Billy Crudup Had a 'Full-Blown Panic Attack' Onstage, Skipped 20 Pages of His Play

What's an actor's worst nightmare? For Tony Award winner Billy Crudup, it came true in front of a live audience. The 57-year-old actor revealed he had a "full-blown panic attack" after completely blanking on his lines during a one-man show, an experience he described as "the kind of nightmare that can sort of stain your memory" on a recent episode of the podcast Off Camera With Kelly Ripa.

Tunnel Vision and 20 Missing Pages

The incident occurred during the first week of performances for the play Harry Clarke. Crudup recalled initially thinking the 48-page monologue was an "idiotic idea" to memorize, but his competitive nature took over. "About three minutes in, I can't remember my lines," Crudup said. "I started to have a full-blown panic attack. I get tunnel vision. My heart's going outta my chest. I can't breathe."

He called for a line, but with no system in place, he was completely on his own. He ended up dropping about 20 pages from the show, which clocked in at around 55 minutes. "Nobody understood s---," he admitted. "I'm just, like, absolutely mortified."

The 'Worst Theatrical Experience' Confirmed

The story took another awkward turn years later. While telling the anecdote at brunch with his wife, Naomi Watts, and her friends, he noticed a director named Gabby had gone silent. When prompted, she revealed, "I was there... The worst theatrical experience of my life." Crudup jokingly shot back, "Gabby, what about for me?!"