SmartLess: "Bill Hader"
Wondery | Amazon Music | SmartLess LLC 5/8/23 - 1h 6m - PDF Transcript
are you prepared to have your mind expanded to learn things you may not
have known and to go places that might be a little unexpected to talk with
people who can teach you things to learn about culture music and art well
you're not gonna get that here because this is smartless here we go
wait two pieces of business right up front okay let's go business one Jason
Bateman just recently won the Screen Actors Guild award oh we couldn't be
happier this is gonna air months months yeah I get it but it just kind of
happened recently and it was really exciting I a little tear I got welled
up I was so happy and so proud I'm just trying to chase you what do you got four
of them now I got for who's keeping score who's keeping score yeah that's
right shit it's so far yeah yeah well we're we're trying and I wish my hair
looked as good as yours this morning you did you get up early would you have a
call back or something by the way I slept in our new merch shirt it's so
comfortable oh that is the merch store is up isn't yeah it's yeah here's what I
say about our merch sleep in it don't sleep on it you know I mean oh my god
are we paying you extra for marketing no all of this stuff and these are just
the tops of headsies yeah I call them tops of headsies wait and then the other
order business is Jay had an emergency root canal yesterday yeah why did did you
not feel it coming on why did it was it was whenever I would crunch on
something that didn't crunch you know like a like a like a popcorn
that doesn't well no pills if you really come down and like I need it will
collapse sure but you know a bacon bit oh yeah or how many bacon bits are you
talking about like that would send me into down to my knees well you so many
nuts and by the way insert joke here but but and also nuts here but but you
you do you do eat a lot of nuts I do and seeds and sometimes seeds don't don't
collapse either on a heart so anyway it's hard for me to go down on nuts to the
seed is stored in the nuts right the seed is stored in the nuts yes yes yes
here what you did so it was all of the sudden so yeah so I had a bad a bad bite
on some overly fried rice a rice kernel that was fried up too hard in the pan
so that took me down a Sunday and then I had to get in there Monday and so what
they did was that was that pre-sag awards yeah was that it was it was I
managed to fumble through my acceptance speech with a hurt tooth I got skills
you know pain you just kind of grit what was ever what was left of your teeth
and I did so you so in a sense you acted like everything was okay I was up
there for acting excellence yes yes no one was the wiser Sean and so so then so
then I sit in the doctor's the dentist chair yesterday morning and and he he
said yeah you're gonna need a root canal and I said when do we do that he goes
we can do it today if you want to and he just stared at me and I stared at him
and he blinked and I blinked and he wondered if I had you know the stones
to actually go for it and I was like let's do this and he's lean the chair
back and you yeah I know and when they started drilling and about 45 minutes
into drilling right when I thought I was through the worst of it he then gives
me a play-by-play says okay now I'm gonna slice out the root or no no he says
now I'm gonna remove the nerve oh god you don't need to tell me like I just
pictured this you know large animated angry red worm that he's gonna slice
through and pull out and I just it was just so dumb of him it's a lot of nerve
yeah was it was it I think a lot of nerve really oh shandy are you getting a
fax did a fax just come through Sean what happened listen we gotta wait
Sean's doing some reading is it okay should we pause they were printed on my
printer okay let's turn all the devices off everything's on silent do you think
people are do you think people are just like butt printing you what's going
with their butts sorry I butt printed you nothing that's an emergency comes
through the fax anymore Sean no I got a phone call I got a phone call hang on a
second guest will's not done I well we can kind of say but I got a phone call
from our friend Conan O'Brien yesterday I saw I missed it so I called him back I
don't don't even speak his name to me and I texted him I guess it's about the
holidays next year because everybody he's working on the list already sending
out the group photos from everybody you know this motherfucker I guarantee you our
guest was at that party guarantee we're gonna we're gonna open with that so I
said sorry I missed your colon he goes it was a butt doll even my ass hangs up on
you it is a problem about having your your your name be be starting with an A
you get all the but all right I get all the but tiles from people all the time
all the time anyway what's even more pathetic is that you called him back hey
man you didn't leave a message you want me well we had been we had been texting
and then so I figured that he was like sick of texting so he just wanted to get
to phone so it's like no I didn't didn't want a longer conversation and I've
been kind of shitty I'd sent him because he'd been texting me this thing and I
and he was like can I ask you to the bubble I go yeah man I go I'm a very
busy person wait he was inviting you to something else yeah he's doing this but
you know his Easter jamboree you couldn't even get that out you are talk
so quick today Willie who says jamboree how do you have that word ready you
know what I just noticed after how many years now will that when you laugh
really hard you hold your left eye as if it's going to pop out it's just the
left eye that's loose I think right you just hold right underneath the eye
drifting I think that's my that's the one so it'll fall with a real big laugh
gang this week's guest is one of my favorite people and talents here we go
he is able to make you laugh or cry he can act or direct he also writes and
produces ladies he's a Gemini an avid reader and allergic to peanuts sounds
like I catch peanuts peanuts peanuts that better he's been a part of 50
movies and a lot of TV in fact there he's received three Emmy Awards three
DGA Awards three WGA Awards but the three daughters he has are his favorites
guys he's a lover not a hater ladies and gentlemen it's Bill I think I'm I'll
bet you I've got to be the best at the intros can we just yeah when you were
saying I was like oh it's very well as always improvising them I take time and
I shape I shape that's what's the worst part I think that's the most damning
thing is that you actually put time in that hi Bill hater how are you guys so
Bill did you go to Conan's Christmas party I did yeah I did were you invited
the year before as well I was yeah yeah those are intense how many years has
you been having that well I mean wait everyone has had that house oh you guys
there when the couch caught on fire you guys there when I've always been there
yeah yeah when the couch he's inside and he's talking and you know when Conan's
had a couple two glasses of wine cuz you like when I was a rider and then
behind him is couch caught on fire and it wasn't a bit it wasn't a bit and we're
all I going Conan the house some fire and he went oh well it was very sweet
it wasn't he was he head writer went by the time he left I know I love Bill
haters on the phone and we're talking about Conan no but no I think Conan he
had to be like one of the top writers on the show yeah I don't know if he was
ever head writer but he certainly is I think I think I think Jim Downey was
always the head writer when he was there Jim down here man you couldn't book
him Bill what's number one on my list here fascinating wiki page by the way
have you read have you ever have you ever read your wiki page have you ever
edited your wiki page no no well have you ever read your wiki page don't lie
yeah I've read it before sure haven't you Sean I have not yeah Sean read it
years ago I have no idea I think you can get in there and change it right didn't
we change well Kimmel use the rose once yeah Kimmel used to change the rose
right yeah we we yeah we wrote we wrote on the rose wiki page that he he's a
he's a I don't think we called him a cum crier but we said that he does he does
cry after he ejaculates right but it stayed there for a good day or two I
think we told him about it on his birthday okay hey Bill
yeah we're interested in comedy as a kid
this is a German interview with a class clown yeah in Germany the clowns are
very sad wait Bill you know what I can't help thinking I'm so sorry to bring this
up but every time I see you and we're all fans that is is the story of Megan
Malale seeing you and calling on Michael yeah and like saying hey you need to
see this guy is that true that's an incredible story I was in a I was at a
class I was a like a class show at Second City L.A. and her yeah brother-in-law
Matt Offerman and I were in the same show together and she saw me and it was
like you know she's from Oklahoma I'm from Oklahoma so anytime you meet someone
else from Oklahoma you're like you know there's a mural of them someplace you
like oh my gosh you know and she was like you're really funny and that was and
I didn't think so but had you auditioned for SNL before or no no no I didn't
have it and she was like you're really funny and I was like oh thanks and I was
working as an assistant editor on Iron Chef America wow I know I couldn't get
the main gig
Bill get the lights you know yeah yeah assistant editor was like Bobby Flay
electrocuted himself can you take that out you know so now so Megan Malale was
that close to Lauren Michaels that she could actually pitch I guess so I think
she had just hosted okay and so she called him up and then I got a call
from I was in my edit bay and Lindsey Shookas called me no way like I work hey
is Lindsey Shookas and she was more you know Marcy Klein's like yeah she was
brand-new whisper yeah yeah and she said hey you know Lauren like to meet you
blah blah and I was like and you know Lauren Lauren would like you to come and
wait in the hall outside his office at 1 a.m. and then meet him at 4 30 yeah met
for it no that's oh really a hundred percent what happened nothing makes me
more nervous about the auditioning process than waiting to go in I went in
and I was just sitting there and then I sat in that outer office on the ninth
floor for four hours and then someone came in like hey we're gonna go have
dinner now and I was like with Lauren and it was like oh no no no no just you
and me and then that's like awkward small talk very nice people and then yeah
I finally was that dinner with who is that dinner with Lindsay and oh my
gosh I forget the other person but it was one of his assistants and then this
is like 2000 early 2005 and then I and then I finally go in to see him and he
goes do you know why you're here and I said oh make him well he says she's on
me he's like you know I was on a boat once with a guy and he was funny the way
that Bill Murray is funny and I thought to myself I know Bill Murray and then
it was like do you want to hang out tomorrow and watch the show and I was
like sure and he was like all right and you know who and then you know who
hosted the next week when I did my show was you Jason me when you hosted the
first the first was I that was when it was Tuesday night riding night of when
you hosted they made the cast some of the cast members and people come and
watch me perform no way because I remember early 2005 that was like what
like January February yes yeah how do you know that will how about that will
Jesus because I have a fucking crazy and I was sitting there going to go yeah we're
writing that Jason Bateman's hosting this week and you know we got to get back so
hurry come on you gotta like because I had a lot of writing yeah I had a sketch
group and my like sketch slash audition piece was in the middle of the show and
Lindsay shook us around the back and was like just do that sketch come on but
here's my question though it's like it's Megan so Megan made this call to Lauren
Lauren called you but did you have any aspirations to do that or were you just
like sure I guess I'll show up because somebody called I always well I came to
LA to be a director those were always my heroes you know I was like writing
directing and then but I you know I mean back back especially late 90s really
2000s it was still like had to be on film you know I mean video didn't look
good is now and I had no money so a way to be creative was a friend of mine said
oh do you want to take classes with me at Second City and we'll just mess around
and and it was really fun but it was always like so when I got on SNL I was
so envious of the Lonely Island guys that they were making short films yeah so
I was like I go hang out what you guys are making those like and cuz that's my
world that's what the digital shorts for yeah for Tracy I remember Bill I
remember early on when you came on the show like early and we're at an after
party with your folks it must have been one of your first shows you remember
that we were sitting outside my dad lost his mind over will my dad really there
was huge there were huge your parents were huge arrested fans remember that
Bill yeah my dad goes no fucking way well I'm at holy shit holy shit and he
kind of had will up against the wall it was at that place it's right across the
street from 30 rock on 6th Avenue exactly yeah yeah Bill good and I was
going dad dad dad dad relax and he was like no fucking way you're in my face
Bill yeah and I remember Bill and Bill was like new and Bill just kept going
I'm sorry man I you know and I was like your parents were super nice oh it
made me it I was gonna have a panic attack because I heard my I was have my
back turned this is back when I smoked so I was having a cigarette that's right
and I was and behind me I hear will our net Bill senior and I was one time my
mom went over and sat at Lauren's table and I look over there and Paul Rudd was
like he kind of he goes Bill are you clocking this and I turn around and my
mom is sitting at Lauren's table in between Marty short and Steven Spielberg
I walk over there and I'm like she's coming with me I'm sorry come on come on
you know just like oh my god it's like they're all so short were you
they're so tiny they're all so tiny were you I would imagine they're not even
there like in front of them yeah exactly were you confident that you were that
you were a comedian and were able to make a living in comedy given that you
were kind of just wanting to be a director and go that route and then all
of a sudden you find yourself with a job as a comic where you did you feel like
great well let's do this now are we like oh they're gonna find out I don't know
what I don't know what I'm doing yeah yeah I was I mean to have that those
people who were in there when I showed up you know I was really intimidated you
know so I was like they all had second city you know groundlings I mean I came
in with Jason and yeah comedy Chicago man and I just was like I don't I remember
my first table read just going I wrote a thing with Warren Warren that's right
will forte and it was it was so bad and I just remember looking in the middle of
it over at Tina Fey and she just had this look on her face like oh no
you know and I was like oh god you know so I was I was so I was very I was
incredibly incredibly crippling insecure and anxious I would say the first four
seasons but but it's almost like you were made for the show though because like I
I'm sorry to keep harping on the same point but it's like you you got this
call but you could also you had all these characters inside of you and a lot
of it's you know I find it rare in a lot of sketch shows that people have so
many characters like you or Mike Myers or Dana Carvey or whoever that that just
had them but did you even know that you had those characters in you know I
didn't know no a lot of that was like you know you make fun of people you know
you do impressions of people at school right you know things like that but
never you know I don't know you guys are probably I don't know I was not the
funniest of my friends in high school so it wasn't like I was known as a funny
like my friends in high school when I hang out with them I'm like the eighth
funniest guy right everyone you know how to cherry pick I know how to you know
what I mean yeah half my shits all will our nets yeah Bill you know what makes
me think of it is is our mutual friend and all of our friend the great Pete
Serif in which when he used to do that 15 pressions but it's all of made up
characters that's one of my favorite things so it's not it's fake famous you
guys both do an Alan Alda the kills you both do an Alan Alda well that's what
people say Alan Alda was like we got to see Peter Serif I know it's pretty
insane but but bill it remember but you know it does make me think though like
you did you talk about the film you did you in the lonely island boys started
making video you you were in there and working with those guys pretty early I
mean in fact the summer after lazy Sunday you guys were making hot rod was a
June 10 it was a June July or August well that was September hot rod was
September 2006 that's fall 2006 that's just it came out in seven yeah it came
out in seven but it was shot in we shot it in six yeah because I remember I went
up to my friend's wedding in Toronto but I had to go really I was really sick I
just we just what I just showed it I just watched that movie with my kids and
their favorite part is you yelling babe babe which one is that hot rod I've not
my recollection do you remember there's that scene bill we were shooting it was
you me Danny McBride and Yorm but you and Yorma were standing in front of me and
and fuck I forget what happened I kept going like what about the little one I
kept saying we kept fucking laughing and then we'd all break up and I was like
okay we gotta stop we gotta get one but what I was gonna say was you did you
got on you started making videos with these guys really early and fuck I love
the one that you guys did that fucking always kills me I think holds up is that
dear sister oh yeah those I mean to be clear those guys wrote and directed all
those it was kind of like they would come into my office and go hey Bill you
want to be in this and I'd be like yes because I just wanted to be around them
shooting stuff yeah but you're a vital part you're yeah that dear sister one
was I think something fell through and that was a thing they had done before so
like we're gonna recreate this thing we did once before and that was at a hotel
across the street from 30 Rock and all I remember from that one is that we
started shooting it at like midnight no way and then it was done on Friday night
and then it was done at like seven in the morning Saturday morning and I walked
out and I had the choice to like to like go home and try to sleep or do I just go
to 30 Rock right now and just hang in my dressing room until we started
rehearsing it was awful yeah I don't know what it was like it was you it was you and
wig and Andy and Fred and Jason were cops at the end and then Shia LaBeouf
Shia LaBeouf and Fred and Jason fuck if you guys ever seen that sketch do
yourselves a favor it is the Lonely Island guys just incredible I'd love
the timing of the editing of that sketch is unbelievably funny yeah it's very
good it's a masterclass in timing yeah I got to see that and we will be right
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back to the show so Bill did you did you think that you had a fastball when
you started was was there did you think I'm gonna do impersonations or I'm gonna
be the straight man or I'm gonna be like what did you think like you're
Vincent right by the way your Vincent price fucking kills thank you yeah a lot
of stuff was the writers would kind of I was someone who really needed the
writers I was always impressed with people like Fred and Kristen and these
people who would just write for themselves yeah you know and you were
like man you guys are just so confident you could do that I really needed to go
into a writer and go you know and sometimes it was like well Bill what's a
voice you do you know what's anything and and like a lot of people I kind of
came in and my heroes and things I liked was much more weirder and kind of
stranger and a lot of I learned the term hat on a hat it was like I was like
you can't just do a talk show it's got to be a talk show that's inside a man's
ear that's on the you know whatever it was very Monty Python explain explain
how to hat for the it's kind of like a joke on a joke so a perfect example was
I did a sketch because I could do a tauntaun impression it's so funny and
Mike Matt Murray one of the great writers on the show said what if you did
that Panther Panther and we so you so and we had Natalie Portman was hosting
so it's like oh what if it's you teaching her how to do different Star Wars
noises as part of her SNL audition and then I said what if I do it is Peter
Falk so what that thing alone is me as just an acting teacher yeah that's
enough uh-huh but adding Peter Falk was like can you do like two seconds of it
hat on a hat oh no it was like so yeah this is a job well now listen though the
tauntaun comes from the land at war well holding his eye and I just remember
Seth Meyers going like hey buddy hey buddy can I talk to you for a second it's a
little bit of a hat on the hat and I go what and then I did it at dress you're
never gonna believe this it died it was I think that's funny as well as we I
could hear my footsteps I could hear myself turn the glass of water down it
was like so quiet you can hear the e-train you hear someone cough in the
alphabet streets and I was like oh god this is bad news and and and I went in
there and I just looked at me and he might not mimicked you know putting a
hat on top of another hat and I was like okay and so it didn't make it yeah it's
so funny was Natalie must have been dying when you were doing yeah she I
seemed she seemed to like it I don't know and then and then we did I remember
Dana Carvey hosted we did a thing called the casems where he was Casey case
and I was his son JC case him and the whole thing was that we had a terrible
relationship and it was me coming to the house at 2 in the morning and he was
like who's out there I'm Casey case it's dad it's not a burglar raccoon it's me
your son JC case son get out of here dad hear me out son I want nothing to do
with you and it was this very intense family drama you're always asking me
why won't you get a job why will you won't you stop doing drugs and what
recording orders have more number one is Mariah Carey with 11 but seriously son
I need you out and I out and that played to utter silence I've got the
audience more silence utter silence because the audience was going wait did he
wait what you know what I mean and so how and yeah we were just I would have
Dana and I were going Dana and I were like why I wrote it with John Mulaney and
we both were like why didn't that work that was so well did you guys ever have
discussions about well because the dress is what eight and then the show is
obviously yeah and 30 but is there a do you ever say well but the audience at
eight is weird and it's different let's just trust that the 1130 audience is
gonna love it at home and it's like isn't that I wish there was a science to
it but it I do remember if the dress was hot that was bad if dress was really
hot I remember Polar saying like oh hot dress that's bad and I was like why
what oh you know and then yeah it's right it's like if the dress is hot then
weirdly you get like it's a superstition thing you get really confident and then
when you go out to do the live show it's like go shot go shot I was to say for
my sister Tracy like when you say dress is dress rehearsal I was sorry that you
do before the pre-show live show and they have extra sketches in the dress yes
so there's a cut go ahead it doesn't work it's paired out yeah so dress
rehearsals at eight o'clock we do a whole show plus like I remember that three or
four extra sketches and then we go into Lauren's office and stuff has been cut
and then the stuff's been rearranged and rewritten and then that's the live
show and this is after a brief conversation with the host who gets to
chime in I'm not sure to what effect about what they would like or not yeah
and I'm not sure if they're listening I think and it's Lauren eating popcorn
going yeah I mean if you want to look like a fool we can do this you know I
once I once my brother-in-law played golf once yes yeah go and he owned a golf
club and the question is are you gonna rent her own are you gonna rent her
sketch cut you know and then you we would do those in some price sketches and
if you between dress and hair and you like someone wouldn't do something you
know old-school impression and Lauren would be like well what if John Hamm
played Herbert Marshall and you're hearing the band playing you're hearing
the live audience being put in and you're like I don't know if the audience is
gonna know Fred McMurray and it's like how about James Mason anybody could do
James Mason if I imagined you when you're working on an impression if I
imagined you in front of a mirror alone just like making faces and doing sounds
is that is that is that about the extent of it like is it a real private kind of
or is it kind of a little here and a little there like sometimes in the car
sometimes in the car you do it around people and then it kind of comes out and
it's like whoa that's not a good that you still do that Bill or I mean do you
still oh yeah yeah it's like it's just like yeah it's like a my dad does this
too where it's a it's called appropriation where it's you know when
you're nervous around someone you start to talk like them you know and I've done
that since I was a kid like I get very socially anxious and then you start to
mimic people's accents as a way of being like hey I'm like don't you know like
we're all good you know it's like the same tribe don't kill me yeah don't don't
kill me so yeah you start to talk like people or whatever and then and so I
think that lent itself to being able to do voices you know when you were growing
up in Oklahoma did you do that with like did you have a did you gravitate
towards friends that had the same sensibility and we're kind of yeah you
know I'd like that or were you like oh yeah and like we weren't like weird
no he was trying to ingratiate himself with murderers and well that too I mean
yeah I mean I kind of wanted like oh I just wanted like to get to know everybody
yeah no but like my best friend is is a writer on Barry is like one of the big
writers on Barry and we've known each other since we were 15 or so wow we
still right right great show and you're great yeah congrats so working on a
bridge from SNL to Barry what about do you remember the moment where it started
to become clear to you that okay my life is changing and going to change and I
got to kind of get my knees bent and be ready for what can be pretty uncomfortable
which is fame and recognition and responsibility and and and approaching
your dreams what did that feel like when Barry came out or like after SNL ended
yeah I mean to move away now from SNL but I guess it must have started there
and and feeling like maybe I can now leave and see if I've got what I hope I
have and try it out yeah that's that's it's nerve-wracking when you I mean
because I remember when I left SNL I did like interviews about it like I went
and did like Charlie Rose and I did these things about you're leaving SNL and
the attitude and everything was like well maybe we're never gonna see you again
you know nice knowing you that's the risk right no one knows there's you know
and it was like maybe that's it and so yeah it was I wonder what that batting
average is what do you what do you think the percentage of cast members that go
on to you know careers that you can you can still make a living with yeah I don't
know I mean yeah I have no idea I mean I I tried to I think it was for me it was
like you know it's like if I thought of like what makes the plane stay up in the
air I would go crazy yeah you know so so I just was like I'm just gonna move
forward and block out any sort of because I'm very sensitive to other
people's energy so it is hard when you see you know agents or executives are
like hi you know wait am I out am I in wait what was that
and so I'm very so I I do kind of like put my head down and just keep moving
forward and try stuff it was pretty cool to see you start taking roles that
weren't necessarily starring roles they were these really cool supporting roles
in in these really fun movies that had these great big stars leading them and
I was like this this is it looks like you're building this foundation that is
gonna be around for a long time and then when Barry happened and especially the
directing element I was just like so excited for you and then talking with
you afterwards and finding out about your original passion which was directing
I just was so excited for you that that has all come true I mean oh thank you
very much jumping around a bit but I mean was that always a goal for you and
that some of these to the extent there was any strategy that some of these these
career choices were meant to point you in that direction and finally land
something where you could be somewhat of an auteur yeah I mean I think it was
always wanted to do movies and then and then you know I'd written some scripts
and then I was did some acting jobs and then but I didn't really have a lot of
faith in myself it was kind of like you know it's like you dream of a thing but
you don't you know I don't know if I can do it feels like the universe wants me
to be this thing right and I'm kind of going well maybe I'm not right for this
other thing and then honestly I had a beanie with HBO they had seen me in a
movie called Skeleton Twins and they said oh you should yeah we were interested
in you being like that kind of acting in a show for us not like sketch and I was
like okay cool and then they know you meet this guy Alec Berg maybe you guys
come up with something so Alec and I sat Alec Berg yeah came up with with the
show Barry and it was when I went into the meeting I haven't talked about Alec
about it or anybody and they went who do you think should do the pilot Michael
and Bart I was like who do you think should do the pilot and I was like I'll
direct it and it was just silence and the guy if you were directed before I was
like no no but I can do it and Alec Berg to his credit kind of looked at me I
didn't talk to him about it or anything and he went yeah yeah he can do it yeah
I got no he'll be fine you can do it and then that's great and then he told me
afterwards that he was driving home and they called him going all right can you
really do it yeah cuz that's a big for Tracy that's a very you didn't you tell
me though at one time and maybe that you said that Alec said to HBO yes if Jason
Bateman can direct anybody can is that quote yeah well that was a t-shirt they
wear over the DJ that was a T and the DJ said the DJ said yeah we let him in as
a as a bit they said this is a bit yeah into the DJ so at South by Southwest when
they give you your key cards yeah before seasons it's if Jason Bateman that's
what guys this I hope this is a joke no it's gonna be it's a big long joke and
they're giving you awards and they're giving jobs because at the end it's gonna
be we're gonna do a big reveal when you're like 60 yeah and by the way when
Jason 60 he's simultaneously gonna weigh 60 pounds he's whittling down you know
and now we can even have the nuts it was just the cardboard so it's gonna be 60
pounds and then we all go it was a fucking joke Jason do you ever have that
happen though when people look at you and they go oh a dirt an actor is
directing if they don't I'm they can always be sure that I'm doing it I'm
sitting there going what what am I doing both you guys are smart dudes and
you know what you're doing and you've been around a lot and as you know from
the little directing that I've done it's it's much more about understanding what
it is that you want tonally and what you want that to be and also you guys
have succeeded in it it's not like you tried it and it doesn't but still it
doesn't matter because my idea of what a director is and looks like is completely
opposite for me it's just like your idea of what 50 would be when you were 12
has nothing to do with what I feel I can look like at 50 or you know like you
also know like even the greats as you know there is a certain and I say this
out of you know with a tremendous amount of respect for all the great
directors that have come out is is there's that thing of like they have to
keep it special and keep it exclusive and keep you out because it they're not
doing it to punish everybody else but it's also to maintain that respect and
that level of thing it's like this guy's a great director and you could never
do that and there's a little bit of like well you did it no you're just a human
being as well yeah a little bit and there is and of course there are great
directors but you guys are both very accomplished good directors and you
that's how you become a great as you keep doing it yeah and also just sitting
around a set and absorbing what everybody is doing to create this fake
world like it's hard what these crew members do is insane insane it's really
really cool and it's not just the director as you guys know it right
everybody's a filmmaker the costume department I love how many actors show up
on the first day of principal photography and they're like okay let's get
started no no we've been doing this probably a half a dozen times already
basically yeah it's always yeah people kind of thinking like well you know it's
also I always have a thing where you have an idea and then you go out there and
you see all these people busting their ass away from their families yeah in
terrible conditions for at least 12 hours trying to make your right you're
trying to make your idea happen you know I mean I'm like I sit and I look at
and I feel like such a responsibility to you know have my shit together and as
we know as actors that's the worst is when you have a director that doesn't
know what they want and they're certainly and it could be this and you're
there for I mean I've worked on shows where I did a show on a movie where we
did reverse splits because we kept going so late through the week so by Friday
we started the day on stage at 1 a.m. yeah shot until 3 p.m. on stage because a
director because a director was just like I don't know what's reverse what's
reverse splits okay so like for Tracy that's a big treasure yeah so like if you
start like so you have to have like a like certain people have to like 12
hour turnarounds meaning like if you work from 7 a.m. and you you shoot until
10 p.m. you got to start the next day at 10 a.m. right give people 12 hours you
gotta give 12 hours of rest which includes driving home which is an exact
can't can't negotiate you gotta negotiate that no but I mean early on when
you're starting that's not even get into portal to portal I mean what are you
talking about a portal to portal is like the goal like you got portal to portal
we're gonna start getting into Downey's deal I mean Downey's on stage for 45
minutes before he's out yeah it's anyway you go to so like if you start at you
know Monday at work at 7 a.m. and you end at 10 p.m. and then you have to go okay
now we have 10 a.m. and then they go until one now Wednesday you can't start
until 1 p.m. and then turn 1 p.m. it's gonna roll back even more so it's
basically a director shooting 18 to 20 hour days and you got to get people
there turn around it just keeps pushing pushing pushing right so so you're
ending your work week Saturday Friday like four in the afternoon yeah Friday
and you're like yeah yeah yeah and it's solely because someone doesn't have their
shit together yeah shit and into and then directors defense they never see any
other director direct so they don't know that they're not getting it done that
they're not doing it well it's you know actors crew members everybody sees
multiple directors and then if you ever get the chance to direct you can cherry
pick from all the good ones and not do the stuff that the bad guys did Sean go
ahead jump in I wanted to say Bill one of the first times I was ever
introduced it introduced to one of those hysterical bad lip-reading things was
you somebody sent it to me years ago and they're so funny I think there were
Star Wars ones or something yeah and and they make me and I want to know you
done you're done with the subject we were on yeah I'm correcting okay he loves
he loves it he's just goes 180 unbelievable and he got it's okay it's
fine you've pissed off the guest Sean no no we can talk about bad livery no I
always wanted to know because I know I've never met anybody who I know who did
it how I just got a dumbest question the world but I'm always interested in
knowing how do you do it did they just run the tape and you ad lib or the guy
who does it is a genius and he he just you go to his house and he's done it
already oh wow so you just you just you just you are it's just you're watching
it going okay so he's done it already and so you're trying to mimic it's so
funny they've done and it's really that guy and it kind of just took off and now
they do it for people in Congress and like I don't know how they yeah I have no
idea now what we move this around in the episode there's a whole Sean's
section that is after we say he's like a make-a-wish kid he'll just go I was
wanting to know how did you and when we give him a t-shirt every once in a while
we're just building the steam with the yeah you grow up with a dog now with with
Barry where are we with where are we with Barry as we as we talk I know by the
way sorry no offense to make a wish obviously it's amazing and yeah you
have to say that everybody knows you're joking okay well we don't you know we
get lots of letters from people let them let them write just don't read them
well you're right yeah but so where are we with with with Barry are we in
production out of production the thing with Barry I'm just waiting for Sean to
come yeah it was really funny he doesn't think of any questions until you're
actually talking your parents listen to Charo believe me it's exactly like that
no but I think that's funny I like that no we just did so we're doing editing
season 4 and how high can you jump I'm just curious these are the things these
other things seem like you could long legs it was like you could jump high
anyway depression you were talking about depression you're really into the
you're really into the thing you were talking about but I just wanted to take
you out just to satisfy this my own itch and so that's right depression has
affected your family first how long and and and you do like tater tots I just
want to get that and now a word from our sponsor and now back to the show wait so
so you're at your editing we're editing and we just did reshoots last week we
did three days of reshoots some in this weird place of like did these reshoots
and now I'm back in the edit bay plugging in what we reshot and the
anxiety of like oh please don't wait this works you know yeah yeah and seeing how
it plays out and going but then it's also that I'm also at that phase where
really smart friends and people who have worked on the show or people I know
writers or former editors I will send them the episodes to be like how's it
feeling haven't been sent anything you know I well you know didn't you take now
I feel like it hasn't been on for a while didn't you take a break was there a
break or a COVID thing or something yeah well we had to for season between
seasons two and three yeah yeah and then I shot I've been waiting now I've been I
did three and four pretty much back to back huh yeah because of Dr. Fauci Dr.
Fauci yeah because of Fauci because he wanted to do I keep going what's the end
game what did he want to do he wanted to take over the planet what do you think
the Emmys what I say you you too Jason and Will were the two people the Emmys
that pointed at my face and went mouth why you wearing a mask I remember you
yeah you were going why like malving are you sick stay away and I was the
reason was because I was shooting and it was this thing of like if you get
covered we shut down for two weeks lose all our locations people got to go
home we lose crew yeah so I walked in and I was like there's literally no one
with a mask here you were the only one I saw Bob Odin Kirk and he's like do you
have COVID Bob Bob Odin Kirk and Bill so we were doing brother Solomon and oh
my god I was on a yeah and I know what you're gonna say Bill's on a recumbent
bicycle okay and so so we got the scene it's me and and and and wig and he kept
having this thing and but Bob was so obsessed with Bill and he goes oh my
god body and Kristen wig is giving is she's giving a performance where she has
to cry yes she has to cry and give this emotional speech and the joke is that
while she's doing this the brother Solomon are watching me as this weird
guy in a recumbent bike well he he was Bob was being one of the brothers on
Christian was giving this amazing performance and he was like cut okay
Bill what you gotta do and she and our net was like hey Bob can we please
acknowledge what incredible acting work she was doing this amazing work and he
was like oh my god where did they find this thing did they invent this bike
this isn't real is it oh my god it was so crazy and was drawing on all this
past pain pain and Bob Bob obsessed with Bill and I just I really have
respected our net for being like hey can we just acknowledge and then you're
going to prison is another Odin Kirk film that was incredible that was a
good very first audition for a movie was a audition for some part in that
movie no way Bob and Bob I remember reading with him and he took my sides
away and he goes don't worry about these just talk to me really scared I was so
anxious I was so anxious because I was like he's a legend and the mr. show and
everything and I was I was so terrified and I never auditioned before and I did
the like by rote and a mirror like you know I did everything you know and what's
the most money what's the most money you've ever spent in one trip to trade
a job sorry about this bill on that while we're on food I want to I want to
hear about your peanut allergy when was the last time you had a real I want to
know when you had a real blow-up with peanuts how did you short said you know
usually people when they talk about their allergies it's so boring but when you
talk about it but what I do have a not allergy I do have a very bad how do you
know what happened my mouth gets it just happened to me it just happened to me
about a month ago I was entered I was doing it I was moderating Q&A with
somebody and we went and ate beforehand and I ate lasagna I'm at you know a
little Dom's and I eat lasagna and then suddenly my mouth goes numb and my
throat starts to go go up and I go on the bathroom and I see I'm getting a
rash on the side of my face and I go and so I ran in and there are people are
still talking and being going I go to the bathroom I ran down to there's like
Albertsons there something run inside find Benadryl take it in the aisle took
like three of them and then went back and I just I just I had no EpiPen so I
just did some Benadryl texted my doctor they were like okay you should be fine
okay we're gonna put in a prescription whatever and we were just figuring it
out and I end up still doing the what would nuts be doing in lasagna it was
vegan it was vegan vegan cheese it was cash I'm out okay it's not unusual in
Los Feliz for actors just to be taking drugs in the aisles about that is true
I was there was a bunch of other people and they're like you too man but now so
as I don't remember when we were at the Dodger game and I and I eat tons and
tons of peanuts I don't remember you getting nervous that I was near you
with peanuts yeah you're not one of those no no it's not like the dust or
something I have to like ingest it yeah yeah it's no fun no by the way by the
way Sean just very discreetly under his thing wrote down you just give me a
lasagna he's just wrote it that's just gonna have for like lasagna Garfield oh
no I'm free you know what you know what Sean said to me by the way the other day
this is totally true Jason I haven't told you this yet either Sean the other
day just goes you know what I had for breakfast this morning I had a pot
roast and I go what just out of the blue what yes with mashed potatoes and
then I had ice cream nine in the morning what are you being executed
you being executed I mean we were at a meeting the other day we were to meet
in the other day and they made us a cake this is a cake that has our
smartless pictures and names and stuff that was on the frosting on top just
like is a gift like a sort of ceremonial like here's a fun little thing
and and Sean left the meeting with the cake full cake no hang on a second
hang on a second walking out before the meeting started Sean cut into the cake
and started eating it at the table his own table 30 people they made a cake for
us why is that not a business meeting he was like well it would be rude not to
have a piece so he starts eating it and then he took it with him in his car but
he came down out of this cake with his own fucking face on it but he lives he
lives with his husband and a dog that's it you said you'd have half of it done
by the end of the week that's got his gut diabetes the cake so it's all
Sean Bill what's your current temperature no no Sean serious question
how much of the cake is left this is not yet that night he had more in that
morning the next morning right Sean five days later how much I kind of wanted it
done like if you're an adult and you have all the cake you can eat why wouldn't
you eat it right are you self-aware when that's happening Sean are you like this
you have guilt you have shame no good shame no you know what I think it is like
I just can't stop I think we grew up with nothing anytime anytime I'm like oh
my god free cake free cake tell me how much of the cake is left it's gone is it
really yes well that was a week that was you shit pig almost a week ago shit
pig yeah you just I get that I don't know I get it I get it I do get it where
it's like we're just gonna leave this here come on no there is a lot of that
and there's a lot of waste and final question how high can you jump if you
want to jump high how high by the way here's the other thing Bill you work with
our group with our old dear friend on Barry Henry Winkler oh yeah I love him
I love him Henry so sweet he's the greatest sweetest yeah he's always like
like you doubt his charity he's so does he still leave his ringer on on his phone
while you're rolling does he do that no no he doesn't we had we have a blooper
real this dedicated from the first couple seasons of a message to Henry's
phone going up in the middle of the scene it by the way usually during his
own dialogue so he'd be doing yeah be doing a courtroom scene going what do we
have to and then ring oh my god hang on he's like oh it's Stacy hold on Jason
we have a great blooper of Jason going go ahead and take that one just take it
or Henry he's so sweet Henry one time we were doing a thing and you know my
character fought in Afghanistan and three takes in a row he said Vietnam
my phone and when Barry was fighting in Vietnam that's not right hold on and then
every Friday it's like Henry that was a great take where you had to have a you
know mental breakdown that was really good he's like you got me there I have
this chocolate bunt cake from Jersey City in the trunk of my car he is just
absolutely the greatest amazing work and I think he gets very anxious about his
dramatic work but he's such a good dramatic actor and he really will go
where he need you know he's not afraid or whatever but it is funny how much he
he'll have that moment and then he you know turns it right on you know this
season especially goes through a lot of stuff but when he'll do that and then
yeah he'll offer you sweets such a talent you know he was one of the guys
when we were first doing a rest of development and I was living in New
York but coming out here to do it and I'd be oftentimes you know I was friends
with these guys a little bit but you know whatever I didn't have anywhere and
he and his wife Stacy would invite me over on Saturday mornings and I would
go over there and just you know have breakfast with him and with the family
all the time he was so sweet I love him I know they were so generous yeah we
pretty much every month go and have breakfast like once you know like and
it's and it's great and he is kind of like so how are you doing like outside
of everything how's your life how's this how's this feeling like he's just I
always walk away from those feeling you know better about myself you want to
grow up in his house well you remember back then back then it was like when
his son Max was still in high school yeah and and his best buddy was Jonah
Hill and those guys were still in fucking high school when I was there like
this is like 2003 like the fall of 2003 yeah and those guys were still in high
school him and Jonah and they were like oh man we love a rest of development and
they were they were like fucking 17 you know or if that so anyway it's 2003
Sean wanted to know have you ever had to put snow tires on
he just he texted that in he texted me he said just please ask I'm so glad you
got it in time that's a great question can you build because I'm such a massive
hammer I'm such a massive fan can you do just I know you're not a singing monkey
here we go can you do Vincent Price just a little bit because it's so fucking
funny I'm trying well the thing I remember the John Mulaney's first night of
writing at SNL he the Seth Meyers said oh we maybe should bring the new guy in
and help on Vincent Price and we were writing a thing and it was Fred would
play Liberace and I'm Vincent Price and we're arguing yeah and and we're arguing
as you do right still with you yep yeah so he's with you this is this by the way
this is this is in 2008 when people are still really excited with Vincent Price
and Liberace and as Lauren said I like to sketch but why now but Liberace and
they're talking and we're like oh what's that thing Vincent Price could say to
Liberace after he burns him or something and and and John Mulaney came up the
line save your sassia sides for your windowless bars
yeah Liberace was always him talking about like a prince who had given him a
jewel or something yeah there was always and anyway Jack Nicholson John Malkovich all of them I
fucking love all of them oh thank you very much yeah but the and then yeah that that line always
we were just like whoa but like what about that what it like are the is there ever going to be
another vehicle where we can see you do your impressions or is it just there's a chapter
closed bro yeah I mean I don't like Camel or something they'll be like like what I want to
Camel like not too long ago and you have me do all the dateline people right because I watched
dateline a lot so he's like just do all the dateline people so I did them and but yeah usually
it's like you're at a party or something and you know you know who loves impressions yeah yeah
Conan you know who loves impressions is Larry David yeah yeah he loves Shawn just did some work
with him lose his mind when you do an impression of anybody can you do Larry David
wait who would you who would you who would you who would you trust to do you oh man everybody
does probably sure I mean yeah I mean Fred does it really good me which is does he really his
impression of me everybody's impression of me is like hey then what's going on in spell and then
his impression means I've always just discovered a super famous band hey you know I started listening
to his Bruce Springsteen he's like you always walk into my office and you're like you know
he's like that almond brother's pretty good I'm just listening to them wait do do really quick
do Jack Nicholson watching dateline I don't know if I do Jack Nicholson oh really we're doing
doing to Jack Nicholson but you know oh you know who Larry David likes is uh Bert Lancaster uh
Bert Lancaster when he there's this this guy told me a story this made Larry David laugh really
hard was a guy worked for Bert Lancaster and he brought him some um chowder for lunch and he said
that Bert Lancaster looked in the bag and looked up and I mean he went oyster crackers you forgot
the oyster crackers
David makes me say that all the time he's like oyster crackers yeah if I got the oyster crackers
so well I think you know that's it's always fun I do it do it on set and it gets old fast no
actually nothing I've never had setups in between shots feel shorter than when I worked with you
on on paul you're you're just so fun to hang out with other guys you gotta do more of that yeah we
were do you remember when they blew up the house in paul yeah yeah and they said yeah you guys are
gonna stand right here okay and we went okay and then me and you were looking at each other and I go
you know what I want to go stand with a special effects guy it's the guy standing behind a barricade
where we were standing was a giant car or something land like massive debris landed where we were we
were like this isn't fun no yeah that was my god wait a second I love that you're telling us because
Jason doesn't remember and he by the way he he never would have told us that story never never
comes up no he also were you there when the guys made us drink uh uh jalapeno stuff I like but like
I think you're aren't you with us I might have been it was me and Simon Pegg and everybody and
they're like hey you guys are Hollywood people you know it was just like we were in New Mexico and
they were like oh these loud Hollywood people and they're like hey here drink a shot of this
and it wasn't it was pure jalapeno juice it's not alcoholic because I was like oh I don't drink and
they're like that's it was jalapeno juice and we had to run and get milk and stuff it was a way of
like get the fuck out of here maybe I was there that's starting to sound familiar that was like
that was like that was fun that was good let me tell you what was fun Bill was this chat
we could do two full episodes we haven't gotten into any of your of your incredible
voiceover work in all these animated films too I mean it's it's on and on and on you're an incredible
talent yeah multi-dimensional or whatever it is you're you're that and big big fan and a great
best well done good to see you dude good to see you guys man yeah man I'm calling you for dodger
game soon yeah please all right have a good day bud you but thank you bye bye bye bye
all right I don't think there's anything that guy can't do and that was funny stuff man that was
dramatic he acts writes directs produces uh high quality person friends I'm just kind of blown away
that he went on snl and then just had all those characters like what are the odds of yeah let's
take a chance on bill hater and then you got all this stuff inside yeah it's so funny he's always
got it's funny that he said that that he does that appropriation thing because it is you see that
like a nervous thing yeah where he's just like oh and he starts doing the voice while he's I do that
all the time with I'll take people's laughter I'll start laughing like them yeah for some weird
reason and that'll be like my new laugh for a few weeks really I think it's like a common human
thing I do find that I just yammer and yammer and yammer when I'm socially uncomfortable I will
I'll do the opposite of what you think you would do which is just shrivel and go into a corner and
be quiet I should just start talking I just start speaking whatever I'm thinking of in my mind yeah
I mean I see I notice you at parties and you kind of do on this I see you talking to somebody when
you're engaging with like another person and you're just talking at them and you're like
asking them and you're just fucking and they're thinking like oh at first they're like oh I get
such a chase of bait man and then they want to fucking kill themselves and they realize it's not
that great do you blah blah blah and you're like you're going but the question it's like the show
you're asking questions and you're leading and it's on and on I know and and I just you know
often they have a look of what I would describe only as disgust yeah my family kicked me out of the
house a couple days ago but you know what Jay you with all that work on your mouth that you've had
you're talking so beautifully and I'm glad you finally got that toothpicks which one was it called
I think it was a bye cuspid and then repeat it again and say it higher bye
cuspid look at will harmonizing I didn't love it it was too early well my god are you kidding
smart
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Machine-generated transcript that may contain inaccuracies.
Things we discuss with the insanely talented Bill Hader:
Portal-to-portal
A hat on a hat
Pot roast for breakfast
Nut allergies
How high can you jump?
Did your parents listen to Charo?
It's SmartLess - here we go!
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