Bubbles’ Troubles: ‘Trailer Park Boys’ Star Mike Smith Arrested On Domestic Battery Charges
In the wee small hours of Friday, April 1, the costar and writer of the hilarious Netflix comedy series Trailer Park Boys was taken into police custody at the Roosevelt Hotel in Hollywood. The actor, who in real life scarcely resembles the kitty-loving, cart-collecting character he plays on TV, was charged with domestic battery following an altercation with a woman half his age.
Fans of Canadian television may not recognize his mugshot. Netflix subscribers might not even know his name. But, when Mike Smith dons his super-thick, eye-magnifying specs and juts his chin just so, he is instantly recognizable as the character Bubbles from the cult favorite, Trailer Park Boys.
The poolside kerfuffle quickly escalated from a screaming match to physical assault in a nearby bathroom where the actor allegedly pinned his companion against a wall. Witnesses to the alleged assault told the New York Daily News that when they arrived on the scene, Smith fled the area “in a frenzy.” Smith returned some time later, and that’s when Los Angeles police took the outrageously offbeat actor into custody.
According to People magazine, Smith was arrested at 1:15 a.m. and released on $20,000 bail around four hours later.
Actor who plays 'Bubbles' on Trailer Park Boys denies assaulting woman in L.A. https://t.co/T96w5g0AfM pic.twitter.com/AmD1a51sRz
— CP24 (@CP24) April 2, 2016
Filmed on location in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Trailer Park Boys made their debut in a black and white self-title movie in 1999. The TV version first appeared on Showcase television in 2001. In addition to Mike Smith who portrays Bubbles, the half-hour, off-the-wall comedy show that takes place in a trailer park called Sunnyvale stars Robb Wells as Ricky and John Paul Tremblay as Julian. Trailer Park Boys is directed by Mike Clattenberg. Supporting cast members include Patrick Roach, Lucy Decoutere, Cory Bowles, and Jeanna Harrison. Smith, Wells, Tremblay, and Clattenberg are all contributing writers to the show.
Mike Smith was born in Nova Scotia August 27, 1972. Now 5’10”, the bespectacled actor showed signs of musical and athletic talent at a very young age. He began playing hockey when he was 4-years-old and picked up the guitar (which he plays quite well) at age seven. The accomplished musician has appeared on tour with Rush, a Canadian rock band that has made guest appearances in several episodes of Trailer Park Boys. Smith and other Trailer Park Boys characters appear The Tragically Hip’s “The Darkest One” video.
https://youtu.be/AJZhc3HAwpc
Smith earned an English degree from St. Francis Xavier University in Antigonish in the early 1990s. Prior to landing the part of ‘Bubbles’ on TPB, Smith was a guitarist and songwriter in the band Sandbox.
After Sandbox broke up, Smith got a job as a soundman on the first Trailer Park Boys movie. Filmed in black and white, the original TPB script did not feature a character named Bubbles. Director Mike Clattenberg added the shed-dwelling role after overhearing Smith cracking up the film crew with the improvisational character.
Trailer Park Boys was an early vehicle for actress Ellen Page, who played Treena Lahey, the daughter of trailer park manager Jim Lahey in the show’s second season. Following her stint on Trailer Park Boys, Page went on to appear in Juno, Hard Candy, Inception, and the X-Men movie series.
After several seasons as a relatively unknown yet strangely compelling Canadian TV series, Netflix began showing old seasons of the show. Season 10 of Trailer Park Boys premiered on the streaming service on March 27, 2016.
[Photo via Kevin Winter/Getty Images]
