One of the very first acting jobs Brandon T. Jackson had was being an extra in 8 Mile. It was one of those blink-and-you-miss-it on-screen appearances. His time on set didn’t last much longer, cut short by his attempt to approach Eminem.
Local hero
American actor and comedian Brandon T. Jackson shared this story during his conversation with
The Art Of Dialogue. Born and raised in Detroit, young Jackson knew he would be an actor from an early age and landed his first roles while still in high school. 8 Mile, though, was different.
The whole city seemed to know that one of its most famous sons was filming the project firmly rooted in Detroit’s culture. Local rappers were prominently featured in the story, and local extras added to the authenticity. Interest in the project was high.
“We would skip school and go to the 8 Mile set”, Jackson remembers the enthusiasm. “Everybody was like, “Yo, we met Eminem!’” Did they really? “No, I’ve never actually met Eminem”, laughs Jackson. “I’ve seen him a lot! But I never really met him”.
One shot, one miss
Although not for the lack of trying. The young actor was determined to hand Eminem his comedy mixtape, but the security stopped him in his stride. “I had a comedy mixtape of my stand-up, and I was trying to give it to him”, Jackson recalls his unsuccessful attempt. “The security was like, ‘You gotta get off! You gotta get off! He ain’t taking no mixtapes’. At the time, my name was the Kid Comedian, and I was on 105.9 Radio Detroit, Michigan. I was trying to be known. I was doing it through high school”.
That also marked the end of his time on the production. He’s impossible to spot in the finished film. Even the actor could not recognise himself in the movie. “I was in the audience in the rap scenes, but you can’t find me. I was just standing around. I was in the club scene when he met Brittany Murphy’s character”.
Made it anyway
Still, he has this role on his IMDb page, described as a Chin Tiki Club goer (uncredited).
Eventually, Jackson built the career he had hoped for, becoming both a comedian and an actor, landing TV parts and the role of Grover in the Percy Jackson franchise. He found success without ever getting that mixtape into Eminem’s hands.
The cost of fame
Jackson’s story also illustrates what Eminem’s life looked like at the height of his fame. By the time 8 Mile was filming, simply walking across the set meant navigating crowds, security and constant attention. In the Stans documentary, released last year, Eminem told a story about how heavy the pressure of fame felt, robbing his life and the life of his family of normalcy.
“It was the last time I went to the mall as me. Not disguised. Every store we went to, we came out, and there was a bigger crowd, and a bigger crowd, and a bigger crowd. And it got to the point where I picked her up, and I was like, Come on, kiddo, time to go. And as I’m walking faster and faster and faster, they are walking faster and faster. I literally felt like I was being chased out of the fucking mall. That was one of those moments when I realised that my life really has changed. I can’t do this anymore”
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No wonder armed security was surrounding Eminem on both the 8 Mile and Hannah Montana sets, where Marshall once brought Hailie.