Kevin Bacon recently experienced life as a non-famous person, donning an elaborate disguise to see what life would be like if he weren’t recognizable to the public. In an interview with Vanity Fair, the Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F actor said he soon concluded, “This sucks.”
Bacon, who is also currently starring in Ti West’s horror pic MaXXXine, explained to VF, “I’m not complaining, but I have a face that’s pretty recognizable. Putting my hat and glasses on is only going to work to a certain extent.”
So, Bacon said, “I went to a special effects makeup artist, had consultations, and asked him to make me a prosthetic disguise.”
Per VF, he was outfitted with fake teeth, a slightly different nose and glasses. When he tested the look at outdoor Los Angeles shopping mall The Grove, “Nobody recognized me,” Bacon said. But the tide evidently soon turned. “People were kind of pushing past me, not being nice. Nobody said, ‘I love you.’ I had to wait in line to, I don’t know, buy a f***ing coffee or whatever. I was like, This sucks. I want to go back to being famous,” he told VF.
The actor, who has been working steadily since the late 70s and became a megastar with 1984’s Footloose, also told VF, “I honestly feel very grateful for where I happen to be. That I can have two totally different movies coming out within a couple of days of each other, and completely different roles. The fact they would both come my way is the thing that I feel the most gratitude for. I’ve fought really long and hard for it.”