WATCH THE VIDEO HERE Marvel star Anthony Mackie has revealed that Eminem’s final battle rap freestyle, which is the freestyle that cements his character’s reputation as a formidable artist, was actually about him and not about his character, Clarence, aka Papa Doc. In the scene, Eminem rips Papa Doc about his suburban childhood and ruins his street cred before Clarence takes the mic and chokes. “Eminem is such a brilliant dude. We’re on set one day and he’s like, ‘Yo, it doesn’t make sense that we’re beefing.’ I was like, ‘Right!’ He says, ‘I need something on you.’ So we talked for like two hours, chilling,” he said on The Pivot podcast. Anthony Mackie explains to @ThePivot how Eminem went about writing his verses for the final battle scene in ‘8 Mile’ about him and not his character, Clarence.pic.twitter.com/41OifpJTEY — Def Pen (@DefPen) March 12, 2025 He said it was when he was on stage getting roasted by the Detroit artist that he realized that Em was rapping about his actual life. “The next day, we’re shooting the battle scene, and that’s why I’m standing there like, ‘You’re talking about me, you’re not talking about Clarence. That has nothing to do with the character. You’re an asshole, Eminem!’ I’m like, ‘I wanna fight this muthaf—a!”” he added. Watch the scene below.
Anthony Mackie Reveals Eminem’s Iconic ‘8 Mile’ Battle Rap Was About Him
