"Laura Linney"

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Is your team winning?

Yeah.

Wait, but it's Sunday.

I thought they play Saturday.

It's Sunday, yeah.

They play both, innit?

This is Liverpool that you're rooting for?

Yeah, mate.

Yeah.

Oh, fuck.

Did they score a goal yet?

Did they score a goal yet?

Oh, hang on a second.

We're doing a cold open,

but we have a special surprise guest,

and it's a princess.

Michael, do not turn around.

Do not turn around. Michael, you're surrounded by a princess.
There's a princess. Do you want to say hi? Yeah.
Yeah. It's a tiny Terry.
Tiny Terry. That was a tiny Terry, and this is an all-new...
Smartless. All-new Smartless.
Smartless. Smart lives.
Smart lives. Sean, I just did this stupid thing to Sean, but I reminded me before you came on, JB.
Yeah. The other day, I keep finding new ways to embarrass Alessandro.
We were at dinner, just the two of us over there in the Sag Harbor. And you forgot to wear your wig.
No. No.
How can you forget? The glue is so thick. And you keep it by the key bowl, right? Well, the glue's thick.
The glue... The key bowl.
It says six weeks, but let's be honest, after five weeks, it starts to crack. You have to reapply.
Yeah, yeah, you're reapplying. But I have like a caulking gun I can get under there sometimes.
I can just do a touch-up in the moment. You know what I mean? Like if I'm windsurfing.
Get a good caulk in there. Yeah.
But right as our server came to the table, I just go, I look up the server and go, one second. I go, oh, sorry.
So to answer your question, it's guess who's back? Shady's back. Tell a friend.
As if Al Sutter had asked me the lyrics to that Eminem song. And then I go, sorry.
Yeah, we're ready to order. Did the waiter have any idea? No idea.
It would have been lost on me. Waiters don't, first of all, they they're not there they're not there for entertainment they're not psyched they don't want to laugh at your stupid shit haven't you ever been no but you know like a waiter goes like hey we're all out of the salmon you go alright we're out of here the waiter's like hey fucko I've heard that a million times but I, a million times.
I just want to take your fucking- But I've said it a bunch before, so apologies. But I have always kind of loved the idea of being a waiter just for the performative element of it where you have different- Each table is a different stage and different audience, and you've got to figure out who they need you to be in order to get the biggest tip.
Well, let's hope- That would have been my game. Let's hope your limited series hits, because if it doesn't, you might get a chance to try it out.
You know what I mean? Wait a minute. Speaking of, Black Rabbit.
Oh, Sean did the nicest thing last night. He came over last night with Scotty and took a look at the first two episodes, because we're not locked yet.
I need eyes on it. I need opinions.
And you're going to shut your mouth for one second, because, Will, seen the two episodes? The first two episodes? Well, no, I'm not there with you. I didn't know if you could send it to him.
It's so fucking great. It's so good.
Of course you're going to say that. He doesn't need to go out and really say this.
I'd be like, oh, it's really good. It's so good and Jay, that character's unlike anything I've ever seen you play before.
It's so surprising and exciting. And- So it's likable.
Yeah. No, but, and it's going to be one of those series everybody talks about.
Of course it is. You're completely sucked in right away.
Who's that? Why is that guy? And you start asking your questions as an audience member and you know they're going to get answered in the few episodes that follow. But it's so exciting.
When you didn't run after the first episode, I knew I was in good shape because you do like to be in bed 530. JB, you must feel good, and you've got to get a bunch of demographics.
You've got the moron demographic now who's covered. They're in.
I was really pressing him and Scotty. I was like, you guys sure you understood everything? He asked me that after.
He asked me that after. You sure you understood everything? I bet it's going to be great.
I have no doubt. And JB, I'm going to say this too while we're in this vein.
I was thinking about the breadth of stuff that you've done. I was thinking about the last couple of years.
I was thinking about a movie that I love that doesn't get enough attention. Air Bud 2? No, no, no.
No, Game Night. Game Night.
Game Night, which I think is so funny. One of the funniest movies ever.
So good. And then you do like Identity Thief.
Then you do Ozark. You've done so many different things.
Yeah. And hats off to you.
You don't get enough credit. You do a lot of great shit.
So congrats. Thank you.
And I'm excited for Black Rabbit. Yeah.
And the reason I bring it up is because you've been working so fucking hard. I know I exhausted you, but you've been fucking doing it.
And it's very inspiring. I really appreciate that.
Listener, I apologize for all of this. We're going to pay it back in spades.
Having said that. I know.
Couple thoughts. Keep your email open, Jay.
I got some thoughts. I was sort of, not to back the wind up the bum but I was thinking for some reason this morning, oh I know why because our next guest is a fancy pants in the Tony world.
Sean, you want a fucking Tony. No, no, no.
We did spend a little on that, but it does keep coming back to me. That's not something they hand out.
You know? A Tony is a real deal. Believe me, it's not lost on me.
It's like, that's a whole different community that I just am very, very proud of. You both will do it.
You both will do it, and you'll both be nominated, and you'll both win. Yeah, I doubt it.
No, it is pretty amazing. And I was even about to do Handout to a Tony and Sean in Handy from a Tony, but I didn't.
I'm like, fuck it. I'm not going to do that because I respect you too much and I love you too much.
And I'm not going to make a stupid joke and try to connect. It's too easy.
It's too easy, and it's too thin, you know? What else can we talk about while our listener and guest... I got a couple of things, but we should probably get to it.
Wait, Sean, go off the list. Open up the list.
No, I was just going to say, on the way home, I told Will, Will, you and I were driving home from a friend's house we visited in the hills a couple of months ago. Yeah.
And I told Will this story, but Jay't told you so when you go past graystone mansion yeah and there's a runaway ramp there yeah right yeah for trucks a lot of gravel you heard this yeah no oh no so like several years ago i was like oh let's try that yes i did come on i swear to god i tried it and because i was like was like, what would it feel like? Because I want to know what it felt like.

Well, I didn't know it was,

I thought it was just like an inch of gravel.

It was just to stop a truck.

But it's like 80 feet of gravel.

So when I drove up-

To stop a truck.

Yeah.

It's supposed to completely absorb you like quicksand.

I drove up it and I-

God damn it, you're done.

I know.

And I started singing.

I was like, holy shit, I got so scared.

I peeled it out.

I kicked some gravel up and I, thank God I got out of there. You got out? Yeah.
Wait, what car were you in your Audi? No, it was before that. Oh, my God, you're so lucky you weren't the dumbass next to it calling a tow truck.
Like quicksand. And just like with your hands up, like, had to try it, sorry.
I would have loved to have seen that, to open up the Daily Mail and see pictures of you next to the tow truck and just explaining to the cop and then you have to pay because they had to come over alright, here we come guest, wake it up listener, pull the car over our next guest is one of my favorite people in the world, period wow there. There are some people that you meet, have a connection, you become friends, the connection grows, carries through many years, many stages of your life and theirs.
These people become your family. There aren't many in our lives, so when you have one, you smile and bounce a little every moment you spend with them.
And if you're lucky enough to work with one of these people, you end up doing a lot of smiling. So between you guys and her, my cheeks are killing me.
She's one of our finest actors, an accomplished producer, a rising director, an incredible mother, wife, and daughter. She's the recipient of three Academy Award nominations, five Tonys, nine SAGs, one one of those, a BAFTA, eight Golden Globes, one two of those, and seven Emmy nominations, one four of those.
She also has a doctorate from Brown and Juilliard. Guys, please welcome my fake wife, but true bestie, Laura Linney.
Oh my God! And a dead dog in the background. And the dog in the background.
Hi guys, hi. This is a long time coming.
Yes, it is. And you had to suffer through all that bullshit we were talking about.
I had to earn my place. I thought that maybe you and Jason were in a fight.
It's been so long. I thought, what happened? She's tough to schedule.
She's busy, and her deal is a tough deal. Sure.
Well, I am thrilled to be here. It's great to see all of you.
You too. I mean, when he was going through all of those noms, like nine, I mean, five Academy.
I mean, it's unbelievable. People like her.
It's bonkers. She doesn't suck.
Laura, I'm going to say this. Would you ever think about getting a T-shirt made that had listed all your nominations and just wear front and back? And it just says, ask me about the seven Academy Awards.
The thing about it is that every once in a while, I mean, I don't know if you guys are like this, but I have to stop and every once in a while, it'll hit me and I'll have to remind myself because you never feel like that's happened. Right.
I mean, you never, you know, and I've been nominated a lot and I don't win all that much, but I'm nominated a lot. But every once in a while, I'll be walking down the street and it will hit me.
I'll be like, oh my God. Yeah.
Oh my God. Like Sean, like Tony winner.
Right? Tony winner. It's amazing.
Congratulations. I know, in a soft ear, but Laura, I think the thing that keeps us all sort of grounded is, and I'm looking at, again, pointing out that your dog is asleep in the background of your shot.
No matter what you do, how many nominations, no matter how accomplished somebody is, they're always likely in a room where there's a dog that's asleep and doesn't give a shit. Yeah.
Do you know what I mean? Yeah, and the sock drawer is a mess and there's stuff that hasn't been taken care of and I'm behind on everything. And I have family members who are peeved at me because they haven't heard from me in so long.
And so there's all of that stuff, absolutely. But then there is the wild moment where you're like, oh my God, I cannot believe my life has led me here.
I cannot believe I've been able to do everything I've been able to do. Yes, and the thing that you chose to do with your life actually paid off in spades.
Oh my God. I mean, come on, crazy.
What about what a great writer you are too? I'll bet you've won plenty of things, but you've been nominated a shit ton too. So I'll bet there's some speeches.
Now, do you keep them in a drawer? Do you remember them? Because I want to have like a coffee table book once of all the unused speeches and whether it would be anonymous or not, but wouldn't that be great? Yes. The thing that I found is that you sort of, you have a sense if you're in the running to win.
And then there are times where you know, like, I'm not winning. There's no way I'm going to win.
So in some ways, that's the nicest because then you go and you get to have a good time and you're nominated, but you know you're not going to win. So you don't have to worry about, I'm going to forget, nothing prepared.
Because I know. Oh my God, it's so scary.
And then there are the times when you know you're in the running for things and you do have to prepare. So I must admit, I do have a few.
Well, Laura, would it be interesting to go back and look at some of those unused acceptance speeches and go like, oh, I was going to thank that person. I wouldn't.
Not today. Not today.
Not today. I wouldn't.
It's like going over your will. You're out of the will.
The winds have changed. So all of which is to say, as I did say, you don't suck.
You're great at what you do. And it started a long time ago.
Tell us about like, remember like the first thing you saw or exposed to that made you think, oh, I think I'd like to see if I could maybe do that. Was it a show? Was it a movie? Was it a play? It was the original production of Vanities that was downtown at St.
Clement's Theater. How old were you? In the church.
I was, well, my father was a playwright, so I grew up around the theater. So I always knew I wanted to be a part of it in some way.
I really didn't think I'd be an actress. I really, it took me a long time to sort of get there.
But I went and saw this play and Kathy Bates was in it. Oh, wow.
Yeah. Wow.
It's a three-person play. You know, it's not the greatest work of, you know, dramatic literature ever written, but there was something about it and being in that space and watching those three women be so wonderful.
And I remember leaving, I was like, oh, I'm different. Something has changed.
And it's the power of really good work. Teenager? Oh, no, I was younger.
Definitely younger. Yeah? Yeah, I think I was 11 or 12, probably.
Wow. That's really cool.
All right. So then from there, do you say to your dad, hey, what do you think the best first steps might be for me to go in this direction? Or how did that start? No, what happened was my father was an apprentice at a theater in New London, New Hampshire called the Barn Playhouse.
Yeah. The New London Barn Playhouse.
And I used to spend the summers with my dad. My parents split when I was very young.
So I would spend time with my dad during the summers and I begged him to let me go work there. Begged him.
So I went and I was a technical apprentice. Nice.
And I broke every child labor law known to him. I was there for like 14, oh yeah, making a mess and doing all sorts of stuff and being way too young to be doing what I was doing.
Sleeping drunk in the dressing room. Like seeing everybody hook up and break up.
You're refereeing a lot of hookups. Yeah, yeah, absolutely.
But then what about the first time you got on stage and like risked, you know, look at me, let's see if I got it? Yeah, it was a production of, it was a Christmas show at school. Wait, which school? How old? I was, I don't, I was really young.
It was middle school. And it was the same year that Ms.
Magazine came out. So we did.
Oh, that was 1981. That's right, that's right.
We did a feminist turn turn we did a feminist turn on Santa Claus where Santa got a cold and Mrs. Claus had to take over so I was it was that oh nice I remember the first one of the first things I ever saw that made me go wow I was like 12 years old and I saw a chorus line and I always thought how different my life would be if I'd only seen it sooner like at 5, 6, 7, 8 5, 6, 7, 8 is that what so then, alright now we get you start going, you start building up some momentum and then you end up you end up now does Brown really kind of formalize your leap into this world or was it at Juilliard? I, well, I think probably, at Brown, I was more at sort of an academic theater nerd.
So I studied theater history and all that sort of fun stuff. And then Juilliard was where it got serious, yeah.
And the first sort of job that exposed you to the world would be? I was the understudy in a production of Six Degrees of Separation, which was right across the street at Lincoln Center. Oh, wow.
And I was actually at that theater yesterday watching Holland Taylor in N.A. Oh, wow.
So it was fun. Every time I go in that space, it's professionally where I started.
Wow. Wow.
That's crazy. I was the happiest understudy around.
There was this room of understudies who were like, hello. Yeah.
Hey kid. How you doing? They've been understudies for years.
And I would bounce in happy as can be. And I would sit in the catwalk and watch the show.
That's up top. That's overlooking, yeah? Yeah, where the lights are.
And I would sneak up there and watch just to watch Stalker Channing get better and better and better and better and better. And there was one night, I remember Katharine Hepburn came to see the show.
Yeah. And I was in the catwalk watching Katharine Hepburn watch Stalker Channing.
Wow. And you're by yourself or are you with somebody else? Somebody in the catwalk.
I think they have a gun. Laura, I've never heard that before.
You're up by yourself in the catwalk at Lincoln Center at what, a teenager? No, no, no. This was after Juilliard so I was early, mid-twenties Yeah.
Oh, my God. And because I had done stock and was a technical apprentice, I knew how to get up into the catwalk.
Yeah, yeah, yeah. And you got a little snack with you, a little...
No, you just sit and you just watch. Yes.
In high school, I used to hang out up there. Yeah, isn't it fun? There's no show.
We would just go up there and cut class and whatever. Oh, yeah.
Tip, Sean did have a snack with him, right? Yeah, at all times. At all times, Sean.
Probably Swedish Fish. But, Laurie, like it occurs to me that you were so, like you had no choice but to do this life that you chose or it chose you.
A little bit, yeah. Because it was at such a young age and it was just, that was your life.
You were around, you were in Summerstock, you were at The Thing, your dad, you know, it was all around you. You wouldn't know.
Thank God it worked out. And thank God I love it as much as I do.
Yeah. Do you still love it as much as you? I love it.
I love it. More now or less? Oh, I think more.
Because the longer I'm in it, like a new set of problems sort of unlock themselves.

It's like I've earned the right to a new set of problems.

Right.

And so it just keeps going.

And talk about the eight shows a week thing.

You still enjoy that.

Yeah, hi.

I do.

But how insane is that?

No one has any idea what that is.

The most difficult job in the world.

Unbelievable.

And that type of fatigue is a very specific fatigue. Well, plus in the woman shows you've been doing too like that's yeah that was insane that was bonkers why did nowhere nowhere to hide in a one-woman show right it was yeah i know and i did it three times i don't you know i did it i did it once in london this was a show called my name is lucy barton and then i did it again in london to see if it would get easier because my first run wasn't that long.
I was like, well, if it comes to New York, will it get easier? And what I learned is no, it does not get easier. It does not get easier.
If anything, it gets harder, yeah. So you get all this incredible training at Juilliard and then you come out into, let's say, showbiz.
What were the biggest challenges coming out of that and into this? Into a professional situation, you mean? Yeah, several. That's less sort of protected in sort of this theater world and technique and study and culture and entering more of sort of a business.
Well, you have to learn how to translate what you've learned into an appropriate setting. You mean camera versus stage? Well, there's that, but then also just on stage.
I mean, going to school is very different than being in the profession. And going to school, there's a certain type of concentration and there's a certain ability to get things done.
And you have to learn how to translate that so you're still doing what you're doing, but that it's appropriate for the situation that you're in. No one wants to hear about your process when they're working.
Right, right. No one wants to hear about it.
Actually, Will, you have to deliver. Will loves that, actually.
You gotta, I remember, because I did it with him on Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. We discussed that many times.
I know, we sure did. We did a lot of process on that.
We did a lot of processing there. We sure did.
You know, decisions, choices. How would a turtle walk? That's right.
I think that turtle's going too fast, realistically. But what about, how about like going away from the sort of, going into much more of a world of now I got to make a living doing this.
Yeah. How do those two things reconcile? You know, you just sort of throw yourself in it and you just hope to God it's going to be okay.
Right. You know, and you wait tables.
Yeah. And you just sort of keep at it.
And you realize- That's what Jason wants to do. That's right.
I wouldn't be bad. I don't think I'd be bad.
Were you any good as a waiter? You wouldn't be good at it because you'd have to touch things. You'd have to touch other people's food and that would not go terribly well for you, I don't think.
Trust people who know you. You'd be awful at it.
I could deliver the food. I don't think I could clean up afterwards.
You know? Like when they take the utensils and they gather them in the middle of the plate. No, you'd have to touch them.
You'd have to do that. I'd be so gloved up.
Yeah,'t think so. We'll be right back.
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All right, back to the show. I have to ask you, Laura, I was going to wait till the end, but I'm going to ask you now.
Any great theater stories? Yes, not just that. A gazillion.
But like something, you must have like a classic something that went horribly wrong. Oh, Lord.
You can come back to it. Yeah, we can come back to it.
Because he wants a good one. I love them.
They're the funniest stories. They are the funniest stories.
Because so much funny shit happens. Did somebody have a heart attack while they were doing a show once? Yeah, who was that? One of our guests, who was that? No, they didn't.
No, they didn't, but somebody in the audience did. Yeah.
Yeah, it's usually, the good stories usually happen when you're in a show that's really bad. Yeah.
I mean, really bad, of which I've been in several. And it's so painful, and you really think you're going to rip the skin off your body just to get out of the embarrassment and the humiliation of it.
What about, Laura, what about, is there any show that you did that you, and by show I mean any kind of a stage show that you did, and not to make anybody feel bad, but you thought this is going to be the thing and it just didn't click with audiences. No, you sort of know.
Oh. Yeah, yeah.
You kind of know if it's really bad. You kind of know.
You know, it's the ones where you think like, oh, this is right on the edge. I don't know.
I don't think this is terrible. I think it's pretty good.
I don't know how good it is. You never know how good it is.
Yeah. Right.
But you know how bad it is. That's something you can't run away from.
That makes sense. Then conversely, what was the thing that you thought, people will like this, but you were surprised at how well it resonated with people? I think, well, I did a production of The Crucible a long time ago with Liam Neeson that Arthur Miller was actually involved in.
Wow. And before I accepted the job, I was offered Goody Proctor, and I thought, oh, for fuck's sake, who wants to do The Crucible? Oh, God, you know, ye buckle shoes and ye oldies speak.
Oh, for God's sake called my dad and i was like i've been offered goodie proctor and i don't know i don't know if i'm he was like oh no he was like you do that you must do that he's like it is a great play and it's only because we've all seen nine hour high school productions of that play that it's sort of you know it's badly represented um not that it shouldn't be done there. It should.
But, you know, you don't realize how great that play is. And I had no idea what a masterpiece that thing was.
A masterpiece. And then you had incredible audiences for that, I'm sure.
And that sort of, was that a bit of rocket fuel in your career as far as things that followed that? I mean, can you identify a particular job or moment where it felt different to you? Like, oh, the next few years might be a little bit easier than the last few. No, I've never been someone who feels a big boost from any one job.
I really haven't. I think it's been very subtle and consistent, and I'll take that.
Thank you very much. I mean, that's fine by me.
Just for me, just as an audience member, I would say you hit my radar significantly three separate times early on with Mystic River, Squid and the Whale, and you can count on Me. Those were big, big moves for me, just as a fan.
It's funny, because different people have different things. You know, some people, there's the Love Actually crowd, there's the indie movie crowd, there's the Clint Eastwood crowd, there's, you know, there's the theater people.
So it's sort of, it's always interesting. The John Adams people.
I mean, you conquered it all. I know.
Oh, well, hardly. No, but when you hear those credits, you go like, holy shit.
Yeah. Right? And they're so varied.
I mean, we were talking about JB a little bit before. And actually, Sean, too.
If you think about it, you did sitcom. You've won a Tony.
I mean, these are... Oh, I have not won a Tony.
Oh, no. Oh, mean to...
No, but to do... Sean won the Tony.
No, no, no. Sean did...
No, no, without question. He won a Tony.
Well, we should all have one. Yeah, yeah.
In what was a very quiet year. But do you...
But you did so many things that were like... That worked on so many different levels.
I mean, you think about Ozark or You Can Count on Me,

which I love.

I mean, we love Kenny Lonergan.

Yeah, was that your first nom?

Was that your first Oscar nom? Yes, it was.

I remember that.

I remember sitting at home.

I was so blown away, of course, everything before that,

but that movie really had an impact on me and you especially.

I was just, that's when I first was like,

oh my God, I got to find out more about this person.

And I just thought-

You know, there was this,

they did a 25-year fundraiser thing. And I don't like to watch myself, so as Jason knows.
I know, I just don't get it. Why would you treat yourself to it? Oh, please.
So I went and saw the, I went and watched it for the first time in 25 years. I think I've maybe only seen it once.
And it was so wild. And Jason, I don't know if you feel this way when you look at stuff from a long time ago.

But I saw things in myself.

Well, I saw things in myself that don't exist anymore.

There are parts of me that are just from another time.

That because of age or where I was

or the relationship I was in

or parents and dynamics and all of that's gone. And then I could also see the things that I recognize that is still there.
So it was a wild thing to— Yeah, they're time capsules kind of of that moment in your life. We had Ruffalo on, and he talked really lovingly about how he got the role on You Can Count On Me and his collaboration with Kenneth Lonegren.
Does it all still sit fondly for you? Was that as great an experience as it seemed like it was? It was a very tough shoot. You know, they had like two cents.
So we were sitting outside and then we had to clean out. Finally, I was like, guys, we need a place to sit.
Like, I can't sit outside. I can't change outside.
Like, I need a place. And so, and behind the house where we were filming, there was a chicken coop that literally the chickens had left like two days prior.
I mean, it was like, you know, chicken shit was like hanging in the cobwebs. And I was like, perfect.
So I went and we cleaned it up and we all sat in the chicken coop. Oh, that's great.
You know was very rough and tumble, but it bonded us all for life. I mean, Mark is literally like my brother, and Kenny and I are still close, and all of us are sort of bonded.
And that's the thing about what we get to do. You know, the connections that you make, Jason Bateman, you know, are deep and meaningful and very, very, you know, significant in your life.
That's what it's about. Yeah, and you do develop chosen family along the way.
And it's really, it's one of the greatest things. You do end up spending more time with people on set than you do your family at home.
When you're working on something, it's 12 hours. Yeah hours.
You know what else I'd love is Truman Show. Let's not forget about Truman Show.
I know Truman Show. You see, there you go.
It just keeps going. There's another one.
I know it goes on and on. But I like this idea, Laura, that you brought up about this, about like it being sort of a different life and different parts of you that kind of go away.
I was talking about this recently with somebody. It's an interesting thing as you get older

when you start to recognize that.

Oh, yeah.

When you literally have a history.

Yeah.

Like, you have a history.

You have different periods of your life

that you've been through.

Not just one, not two, but many.

And it is wild to think.

Yes, it is.

Yes, you know, last night,

Scotty and I went down a YouTube rabbit hole about opening songs to old shows from the 70s and 80s and 90s. God, how fabulous.
We did Silver Spoons. Magic to do.
Yeah. All those Dukes of Hazzard, Facts of Life, Dallas, all that.
God, I want your life. I'd really love to come back as you, Sean.
I mean, this is how we fill nights. We go over...
But I was watching these openings of these shows, and it took me right back to being a kid. Like, something clicks in your brain.
Mannix. Yeah.
Barnaby Jones. Yes, all those.
And I didn't remember. Like, the second I saw them, I actually had the feeling of a moment, like you said, of a stage in my life, which you don't sit around and think about until something triggers it.
No. You know? All right.
So now you've got, you know, will you tell these ding-dongs about this great super romantic story of you and Mark meeting each other in one of the most magical places in the world? And I just, she's got two incredible dudes in her life,

her son and her husband.

All right, you go ahead.

So there you are.

Okay, so I have been very, very single for five years or so.

And I'm invited to the Telluride Film Festival

where there are two films screening there.

And I think, oh, you know what?

I've never taken my mother anywhere. I should take my mother to this.
This will be good. I'm just going to fly in, fly out.
Terrific. So I bring my mother.
The greatest. We go.
And, you know, sometimes you're paired with a liaison who's a little eccentric. Sometimes those people can be a little out there.
Sure. And Mark sort of bounded up to us and said, hi, I'm Mark Schauer.
I'll be taking care of you for the weekend. And I was like, oh, okay.
Like a nice person. Okay.
And we spent the weekend together. And I can remember we were waiting to go to a screening.
And we were waiting for Bill Condon, my director, to come downstairs and join us so that we could leave. And I remember I turned my head and I looked at Mark and I was like, am I attracted to this person? Am I attracted to my handler at the Telluride Film Festival? I was like, calm down.
Like how wonderful I was feeling anything at all. He's got the title of handler.
That's right. That's right.
You know, yeah. And I thought, you know, I'm going to be gone in 24 hours.
Just be happy you're still alive and get out. Get out.
And, you know, my mother was with me, so there wasn't a whole lot. Now, were you collaborating with her on this? Did you ask her what her take was? Oh, no, no, no.
No. My mother, on the way to the airport, she was, well, Mark, are you involved with anyone? At which point I wanted to fall into the center of the earth.
No way. Center of the earth.
And he was like, no, actually, I've been single for a bit. She was, oh, how interesting.
Subtle. I left, and we ended up, Mark and I ended up just emailing each other.
I just thank you. And I had a great time.
And we, emails sort of started to fly. And then he started to get a little nervous.
He was like, I don't understand what's going on. And I immediately called.
I said, look, I don't know what this is. I have no idea what this is.
I don't know if we're friends. I don't know if it's more.
The only thing I know is I don't want to let it go. So I don't know what to tell you.
And he goes, well, when can we spend some time together? And I said, well, I said, I'm on a tour, a press tour when they used to do that. And he goes, well, where are you going to be? I said, I was going to be in Seattle.
I was going to be in Chicago. He's like, I'm from Chicago.
When are you in Chicago? Oh boy. And I was, well, this date, he goes, I'll meet you in Chicago.
At which point I got very nervous and very scared and tried to get out of it several times. And I can remember going down the elevator in Chicago to meet him in the lobby, just terrified.
Like, what am I doing? What in the world am I doing? Jesus God, someone, what is happening? So at this point, you hadn't been on a date in quite some time? Yeah, no, no. So when you say you're scared, is that what you mean? You're like scared, like, I don't know how to do a date anymore? I didn't know this guy.
Is he a serial killer? Like, what am I doing? I don't know anything about this guy. He's just flown across the country to go see you.
Is that weird or is it flattering? What is happening? What is happening? And where did he live in Telluride at that time? Yes. He drove a friend's car, which he had to drop off anyway.
He was doing a favor for a friend, and he just made it work. Oh, you're full of bodies.
Yeah, he's fueling bodies. You get rid of bodies.
You put them in a car, and you put it in a swamp. Sure, I know how to get rid of a bottle.
And I got out of the elevator and I turned and I saw him there

and like every fear evaporated.

I was like, oh, this is going to be fine.

Yeah.

This is going to be okay.

And that was sort of it.

Isn't that amazing how you can just read that in people's faces?

Yeah, it was really, yeah.

Like there's just a chemical sort of.

There's like vibe there, yeah.

Yeah, like you're like, oh, okay. This was how many years ago? Oh my God.
18, 20, 2004. So almost 20 years ago.
Yeah. Oh my God.
Yeah. And how old is Bennett now? He's 10.
Your son? He's 10. Oh my God.
Isn't that wild? I know. So everybody go to film festivals.
That's all I have to say. Telluride is a magic place.
It is. Just go, go, go, go, go.
That's a great, you know what? That's a really nice story. Yeah.
You didn't have to do any swiping, nothing like that. Although I hear swiping is very nice nowadays.
I hear it's easy. I can imagine.
Now, Bennett showing any interest in doing what you do at all? No, absolutely not. And refuses to watch anything I've ever done.
My kid's the same way. I made Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles specifically for him.
Because anything else would emotionally damage him and scar him for life. And did he see it? No, won't see it.
Refuses. Won't see it.
What? Refuses. Does he explain what his problem is? Because my kids do.
They're just like, it's just weird, you know? I think it's bad. And they don't like when something bad happens to me.
Like, they can't deal with, like, any sort of pain or even any sort of, like, challenge, like running from someone or something like that. A black rabbit, man.
What's the matter with you? Yeah. They're not going to like that.
Oh, and I agree with you, Sean. I've seen the pilot.
Amazing. Amazing.
She's done more than that. No, listen, I knew it was going to be good, but I was floored by how great it was.
Same. And the thing that's great— Tell us why.
Well, Laura— Well, hold on, hold on, hold on. No, no, no, no.
I'm not— I'm not— The thing that is amazing when you have a relationship with someone who you've worked with for a long period of time and you watch them grow. Yeah.
And to see Jason turn into this unbelievable director. I know.
I mean, always great. But this is a whole other level.
And I've said this to him. I mean, it was absolutely, I was undone when I saw it.

I'm just so proud of it.

I agree.

And I agree, and I want to say this too.

I agree with you, and we mentioned it before.

I don't want to embarrass you, JB.

But it's also very confusing to watch somebody, your friend,

somebody you love, grow while simultaneously they're shrinking.

Yes.

That has been.

Total atrophy. Yeah.
Yes. That has been...
Total atrophy.

Yes.

That has been a real...

I'm playing a drug addict, you know?

I saw JB at the pool at his house two days ago.

I came over two days in a row.

How'd you see him?

And he was at...

I drove over there.

The light must have been hitting him directly.

Now, speaking of directing,

Laura came in heroically

and agreed to direct episode three

and episode four of Black Lives Matter.

I'm going to go an incredible leader on set as far as just like this culture of friendliness and kindness and support and all that stuff. Like the crew just freaking loved her as did the cast.
I'm sure. But her comfort with this added responsibility, like as actors, not to belittle acting at all, but actors simply are kind of insulated from almost three quarters of the process because things need to be decided on and set up and assets need to be put into motion, et cetera.
Then the actors come in and do their magical thing. She took on all of that, had only done it once before on Ozark, directed one of our best episodes ever.
Yes, I agree. And I, she was, her place is about three blocks from our studio.
And I said, hey, it's real close. It's not terrible stuff.
There's a good crew. There's a good cast.
We would love to have you. Will you please consider it? And it would have been so easy for her to say no.
So much free time if she said no. Let me ask you this.
And you don't have to pat yourself on the back, but isn't it a gift to have been an actor and then a director? Without a doubt. But I can't emphasize enough how I would never have done this unless Jason really pushed me to do it.
Ever. I had no desire to do it.
None. I would say I didn't want to be one of those like, you know, idiot directors who you're saddled with who didn't know what they were doing.
I didn't want to be one of those people. You're looking at JB.
Why are you looking at this? Yeah, she's staring right at me. And then, and also I didn't want to jeopardize my relationship with Jason.
Yeah. I mean, that's another thing.
Yeah, but that horse left the barn on Ozark. He did such an incredible job on that episode.
I know, but still, you know, it's, I don't think of myself as a director at all. I think of myself as an actress who's directed a few things now.
But, you know, I don't know, as I've said to Jason, like, I don't know how to thank him for that. How do you thank someone for giving you a whole other sort of way to go? You do it all the time.
But what about, now, do you see, I'm going to get you, I've talked to you casually about this, now I'm going to get you on record. What part of your life going forward do you see directing being in? Like, what's our ratio going forward? I mean, as you talked a little bit earlier about how the roles, you kind of implied this, so the roles get better and better the older we get because they're more complicated, they're more nuanced, you're drawing on more from yourself.
So acting, I'm sure, won't slow down, but there is time to do the directing as well. Did you get enough of a challenge and satisfaction from it to make it a bigger part of your life? You know, I think I will go with it the way I have gone with the other stuff, which is if it comes my way or if there's something I find or if there's something I want to do, then I'll do it.
But will you tell your people to look? I think they will look. Okay.
All right. I think they're going to look.
Good. What has it done for you as an actor? How has directing this much now changed? Has it changed the way? But yeah, but no, but do you think it's going to change the way that you approach the work now, that you approach material? Not to get into process, but just like when you're reading material, do you look at it through a different set of eyes a little bit? You know, I'll have to see because the Ozark, which I did was such a blip and sort of my head was spinning the whole time.
And, you know, I just didn't know what had happened. And then this one was so intense in the best way and so all-consuming.
Literally, we finished on Thursday. I just got out of bed this morning.
I mean, it took me like three days to, you know. The fatigue, it's a whole other level of fatigue.
Look how wiped out her dog still is. Exactly.
You know, so I'll be really curious to see what it does. Hopefully, it will make me a better actress.
I mean, that's the hope. Did it take more out of you than doing a one-woman show, eight shows a week? Absolutely.
Are you kidding? Absolutely. I didn't have to deal with any people.
I didn't have to deal with anybody. It was just me.
I only had to deal with my own horrible stuff. But I didn't have to deal with 200 people.
And 4,000 questions. Yeah.
You don't have to reveal to reveal any names any things or i mean what's the thing that you find difficult uh in any working relationship something that gets you that you won't first of all that you won't stand for or second that really kind of rubs you the wrong way and you look out for to avoid yeah i i think it's always hard when people have a preconceived notion of what something is supposed to be. Yeah.
And then you come and you see something very different or you see something way beyond that. And that is always a painful negotiation for everybody.
And I understand from the other point of view, like why that would be hard. I totally, totally get it.
And we were very lucky on this one, you know, how amazing all these writers were and all of that stuff. But I've seen that from the acting standpoint as well.
I've really seen it more as an actress. Like people don't see what, I can just see things very clearly sometimes.
And it's, I turn to these people and go, but you wrote this. I'm just doing what you wrote.
Whether you are aware of it or not, you wrote this. Right, right, right.
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And now, back to the show.

Now, you've been

Jason's

on-screen wife for many years.

You were? Yes, lucky me.

Lucky you? Yeah.

What's something about

Jason Bateman that people might not

know? He'd like to divorce. Lucky you.
Yeah. What's something about Jason Bateman that people might not know? Who you'd like to divorce him about? Yeah.
If we were going to have a divorce, what would it be over? What is something that Jason does that's kind of unique that you've noticed about him, like a quirk? Here's one thing that I think why our friendship is so, you know, fulfilling for me, at least, and why working is so good is that we work completely differently. Sure.
I mean, we come from totally different cultures, completely different. And I love watching him work.
It's just kind of amazing. And it can only, that sort of work can only happen.
And now I believe as well, the directing is benefiting from this as well, from someone who's been doing it as long as Jason's been doing it. I mean, it's in his bones in a way that it will never be with most people.
He's just, you know, had the time with it. Well, he's only got bones left now.
You know, it's true. He needs several's quite something.
But this is probably what would lead to our divorce. It's too much work.
It's a workaholic. Amanda and I talk about it all the time.
Although she doesn't tell me not to, but she's just like, she's asking me this morning too, we were talking about this other thing. She's like, well, is that, if you were to direct that, is that all consuming? I was like, yeah, it always is.
It's always consuming.

You know?

I know.

But that's why we love it.

Can we get Amanda on here at some point too,

do you think?

Talk about a deal

with stuff to make.

And now we're working our way

into reality.

Towards your real wife

into having Amanda on

and be amazing.

I'm the stand in.

We'll go around the circle.

Next one will be

either your current partner,

Will,

or an ex

or something like that.

Sean,

you as well.

Well, I'll see stand-in. We'll go around the circle.
Next one will be either your current partner, Will, or an ex or something like that. Sean, you as well.
We'll all take turns. It'll just be sort of just like a rotating bloodbath.
Yeah. Well, you sort of test the waters with me.
I'm sort of, you know, as close as you'll get at this point. Laura, what do you do to zone out after you've been working 14 hours and you're done directing something like that or a big play or something? I go to bed.
Yeah. I mean, honestly, there's not a whole lot that happens.
What are you going to do this week? You finished directing that show last week, and now this week is your recuperate. Are you going to yoga? Are you going to Pilates? Are you going to the gym? No, I'm staring at a wall.
You're staring at the wall. I'm going to stare at a wall.
I'm going to be really quiet. Really quiet.
Right, your quiet activity is reading, watching bad reality TV. Occasionally, yes, guilty.
Are you reading anything good? What are you reading right now? Anything good? I just picked up, oh God, what's it called? I won't leave you. Do not leave me.

I forgot.

But I was reading vigorously until Black Rabbit happened.

Yeah, yeah.

And then it all fell apart.

And then you're going to start editing next week, right?

Yeah, yeah.

Yeah.

But Tomorrow, Tomorrow, and Tomorrow is one of the things I read last year,

which I just still am floored by.

Really?

Tomorrow, Tomorrow, and Tomorrow. It's wonderful.
Fiction? Wonderful fiction, yeah. Huh.
Spectacular, yeah. Is it a thriller? No, it's about three friends who make video games.
It's a world I know nothing about, don't care about, and boy, this book is glorious. It's so beautiful.
Wow, really? Tomorrow, beautiful. I don't know, are the options available? I think they're already, I'm sure they're already taken.
Also, The Librarianist is really good. I've heard that one.
Patrick DeWitt. Yes, I heard that one.
Very, very good. Yeah.
So you can join my book club. I'll send you some recommendations.
I've just been reading this, I'm reading this, this biography, it's 20 years old, on de Kooning right now that is just absolutely fascinating. Oh, yeah.
What's that mean? Willem. On the painter, Willem de Kooning.
Bill de Kooning. There's a Sylvia Plath biography that everybody loves.
I'm going to write that down too. Laura, what about if you weren't an actor or director, what do you think you would do? You had to do.
Not where you would have possibly hit a left fork

instead of a right fork early on,

but like today, if you had to pick a different career,

what do you think you're best suited for right now?

Like, would you write books?

No.

Would you teach at Juilliard?

I think medicine.

Medicine?

Medicine?

Yeah, I think medicine. Really? I love medicine too love like a doctor or something yeah yeah do you love medical stuff and like i i can't get enough of it yeah no i do i like to know people's issues how they got it what and i weirdly know things like how do i know what a pericardium is why do i know that you know i could I could see you working with people in maybe medicine and maybe teaching, maybe doing something.
You have such a, and I'm going to say that you have such a kind smile. Yeah.
And you really do. It's true.
But all the way through Ozark, every weekend almost, she would be flying off to give some sort, because of her show, the big C, which was centered around cancer. Yes?

Yes. She would give...
she would be flying off to give some sort, because of her show, The Big C, which was centered around cancer.

Yes.

Yes. She would give these speeches to, correct me, Laura, patients, doctors, medical institutions, recovery homes, et cetera.
she just delivered these speeches about the

will to live

and the joy of life or how to deal with grief, et cetera. You'd write these things and you'd fly across the country with your weekends off to talk to these people and buoy them.
I just, that's like angel. I love that.
And I sort of use it also as a way for arts advocacy, which is just to talk about the arts as much as I can, anywhere I can, as long as I can, because it's so important. Like, Sean, she's not sitting at home making Sloppy Joes and figuring out what TV's theme track you're doing.
Who loses then? Sean and Scotty are sitting around talking about farts advocacy. Am I right? We can hit these two lines.
But I just think it's like you're going to cut lines upstairs after you're done with all this angel work. I don't know.
Where does it come from? Mom, dad? I don't know. I think I like people.
And I think I, you know, and I love the arts. I love the arts.
I think like more than just like a selfish thing. I think it's unbelievably important for culture and society.
I couldn't agree more. I couldn't, it is so undervalued.
It's unbelievably medicinal. You cannot, there is no wasted time when you're engaged with the arts.
It will make everything better. I mean, it's just- I so agree.
At a time when the brain is growing too. So like with the work that you do at Juilliard too, when kids are, I mean, they're not toddlers anymore.
They're young adults. But I imagine that work for you is super fulfilling.
Remind me what your role is currently there at Juilliard. What do you do there? What do you do? Tell Tracy in Wisconsin what you're doing there at Juilliard and what Juilliard is for Tracy.
Juilliard is a arts conservatory school, which is sort of one of the leading schools in the country that teaches music, opera, dance, drama. There are four departments.
At Lincoln Center? Right across the street from Lincoln Center is the Juilliard School. It's there.
It has a long, illustrious history. I somehow, by the grace of God, got in there.
And people will ask, like, what was your big break? And for me, it was getting into that school, hands down, hands down. So I was there for four years.
And about 15 to 18 years ago, they called and asked me to give the commencement speech, which I did. And they also invited me to join the board of the school, which I did.
I was the only, I think there were only two artists on the board at that time, and I've been on it now for a long time, and I'm now vice chair for a limited period of time. That's so cool.
So I'm very involved there in seeing what institutions like Juilliard, what they do, how they do it, why they do it, and the challenges that are facing young artists today. And also I try to, when I have the time, I try to mentor the outgoing class.
I will go in and talk to students. I'll take them out to lunch.
And sometimes I can do it and sometimes I can't. What is the biggest challenge, Laura, for a young aspiring actress today? What do you think that biggest challenge is? Money.
Right. I mean, it's impossible.
I mean, which is why Juilliard's making such a concerted effort to go tuition-free. You know, and why a lot of schools are.
Because we train these artists at this very, very high level. They leave, and then they can't support themselves, and then they drop out, and we lose them.
Right. Do you spend a lot of time raising money or working with people or working with groups to try to raise money for the school? Are you guys dealing with high net worth individuals? Yes.
All these people that you need, these patrons, as it were, who some of them, I mean, I'm sure some of that's tough, but you need that, right? You need to have these people

in order to keep it running.

Yes, the angel people.

Yes.

And then you need

the small donations as well.

You need people just involved.

You need people

who just to care

about the arts.

Open your pocketbook for once.

No, Jason.

I just did a whole new

winter wardrobe.

It's thin right now.

No, no, no.

Listen.

Okay. We lost a lot of weight.
He needs a new clothes. He just got back from Paris.
Yeah. He goes.
I need a great new coat. Speaking of books and stuff, tell me something you've seen that you love recently.
A TV show. Wait, wait.
Before we leave the Juilliard thing, let me just, and speaking of angel people, so Laura just continues to blow my mind. So we have this young actor on the show.
His name is Robert Elijah Coleman. He was going to Juilliard.
He got cast in this show. He was working on a day, this is a month ago, when Juilliard graduation was happening.
He had done his four years at Juilliard. It's incredible to graduate from Juilliard, but he was scheduled to work on that day.
Partly my fault, I was directing, but Laura was prepping her episodes coming in, so she was around the set. And what she decided to do as a big shot at Juilliard was to grab his diploma, grab his cap and gown, write this long speech, an incredible speech that one would receive if they were lucky enough to be at their ceremony when they're graduate, but he couldn't because he had to be sitting on set.
She asked me if she could stop production for about five or 10 minutes, bring in a cake, do the whole thing, gather the whole crew, and she delivered the speech, and she put on the graduation music and everything. This kid, the greatest guy, was so bowled over, as was the whole crew and cast, and she presented him with his diploma and full graduation ceremony right there on set after four years of Juilliard.
That is amazing. It's like, who has that idea? That is really, really, really sweet.
That is incredible. Well, you know, it's a, there are moments in your life.
There are big moments that need to be recognized. And, you know, Eli had been through, I know what it is to go through Juilliard.
I know what it is to graduate from that school to feel like you've, you know, you've done something and now, oh God, what's going to happen now? And you've done it with an ensemble of people. And it killed me that he was not going to be with his class that day.
And he didn't tell anybody on set. He had not mentioned it to anybody that he was missing his graduation.
Yeah, I knew. So I went to him, I'm like, are you okay about this? And he was so good natured about it.
He was so happy to be there. He was like, I'm fine.
I'm fine. And I just sort of couldn't stand it.
And Jason was kind enough to let me sort of hijack the set for a bit. So it was fun.
It was really fun. The performance of being at a graduation doesn't come close to doing the thing that you graduated for.
Right, to get the job. Right, and it didn't matter that they had to move that day, that he had to shoot that day because Jason had a golf game on the other day.
That doesn't matter. It doesn't even come up.
It doesn't even come up. We'll work it out, Eli.
That doesn't even come up because he's got a tee time with his buddies. Now, Sean, what was your question that was a good one? I'm just going to see.
I'm always interested in what people are watching recently that you liked or any recommendations, documentaries, movies.

Alone.

Alone. I've been watching Alone.

Me too.

Jason loves that.

I love Alone.

Can I just say one more thing?

I want to talk about Alone.

Before we get out of the Juilliard stuff, what can people do to support the arts wherever they live?

Wherever anybody's live.

What would be a really important thing that people who listen to our podcast could do to try to help young people get involved in the arts? Oh, I know. Vote for the Democratic ticket.
Well, apart from that, what could people do? Honestly, Laura. Go.
I mean, I think Sean. I just thought that was a really good suggestion.
Sean's got that update on his iOS where he does double thumbs up. It's fireworks.
You know, I think it's go. Find something in your community that is there.
Go with your family. Have a communal experience and go.
Yeah, just buy a ticket. Get off your phone.
And see what happens. Yeah, yeah.
You know, here's a big name dropping moment. But Edward Albee said to me one time.
He was, I know. Pick it up.
He said, listen to Bach for 10 minutes every morning. He says, it organizes the mind.
Wow. And he's right.
And so I tell, when I give these speeches around the country, I tell people, like, try it for two weeks. See what happens.

Just 10 minutes.

And Jason, you know, because you love classical music.

You know, that it does, it permeates your being and it realigns you in a way.

Music does.

I mean, Sean, you know this as well.

You know, it's a powerful thing, the arts.

And I think it's the most underused resource we have,

or one of them, in this country. And it makes me crazy that our government has never really leaned into that.
Yeah. Except now our surgeon general is using it for mental health.
Yeah. He's encouraging people to get involved.
Yeah, I was going to say, there's probably a lot less violence in the world. I know that's a crazy thing to say.
It's not. If more people people were exposed to the arts, there's a- Absolutely.
And graduation rates skyrocket if a kid is involved in the arts. It's just skyrockets.
And there's always something somewhere. And you don't have to be good at it.
You don't have to be an artist yourself. You don't have to be exposed to it.
Willie's talking about starting to paint. He's going to start painting a bit.
I can do stick figures.

I mean, that's way beyond.

We're not expecting more than that from Will.

I'm not going to be showing anything.

Yes, you will.

For this Christmas,

that's all I want from you.

It's a shitty painting.

It's going to be really shitty.

I'm excited about it.

I was just thinking about it this morning, actually.

I can't wait to see something.

But I think it's like,

grab someone you love or grab someone you like and go and have an experience and just see what happens. I grabbed somebody I liked at the stop and shop, but I didn't know them.
You're going to find out what happens when this case is adjudicated. Check out the Daily Mail.
Wait, so let's get to you were talking about Alone. You love Alone, like JB.
Yeah, brand new season just started. I watched it because of him as well.
Yeah. I know, it's intense, isn't it? I mean, I love the guys who go in, this is early in the first few seasons, the really tough guys who are absolutely going to crush it, and they're gone in two hours.
Yeah, I know.

They hear like a rustle in the weeds

and they're like,

I'm tapping out,

I'm tapping out,

I'm tapping out.

And I think that would be me.

You know,

I wouldn't last

for two seconds out there.

I'd tap out

before they land the helicopter.

Celebrity alone

would be hilarious.

I'd be tapping out

when I'm connecting flights

in Minneapolis.

I'd be like,

I would hang up

on my manager

on the phone call

about the request. The great Aline Kishishian would get the hangout.
That's right. I love the places they build for themselves.
Yeah, I know. You know, those huts and the, it's just sort of It's like they took Naked and Afraid and kind of just heightened it a little bit.
Yeah, yeah. And I also love these poor people filming themselves at the same time.
I know, that's all part of it. I like it when they build a great house.
Like, when a guy, there was a guy once in one of those seasons up in the Northwest Territories in Canada, and he built, like, this stone house with moss and stuff. You're like, yeah, yeah, yeah.
Yeah, yeah. The moss.
The moss. Who knew moss was so important? And then they got to rip it down when they leave.
You know, they do that little time-lapse thing when it all goes away. It's like, no.
Laura, we're over. We're over time.
You will be compensated. Checks in the mail.
We love you. I love you most.
Yeah, I'm a massive, massive fan. I've always been.
Truly. I love all three of you.
I've been lucky enough to work with two of you, and Sean, we're due. I would love it.
Figure that out. Thanks, JB.
I love you. So I'll see you.
And, you know, I've been lucky enough to work with two of you and Sean, we're due. Yeah, I would love it.
Figure that out. And thanks, JB.
Thanks for everything. I love you.
I'll see you in a few days. Say hi to Mark and Bennett.
I sure will. And go feed your dog.
Loved the family. Will do.
I'm going to wake him up. Okay.
All right. Bye.
Bye, Laura. Thank you.
Bye. Well, that was lovely.
It was painful for me. It was a lot of love to receive.
I'm good at that but you're doing better she's you know I love if you could pick a second wife she would be it well imagine if it wasn't her I mean it was her for her for a reason, you know? You guys really connected, and I can't imagine anybody else playing that part. I still remember the day I, she was the first person I went to on Ozark.
I took her out to breakfast at this restaurant in the bottom of this hotel I was staying in in New York. It was their scouting, I think.
And we share a manager, Aline Kishishian, and I said to Aline, I said, do you think Laura would ever consider doing a show again? And she's like, we should just talk to her. And I met her at that restaurant and just pitched her for an hour and a half and was really nervous about even the possibility of her saying yes or no.
It was such a big swing because I knew by having her on the show, not only would she be an incredible actor on it, but what she would sort of signal to the audience and to the community in the business about what the show is and what the show isn't. She's just such a great recruiter of high-quality people and a declaration of sort of the quality we're kind of shooting for.
And it was just such a gift that she said yes. The show never would have happened without her.
Ever. I mean, I can't imagine anybody else doing that part.
Yeah, so lucky. And what a great guest.
Yeah, I've always been such a massive fan like she's an actor's actor and uh she really is exactly you look at you look at her body and it just goes on and on and on and on and on imdb yeah it's crazy i love that she was here and by the way long time coming yes exactly yeah that was um i mean i remember talking to her when we got when we first got started, we were still doing Ozark, right? Yeah. Oh, God, yeah.

Yeah, right was, I mean, I remember talking to her. When we first got started, we were still doing Ozark, right? Yeah.
Oh, God, yeah. Yeah, right at the end.
Oh, that's right. Yeah, during COVID.
I mean, for a year. Right.
Yeah. Yeah, I remember talking to her.
Yeah. Yeah, I remember her sort of just looking at me like, I could just sense she was kind of looking at me like, you're doing what? Every week you're what? Yeah, exactly.
And then she started to say, well, you know, some people are talking to me that apparently they've listened to your podcast or something. People are liking it.
I'm like, you've got to come on. You've got to come on.
And she was like, yeah. Well, it's nice to know.
Here we go. It was nice to know.
Oh, here we go. Oh, now you're just telling us.
This is the guy who, when you merge on a freeway.

Nice of her to drop by or something like that.

Is that what it was going to be?

You know, Sean is just a terrible merger on the freeway.

He either comes in doing 120 miles an hour or doing 30 miles an hour.

Everyone's got to slam on the brakes.

Go ahead.

Zip her in.

No, I just thought it's nice that she said hi to directing,

but she definitely didn't say bye to acting.

Christ.

Oh, fuck, man.

You're the worst.

Fuck.

Fucking fuck, dude.

Holy shit.

That is rough.

Bye.

We might have to put you on a hiatus.

You can't initiate for a... You can't initiate.
Biatus. Smart.
Less. Smart.
Less. Smartless is 100% organic and artisanally handcrafted by Michael Grant Terry, Rob Armjarv, and Bennett Barbaco.
Smart Less. Hey friends, Jason here.
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