Thanks Jim!

Jim Carrey made his mark in Hollywood with strong, diverse character portrayals like the Grinch, Ace Ventura, The Mask, and Count Olaf in ‘Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events’ and his often silly but well-performed roles in ‘Dumb & Dumber’, ‘Liar Liar’, and ‘Me, Myself and Irene’. Doing this type of cinema really shaped him as a versatile actor but by taking on projects like ‘Truman Show’, ‘Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind’ and ‘Yes Man’, he showed a refreshing deepness and ability to pair his comedic timing with slightly more dramatic tones. We’ve even heard his fantastic singing voice and last night on Jay Leno, Carrey shared with the world his current passion: painting, and unsurprisingly, he’s got that skill, too.

Upon talking about his latest endeavor, we learned that it’s more than just a hobby for Carrey, but an intense outlet and something he puts his mind, body and soul into. Photos of his floor-sized art, some glow-in-the-dark and others simply ripe with emotion, were featured as a usually relaxed Jim Carrey began to tense up. What intrigued me most was that as calm and open as he was during most of the interview, Carrey showed extreme insecurity when it came to talks of his paintings’ worth. As Leno spit-balled, Carrey crossed his arms with hands tightly clasped around opposite arms, seemingly ‘put on the spot’. Perhaps noticing this change in behavior, Leno changed the subject to the upcoming movie, ‘Popper’s Penguins’ and Carrey immediately retreated back to his former stress-free persona. What shocks me is the idea that a person so highly respected and commended for their talent could still have weakness in confidence and frankly, I’m relieved.

We often consider celebrities to be jaded and lacking humility but in Carrey’s desire for approval, exemplified in his body language, a ‘human’ side is detected. From this, I realized that no matter who you are and how much you’ve proven yourself, the question of worth in regards to something fresh in your cache of talents or abilities can trigger your most vulnerable feelings and create doubt. But you don’t have to listen to the ‘what-if’s! Though obviously self-conscious about his work, Carrey still allowed for it to be referenced and presented on national television which takes an amount of courage no one is without. I’m still not exactly sure of how to come up from the fears of being judged on something you put your heart into, but recognizing that one of the most multifaceted talents of our time has questions of his own gift and pushed them aside long enough for an episode of “The Tonight Show” puts me at ease and gives me hope for a bright and fearless future of my own.

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