🔥 Comedy Legend Mel Brooks Exposes the 6 Stars Who Drove Him CRAZY – You’ll Never Guess Who’s on the List!

Mel Brooks has built his legacy on laughter, but as he nears the century mark, he’s pulling no punches about the chaos, conflict, and sheer contempt he experienced behind the scenes.

In a candid and unfiltered interview this week, the 98-year-old filmmaker and funnyman revealed the six actors who made his life hell—and fans are absolutely stunned.

The first name out of his mouth? Gene Wilder.

Yes, that Gene Wilder—his closest collaborator and the iconic face of Young Frankenstein and The Producers.

But according to Brooks, their friendship wasn’t all magic and mayhem.

“Gene was brilliant, sure,” Brooks admitted.

“But he was also a perfectionist, and sometimes that made him unbearable.

” Brooks described brutal creative battles during filming, including shouting matches over rewrites, improvisations, and even wardrobe choices.

“He wanted everything a certain way, and if you didn’t give him that, he’d sulk like a kid.

” Brooks insisted the love was real, but so was the frustration.

“I hated how stubborn he could be.

Genius comes with baggage.

Second on the list: Anne Bancroft, his own wife of over 40 years.

Shocking, right? But Brooks didn’t mince words.

“Anne was my everything.

But as an actress, she could be… intimidating.

” He described working with her on several stage projects as “emotionally exhausting,” adding, “She wouldn’t take direction from me.

She said, ‘You’re my husband, not my director.

’ And that made for some brutal fights.

” Brooks confessed he often avoided casting her in his films because the power dynamic was just too combustible.

“I loved her to death—but I hated working with her.

Third up: Dom DeLuise, the rotund comedy legend who became a staple of Brooks’ later films.

While audiences adored him, Brooks revealed the truth: “Dom was hilarious, but he didn’t know when to stop.

” He explained how DeLuise constantly went off-script, destroyed takes with uncontrollable laughter, and once held up production for an entire day because he refused to perform a fart joke he felt was “beneath him.

” Brooks quipped, “Can you believe that? In History of the World, Part I, everything is beneath everyone!” The chaos, he said, often led to resentment: “I hated that he didn’t respect the structure.

Comedy needs structure.

The fourth actor to earn Brooks’ wrath was Madeline Kahn, another fan-favorite from Blazing Saddles and Young Frankenstein.

“Oh, she was divine—but she knew it,” Brooks said.

“Madeline had no patience for fools, and that included me.

” He shared a story about how she once walked off set for two days because he asked her to sing a line slightly differently.

“She said I didn’t understand her process.

I said, ‘Your process is costing me $40,000 a day!’” Though he praised her talent, Brooks confessed, “Working with her gave me ulcers.

I hated the drama.

The fifth name may be the most unexpected—and most explosive: Richard Pryor.

Although Pryor co-wrote Blazing Saddles, he never appeared in the film, a decision that Brooks now says wasn’t entirely about studio pushback.

“Everyone blames the suits,” Brooks revealed, “but the truth is, Richard and I butted heads constantly.

” Brooks said Pryor wanted the film to be much darker and more politically charged, while Brooks pushed for a more absurdist, satirical tone.

“He called me a coward.

I called him a loose cannon.

” Ultimately, Brooks said, “I hated how he tried to hijack the vision.

He was brilliant, but we couldn’t coexist.

”

And finally, the sixth actor on Brooks’ hate list is none other than Leslie Nielsen.

While Nielsen never starred in one of Brooks’ films, he was considered for a leading role in Dracula: Dead and Loving It.

The two worked together during early pre-production—and it did not go well.

“Leslie was deadpan to the point of being dead weight,” Brooks said.

“He didn’t understand my timing, my energy.

Everything I threw at him bounced back flat.

” Brooks claimed the chemistry was so off that he replaced Nielsen after just one week of test shooting.

“I hated how stiff he was.

Funny guy in his own way, but not in my universe.

So why is Mel Brooks opening up now? “Because I’m 98, and who the hell’s gonna stop me?” he laughed.

But on a more serious note, he added, “People always think comedy is this joyful, easy thing.

It’s not.

It’s war.

And some of the people you go into battle with? You wish you’d left them in the trenches.

The reaction from fans has been a mix of heartbreak and fascination.

Social media exploded as longtime Brooks admirers processed the fact that the people who made them laugh the hardest were also sources of deep personal conflict for the man behind the camera.

Some called the revelations “blasphemy,” while others applauded Brooks’ honesty at a time in life when most legends choose nostalgia over truth.

As for the actors still living? None have responded directly, but Hollywood insiders are already bracing for fallout.

Brooks, however, seems unfazed.

“I made peace with most of them.

Hell, a few are probably waiting for me on the other side with a contract in hand and a baseball bat in the other.

”

Whether you love or hate what he said, one thing is certain: even at 98, Mel Brooks refuses to play it safe.

And that might just be why he’s a legend in the first place.