NEED TO KNOW
Taylor Momsen and Jim Carrey’s bond extends far beyond Whoville.
Upon reuniting with her How the Grinch Stole Christmas costar for the first time in 25 years at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony on Nov. 8, Momsen told PEOPLE some of her favorite memories of working with the comedian on set.
“I have a lot, honestly,” the 32-year-old musician recalls. “I just love that he was very protective of me. He was always very kind. And just the entire experience of filming Grinch and getting to know him so well, even in all the makeup, was just wonderful.”
While Carrey, 63, portrayed the titular Christmas-hating Dr. Seuss character in the 2000 holiday film, Momsen remembers being only five years old when she stepped into the shoes of little Cindy-Lou Who to film the movie.
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“As a young person watching an artist at work and taking their craft so seriously, that left a really powerful, lasting impact on me as an adult now,” she explains. “And I’m excited to be able to tell him that as a grownup.”
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After all, the Gossip Girl alum recently admitted that she didn’t even know what Carrey looked like when they spent time together on set. But while his face was always covered in facial prosthetics and green yak fur, she emphasized that she was never afraid of him as a child.
“To me, he was always Jim and he was always in makeup. He was very protective of me, very kind, super funny, super animated, absolutely awesome,” Momsen explained to Alex Cooper during a Nov. 5 episode of Call Her Daddy. “But the funny thing is I never knew what Jim Carrey looked like because I never saw him because he was there way early doing the prosthetics.”
“I didn’t know who Jim was until the premiere and someone had to point him out to me and go, ‘That’s Jim,’ ” she added. “And I went, ‘Oh, Jim.’ ”
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As for why Momsen thinks the film has stood the test of time after all these years? As she told Today in December 2020, “I think that people love The Grinch just simply because the core of the story is so sweet and it’s so heartwarming and it has such a good message.”
She continued, “That no matter what age touches your heart, I think that that’s an amazing thing to be a part of.”
“The fact that it comes back around every year — I think it’s something to look forward to,” she added. “And I think it just kinda brings happiness and joy to anyone who watches it.”
For his part, Carrey told Extra in December 2024 that he was “so gratified” by the idea that The Grinch is “one of the yule logs people go to” when the holiday season rolls around. “When it pops up every year, I’m really happy about it,” he gushed.
