Noah Wyle will get into character to portray a doctor on โThe Pitt,โ but he wonโt pretend to be a dancer.
The actor made an appearance on โThe Jennifer Hudson Showโ and opted out of the famous spirit tunnel โย but he had a good reason.
The talk show is known for its guests dancing down one of the backstage corridors while two lines of people cheer them on with chants before they make their way to the stage. Aaron Pierre, who voiced Mufasa in 2024โs โMufasa: The Lion King,โ even went viral for his โThatโs Mufasaโ spirit tunnel moment.
Wyle, however, didn’t feel comfortable getting his groove on backstage.
โWell, it wouldโve triggered a bigger breakdown that I had on this show two weeks ago if I had done it,โ Wyle said, after host Jennifer Hudson asked him to elaborate. โIโll tell you a little story.โ
The actor shared that in 1984, he was at a classmate’s bar mitzvah and he โfancied myself a break dancer.โ
โI went out and I heard Herbie Hancockโs ‘Rockit’ playing in front of all my classmates,โ he continued. โAnd I attempted the worm and I got into some kind of inverted position and it all collapsed on me.โ
Wyle said that he then tried to โstickโ the landing โ โand I didnโt stick it.โ
Ever since that moment, he said, heโs โopted out of the public dance.โ
Wyle added that heโs watched the show and guests going down the spirit tunnel before. However, he joked that he would have walked down the hallway saying, โNo, no, no,โ and cringing.
โAnd nobody needs to see that,โ he said, adding that perhaps next time he makes an appearance, he could โbaby step it.โ
โOnly if youโre comfortable,โ said Hudson. โWeโre just happy to have you here.โ
The talk showโs Instagram shared video of their conversation and captioned it, โWeโre giving Noah Wyle a hall pass for skipping our Spirit Tunnel.โ
Many people in the comments section praised Hudson for being understanding and not pushing the actor to do something that made him uncomfortable.
โLove that she respected his boundaries,โ one person wrote, while another added, โI love that she was so compassionate. Everyone doesnโt like this type of hyper focused attention. Even actors. Itโs a lot of pressure for those who know itโs not their thing. As the very old saying goes, everything isnโt for everybody. Ainโt nothing wrong with that.โ
Another person wrote that they loved that people โcan choose not to do the spirit tunnel. It wouldnโt be a spirt tunnel if it was forced upon people. I love the respect for ppls triggers and comfort zones.โ
โThis gentleman is such a sweetheart, and Jennifer is an angel for protecting boundaries,โ one person commented.
One person called it a โroller coasterโ of emotions, writing, โAt first I was annoyed he turned it down. ThenโฆI felt saddened by his experience. LastโฆI was happy his wishes was Respected by JHud.โ
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