Jon Heder Reveals That His ‘Napoleon Dynamite’ Fame Became a ‘Hassle’: Now ‘I Embrace it More’
Jon Heder’s star rose in 2004 with the release of surprise teen comedy Napoleon Dynamite. It was a massive audience hit, and the quirky independent film became an instant cult classic. However, in a new interview, Heder says it wasn’t all fun and games. He revealed that his unexpected fame became a “hassle.” Here’s how he dealt with it and moved forward.
Jon Heder says fame was never his goal
In a new interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Heder says he never planned on the household-name fame that came with Napoleon Dynamite. He stars as an awkward teenager living in rural Idaho in the 2004 comedy. Jared Hess directed, and Jared and Jerusha Hess wrote the film.
From it sprang classic lines like “Vote For Pedro” and “Your mom goes to college!” that endure today.
“Fame and success, obviously, sometimes go hand in hand but I certainly never planned on that,” he told THR. “It was not a lifelong goal. I wanted to get into the entertainment industry when I was in high school. I would dream about being famous for doing something cool, like whether that be a project people watched or animation or something but it was never about becoming a huge, famous star.”
But that’s precisely what happened. Fox Searchlight Pictures acquired the rights to the breakout hit at the Sundance Film Festival. They subsequently collaborated with MTV Films and Paramount Pictures for a wide release. From there, it went gangbusters. And things changed for Heder. He subsequently starred alongside Will Ferrell in Blades of Glory and Reese Witherspoon in Just Like Heaven, among others.
Similarly, director Hess went on to direct Nacho Libre with Jack Black.
The actor says ‘Napoleon Dynamite’ changed his life
Before the movie, Jon Heder and Jared Hess were film students at Brigham Young University in Utah. They collaborated on a short film called Peluca about a geeky high school student. It ultimately became a feature-length comedy with a surprising amount of heart and sincerity. However, it changed everything for the unassuming film student.
“After Napoleon happened, [my life] felt like it was moving strongly in that direction and suddenly people were recognizing me and I had to deal with fame,” he explained. It took years, he said, but Heder finally found a way to deal with the pressure.
“Then about 10 years ago, maybe more, I was letting it bother me a lot more,” Heder continued. “I felt like I was always having to deal with it and tell people why people can’t treat you this way. It really got to my head. But then it was like flipping a switch, I started to tell myself that this was stupid and I am not going to let it bother me anymore. It became self-therapy. I just didn’t want to be bothered by it anymore. I know that sounds simple but it really helped me change my perspective.”
John Heder admits he’s proud of his work on ‘Napoleon Dynamite’
The actor says just changing his attitude was what made the difference. Moreover, he adds that he learned to embrace his fame.
“Now and then, I still deal with a lot of the same, I guess you can call them hassles, but I embrace it more,” Heder told the magazine. “When people stop me or try to talk to me, OK, great. I’m proud of the work I’ve done, especially the early work that people know me for, whether that be Napoleon Dynamite or Blades of Glory. I love those films. And it would really stink if I was not happy with those films. So, certainly, for me, that success and people being fans of those films is great.”
Heder’s new holiday movie, Funny Thing About Love, is currently playing.
