Martin Short has spent decades playing lovable agents of chaos, but even by his standards, his latest real-life mishap feels almost too on-brand. During a recent interview, the comedy legend casually confessed to a wedding faux pas that nearly ruined Selena Gomez’s wedding cake. And as funny as the hijinx sounds on paper, my favorite part is the classic comment he gave Paul Rudd.
The SNL icon shared this hilarious story with his usual mix of sincerity and self-awareness on Jimmy Kimmel Live. In the clip, the Captain Ron actor recounts how what began as an innocent assumption about Selena Gomez and Benny Blanco’s reception quickly turned into a moment he now admits was…not great. According to the Three Amigos star, as his fellow OMITB costar Steve Martin began to leave the wedding, the legendary comedy performer insisted he not leave until he had a bit of cake:
I just assumed there was a wedding cake for each section… Steve was about to leave, and I said, ‘Oh Steve, you can’t go without a piece of wedding cake.’ And I cut into it. And then I cut into the other side. And suddenly everyone screamed, ‘Marty!’
The problem, as Short soon realized, was that the cake he’d confidently attacked wasn’t a spare dessert for their seating area—it was “the” wedding cake. To make matters worse, this revelation came roughly an hour before it was scheduled to be presented to the bride and groom. Faced with the gravity of his mistake, the Canadian-American star briefly considered a tactical retreat. Turning to Paul Rudd and his wife, who were seated nearby, he deadpanned:
So… do we just leave?
Luckily for everyone, the chef was able to do some last-minute cosmetic repairs. When the cake eventually made its official appearance, it looked fine… mostly. Short, for his part, made it clear that his affection for Gomez — he has previously described her as “an extra child” — remains unchanged, even if his wedding guest credentials are now questionable.
The Innerspace actor recalled turning to his longtime friend, Rudd, after the damage was done and delivering what can only be described as a perfectly timed, deeply Martin Short comment. He added:
I looked at Paul and said something along the lines of, ‘Well, this is why they don’t let me near important things.'
Short also revealed that he and Martin briefly conspired to keep the incident quiet. That plan didn’t last long. The Jiminy Glick talk show host added:
As I was leaving, Selena came over and said, ‘Hey Marty, I hear you tried to eat my cake.’
Fortunately, no harm was done in the long run. Gomez and Blanco were able to cut the cake as planned, and the evening carried on without further pastry-related incidents (that we know of). We are all richer for Short sharing the story with us.
Short, Martin, and Gomez currently star together in Only Murders in the Building, now streaming with a Hulu subscription. The hit series has already been renewed for a sixth season, and while a release date hasn’t been announced, a return sometime on the 2026 television schedule wouldn’t be surprising. Meanwhile, I hope we got more hilarious stories like this from the three friends.
