13 Fascinating Facts About Rick Moranis

Beloved for his film roles in the 1980s and 1990s, Rick Moranis played perfect iterations of an endearing geek in movies like Ghostbusters (1984), Little Shop of Horrors (1986), Spaceballs (1987), Honey, I Shrunk the Kids (1989), and The Flintstones (1994). But in 1997, to the consternation of his many fans, Moranis walked away from it all to focus on raising his family.

Although the Toronto-born actor has been mostly out of the limelight since then, he's kept busy with music and voice work. And now Variety is confirming that the 66-year-old will officially come out of retirement for Disney's reboot of Honey, I Shrunk the Kids. 

1. Rick Moranis got his big break thanks to a Canadian television content regulation.

After working at a Toronto radio station after high school, Moranis appeared on a sketch comedy show on the CBC called Second City TV. The show, which was in its third season when Moranis joined in 1980, legally had to devote a few minutes of airtime in each episode to “identifiable Canadian content.” In other words, Canadian television had to contain some Canada-related content, which Moranis found silly.

After the crew went home, Moranis and fellow actor Dave Thomas satirized the requirement by improvising the characters of Bob and Doug McKenzie, two stereotypically Canadian brothers. The sketch filled the extra airtime with Canadian content, and audiences loved Bob and Doug. Moranis and Thomas portrayed the McKenzie brothers in the 1983 film Strange Brew (which they also wrote and directed), and their comedy album The Great White North got a Grammy nomination for Best Comedy Album in 1983.

2. Rick Moranis counts filming Little Shop of Horrors as one of his luckiest moments.

In 1986, Moranis starred as florist Seymour Krelborn in the film adaptation of the musical Little Shop of Horrors. As he told The Hollywood Reporter in 2015: "I'm the luckiest guy to get that … It was timing, and I fit the right type. It was an amazing experience. One of the greatest moments of my life was shooting that thing."

3. Rick Moranis starred in a Pepsi commercial.

In 1995, Moranis starred in a funny Pepsi commercial, playing twins separated at birth—one twin is in America, while the other grows up in Germany. One sunny day, the twins telepathically connect via the power of drinking Pepsi.

4. Rick Moranis left Hollywood to become a stay-at-home dad.

In 1991, Moranis's wife died of breast cancer, and he had to reshuffle his priorities in order to take care of his two young children. In a 2005 interview with USA Today, he explained that he stopped making movies in 1996 because he couldn't juggle being a stay-at-home dad and traveling to make movies. "I took a little bit of a break. And the little bit of a break turned into a longer break, and then I found that I really didn't miss it," Moranis said.

5. Rick Moranis has done voice work on a few animated movies.

Although Moranis shifted his focus from movies to raising kids, he never completely retired. In 2001, he did voice work as both the Toy Taker and Mr. Cuddles the Teddy Bear in the animated film Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer & the Island of Misfit Toys. In 2003, he voiced Rutt in the animated film Brother Bear, and reprised the role for its 2006 sequel, Brother Bear 2.

6. Rick Moranis is a Grammy-nominated musician.

In 2005, Moranis let the world know about his love of country music. The Agoraphobic Cowboy is a comedy album comprised of 13 songs inspired by alternative country and bluegrass. Although Moranis admitted that the album began as a lark, it was nominated for a Grammy in 2006 for Best Comedy Album. "I started writing a song," Moranis told Billboard. "I wrote one, and then another one. I was singing them to a couple of friends, and they'd be relatively amused."

7. Rick Moranis's Jewish upbringing inspired his most recent album.

In 2013, Moranis released another musical comedy album called My Mother's Brisket & Other Love Songs. Thematically, Moranis focused on his Jewish upbringing, and he used a mix of klezmer and jazz sounds on songs like "The Seven Days of Shiva" and "Live Blogging The Himel Family Bris." The best part? The deluxe pack of the album comes with a purple yarmulke.

8. Rick Moranis still has tons of fans.

Moranis lives in Manhattan and often gets recognized on the street. As he told The Hollywood Reporter in 2015, "People are very nice when they see me." Moranis attributes some of his enduring influence to his clean style of comedy. "We were governed by a certain kind of taste at that time, and there were places we wouldn't go with language and bodily fluids and functions. I think that's what [fans are] nostalgic for."

9. Rick Moranis never sough fame for its own sake.

Moranis says he never decided to be an actor for the fame. Rather, he focused on the art itself, and fame and publicity followed. “The need to do publicity and everything other than the work is not something that I set out to do," Moranis told Heeb in 2013. "For some people it is. They want that. They want the connection to the audience. They want their name in the paper. For me, that was just a by-product of the work's success. I didn't really seek out any of that stuff." He also didn't seek out celebrity friends; he told the magazine that he hasn't kept up with any of his co-stars in more than 20 years.

10. Rick Moranis avoids airplanes, but not because he's afraid of flying.

In an interview in 2013, Moranis revealed that he avoids airplanes in favor of driving, but not because he's afraid of flying. Moranis dislikes the dragged out process of flying, from getting to the airport a couple hours early to dealing with sick seatmates. “We started to hear the stories of people stuck on the tarmac for six hours," he said. "If that happens to me, I'll be on the front page of the New York Post the next day. I'll fake a heart attack or melt down. So it’s better for me to stay away from airports."

11. Rick Moranis declined a role in the Ghostbusters reboot.

Although original Ghostbusters stars Dan Aykroyd, Bill Murray, Ernie Hudson, and Sigourney Weaver all appeared in Paul Feig's Ghostbusters reboot, Moranis wasn't among them. As he told The Hollywood Reporter in 2015, he was offered a cameo role but declined: “I wish them well. I hope it's terrific. But it just makes no sense to me. Why would I do just one day of shooting on something I did 30 years ago?”

12. Rick Moranis made an appearance in a 2018 episode of The Goldbergs.

Although Moranis's acting hiatus has lasted more than 20 years, now that his kids are in their twenties, he has said he'll act again once he finds an interesting role. “I still get the occasional query about a film or television role, and as soon as one comes along that piques my interest, I'll probably do it,” Moranis said in 2015. "I'm happy with the things I said yes to, and I'm very happy with the many things I've said no to. Yes, I am picky, and I'll continue to be picky. Picky has worked for me."

In 2018 he finally found a project worth coming out of retirement for when he reprised his role as Dark Helmet from Spaceballs on the May 9, 2018 episode of the 1980s-set The Goldbergs.

13. Rick Moranis will appear in Disney's Honey, I Shrunk the Kids reboot.

That appearance on The Goldbergs must have sparked something in Moranis. Shortly after it was announced that Disney would be rebooting Honey, I Shrunk the Kids, rumors began circulating that Moranis would officially come out of retirement to appear in it. In February 2020, Variety confirmed that Moranis has indeed signed on. Who knows where he'll go from there.