December 4, 2025 • 42 mins
Kyle drops an early holiday gift this week: an interview with beloved actor, comedian, writer, producer, director & singer, John Early! Kyle & John unwrap which core memory led to John’s career, his stoned Golden Retriever approach to creativity, a life-changing teenage trip to NYC, the tea on Tisch & his desire to play an ingenue, theater & Shakespeare, John’s flawless tribute to Showgirls, what it was like making Maddie’s Secret and Eternity, why Looney Tunes is a comedic cornerstone, and an ode to John’s masterful ability to create characters in a segment called, “Who Even Is That?”.
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Executive Producers: iHeart Media, Elvis Duran Podcast Network, and Full Picture Productions Executive Produced for Full Picture Productions by Desiree Gruber + Anne Walls Gordon
Produced by Ben Fingeret, Nora Faber, and Maia Mizrahi
Editing by Mikey Harmon and Nicholas Giuricich
Research by Kimberly Walls
Music by Yatta
Art by Danica Robinson
Additional GFX by Chris Olfers/The Southern Influence
Styling by Dot Bass
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
What do we even do? What are we even doing?
Speaker 2 (00:09):
Hey?
Speaker 1 (00:10):
Everyone, what are we even doing? The podcast where I
sit down with creatives from all fields actors, musicians, writers, comedians, answers, dancers,
lest we forget very important and we talk about how
they use social media, what their creative process is. We
get weird together in a good way. And I want
(00:31):
to welcome a very special guest actor, musician, comedian, dancer, dancer.
Thank you, I've seen him dance.
Speaker 2 (00:40):
Thank you dancer.
Speaker 1 (00:41):
Yes, you are our very own b John Say. I
think I'm pronouncing that correctly social media handle. Please welcome
John Early to the podcast, to our vast studio here.
Speaker 2 (00:52):
Kyle, you have no idea how exciting this is for me.
Speaker 1 (00:56):
I'm thrilled.
Speaker 2 (00:57):
This is such a thrill you are.
Speaker 1 (00:59):
The creative flow that comes out of you is because
you're so present. When I've watched your work, you have
the ability to stand in front of an audience and
you're relaxed and you it's not like you have to
wait for the next thing, but you allow the next
thing to come and it just keeps coming out like
this and you just keep going with it. I mean,
(01:20):
it's a tremendous skill thank you. Yeah, I mean it
just feels good. Would tell me you tell me how this?
How did John Realley start? How did he begin? Was
there a moment you said this is what I want
to do?
Speaker 2 (01:33):
You know, I should have that prepared. It's like, no,
can talk about it. I'm trying to really think what
it was, because I think I do remember this moment
of seeing Cherio Terry Oh doing the Spartan cheerleader Charitarian
wolf fare yeah yeah, and being in my kitchen on
the little kitchen TV and being like uh huh and
just really being like, yeah, yes, that's what I wanted.
Speaker 1 (01:56):
You was full on. Yeah, the SNLS get that they together, Yeah,
oh my god.
Speaker 2 (02:02):
That was just like right to the heart for me.
And and that was that was probably it. But you know,
both my parents not to just immediately go to the
bio and and exploit like the let's go.
Speaker 1 (02:13):
Because I'm curious about your your parents both both Presbyterian ministers.
Speaker 2 (02:18):
Or former former Presbyterian ministers.
Speaker 1 (02:22):
Disgrace Man always Presbyterian minister.
Speaker 2 (02:28):
The only reason I bring it up is because I
do think they I did watch them hold a room,
stand in front of a room, you know, and like.
Speaker 1 (02:39):
Yeah, I know they were teaching moments. I mean, I
come from a Presbyterian background. Yeah, yeah, we went to
we went to Westminster Presbyterian Church where that was.
Speaker 2 (02:49):
Sorry, my dad was the head pastor at Westminster in National.
Speaker 1 (02:54):
Oh no, that wasn't nearby, was up in Washington State.
It's cool how your parents are part of kind of
you bring them into your world to your act. Yeah,
how is that? How have they responded?
Speaker 2 (03:06):
They're such good?
Speaker 1 (03:07):
Have they been supportive? I should just say, yeah, they've
been supporting.
Speaker 2 (03:09):
You, very very supportive, you know, all the way through.
Even as the stuff I've done has gotten more and
more vile, you know, they're they've They've still hang in there, cheered.
I mean, I don't know. It's like it's a it's
bizarre with the with the in the special when I
put the spotlight on them, that's I'm saying stuff in
(03:29):
front of them I would never say, like in person.
It's so funny. It's like I feel totally safe doing
it in that environment. And also I know that they
completely understand the joke, and like if they didn't, if
it actually felt like torture, I wouldn't do it, not
even out of some like you know righteous place. I
(03:49):
just I I don't like you know, I am Presbyterian
at the end of the day, and I like people
to feel comfortable.
Speaker 1 (03:55):
Like my audience, I'm the same way. Yeah, I know
exactly what you feel when you're on stage to say
that is it you? Is it a character? Is it
a version of you?
Speaker 2 (04:04):
How do you?
Speaker 1 (04:05):
Because I always feel like I need a kid, a
little bit of a character. Doesn't have to be a
big departure, but I.
Speaker 2 (04:11):
Always need something. But over the years it's gotten more
and more like me, you know. There the character resembles
me more like I used to be. When I first
started doing stand up in the eighties, kidding, I was like,
there was this it was kind of hostile. There was
something a little there was like a hard shell I
(04:34):
don't know, and it was like, I don't know, it was.
It was a weird time it was and then over
and then I don't know. As in the past few years,
as I was like bringing my special together, I did
kind of like yield to something inside myself that wanted
to be a little more generous and a little a
little more like again kind of using these like the
(04:59):
my pres Baterian tools of like making people feel comfortable
and bringing people in and like and not being so alienating.
I mean, I say, to me, it's like the least
alienating thing I've ever done. That stand up special available
now on HBO Max. I'm sure some people still think
it's completely incoherent and confusing and and but but I
(05:20):
don't know it's But so the persona that I do now,
I would say, is I give myself. I think of
myself as kind of like a stoned golden retriever and
like's it helps me be like kind of like dumb
and open. I really try to like kind of work
through my ideas in a way that hopefully doesn't feel
(05:42):
like pretentious. My idea is so embarrassing. They're not ideas, yeah, no, no,
the barely ideas.
Speaker 1 (05:47):
No, but there you but you use the space in
front of the crowd to sort of, you know, work
on them, flesh them out a little bit, feel feel
where they're taking you. And I just think I've never
done stand up and it really it's it's very intimidating.
It must be a thrill. The closest that could I
could imagine is being on stage, you know, where you
really yeah yeah, but I think it's you sort of
(06:09):
touched on something that I the leading man can not
the most interesting. It's not the character stuff.
Speaker 2 (06:18):
Yes, and there's actually you know, I mean it's easy
to dunk on the leading man and go, oh, you
have it all. You know, you you're getting paid the most,
you're your front, you know. But like, but everyone prefers
the side, the weird one. Everyone prefers the character actress.
Speaker 1 (06:36):
You're leading man, trapped in character.
Speaker 2 (06:39):
Body might dream.
Speaker 1 (06:41):
Tell me, tell me, tell me, but.
Speaker 2 (06:45):
My dream is relevant. So I had a dream the
other night that I was doing an experimental production of Carousel.
Oh wow, Rogers and Hammerston's one that's a very dark one,
and I was the lead.
Speaker 1 (07:00):
Yeah, big, yeah.
Speaker 2 (07:01):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (07:01):
We did that in college as well.
Speaker 2 (07:02):
Yeah, we did play.
Speaker 1 (07:03):
I was of course, you know. It was one of
those where we had real singers at my school and
they were like, it was power did you go? I
went to you dub University of Washington, but they had
a program, a training program there. We were trying to
go out seek our fortune and repertory theaterland. Wow, suddenly
(07:24):
movies got in the way. So but that's kind of
where I was initially headed. Owing to New York and
I said I'm going to audition. I could sing, and
I did all edit everything, and then I just went
to LA.
Speaker 2 (07:34):
And what was the first thing. I'm sorry, this is
me interviewing you.
Speaker 1 (07:37):
Ultimately the first sort of real musical thing I did.
Anything goes Oh my god. But I had one line. Look,
it's Reno Sweeney and her four angels.
Speaker 2 (07:48):
So you were you dancing.
Speaker 1 (07:49):
I was dancing. I was a sailor in the background.
They were like, you know, that was my deal. And
here's the story. Was one of the lead actors, the
guy that went on to play Curly. In fact, you
talk about to this. They said to me. Every time
before i'd go up to do my line, because I
delivered it up kind of on the balcony. He down
below and says, it's seen O'reenie and her four angels.
It's Senoreenie and her four yeah. Yeah, And I'd be like, no,
(08:10):
it's not no, it's not no, it's not yeah, oh no, no,
Like this is what I had up again.
Speaker 2 (08:14):
I had to work.
Speaker 1 (08:15):
Against this terrible You must have had something similar. You've
had people of torture.
Speaker 2 (08:19):
There was no hardship.
Speaker 1 (08:20):
No from Nashville to New York. No hardship, lay, there.
Speaker 2 (08:24):
Was nothing, no obstruction.
Speaker 1 (08:25):
I just knew you were Like, were you like I
got to get to New York?
Speaker 2 (08:30):
Yes? I was. I mean, you're ready when I first
went to New York, like with my dad?
Speaker 1 (08:35):
Yeah, so what was that? They just went there for
like a.
Speaker 2 (08:38):
He we had a really sweet trip where we went
to He took me to New York when I was
like fourteen? Wait what we saw Beauty in the Beast
with Tony Braxton? Okay, they had to lower the keys
of the songs.
Speaker 1 (08:51):
Did they have did your parents sort of go I
think he's headed in this direction, like Kyle not that well.
I don't know. Were they aware of kind of where
you were?
Speaker 2 (09:04):
Yes, definitely, it's really nice. I don't know what makes
people think that that's a viable path, you know, but
but I guess I don't know. I was very serious
about it. I was very obsessed with it. And yeah,
we're encouraging.
Speaker 1 (09:17):
Yeah, that's nice to hear. My parents were similar.
Speaker 2 (09:19):
They loved me. Right, let's just get that right, that's
rats rat. But yes, we saw Tony Brexton wool and
then we saw jackal and Hyde maybe with David Hasselhoff.
Those are my first Broadway shows.
Speaker 1 (09:38):
Fantastic.
Speaker 2 (09:39):
And then and we went to SNL. Okay, we went
to SNL and saw Lucy Lawless hostess.
Speaker 1 (09:44):
Okay, wait no, wait wait because special I wasn't fourteen,
God no, but that's a tough that's a you know,
that's late and that's New York and that's really I mean.
And I was as an insiders.
Speaker 2 (09:58):
He he, my dad pulled some strings. I don't know what.
He did something with the lord he you know. Yes,
I got in as an eleven year old. And and
actually what happened when I was in, When we were
in line, this girl came up to me and she
was probably like eighteen at the time, and she was like, oh,
it's sixteen, Like sixteen is the cut off. Like she
(10:18):
was like, he's not going to get in, like this
is a ranch. She didn't work there.
Speaker 1 (10:22):
She was just decided to offer her advice.
Speaker 2 (10:24):
Yeah, And I started weeping. Yes, and my dad was like,
it's so, I have tickets. They know, it's fine, you know,
like whatever, but I was so scared. Yeah, I was
like you heard her, Oh my god, we're never going
to get in. Yeah, but we got in and it
was like it was so it was Lucy Lawson. Elliott
Smith was the musical guest.
Speaker 1 (10:41):
Oh I love Elliott Smith said he was so talented.
Speaker 2 (10:45):
I know, but what a great it was. It was
so cool and I remember, you know I had that
is cool.
Speaker 1 (10:51):
I mean that's New York, coolest New York.
Speaker 2 (10:53):
Oh my god, I was. I was in heaven and
then you know, and then it was the thing where
I was like the sewer smell, like the steam from
the story like smelled like piss ever and I literally
was like I was like, I love this.
Speaker 1 (11:05):
Want oh you got a candle with that smell?
Speaker 2 (11:08):
Or too or but yeah, that's that. And so I
was very I had.
Speaker 1 (11:12):
To you or no you yeah? Yeah, so you go,
and what's the plan?
Speaker 2 (11:16):
Well I went to n YU Okay, yeah, you went
to TIS right, I went to Tish. Yeah, at the
Atlantic actual.
Speaker 1 (11:21):
Edition and yeah, and so you audition, you got accepted. Yes,
So that's how much How big.
Speaker 2 (11:26):
Was the class? Oh my god? Well, what's so crazy
about n YU is that it's those of you who
don't know Julie ar Yale, you of you dubbed you dub.
Speaker 1 (11:34):
Yeah, there were a few twenty people probably yeah, we
had thirteen I think in the drama department in our class.
Speaker 2 (11:40):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (11:41):
So and then there's the three year program so multiply
so yeah, forty people.
Speaker 2 (11:44):
Yeah so that's like you have it, you have a.
Speaker 1 (11:46):
Right into Yeah, I was close.
Speaker 2 (11:48):
Look at that.
Speaker 1 (11:49):
I can do math on air, come on.
Speaker 2 (11:53):
But it was it's like, you know that, that's that's
the ideal environment I think for like a conserviver but NYU,
it's like within Tish there are seven there were seven
different studios, and then then each studio had like you know,
three or four groups of twenty in the freshman class.
So total in the freshman class of the druma department
(12:13):
at Tish it was like seven hundred people.
Speaker 1 (12:14):
That's way too many.
Speaker 2 (12:15):
It was crazy. So it was really easy to get
kind of lost and to feel a little kind of like, oh,
this isn't special, I guess, like, but I had incredible
teachers at Atlantic because Atlantic was I want to go
to Atlantic because it was like Felicity Huffman and like
Christian Johnston and.
Speaker 1 (12:34):
People are really you could see these people.
Speaker 2 (12:35):
Have Yeah, yeah, I was like obsessed with I saw
Felicity Huffan some like weird Showtime. They called like out
of order, and I was like, oh, that's that's acting.
I was like, how did you? Yeah? What? And then
and then Christian Johnston I was like, she's a god.
You know, she was a god to me. And so
I saw that they had gone there, and you know,
(12:56):
I was like, that's the one. And it was very serious. Yeah,
you know, Atlantic is very like serious and kind of
like learn your lines, bitch, you know, like this isn't
a joke.
Speaker 1 (13:06):
Yeah, you know, like this is like work, Yeah, this
is not love law and order things, yes.
Speaker 2 (13:11):
Well they were. It was kind of like it was
kind of like you're you are going to do law
and order like you are, like and you need to be,
and you're they're gonna have you cry.
Speaker 1 (13:18):
Yeah, but that's a great thing about school, right because
they do. My school did the same thing. They really
prepared you for the industry, you know. Yeah, and what
the expectations were. Yeah, and it was tough. Yeah you're
gonna cry. You're gonna cry, motherfucker.
Speaker 2 (13:31):
And I and we we had to do like a
breakdown scene and we do what I can't this is
so this will show you exactly who I was. Okay,
in its pretentiousness, it's a little pick me okay, okay, okay,
dancer in the dark and I but but it's like,
but this is what's so tragic. I wanted to play
purek Yes, I was. This is the struggle I always
(13:53):
had in acting school, is like, I the reason I
even love acting is from women. You know. That's that's
why I wanted to act. It's like, that's that's so
it was very confusing for me to suddenly be in
a program for three years where like all the roles
I were expect playing was male.
Speaker 1 (14:10):
Obviously, because I'm curious, was it you felt you understood
that emotional journey that the women go through. Did you
the relating did you feel just I.
Speaker 2 (14:27):
Don't know, it's just it's a kind of mysterious. But
it's more just that's how I fell in love with acting.
Was like, like I just loved watching women on screen,
you know, and funny women, and you know what I mean.
So those are kind of always in a totally impractical way.
I almost had never considered it, like those were just
kind of the types of roles I loved, and then
(14:48):
I got to act. I was like, oops, you know,
and suddenly I'm playing like the father and rabbit Hole,
who's like lost his child.
Speaker 1 (14:56):
So what's the move from that? What's the how do
you move into what you know you love?
Speaker 2 (15:01):
Well, the second I got out of college, the split
second I graduated, I got some friends together and I
was like, We're doing Psyco Beach Party Charles Bush, and
I'm playing chick Lit okay. And it was like I
was like released, Like I was like, you know, it
was so and so for those of you who don't know,
it's like Charles Bush, you know, great playwright who put
(15:24):
himself in these roles where he would play like theoingen yeah,
you know. And so I played chick Lit, who's like Gidget, Yes,
Gidget with multiple personalities. So she's like a surfer girl
who wants to surf like the boys, you know. And
I was and I got fully waxed okay. And so
I was on stage in a bikini.
Speaker 1 (15:40):
Okay, that's his commitment. Oh my god.
Speaker 2 (15:42):
And I had a wig and everything full full waxing.
And then you were and I was in heaven. And
then she has like crazy, like you know, multiple personalities
and kills people. And so that was like that's exactly
what I did. It was very kind of. I didn't
do any sort of weird.
Speaker 1 (15:56):
Like no, but I love that you jumped in like
this is what I need to do.
Speaker 2 (16:00):
Yeah. From that, what happened was I did that production
and then this woman came to see the show and
she was like, I want you to play Juliet. And
it just kept coming.
Speaker 1 (16:12):
So you can pull the shakes because I'm sure you
study Shakespeare. It's cool and you're like sure.
Speaker 2 (16:16):
And so what I hopped from Gidget or chick lit
to Juliet. I was like, oh my god. I was like,
I just like kept playing women. How great though, But
I was bad? You think I was. I think there
was something totally inspired about that casting choice. And she
would disagree with me because she's an angel director. And still, Mike,
(16:37):
where did you do it? We did it in New
York at like the Actors Theater or something like fifty
fourth or something.
Speaker 1 (16:43):
Because I immediately I flashed onto a Hamlet Ethan a
movie back we were back in two thousand. Yeah, I
played Claudius and Diane Venora played Gertrude and she did
a very famous Hamlet for Joe Papp at the Public Theater.
We've got We've gone deep down the Rabbitol you think
anyone else is listening to watch? I don't know we're talking.
Speaker 2 (17:04):
There's also Juliette's mom in the movie of Romeo and Juliet.
Speaker 1 (17:07):
Oh awful. Yeah, yeah, she was Diana going to Off
and Diane. She was in Heat, one of my favorite movies.
She is unbelievable. She was great, powerful and just so
what a wonderful actress. But I was thinking she did that,
was like, why couldn't you Juliet, I'm sorry? It was
a Romeo bag? What that? What the hell? I played Romeo?
(17:28):
I played Romeo?
Speaker 2 (17:29):
Yes, can you imagine if we're talking.
Speaker 1 (17:31):
On the window breaks, it is the east and Juliet
is the sun and John Early is the sun arise
fast sun and kills.
Speaker 2 (17:40):
What's absolutely devastating one. I don't remember a single goddamn like,
you're not I amating? That says something something in me
was like kind of fundamentally cut off and terrified and
couldn't really do it, and like the fact that I
haven't retained any of that language is says something.
Speaker 1 (18:00):
Do you could have? You could have?
Speaker 2 (18:03):
You know, I just didn't think where I was I
would read it. I remember getting the part and going
home and opening it and reading it out loud for
the first time in total like in total privacy, and
I was weeping. I couldn't believe I have no relationship
to Shakespeare. I did it, but like I didn't care,
(18:23):
and I was like, oh my god, I get it now.
This is like the most beautiful thing I've ever I
was like, it was so beautiful. And then first rehearsal,
I'm like, here we go. I opened and then I'm like,
I was like totally frozen, and I just it was.
I felt this thing. When there were people around me,
I couldn't do it. It was such a feeling. I
(18:43):
felt like I thought I was going to have like
a nervous breakdown.
Speaker 1 (18:46):
For a minute, I thought to myself, well, maybe you
equated Juliette with the idea of the leading man kind
of boring thing.
Speaker 2 (18:51):
Maybe. No, You're exactly right, and this is why you
should be an analyst.
Speaker 1 (18:58):
That's why I'm a podcast. Yes, yes, we should. Should
we just go jump in the show girls?
Speaker 2 (19:03):
Yeah?
Speaker 1 (19:04):
I know you even waiting all day for this.
Speaker 2 (19:07):
I'm sorry, it's so related. Like, not long after I
did Romeo and Julia, I made that video or I
played no.
Speaker 1 (19:15):
Me yes, and which is can I say shot for shots?
Speaker 2 (19:19):
It's shot for shot yeah, yeah, yeah, an outfit yeah everything,
And that was like all hands on deck. I made
that with my friends. I a wig designer gave me
like a lace front, did a nomeal full or free?
Like it's a human hair lace front with.
Speaker 1 (19:36):
Yeah, it's production value is is Yeah, it's solid.
Speaker 2 (19:40):
My friend made the outfit for me for free, Like
you know, that was like, you know, you can get
away with that in your early twenties, like people working
for free, and then it starts to look it's.
Speaker 1 (19:50):
Probably responded to your passion.
Speaker 2 (19:51):
Yes, yes, I was very I was like, we're gonna
make a show Girl amazation for no reason.
Speaker 1 (19:57):
It's yeah, but it's amazing.
Speaker 2 (19:59):
Yeah, you know Showgirls really was my kind of like
that's when I really I mean, I had some movies
that were very very important to me as a as
a kid and made me want to make movies, but
show Girls was the first movie where I felt like,
oh my god, you know, like like whoa Like a
lot of the movies I loved as a kid were
(20:19):
very small, kind of unassuming movies and then.
Speaker 1 (20:23):
This was not show that it's not you know, I
have a love hate with it, but here you speak
about it, I'm like, how you how you how it
motivated you forward? And I love that. That's worth the
price of admission right there.
Speaker 2 (20:40):
Oh my god, Kyle, something was just so explosively funny
to me, the idea of playing no me and like
and just with the earnestness, you know, like and just
really like playing an e you know, like I don't
know that that's always been something I've wanted to do
for whatever reason. Yeah, And you know when we my
friends were these Cooks Central Dance Team where these like
(21:01):
genius like dance comedy troupe thing and and we just
like rented a studio in Brooklyn and like pulled up
the clip and we just learned it. We just learned it,
and like we matched the camera work, and you know,
we we The guy who directed Drew Tobia, he got
his his high school theater teacher in Jersey to like
(21:22):
she her like she did as an assignment for her class,
like let's make the stage look like the stage and
show Girls, And so they hung the lights in a
somewhat similar way as best they could, you know, and
we just went to Jersey and shot this thing in
one day and it was like one day. Yeah, yeah,
I love that video so much. I don't know it
like it holds like it the key to like me
(21:43):
or something that that video.
Speaker 1 (21:44):
You know, it's beautiful, no, because it's you're fully commit
there's no winking, you're fully committed. Yeah, you dance up
a storm, which is amazing. And and the shot for shot, yeah,
it matches, and I love it when they when you
do both. We ran both together. I mean there's the
top and bottom and it is identical down to the
lip sync. It was like a long term TikTok or
(22:05):
something long form TikTok. But it was really well done.
Speaker 2 (22:08):
Thank you. Yeah, I'm very proud of it.
Speaker 1 (22:10):
Yeah. Yeah, that's that's pretty special. You need to go
down and do more scenes.
Speaker 2 (22:14):
Well, that's that's the thing is, like I did make
a movie recently that like actually came from that impulse
to just do the full length show girls. You know.
It's like I've always been like, well in a world
where I'm for some reason given billions of dollars, you know,
like where there's a film industry that would do that, yeah,
doesn't exist. Like but like and then I was like, well,
(22:34):
I could do something like that. I could do something
that's like in essence like that. So I did write
a movie for myself where I play the lead girl.
I play in a Maddie yes and like and she.
It's very different on a plot level. But there is
a character named zach Is based on your character character
(22:54):
great with the weird hair he doesn't have. I mean,
thank god, no one can ever have that hair.
Speaker 1 (22:59):
No. I don't know what I was thinking when I
had made that choice.
Speaker 2 (23:02):
It was just like genius.
Speaker 1 (23:03):
Well, I kept thinking, he's a wolf in sheep's clothing,
so we're going to hide a little bit. Yeah, yeah, yeah,
dumb idea. I don't know, John, is.
Speaker 2 (23:15):
That your idea? It was so already we're learning there
is huge there you go, Well that was so yeah.
So I made a movie where I'm like basically like
I created a character where I could like do that
thing just like a kind of and we did lots
of like blocking and camera movement where I where it's
like long shots where it's like we're like overtaking each
other and like and spinning around each other, you know,
(23:39):
like me and Kate. It's me Kate plays my best friend.
She's like the Molly character and show Girls like and
it's just us kind of like you know, it's like
it's like overly blocked. There's like too much movement, you know,
it's like whoa, I love, I love you know.
Speaker 1 (23:58):
And that was like manic.
Speaker 2 (24:00):
Okay, it's so impeccably done show Girls and we kind
of pulled it off, you know. I would say one
four hundredth of the budget of show Girls. I'm really
proud of it.
Speaker 1 (24:10):
Yes, it's good. It's this Wait a minute, can I
see this?
Speaker 2 (24:12):
Is this what I can send you a link?
Speaker 1 (24:14):
Is this was just a tip?
Speaker 2 (24:15):
It was that tip?
Speaker 1 (24:16):
Yeah yeah, and it's.
Speaker 2 (24:17):
Magnolia is distributing it.
Speaker 1 (24:18):
Okay.
Speaker 2 (24:19):
I don't know when.
Speaker 1 (24:19):
Yeah, yeah, send me a link. I'd love to see it.
I know our crew would, if you're if that's.
Speaker 2 (24:22):
Okay, Oh, I'm sending you a link. I almost sent
it to you before this, and I was like, calm
down because I was like, I think you'll appreciate its connection. Yeah. Wait, okay,
So you came up with the hair.
Speaker 1 (24:34):
Yeah, so I came up with the hair, and then
we go in in the morning and we were shooting
south like Tahoe there at a at a proper show house,
you know. And I remember we had to get out
it by a certain date because Carrot Top was coming
into perform. No, yes, I'm sorry to do that. I
know it was. It was crazy anyway, So we go
in the morning. I go in the morning and I
(24:54):
see him and my make up. You know, he'd give
me it. He's he was like, he just said, we're
going to give you a ten. I was like, okay, okay, yeah,
I'm in Vegas, I can have it. And then little
eye Shadow was like sure. He said yeah, yeah, because.
Speaker 2 (25:07):
You know shout and yes it's yeah.
Speaker 1 (25:12):
I was like okay. And then and just if you
look at it, kind of like he looks made up.
Speaker 2 (25:16):
Yeah yeah, no, you have like a like an eminem
like a candy shell.
Speaker 1 (25:20):
Yes, yeah yeah. And I'm like okay, and he was
just so happy with him. So then I felt bad.
Speaker 2 (25:25):
I said, well, okay, but it's but it's this is
the thing I love about Paul Verhoven is this like
he it's like this pornographic American And at that time,
the ninth like the weird nineties, like ken thing, you know,
there was like a weird now he was on with
he was on, He really was tapped into some sort
(25:45):
of perverse thing. And I feel like the makeup. Your
makeup is like a perfect.
Speaker 1 (25:50):
Example of that. The thing is my I was, you know,
I would pop in and do a scene and pop
back out again, and it was I like to ski.
And it happened to be a really great snow year.
So I would sneak off and ski all the time
when I wasn't working, which I wasn't supposed to do
because you sign a writer and you say you will
not do any of these dangerous yeah, And I was like, whoop,
But the snow is so good. I couldn't help it.
(26:11):
So I just skied and and I would come back
and I would, you know, I'd watch rehearsal. I said,
it looks great, you know, that looks like a real show,
you know, the whole thing, you know, and then we
do this. I do my scenes with Elizabeth went fine,
you know, and I was like, it's gonna be good.
Speaker 2 (26:22):
Yeah, and then I.
Speaker 1 (26:23):
Saw it and then I was like that's not what
I expect.
Speaker 2 (26:26):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (26:30):
Eternity is wonderful. Thank you, yes, thank you, And you
are wonderful.
Speaker 2 (26:34):
In it, well, thank you, it's special.
Speaker 1 (26:36):
I was really Yeah, I was really because it's a
we kind of know what's going to come, but it
keeps shifting. It pulls the rug out from underneath you.
Speaker 2 (26:44):
You knew who she was gonna end up with. I
had a feeling, and she had to act a kind
of like metaphysical psychological concept. It's like her working through
something kind of like metaphysical yes, which is like a
strange thing to have to act, and like every scene
she had to be like wait, so I'm dead right.
I really was very impressed with her ability to hold
(27:07):
that in her head. I agree, And she and the
movie are kind of trying to bring us back to
a kind of like, you know, an intelligent, warm comedy,
thoughtful like like in the you know Peggy Suk Got
Married or you know.
Speaker 1 (27:23):
These that's a little bit of a throwback.
Speaker 2 (27:25):
Yeah, I agree with you, and she I think she
just does it with such grace and yeah, I mean,
you know, she reminds me like her like crying in
the movie reminds me like Holly Hunter and broadcast news
or something, you know, like the weeping, and it feels
both like totally real and also it's funny. Yes, it's
it's employd comedically, but it's like she's playing it totally real.
Speaker 1 (27:45):
And you know, your relationship with the divine is just
I mean that's really did you have you worked together before?
Did you just meet and you were like, hey, let's
here we go.
Speaker 2 (27:55):
No, I met her on set. She is so good
and I think we're good contrast because.
Speaker 1 (27:59):
She is so easy.
Speaker 2 (28:02):
She like can't fake a moment. You know, it's just
like so effortless. It's just she's just in like a
kind of flow state. And then I'd like, ha, I'm.
Speaker 1 (28:14):
Like, people should watch this because the visuals, John, your
visuals are fantastic. You know what it is. You know,
it's it's letting me know, it's giving me further back,
it's giving bugs, Bunny Roadrunner crazy. Thank you because it's
also my go to Yeah that's in terms of comedy,
Looney Tunes is that's just nothing better. So it's giving
(28:35):
looney tunes. You got to see this people, but yes,
crazy but perfectly modulated. Yeah, you're yes, yes, because you
you could see there's there's you know, there's there's manic
in there, but you control it really beautifully and you
care so much and you know the right way, the
way for you, the way you like things to go. Yes,
you can't help, but sort of you know, nudge in
(28:58):
that direction.
Speaker 2 (28:58):
Yeah, you know, they're their own personal whoever these afterlife
coordinators are, whatever they went through to choose that path,
like they are, they can't help, but have their own bias,
you know, for their client or whatever. Like. But that
was the day before because it's like it's a very
what's so pleasurable about it is like it is like
(29:19):
it has like a light touch and there's like something
there's kind of a fantasy quality to it. And I
was like, you know, and also what I was being
asked to do was actually quite simple, Like I didn't
have to do what Elizabeth Lizzy, I call it Lizzy
right yeah, in my phone away. But I didn't have
to do what she had to do. I just had
(29:39):
to like hold a clipboard and like make.
Speaker 1 (29:41):
Faces more than that because the tone and the tone
that you bring into it is really really specific and and.
Speaker 2 (29:47):
Thank you, thank you. But I was like I was beforehand,
like the day I was like mourning up, mourning up.
I was like in my hotel, like I was like
I have.
Speaker 1 (29:55):
To think of the backstory who is this guy?
Speaker 2 (29:59):
Because I was just like I knew what they wanted
from me, and I was like, Okay, here we go.
I'm you know, and then and then I was like,
oh no. I was like I felt that the movie
was kind of asking me. Actually, They're like, you know,
it's asking some deep questions. You know, it's it's a
it's a lighthearted, sweet movie, but it is actually asking
some deep questions. And so I was like, I was like,
well I should I should really think about who this
(30:21):
person is and why he chose instead of going into
an eternity, why he chose to stay and help people.
And I like, in alone in my hotel, improvised the
most like Lars Vauntreer like sedistict, like it was just
flowing out of me. I was like, and then he died.
Like it was like I'm not even gonna say it
(30:43):
because it's so upsetting what I came up with, like,
and I was like, I was like weeping in my
hotel or like with just like it was like a
really perverse, embittered, like backstory. And I was like, I
was like, this is so strange. I just did this.
And then I kind of went on set with my
little backstory. Yeah, and then of course like the second thing,
(31:07):
and I was like, okay, good and no, just to
really let that be there. Yeah, here we go, here
we go, and they're like action. I was like, hello,
my Mary.
Speaker 1 (31:14):
Yeah yeah, yeah, yeah, but I love that you but
I love that you pride it. I mean it's like
a ballast almost to the ship. Right, it's like this
heavy thing. Don't even have to get into it. But
you realize we can't. We look at him and we
can see that that that's not coming out. Yeah, he's
not going to allow.
Speaker 2 (31:30):
It exactly exactly. And that's the very kind of.
Speaker 1 (31:33):
And and well, yeah, won't come out it tight up.
Speaker 2 (31:39):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (31:41):
It is a Loony Tunes in the best possible way.
Speaker 2 (31:43):
Yeah, it was so funny. I was like scrolling through
my phone the other day and I realized that Miles
hosted SNL. Yes, and I was like, is this a
huge movie? I was like wait what? I was like,
what move? Am I in a huge movie?
Speaker 1 (31:58):
I think it's possible.
Speaker 2 (31:59):
He's great too, He's so good they I mean they
are movie stars in a crazy way. Like I never
work with like men, right, I don't. I just literally don't.
I'm just never across from like except for right now,
like like gorgeous movie stars, you know. And I was like,
but we were like when we were doing the scene
(32:20):
where they're like fighting, we like have to go into
a hotel tel room because they've just realized that they're
like kind of fighting for her, you know. And I
was like, it was the first day and I was
like across from both of them, and I felt like
a like a eighty year old woman in the supermarket,
like getting a little maga a little like red Book
magazine right with the two like a Southern living magazine
(32:42):
or the two of them on the cover. I was like,
I was like, Oh this is They're both so appealing
and too much. And I was like, Oh my god,
I think this movie is major.
Speaker 1 (32:52):
Up next, we're going to play a game. How about that.
We're back with a segment that I designed with my
friends just for John called who even is that. It's
an ode to your incredible ability to create characters, an
ode I'll have you know. I'm going to prompt you
(33:13):
various accessories and articles of clothing for you to basic
character around for one short, a short, one minute improv
scene Okay, so you'll see who I am as we
go forward. Okay, without further ado, I am the Mayor
of Portland, and you're a local funeral director wearing this. Yes,
so John has got a beautiful black mink stoleul I
(33:37):
guess and it's fake. Yes, don't come for him real?
And this is is it a lorgnett? Don't know what
this is right in front of your face, sort of
a netting in front of your hat. And I've got
a kind of a beanie breathless and shirt that says
keep Portland Weird, which is so appropriate. Listen, I I've
(34:00):
been noticing the cemeteries in Portland.
Speaker 2 (34:03):
There haven't been.
Speaker 1 (34:04):
A lot of a lot of activity there, and I'm
just wondering how business is. If I can help you
in any way.
Speaker 2 (34:09):
Business is just fine.
Speaker 1 (34:12):
Okay, Okay, So I get a sense that you you're
not really interested in talking about what's been happening in.
Speaker 2 (34:20):
Business is fine, and that's the last time I'll say it.
Speaker 1 (34:25):
Okay, I understand I'm feeling a little bit like a
fish out of water here, only because it's you know,
it's come to my attention that there have actually been
and I don't know how to put this, But people
have gone missing from your establishment. People have died and
they've gone to your establishment and they are no longer there.
When the funeral happens, the caskets are empty, and I don't.
Speaker 2 (34:47):
Know baskets.
Speaker 1 (34:49):
Well as a funeral director. I feel like, are you
aware of what might be happening in the back room?
Are cadavers disappearing?
Speaker 2 (34:56):
Is this I have to love, Yes, disappearing. I hesitate
to even address these allegations and give them any credence.
Speaker 1 (35:08):
So you're not willing to to have an invest one
to have an investigation. We would we would like to
come down and see exactly what's beending.
Speaker 2 (35:15):
There is absolutely no need to have an investigation. We
can we can chat in the front room, fantastic, but
we'll leave it there because purely for sanitation reasons.
Speaker 1 (35:26):
Well that makes complete sense to me, because I am
all about keeping Portland clean. Yes and weird, Yes, I see,
I see. I am a pie loving detective and I
am interrogating my suspect who was wearing this. So I
suspect that you've been spending some time in the islands. Yeah,
(35:51):
I can tell by the smell the flowers and you've
been spending some time in the sun. I feel like
you are guilty of the crime of surfing under an alias.
I feel like we are getting close. Let me examine
you closer. Yes, from my eyeglass, I can see that
(36:14):
the tan that you're wearing is actually a spray on tan.
Now I'm looking at your outfit and I realize because
I'm hard of seeing. Is that a thing that's called
being blind? That the shirt is actually not real and
the flowers on the shirt are fake? What is the
perfume that you're wearing because it smells like, vaguely like coconut?
Speaker 2 (36:37):
Am I sunscreen? Oh?
Speaker 1 (36:39):
It's sunscreen? So you're actually so yeah? Yeah, so I
cannt yet. I see you've been working out. Your abs
are very prevalent.
Speaker 2 (36:47):
Yeah, this is hugely me.
Speaker 1 (36:52):
Well, we need to get back to some pie. All right.
That's good coffee shop just down the street. Let's good.
I'm an entertainment director a casino and you're one of
my dancers. Yeah. So John's got a fantastic blonde, kind
of a barber eating maybe and then now a white
dark yeah, dark roots. It's grown out a little bit,
(37:13):
and I've got the chain with the money symbol on
it and the dark glasses. But I'm missing one of
the one of the ear pieces.
Speaker 2 (37:20):
Have to hold them up with Oh no, and I
have a This is fake? What I remind Yes, yes, it's.
Speaker 1 (37:25):
Not those for viewers watching, this is all fake. Yeah,
me and John, we were both fake. I don't understand you.
You didn't dance this afternoon for the evening performance or
what was your thinking? Do? I? Oh, I can see
what's happening.
Speaker 2 (37:42):
What do you mean? Well?
Speaker 1 (37:43):
I think I think you you've taken something and I
don't know exactly what's happened.
Speaker 2 (37:49):
Now you can you can test my piss.
Speaker 1 (37:52):
I see, you can test my ship, all right, miss
miss Cecilia. I am sorry, but that language is very,
very very upsettling.
Speaker 2 (38:03):
Do you have a cup?
Speaker 1 (38:05):
Do I have? Yes? I do, in fact, but right
now I'm drinking coffee out of it, and that's all
I want to drink out of it.
Speaker 2 (38:10):
Oh, come on, what's the big deal of this has
been happening time and time again, Miss Cecilia.
Speaker 1 (38:17):
This is not allowed in the casino. You know that.
I know that, but the patrons know that.
Speaker 2 (38:24):
Okay, what do you want?
Speaker 1 (38:26):
I just want you to show up to work with
a good attitude and a new para.
Speaker 2 (38:30):
Good attitude. You would have a very good attitude. I
have good tits.
Speaker 1 (38:34):
You have the best tits in the business. That's why
we hired you. I'm just saying, how I'm sorry.
Speaker 2 (38:41):
To remove these for safety reason.
Speaker 1 (38:43):
That's right, there's an electrical shock coming from these. You
are divine, my dear.
Speaker 2 (38:49):
Thank you.
Speaker 1 (38:49):
I want only the very best for you.
Speaker 2 (38:51):
Thank you, me too, Yes, very good.
Speaker 1 (38:53):
So you please put on your TUTU do it for.
Speaker 2 (39:00):
Only if you'll watch.
Speaker 1 (39:01):
It would be my pleasure to do it for daddy.
Speaker 2 (39:05):
This is too much.
Speaker 1 (39:09):
Wow.
Speaker 2 (39:10):
Okay that we're gonna shake those three off real quick.
Speaker 1 (39:13):
Take off those characters. Yeah, that was much fun. Thank
you for playing along.
Speaker 2 (39:17):
Thank you.
Speaker 1 (39:18):
What is what's happening? What's next? What have you got
coming up?
Speaker 2 (39:20):
Tell me? I'm working on a player rehearsing play with
uh while Sean wrote it. Okay, it's called what We
Did Before Moth Days and Andre Gregory is directing it.
Speaker 1 (39:30):
Oh my gosh, from my dinner with Andre. Yeah, the
two very famous people. Oh my god, this is amazing.
Is it in New York?
Speaker 2 (39:36):
It's in New York and we're doing it in the
winter and spring of twenty twenty six.
Speaker 1 (39:41):
Okay, rehearsals now, yes.
Speaker 2 (39:43):
And we've been rehearsing for like a year and a half.
Speaker 1 (39:47):
Okay.
Speaker 2 (39:47):
It's like very slow.
Speaker 1 (39:49):
Cooked writing as you go or how does that?
Speaker 2 (39:51):
No, it's been very I mean he's making little adjustments
here and there, but like it's it arrived very secret Colet.
It's shocking.
Speaker 1 (40:01):
I am so excited.
Speaker 2 (40:05):
No, no, they're not in it. So Wally's not in it.
Andrea is just directing. But it's me Hope Tavis.
Speaker 1 (40:13):
I just work with Hope. Yes, yes, we just worked
on you deserve each other. You deserve each other in
my head, Hope's absolutely delight.
Speaker 2 (40:22):
I love Hope Davis and Maria Dizzia okay, and Maria
is like a theater god. And Josh Hamilton. Yes, and
it's just everyone is.
Speaker 1 (40:33):
So good, super pro. I mean, this is this is
going to be very cool.
Speaker 2 (40:37):
It's it's the coolest thing I've ever done. Yeah, it's
it's it's just a dream. And the writing is like,
talk about our town? Do we talk about our town?
Speaker 1 (40:44):
We did not? We did not I've ever done it?
Speaker 2 (40:47):
Okay, well I did it in high school.
Speaker 1 (40:48):
That was young one.
Speaker 2 (40:49):
I've played mister Webb. I wasn't good once again. I
was like, they were like, why don't you play the
like the Father where I was like, okay, Also, where
would you put me? Like if they were smart, they
would have cast me as alcoholic Courus the.
Speaker 1 (41:04):
Choir director that that genius. Yeah you could have.
Speaker 2 (41:07):
Yeah, but but it's it's it's very like I do
think that he has written like a great American play
Okay in the vein of our town. It's like very
very very special. Okay, and you'll have to come see it.
I'm sorry you go to New York all the time.
Speaker 1 (41:23):
Yeah, ok yeah, yeah, yeah, we'll come.
Speaker 2 (41:25):
Yeah, and then we'll go out after it.
Speaker 1 (41:27):
Fun and of course we'll go out after it. Please
get us wine, talk about the shoe. Please be my pleasure.
It's been so lovely to have you on.
Speaker 2 (41:34):
Thank you.
Speaker 1 (41:35):
You are quite an amazing person. Oh my go amusing actor, comedian.
I mean need to do everything.
Speaker 2 (41:40):
I'm going to say this, and you're welcome to cut this.
We should do a part two where you and I
watch Girls together together like no one's there when we
watch it, so you can have whatever.
Speaker 1 (41:51):
I'd be like see I was gone this whole time,
I was skiing, right, I have no idea what was
happening in the scene.
Speaker 2 (41:57):
But then and then I come on the pod and
we just us how you feel about.
Speaker 1 (42:01):
It now, okay?
Speaker 2 (42:01):
And you maybe have more stories than whatever.
Speaker 1 (42:03):
Oh, I definitely, And I'll.
Speaker 2 (42:04):
Be more prepared with my questions because I realized I
kind of blew maybe the biggest opportunity of my life here.
Speaker 1 (42:09):
Not at all, okay, not at all. Your friends now
we are friends, Now we are house. Yeah, it's been great.
Speaker 2 (42:15):
Thank you so much, thank you, and honor.
Speaker 1 (42:17):
Oh, bless your heart, thank you, thank you.
Speaker 2 (42:19):
Oh.
Speaker 3 (42:21):
What Are We Even Doing is a production of iHeartMedia
and the Elvis Duran podcast Network, hosted by me Kyle
McLachlin and created and produced by Full Picture productionists Yay,
featuring music by Yata and artwork by Danica Robinson. For
more information about the podcast, please visit our Instagram and
(42:41):
TikTok at wawed with Kyle. Please rate, review, and subscribe
to What Are We Even Doing on Apple, Spotify, YouTube,
or anywhere you get your podcasts.
Speaker 1 (42:56):
Exclamation points
What do we even do? What are we even doing?
Speaker 2 (00:09):
Hey?
Speaker 1 (00:10):
Everyone, what are we even doing? The podcast where I
sit down with creatives from all fields actors, musicians, writers, comedians, answers, dancers,
lest we forget very important and we talk about how
they use social media, what their creative process is. We
get weird together in a good way. And I want
(00:31):
to welcome a very special guest actor, musician, comedian, dancer, dancer.
Thank you, I've seen him dance.
Speaker 2 (00:40):
Thank you dancer.
Speaker 1 (00:41):
Yes, you are our very own b John Say. I
think I'm pronouncing that correctly social media handle. Please welcome
John Early to the podcast, to our vast studio here.
Speaker 2 (00:52):
Kyle, you have no idea how exciting this is for me.
Speaker 1 (00:56):
I'm thrilled.
Speaker 2 (00:57):
This is such a thrill you are.
Speaker 1 (00:59):
The creative flow that comes out of you is because
you're so present. When I've watched your work, you have
the ability to stand in front of an audience and
you're relaxed and you it's not like you have to
wait for the next thing, but you allow the next
thing to come and it just keeps coming out like
this and you just keep going with it. I mean,
(01:20):
it's a tremendous skill thank you. Yeah, I mean it
just feels good. Would tell me you tell me how this?
How did John Realley start? How did he begin? Was
there a moment you said this is what I want
to do?
Speaker 2 (01:33):
You know, I should have that prepared. It's like, no,
can talk about it. I'm trying to really think what
it was, because I think I do remember this moment
of seeing Cherio Terry Oh doing the Spartan cheerleader Charitarian
wolf fare yeah yeah, and being in my kitchen on
the little kitchen TV and being like uh huh and
just really being like, yeah, yes, that's what I wanted.
Speaker 1 (01:56):
You was full on. Yeah, the SNLS get that they together, Yeah,
oh my god.
Speaker 2 (02:02):
That was just like right to the heart for me.
And and that was that was probably it. But you know,
both my parents not to just immediately go to the
bio and and exploit like the let's go.
Speaker 1 (02:13):
Because I'm curious about your your parents both both Presbyterian ministers.
Speaker 2 (02:18):
Or former former Presbyterian ministers.
Speaker 1 (02:22):
Disgrace Man always Presbyterian minister.
Speaker 2 (02:28):
The only reason I bring it up is because I
do think they I did watch them hold a room,
stand in front of a room, you know, and like.
Speaker 1 (02:39):
Yeah, I know they were teaching moments. I mean, I
come from a Presbyterian background. Yeah, yeah, we went to
we went to Westminster Presbyterian Church where that was.
Speaker 2 (02:49):
Sorry, my dad was the head pastor at Westminster in National.
Speaker 1 (02:54):
Oh no, that wasn't nearby, was up in Washington State.
It's cool how your parents are part of kind of
you bring them into your world to your act. Yeah,
how is that? How have they responded?
Speaker 2 (03:06):
They're such good?
Speaker 1 (03:07):
Have they been supportive? I should just say, yeah, they've
been supporting.
Speaker 2 (03:09):
You, very very supportive, you know, all the way through.
Even as the stuff I've done has gotten more and
more vile, you know, they're they've They've still hang in there, cheered.
I mean, I don't know. It's like it's a it's
bizarre with the with the in the special when I
put the spotlight on them, that's I'm saying stuff in
(03:29):
front of them I would never say, like in person.
It's so funny. It's like I feel totally safe doing
it in that environment. And also I know that they
completely understand the joke, and like if they didn't, if
it actually felt like torture, I wouldn't do it, not
even out of some like you know righteous place. I
(03:49):
just I I don't like you know, I am Presbyterian
at the end of the day, and I like people
to feel comfortable.
Speaker 1 (03:55):
Like my audience, I'm the same way. Yeah, I know
exactly what you feel when you're on stage to say
that is it you? Is it a character? Is it
a version of you?
Speaker 2 (04:04):
How do you?
Speaker 1 (04:05):
Because I always feel like I need a kid, a
little bit of a character. Doesn't have to be a
big departure, but I.
Speaker 2 (04:11):
Always need something. But over the years it's gotten more
and more like me, you know. There the character resembles
me more like I used to be. When I first
started doing stand up in the eighties, kidding, I was like,
there was this it was kind of hostile. There was
something a little there was like a hard shell I
(04:34):
don't know, and it was like, I don't know, it was.
It was a weird time it was and then over
and then I don't know. As in the past few years,
as I was like bringing my special together, I did
kind of like yield to something inside myself that wanted
to be a little more generous and a little a
little more like again kind of using these like the
(04:59):
my pres Baterian tools of like making people feel comfortable
and bringing people in and like and not being so alienating.
I mean, I say, to me, it's like the least
alienating thing I've ever done. That stand up special available
now on HBO Max. I'm sure some people still think
it's completely incoherent and confusing and and but but I
(05:20):
don't know it's But so the persona that I do now,
I would say, is I give myself. I think of
myself as kind of like a stoned golden retriever and
like's it helps me be like kind of like dumb
and open. I really try to like kind of work
through my ideas in a way that hopefully doesn't feel
(05:42):
like pretentious. My idea is so embarrassing. They're not ideas, yeah, no, no,
the barely ideas.
Speaker 1 (05:47):
No, but there you but you use the space in
front of the crowd to sort of, you know, work
on them, flesh them out a little bit, feel feel
where they're taking you. And I just think I've never
done stand up and it really it's it's very intimidating.
It must be a thrill. The closest that could I
could imagine is being on stage, you know, where you
really yeah yeah, but I think it's you sort of
(06:09):
touched on something that I the leading man can not
the most interesting. It's not the character stuff.
Speaker 2 (06:18):
Yes, and there's actually you know, I mean it's easy
to dunk on the leading man and go, oh, you
have it all. You know, you you're getting paid the most,
you're your front, you know. But like, but everyone prefers
the side, the weird one. Everyone prefers the character actress.
Speaker 1 (06:36):
You're leading man, trapped in character.
Speaker 2 (06:39):
Body might dream.
Speaker 1 (06:41):
Tell me, tell me, tell me, but.
Speaker 2 (06:45):
My dream is relevant. So I had a dream the
other night that I was doing an experimental production of Carousel.
Oh wow, Rogers and Hammerston's one that's a very dark one,
and I was the lead.
Speaker 1 (07:00):
Yeah, big, yeah.
Speaker 2 (07:01):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (07:01):
We did that in college as well.
Speaker 2 (07:02):
Yeah, we did play.
Speaker 1 (07:03):
I was of course, you know. It was one of
those where we had real singers at my school and
they were like, it was power did you go? I
went to you dub University of Washington, but they had
a program, a training program there. We were trying to
go out seek our fortune and repertory theaterland. Wow, suddenly
(07:24):
movies got in the way. So but that's kind of
where I was initially headed. Owing to New York and
I said I'm going to audition. I could sing, and
I did all edit everything, and then I just went
to LA.
Speaker 2 (07:34):
And what was the first thing. I'm sorry, this is
me interviewing you.
Speaker 1 (07:37):
Ultimately the first sort of real musical thing I did.
Anything goes Oh my god. But I had one line. Look,
it's Reno Sweeney and her four angels.
Speaker 2 (07:48):
So you were you dancing.
Speaker 1 (07:49):
I was dancing. I was a sailor in the background.
They were like, you know, that was my deal. And
here's the story. Was one of the lead actors, the
guy that went on to play Curly. In fact, you
talk about to this. They said to me. Every time
before i'd go up to do my line, because I
delivered it up kind of on the balcony. He down
below and says, it's seen O'reenie and her four angels.
It's Senoreenie and her four yeah. Yeah, And I'd be like, no,
(08:10):
it's not no, it's not no, it's not yeah, oh no, no,
Like this is what I had up again.
Speaker 2 (08:14):
I had to work.
Speaker 1 (08:15):
Against this terrible You must have had something similar. You've
had people of torture.
Speaker 2 (08:19):
There was no hardship.
Speaker 1 (08:20):
No from Nashville to New York. No hardship, lay, there.
Speaker 2 (08:24):
Was nothing, no obstruction.
Speaker 1 (08:25):
I just knew you were Like, were you like I
got to get to New York?
Speaker 2 (08:30):
Yes? I was. I mean, you're ready when I first
went to New York, like with my dad?
Speaker 1 (08:35):
Yeah, so what was that? They just went there for
like a.
Speaker 2 (08:38):
He we had a really sweet trip where we went
to He took me to New York when I was
like fourteen? Wait what we saw Beauty in the Beast
with Tony Braxton? Okay, they had to lower the keys
of the songs.
Speaker 1 (08:51):
Did they have did your parents sort of go I
think he's headed in this direction, like Kyle not that well.
I don't know. Were they aware of kind of where
you were?
Speaker 2 (09:04):
Yes, definitely, it's really nice. I don't know what makes
people think that that's a viable path, you know, but
but I guess I don't know. I was very serious
about it. I was very obsessed with it. And yeah,
we're encouraging.
Speaker 1 (09:17):
Yeah, that's nice to hear. My parents were similar.
Speaker 2 (09:19):
They loved me. Right, let's just get that right, that's
rats rat. But yes, we saw Tony Brexton wool and
then we saw jackal and Hyde maybe with David Hasselhoff.
Those are my first Broadway shows.
Speaker 1 (09:38):
Fantastic.
Speaker 2 (09:39):
And then and we went to SNL. Okay, we went
to SNL and saw Lucy Lawless hostess.
Speaker 1 (09:44):
Okay, wait no, wait wait because special I wasn't fourteen,
God no, but that's a tough that's a you know,
that's late and that's New York and that's really I mean.
And I was as an insiders.
Speaker 2 (09:58):
He he, my dad pulled some strings. I don't know what.
He did something with the lord he you know. Yes,
I got in as an eleven year old. And and
actually what happened when I was in, When we were
in line, this girl came up to me and she
was probably like eighteen at the time, and she was like, oh,
it's sixteen, Like sixteen is the cut off. Like she
(10:18):
was like, he's not going to get in, like this
is a ranch. She didn't work there.
Speaker 1 (10:22):
She was just decided to offer her advice.
Speaker 2 (10:24):
Yeah, And I started weeping. Yes, and my dad was like,
it's so, I have tickets. They know, it's fine, you know,
like whatever, but I was so scared. Yeah, I was
like you heard her, Oh my god, we're never going
to get in. Yeah, but we got in and it
was like it was so it was Lucy Lawson. Elliott
Smith was the musical guest.
Speaker 1 (10:41):
Oh I love Elliott Smith said he was so talented.
Speaker 2 (10:45):
I know, but what a great it was. It was
so cool and I remember, you know I had that
is cool.
Speaker 1 (10:51):
I mean that's New York, coolest New York.
Speaker 2 (10:53):
Oh my god, I was. I was in heaven and
then you know, and then it was the thing where
I was like the sewer smell, like the steam from
the story like smelled like piss ever and I literally
was like I was like, I love this.
Speaker 1 (11:05):
Want oh you got a candle with that smell?
Speaker 2 (11:08):
Or too or but yeah, that's that. And so I
was very I had.
Speaker 1 (11:12):
To you or no you yeah? Yeah, so you go,
and what's the plan?
Speaker 2 (11:16):
Well I went to n YU Okay, yeah, you went
to TIS right, I went to Tish. Yeah, at the
Atlantic actual.
Speaker 1 (11:21):
Edition and yeah, and so you audition, you got accepted. Yes,
So that's how much How big.
Speaker 2 (11:26):
Was the class? Oh my god? Well, what's so crazy
about n YU is that it's those of you who
don't know Julie ar Yale, you of you dubbed you dub.
Speaker 1 (11:34):
Yeah, there were a few twenty people probably yeah, we
had thirteen I think in the drama department in our class.
Speaker 2 (11:40):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (11:41):
So and then there's the three year program so multiply
so yeah, forty people.
Speaker 2 (11:44):
Yeah so that's like you have it, you have a.
Speaker 1 (11:46):
Right into Yeah, I was close.
Speaker 2 (11:48):
Look at that.
Speaker 1 (11:49):
I can do math on air, come on.
Speaker 2 (11:53):
But it was it's like, you know that, that's that's
the ideal environment I think for like a conserviver but NYU,
it's like within Tish there are seven there were seven
different studios, and then then each studio had like you know,
three or four groups of twenty in the freshman class.
So total in the freshman class of the druma department
(12:13):
at Tish it was like seven hundred people.
Speaker 1 (12:14):
That's way too many.
Speaker 2 (12:15):
It was crazy. So it was really easy to get
kind of lost and to feel a little kind of like, oh,
this isn't special, I guess, like, but I had incredible
teachers at Atlantic because Atlantic was I want to go
to Atlantic because it was like Felicity Huffman and like
Christian Johnston and.
Speaker 1 (12:34):
People are really you could see these people.
Speaker 2 (12:35):
Have Yeah, yeah, I was like obsessed with I saw
Felicity Huffan some like weird Showtime. They called like out
of order, and I was like, oh, that's that's acting.
I was like, how did you? Yeah? What? And then
and then Christian Johnston I was like, she's a god.
You know, she was a god to me. And so
I saw that they had gone there, and you know,
(12:56):
I was like, that's the one. And it was very serious. Yeah,
you know, Atlantic is very like serious and kind of
like learn your lines, bitch, you know, like this isn't
a joke.
Speaker 1 (13:06):
Yeah, you know, like this is like work, Yeah, this
is not love law and order things, yes.
Speaker 2 (13:11):
Well they were. It was kind of like it was
kind of like you're you are going to do law
and order like you are, like and you need to be,
and you're they're gonna have you cry.
Speaker 1 (13:18):
Yeah, but that's a great thing about school, right because
they do. My school did the same thing. They really
prepared you for the industry, you know. Yeah, and what
the expectations were. Yeah, and it was tough. Yeah you're
gonna cry. You're gonna cry, motherfucker.
Speaker 2 (13:31):
And I and we we had to do like a
breakdown scene and we do what I can't this is
so this will show you exactly who I was. Okay,
in its pretentiousness, it's a little pick me okay, okay, okay,
dancer in the dark and I but but it's like,
but this is what's so tragic. I wanted to play
purek Yes, I was. This is the struggle I always
(13:53):
had in acting school, is like, I the reason I
even love acting is from women. You know. That's that's
why I wanted to act. It's like, that's that's so
it was very confusing for me to suddenly be in
a program for three years where like all the roles
I were expect playing was male.
Speaker 1 (14:10):
Obviously, because I'm curious, was it you felt you understood
that emotional journey that the women go through. Did you
the relating did you feel just I.
Speaker 2 (14:27):
Don't know, it's just it's a kind of mysterious. But
it's more just that's how I fell in love with acting.
Was like, like I just loved watching women on screen,
you know, and funny women, and you know what I mean.
So those are kind of always in a totally impractical way.
I almost had never considered it, like those were just
kind of the types of roles I loved, and then
(14:48):
I got to act. I was like, oops, you know,
and suddenly I'm playing like the father and rabbit Hole,
who's like lost his child.
Speaker 1 (14:56):
So what's the move from that? What's the how do
you move into what you know you love?
Speaker 2 (15:01):
Well, the second I got out of college, the split
second I graduated, I got some friends together and I
was like, We're doing Psyco Beach Party Charles Bush, and
I'm playing chick Lit okay. And it was like I
was like released, Like I was like, you know, it
was so and so for those of you who don't know,
it's like Charles Bush, you know, great playwright who put
(15:24):
himself in these roles where he would play like theoingen yeah,
you know. And so I played chick Lit, who's like Gidget, Yes,
Gidget with multiple personalities. So she's like a surfer girl
who wants to surf like the boys, you know. And
I was and I got fully waxed okay. And so
I was on stage in a bikini.
Speaker 1 (15:40):
Okay, that's his commitment. Oh my god.
Speaker 2 (15:42):
And I had a wig and everything full full waxing.
And then you were and I was in heaven. And
then she has like crazy, like you know, multiple personalities
and kills people. And so that was like that's exactly
what I did. It was very kind of. I didn't
do any sort of weird.
Speaker 1 (15:56):
Like no, but I love that you jumped in like
this is what I need to do.
Speaker 2 (16:00):
Yeah. From that, what happened was I did that production
and then this woman came to see the show and
she was like, I want you to play Juliet. And
it just kept coming.
Speaker 1 (16:12):
So you can pull the shakes because I'm sure you
study Shakespeare. It's cool and you're like sure.
Speaker 2 (16:16):
And so what I hopped from Gidget or chick lit
to Juliet. I was like, oh my god. I was like,
I just like kept playing women. How great though, But
I was bad? You think I was. I think there
was something totally inspired about that casting choice. And she
would disagree with me because she's an angel director. And still, Mike,
(16:37):
where did you do it? We did it in New
York at like the Actors Theater or something like fifty
fourth or something.
Speaker 1 (16:43):
Because I immediately I flashed onto a Hamlet Ethan a
movie back we were back in two thousand. Yeah, I
played Claudius and Diane Venora played Gertrude and she did
a very famous Hamlet for Joe Papp at the Public Theater.
We've got We've gone deep down the Rabbitol you think
anyone else is listening to watch? I don't know we're talking.
Speaker 2 (17:04):
There's also Juliette's mom in the movie of Romeo and Juliet.
Speaker 1 (17:07):
Oh awful. Yeah, yeah, she was Diana going to Off
and Diane. She was in Heat, one of my favorite movies.
She is unbelievable. She was great, powerful and just so
what a wonderful actress. But I was thinking she did that,
was like, why couldn't you Juliet, I'm sorry? It was
a Romeo bag? What that? What the hell? I played Romeo?
(17:28):
I played Romeo?
Speaker 2 (17:29):
Yes, can you imagine if we're talking.
Speaker 1 (17:31):
On the window breaks, it is the east and Juliet
is the sun and John Early is the sun arise
fast sun and kills.
Speaker 2 (17:40):
What's absolutely devastating one. I don't remember a single goddamn like,
you're not I amating? That says something something in me
was like kind of fundamentally cut off and terrified and
couldn't really do it, and like the fact that I
haven't retained any of that language is says something.
Speaker 1 (18:00):
Do you could have? You could have?
Speaker 2 (18:03):
You know, I just didn't think where I was I
would read it. I remember getting the part and going
home and opening it and reading it out loud for
the first time in total like in total privacy, and
I was weeping. I couldn't believe I have no relationship
to Shakespeare. I did it, but like I didn't care,
(18:23):
and I was like, oh my god, I get it now.
This is like the most beautiful thing I've ever I
was like, it was so beautiful. And then first rehearsal,
I'm like, here we go. I opened and then I'm like,
I was like totally frozen, and I just it was.
I felt this thing. When there were people around me,
I couldn't do it. It was such a feeling. I
(18:43):
felt like I thought I was going to have like
a nervous breakdown.
Speaker 1 (18:46):
For a minute, I thought to myself, well, maybe you
equated Juliette with the idea of the leading man kind
of boring thing.
Speaker 2 (18:51):
Maybe. No, You're exactly right, and this is why you
should be an analyst.
Speaker 1 (18:58):
That's why I'm a podcast. Yes, yes, we should. Should
we just go jump in the show girls?
Speaker 2 (19:03):
Yeah?
Speaker 1 (19:04):
I know you even waiting all day for this.
Speaker 2 (19:07):
I'm sorry, it's so related. Like, not long after I
did Romeo and Julia, I made that video or I
played no.
Speaker 1 (19:15):
Me yes, and which is can I say shot for shots?
Speaker 2 (19:19):
It's shot for shot yeah, yeah, yeah, an outfit yeah everything,
And that was like all hands on deck. I made
that with my friends. I a wig designer gave me
like a lace front, did a nomeal full or free?
Like it's a human hair lace front with.
Speaker 1 (19:36):
Yeah, it's production value is is Yeah, it's solid.
Speaker 2 (19:40):
My friend made the outfit for me for free, Like
you know, that was like, you know, you can get
away with that in your early twenties, like people working
for free, and then it starts to look it's.
Speaker 1 (19:50):
Probably responded to your passion.
Speaker 2 (19:51):
Yes, yes, I was very I was like, we're gonna
make a show Girl amazation for no reason.
Speaker 1 (19:57):
It's yeah, but it's amazing.
Speaker 2 (19:59):
Yeah, you know Showgirls really was my kind of like
that's when I really I mean, I had some movies
that were very very important to me as a as
a kid and made me want to make movies, but
show Girls was the first movie where I felt like,
oh my god, you know, like like whoa Like a
lot of the movies I loved as a kid were
(20:19):
very small, kind of unassuming movies and then.
Speaker 1 (20:23):
This was not show that it's not you know, I
have a love hate with it, but here you speak
about it, I'm like, how you how you how it
motivated you forward? And I love that. That's worth the
price of admission right there.
Speaker 2 (20:40):
Oh my god, Kyle, something was just so explosively funny
to me, the idea of playing no me and like
and just with the earnestness, you know, like and just
really like playing an e you know, like I don't
know that that's always been something I've wanted to do
for whatever reason. Yeah, And you know when we my
friends were these Cooks Central Dance Team where these like
(21:01):
genius like dance comedy troupe thing and and we just
like rented a studio in Brooklyn and like pulled up
the clip and we just learned it. We just learned it,
and like we matched the camera work, and you know,
we we The guy who directed Drew Tobia, he got
his his high school theater teacher in Jersey to like
(21:22):
she her like she did as an assignment for her class,
like let's make the stage look like the stage and
show Girls, And so they hung the lights in a
somewhat similar way as best they could, you know, and
we just went to Jersey and shot this thing in
one day and it was like one day. Yeah, yeah,
I love that video so much. I don't know it
like it holds like it the key to like me
(21:43):
or something that that video.
Speaker 1 (21:44):
You know, it's beautiful, no, because it's you're fully commit
there's no winking, you're fully committed. Yeah, you dance up
a storm, which is amazing. And and the shot for shot, yeah,
it matches, and I love it when they when you
do both. We ran both together. I mean there's the
top and bottom and it is identical down to the
lip sync. It was like a long term TikTok or
(22:05):
something long form TikTok. But it was really well done.
Speaker 2 (22:08):
Thank you. Yeah, I'm very proud of it.
Speaker 1 (22:10):
Yeah. Yeah, that's that's pretty special. You need to go
down and do more scenes.
Speaker 2 (22:14):
Well, that's that's the thing is, like I did make
a movie recently that like actually came from that impulse
to just do the full length show girls. You know.
It's like I've always been like, well in a world
where I'm for some reason given billions of dollars, you know,
like where there's a film industry that would do that, yeah,
doesn't exist. Like but like and then I was like, well,
(22:34):
I could do something like that. I could do something
that's like in essence like that. So I did write
a movie for myself where I play the lead girl.
I play in a Maddie yes and like and she.
It's very different on a plot level. But there is
a character named zach Is based on your character character
(22:54):
great with the weird hair he doesn't have. I mean,
thank god, no one can ever have that hair.
Speaker 1 (22:59):
No. I don't know what I was thinking when I
had made that choice.
Speaker 2 (23:02):
It was just like genius.
Speaker 1 (23:03):
Well, I kept thinking, he's a wolf in sheep's clothing,
so we're going to hide a little bit. Yeah, yeah, yeah,
dumb idea. I don't know, John, is.
Speaker 2 (23:15):
That your idea? It was so already we're learning there
is huge there you go, Well that was so yeah.
So I made a movie where I'm like basically like
I created a character where I could like do that
thing just like a kind of and we did lots
of like blocking and camera movement where I where it's
like long shots where it's like we're like overtaking each
other and like and spinning around each other, you know,
(23:39):
like me and Kate. It's me Kate plays my best friend.
She's like the Molly character and show Girls like and
it's just us kind of like you know, it's like
it's like overly blocked. There's like too much movement, you know,
it's like whoa, I love, I love you know.
Speaker 1 (23:58):
And that was like manic.
Speaker 2 (24:00):
Okay, it's so impeccably done show Girls and we kind
of pulled it off, you know. I would say one
four hundredth of the budget of show Girls. I'm really
proud of it.
Speaker 1 (24:10):
Yes, it's good. It's this Wait a minute, can I
see this?
Speaker 2 (24:12):
Is this what I can send you a link?
Speaker 1 (24:14):
Is this was just a tip?
Speaker 2 (24:15):
It was that tip?
Speaker 1 (24:16):
Yeah yeah, and it's.
Speaker 2 (24:17):
Magnolia is distributing it.
Speaker 1 (24:18):
Okay.
Speaker 2 (24:19):
I don't know when.
Speaker 1 (24:19):
Yeah, yeah, send me a link. I'd love to see it.
I know our crew would, if you're if that's.
Speaker 2 (24:22):
Okay, Oh, I'm sending you a link. I almost sent
it to you before this, and I was like, calm
down because I was like, I think you'll appreciate its connection. Yeah. Wait, okay,
So you came up with the hair.
Speaker 1 (24:34):
Yeah, so I came up with the hair, and then
we go in in the morning and we were shooting
south like Tahoe there at a at a proper show house,
you know. And I remember we had to get out
it by a certain date because Carrot Top was coming
into perform. No, yes, I'm sorry to do that. I
know it was. It was crazy anyway, So we go
in the morning. I go in the morning and I
(24:54):
see him and my make up. You know, he'd give
me it. He's he was like, he just said, we're
going to give you a ten. I was like, okay, okay, yeah,
I'm in Vegas, I can have it. And then little
eye Shadow was like sure. He said yeah, yeah, because.
Speaker 2 (25:07):
You know shout and yes it's yeah.
Speaker 1 (25:12):
I was like okay. And then and just if you
look at it, kind of like he looks made up.
Speaker 2 (25:16):
Yeah yeah, no, you have like a like an eminem
like a candy shell.
Speaker 1 (25:20):
Yes, yeah yeah. And I'm like okay, and he was
just so happy with him. So then I felt bad.
Speaker 2 (25:25):
I said, well, okay, but it's but it's this is
the thing I love about Paul Verhoven is this like
he it's like this pornographic American And at that time,
the ninth like the weird nineties, like ken thing, you know,
there was like a weird now he was on with
he was on, He really was tapped into some sort
(25:45):
of perverse thing. And I feel like the makeup. Your
makeup is like a perfect.
Speaker 1 (25:50):
Example of that. The thing is my I was, you know,
I would pop in and do a scene and pop
back out again, and it was I like to ski.
And it happened to be a really great snow year.
So I would sneak off and ski all the time
when I wasn't working, which I wasn't supposed to do
because you sign a writer and you say you will
not do any of these dangerous yeah, And I was like, whoop,
But the snow is so good. I couldn't help it.
(26:11):
So I just skied and and I would come back
and I would, you know, I'd watch rehearsal. I said,
it looks great, you know, that looks like a real show,
you know, the whole thing, you know, and then we
do this. I do my scenes with Elizabeth went fine,
you know, and I was like, it's gonna be good.
Speaker 2 (26:22):
Yeah, and then I.
Speaker 1 (26:23):
Saw it and then I was like that's not what
I expect.
Speaker 2 (26:26):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (26:30):
Eternity is wonderful. Thank you, yes, thank you, And you
are wonderful.
Speaker 2 (26:34):
In it, well, thank you, it's special.
Speaker 1 (26:36):
I was really Yeah, I was really because it's a
we kind of know what's going to come, but it
keeps shifting. It pulls the rug out from underneath you.
Speaker 2 (26:44):
You knew who she was gonna end up with. I
had a feeling, and she had to act a kind
of like metaphysical psychological concept. It's like her working through
something kind of like metaphysical yes, which is like a
strange thing to have to act, and like every scene
she had to be like wait, so I'm dead right.
I really was very impressed with her ability to hold
(27:07):
that in her head. I agree, And she and the
movie are kind of trying to bring us back to
a kind of like, you know, an intelligent, warm comedy,
thoughtful like like in the you know Peggy Suk Got
Married or you know.
Speaker 1 (27:23):
These that's a little bit of a throwback.
Speaker 2 (27:25):
Yeah, I agree with you, and she I think she
just does it with such grace and yeah, I mean,
you know, she reminds me like her like crying in
the movie reminds me like Holly Hunter and broadcast news
or something, you know, like the weeping, and it feels
both like totally real and also it's funny. Yes, it's
it's employd comedically, but it's like she's playing it totally real.
Speaker 1 (27:45):
And you know, your relationship with the divine is just
I mean that's really did you have you worked together before?
Did you just meet and you were like, hey, let's
here we go.
Speaker 2 (27:55):
No, I met her on set. She is so good
and I think we're good contrast because.
Speaker 1 (27:59):
She is so easy.
Speaker 2 (28:02):
She like can't fake a moment. You know, it's just
like so effortless. It's just she's just in like a
kind of flow state. And then I'd like, ha, I'm.
Speaker 1 (28:14):
Like, people should watch this because the visuals, John, your
visuals are fantastic. You know what it is. You know,
it's it's letting me know, it's giving me further back,
it's giving bugs, Bunny Roadrunner crazy. Thank you because it's
also my go to Yeah that's in terms of comedy,
Looney Tunes is that's just nothing better. So it's giving
(28:35):
looney tunes. You got to see this people, but yes,
crazy but perfectly modulated. Yeah, you're yes, yes, because you
you could see there's there's you know, there's there's manic
in there, but you control it really beautifully and you
care so much and you know the right way, the
way for you, the way you like things to go. Yes,
you can't help, but sort of you know, nudge in
(28:58):
that direction.
Speaker 2 (28:58):
Yeah, you know, they're their own personal whoever these afterlife
coordinators are, whatever they went through to choose that path,
like they are, they can't help, but have their own bias,
you know, for their client or whatever. Like. But that
was the day before because it's like it's a very
what's so pleasurable about it is like it is like
(29:19):
it has like a light touch and there's like something
there's kind of a fantasy quality to it. And I
was like, you know, and also what I was being
asked to do was actually quite simple, Like I didn't
have to do what Elizabeth Lizzy, I call it Lizzy
right yeah, in my phone away. But I didn't have
to do what she had to do. I just had
(29:39):
to like hold a clipboard and like make.
Speaker 1 (29:41):
Faces more than that because the tone and the tone
that you bring into it is really really specific and and.
Speaker 2 (29:47):
Thank you, thank you. But I was like I was beforehand,
like the day I was like mourning up, mourning up.
I was like in my hotel, like I was like
I have.
Speaker 1 (29:55):
To think of the backstory who is this guy?
Speaker 2 (29:59):
Because I was just like I knew what they wanted
from me, and I was like, Okay, here we go.
I'm you know, and then and then I was like,
oh no. I was like I felt that the movie
was kind of asking me. Actually, They're like, you know,
it's asking some deep questions. You know, it's it's a
it's a lighthearted, sweet movie, but it is actually asking
some deep questions. And so I was like, I was like,
well I should I should really think about who this
(30:21):
person is and why he chose instead of going into
an eternity, why he chose to stay and help people.
And I like, in alone in my hotel, improvised the
most like Lars Vauntreer like sedistict, like it was just
flowing out of me. I was like, and then he died.
Like it was like I'm not even gonna say it
(30:43):
because it's so upsetting what I came up with, like,
and I was like, I was like weeping in my
hotel or like with just like it was like a
really perverse, embittered, like backstory. And I was like, I
was like, this is so strange. I just did this.
And then I kind of went on set with my
little backstory. Yeah, and then of course like the second thing,
(31:07):
and I was like, okay, good and no, just to
really let that be there. Yeah, here we go, here
we go, and they're like action. I was like, hello,
my Mary.
Speaker 1 (31:14):
Yeah yeah, yeah, yeah, but I love that you but
I love that you pride it. I mean it's like
a ballast almost to the ship. Right, it's like this
heavy thing. Don't even have to get into it. But
you realize we can't. We look at him and we
can see that that that's not coming out. Yeah, he's
not going to allow.
Speaker 2 (31:30):
It exactly exactly. And that's the very kind of.
Speaker 1 (31:33):
And and well, yeah, won't come out it tight up.
Speaker 2 (31:39):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (31:41):
It is a Loony Tunes in the best possible way.
Speaker 2 (31:43):
Yeah, it was so funny. I was like scrolling through
my phone the other day and I realized that Miles
hosted SNL. Yes, and I was like, is this a
huge movie? I was like wait what? I was like,
what move? Am I in a huge movie?
Speaker 1 (31:58):
I think it's possible.
Speaker 2 (31:59):
He's great too, He's so good they I mean they
are movie stars in a crazy way. Like I never
work with like men, right, I don't. I just literally don't.
I'm just never across from like except for right now,
like like gorgeous movie stars, you know. And I was like,
but we were like when we were doing the scene
(32:20):
where they're like fighting, we like have to go into
a hotel tel room because they've just realized that they're
like kind of fighting for her, you know. And I
was like, it was the first day and I was
like across from both of them, and I felt like
a like a eighty year old woman in the supermarket,
like getting a little maga a little like red Book
magazine right with the two like a Southern living magazine
(32:42):
or the two of them on the cover. I was like,
I was like, Oh this is They're both so appealing
and too much. And I was like, Oh my god,
I think this movie is major.
Speaker 1 (32:52):
Up next, we're going to play a game. How about that.
We're back with a segment that I designed with my
friends just for John called who even is that. It's
an ode to your incredible ability to create characters, an
ode I'll have you know. I'm going to prompt you
(33:13):
various accessories and articles of clothing for you to basic
character around for one short, a short, one minute improv
scene Okay, so you'll see who I am as we
go forward. Okay, without further ado, I am the Mayor
of Portland, and you're a local funeral director wearing this. Yes,
so John has got a beautiful black mink stoleul I
(33:37):
guess and it's fake. Yes, don't come for him real?
And this is is it a lorgnett? Don't know what
this is right in front of your face, sort of
a netting in front of your hat. And I've got
a kind of a beanie breathless and shirt that says
keep Portland Weird, which is so appropriate. Listen, I I've
(34:00):
been noticing the cemeteries in Portland.
Speaker 2 (34:03):
There haven't been.
Speaker 1 (34:04):
A lot of a lot of activity there, and I'm
just wondering how business is. If I can help you
in any way.
Speaker 2 (34:09):
Business is just fine.
Speaker 1 (34:12):
Okay, Okay, So I get a sense that you you're
not really interested in talking about what's been happening in.
Speaker 2 (34:20):
Business is fine, and that's the last time I'll say it.
Speaker 1 (34:25):
Okay, I understand I'm feeling a little bit like a
fish out of water here, only because it's you know,
it's come to my attention that there have actually been
and I don't know how to put this, But people
have gone missing from your establishment. People have died and
they've gone to your establishment and they are no longer there.
When the funeral happens, the caskets are empty, and I don't.
Speaker 2 (34:47):
Know baskets.
Speaker 1 (34:49):
Well as a funeral director. I feel like, are you
aware of what might be happening in the back room?
Are cadavers disappearing?
Speaker 2 (34:56):
Is this I have to love, Yes, disappearing. I hesitate
to even address these allegations and give them any credence.
Speaker 1 (35:08):
So you're not willing to to have an invest one
to have an investigation. We would we would like to
come down and see exactly what's beending.
Speaker 2 (35:15):
There is absolutely no need to have an investigation. We
can we can chat in the front room, fantastic, but
we'll leave it there because purely for sanitation reasons.
Speaker 1 (35:26):
Well that makes complete sense to me, because I am
all about keeping Portland clean. Yes and weird, Yes, I see,
I see. I am a pie loving detective and I
am interrogating my suspect who was wearing this. So I
suspect that you've been spending some time in the islands. Yeah,
(35:51):
I can tell by the smell the flowers and you've
been spending some time in the sun. I feel like
you are guilty of the crime of surfing under an alias.
I feel like we are getting close. Let me examine
you closer. Yes, from my eyeglass, I can see that
(36:14):
the tan that you're wearing is actually a spray on tan.
Now I'm looking at your outfit and I realize because
I'm hard of seeing. Is that a thing that's called
being blind? That the shirt is actually not real and
the flowers on the shirt are fake? What is the
perfume that you're wearing because it smells like, vaguely like coconut?
Speaker 2 (36:37):
Am I sunscreen? Oh?
Speaker 1 (36:39):
It's sunscreen? So you're actually so yeah? Yeah, so I
cannt yet. I see you've been working out. Your abs
are very prevalent.
Speaker 2 (36:47):
Yeah, this is hugely me.
Speaker 1 (36:52):
Well, we need to get back to some pie. All right.
That's good coffee shop just down the street. Let's good.
I'm an entertainment director a casino and you're one of
my dancers. Yeah. So John's got a fantastic blonde, kind
of a barber eating maybe and then now a white
dark yeah, dark roots. It's grown out a little bit,
(37:13):
and I've got the chain with the money symbol on
it and the dark glasses. But I'm missing one of
the one of the ear pieces.
Speaker 2 (37:20):
Have to hold them up with Oh no, and I
have a This is fake? What I remind Yes, yes, it's.
Speaker 1 (37:25):
Not those for viewers watching, this is all fake. Yeah,
me and John, we were both fake. I don't understand you.
You didn't dance this afternoon for the evening performance or
what was your thinking? Do? I? Oh, I can see
what's happening.
Speaker 2 (37:42):
What do you mean? Well?
Speaker 1 (37:43):
I think I think you you've taken something and I
don't know exactly what's happened.
Speaker 2 (37:49):
Now you can you can test my piss.
Speaker 1 (37:52):
I see, you can test my ship, all right, miss
miss Cecilia. I am sorry, but that language is very,
very very upsettling.
Speaker 2 (38:03):
Do you have a cup?
Speaker 1 (38:05):
Do I have? Yes? I do, in fact, but right
now I'm drinking coffee out of it, and that's all
I want to drink out of it.
Speaker 2 (38:10):
Oh, come on, what's the big deal of this has
been happening time and time again, Miss Cecilia.
Speaker 1 (38:17):
This is not allowed in the casino. You know that.
I know that, but the patrons know that.
Speaker 2 (38:24):
Okay, what do you want?
Speaker 1 (38:26):
I just want you to show up to work with
a good attitude and a new para.
Speaker 2 (38:30):
Good attitude. You would have a very good attitude. I
have good tits.
Speaker 1 (38:34):
You have the best tits in the business. That's why
we hired you. I'm just saying, how I'm sorry.
Speaker 2 (38:41):
To remove these for safety reason.
Speaker 1 (38:43):
That's right, there's an electrical shock coming from these. You
are divine, my dear.
Speaker 2 (38:49):
Thank you.
Speaker 1 (38:49):
I want only the very best for you.
Speaker 2 (38:51):
Thank you, me too, Yes, very good.
Speaker 1 (38:53):
So you please put on your TUTU do it for.
Speaker 2 (39:00):
Only if you'll watch.
Speaker 1 (39:01):
It would be my pleasure to do it for daddy.
Speaker 2 (39:05):
This is too much.
Speaker 1 (39:09):
Wow.
Speaker 2 (39:10):
Okay that we're gonna shake those three off real quick.
Speaker 1 (39:13):
Take off those characters. Yeah, that was much fun. Thank
you for playing along.
Speaker 2 (39:17):
Thank you.
Speaker 1 (39:18):
What is what's happening? What's next? What have you got
coming up?
Speaker 2 (39:20):
Tell me? I'm working on a player rehearsing play with
uh while Sean wrote it. Okay, it's called what We
Did Before Moth Days and Andre Gregory is directing it.
Speaker 1 (39:30):
Oh my gosh, from my dinner with Andre. Yeah, the
two very famous people. Oh my god, this is amazing.
Is it in New York?
Speaker 2 (39:36):
It's in New York and we're doing it in the
winter and spring of twenty twenty six.
Speaker 1 (39:41):
Okay, rehearsals now, yes.
Speaker 2 (39:43):
And we've been rehearsing for like a year and a half.
Speaker 1 (39:47):
Okay.
Speaker 2 (39:47):
It's like very slow.
Speaker 1 (39:49):
Cooked writing as you go or how does that?
Speaker 2 (39:51):
No, it's been very I mean he's making little adjustments
here and there, but like it's it arrived very secret Colet.
It's shocking.
Speaker 1 (40:01):
I am so excited.
Speaker 2 (40:05):
No, no, they're not in it. So Wally's not in it.
Andrea is just directing. But it's me Hope Tavis.
Speaker 1 (40:13):
I just work with Hope. Yes, yes, we just worked
on you deserve each other. You deserve each other in
my head, Hope's absolutely delight.
Speaker 2 (40:22):
I love Hope Davis and Maria Dizzia okay, and Maria
is like a theater god. And Josh Hamilton. Yes, and
it's just everyone is.
Speaker 1 (40:33):
So good, super pro. I mean, this is this is
going to be very cool.
Speaker 2 (40:37):
It's it's the coolest thing I've ever done. Yeah, it's
it's it's just a dream. And the writing is like,
talk about our town? Do we talk about our town?
Speaker 1 (40:44):
We did not? We did not I've ever done it?
Speaker 2 (40:47):
Okay, well I did it in high school.
Speaker 1 (40:48):
That was young one.
Speaker 2 (40:49):
I've played mister Webb. I wasn't good once again. I
was like, they were like, why don't you play the
like the Father where I was like, okay, Also, where
would you put me? Like if they were smart, they
would have cast me as alcoholic Courus the.
Speaker 1 (41:04):
Choir director that that genius. Yeah you could have.
Speaker 2 (41:07):
Yeah, but but it's it's it's very like I do
think that he has written like a great American play
Okay in the vein of our town. It's like very
very very special. Okay, and you'll have to come see it.
I'm sorry you go to New York all the time.
Speaker 1 (41:23):
Yeah, ok yeah, yeah, yeah, we'll come.
Speaker 2 (41:25):
Yeah, and then we'll go out after it.
Speaker 1 (41:27):
Fun and of course we'll go out after it. Please
get us wine, talk about the shoe. Please be my pleasure.
It's been so lovely to have you on.
Speaker 2 (41:34):
Thank you.
Speaker 1 (41:35):
You are quite an amazing person. Oh my go amusing actor, comedian.
I mean need to do everything.
Speaker 2 (41:40):
I'm going to say this, and you're welcome to cut this.
We should do a part two where you and I
watch Girls together together like no one's there when we
watch it, so you can have whatever.
Speaker 1 (41:51):
I'd be like see I was gone this whole time,
I was skiing, right, I have no idea what was
happening in the scene.
Speaker 2 (41:57):
But then and then I come on the pod and
we just us how you feel about.
Speaker 1 (42:01):
It now, okay?
Speaker 2 (42:01):
And you maybe have more stories than whatever.
Speaker 1 (42:03):
Oh, I definitely, And I'll.
Speaker 2 (42:04):
Be more prepared with my questions because I realized I
kind of blew maybe the biggest opportunity of my life here.
Speaker 1 (42:09):
Not at all, okay, not at all. Your friends now
we are friends, Now we are house. Yeah, it's been great.
Speaker 2 (42:15):
Thank you so much, thank you, and honor.
Speaker 1 (42:17):
Oh, bless your heart, thank you, thank you.
Speaker 2 (42:19):
Oh.
Speaker 3 (42:21):
What Are We Even Doing is a production of iHeartMedia
and the Elvis Duran podcast Network, hosted by me Kyle
McLachlin and created and produced by Full Picture productionists Yay,
featuring music by Yata and artwork by Danica Robinson. For
more information about the podcast, please visit our Instagram and
(42:41):
TikTok at wawed with Kyle. Please rate, review, and subscribe
to What Are We Even Doing on Apple, Spotify, YouTube,
or anywhere you get your podcasts.
Speaker 1 (42:56):
Exclamation points
Elvis Duran and the Morning Show ON DEMAND News
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