Eminem Once Wanted Mariah Carey to Play His Mom in ‘8 Mile’
Eminem reportedly asked Mariah Carey to play his mother in 8 Mile. Then things took an unexpected—and steamy—turn.
It might sound surprising, but according to producer Damizza, Eminem once wanted Mariah Carey to play his mother in 8 Mile.
Damizza—who’s worked with Carey shared the unexpected story on the TFU show. He said Eminem was eager to meet with Carey about the role, and asked Damizza to help make it happen.
His first reaction? “I’m not getting in the middle of that. I know how this ends,” he said.
At first, Carey declined the meeting. But once she learned it was for a movie, she reconsidered. When the meeting finally happened, Eminem made his intentions clear. “The first thing out of [Eminem’s] mouth is, ‘I want you to play my mother,’” Damizza recalled.
Carey’s reaction wasn’t great. “Her insecurities kicked in big time,” he said.
According to Damizza, the meeting shifted from professional to personal. “It was her chasing him, not him chasing her,” he claimed. “Next thing I know, we are at Eminem’s house… and they disappear. The second they went into his room, literally, I was like, I’m going back to LA. There is no point of me being here. It went from business to f------.”
Rumors about a short-lived relationship between Eminem and Carey have circulated since 2001—something Carey has consistently denied.
Eminem later addressed their alleged relationship publicly in his 2009 diss track “The Warning,” a response to Carey’s single “Obsessed,” which many believe is about him. In the song, he rapped:
“Wow Mariah, didn’t expect you to go balls out / B---- shut the f--- up ‘fore I put all them phone calls out / You made it to my house when you was Wild’n Out before Nick / When you was on my d--- and give you something to smile about.”
In the end, Carey didn’t appear in 8 Mile. The role of Eminem’s mother went to Kim Basinger, who received critical acclaim for her performance.
