Who can argue with a genius?
By Mark Voger, author
‘Futuristic: Rockets, Robots and Rayguns of Space Age Pop Culture’
I’m not Mr. Social Media, so I had no idea that quotes from a newspaper interview I did with Brian Wilson 18 years ago “went viral,” as the kids say nowadays.
(In my day, “going viral” meant you needed a shot of penicillin.)
With Wilson’s death at age 82 on June 11, 2025, those quotes went even more viral, spawning T-shirts, baseball caps, hoodies, coffee cups, TikTok videos and endless musings.
It’s this simple. In a 2007 interview I did with Wilson for my alma mater The Asbury Park Press, the following exchange occurred …
Q: “Have you seen any good movies lately?”
Wilson: “Well, I’ve only seen one in the last couple of years. It’s called ‘Norbit’ by Eddie Murphy.”
Q: “How did you like it?”
Wilson: “Fantastic movie. Very funny.”
Q: “What’s your favorite movie?”
Wilson: “‘Norbit.’”
Baseball caps & coffee cups, oh my
Yeah, that exhange with Wilson is funny. It almost sounds like an Abbott and Costello routine. (“Who’s on first?” “‘Norbit.'”) Over the years, I recounted it occasionally in private conversation, but I had no idea it got picked up to such a degree … or any degree.
This is how out of touch I am: I hadn’t noticed that eight years ago, Spin posted an article by Winston Cook-Wilson titled “It’s Been Ten Years Since Brian Wilson Said His Favorite Movie Was Norbit.” Cook-Wilson’s lede: “Ten years ago today, one of the most important blog posts in recent American history was published.”
Whew. Where do you go from there?
The T-shirts and coffee cups happened within days of Wilson’s death. Apparently, folks are now watching “Norbit” as a way to celebrate the life of the architect of the Beach Boys sound. Crazy, right?
For Cracked, Jim McNab reported that the “Norbit” Letterboxd page had become a gathering place for Wilson’s faithful. McNab wrote that fans are mourning Wilson’s passing not by listening to his 1966 masterpiece “Pet Sounds,” but by “watching Eddie Murphy’s sh*ttiest movie.” Also, Wilson’s admiration for “Norbit” was recently added to the film’s Wikipedia page.
But did I know about any of this?
Interweb hubbub
This here dinosaur only found out about all the interweb hubbub thanks to a gentleman named D.F. Lovett, whose Substack newsletter Edit History investigates the origins and veracity of internet information, a noble pursuit.
Lovett interviewed me about the phenom for his newsletter. If you want to know what led to the WTF revelation that “Norbit” was Brian Wilson’s favorite movie — at one point in time, at least — find out in Lovett’s story, which is titled “I Interviewed the Journalist Who Interviewed Brian Wilson About Norbit.”
Lovett posted his article on the Beach Boys’ subreddit, which resulted in some rich chatter.
Wrote ReservedPickup12: “They need to reissue the movie on 4K with Brian’s blurb on the cover!”
Wrote PerceptionShift: “You’re doing good work getting to the truth like that. Confirming it just makes this story even more legendary.”
Wrote Final-Safety-3137: “Just another reason to love and miss Brian Wilson. He spoke direct from the heart and with child-like wonder. If he said it, he meant it.”
Wrote MajorMaduro: “One of the funny things about Brian was that you couldn’t be quite sure if he was being sincere, joking or just saying the first thing that came to mind when asked. Who knows? But it’s something I’ve always loved about him.”
Post script
At various times, Wilson also named “Pinocchio” and “The Birds” as his favorite movie in other interviews. I’m sure there were many more over a lifetime.
One online pundit suggested that Wilson may have been “trolling” me. Who can say what was in his mind, but I seriously doubt it. The three times I spoke with Wilson (in 2005, 2007 and 2012), he didn’t really seem to have, shall we say, “trolling chops.” (I’m being subtle and diplomatic.)
The day I asked Wilson his favorite movie, his answer was “Norbit,” and I believe he meant it “in the moment,” as I told Lovett.
VIDEOS
ABOVE: Comedian Tim Heidecker and his crew weighed in on the “Norbit” thing for “Office Hours Live with Tim Heidecker” (at 0:31).
ABOVE: This is one of those annoying click-bait “robo” videos, titled “Brian Wilson’s Surprising Favorite Movies: Norbit, Pinocchio & The Birds!” It inappropriately elaborates on Wilson’s “Norbit” answer, essentially making sh*t up. The robo-narrator says Wilson “playfully” named “Norbit” as his favorite movie. (I assure you, there wasn’t a hint of playfulness in his reply.) The narrator also said: “Two of Murphy’s roles in the film, a meek character and his domineering girlfriend, left Wilson amused.” This must be what they call an “AI hallucination.” In a court of law, someone would jump up and say, “Conjecture, your honor!”
ABOVE: The “Norbit” trailer which, I hate to admit, looks kinda funny. If Brian Wilson endorsed it, well … who can argue with a genius?
ABOVE: Brian Wilson and the Beach Boys doing “I Get Around” on “The Ed Sullivan Show.”