There's actually some fire behind the Pauly Shore/Richard Simmons feud. You should read that linked article, but the short of it is: Shore is lined up to play the fitness guru in a film. Simmons, while he was alive, took to social media to say that he didn't approve of the film whatsoever. Now that Simmons has unfortunately passed away, it seems that things are only getting uglier. Simmons' now-contested social media post reads as such.
"Hi Everybody! You may have heard they may be doing a movie about me with Pauly Shore. I have never given my permission for this movie. So don't believe everything you read. I no longer have a manager, and I no longer have a publicist. I just try to live a quiet life and be peaceful. Thank you for all your love and support."
Per PEOPLE, after Simmons' death, Shore stated he wasn't sure Simmons was actually behind the social media posts speaking out against the project. Shore told Entertainment Tonight he "didn't even know if that was [Simmons] tweeting the whole time." Shore also insists Simmons wanted him to play the role.
Simmons' estate would take to X (formally known as Twitter) to offer a few clarifications about Shore's claims. "Pauly Shore has recently made comments to Entertainment Tonight concerning his attempts to proceed with an unauthorized movie about Richard. You've seen here on Richard's account what he had to say about the biopic," one post states.
Richard Simmons' Family Responds To Pauly Shore's Claims
Additionally, Lenny, Simmons' brother, would follow through with a statement of his own. "Dicky absolutely wrote his own posts," Lenny begins. "He worked on them a week in advance, going over and over them to get the right message. He would often read them to Cathy and I beforehand. What he has NOT done was to text, email or call Pauly with anything; not even to wish him 'Good Luck' as Pauly has stated many times."
Before Simmons' passing, he issued the following statement directly to PEOPLE. "The Pauly Shore biopic does not have my blessing. Some major studios are interested with me being involved in MY story."
