Jim Carrey is a famous actor who is best known for his comedy performances in a host of movies.
Though it is unknown whether Jim Carrey regularly plays piano, he did learn to play the instrument for his role in the movie ‘The Majestic’. He had not played piano before the movie but had “Natural talent” for rhythm.
Read more about Jim Carey’s life and career, as well as his musical ability, below.
Who is Jim Carrey?
Jim Carrey grew up in Canada as part of a working-class family. He is the youngest of four siblings.
The family faced financial issues during his teenage years, and Carrey began working to help ease the burden on his parents. “We went from ‘lower middle class’ to ‘poor’,” he reflects.
“We were living out of a van. I quit school at age 15 to begin working to help support my family as a janitor.”
The beginnings of his comedic ability began early. As a child, he says he would make funny faces at himself, explaining “I spent most of my time in my room staring at a mirror. I never knew I was supposed to socialize.”
His facial expressions would become one of his most recognizable comedy traits.
Career
Carrey starred in the 90s movie ‘The Truman Show’ in a role that would mark a key moment in his career. He took inspiration from his father for the character, explaining “My father’s demeanor was Truman…I wanted it to be a tribute to him, so there are little moments throughout the movie that are so my dad that my family would go, ‘Oh, you were doing Dad.’”
Carrey went on to star in a number of blockbusters during the 90s and 2000s, including ‘Dumb and Dumber’, ‘Bruce Almighty’ and the seasonal hit, ‘How the Grinch Stole Christmas’.
His talent has been recognized with countless accolades, including two Golden Globe wins for his roles in ‘Man on the Moon’ and ‘The Truman Show’.
Musical Ability
In the movie ‘The Majestic’, Carrey plays the character of Peter Appleton in a step away from his usual comedy roles. The movie details the experiences of a screenwriter who is injured in a car accident and loses his memory.
In one scene, Carrey’s character plays the piano to a room of onlookers. The tune he plays, ‘Boogie Woogie Stomp’ has an upbeat, fast-paced melody.
There has been debate over whether Carrey truly plays the music used in the movie or simply mimics the movements while a more experienced piano player provides the sound. What is known, however, is that the actor did take up piano lessons in preparation for the role.
Claudia Cummings worked on the movie as the music consultant and her office explained more about Carrey’s role. “Carrey had to learn to ‘play’,” they said.
A piano coach was hired, and Carrey soon proved to have a natural ability. “Surprisingly, Jim has tremendous natural talent for the style. He’d never played piano, and he was able to learn amazing boogie woogie riffs. He was a tireless student. He has wonderful natural talent for rhythm, and a performance style all his own.”
Teddy Andreadis, the keyboard player for Guns and Roses, was enlisted to help teach Carrey how to move naturally while playing. Carrey, however, had such ability that the expert help was never required.
The actor’s musical abilities were called on again in the 2008 movie ‘Yes Man’ when he played the guitar-playing character of Carl Allen. Carrey received guitar lessons, which he spoke fondly of.
“My guitar teacher was very encouraging,” he recalls. “He said, ‘You have good rhythm, you have an ear, you should really stick with this.’”
Despite his ability, the actor chose not to play the guitar once the movie had finished filming. “Why touch [a guitar] when there are people like Eric Clapton in the world,” he said to explain his decision.