Olivia Rodrigo was kicked out of John C. McGinley’s house before she became famous, Zach Braff has revealed.
Braff, who starred alongside McGinley in Scrubs, recalled the incident while appearing on Netflix’s Shut Up Evan. He stressed that Rodrigo had done nothing wrong and had simply not been invited to the gathering.
At the time, Rodrigo was friends with singer and actress Charlotte Lawrence, the daughter of Scrubs creator Bill Lawrence. Braff said he regarded Charlotte as “like a niece” because of his close friendship with her father.
McGinley was hosting a birthday party and had made clear that he wanted only adults at the event. “In his mind, that meant pretty much anyone under 30,” Braff said.
According to Braff, he, Charlotte and Rodrigo arrived at McGinley’s house, where the two younger guests tried to join the barbecue despite not being welcome.
“Charlotte didn’t care. She and her friend Olivia were jumping over his fence, saying, ‘Can we come join the barbecue, please?’” Braff said. He added that McGinley did not know who Rodrigo was and told them: “‘All right, you kids, get out!’”
The situation became more awkward when McGinley’s daughter entered the living room and saw Rodrigo there. Braff said she was shocked and asked: “‘What? What are you doing in my house?’”
He said Rodrigo was “so sweet” and that everyone later laughed about the episode. The girls left, but Braff said Rodrigo’s career took off about a month later.
He then began sending McGinley photographs of Rodrigo performing in arenas, telling him: “‘This is the young woman you kicked out of your home!’”
