Andre 3000, the rapper and flutist who recently released his acclaimed jazz album New Blue Sun, made a surprising confession on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. He said he tried out for the role of Tej Parker in the Fast and Furious franchise, but Ludacris beat him to it.
“I would have, but I think Ludacris took the role,” Andre 3000 said. “I actually tried out for Fast and Furious and Ludacris actually took the role.”
He added that he was not ready for the audition and that he was very nervous.
“I remember that audition. I was so nervous, man. I wouldn’t have hired me, he said.”
Ludacris first appeared as Tej Parker, a mechanic and street racer, in 2003’s 2 Fast 2 Furious. He has since reprised the role in five more films, becoming one of the main characters of the blockbuster series.
Andre 3000, on the other hand, has had a more selective acting career, starring in films such as Four Brothers, Semi-Pro, and Jimi: All Is by My Side. He also said he is not a fan of action movies and that he could not name his favorite one.
However, he did not seem to hold any grudge against Ludacris for taking his role. He even joked that he would be willing to join the Fast and Furious family in the future.
“Put me in Fast 30, he quipped.”
The revelation came during a segment called “Colbert Questionert“, where the host asked Andre 3000 a series of random and personal questions. Some of the other topics included his favorite sandwich, his first concert, his scariest animal, and his belief in life after death.
Andre 3000 said he thinks that when we die, our energy transfers into another body or something else we can’t imagine.
” These [our bodies] are kind of space suits, or Earth suits, that we walk around in,” he said. “I think that energy goes into something else, or into another thing we can’t even imagine. The energy transfers.”
You can watch the full segment below.