Terrence Howard’s Insane Rolling Stone Interview Will Leave You Speechless

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One times one actually equals two, according to Howard at least.

Terrence Howard, who is as well known for his history of abusing women as he is for playing Lucious Lyon on Empire, invited Rolling Stoneinto his Chicago penthouse where he said some unbelievably batsh– things. From his multiple excuses for punching women to the mathematical theory he invented that “proves” one times one actually equals two, every word out of Howard’s mouth is so shockingly outrageous, it’s hard to imagine Howard knowingly said all these things to a journalist. But that’s just Terrence Howard, for you. He doesn’t have the energy to waste worrying over what other people think – unless that thing is that one times one equals one.

Check out the most insane things from Howard’s profile below:

1. Howard is a man of 432 faces: While looking at himself in the mirror wearing silk loungewear and a scarf, Howard explained that in his head he’s actually a young boy – but only for that moment. Apparently, Howard’s identity is constantly in flux. “Today, for me, has been about searching out who I am,” he said. “We’ve got all these different faces that want to come out — there’s at least four just in this moment, with a possible expansion to 432 — but which one do you let out? Is it the person who’s cool that you’ve mastered? Is it the excited little boy?”

2. Howard is a mathematical genius, according to Howard: As the actor explained, the entire world is doing math wrong and he is the only one to have figured out the true order of the universe. “This is the last century that our children will ever have been taught that one times one is one,” Howard said. “They won’t have to grow up in ignorance. Twenty years from now, they’ll know that one times one equals two.”

When Howard first came up with this theory, he even came up with his own language, Terryology, and wrote forward and backwards so that no one could steal it before it could patent it. Once he married restaurateur Mira Pak in 2013, he made her help him with cutting shapes out of plastic for up to 17 hours each day. “And the proof is in these pieces,” Howard explained. “I have created the pieces that make up the motion of the universe. We work on them about 17 hours a day. She cuts and puts on the crystals. I do the main work of soldering them together. They tell the truth from within.”

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3. Howard says he isn’t “difficult” for refusing to take direction: The actor has a notorious reputation for being difficult, which started on the set of 1999’s The Best Man. But Howard says what they called being “difficult” was actually just ingenious acting. “I was difficult, but only because I would not conform,” Howard explained. “During The Best Man, they kept saying about this one line, ‘This is a joke, so say it as a joke.’ I was like, ‘Y’all do what you want, but I’m not going to mutilate this moment.’ And I said the line like I wanted, pausing before saying, ‘Y’all know there ain’t nothin’ better than p—-, except some new p—-.’ That seals my character, who he was. But after that, they spent the next year talking about how difficult I was.”

4. Howard is never at fault for hitting women: For every time someone has accused him of assault, Howard either has an excuse or outright denies it. When police reported he punched his first wife Lori McCommas “with a closed first,” Howard explained he only “slapped her in front of the kids.” When his second wife Michelle Ghent was spotted with a black eye after a 2013 trip to Costa Rica, Howard claimed she was trying to Mace him “and you can’t see anything so all you can do is try to bat somebody away, and I think that something caught her. But I wasn’t trying to hit her.” And when Howard hit a man and woman waiting in line to be seated at a restaurant, he was only “acting in self-defense.”

5. Howard’s life outlook was inspired by watching his dad stab someone with a nail file: In 1971, Howard was in line with his father Tyrone to see a department store Santa. When a man accused Tryone of cutting them in line, Tyrone stabbed the man until he fell and fled the scene. “My daddy taught me, ‘Never take the vertebrae out of your back or the bass out of your throat. I ain’t raisin’ sheep. I raised men. Stay a man,’” Howard said. “But being a man comes with a curse because it’s not a society made for men to flourish anymore. Everything is androgynous, you know? The more successful men now are the effeminate.”

Terrence Howard was “coerced” into divorce settlement

6. Howard’s controlling attitude gave his third wife agoraphobia: Throughout the interview, Howard and his third wife Pak pretended to be happily married and living together. It was only later that it was revealed the couple had separated and filed for divorce months prior to the interview – and it’s clear why the couple didn’t make it.

Despite acknowledging that she has “an amazing connection” with Howard, Pak didn’t hold back about how hard their relationship was on her. “Isn’t that crazy? But, I mean, he’s not perfect. Doesn’t do the dishes. Doesn’t cook. Doesn’t lift a finger. I probably leave him 30 times a month,” Pak said. “He’s so selfish. But, you know, he didn’t have much of a childhood. It was difficult for him being picked on and bullied all the time. We don’t have a normal life. In our two years together, I’ve only gone to restaurants with him two or three times. We’ve never been to the supermarket together. We’ve never been to the movies. I’ve never gotten a gift from him. Never, never.

“And then every minute that he has free, it’s to do this,” Pak said, referencing the plastic shapes. “I help him, cutting, drawing and putting things together. I’ve developed a slight form of agoraphobia lately. I never go out. I have no friends here. I feel like Rapunzel, you know, stuck in a penthouse with my baby.”

7. Howard said he took a $1 million pay cut to get Robert Downey Jr. an audition for Iron Man: Howard was the highest-paid actor in Iron Man, raking in $3.5 million for the film. But according to the actor, it was supposed to be $4.5 million, until Marvel refused to consider Robert Downey Jr. for the lead role. So Howard, the charitable man that he is, allegedly offered to take a $1 million pay cut if Marvel auditioned and hired Downey. “Robert was so thankful and dadadadada,” Howard said, whatever that means.

But when Marvel said it was reducing Howard’s part and salary for the sequel, Don Cheadle was hired to replace him. “And so,” he said, “I called Robby and was like, ‘Look, man . . .’ Leaving messages with his assistants, called him at least 17 times that day and 21 the next and finally left a message saying, ‘Look, man, I need the help that I gave you.’ Never heard from him. And guess who got the millions I was supposed to get? He got the whole franchise, so I’ve actually given him $100 million, which ends up being a $100 million loss for me from me trying to look after somebody, but, you know, to this day I would do the same thing. It’s just my nature.”

8. Howard loves playing guests his blackmail CD: Though Howard said he doesn’t “talk about my ex-wife because I don’t talk about negative things,” he later played the entire 13-minute recording of a phone call in which Ghent attempted to extort him.

In the call, Ghent threatens to sell the tabloids tapes of him having phone sex and dancing naked if he doesn’t pay her because “You’re a f—ing sociopath. Everybody should know it. I’m so sick of the sh– that you’ve put me through.”

Howard apparently played the tape to show that Ghent is the villain in their relationship, a stance that was seriously undermined when he, according to the writer, “[glared] at the laptop, leaning toward it, hissing, ‘You f—ing bitch. Shut the f— up! Shut the f— up!’”