Me & me seat-mates on this crowded-as-fuck flight are ready for departure, @SouthwestAir! So far, no fat complaints!
On Friday, May 20th the proverbial Hell froze-over when director Kevin Smith boarded and flew on a Southwest Airlines flight. Smith, who in 2010 was removed from a flight over an altercation involving a supposed need for two seats, broke his vow to never again use the airline.
“I was faced with a real fucking Sophie’s Choice,” Smith told the audience at The Improve in Hollywood, CA during Friday’s taping of Hollywood Babble-On.
After finishing a show with Jason Mewes in Nashville, TN, Smith’s regularly booked flights had been delayed sufficiently that the only way to arrive in Kansas City, MO in time for the Planet Comicon. was to patronize Southwest.
“Suddenly I was like, Oh my God! Which was more important to me: fan service – going to do the show that I was supposed to do, or fucking from Hell’s heart I stab at thee – fucking airline that once called me a fat boy,” said Smith.
Smith, who is as devout to his fan base as his fans are to he, chose to break his Southwest boycott.
“Ultimately, I was like: let’s fucking do this,” Smith recalled.
Followers of Smith’s social media in 2010 surely remember the back-and-forth between the director and the airline during the altercation. Smith chose to own his return through the same medium he had used to speak out against the company.
“Last time I was going at them on social media, it was much different, and they were very on the defensive,” said Smith. “This time, they were like, ‘Welcoming you back.’ In a very cautionary tell.”
News of Smith’s return to Southwest made headlines almost instantly.
“What a slow news day,” joked Hollywood Babble-On cohost Ralph Garman. “Kevin’s travel plans are getting covered!”
Smith, ever the opportunist, reflected on the headlines as possible project titles.
“The idea of ‘Kevin Smith Flies Again’ is a pretty awesome fucking title for my biography.”
For the complete account of Kevin Smith’s return to Southwest Airlines, listen to Hollywood Babble-On 247.
