
Actor Nicholas Hoult feels truly happy about being Conan O’Brien’s friend. Nicholas sits down with Conan to discuss bringing back “huzzah” as Peter III in The Great, receiving an early education in film acting from Hugh Grant, exploring his passion for car racing, and working with visionary director Robert Eggers in his latest film Nosferatu. Later, Engineer Eduardo is taken to task during a particularly bruising Team Coco staff review. For Conan videos, tour dates and more visit TeamCoco.com. Got a question for Conan? Call our voicemail: (669) 587-2847.
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Conan O'Brien
There's a lot to say when buying a new home or car, but only one thing to say that can help you protect them. Like a good neighbor, State Farm is there. Hear me?
Sona Movsesian
I did. I heard you.
Conan O'Brien
And just like that, a State Farm agent will be there to help you choose the coverage you need. You just say that and they show up. They come jumping out of a shrub.
Sona Movsesian
Oh, cool.
Conan O'Brien
No matter where you are in life, when you need the coverage options, your State Farm agent is there to help. On the phone or in person. Like a good neighbor, State Farm is there.
Nicholas Hoult
Hi, my name is Nicholas Holt.
Conan O'Brien
And.
Nicholas Hoult
I feel truly happy about being Conan O'Brien's friend.
Matt Gourley
Fall is here. Hear the yell Back to school Ring the bell Brand new shoes Walking loose.
Nicholas Hoult
Climb the fence Books and pens I.
Conan O'Brien
Can tell that we are gonna be friends I can tell that we are gonna be friends hey there. Welcome to Conan O'Brien needs a friend, joined by Sonam Obsession. Hi, Sona. You done coughing? It was a lot of coughing.
Sona Movsesian
I always have to clear my throat.
Conan O'Brien
My grandfather used to say, it's not the cough that carries you off, it's the coffin. They carry you often. Fun guy. Anyway, then he'd say goodnight and shut the door. We have to go to sleep. Matt, how are you? Matt Gorley? I'm good.
Matt Gourley
How are you?
Conan O'Brien
I'm good. I have a little pet peeve.
Adam Sachs
Oh.
Conan O'Brien
My pet peeve is that sometimes we gather around these mics, these microphones, these holy transmitters of our wise words. And we're supposed to do a podcast. And then you guys start yammering mostly. I think we know who the criminal is here at Sona. You'll start yammering about something and we haven't begun. And you're like, yeah, before we get started. And you'll yammer Sometimes for 20 minutes. And I'm thinking, why aren't we making this the podcast? Why can't you control yourself?
Sona Movsesian
This is part of my process.
Conan O'Brien
Oh, I'm sorry, Marlon Brando. I didn't realize you were.
Matt Gourley
You have a process.
Sona Movsesian
I have a pro. This is my. Can I say something, though? I think you always forget, out of the three of us, I am the least professional.
Conan O'Brien
Never forget that.
Sona Movsesian
Oh, okay.
Conan O'Brien
Never for a second do I forget that you are an unprofessional person.
Sona Movsesian
Yes. Okay.
Conan O'Brien
So a total loose cannon. Sometimes you might forget that you're cuckoo in the cabeza.
Sona Movsesian
So you might forget that sometimes it's never never left. No, you might forget it.
Conan O'Brien
Never ever. I never forget that. And so what? All I'm saying is there are times where I'm thinking, we're here. We're here to. To do our. Our job, which we also love. It's fun. But you'll start gabbin and Gabbin and Gabbin. And I'll say, well, why don't we just say, hey, welcome to Kon O'Brien Needs a Friend. And we can. Whatever this is. We can talk about what you're talking about. And you'll be like, hold on, I'm not done yet.
Sona Movsesian
What did he just say? What did he just say earlier? Shut the fuck up.
Conan O'Brien
Monetize it or monetize it?
Nicholas Hoult
Shut the fuck up.
Matt Gourley
Yes.
Conan O'Brien
Yeah, I do think, you know.
Sona Movsesian
I know. Maybe that was, you know. Okay, sorry, go ahead.
Conan O'Brien
No, no, please continue.
Sona Movsesian
I think you know. Okay.
Conan O'Brien
La, la, la, la, la.
Sona Movsesian
We have to, like, talk when the microphones are on, but sometimes I just want to catch up with you guys because I'm actually your friend.
Conan O'Brien
No, no, no, no. You're.
Sona Movsesian
We're friends. And sometimes it's okay to just catch up in.
Conan O'Brien
When we're in this room, everything must be monetized. Everything must. Adam, help me out here. When we're in this room, everything must, you know, is part of the product, the team.
Matt Gourley
Coco, can I offer a suggestion, especially if it's coming from Sona, that she should be paid more because the product is being monetized is primarily hers.
Conan O'Brien
Bada, ding dong, ding dong.
Matt Gourley
Well, I didn't say that.
Brendan Burns
I did not say that.
Conan O'Brien
Do you want to weigh in? That does not represent.
Eduardo Perez
I agree with you that it's a waste. It's inefficient for there to be conversation happening off mic. But in Sona's defense, yes, I think you're often guilty of the same thing, which is telling stories, chatting, when we're not actually recording. So I agree with you in theory, but I have to say, I think that it's not just Sona.
Sona Movsesian
I love you, Adam. And can I say something to bounce off of what Adam just said?
Conan O'Brien
Can we just let this moment sit? Yeah.
Sona Movsesian
No, because I have something to add to it.
Conan O'Brien
I invited Adam. He sits way in the corner he's over there calculating, scheming and calculating and scheming. Yeah. And I bring him over into this holy, holy area of the table with the mics and. And then you stab me.
Matt Gourley
He crucified you through my toga. Crucified you.
Conan O'Brien
He crucified me.
Eduardo Perez
I just have to be. I just have to be my honest self. I have to be true to myself, and that's the truth.
Conan O'Brien
So you think sometimes I spin a yarn after we're done.
Matt Gourley
Well, now, I hate to do this, but can I add on, most of the time when you do that, it is unmonetizable because it cannot go public.
Conan O'Brien
That's true. I tell some real quirkers.
Matt Gourley
Did you just get on me last episode about using the phrase cock of the walk and you just use corkers?
Conan O'Brien
I tell, you know, sometimes I.
Matt Gourley
A real lulu.
Conan O'Brien
Sometimes I lay out a real lulu of a story. No, I do tell some stories that are not for public consumption because maybe they include a name. And I don't like to sell people, you know, sell people out. But. And so we have some delicious conversations in here. But, yeah, I guess I'm guilty of the same thing.
Eduardo Perez
But I do think Matt's right, though, a lot. I think you are usually thoughtful about. If you're gonna tell a story that is appropriate for the podcast, you will save it for the podcast.
Conan O'Brien
Okay. What I'm saying, Sona, is that I want. Don't. How dare you haram.
Sona Movsesian
I was just. I was breathing.
Conan O'Brien
That was not breathing. That was a haram. If that's your or else you have emphysema, I'm breathing. I think all those years in the coal mine have hurt you. I believe, Sona, that you should be a little more disciplined here about your work and you should tell your tales.
Sona Movsesian
Into the microphone off of what Adam just said. How often during when we were taping the show did you hold up rehearsal? Cause you were noodling on your guitar so much. And isn't that kind of the same thing? We both have a process.
Conan O'Brien
We do. Oh, my God. You know what? That's a fair point. Oh, my God. There are. I want to say over. There are 28 years of. There's 28 years where I'm making late night television, and I think there may be easily 2000 hours of me playing whatever guitar song I want to play that day while people in headsets desperately try to get me to rehearse a scandal.
Matt Gourley
What was even the conversation that you were supposed to save for the mic? We don't even Know it this time.
Conan O'Brien
We don't even know anymore. I don't remember.
Sona Movsesian
Look, it's just because I like you. You don't like it when I have a good time.
Conan O'Brien
Sometimes it is true. When Sona's having joy, I feel like I'm having a heart attack. Yeah. When Sona's experiencing true joy, I have all the symptoms of a major aortic aneurysm.
Adam Sachs
It does feel like before you enter the room, we have to hurry up and get our catch up session.
Matt Gourley
That's right, we do.
Adam Sachs
Just otherwise you're going to yell at us.
Eduardo Perez
We talked about a lot in about seven. Seven minutes before you walked in today.
Conan O'Brien
What did you see? So you guys are afraid before I come in the room that once I show up, I'm gonna shut everything down.
Matt Gourley
You're gonna monetize our little anecdotes about how we've been and what we've been doing over the past?
Conan O'Brien
That's exactly what I would do.
Sona Movsesian
This is a bigger conversation about how you. The work environment you've created.
Matt Gourley
Yeah.
Sona Movsesian
And how we can't comfortably speak. So. I'm glad you brought this up.
Conan O'Brien
Can I just say that if someone is struggling in a situation like this, better help is probably. With better help, you can get online counseling.
Sona Movsesian
Second thumbs up. Come on.
Conan O'Brien
He's not wrong.
Eduardo Perez
I'm just use offer code.
Nicholas Hoult
Conan.
Conan O'Brien
Yeah.
Matt Gourley
Oh, my God.
Conan O'Brien
Yeah. Exactly. And you know what? Rap. You can. You can. If. If a therapist isn't a good fit, you can cut off that session right away and it's no hassle to start another one.
Sona Movsesian
This is kind of like us having Miller Time.
Conan O'Brien
You know it is like Miller Time. You know how it's like Miller Time when. When you. When you're a bunch of buddies standing around and you know what you want when you're with buddies? You want beer that tastes like beer. Do you know what I mean?
Matt Gourley
Oh, my God. You know what you've done to our friendship? You fractured it.
Conan O'Brien
Yes. There's a blast. Jesus. There's a blast from the past.
Eduardo Perez
If you are unhappy, you should check out LinkedIn jobs.
Sona Movsesian
I hear they have a good B2B model.
Conan O'Brien
Yes. Okay. We just made. Yep. $88. Worth it.
Sona Movsesian
Oh, my God.
Conan O'Brien
All right, you guys. My guest today starred in the Hulu series the Great. Now you can see him in the new movie Nosferatu. I'm very excited he's here. He's incredibly talented. Nicholas Hoult. Welcome.
Nicholas Hoult
Are we started? Is this it?
Conan O'Brien
Yes, this is it. Yeah.
Nicholas Hoult
I was thinking about friendship on the Drive here.
Conan O'Brien
Were you really?
Nicholas Hoult
Yeah. Well, I was thinking about how LA is quite a lonely town in many ways. Anyway, we don't have to get into it too well.
Conan O'Brien
No, we should, because you live in LA now.
Nicholas Hoult
Yeah, well, technically down in Long beach. Yeah. So, LBC, I've lived 20 years. Oh.
Matt Gourley
Whereabouts in Belmont Shore?
Nicholas Hoult
You live so close to me. I'm on Naples.
Matt Gourley
Oh, my God. I lived in Naples for a little bit, too.
Nicholas Hoult
Oh, my gosh. Want to be friends?
Adam Sachs
Yes.
Conan O'Brien
Wait a minute. Hello. This is relieved.
Matt Gourley
You're dismissed.
Conan O'Brien
I'm going to go have a coffee.
Nicholas Hoult
You still live in Belmont? What are you.
Matt Gourley
I live in Pasadena now, but.
Nicholas Hoult
Oh, you went the wrong way. Okay. Friendship man.
Conan O'Brien
It was so. He wanted to get farther away from the water and closer to the sun and just be miserable.
Nicholas Hoult
I do like Pasadena. Well, there's a Huntington Library and gardens.
Conan O'Brien
Yeah. You want to be friends?
Nicholas Hoult
Well, we don't go there anymore because it's too far now, so.
Matt Gourley
I understand.
Nicholas Hoult
If whoever.
Conan O'Brien
I think I'll think of you interview completely.
Nicholas Hoult
Basically, I'm here looking for friends.
Conan O'Brien
What are you just planning for? You'd be an amazingly cool friend to have. I have to say, I am a massive fan of yours.
Nicholas Hoult
Thanks.
Conan O'Brien
And you seem like a very normal, healthy person, and I'm sure you don't love compliments ladled on you. I always liked your work. Oh, you do? Okay, well, then you're like. Well, first time I saw you was in About a Boy, which is such a great film. And you were so good in that movie with Hugh Grant. And it holds up. I think I've watched it many times since then. It's one of those movies, whenever it's on. I love you in it. I love the story. I love Hugh Grant. It's just so well done. I love the soundtrack. Blah, blah, blah. And then I saw you kill it in many roles. And then you started doing the great with Elle Fanning.
Nicholas Hoult
Yeah.
Conan O'Brien
And my eyeballs fell out of my head because I. I thought, Nicholas Hoult is one of the funniest actors alive. You are so good in that role. And here's the thing. You're walking this insane line of a terrible murderer who, you know, who is constantly on the verge of killing his wife and by today's standards, just an inhuman barbarian and incredibly likable. And I thought, what kind of judo move is that? But I loved your character in that. I thought you were absolutely hilarious than that role. Thanks.
Nicholas Hoult
It was a dream of a role because Tony McNamara's writing is so smart and that was the thing. I kind of discovered that character along the way, as everyone else did, because he wrote the favorite as well that I was in. And then after that, he said, oh, I've got this other script. And it was at that point a feature script for. For the Great. And I'd worked with Elle before. He said he was going to ask Elle to play Catherine, and she's wonderful, as you know, and. And I knew I had a fantastic time working with her previously. So I was excited about all the components, and then he turned it into a show. But when we started shooting, we only had like a couple of episodes, of two or three episodes. So then it was kind of. As we went. We would get more of the episodes as we shot. So it was kind of like I'd read it and I'd be like, oh, this is terrible. Very funny, but terrible. Horrible character.
Conan O'Brien
Right.
Nicholas Hoult
Who's just punched his wife and all these things. But then. But then you'd start to eke out all the things that made him human and tick and the way. The way. The way he is and how ridiculous he is in very humorous ways. So it was kind of. It was definitely all down to him, his writing, basically.
Conan O'Brien
Okay, yes, great writing. But I thought you and Elle together. One of my favorite couples I've seen on TV in memory. And also, we had the best time. Well, you could tell. You guys have such a great chemistry. But also huzzah became. I think you put huzzah on the map.
Nicholas Hoult
It's back.
Conan O'Brien
Huzzah is back. Huzzah. So just that self assurance, constantly obsessed with your cock and sex. And I just got. I'm just watching this and thinking, is this the segue?
Sona Movsesian
I know.
Matt Gourley
Is this in your journal again?
Conan O'Brien
Yes.
Nicholas Hoult
Yeah.
Sona Movsesian
No, but just like, cock was so aggressive.
Nicholas Hoult
Yes, it's a very aggressive word.
Conan O'Brien
It's a very aggressive word.
Nicholas Hoult
Strong sounds.
Conan O'Brien
Yeah, it is. But also just this kind of musing about sex and what he's going to do next, and just like, it was just hilarious. Hilarious.
Nicholas Hoult
A real foodie.
Conan O'Brien
Yeah, a real foodie.
Nicholas Hoult
One of the redeeming things about him is his foodie nature, but also he's very open. It's exactly what you see is what you get.
Conan O'Brien
Yes.
Nicholas Hoult
And I think that's one of the things that people can appreciate about him. It's like, not very common that you see someone who tells you exactly what they're thinking when they're thinking it.
Conan O'Brien
And he's the kind of person who might say, hmm, I may have to murder you now, but would Say it out loud and then go, well, probably shouldn't have said that out loud. That's the kind of. I think, that show. I mean, first of all, the acting across the board. Who plays the. I mean, such terrific acting, but the. The. The minister of war, the general.
Nicholas Hoult
Oh, Douglas Hodge.
Conan O'Brien
Oh, my God.
Nicholas Hoult
Yeah.
Conan O'Brien
And that.
Nicholas Hoult
That is truly incredible, his performance, because, you know, these characters aren't described. There's not like any of the bellowing and breathing and all those things that Douglas added. And I remember being in scenes with him when we first started shooting. You'd hear him constantly, like, swallowing his own burps and stuff. None of that was in the script. It was just something that he brought to the character and was so hilarious that there were times that we had to, like, cut and stop scenes because the rest of us would be giggling so much at just how he breathes.
Conan O'Brien
He's constantly. But again, he was a great character because he's this. You know, he's this Russian general who's drunk, kind of useless all the time, but also. But also has common sense. I mean, he is the voice of reason often in a scene, but also not. I don't know. That series was so delightfully surprising, and I watched that, and then I knew that I had a Nicholas Holt obsession when. I don't know if you guys remember, but Elle Fanning came on the podcast and we were talking about the show, and I kept saying, tell me more about Nicholas. And she, you know, she would indulge me, and she was like, well, what? You should talk to Nicholas. And I'm like, yes, I should.
Matt Gourley
You tried to get his number from her?
Conan O'Brien
I did. I did, and she gave it to me. And then it was like a suspiciously wrong. It was a 5, 5, 5.
Nicholas Hoult
That's the 1, 2, 3, 4, and breathing down the line. Now I recognize the breath.
Matt Gourley
You thought it was Douglas Hodge.
Conan O'Brien
So I just want to go through. I just want to walk you through your career, which at such a young age, you've had such a range of experiences and so much success. But, you know, I know that you had worked as a child, but then about a boy is when it's like 2002. I want to say.
Nicholas Hoult
Yeah, about that.
Conan O'Brien
Yeah. And you're working with Hugh Grant, who, by the way, has had this. I mean, he started out as one type of performer in romantic comedies, and now he's become. He's found this whole other sweet spot that I find extremely emerald. He is so good.
Nicholas Hoult
His recent one's coming out soon, right? Heretic. Heretic Yeah, I saw the trailer. It looks great.
Matt Gourley
Looks amazing.
Conan O'Brien
I maintain, and I have many people. I think many people will agree with me. Paddington 2. And it sounds like I'm making a joke.
Nicholas Hoult
It's so good.
Conan O'Brien
Paddington 2 might be a perfect movie, and I think it has a score on Rotten Tomatoes of just absolute perfection. I've watched Paddington 2 several times looking for a flaw. There isn't one. But Hugh Grant is so delightfully, insanely over the. He's having such a good time.
Nicholas Hoult
It's brilliant. He is truly brilliant.
Conan O'Brien
But you worked with him. You were young, 10, 11, 12, something like that. You're working with Hugh Grant and he taught you by observing him, you learned from him.
Nicholas Hoult
I still think the other day I was thinking about. And I think a lot of my sense of humor probably stems down a little bit from him. And also just, you know, how he was on set. He was so dedicated to the work and professional and kind and good with everyone and just really, really deeply cared about doing a good job himself and making the film good. And I think I couldn't have had a better experience at that sort of age in terms of just learning and watching people and being like, okay, this is how. It's how it's supposed to be and how it's supposed to be.
Conan O'Brien
You'd have to put in the work.
Nicholas Hoult
Yeah.
Conan O'Brien
To get to the fun part. You need to prepare. You need to be on it.
Adam Sachs
Yeah.
Nicholas Hoult
And also it's that thing of like, you know, you end up on set sometimes where people won't come out of trailers and this and that, and there's just extra kind of ego business going on, and there wasn't any of that. So I think good to have, you know, good behavior around. That sort of, you know.
Conan O'Brien
Well, you lost me with this whole line of reasoning. I had a trailer put upstairs in this office just so I could not come out of it. But half the time, no one wants me to come out of it.
Matt Gourley
It's a win.
Nicholas Hoult
Win.
Conan O'Brien
Yeah. I wasn't familiar with, you know, this show you did when you were an adolescent. Skins. I don't really know that show, but it became huge in the uk and that was a little difficult for you to handle because you're an adolescent and suddenly it's this.
Nicholas Hoult
Yeah. I don't think any of us were prepared for how well that show would do, and I stand by this. Somebody was asking me about that show the other day, and I was saying, I think the reason that it did kind of capture the moment so well is because it Wasn't expected to be what it was. You know, I feel like more commonly now when shows kind of showing the teen way of life and whatever, and they're going to show everything and it's going to be hardcore and all this sort of stuff, there's kind of this idea of what it's going to be and how it's going to fit into the zeitgeist early. Whereas that was kind of like, we're just going to make this show. We're kind of messing around. Yeah, it's a good bunch of people. Very talented bunch and great writing. But it's kind of like not. Nothing's expected of it.
Conan O'Brien
Yes.
Nicholas Hoult
And then it did kind of blow up in a way that I feel like it still kind of gets watched by some people now. I've never actually seen it.
Conan O'Brien
You were young to be experiencing that kind of attention.
Nicholas Hoult
I was 16 or 17, and I guess it was around then that maybe camera phones and stuff were starting to kind of come out as well. And it was just. It was a weird transition because up until then I'd basically most of the time just been able to live my life very normally. And I still can mostly day to day. It's being recognized as kind of a weird. It goes in weird waves. I don't know if you find this, but it's like if you've had something out recently or you've been on people's screens, then maybe they recognize you. Otherwise, people just look at me like maybe we went to school together. But at that period, because that show was very popular, like with my age group and everything as well, it was kind of. It felt like I was under scrutiny a lot.
Conan O'Brien
Yeah. So if you're going out, you just want to have a drink, hang out with friends.
Nicholas Hoult
Yeah.
Conan O'Brien
You have to accept that. That someone might be recording you.
Nicholas Hoult
Yeah, it was a weird transition. I didn't particularly enjoy that at all.
Conan O'Brien
I think it's healthy not to enjoy that. I think there are a lot of people who'd be 15, 16, 17, and think, boy, if I could be famous right now and get that kind of attention at an age when you want attention, wouldn't that be amazing? And so often it's not.
Nicholas Hoult
Yeah, well, I don't know. What kind of attention do people want?
Conan O'Brien
Well, let me explain my problem.
Nicholas Hoult
Come to the master. Here we go.
Conan O'Brien
You talk about getting recognized. I wear a hat that says I am Conan O'Brien. Wherever I go, stop me and ask for a selfie. We had a birthday party here at the office the other day and they brought out this cake and there was this really cool, like, flower made of frosting right in the middle of the cake. Someone scooped it out just to eat that flower. I hate that. Yeah, that person to me is a villain. A true villain.
Sona Movsesian
You should fire them.
Conan O'Brien
A monster. If I could. There's no camera. I can. I've looked. I've looked for the tape.
Sona Movsesian
Gross.
Conan O'Brien
Whoever did it must pay. And I want to say to that person, if I found them and I saw them eating that flower that they cut out of the middle cake, I'd say, how do you sleep at night? Yeah, how do you sleep at night? And you know what? I think I know what they'd say. They'd say, Mattress Firm. Yeah, that's the problem. They'd turn it into an ad.
Sona Movsesian
It's interesting that you would know what they would say, but you have no idea what.
Conan O'Brien
They'd have frosting all over their mouth. And it's a Mattress Firm. Rest easy with Mattress Firm's 120 night sleep trial. Love it or your money back. Hey, I love to hear that.
Sona Movsesian
I love being able to give stuff back if I don't like it.
Conan O'Brien
And you often do. Every present I've given you over the last couple of years has ended up in the give bag bin. Your mattress is important for a good night's sleep, and Mattress Firm has quality mattresses at every price. For your best rest, Mattress Firm offers free and fast delivery to your door. In my day, I had to go to the mattress store and you had to carry it down the highway with your friend Eric. Not anymore. Get matched at Mattress Firm's semiannual sale and clearance and sleep at night. Text CONAN to 766-693 for $100 off your next purchase at Mattress Firm. Restrictions apply. See mattressfirm.com or store for details.
Brendan Burns
Hey, Sona, listen up. This is not a drill. Dennis Leary stars in the new Fox comedy Going Dutch.
Sona Movsesian
All right.
Brendan Burns
Did you know that Dennis Leary plays a legendary colonel unexpectedly put in charge of a non combat US army base in the Netherlands?
Sona Movsesian
I had no idea.
Brendan Burns
But I know it does sound amazing. You're probably wondering what the base is known for.
Conan O'Brien
Well, I'll tell you.
Brendan Burns
The base is known for cheese, laundry, and bowling. And the soldiers are a little different than what you'd expect.
Sona Movsesian
I bet they're goofy.
Brendan Burns
To top it off, the colonel's estranged daughter just happens to be the base captain, which obviously complicates things. Fan favorite Danny Pooty from Community. I love that guy. It's the Second in command and closest confidant.
Sona Movsesian
Thursdays, following new episodes of Animal Control on Fox.
Conan O'Brien
This message is brought to you by BetterHelp. Okay, Sona, what are your self care? Non negotiables?
Sona Movsesian
I mean, obviously washing my face every morning and night and then, you know, taking some time to myself, relaxing because.
Conan O'Brien
You'Ve got, you've got a stressful life, you've got twins.
Sona Movsesian
Yes.
Conan O'Brien
And you know, when your schedule's packed with kids, activities, big work, projects, more, it's easy to let your priorities slip. You forget you're taking care of other people, you're not taking care of yourself. And even when we know what makes us happy, sometimes it's hard to make time for it. We don't prioritize ourselves in general. But when you feel like you have no time for yourself, non negotiables like therapy are more important than ever. That's actually when you need it the most. So if you're thinking of starting therapy, give better help a try. Okay. It's entirely online. It's designed to be convenient, flexible and suited to your schedule. Just fill out a brief questionnaire to get matched with a licensed therapist and switch therapists anytime for no additional charge. My advice to you, never skip therapy day. With BetterHelp, visit betterhelp.comconan today to get 10% off your first month. That's BetterHelpH. E-L-P.comconan. you've had this interesting education where you were getting probably attention and working as a child, then you're a teenager. But then you've, I mean, you've handled it all really well. You've done. I was thinking of your performance in Mad Max as. First of all, when I first saw that, I didn't even realize it was you.
Nicholas Hoult
Yeah, see, no one will recognize me from that.
Conan O'Brien
Yeah, because you play Knucks and Nux is this terrific character. You lost so much weight for that and the backstory. First of all, I love that movie. Yeah, it's a good one. We did a parody of it when we were at Comic Con once where I played the doof warrior. Who's the guy that we actually recreated. We shot it film style. We recreated that whole giant truck. Do you remember this, Sona?
Sona Movsesian
I do.
Conan O'Brien
I'm hanging off the front with an electric guitar and the white face and wearing the red onesie and shirt shooting fire.
Nicholas Hoult
Have the red onesie.
Conan O'Brien
I'm wearing, I'm wearing it now, but I'm wearing it. The red ones.
Matt Gourley
He's his new nickname.
Conan O'Brien
Yeah, yeah, yeah. And I'm wearing it for medical reasons. But I'm shooting. They made. They gave me a guitar. That the real fire?
Nicholas Hoult
Yeah.
Conan O'Brien
And then we were shooting it out in the desert. But they said. I remember just before we started to shoot, they. No, after the first take, they said, when you get near a telephone pole, turn off the fire. And I was like, what? And they were like, because otherwise you'll set the telephone poles off here in the desert outside Los Angeles on fire. And I went. No one thought, like, this is up to me. If I want to, I can take out the power grid with my electric guitar. But anyway, we did a whole parody of that, which was really fun to do, but I absolutely adore that film. And your character. I mean, talk about being able to lose yourself in a character. You lost a ton of weight to play Nux, because you're in this. Everyone who survived that apocalypse is sickly.
Nicholas Hoult
Yeah. Nux is meant to be kind of essentially on his deathbed the day that you meet him at the start of the film. So that was something George asked me to do, was to lose some weight. And I did get a strange body dysmorphia through that, where I didn't feel I was that skinny. And then looked back at photos and I was like, oh, you were very skinny. I didn't realize quite how far I'd gone with it.
Conan O'Brien
And what was the. I mean, everyone has their own technique, but is that a kind of thing where literally you're working with a doctor and they're saying, okay, you can have a Tic Tac today and then a.
Nicholas Hoult
Little soup before bed? It wasn't that. It was just not eating as much and just running tons and jumping rope and, like. Yeah, just not eating that much.
Conan O'Brien
I wish there was a secret. Oh, I didn't eat as much. Fuck.
Nicholas Hoult
I think there is now, right. Ozempic.
Sona Movsesian
Yeah, that's true.
Conan O'Brien
Yeah. I'm getting an Ozempic colonic. I don't know. Maybe it'll go even faster if I go the other. What? That means go the other way. I'm just gonna say.
Matt Gourley
But a colonic.
Conan O'Brien
A colonic. I want that for other reasons.
Nicholas Hoult
They don't go together. Yeah. But the red onesie is gonna be helpful throughout this.
Conan O'Brien
Thank God I have that onesie on. When did you become.
Nicholas Hoult
My mates had to give himself, like, a colonic. Like, that's when you shoot the stuff up to loosen everything.
Conan O'Brien
Yes.
Nicholas Hoult
He had to do that in a hospital. And then, like, lost control. They said you could do it himself. And he was like, okay. I'll do it. But then was like, on the floor of the bathroom in the hospital, like, cramping with.
Conan O'Brien
Why did they say, do it yourself?
Sona Movsesian
Oh, my God.
Conan O'Brien
First of all, this story is much better if you identify your friend.
Nicholas Hoult
I can't. They're very famous.
Voiceover Artist
It's gotta be Hugh Grant.
Conan O'Brien
It's Hugh Grant. It's gotta be Hugh Grant. Grant. Cramping, shitting all over the floor. You heard it here, folks. Let's get that out there.
Nicholas Hoult
It's not cute.
Adam Sachs
Don't worry.
Conan O'Brien
Too late. I'm editing your. It's not out. And we're replacing it with an AI.
Nicholas Hoult
Yes, it is definitely him.
Conan O'Brien
Oh, we got the sound bite now. We're good. You got very seriously into motorcycles at some point. That was for a role.
Nicholas Hoult
I learned to ride bikes for a role. The first thing I did with Elle, called Young Ones that Jake Paltrow directed, did with me and El and Cody Smith McPhee and Michael Shannon. Great. A great group. But, yeah, my character rode motorcycles in that. So I learned to ride for that and then got into it for a little while and was riding a lot and getting on track and all that sort of stuff. But I've kind of stopped. It started to feel a little bit. Well, I fell off a few times, so that started to feel a little bit dangerous. And then I got more into car racing. So I've been doing more of that because it feels a little bit safer.
Conan O'Brien
Yes, You've got just some. You're in a cage. Yeah.
Nicholas Hoult
You've got a whole roll. Cage. Helmet. I mean, you wear a helmet, obviously, on the bikes, but you've also got this. This hands device. Have you heard of this? The hands. I think it stands for hands, head and neck saver. So it's like underneath your harness is this thing that then connects to your helmet to stop your head if you do crash from moving too far. So it saved loads of lives.
Conan O'Brien
So you have. And you have. Seriously, first of all, as a kid, you were interested in cars?
Nicholas Hoult
Yeah, I grew up watching it with my dad and racing him with my dad and stuff. And he would build cars as one of his hobbies. So I was always kind of interested and excited by them. So now I'm lucky where I got the opportunity to kind of go and race around a track.
Conan O'Brien
You just took, I mean, a serious course. What's the course that you just took?
Nicholas Hoult
Oh, the course of Balotta. The Ferrari. Yeah. So now I'm kind of waiting. Hopefully I've done some of their track attacks at The Ferrari challenge. And those have gone well. And then next will be the actual race, but track attacks, like when everyone's out there trying to set the fastest lap sort of thing time.
Conan O'Brien
Now, explain to me the appeal, because I've never. I'm not a gearhead. I enjoy a nice car, but when I first made money and could buy any car I wanted. Just so you know who you're talking to. And. And I'm a writer on the Simpsons, and I. I go out and I buy a. A Ford Taurus Sho. That's the Ford Taurus that has the stick shift.
Nicholas Hoult
Yeah. Stick shift's great.
Conan O'Brien
Yeah. But it looks like a Ford.
Sona Movsesian
You missed the Ford Taurus part of it all.
Nicholas Hoult
I have the stick shift and I was like, okay, having fun.
Conan O'Brien
It's got a sweet Yamaha 6 in there, but, yeah, I remember thinking, this is so cool. And people would say, you're driving around in a Ford taurus and you're 28 years old, and you told us you were going to get this really cool car. And I went, yeah, but if you look inside, it's got a stick shift. And the common reaction was, it's a Ford Taurus. You look like you're going to Whole Foods to buy some. Some protein.
Matt Gourley
Not even Whole Foods, like Big Lots.
Conan O'Brien
Okay, let's not get dicky about grocery stores. But anyway, that's the degree to which I'm probably not a gearhead, but you participated in and won a race recently, didn't you?
Nicholas Hoult
Yeah, yeah, I got the fastest time. So I don't know how to describe. The feeling of. It is something where it makes you very present, but you have to be.
Conan O'Brien
You have to be right.
Nicholas Hoult
And it's a weird mix between having a lot of adrenaline but then having to kind of counteract that and calm yourself and be extremely focused for periods of time where you're doing things that are against human instinct, because, like, for instance, at the track where you're kind of coming up through turns two and three and it's blind and so you can't see where you're going, and you have to keep your foot pinned to the floor, and you're going about 130, 40, accelerating into the.
Conan O'Brien
Into the curve.
Nicholas Hoult
Yeah. So. And you're going up, you're turning left, but you can't see exactly where you're aiming to come out. And then there's walls on either side. So you're going through there at like 140. And it all goes well, luckily for me this time. And everything was fine, but it's a weird feeling where you're. You're like half of the muscles in your leg are trying to pull up and stop you from doing it, and the other half are, like, overriding it. To be like, no, you have to do that to get quick. And then. And then it's. So there's. But then once you've done it once, you can do it again. And then you keep on building up, and you start to get muscle memory. Muscle memory. And you start to just. You start to feel the car and it become. You don't become one with the car. That's such a stupid thing to say. But you started.
Conan O'Brien
I did. With the Taurus. I had sex with my Taurus. Was that not clear? Wait a minute.
Matt Gourley
Never mind.
Conan O'Brien
The car was not on when I became one. When my car was not even on, and I was not in it when.
Nicholas Hoult
I became one with it. I thought it was fairly clear by the way you're talking about it.
Conan O'Brien
I'm going to keep explaining what happened. Well, okay.
Nicholas Hoult
But I was gonna go so far with it, and I've arranged myself.
Matt Gourley
I'd just like to take this time to apologize to you.
Nicholas Hoult
It's fine.
Matt Gourley
Yeah.
Conan O'Brien
Don't worry, Nicholas. This never has to air. It's interesting. I'm gonna sound like I'm making a joke, but I'm not. I kind of understand what you're saying, because if I'm in front of a large group of people, I am. There is an adrenaline rush, and I am sometimes doing things that are against my better nature. But I also think this is gonna be really funny if I do this thing that's potentially quite embarrassing or foolish. So there's this push me, pull you. But I also like to be in control. But I also like the potential chaotic loss of control. And it's all at the same time. That's the closest I've come to that.
Nicholas Hoult
Yeah, no, it's. Exactly.
Conan O'Brien
But it's not going 100%.
Nicholas Hoult
But it's a flow state, and it's kind of. And very meditative. And it becomes. But let me ask you something then. So when you're about to make a joke or take a risk, how often do you doubt it before you do it? And if you doubt it, do you just abort or do you override?
Conan O'Brien
This is one thing I found, is that if I'm thinking about it beforehand, it's not going to be as good. And if you do it, then it's not as satisfying, it's not as good, and for some reason, the audience knows it. Too. I don't know what that's all about.
Nicholas Hoult
No, no, no, I get. I. Yeah, I get what you're. What you're saying. Because when you were first talking about the Ford Taurus, I was. In my head, I was going to make. I was reaching for some sort of joke about there being a condom on the. On the gift and it was there somewhere. And then I was like, oh. And then. And then I thought about it too much and I was like, this is the time or place. Let's just bury.
Conan O'Brien
Right. But then. But then I went there. So you showed a lot of restraint and caution. Yeah. And you held your tongue. And then me, the older man who should know better.
Nicholas Hoult
Well, just because I couldn't formulate what the idea was.
Conan O'Brien
No, I didn't formulate it well either. I have me a Taurus and you.
Sona Movsesian
Just said, I f. My car.
Nicholas Hoult
There's some sort. There's some sort of star sign joke in here, too.
Conan O'Brien
There was no.
Nicholas Hoult
Yeah, better than a kid Capricorn or something.
Conan O'Brien
My point is.
Nicholas Hoult
What's that. What's that joke? What's the one where it's like, I don't know. I broke up with my ex and someone says, why? And they said, oh, because I'm a Sagittarius and they're a. Sorry. Sorry, I probably can't say that. Beep that one out.
Adam Sachs
No, you can say it.
Nicholas Hoult
That used to be my favorite for a while.
Conan O'Brien
You're allowed to say it in the uk. Yeah.
Nicholas Hoult
So I say apologies to anyone who's offended by that. Yeah, you can change that word for other words. They were a dick, but it's funny.
Conan O'Brien
Hey, Sona. I just want to make sure people know. Sona said that. Cun, cun, cun, cun. Okay, there you go. Now we're good. You know what's funny? Why is it you have better material than I do? This is frustrating, but it is funny how I did have an experience that I really loved. We shot a travel show in Berlin.
Nicholas Hoult
Oh, I'm going to Berlin in a couple of weeks. Let me know.
Conan O'Brien
Is it for work?
Nicholas Hoult
Yes.
Conan O'Brien
Okay. This was a while ago. I won't be going there anytime too soon. Uh, but we. We were. We shot a segment where I believe I'm in a very, very fast BMW. That's latest model, fastest model, and we go on the Autobahn. And what I always heard about the Autobahn is you can go as fast as you want. There are no speed limits. That's not really true. There are sections of the Autobahn where I Would crank it up as fast as I could go, but they're short. And then, then it's like, no, no, no, this part. You have to slow down to like 55 kilometers an hour, whatever. And I was.
Nicholas Hoult
How fast as you went?
Conan O'Brien
I wanna, I have to look it up. 55. It was 55. No, no, we went. I think it. I mean, it would not be impressive to you. It was impressive for me that we. I'd have to find the speed that we got to. But I was, I was impressed. It was at an impressive speed for you. No, they were sweaty. Anyway.
Nicholas Hoult
A lot of the time, I'm a.
Conan O'Brien
Bit of a pervert, but ever since the tourists. Yeah, no, I want to say it was.
Brendan Burns
I think you got up to like 121 or 126 miles per hour, which.
Conan O'Brien
To me, I mean, you said you've done two. What is it?
Nicholas Hoult
The fastest we went on track in the challenge Ferrari challenge car was 170, I think.
Conan O'Brien
Wow.
Nicholas Hoult
Okay. But that's weirdly.
Conan O'Brien
Everyone always says I was pulling a trailer.
Nicholas Hoult
The first thing I want to say.
Conan O'Brien
It had three horses in it.
Nicholas Hoult
That was through the drive through.
Conan O'Brien
Yeah.
Nicholas Hoult
That's what everyone always asks, though. And they're like, oh, how fast do you go on track? And a lot of the tracks, you don't go that fast because the straights aren't that long. And it's not. And it's not the sitting going fast in a straight line that's the difficult. But anyway, that's how everyone can put their foot to the floor and go up through gears. It's a bit getting through the corners quickly, which is the scary and difficult bit. And how well the brakes work. The first time using the brakes in a race car, you like just kind of kick your foot to the brake as hard as you can. And it everything like, they stop quick. It's impressive. But then trying to get that right whilst you're turning and releasing them. And then, and then you go into the pits and they're like, look at your time. And they're like, well, this is why you were slow because you, you, you hit the brake one car length too early. But traveling at 170 miles an hour, so you know, 0.1 10 of a second, but then you didn't release it at the right pressure, so you lost two tenths of a second. And then this and this. And suddenly you see why the details of it. And I think that's one of the reasons I like it as well. I've said this before. But in acting and filmmaking, there's lots of subjective things. In racing, that's very objective. They look at it and they go, this is why you're slower. So do that better and you'll be quick. And you're like, okay.
Conan O'Brien
No, it is refreshing. Because it's something that I find refreshing about sports not participating in so much but as watching them, is that things can be measured. And in comedy, no matter what you do, people go like, eh, not my cup of tea. Or someone can like it, someone else can hate it. It's just this miasma. It's this soup. You can never quite say, no, no, empirically, this wins because how can you do that? But in. And that's true of all the arts, like when sometimes when I watch the Oscars or any awards show, I think, this is so crazy. How can we be comparing all of these things and who's deciding? And what does that even mean? It always seems ridiculous to me.
Nicholas Hoult
Was. Let me ask you something career wise. Was there ever a measurement that you hoped to attain that you were like, oh, if I attain this or reach this or this happens, that'll be a good barometer of like, oh, of course I've done it. I've made. What was it?
Conan O'Brien
Yeah, what was it?
Nicholas Hoult
Is it right now?
Conan O'Brien
Welcome to the Nicholas. If I could get Nicholas Hoult to ask me questions as if I were interesting. That's my ego. That's my egot. No, I remembered my career has been a series of me thinking, if I could get to this point, then I'd never worry about anything again. And that goes back to me being 22 and just thinking, if I could just make a living as a comedy writer. And then I did, and I'm like, okay, well, the minute you attain something, yeah, you have disdain for it, but what's next?
Nicholas Hoult
What's the next. What's the next level then for me?
Conan O'Brien
I think. I think cover of Men's Health in a Speedo. Just like super cut.
Sona Movsesian
You should pivot.
Conan O'Brien
You should.
Nicholas Hoult
My hip hurt on the bonnet of the Taurus. Washing it, making sure it's extra clean.
Conan O'Brien
I think. I think it's time.
Matt Gourley
No.
Conan O'Brien
61 year old men of my complexion who work out intermittently are seen as sex symbols.
Matt Gourley
This country's already going through enough.
Conan O'Brien
I think this country can handle more. No, I think that's what the country needs. Yeah, the man of the hour. No, it is funny because I was very young and a writer on Saturday Night Live and we won an Emmy when I was there for a season that I've been working on. And we won. And I was in my 20s, and I remember thinking, wow, you know, this. I won an Emmy. This is gonna change everything. And of course, it doesn't change anything. None of these things change anything, really. And so it's just been this constant education and re. Education and reeducation. It's all an illusion. You just keep going. And I think for. I mean, your analogy would be there's not gonna be any point in a car where you're gonna say, I'm satisfied. Right. You're gonna keep.
Nicholas Hoult
I mean, I guess if you go and win, it can get.
Conan O'Brien
Oh, that's right.
Nicholas Hoult
The trophy or something. Then you can be. But then, of course, that's.
Conan O'Brien
Then it's like, you gotta do it again.
Nicholas Hoult
It's like, you've done it, you've gotta do it again. Or you've gotta go to a different track and do it again. You've gotta defend, like. Yeah, there's always.
Conan O'Brien
Did you stand on top of the car when you won the race?
Nicholas Hoult
No, I didn't.
Conan O'Brien
What are you supposed to do? There are all these iconic things you're supposed to do when you win.
Nicholas Hoult
I got on the podium and. And they. They gave a bottle of champagne, and. And I'd never done that before, the spraying champagne thing. And I did a terrible job. Popped it. It didn't really squirt anywhere. And then I saw the guy. The other guy on the podium, like, one of them, like, hit the bottle on the ground. So I kind of did that to try and get it to fizz, but it just kind of a load fell out. And then it was like, oh, it was just all a bit of a mess, because when you see people spraying champagne, it looks cool and awesome. I'm like, yeah.
Conan O'Brien
Did they take your trophy away?
Voiceover Artist
I know.
Nicholas Hoult
They should have done. It was an absolute disgrace.
Conan O'Brien
You could see them back, taking your car with a tow truck. They took the car back and then.
Nicholas Hoult
And then I'm like, I can fix this. I can do better. So I'm shaking it up, sticking my thumb. And then. And by then, like, there's not enough in there. It's not fizzy enough.
Conan O'Brien
And then everyone's left.
Nicholas Hoult
Yeah.
Conan O'Brien
You're there late at night, sun's gone down. You're there with a diet 7 up. Shaking it. Come on.
Nicholas Hoult
I still do it every morning. Yeah.
Conan O'Brien
Do you? Do you? Oh, I have. This is what I'm standing on. Characteristics. Does any of this translate. Does your driving ability translate to you on the 405 Freeway? No. Does anything like that translate or are you an amazing driver going 55 miles an hour on the highway to get your oil changed?
Nicholas Hoult
No, no, I don't think so. I just get bored sitting on motorways, stop, start and whatever. It's a completely different. I like to think that maybe my reaction time and if something happened, my car control would be good. But I've. Luckily I've never had to use it on the road.
Conan O'Brien
Yeah, that's good. You just knocked wood in. I don't think this is wood. What do you mean?
Sona Movsesian
I think definitely wood.
Adam Sachs
Definitely would.
Nicholas Hoult
The shape is like an expensive piece of wood.
Conan O'Brien
I don't trust Eduardo. I think he cheaped out on us. He found something cheaper than wood.
Adam Sachs
It might be particle board.
Nicholas Hoult
Yeah, it's better for the sound, right?
Adam Sachs
Yeah, he gets it.
Conan O'Brien
Yeah. You get it. I don't get it. How do you like living in Los Angeles area? We were talking about this a little bit when you first showed up. But it's so interesting. Maybe it's the grass is always greener, but having 100% Irish genes, I always find myself yearning for it to be cloudy and rainy here in Los Angeles. But for years I've noticed that people from the uk, Brits, they, they want to be here. They are not interested at all in a cloudy day. They want to get red faced. I don't know. Do you know?
Sona Movsesian
Do they?
Conan O'Brien
Well, I think so, yeah. They love, they love tanning. They love. Is that. Do you think I'm onto something?
Nicholas Hoult
I think you're onto something. Well, you know what the reverse of that would be. My wife was like when we first met. She was like, oh, I love. She's from here. She was like, oh, I love rain. I love cloudy days, whatever. I was like, cool. And we were back in London for a while shooting some of the great for six months. And I think it was rainy and cloudy and cold for most of that time. And she quickly realized that she didn't, didn't like enjoy that. There's something about if you grow up in the sun where you kind of have this romantic idea of rain and gray and cold and all this. But actually when you put her in it, she was like, no, this isn't.
Conan O'Brien
And you're happy, you like it here.
Nicholas Hoult
I like being in the sun. I mean, I miss London. I miss pubs and the theater and friends and a lot of the things about the lifestyle and being able to walk more places. So I do miss it. But I mean the thing about my job is I'm always kind of on the road in different places. So I'm finding this a nice base.
Conan O'Brien
At the moment we're talking. I want to make sure we get the word out on Nosferatu. Where did you shoot this? Where did you shoot Nosferatu?
Nicholas Hoult
We shot it in Prague.
Conan O'Brien
Oh, my God. See that. That is why I do a travel show. Is that for years and years and years, for 28 years, I sat at a talk show desk and talked to people like you who said, oh, I just got back from Prague.
Nicholas Hoult
Yeah. Have you been there for.
Conan O'Brien
No, I've never been to Prague. I want to go there.
Nicholas Hoult
But you should do an episode going there.
Conan O'Brien
Yeah, I will.
Nicholas Hoult
In. In, like, alignment with Nosferatu coming out.
Conan O'Brien
Yeah. Oh, oh, so you want me to travel to Prague to get my word out on Nosferatu.
Nicholas Hoult
Thank you.
Conan O'Brien
All right. Sona, could you book me a flight to Prague? Sure. And get me a tea? Good. Really good. Really good acting.
Sona Movsesian
All done by.
Conan O'Brien
And could you have a shirt made that says Nosferatu in theaters now?
Nicholas Hoult
Yeah.
Conan O'Brien
Let's see that. Can you screen print it?
Sona Movsesian
Oh, wow.
Conan O'Brien
Whoa. Laser printer. Stupid. What kind of machine makes this? Do all your machines make noises like that? Yeah, your guillotine probably goes.
Nicholas Hoult
I'd like to hear the guillotine.
Conan O'Brien
Yeah, let's hear the guillotine. Splort sport.
Nicholas Hoult
There needs to be a little bit.
Conan O'Brien
Yeah, yeah. It's sort of a wet. He landed on his tongue. I don't know what happened.
Nicholas Hoult
Didn't realize the French Revolution was so humorous.
Conan O'Brien
Yes. Benny Hill in the French Revolution. Okay. You made Nosferatu, directed by one of my favorites, Robert Eggers. I love his stuff.
Nicholas Hoult
He's incredible, isn't he?
Conan O'Brien
Absolutely incredible. And so, I mean, I'm excited to just see the look of the film. I mean, he always achieves.
Nicholas Hoult
I mean, I agree with you. I'm such a huge fan of his. I love his movies. I love the performances in his movies. He is, I think, a real auteur filmmaker and one of the greatest working and alive. He's. He's just. And it's. You know what? I was thinking about this the other day as well. He's so dedicated to the craft of filmmaking in terms of technically, emotionally, historically, what he creates. There were moments where he was like, watching old films to try and figure out what was the best snow we could use because he shot all on. All on film. He's like, you said, the look is so important in terms of telling the story, but he. So he was. He was like, why is the film. Why is the Snow good in these movies, but it's not good in these. And then he found like some old stock snow that isn't made anymore. Fake Snow from the 90s, whatever they managed to locate as best just enough. And I'm breathing this asbestos in and I'm like, God, this movie is beautiful and it's worth it.
Conan O'Brien
There's a reason they don't use it anymore.
Nicholas Hoult
Poisoning myself.
Conan O'Brien
No.
Nicholas Hoult
God, it looks good on screen. He is. He is, yeah. It's just his dedication to, like, the details of historically, but also like exploring the occult and the emotional aspects of this story. It's something he's wanted to make since he was 8 years old. And there was a play of it he did at school, so no one could have told it better.
Conan O'Brien
What are the Eggers movies that you were really drawn to?
Nicholas Hoult
I mean, the Witch was the first one I saw and I met him after that, which I just thought all his movies feel so real, which is kind of a weird thing. Cause I'm not necessarily like a horror fan.
Conan O'Brien
Well, this is. It's so funny. Cause I had the opportunity to interview Jordan Peele and he was asking me, what kind of horror films do you like? And I said, I don't like someone jumping out of a bush, stabbing jump scares, and someone chasing someone else with a chainsaw. And I cited the Witch as an example and Eggers as an example of. There's a wide shot early in the film. It's fall and It's New England, 17th century New England. And the wind is blowing and you just see these trees slightly undulating. And it's terrifying because of the implication of what something malevolent is out there. He managed to make trees in the fall in New England very frightening. And I responded to there's so much in the Witch that it's so much of its tone and so much of it is. And then there are. Yes, there are little moments that are frightening, but when you think about it, there's so little violence, there's so little action, but your heart's in your mouth the whole time.
Nicholas Hoult
Yeah. Oh, he's a master of creating tension. I think you're going to love that. I think I'm excited for you to see it because it's like the tension he creates, but it is visually stunning. And the score and the sound is like imposing and fills your bones. But then there's this weird thing where it's like you're watching it. You're like. You can't take your eyes away because it's. It's like looking at a Rembrandt. Every scene, every shot. But then. But then there's also this thing where you, like, don't want to look away because you're also. This is scary. Something's coming, something's happening. And it's. It's a really interesting exploration of kind of the evil that we all have within ourselves, but also externally coming and how that affects us. So I'm excited. I think it's a really good.
Conan O'Brien
The period is. Is it 1890s? Yeah.
Nicholas Hoult
Pittsburgh, Germany. So it's kind of a gothic tale, I guess. But then, yeah, going back to his movies, of course, the Lighthouse was like. And Willem Dafoe's in this one as well. And him and Rob were so brilliant.
Conan O'Brien
In that one we got to do. We did a travel show in Dublin last year and we drove around and we went to Wicklow, which there's this great iconic lighthouse. And I got all made up as Willem Dafoe in the Lighthouse. And I have this long, insane speech that we shot in black and white.
Nicholas Hoult
You're doing promo for the Lighthouse then, so you can do something. That's right.
Matt Gourley
You better make another shirt.
Conan O'Brien
What I'm saying is go check out the Lighthouse.
Nicholas Hoult
Get the costume on as well.
Conan O'Brien
But what I love send you the script. What I loved about that. I guess what I loved about that movie is the performances are amazing, but also you're paying attention to, like, the button on someone's weird suit, which is very somehow evocative. He manages to get all that stuff right. And I'm thinking Gothic Nosferatu, late 19th century field day with the visuals.
Nicholas Hoult
Oh, the costumes. Linda, the costumes that she created are all impeccable and stunning. But it is all that detail again. It's like his historical knowledge of everything going on. He. And because he leads from the front with such passion, everyone around just really wants to bring their best and do their best to serve his vision. But then I would text him thinking he'd be asleep about something in, like, the middle of the night. In the middle of the day here. But which middle of the night in London. And he'd be like, oh, I'm up. I'm researching which cigars you. Your character should smoke in this scene. And whatever. He'd be like, dude, go to bed. It's 3 or 4am in London. What are you doing? But he's just constantly so. So in the zone of what's. What's right for the story in every.
Conan O'Brien
He's smoking thousands of cigars, he's vomiting yeah, I've got to get the right one. I am. Well, listen, I am a huge, huge fan of yours as a person, but I just think your performances are off the charts. Great. And this movie is made for me, so. And oh yeah, Bill Skarsgrd.
Nicholas Hoult
Yeah. Oh, his performance is magic as well because he's created, you know, this monster, Count Orlok, but he's given it such history and rooted it in something very real. So it's, you know, it's terrifying, it's scary, but it's also, it's also real.
Conan O'Brien
Do you. I'm curious because my work is always. I make something and then we see it either instantly or 10 minutes later, and then I never see it again. Your work is. You work really hard on something, craft it, you make it, you have some control over some facets of it. But. And then this long period of time goes by, I would think before you see it. How apprehensive are you? About. Okay, now it's time for me to go see myself in Nosferatu.
Nicholas Hoult
I don't like. I don't like that. I always equate it to like when you were at school and you did a test and you're waiting for the results to come in.
Conan O'Brien
Yeah, yeah.
Nicholas Hoult
There's that nerve wracking feeling where you're like. And it depends also how you left the shoot in terms of how you. Your overall feeling there. Like, did you feel like you gave a lot of variation on each scene in the edit? If they want, they're going to have options. Did you feel like you explored everything you could have done and then that's a different feeling as opposed to if you walk away from something, you go, I think I missed a bit here. Or actually that could have been better. And suddenly then you're looking back and you're like, oh, no. So it's an odd feeling waiting for something to come out and not something I look forward to particularly.
Conan O'Brien
I'll say from my vantage point, your work is excellent. And so. And trust me, I think a word from Conan O'Brien carries a lot of weight in the film industry.
Nicholas Hoult
Yeah.
Conan O'Brien
Huh?
Sona Movsesian
The car.
Conan O'Brien
Yeah.
Matt Gourley
Red onesie. The car. Five stars.
Conan O'Brien
Five. Five stars from the Taurus.
Nicholas Hoult
Fucker.
Conan O'Brien
Absolutely thrilled that you could be here today. And I do want to be your friend. I doubt it's going to happen.
Nicholas Hoult
We can definitely be friends.
Conan O'Brien
No, I have a bad.
Nicholas Hoult
You gave me the sheet. You didn't say it.
Conan O'Brien
And I'm gonna say it's not gonn to happen on your end. I'm going to say you're the one that's going to see.
Nicholas Hoult
Just keep calling and breathing down the phone. I'm always waiting.
Conan O'Brien
Nicholas.
Nicholas Hoult
That's the only reason I've still got a landline.
Conan O'Brien
It's me. But congrats on the new film Nosferatu. And thank you so much for stopping by and for being so funny and terrific.
Nicholas Hoult
Thanks for having me. Appreciate it.
Conan O'Brien
Peace out, Tupac.
Sona Movsesian
Oh, God.
Conan O'Brien
No one expects that. Why? Some trips are better in an Airbnb, it's just true. Like the trip you want to take with extended family where you want to stay close but not all be sharing one bathroom. That's key for me. Okay. That's why Airbnb is the choice I often want to make. Or for example, the couple's getaway where you'd rather have your own pool than share one with a bunch of strangers. Oh, when I'm in a pool with strangers, I start shrieking.
Sona Movsesian
Okay, that's weird.
Conan O'Brien
Or that last minute local getaway when you just really need to get out of the city for the weekend but don't want to deal with the airport. You know, I have to say, I've used Airbnb a couple of times and it always makes me feel like I'm at home, even when I'm away. Do you have that, Erica?
Sona Movsesian
I do too. I mean, I have, you know, I have two small kids who are loud and so when I'm in a hotel, I feel a little uncomfortable.
Conan O'Brien
Well, you're loud too.
Sona Movsesian
Oh, yes. Okay. Yeah, we're all loud. And then in an Airbnb, I just feel much more comfortable.
Conan O'Brien
You're not a self conscious?
Sona Movsesian
No.
Conan O'Brien
Yeah. And also you're staying in someone's home. It's got that vibe of comfort, relaxation, normalcy instead of some stuffy hotel. Yeah, I don't want to mint on my pillow. Hey, Blay, you use Airbnb, don't you?
Brendan Burns
I do. I love it. And I will say there's staying in someone's place really does add a lot. I'm a huge Stephen King fan and the last Airbnb I stayed in had this book from a Buick 8, which is one of the few Stephen King books I haven't read. So I actually started reading it in the Airbnb.
Nicholas Hoult
It was pretty awesome.
Conan O'Brien
And you know what I do sometimes when I'm at an Airbnb? I often travel with a picture of myself and frame.
Sona Movsesian
Oh boy.
Conan O'Brien
And I take it out and I put it up and it feels like home. I travel with my own framed headshot.
Brendan Burns
Do you leave it there for as a gift?
Conan O'Brien
No, that's mine. Those things are precious. So if you're booking a trip soon, my number one tip is to check out Airbnb first to find the perfect place to stay. Because your accommodation really does make all the difference. There's nothing quite like the feeling of an upgrade when you're traveling. Well, as a T Mobile customer, you can take the perks with you. Check this out. Whether you're going on a weekend getaway to the mountains, or let's say you're on a dream vacation, or in my case, a work trip to Thailand, it's just fantastic. Let me explain. It starts the moment you take off with free in flight Wi Fi so you can stream your favorite show on the go. I mean, that's incredible.
Sona Movsesian
That is actually pretty sweet.
Conan O'Brien
I love that. I mean, that's insane. I'm always there with my credit card, you know, I can't figure it out. I lose the credit card, the phone is stolen, someone punches me, you start crying. I cry a lot. When you land, T Mobile's got you covered with 15% off all Hilton brands and an upgrade to Hilton Honors Silver. Plus you're covered with 5 gigabytes. 5 gigabytes. That's more than 4 of high speed data in over 215 countries and destinations with the Go 5G or next plans. These are just a few of the perks that feel like big wins when you travel with T Mobile and it's nice to stay connected to your family. I travel a lot. I do these travel shows and if I'm filming another country, I know I can get to my family right away. They usually don't want to speak to me.
Sona Movsesian
But they screen your calls a lot, don't they?
Conan O'Brien
I suspect them of screening, yes. Find out how you can experience travel better@t mobile.com travel today. Qualifying Plan required. WI Fi where available on select US Airlines. Registration and Hilton Honors membership required for Hilton Honors Silver. Terms and conditions apply.
Brendan Burns
Hey, Sona, listen up. This is not a drill. Dennis Leary stars in the new Fox comedy Going Dutch.
Sona Movsesian
All right.
Brendan Burns
Did you know that Dennis Leary plays a legendary colonel unexpectedly put in charge of a non combat US army base in the Netherlands?
Sona Movsesian
I had no idea, but I know.
Brendan Burns
Does that sound amazing? You're probably wondering what the base is known for.
Conan O'Brien
Well, I'll tell you.
Brendan Burns
The base is known for cheese, laundry and bowling. And the soldiers are a little different than what you'd expect.
Sona Movsesian
I bet they're goofy.
Brendan Burns
To top it off, the colonel's Estranged daughter just happens to be the base captain, which obviously complicates things. Fan favorite Danny Pooty from Community. I love that guy. It's the second in command and closest confidant.
Sona Movsesian
Thursdays, following new episodes of Animal Control on Fox.
Conan O'Brien
What's up, Matt Gorley? What's the plan?
Matt Gourley
Well, we're going to do another staff review.
Conan O'Brien
I love staff reviews. Because as the. What is my title at this company? Am I CEO?
Sona Movsesian
No.
Conan O'Brien
Am I chairman? No. Am I?
Sona Movsesian
I feel like you're just.
Matt Gourley
You're the.
Sona Movsesian
You're not someone.
Conan O'Brien
Are you admitting I have talent?
Sona Movsesian
I'm saying you're not someone who's like, making like, hey, guys, let's wheeling and dealing decisions. This is. I'm doing it.
Conan O'Brien
I do that. But that's all I do. All I do is come into meetings and go, hey, guys, let's do some wheeling and dealing. And then Adam and Federer and Ross are all like, what? And I'm like, yes. I'm wheeling and dealing. They're like, just. And they just pushed me out of the room. And I've got my shirt buttoned down.
Sona Movsesian
Yeah.
Conan O'Brien
Yeah.
Sona Movsesian
You're the face of this company.
Conan O'Brien
Yeah. And what a face.
Sona Movsesian
Yeah.
Conan O'Brien
Okay, let's move on. I like as the grand poobah. I like talking to the employees and telling them how I think they could do better.
Matt Gourley
Okay, so today we have Eduardo, who is currently hiding behind.
Conan O'Brien
Eduardo, don't hide. And be a. Be a man about this. Eduardo, can you step away from the machinery that you employ as the. I was gonna watch the levels, Adam. Yeah, Adam. Adam's over there checking the levels.
Sona Movsesian
Do the levels.
Conan O'Brien
Have a seat, Eduardo. And is this your first time at the table?
Adam Sachs
I think for the happening. I was interrogated.
Conan O'Brien
Just have a little seat there, Eduardo, and buckle up. Yeah, buckle up. Okay, now, Eduardo, if you don't mind, this is a very, very large company. Huge company. There literally have tens of thousands of employees. Your full name, please.
Adam Sachs
Eduardo Perez.
Conan O'Brien
Okay, Eduardo Perez.
Adam Sachs
As I've said before, Eduardo Perez.
Sona Movsesian
There you go.
Conan O'Brien
Let me help you. Eduardo Perez. Perfect. So, Eduardo Perez. Si. Es importante nosotos, Eduardo. You are. I'm going to start by buttering you up before I chop you down. You made this beautiful studio that we're in state of the art. You're a very talented guy, and I applaud you for your work.
Adam Sachs
Thank you. Thank you. I did it with the help of many other individuals, so I can't take all the credit.
Conan O'Brien
They're not here right now, but you did a fantastic Job. And you've done, as far as I can tell, mostly a really good job here. Excellent job. Describe your duties. You have to make sure that the equipment's all functioning.
Sona Movsesian
Duties.
Conan O'Brien
Duties. Yes.
Matt Gourley
Hey, your staff review's next.
Nicholas Hoult
Yeah, take it easy.
Conan O'Brien
Yeah.
Adam Sachs
My duties relative to this show?
Conan O'Brien
Yes, yes.
Adam Sachs
I engineer. I make sure that you all sound as great as you can.
Conan O'Brien
And who has the most challenging voice of the three of us?
Adam Sachs
Honestly, I would say you do what's challenging. You're very dynamic, so you get very excited and loud. But sometimes you. Because of your.
Conan O'Brien
It's called being a rage up. I explode in rage. No, I know that I. When I. When I have an idea or I want to push something through and punch it. You probably have to ride all the dials all the time.
Adam Sachs
I'm constantly. Exactly. Riding your levels. The most vers of all three of you. Sometimes a guest will match your energy and I'll have to ride you and the guest.
Conan O'Brien
Yeah, that can happen sometimes.
Adam Sachs
Yeah, but you're.
Conan O'Brien
That happened with Doris Kearns Goodwin. She was. Started talking about Lyndon Johnson and she was shouting. Yeah. And then I was doing bits and she was doing bits. You know, it was also difficult to record sometimes. Jimi Hendrix. That's right. The great artists are sometimes hard to capture. You've just.
Sona Movsesian
You've been doing this for so long that I'm surprised you don't know how to like, talk into a microphone properly.
Conan O'Brien
I don't care about the devices around me. I mean, I do see myself as a pure, purely artistic cloud that just emanates energy, goodness and genius. And then these machines, they aren't my concern. These are the concerns of others. Like. Is it Eduardo Perez?
Adam Sachs
Eduardo Perez. Yes, that's right.
Conan O'Brien
Eduardo, you do a very good job. You did. We were recording certain celebrity recently, I believe it was Caitlin Olsen, of course, and very talented. Wonderful. And she comes in and we were all excited to talk to her. And then there was an issue. And I hate to bring this up in your review, but it felt like you weren't ready to go when it was time to go. What happened, Eduardo?
Adam Sachs
That's correct. Right. As we were about to get started, the software program that I normally use just completely froze. I got the gorly would know this well, anybody who's used the computer before.
Conan O'Brien
Yeah, and I'm actually pretty fluent in this. I was doing a bit before, but which one is it?
Adam Sachs
It's called Console.
Conan O'Brien
Yeah, console.
Adam Sachs
Yeah, yeah, exactly.
Conan O'Brien
And so what happened? Be specific and really get into the minutiae because I can match You.
Adam Sachs
So the spinning wheel of death appeared.
Conan O'Brien
Well, we all know what that is. It means it was buffering.
Adam Sachs
Exactly. Exactly. And it wouldn't go away.
Conan O'Brien
Why are you talking to me like I'm a child?
Nicholas Hoult
Wait, what?
Sona Movsesian
I'm sorry. What was buffering?
Conan O'Brien
Excuse me?
Sona Movsesian
Oh, I'm sorry. Okay.
Conan O'Brien
Can you seriously use the real terminology? You're talking to me like I'm an idiot. I have worked in show business for a long time, and I know a lot about television. I also know about the audio aspect of things. So let's have a real interview.
Adam Sachs
It's not even that complex.
Conan O'Brien
Well, just please, let's get into it.
Adam Sachs
The computer simply froze.
Conan O'Brien
That's all you've got?
Adam Sachs
That's all that happened.
Conan O'Brien
Okay.
Adam Sachs
And I had to just hit. I had to restart the whole system. Yes.
Conan O'Brien
That's all you did.
Adam Sachs
That was it. And then I had to load up Pro Tools. I had to load up console again, and.
Conan O'Brien
You have to load Pro Tools. You have to load console. But my question is, did you try anything else before you went to what anyone would do, which is unplugging it and then plugging it back in again?
Adam Sachs
I tried to force quit it and tried to reboot.
Matt Gourley
Did you try the force?
Conan O'Brien
There is no try. There's only.
Sona Movsesian
Do you know how to force quit?
Conan O'Brien
Yes, of course you do.
Matt Gourley
What's the keystroke?
Conan O'Brien
Force, control, alt, force, quit. Listen, can I tell you something? I believe that was the easy thing to do. And it took a long time. Caitlin had to sit here for a little bit because this was a minute. Excuse me. It was longer than a minute. It was at least a minute and 15 seconds.
Adam Sachs
It felt like eternity for me, I'll tell you.
Conan O'Brien
And I could tell she. She's a lovely person. Yeah. But she was thinking of leaving. I could tell.
Adam Sachs
She handled it like a champ. I. I was more nervous about your energy than I was about her.
Conan O'Brien
To be honest, has never had a.
Matt Gourley
Single hiccup for how long has he been.
Conan O'Brien
I know, but can I say something? Prince. Anytime anyone in his band hit one note that was a little bit off, he would find them.
Nicholas Hoult
He would find them.
Matt Gourley
He's a psychopath.
Conan O'Brien
No, that's not.
Sona Movsesian
Are you comparing yourself to Prince?
Conan O'Brien
Yes.
Sona Movsesian
You podcasting?
Conan O'Brien
What are you talking about?
Sona Movsesian
I'm just saying you wouldn't know what's wrong, because you don't.
Conan O'Brien
I hear the music just the way Prince did. And I think in our Each. In our fields, I'm every. I am the prince of podcasting. You're the prince of you're certainly a little prince, I'll say that. And, and, and I'll tell you this. I. I just question. Did you panic and force quit? Because there are other things you could have tried first.
Matt Gourley
Like what?
Conan O'Brien
Yeah, I don't know. You could have gone to Ultra, you know. Sorry, Ultra?
Matt Gourley
What's Ultra?
Conan O'Brien
What are you fucking talking about? Ultra. It's a parallel system that you can use. You can access it and then you can go to Hibernet. If you had used Ultra and you had gone to Hibernet. Don't. Hey, Sona. You're just laughing because you're embarrassed. You don't know anything. You could have knocked it all down like three generations.
Adam Sachs
What was I thinking?
Conan O'Brien
And did you try compression?
Adam Sachs
Compression? Oh, yeah, yeah.
Conan O'Brien
Oh, yeah, compression.
Adam Sachs
Plenty of compression.
Conan O'Brien
Well, listen, next time look to me and I can help you, okay? Yeah. I do like the work that you're doing.
Adam Sachs
Thank you.
Conan O'Brien
I'm very lucky to have you.
Adam Sachs
Thank you.
Conan O'Brien
And I'm very fortunate that you've done such a beautiful job. And this table, this is your baby?
Adam Sachs
This is one of my babies.
Nicholas Hoult
Yes.
Conan O'Brien
You put this table together and anytime one of us, it's happened. Sona's always bringing various soups from home. Soups that your mother made. Soups from the home.
Matt Gourley
Never once brought soup.
Conan O'Brien
I'm just. You know, when you come in with your soups from the old country. Oh, my God, listen. And you spill. Have you noticed it when, when, when the. Just back me up on this Admit, first of all, you bring in a lot of soups from the old country. Throw yourself under the bus.
Sona Movsesian
Just admit it.
Conan O'Brien
It is amazing.
Sona Movsesian
From the old country.
Conan O'Brien
But listen, but listen, it spills. Whenever a liquid spills, you freak. I do freak out because there's a lot of very expensive electronics underneath this beautiful table under the hood. Did you know when you were building, did you know that, first of all, I get clumsy sometimes with my drinks. Sona, of course. Ubiquitous soups.
Adam Sachs
I had a feeling.
Conan O'Brien
Yeah.
Adam Sachs
I tried to impose a rule that would prevent drinks, but I was quickly outnumbered.
Conan O'Brien
Well, I ingest a lot of fluids to keep the old pipes lubricated, so to speak.
Sona Movsesian
You were the first one to spill all over this. And it was like a full glass of water.
Conan O'Brien
Okay, I did spill a full glass of water, however. How many times have you been in here with. And she drinks it out of a stone bowl and it's some Armenian stew or potash. Right? Am I wrong? And you come in and you've got that big spoon. It's crazy. Big, like the Flintstones.
Sona Movsesian
You know what's funny is I'm thinking of hush, which would come with, like, a hoof.
Matt Gourley
What?
Conan O'Brien
How many times? Oh, I said once, she was having some of this hush. And I said, what you got there? And she said, you want some? She said, you want the hoof? You want the hoof, Remember? And I said, no, I don't want the hoof.
Sona Movsesian
I'm trying to share with you. That's all I'm trying to do.
Conan O'Brien
Well, anyway, great to be here, so you're welcome.
Adam Sachs
Thank you.
Conan O'Brien
I finally got you to admit that you do bring tons of. You bring hash in. In a big stone bowl that's been frozen for years. Cause it's from the old country. Gotcha, Sona. Oh, my God, Eduardo, thank you for all your work, and you are impeccable.
Adam Sachs
Thank you very much.
Conan O'Brien
My only question is, how valuable could your job be if you can walk away from it completely and everything's fine?
Nicholas Hoult
I built it so that.
Conan O'Brien
Oh, you built it. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Okay. You're such a good surgeon that halfway through the surgery, you can walk away for a peer review.
Sona Movsesian
Yeah.
Conan O'Brien
You know what?
Sona Movsesian
I'm with you on this because he did plug in and plug out and plug in. That's what I would have done. I could do what you do.
Conan O'Brien
Yeah, yeah. Oh, and also, what do I do? I guess I'll reboot the whole thing.
Matt Gourley
Conan O'Brien needs a friend With Conan O'Brien, Sonam of Session and Matt Gourley produced by me, Matt Gourley executive produced by Adam Sachs, Jeff Ross and Nick Lee. Theme song by the White Stripes incidental music by Jimmy Vivino. Take it away, Jimmy. Our supervising producer is Aaron Blair and our associate talent producer is Jennifer. Samples, engineering and mixing by Eduardo Perez and Brendan Burns. Additional production support by Mars Melnick. Talent booking by Paula Davis, Gina Bautista and Brit Kahn. You can rate and review this show on app Apple podcasts and you might find your review read on a future episode. Got a question for Conan? Call the Team Coco hotline at 669-587-2847 and leave a message. It too could be featured on a future episode. You can also get three free months of SiriusXM when you sign up@siriusxm.com Conan and if you haven't already, please subscribe to Conan O'Brien needs a friend. Wherever fine podcasts are downloaded foreign.
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Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend – Episode Featuring Nicholas Hoult Release Date: January 6, 2025
Timestamp: [09:22]
In this episode of Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend, Conan welcomes acclaimed actor Nicholas Hoult as his guest. Hoult shares his journey in the entertainment industry, reflecting on his past roles, experiences with fame, and his recent projects.
Timestamp: [10:00] – [17:00]
Conan begins by delving into Hoult's early career, particularly his role in "About a Boy" alongside Hugh Grant. Hoult reminisces about working with Grant, highlighting the invaluable lessons he learned from observing Grant's dedication and professionalism on set.
Nicholas Hoult: "I think a lot of my sense of humor probably stems down a little bit from him [Hugh Grant]. And also just, you know, how he was on set. He was so dedicated to the work and professional and kind and good with everyone..."
Conan praises Hoult's performance in "About a Boy", emphasizing how it remains a standout role in Hoult's career.
Timestamp: [18:00] – [27:00]
Discussing his role in the British series "Skins", Hoult opens up about the challenges of sudden fame during his teenage years. He describes the experience as a "weird transition," dealing with intense public scrutiny and balancing his personal life with his acting career.
Nicholas Hoult: "It was a weird transition because up until then I'd basically most of the time just been able to live my life very normally. And I still can mostly day to day."
Conan relates by sharing his own struggles with fame and recognition, drawing parallels between their experiences.
Timestamp: [28:00] – [39:00]
The conversation shifts to Hoult's role in the Hulu series "The Great", where he stars alongside Elle Fanning. Hoult praises the writing and his on-screen chemistry with Fanning, describing their dynamic as one of his favorite television relationships.
Conan O'Brien: "You and Elle together. One of my favorite couples I've seen on TV in memory."
Hoult elaborates on developing his character, grappling with portraying a complex, often antagonistic figure while finding the human facets that make his character relatable.
Timestamp: [45:00] – [53:00]
Hoult discusses his latest project, "Nosferatu," directed by Robert Eggers. He expresses admiration for Eggers' meticulous approach to filmmaking, noting the director's dedication to historical accuracy and atmospheric detail.
Conan O'Brien: "He is incredible, isn't he?"
Hoult highlights Eggers' commitment to crafting visually stunning and emotionally resonant films, emphasizing the collaborative spirit that brings out the best in the cast and crew.
Timestamp: [55:00] – [70:00]
In a humorous interlude, Conan conducts a mock staff review with the show's technical team, particularly Eduardo Perez, the audio engineer. The segment is filled with playful ribbing and comedic exchanges about technical mishaps and office antics.
Conan O'Brien: "Eduardo, you do a very good job. You did. We were recording certain celebrity recently, I believe it was Caitlin Olsen..."
This segment showcases the lighthearted camaraderie among the show's team members while adding a layer of behind-the-scenes fun for listeners.
Timestamp: [71:00] – [55:18]
As the episode wraps up, Conan reiterates his desire to form a genuine friendship with Hoult, blending sincere appreciation with his trademark humor. Hoult responds positively, expressing mutual respect and the potential for future camaraderie.
Conan O'Brien: "Absolutely thrilled that you could be here today. And I do want to be your friend. I doubt it's going to happen."
Nicholas Hoult: "We can definitely be friends."
The episode concludes with a blend of heartfelt thanks and playful banter, leaving listeners with a sense of warmth and anticipation for future interactions.
Nicholas Hoult
[12:04]: "I still think a lot of my sense of humor probably stems down a little bit from him [Hugh Grant]."
Conan O'Brien
[34:07]: "I have me a Taurus and you..."
Nicholas Hoult
[27:11]: "Nux is meant to be kind of essentially on his deathbed the day that you meet him at the start of the film."
Conan O'Brien
[53:35]: "I'll say from my vantage point, your work is excellent. And trust me, I think a word from Conan O'Brien carries a lot of weight in the film industry."
This episode of Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend offers an insightful and entertaining glimpse into Nicholas Hoult's career and personal experiences. Through engaging conversations and humorous exchanges, Conan and Hoult explore themes of friendship, fame, and the craft of acting, all while showcasing the genuine bond forming between host and guest.