TV Article Helen Hunt feared working with Woody The ''Jade Scorpion'' star called celeb pal Sean Penn for moral support By Allison Hope Weiner Allison Hope Weiner Allison Hope Weiner is an EW staff writer based in Los Angeles EW's editorial guidelines Published on August 29, 2001 04:00AM EDT Photo: Curse of the Jade Scorpion: John Clifford A beloved Oscar-winning beauty would never be intimidated by a nebbishy little man in horn-rims, right? Wrong. At first, Helen Hunt was completely unnerved by the idea of working with ”The Curse of the Jade Scorpion” director-star Woody Allen. She’d heard horror stories, including one in which the Woodman was displeased by an actor’s performance — ”he fired that person,” says Hunt. The actress went so far as to call Allen alumnus Sean Penn for moral support. Turns out her fears about the eccentric filmmaker were unfounded: ”He was approachable and receptive,” reports Hunt, who even got a special privilege few others enjoy. ”I was fortunate enough to get a copy of the entire script before signing on to the project,” she says. ”Although [a messenger] was waiting to take it back as soon as I finished.”