"Serious" Rami Malek Asks Rachel Bilson to Remove Unflattering Instagram Photo

Some of the world's most renowned artists have always said that a huge key to their happiness and success has been never taking themselves too seriously. While it's important to take some situations you're in seriously (like your job, relationships, or cooking a perfect omelette —I mean, two seconds off and everything's ruined), taking yourself seriously is where problems start to occur — which is what seems to have happened with this recent Rami Malek/Rachel Bilson photo fiasco.

Here's a little known fact: Star of Jumper, The O.C. and 2019's Lovestruck, Rachel Bilson and Oscar-winner Rami Malek actually went to Notre Dame High School in Sherman Oaks, Calif. together. They were even a part of the same clique. They acted in The Crucible during their senior year and went on a senior trip to Broadway, N.Y. As folks are wont to do, they snapped a photo together while on the cross-country getaway.

Rachel uploaded that same photo to her Instagram account around the time that it was announced Rami was up for a Best Actor Academy Award for his portrayal of Freddie Mercury in Bohemian Rhapsody. The Mr. Robot star would go on to win the Oscar after being nominated alongside Bradley Cooper, Christian Bale, Viggo Mortensen, and Willem Dafoe.

Rachel recently appeared on Dax Shepard's podcast Armchair Expert and said that in the lead-up to Rami winning the award, it seemed like he wasn't too fond of the photo she uploaded.

"We were in the same crew. We did 'The Crucible' together senior year. We were the leads in it together, like all these things. We kind of kept in contact a little bit."

Rachel went on to say in the interview that Rami has "always been super talented. A really amazing actor, even in high school." Rachel though it would be a fun to share a photo she took with the actor online, "We were super-nerdy, just the dorkiest picture of both of us. But I throw it up because it's funny, and I think it's so important to be able to make fun of yourself. And he has like a gold chain, and I'm like, 'Rami where'd you get the gold chain?'"

"Whatever. So I’m just being funny, we were good friends."

She then said that a week later, she saw she had a direct Instagram message from Rami. "It wasn't like 'Hey, how are you blah blah blah. It was straight to: 'I would really appreciate if you would take that down, I'm a really private person.'"

Rachel says she was immediately sweating bullets.

"I was like, ‘Oh, s***! OK.’ I get really hot and start sweating. I’m all nervous, like, ‘Oh God! What did I do?’ He was a good friend, it’s a funny picture … You know? I don’t take myself that seriously."

She went on to message him back after deleting the photo saying that she was rooting for him to win, but says she never heard a response back from the actor.

"But I was super bummed because he was always so nice and we were good friends, and I’m a big fan of not taking yourself seriously, especially at that level of fame and talent. But look, he wants to be super respected, it’s his thing, so I respected it. I took it down. I was just a little bummed at how it was handled."

Rachel says that she later spoke with Rami's stylist who shed some light on why the actor wasn't too fond of it, "She was like, ‘Well, it’s not a great picture of him.’ OK, I’m sorry. We were 16! It was what it was. It was right before the Oscars, and I remember Josh Schwartz [The O.C.'s creator] being like, ‘You did him dirty! He’s about to be nominated.’ And I’m like, ‘What do you mean? This was my friend! It’s a funny picture!'"

Neither Rami nor his reps have commented on the photo. His recent film, The Little Things (where he stars opposite Denzel Washington and Jared Leto) has been receiving mixed reviews. He's currently slated to play the latest Bond villain, Safin, in No Time to Die and he's reportedly filming a David O. Russell project.