The Lawrence brothers were, at one point, one of the most famous pairings of celebrity siblings acting together. As former child stars, the trio of brothers, Matthew, Andrew, and Joey, have some truly larger-than-life Hollywood stories from their youth. The latter (and the eldest) Lawrence brother proved just that by sharing that his first fishing experience was with John Candy and a hit director on an excellent screwball vacation movie. Meanwhile the youngest, Andrew, recalled an equally buzzy story including Arnold Schwarzenegger, another notable actor and holding a lit cigar as a young kid.
All three Lawrences were at the ‘90s Con to reminisce about some of their Hollywood highlights. During the panel, the Brotherly Love co-stars were asked to talk about one of their wildest moments while on the clock or with their peers. The Melissa & Joey alum jumped in to talk about his off-camera experience with John Candy and the film’s director, Carl Reiner (noting at that time he didn’t realize who he was). Via People, he shared that it was not only his first time he’d caught a fish, but fishing in general, and what happened to said catch:
I caught a flounder in St. Petersburg, Florida, with Carl Reiner, who’s a very famous director, [and] I didn’t even realize who he was, but he was very famous back in the ’60s, the ’50s and ’70s. Anyway, I was doing a movie called Summer Rental with John Candy. I caught a flounder. First time I’d ever fished. An incredible-size flounder. I guess it was a massive flounder, and the chef cooked it and John Candy ate it for lunch. John Candy’s the best.
Just imagining a young Joey Lawrence peak John Candy and legendary Carl Reiner fishing–it’s almost too much. The former child star wasn’t even 10 at the time, and he reeled in his first fish, which Candy had for lunch. Even though it’s not one of the best John Candy movies out there, it still makes me want to find a copy of the 1985 film to round out the image of the bonkers anecdote (the movie is available with VOD services).
Thinking that the Blossom actor’s story couldn’t be topped, Andy chimed in with a memory that goes toe to toe with the St. Pete’s fishing adventure. The Horse Sense star shared that while he was working with Tom Arnold on his eponymous show in the ‘90s, he and Arnold Schwarzenegger had the young actor holding a cigar in a fancy car:
I did a show with Tom Arnold, who was a very good friend of mine. And, and he threw me in the back of his car with one of his buddies — who was Arnold Schwarzenegger — and they had me hold a lit cigar. I was 7. They just thought it was so funny to see the little kid holding a cigar in a Rolls-Royce.
Again, just as wild as his eldest brother’s story. The trio in the Rolls-Royce is odd, but at the time, with a 7-year-old holding an actively smoking cigar, weirdly, isn’t surprising. While the former story still stands as a bit more humorous today, this one involving Andy Lawrence is amusing, assuming it was a momentary happening. The single-season show may be a bit harder to track down for those interested in watching.
Both brothers are working on Diamond Rose, set to appear on our 2025 movie schedule. And though Joey Lawrence was accused of cheating with Christmas movie co-star Melina Alves, he has plenty more in the works. Ahead, for all three brothers, include Lawrence House, which is still in talks to be developed officially by a network.
In the meantime, their colorful Hollywood memories, including Candy and Schwarzenegger, will do for this fan, along with revisiting some of these forgotten ‘80s + ‘90s gems.
