Despite reports saying otherwise, Andrew Dice Clay didn’t get the boot from Showtime — he gave it to the network.
Recent trade reports claimed that Showtime canceled “Dice” after two seasons due to low ratings, but a source told Page Six the series ended because its titular star didn’t want to come back.
“Dice didn’t want to do the show anymore,” the source said. “He made the decision more than six months before the network announced it.”
Insiders tell us there were major creative differences between Clay, 60, and the show’s creator, including power struggles over creative control. Clay wanted to see a more human portrayal of his character, especially in terms of his onscreen live-in relationship with co-star Natasha Leggero, while show creator Scot Armstrong is accused of insisting on a caricature of the comedian.
“Dice would get brow-beatings, but there was no actual romance on the show,” the source said. “That bothered him. He’s a romantic at heart, and from a writing standpoint, it made no sense to have a couple on the show who never actually interacted on a romantic level.”
The insider added that there were conflicting ideas about how to promote the series, and that Showtime ultimately didn’t want to invest the cash to advertise for the show.
“The reason he was excited for Season 2 was that they promised to put a ton of money into the advertising campaign, and they didn’t do a campaign at all,” the insider said. “He and his manager went out of their minds over it.”
Additionally, the source claims Clay and his team weren’t adequately credited for his creative contributions to the show, including nabbing Oscar winner Adrien Brody for Season 2’s “Ego” episode, which was critically acclaimed as a highlight of the sometimes uneven series, as well as Oscar nominee Mickey Rourke, who otherwise “never does television.”
Clay’s health may have also played a role in his exit: The legendary comic underwent a stent procedure in November after suffering from a partially blocked artery. The health scare caused him to want to spend more time at home with his sons, Max and Dillon, and less time “doing 17-hour days on set,” the source said.
Clay has plenty to keep him busy without Showtime: He’ll appear in the upcoming remake of “A Star Is Born” as Lady Gaga’s father and is due on the film’s promotional tour this spring, and has a nationwide standup comedy tour kicking off with three sold-out shows in Florida, followed by stints at Levity Live in Nyack, New York, the Stress Factory in New Brunswick, New Jersey, and a slew of dates in California.
Reps for Armstrong and Showtime did not immediately return requests for comment.