to sound rude, but I did it for the money," she said. In retrospect, "Black Sheep" is an elegiac story, one that bids farewell to a cast of comedians who were only just warming up before Farley's sudden death.