JIM CARREY

Jim Carrey is flipping out on the set of his new movie about funnyman Andy Kaufman.  

"The Cable Guy" has gotten so carried away with the role that he actually thinks he IS the late comic, sources say.  

Carrey demands to be called "Andy" -- and just like Kaufman, he landed in the hospital with neck injuries after taunting a pro wrestler.   

"Jim has become so obsessed that he insists everyone, including his ex-wife and current love Lauren Holly, call him 'Andy,' " said an insider on the flick "Man on the Moon."  

"If Lauren calls him 'Jim,' he doesn't respond.  

"Jim has also assumed Kaufman's mannerisms and speech patterns, both on-  and off-camera.  

"During meetings the film's producers and director can't even get Jim out of character to look at the role objectively."  

In one Kaufman-like antic, Jim dressed up as an ice-cream man and handed out refreshments to cast, crew and extras from an ice-cream truck.  

Kaufman shot to stardom on the sitcom "Taxi," playing cab mechanic Latka Gravas and his alter ego Vic Ferrari. He died of lung cancer at age 35.  

Carrey thought Kaufman was a comic genius -- and he's determined to recapture the "Taxi" star's  brilliance on film.  

"Jim is so intense about being Andy that he even ordered a different dressing room up for each of Kaufman's characters. He has about six!" said a Hollywood insider.  

"One room says 'Latka' on the door, another says 'Vic,' while a third says 'Tony Clifton.' A fourth says simply 'Andy Kaufman,' then there's 'Elvis!'  

"Whichever character he's playing, Jim will enter only that dressing room.  

"He has a different stand-in for each of Andy's personalities too. Jim insisted stand-in 'Vic' had to be different from stand-in 'Latka' or it would 'completely throw me off!' "  

During Kaufman's stint on "Taxi," he took his comedic talent into the wrestling ring -- and his legendary encounter with grappler Jerry "The King" Lawler is a key scene in "Man on the Moon."  

"When Kaufman got in the ring with 'The King' 16 years ago, he ended up being carried out on a stretcher with compressed vertebrae," said the insider.  

COMEDY LEGEND   Andy Kaufman   suffered a   neck injury   with a wrestler   -- a stunt   Jim imitated   only too well   when HE got   injured.

  

Carrey and Lawler recreated the wrestling scene on September 22 -- and all hell broke loose.  

"In between takes, Jim sniped at Lawler, 'You know, you have the half-brain of a gorilla!' " said an eyewitness.  

"In one scene Jim actually shoved Lawler out of the ring. Lawler banged his back and was really hurt.   

"Later Jim said, 'If you do a good job in this next scene, I have a reward for you.'  

"As his reward, Jim threw Lawler a bunch of bananas. Then he bounded bow-legged around the ring, making monkey faces and animal calls.  

"Lawler grabbed a banana and yelled at Jim: 'Put one of these in your pants. Then you might at least look like a real man!' "  

Carrey spat in Lawler's face -- and the wrestling hulk exploded.  

"Lawler chased Jim around the ring and started swinging at him," said another witness.  

"Finally, Lawler caught Jim by the hair, grabbed his neck and dropped him to the floor.  

"Jim sprawled on the ground in obvious pain.  

"Paramedics were called. Eerily, like the Andy Kaufman incident, Jim was taken away on a stretcher and rushed to a nearby hospital for X-rays.  

"Jim suffered minor neck injuries and showed up for work the next day in a neck brace."  

A source concluded: "Playing Andy Kaufman 24 hours a day is making Jim crack up.   

His friends are very worried about him. They've tried to tell him to seek counseling, but he doesn't even acknowledge them because they don't play along that he's Andy!   

"Jim used to be a nice guy. But as Andy, he's abrasive and unpredictable."