The Original ‘Road House’ Made Colin Quinn Realize Acting Wasn’t for Him

Comedy legend Colin Quinn once thought that stand-up would be his stepping stone to movie stardom, but Hollywood ripped that dream away from him faster than Patrick Swayze tore out that guy’s throat.

The concept of “paying your dues” in Hollywood is one that most every up-and-comer understands. With an exceedingly select few non-nepo-baby exceptions, nobody lands that great, meaty, big-break-worthy leading role on their first attempt at breaking into the entertainment industry, and successful actors need to work their way up to the big time with some foot-in-the-door performances. For an aspiring star with a sense of humor, becoming a touring stand-up comedian is an effective avenue toward acting gigs, but Quinn, who has been down that road before, warns that the final destination may not be worth it after all.

During last night’s episode of Late Night with Seth Meyers, Quinn said that he had to rethink his original plan of graduating from stand-up to film acting when he saw the critically panned but cult-beloved 1989 action movie Road House and wondered what the hell Hollywood was doing to poor Kelly Lynch:

When Meyers asked Quinn if his original plan when he began performing comedy was to turn his stand-up success into an acting career, Quinn admitted that, yes, his younger self had his eyes on Hollywood. “That was a long time ago,” Quinn clarified. “Then once I started acting, I realized I really don’t like acting at all.”

While Quinn certainly has some acclaimed performances listed on his IMDb page, including roles on the HBO series Girls and in the hit comedy movie Trainwreck, he says that it was another actor’s eclectic list of credits that made him rethink his path. “One time I was watching Road House, and Kelly Lynch was in it,” Quinn recalled of the light-bulb moment. “And then she was in Drugstore Cowboy. And I was like, ‘This is an actor’s life.’”

Quinn explained why Lynch’s filmography turned him off from acting, starting of her performance in the Gus Van Sant drama, “You know, she’s sitting there, and they’re like, ‘You’re a junkie.’ She’s probably like, ‘Wow, the art.’ And then like, ‘Okay, where am I going next?’”

“A week later, she’s on the set. They go, ‘You’re a doctor for Road House,’” Quinn continued. “And she’s like, ‘Okay, what kind of doctor?’ They go, ‘We don’t… Here’s the lab coat. You put it on. It doesn’t matter. You’re taking care of this guy. He’s a bouncer. You fall in love with him.’” 

Then, the crazy part, as Quinn explained, “but the guy that paid (her) way through medical school — people forget this part of Road House was the evil guy, you know, Brad Wesley. He paid her way through medical school. So she’s basically a hired whore for this guy. And now suddenly she’s with him, and she’s probably like, ‘I don’t know what to do with this character.’”

According to Quinn, the whiplash that Lynch must have experienced as she went from starring in an adored indie film like Drug Store Cowboy to being in a schlocky action flick where her character is an exploited love interest with a completely nonsensical background and motivations was enough to turn him off from putting all his energy into making it in the movie business. 

If Quinn also wants to have watching movies ruined for him, too, then he should check out the Road House remake.