
Loading summary
Brent Spiner
Should I hold your guys YouTube plaque for you, Ari?
Jonathan Frakes
Don't call me Ari. Right. I learned your name pretty well and stuck with it.
Brent Spiner
You have. You people have asked for her. You've wondered whose backside that was.
Jonathan Frakes
Somebody said, is that your daughter Eliza? Because she thought knows Eliza in the business. Could have been work with me wasn't. I said, no, it's our friend Harry, our producer.
Brent Spiner
That's Harry.
Jonathan Frakes
How do you choose who you get to come and be on the show? Is it just anybody who says yes, you can tell me. No, I have your guys's beautiful wish list.
Brent Spiner
Yeah.
Jonathan Frakes
That we go through. Is Emma Stone on the wish list still? Yes, of course.
Brent Spiner
I think we're close to getting her.
Jonathan Frakes
What about Harrison Ford?
Brent Spiner
Yes, he's still there. Harry. I'd love to have Harry, wouldn't you?
Ron Perlman
Oh, I think your only one you
Brent Spiner
won't get is Leonardo DiCaprio. We won't get Leo.
Jonathan Frakes
He drops. When he tells the story about the Aviator, he uses the name Leo like he knows him.
Brent Spiner
Spend three days with Leo.
Jonathan Frakes
A 90 second scene.
Brent Spiner
Yeah. How many times do you have to reshoot it? We. We just shot and shot and shot and shot and it. It came together beautifully.
Jonathan Frakes
What was that director's name that he was?
Brent Spiner
Marty. Marty Scorsese.
Jonathan Frakes
He could take as many takes as he wants.
Brent Spiner
Right. So I asked between setups, Scorsese was actually very available just to chat with. And so I of course, was like,
Jonathan Frakes
tell me you were going to miss the opportunity.
Brent Spiner
Yeah, it's like he was here. Like he is. Ari. Ari.
Jonathan Frakes
I knew that was. I knew it was in there. It was set up. It was just a matter of time. How long does he think? Is it a 15 second bit? Is it a 30 second bit?
Brent Spiner
Yeah, but the timing was pretty good.
Jonathan Frakes
That's my point. I love your time. I've never ever denied that. You have great timing.
Brent Spiner
So I went over to Marty, as I called him Mr. Scorsese. I said, what was it like working with Jo Jerry on King of Comedy? I love King of Comedy. That's one of his great films. And he said, he's standing there and a woman walks up to him and says, jerry, I don't know if you remember me, but I was an extra on your show when you and Dean were. He said, shut up and go sit down. That's what Jerry was like.
Jonathan Frakes
That's charming. What a day this has been.
Brent Spiner
What a rare mood I'm in. Well, it's almost like being in love. Got a smile on my face for
Jonathan Frakes
the whole human Race.
Brent Spiner
Well, it's almost like being in love.
Jonathan Frakes
How about we end right there?
Brent Spiner
And other things where the whiskey flows and the laughter sings Pull up a seat Join the game of bread and Johnny Potasher.
Jonathan Frakes
Ladies and gentlemen, Mr. Ron Perlman. We have a couple of Star Trek connections, Beauty and the Beast. Armin was a regular on Armin Shimmerman.
Brent Spiner
Well, and I have to say, Linda lived up the street from me. And
Jonathan Frakes
she was on Resident Alien and on Stranger Things.
Brent Spiner
She lived right up the street from me. Malibu Fernhill, that street. And so she was having. There was a Mexican restaurant in Malibu that we loved going to. And it closed. And so there was no Mexican restaurant. And then we walk out of the house one day and we see a truck from that very Mexican restaurant is catering a wedding at Linda Hamilton's house. And so we were the wedding crashers. My wife and I just crashed Linda's wedding. And not her wedding, but the one she was throwing. And she was cool about it.
Ron Perlman
She was absolutely fine, you know, like, so sweet.
Brent Spiner
She is a great woman. I love her.
Ron Perlman
Really. Really a wonderful girl.
Brent Spiner
Absolutely. And she was as cool as she could be. We happened to know a few people there, but most people would come up to us and say, are you here for the bride or the groom? And we'd say, no, we're here for the food. And that's really what it was.
Jonathan Frakes
Here's a story I wanted to remind you of. Ron played my nemesis in Nemesis. And he and I were in a stirrups.
Brent Spiner
I remember.
Jonathan Frakes
Stunt scene.
Brent Spiner
Yeah.
Jonathan Frakes
And we had a stunt double to do a lot of it, but there was a lot of it that he and I were doing. And we were up 30ft in the air. Right on those things where your balls are getting squished inside the suit. And we're on picks from the side and. And the director, who we'll talk about in a minute, who, by the way, Patrick and I and all the cast members offered to have lunch with them to talk about because we'd done 182 episodes and three movies together. I said, is there anything we can do to help you? To let you know how he was not interested in talking to us at all about how we rolled. Talk about a family. Yeah, because we rolled as a family. And you and I knew each other already. So we were up on whatever stage we were on 18, I think, and we'd done a take and we were swinging and trying to do all as much of our shit as we could. And we're hanging like this and we're swinging against the green screen, hanging from the fucking ceiling and looking down. And that Stuart Baird and whoever was the stunt coordinator and the DP are talking and Perlman like, what the fuck, you guys? Hey, what about us? And Ron swings over and he whispers in my ear, we're too old to be action heroes. Remember this moment. We are too old to be action heroes. And it was the truth.
Ron Perlman
I felt that way when I was 15.
Jonathan Frakes
I gave up being my own stunts when the danger let that guy have a real sword and cut my eye open.
Brent Spiner
Yeah. Did you talk at all with Tom Hardy on that movie?
Ron Perlman
We were buds.
Brent Spiner
Were you?
Ron Perlman
He was the sweetest.
Brent Spiner
Do you still know him? Do you ever. Have you.
Ron Perlman
I've reached out to him a few times because I had a production company and you know, I invited him to read a couple of the scripts I was producing. He used to answer my emails and he doesn't anymore. So I just. Okay.
Jonathan Frakes
That was his breakout.
Ron Perlman
He was so sweet and so talk about deferential and, you know, so appreciated our time together. We bonded.
Brent Spiner
He was not treated very well by the director.
Ron Perlman
I mean, he wasn't a director, he was a editor that the studio owed a favor to. That's true. And he said, you want to pay me back, let me direct a movie.
Brent Spiner
That's right.
Ron Perlman
So they gave him. They gave.
Brent Spiner
He was a world class editor, by the way. I mean, he did some great films.
Ron Perlman
Yeah. That's why the studio owed him because he saved a lot of their Mission Impossibles and yeah, they would bring him in when they had a turkey and he would recut it and turn it into watchable.
Brent Spiner
Right.
Ron Perlman
So he was very talented editor, but he was not a director. And he was not. He had no people skills whatsoever and
Jonathan Frakes
he wanted no part of. Of anything we had to offer him. That. That's what blew my mind.
Ron Perlman
Yeah, well, he's not a filmmaker.
Jonathan Frakes
Yeah.
Ron Perlman
That attitude, like anybody can do this. Oh, you know, let's just give it to that guy.
Brent Spiner
I have a connection to you that is really weird.
Ron Perlman
Most of the connections to me.
Brent Spiner
Yeah.
Ron Perlman
Fit into that.
Brent Spiner
You're just. You're not going to see coming at all. But I didn't either until I. I read a few things about you. But my, my mother, who by the way, is still alive. Sylvia, 99 and 95 months. Yeah. Her best friend from childhood growing up. I knew her my whole life until she passed away. Her best friend was Dorothy Rosen.
Ron Perlman
Holy. Yeah, that's my mom.
Brent Spiner
Yeah. Not amazing. And it's my aunt Dorothy. Dorothy Rosen. And I read that your mother's name was Dorothy Rosen.
Ron Perlman
Oh, wait a minute. It wasn't my mother. It was a different Dorothy Rosen.
Brent Spiner
Your mother was my Aunt Dorothy as well. But no, she never mentioned you. Yeah, no, she didn't care for me. No, it was obviously different because I grew up in Houston, Texas.
Ron Perlman
There are Rosens in Houston, Texas.
Brent Spiner
The Rosens of Houston, Texas.
Ron Perlman
The Rosens of Houston.
Brent Spiner
Aunt Dorothy. And oddly, one time.
Ron Perlman
Like an acrobatic act.
Brent Spiner
Yeah, exactly. One time I met Elizabeth Taylor. That's a pretty good one. I met Elizabeth Taylor backstage at Private. She was doing Private Lives with Richard Barton. I met Richard as well. And Holy.
Ron Perlman
This guy.
Jonathan Frakes
Yeah, that's the thing. All we do is open the valve a little bit with. Do we get to Judy Garland? What? Yes.
Brent Spiner
Yeah, I had a little thing with Judy.
Jonathan Frakes
What? Yeah.
Brent Spiner
I was shocked at how much Elizabeth Taylor looked like my Aunt Dorothy.
Ron Perlman
Dorothy Rosen.
Brent Spiner
Yeah, Dorothy Rosen. There you go. Where were the Rosens from?
Ron Perlman
Poland.
Brent Spiner
Poland?
Ron Perlman
Yeah. The Jewish neighborhood in Poland.
Brent Spiner
Yeah. No doubt.
Ron Perlman
I think it might have been Krakow.
Brent Spiner
My folks go back to Ukraine. And Vilnius. Beautiful city in Lithuania.
Jonathan Frakes
Yeah, that's where Jeannie's from.
Ron Perlman
She's from Vilnius.
Jonathan Frakes
Well, her grandparents are both from Vilnius.
Ron Perlman
Wow.
Jonathan Frakes
We went into tour before the wall came down and the tour guide, Genie said, are there any deltufuses or petritises around? The woman rolls her eyes, says, that's like Smith and Jones over here. Ilnis is a beautiful city.
Brent Spiner
I want to go there.
Jonathan Frakes
You got a big TV studio there. Did you work there too?
Ron Perlman
Never worked in Vilnius. I worked in Romania. I worked in Kiev. Oh, you did?
Brent Spiner
Which was beautiful, right?
Ron Perlman
Beautiful.
Brent Spiner
Yeah.
Ron Perlman
And the Beatles were right. Ukraine girls really knock me out.
Jonathan Frakes
Yes.
Ron Perlman
They leave the west behind.
Brent Spiner
Oh, there you go.
Ron Perlman
The gene pool there. Is the genie pool there.
Jonathan Frakes
I could see inside your memory bank with the eyes.
Brent Spiner
Well, I have to say, my grandmother was a fine looking woman.
Ron Perlman
I'll bet.
Brent Spiner
Yeah, she really was quite beautiful in her youth.
Ron Perlman
And there's something about the Kiev women, the gene pool there. The most mind blowingly beautiful women I've condensed. I mean, there's beautiful women everywhere.
Brent Spiner
Yeah.
Ron Perlman
But in Ukraine, it's like it's a given.
Brent Spiner
You have a huge career which, you know, not only, I'm sure surprises you, it shocks me actually, as well as. Yeah. No, Ron, you've done so much.
Ron Perlman
You have pretty high standards. You look at a guy like me and go, what the fuck is that? Nobody that about.
Brent Spiner
Exactly.
Ron Perlman
Can I curse on the show?
Jonathan Frakes
Yes. By all means encouraged. Our teaser, I said to Brett, we've been together for 40 years and I heard back from two or three people. Frank, you couldn't even get through a 30 second teaser without dropping the F bomb. It's the way we talk.
Ron Perlman
I read a study recently that people who curse a lot are of higher intelligence.
Brent Spiner
I've heard the same thing.
Jonathan Frakes
As have I.
Ron Perlman
We both probably follow the same Instagram account.
Brent Spiner
I'm sure it is. Is it yours?
Ron Perlman
Because I get all my news on Instagram.
Brent Spiner
Totally.
Jonathan Frakes
You can believe it.
Ron Perlman
Culture on my news, all my sports. What else do you need?
Jonathan Frakes
Yeah, you got your dog stuff or anything else?
Ron Perlman
I go to the deli.
Brent Spiner
Your life is good.
Ron Perlman
Do you know how.
Jonathan Frakes
Do you know how Ron and I. Oh, yeah, we're started.
Ron Perlman
Because this. This is some bon mo.
Brent Spiner
Well, we're rolling, man.
Ron Perlman
You know what I mean?
Brent Spiner
I do.
Jonathan Frakes
Ron and I did a play.
Ron Perlman
You did, Right. Why? Are you correct?
Brent Spiner
No, I'm not. I'm. I'm mimicking you. Exactly.
Jonathan Frakes
If anybody can speak French. Didn't you work with a lot of French? Was. I know a director.
Ron Perlman
Think that with all the French I worked with, I would know a word or two in French, but. Well, I can't say bon mon.
Brent Spiner
Yes.
Jonathan Frakes
Better than.
Ron Perlman
Better than the Jews of Houston and get off my toe. Wait a minute, that was English.
Brent Spiner
You've worked everywhere. You've worked all over the world. How do you do that? And come on. Well, you know what?
Ron Perlman
I saw United Rule 1. What is that?
Brent Spiner
Where you're allowed to.
Jonathan Frakes
You're allowed to work.
Ron Perlman
SAG doesn't say. Yeah, SAG invented. I think it's called Rule one or something like that, where if you're an American actor and they hire you for a foreign production, they have to conform to all of regulations. Yeah, I was the reason for that. Is that right? Legislation. Because I kept having to go to SAG and saying, you know, I'm doing this movie in Mexico, I'm doing this movie in France, I'm doing this movie in Italy, you know, well, even the
Jonathan Frakes
big movies, even Quest for Fire and all that business, it was.
Ron Perlman
I got my. I got hired to do my first movie in 1979, which was Quest for Fire. And then the actors went on strike for four months. And it just turned out that it was a French director, multinational production gonna be produced and released by Fox, but so many different other countries were involved. And it just turned out that the three leads, the four leads, happened to be American actors, which is why this
Jonathan Frakes
is you and Everett McGill.
Ron Perlman
Me, Everett McGill and Lemire El Khadi.
Jonathan Frakes
Right.
Ron Perlman
And Ray Dawn. Sean.
Jonathan Frakes
Oh, there we go. I give one favorite McGill because I wanted to get his part in Equity.
Ron Perlman
Amir get a bell.
Jonathan Frakes
I guess he should and did.
Ron Perlman
Ever get one?
Jonathan Frakes
Yeah.
Brent Spiner
Ever got one?
Jonathan Frakes
He got two.
Ron Perlman
He got two. Where's Ray Dawns then?
Brent Spiner
Had one?
Jonathan Frakes
Yeah. One more.
Brent Spiner
Yeah.
Jonathan Frakes
What a cast.
Ron Perlman
Tony Curtis was not in the movie.
Brent Spiner
Did you ever work with Tony Curtis?
Ron Perlman
No. No. Oh, boy.
Jonathan Frakes
Look at that face.
Ron Perlman
Well, I met him. The only time I ever was in his presence was at Nikki Blair's because him and Nikki came out to Hollywood together.
Brent Spiner
Is that right? Well, I know Tony and Joe Franklin were in high school together.
Ron Perlman
Oh, is that right?
Brent Spiner
Yeah.
Jonathan Frakes
Remember the Joe Franklin show?
Ron Perlman
Of course you do. I was on the Joe Franklin Show.
Brent Spiner
Come on. Were you?
Ron Perlman
I was on the Joe Franklin when
Jonathan Frakes
you were still in New York.
Ron Perlman
You know who was on the Joe Franklin Show? Get ready with the fucking bell here, pal. Bette Davis.
Jonathan Frakes
That's the kind of drop we're looking for.
Ron Perlman
And I. She and I were sitting on a couch. She came up to here. She was. She was very close to her, you know, her last moments on earth. Very old, very frail and very small. And she held my hand during the whole interview.
Jonathan Frakes
I love this story.
Ron Perlman
If I said Bette Davis to Timothy fucking Chalamet, do you think he'd know what the fuck I was talking about? Only the greatest female actor other than Meryl, who ever graced the screen. Timothy Chalamet didn't even get a bell. That's.
Jonathan Frakes
I didn't even. I didn't even reach.
Ron Perlman
I love you for that.
Jonathan Frakes
I'm reading the Cameron interviews with Wild Billy Wiser.
Brent Spiner
That's a great book. I'm reading Joan Crawford right now, which I'm sure she'll.
Ron Perlman
Cameron Crowe.
Jonathan Frakes
Have you read that book?
Ron Perlman
I have not read the book. I thought there was a live interview, though.
Jonathan Frakes
It's based on a live interview and it's got pictures. He talks about Lemon being the. You know, he's worked with Jack Lemmon. You work with Jack Lemmon?
Ron Perlman
I've never worked with Jack Lemmon.
Jonathan Frakes
He worked with Walter Matthau. You work with Walter Mathau?
Brent Spiner
Walter and Jack in the same.
Ron Perlman
On which picture?
Brent Spiner
It was a movie called out to Sea and it was their second to last film. They did one more Odd Couple after Out to Sea and it was Walter and Jack and Donald o' Connor and Elaine Stritch and Gloria de Haven, who, I guarantee you Timothy Chalamet doesn't know Gloria De Haven. And I'm not sure you do even. Which. You know her. Okay.
Ron Perlman
We dated a couple of times.
Brent Spiner
Yeah. She was married to John Payne, by the way.
Ron Perlman
We never knew. We dated.
Brent Spiner
Yeah. Yes, he knew.
Ron Perlman
We were under the radar. We were stealthy.
Brent Spiner
Well, tell them. You were going to ask about where you guys met, which is. I think we did a play at
Jonathan Frakes
the Tiffany Theater on Sunset, which is now gone. It was called My Life and Art. I played.
Ron Perlman
Yeah.
Jonathan Frakes
A farm animal.
Brent Spiner
You played a farm animal?
Ron Perlman
Particularly of the goat variety.
Jonathan Frakes
I played a goat.
Ron Perlman
And it was before the. The term goat meant.
Jonathan Frakes
Yeah, it was.
Ron Perlman
It was just a goat. It was not the greatest of all time goats.
Jonathan Frakes
No. It was a goat who wanted to be a musical comedy singer, as I recall.
Ron Perlman
The goat did.
Jonathan Frakes
Yeah. The farmer believed that the goat had talent, as I recall. It's all. It's all a blur.
Ron Perlman
There's something about the King and I in there, right? Didn't you play.
Jonathan Frakes
I think that's.
Ron Perlman
You play the King and. The King and I in Summer.
Brent Spiner
King and I and who? You play, Ron?
Ron Perlman
I played this Russian writer. Director.
Jonathan Frakes
Yeah, writer.
Ron Perlman
Director, but on the skids. Like, you know, more of an aspiring. And I think I. I wrote the play.
Jonathan Frakes
Yes.
Ron Perlman
That I needed him to get attached to so I could get my financing.
Brent Spiner
Where'd you guys.
Ron Perlman
This was.
Jonathan Frakes
This was the Tiffany.
Ron Perlman
Cutting edge.
Jonathan Frakes
This was in 1986, and we were both trying to rekindle our alleged careers.
Ron Perlman
I had basically just gotten off the boat. I moved from New York. That was one of the first gigs I did after having moved from New York to here.
Jonathan Frakes
So we're in rehearsal, I think, or maybe during performances, meeting up in the dressing room. We became kind of fast friends. On Wednesday, Ron comes in. I just got a gig.
Ron Perlman
No, that's not how it went.
Jonathan Frakes
Okay, you tell the story.
Ron Perlman
Can I fuck up the story better than you? Please.
Jonathan Frakes
That's why you're here.
Ron Perlman
But we became fast friends to the point where I couldn't wait to get to the theater to see Jonathan. I enjoyed his company so much. And the fact that we were both in this really weird play where he's playing a goat and I'm playing a Russian wannabe meant that we were both worshipping the same muses, and they were not mainstream muses at all. So I walk in one day, and Jonathan's already there. He's on stage doing some kind of stretching warmup shit. And he looks at me and goes, ooh, you look happy. I go, I'm really happy. I'm in A really good mood. And I said, you look kind of happy too. He said, oh, I just had one of the best days of my life. I said, well, who's going to go first? He says, you go first, Ron. So I said, I just booked the title character in the show Beauty and the Beast for cbs. He goes, that's a good day. How about you? He said, I just. I just signed a seven season deal to play the second lead on the new Star Trek.
Brent Spiner
What a day.
Ron Perlman
And it happened at the same time. We both, we both had just come from the network and found out we got the job. And I said, that's a good day.
Brent Spiner
Yeah.
Ron Perlman
And then we went and totally up this show that night.
Jonathan Frakes
Wow.
Brent Spiner
Was anyone else in the show who got a major series that day besides the two of you?
Ron Perlman
Did there need to be and.
Brent Spiner
Not really. But was anybody in the show who, who you've seen since or have heard of since?
Ron Perlman
No, this was a play for. For obscure.
Jonathan Frakes
This was an off off Broadway would have qualified the.
Brent Spiner
Tiffany was as good as you could get in LA at the time. I mean, practically tough.
Jonathan Frakes
Yeah.
Ron Perlman
LA stuff, LA is not a theater town.
Brent Spiner
No.
Ron Perlman
Which is I always found.
Jonathan Frakes
Absurd.
Ron Perlman
Absurd.
Jonathan Frakes
Because it's the same way.
Ron Perlman
It has the greatest talent pool.
Brent Spiner
Yeah.
Ron Perlman
Or as good a talent pool as any city in the world.
Jonathan Frakes
Do you aspire to do any more plays?
Ron Perlman
I have to do one more. I have to do one more to conquer the thing that happened to me the last time I tried to do a play.
Brent Spiner
What was that?
Ron Perlman
Stage fright. You. I had a case of stage fright that was so irrational and so out of control and crippling. Crippling. I mean, they literally had to push me. And I heard stories about, you know, Olivier went through this.
Jonathan Frakes
Yeah.
Ron Perlman
Ian late. Ian Holm went home, went through it and Olivier. Yeah, Larry.
Brent Spiner
Larry.
Ron Perlman
It was such an aberration, considering the fact that my earliest relationship with acting was on the stage. And back in the day before when it was just stage, I was so free on the stage I could actually get naked on the stage. I just felt really free and in flow state and all the things you. And then I do this TV show called Beauty and the Beast. Getting back to that. And when it's over with, I get invited to do a play and I have this stage fright and I couldn't figure out. I mean, the only, the only thing I can figure it out is like, okay, now you've been in a mainstream situation, like primetime TV show cbs. Now all of a sudden you have set yourself up for the imposter syndrome. Oh, enough. People are now aware of you as an actor. You're no longer obscure. So everything you do is going to show that you have no talent. That's what the imposter syndrome is. And I think that that's probably. Yeah, this is the first time I'm actually grappling with. With the reasoning behind it.
Brent Spiner
What was the play?
Ron Perlman
Yeah. A Few Good Men.
Brent Spiner
Oh, it was in New York.
Ron Perlman
I replaced Stephen Lang in New York. On Broadway.
Brent Spiner
Yeah. I auditioned for that production.
Jonathan Frakes
Now, wait, another show you did not get?
Brent Spiner
Are you fucking kidding me? Worse. I auditioned for that production. I came back. My. My agent at the time was Monty Silver. You remember Monty?
Ron Perlman
Of course I remember.
Brent Spiner
And Monty called me and I said, how did you get any response? He said, yeah. They said you were lousy. And that was.
Ron Perlman
That was the thing about all Monty, he just cut to the chase.
Brent Spiner
He really did. I said, well, was that the very word they used? He said, the very word they used. You were lousy. So, needless to say, I did not get that play.
Ron Perlman
Tom Hulse and Steve Lang were the first. Were the Jessup and the Tom Cruise character. Yeah, they opened the play, and then six months into it, they both left. Tom left before Stephen, so Tim Busfield placed.
Jonathan Frakes
Boy, oh, boy. He just got canceled. Let's be frank.
Ron Perlman
Huh?
Jonathan Frakes
He had it coming.
Ron Perlman
Really? Oh.
Jonathan Frakes
He directed on a show that I was directing on and was inappropriate with people that I really cared about.
Brent Spiner
Wow.
Jonathan Frakes
How about that?
Brent Spiner
Well, that. That came full circle, didn't it?
Jonathan Frakes
Yeah.
Brent Spiner
Yeah.
Ron Perlman
We never maintained any kind of relationship, so I haven't seen him since we did A few good men, 1991.
Brent Spiner
I was gonna ask you if you'd seen have you seen Sentimental Value?
Ron Perlman
No, it's.
Jonathan Frakes
The Cersei said it's the best movie of the year.
Brent Spiner
It's really good. But there's. The opening scene will go right to your heart, because the opening scene is an actress with such bad stage fright that there is nothing they can do to convince her to get on stage. She's begging them, please. I can't. I can't. And. And it's. It's a terrifying scene. But you. You'll relate.
Ron Perlman
Yeah, well, that's the Stellan Skars guard one, which he just won. He won. He won a big award last year. Superb in it. He's such a class act.
Brent Spiner
He is. But this is, like, best brawl he's ever had. I mean, he's just so. So subtle and calm and.
Ron Perlman
And he's doing all this wonderful press for It. So he's revealing. I've only known the actor still in Skarsgard. Now I'm getting to know the man. He's. He's such a sweet, delightfully witty.
Brent Spiner
Yeah.
Ron Perlman
Got a kind of a devilish glint in his eye.
Jonathan Frakes
I bet that's what people feel about you if they only know you from your work. I mean one of the things that. I mean you're famous for these parts in which you're. I think about Sons of Anarchy. What's that cast name?
Ron Perlman
Clay Morrow.
Jonathan Frakes
Clay Morrow. He was a badass, but he had this. He always felt his heart. Allegedly.
Ron Perlman
Interesting.
Jonathan Frakes
But I always. I knew you from the heart out to the bad guy. But don't you think that's a perception of you? That's probably true that because of some of the characters you play where you've been terrifying that people are. Oh, I'm so surprised. He's so smart and are so articulate and so kind. He's so gentle and has all these. You get that at the cons. What's your vibe at the cons?
Ron Perlman
It's probably Hellboy. 35 sons and 35 Hellboy. And then. What is that, 70?
Jonathan Frakes
Yeah.
Ron Perlman
And then 30. Miscellaneous other stuff. A lot of voiceover stuff. A lot of video games.
Brent Spiner
Beauty and the Beast. Do they hurt people?
Ron Perlman
Every once in a while. But that's maybe 1% I'll sound of it.
Jonathan Frakes
Is it true that you were on Ryan's Hope?
Ron Perlman
Yes.
Jonathan Frakes
Were you a recurring regular? Were you original?
Ron Perlman
It was a one shot deal.
Jonathan Frakes
One day only.
Ron Perlman
Maybe two days.
Jonathan Frakes
Did you work with the great Kate Mulgrew?
Ron Perlman
I got to know Kate.
Jonathan Frakes
Hold on, captain.
Ron Perlman
But no, I didn't work with Kate on. On my one day on Ryan's Hope. That was the first on camera job I ever did. My one day on Ryan.
Jonathan Frakes
So I was on the Doctors in New York said same era with Katherine Harold who came up earlier who was then replaced by Kathleen Turner who replaced Lauren White in a play I was doing when I was going out with Lauren.
Ron Perlman
That's Bells.
Brent Spiner
Yeah, bells. Bells.
Jonathan Frakes
Katherine Harold was married to Lawrence o'.
Ron Perlman
Donnell. Is that right?
Brent Spiner
Yeah. Great. Well, I just want to ask Ron to give me a name that you have been in a room with or worked with that you just couldn't not believe you were standing in the same space as that person. And I know it's happened several times but.
Ron Perlman
Well, Brando.
Brent Spiner
Okay, that'll do. Hit that. Boom.
Ron Perlman
He made me lose my. He made me. He made me into this kind of awkward six year old Pimply kid that. That had no confidence whatsoever.
Brent Spiner
Yeah.
Jonathan Frakes
What was the context?
Ron Perlman
We're doing a little Diddy called the islands of Dr. Moreau in far North Queensland, Australia, mate.
Brent Spiner
With Brando and Val Kilmer, by the way.
Ron Perlman
Yeah. And David Thewless.
Brent Spiner
And David Thewlis.
Ron Perlman
Wow. And Faruza Balk.
Brent Spiner
No, Faruza Balk. Yeah.
Ron Perlman
So Brando, we got off on the worst possible foot. He took an immediate dislike to me, H. And I've replayed the tape incessantly because I'm like most actors. He was. There's everybody else in. There's him. He's in a class all by himself. And most of us who said yes to the movie only did it because, you know, we got a shot at being in his presence. That was it for me. I just wanted to be in his presence. I wanted to study him. I wanted to see if I could get some insight into where the genius came from, where this thing, this gear that he had as an actor that no one else has ever come close to, no one has ever come close to. And, you know, even though Montgomery Cliff is tied with him for that same type of genius, Brandos was mixed with this other shit, know, the bad boy, the. The. The slob who was, you know, the smartest guy in the room.
Brent Spiner
And clearly you wanted him to like you.
Ron Perlman
I'm only supposed to be in one sequence with him in the island of Dr. Moreau. And it's. It's. You know, the com. It's a community of. It's. It's. It's about vivisection. It's about taking animals and humans and. And creating a new race. That's H.G. wells conceit. Right? And so the community has this. The. These rules where they're always being reminded of the madness in them, not the beast in them. And I play the sayer of the law, and I have this incantation straight out of it. She wills, thou will not walk on all fours. That is the law. That will not. Thou will not slurp, but sip. That is the law. And it's this, like, eight or 10 little items, and it's straight out of H.G. wells. So everybody who plays the say of the Law, and there's been like, four movies of it, now says this shit. So we assemble to do one of. One of. One of the members of the community is on trial, and Moreau is going to play the judge. And I'm standing to his left playing the sayer of the law. And I have my incantation to start the kind of ceremony. And we go for the very first take, and I do my thing, and we get finished with it. And Frankenheimer, the director, Jesus, comes up and says, okay, we're gonna come in for your coverage now, Marlon. And we. This was a really big crane shot which started behind our heads and then went up to this crowd of 200 extras and then back down around, and then ended up in a close up of me saying this incantation then and then over to Marlon. So it was a very complicated shot, and it took. It took the better part of a day. And the fact that Frankenheimer wanted to come in for Marlin's close up right after that was odd. Even Brando thought it was odd. So Brenna says, what are you doing, John? Why are you doing my coverage? He says, well, that's just the way I want to do it, Marlon. And he says, well, get the extras into the shade, because we're in far North Queensland. There's no ozone layer. That's the part of the world that has no ozone. And marlin is like this climate free. Get them in the shade and give them a coke. And all right, we'll do my close up and get rid of this guy. And he points to me, oh, no. So now they started a fight, Frankenheimer and Brando. He says, I'm not gonna get rid of the extras, and I'm not going to get rid of Ron Perlman. And Brando says, john, take the extras. You doing a close up on me, right? And Frankenstein says, yes, I'm doing clothes reviews. Well, get the extras into a barn. Give him a coke. I'll pay for it, okay? And get rid of this fucking guy. And so Frankenheimer says, I don't want to release the extras. And Brando is wearing these huge sunglasses. He says, you think you're gonna see them in a reflection of my glasses, don't you? He goes, yes, Marlon, that's exactly the shot I'm gonna make. He goes, you'll never see them, John. And Frankenheimer says, how can you guarantee that? He says, because I'm gonna play the whole thing like this. He says, all right, I'll get rid of the extras. But Ron Perlman stays.
Brent Spiner
He says,
Ron Perlman
why are you going against me? What are you, a Nazi? And Frankenheim says, I am not a Nazi. He says, did you ever see a movie called Montgomery Clift and Dean Martin, the Young Lions? Yeah. He said, did you ever see a movie called the Young Lions? He said, yes. Edmund Goulding directed that. You were Fantastic in that, as the German officer, he says, well, I know Nazis, and you're a fucking Nazi. John, get rid of this guy. And Frankenheimer says, if you give me a reason why you want to get rid of him, you're playing your entire scene off of him. He says, you. Yeah, but the shit he's saying is so stupid. And his delivery is so, like, weird.
Jonathan Frakes
Oh, my brother.
Ron Perlman
And I'm like, now I'm vomiting in my mouth.
Brent Spiner
Oh, my God.
Ron Perlman
Like, I've come 19,000 miles to meet this guy.
Jonathan Frakes
Exactly.
Ron Perlman
And he thinks I'm this big fucking dumb Jew. There's not very many good things about becoming an old man over becoming old at all.
Brent Spiner
Yeah.
Ron Perlman
You can probably count all the good things on one finger, and that boils down to one thing. You just don't give a shit anymore about anything or anybody or what they think. Like, right now, yeah, I'm talking to you, but I'm shitting my pants, and I'm not going to apologize. Nobody knows if every. If the. If this. If it starts to go, what the fuck happened? I'll just keep right on going.
Brent Spiner
Yeah.
Ron Perlman
Because old people just don't give a fuck anymore what anybody thinks. That's pretty liberating for a guy like me who was obsessed with what everybody thought.
Brent Spiner
Right.
Ron Perlman
Most of my life.
Brent Spiner
Right.
Jonathan Frakes
Doesn't you think it makes you a better actor, though?
Ron Perlman
It makes you better everything. Yeah. Unfortunately, you can't walk anymore. You're hunched over. You know, you're peeing four times, you know, in an hour. But in terms of body, the release
Jonathan Frakes
of not giving a.
Ron Perlman
In terms of, like. There is nothing more freeing than not caring what anybody thinks. Like, you can make a faux paw. I used to make a faux paw, like, in a conversation, and I would be up for a week.
Brent Spiner
Like, a bad day on the set doesn't really mess with your head.
Ron Perlman
No, no. It's all just like, hey, whatever. That just. That just happened. Yeah, let's move on.
Jonathan Frakes
That's so healthy.
Ron Perlman
Good.
Jonathan Frakes
Yeah, I'm learning to do that. Let the water go under the bridge. Because I have the very similar. I'm even more of a people pleaser than either of you, and it's. It's exhausting.
Ron Perlman
I don't know if anybody ever clocked me as that. I definitely never clocked you as that. We hide it well, but it's. It's insane. It's really. When you're a people pleaser, it is a burden. It's like a burden that you're carrying
Jonathan Frakes
around with you but what I was saying about you is that you're now in a position for better or for worse. And whether you like it or not, you are one of the heroes. And you are somebody who's happy to be on the set with, and you're a big deal. And I. And the respect that you show other actors is kind of legendary, that you have a real. And we did the same thing with. I mean, we weren't, as people guessed it, on our show. We tried to treat everybody the way that. Because, you know, when you're a guest star on a fucking show, sometimes the actor, the star of the show, never even the. Says hello to you and all that business, you know, you do the opposite. And we tried to do the same thing. And it changes people's impressions and it's easier.
Ron Perlman
I did a guest shot on Miami Vice. You talk about learning how lonely a guest, a guest star can be walking into a family that's already got its own vibe and rhythm and. And it's a family and shit. And then one of them is a complete fucking dickhead and makes everybody know how unimportant they are compared to him. And then there's Edward James, almost the opposite, who had lunch with me every single day I was on the show, hung out with me offset while they were lighting. We had great conversations. And I said to him, you know, I've never.
Jonathan Frakes
Wait a minute. Edward James, almost.
Ron Perlman
I've never met anyone as welcoming onto it. He said. And he said, I know how hard it is when you walk into a family. And my thing is to make you feel like you're part of your family. You're welcome here. And that changed everything for me. From that point on, every job I had where I was a regular, I
Brent Spiner
think we tried to do that.
Jonathan Frakes
Yeah, I think we did, too. What do you change when you do a voice gig? Anything you do feel broader, bigger, grateful that you don't have to memorize the
Brent Spiner
lines, that you can still wear your pajamas.
Ron Perlman
I mean, I like instinctive. Like, you look at the part and you get it and you give the performance. And voiceover acting is. Is tailor made for that approach. You look at the part, whatever your impression is, you do it, you go for it. That's right. And very often, I mean, you know, they say your instincts are usually right. Very often that first take.
Brent Spiner
Yep.
Ron Perlman
Is pretty good.
Jonathan Frakes
Nathan Cook used to say, do what your first mind tells you to do. I like when the writer's in the room, if he's clever like Mike McMahon, and he'll throw Up. Try this, try this, try this.
Brent Spiner
That's the best good director in a, in a voice.
Jonathan Frakes
Boy, they stand out when they.
Brent Spiner
Fantastic.
Jonathan Frakes
They lay off you and then they, they nuance it like a good director anywhere. But in the voice, often there's a
Ron Perlman
non acting person get a great direction from someone because you're just not used to it. It's very rare that you get a direction from somebody that, that you go, oh fuck, that's so much better than what I'm doing.
Jonathan Frakes
Great idea.
Ron Perlman
And it opens you up to a whole sub subset of. Of idiosyncrasies and different character, you know, personality like traits.
Jonathan Frakes
My experience is that that great direction often comes from something that, that I've seen you do or you do that I want to.
Brent Spiner
Yeah.
Jonathan Frakes
It's not my idea generally. It's something that, that reminds. Oh, that would be cooler if that volume or that note changed and that was played different key there.
Ron Perlman
It's all.
Jonathan Frakes
It always seems to be always inspired. Inspired by the actor.
Brent Spiner
Famous direction that, that John Huston gave Katharine Hepburn on the African Queen because she was a little lost in the very beginning. First couple days and she said he sidled up to her, just whispered in her ear, think Eleanor Roosevelt. And she said that the whole role opened up to her at that moment. Just three little words.
Jonathan Frakes
Wait, what about Katharine Hepburn?
Brent Spiner
Yeah.
Jonathan Frakes
What about Call of Duty?
Brent Spiner
Yeah. What about Call of Duty?
Ron Perlman
I don't remember doing it.
Jonathan Frakes
Good answer.
Brent Spiner
What about Fallout?
Ron Perlman
There's a lot of Fallout.
Brent Spiner
Yeah, I remember doing that to the narration on Fallout.
Ron Perlman
I did the narration on, on like all five games, six games, whatever there was.
Brent Spiner
That's big.
Ron Perlman
Well, it turned into something. I mean, you know, the first time they called me, you know, you got this voiceover gig is for this new game called Fallout. They gave me $40 and a sandwich and, and then a year and a half later they said, hey, remember that thing Fallout you did? I go, no. They go, well, there's a second one. I go, why? You know, because the first one went through the roof and then there was a third one.
Jonathan Frakes
Then you got some back end money.
Ron Perlman
They were very, very precise about not adding any money to it ever. They had that part completely. We don't have enough money in the budget. Yeah, but didn't you make $2 billion on the first release? Well, yeah, but yeah, we don't have that money now.
Jonathan Frakes
I don't know where it went.
Ron Perlman
I don't know where it went. $40 and a sandwich and a half.
Brent Spiner
You know, getting back to Del Toro, just For a second. Hellboy is one of the great characters ever. You're so great in that. And my son and I watched both of them several times and just loved it. It's just such a rich, wonderful piece.
Jonathan Frakes
Love Hellboy because of the twinkle in your face eye. That's one of your. One of your secret power. Your secret powers is absolutely. That you behind there is. I could be with you. That's so you.
Brent Spiner
I mean that, that show that would play.
Jonathan Frakes
Are you gonna do Hellboy 3? I read somewhere.
Ron Perlman
No, that was. I did a podcast recently and he asked me about Hellboy 3 and so it made the news.
Brent Spiner
I got it.
Ron Perlman
You know, the funny thing is, is that you just. I just want to be me.
Brent Spiner
Yeah.
Ron Perlman
And. And say what's on my mind. Good, bad or indifferent. If somebody's an asshole, name names, you know. But then it makes 9,000 outlets.
Brent Spiner
Yes.
Ron Perlman
They take you apart and they, they or they just use you for. For sensationalized headlines. Leave you in a pool of your own urine to die.
Jonathan Frakes
Yeah.
Ron Perlman
And move on to the next guy who's going to himself over by saying what he thinks. This is the business we are in, like it or not.
Jonathan Frakes
Yeah, but you saying what you think has. Hasn't hurt you. I watch you closely because I know you and I love you and I watch it, bro. Your Persona is so honest, so passionate, so free. I said to you before we started, did you see his Instagram where his wife's feet are around his head? They're in Mexico. He's singing. You don't see her face, you see her legs and her feet are around. It's. It's you. It's genius. Yeah, right.
Ron Perlman
That's you with this. This beautiful wife of mine did.
Brent Spiner
But what do you think being outspoken politically has. Has been a negative or has it made.
Ron Perlman
I ask my people that all the time because, you know, everybody thinks I work all the time and I have huge, huge periods where nothing's coming in. And I never, hardly ever ever get calls from, from the mainstream studios. The only time I'm in a studio movie is if Del Toro is making it or another one of these guys who. I did an indie little low budget film, makes it big, and then he invites me to be in his studio movie. But that's not how I make my living. I make my living doing mostly low budget indie movies and, you know, other things that I can scrape together.
Brent Spiner
So what do you think? Has it hurt or. No?
Ron Perlman
I mean, I keep asking my people, I. I keep saying, do you know, you know I'm the first one to admit that, you know, there are, there, there are times when I got, you know, really shrill and, you know, and, and out there, you know, with my political thing, but they, they swear that they don't get any of that.
Brent Spiner
Yeah.
Ron Perlman
When they try to sell me.
Brent Spiner
I would think not, I would think it would make no difference whatsoever.
Jonathan Frakes
It goes back to what you said earlier in this interview, which is, you know, I'm at the age where I don't give a shit.
Brent Spiner
Yeah, exactly.
Jonathan Frakes
I don't give a shit. I'm gonna tell you how I feel. And I think there's something empowering and appealing both about that quality that you have. You have pretty much the same deal,
Brent Spiner
except I'm still scared. He's, he's much braver.
Ron Perlman
I know this is your show and everything like that, and I don't mean to sound like I'm going to take over, but can we talk about my newest endeavor? It really ties into what we're talking about now. When we went on strike, I think we, I think we went on strike at midnight on June 6, 2023. Following morning, I'm having my morning coffee and I do an Instagram live and I'm talking about how I'm from a lower middle class Jewish New York family and if it weren't for organized labor, my parents would have, you know, but because of organized labor, they had a shot at the American dream, which is basically raising your children and retiring with dignity. Okay, so I'm a union guy, but it's never good when we have work stoppages because the wrong people get hurt and a lot of people can't sustain their way through. And it's. And there's going to be blood. And I'm hoping that when this whole, all the dust settles, it'll be worth it, that people, you know, will be worth the hardships that they have to go through to get to the other end, other side of it. And then I, as I was finishing up, I said, but one thing before I go to the motherfucker on the other side of the bargaining table who said, we're not going to even begin to talk to these guys till they start losing their houses. Let me tell you something, motherfucker, there's a lot of ways to lose your house. Sometimes it's financial, sometimes it's karma, and sometimes it's just you say these things publicly. We know who you are. We know where you live. So that was the end of my Instagram live rant on the first day of the actors strike. A couple hours later, my. My managers call me and they say, hey, Ron, you see what's going down? I go, no, what? He goes, well, the thing you said about the studio executive has gone viral and we're getting calls from. Everybody is loving what you said, but. But we're getting calls like if. And they thought I was referring to Robert Iger because he was the one that was very public during that time, said, if Iger's house happens to catch fire, they're coming for you because you made a public threat. So this started this whole thing, which led to me realizing that this current condition that the movie business is in with these streamers and their streamers that are not filmmakers. They're. They're guys who are trying to sell cell phones.
Jonathan Frakes
Yeah.
Ron Perlman
There are guys who are, you know, made a living, you know, putting mom and pop businesses out of business by giving you cheap shit that comes straight to your house. You never have to leave your. And now they're doing the same thing with culture. They're just bringing it all to your house. And you can sit there and you're. And. And not only that, but they refuse to tell you what their revenues are so that they've destroyed the transparency that leads to residual payments and stuff, which has been one of the backbones of how we maintain our independence and used
Jonathan Frakes
to be able to maintain our health.
Brent Spiner
Used to.
Ron Perlman
And I started really examining the difference between this current environment and the. The movie industry that I grew up in and that I knew had existed for a hundred years where a lot of people did very well.
Brent Spiner
Yes.
Ron Perlman
And there was enough resources and enough revenue streams for a lot of people to put their kids through school and retire with dignity. I'm not just talking about filmmakers. I'm talking about tech people, costumers.
Brent Spiner
Right.
Ron Perlman
Grips industry, camera people. And now there's a handful. And this. Who said that he backed off because he. Somebody called him out publicly. You know how many people have lost their houses because of the way they're doing this thing? So I just launched a movie studio. Where's Asylum Studios?
Brent Spiner
Where is it?
Ron Perlman
It's nowhere.
Brent Spiner
Oh, okay.
Ron Perlman
All it's going to be is, is there may never be a studio. An actual bricks and mortar.
Brent Spiner
Right.
Ron Perlman
It's just going to be a place that, you know, creates a war chest to green light movies and television. It's called Asylum because it's only being run by the inmates. There are no. There is no privileged class. There's no executive class. There are no CEOs, there are no lawyers. There Are no, you know, like accountants who are running the show. There are no guys who, you know, are making their living trying to sell cell phones. It's just us. I'm here.
Brent Spiner
Yeah. Would be nice if those projects could be made here too, you know.
Ron Perlman
Oh, yeah.
Brent Spiner
Well, because this is Hollywood. Hollywood. Where did Hollywood go? We love Hollywood. That's why we came here, because it was Hollywood.
Ron Perlman
Hollywood kind of itself. Yeah, a little bit.
Jonathan Frakes
Are you producing and directing and acting and you're available for all parts in this Asylum?
Ron Perlman
I certainly don't want to make Asylum Studios a vanity thing, a way to promote Ron Proman pet projects. But there's a few movies that I've been trying to produce for years that will be circulated in. But it's not going to be. It's not going to, you know. Yeah. I'll never stop acting. I love being an actor. I love other actors.
Jonathan Frakes
Why would we quit?
Ron Perlman
And it's like my drug, but. But, but I'm gonna run the studio. And the whole idea of it is to be a collective of the old guard, which is the Scorsese's and the Coppola's and the middle guard, which is the David O. Russells and the Paul Thomas Andersons. And then lift, and then lift up. All of the people who are now having to go to YouTube because they, the gatekeepers, are much better at keeping young filmmakers out than they are letting them in. So. So that's why YouTube is proliferating the way it is, because there's storytellers everywhere, always. But they need someplace to go and they can't get into the mainstream because the mainstream has shrunken and become so fucking small that they have to go somewhere. This is why TikTok and YouTube are exploding the way they are. And Asylum Studios will be the place to come on in. We're a collective, you know, you sit, sit at the table with the Adam McKay's and David O. Russell's and we'll tell you what kind of ending your movie needs and give you your budget and let you make a movie. So it's going to be a place that's going to hope there's hope for us.
Brent Spiner
Brent, I'm telling you, I'm thinking right now, I have ideas.
Ron Perlman
And the other thing about it is, is that we've identified this blockchain technology that takes all of the human factor out of accounting. So there's no such thing anymore as, as. As creative accounting where a movie makes a billion dollars, but they tell you it still hasn't broken even.
Brent Spiner
Right.
Ron Perlman
It's going to be completely transparent. And everyone who works on an Asylum movie will be a part owner, including the guy who cleans DiCaprio's toilet.
Brent Spiner
Great.
Ron Perlman
And everybody who works at the studio will be a part owner of the studio. So it will be a. It'll be just filmmakers. You know, it's basically my response to the Raha barons, who have just taken all of the humanity and. And the. And the soul and the honesty and the integrity out of every business that they touch. Because the corporate playbook is always to just devalue your workforce. Pay them as little as possible, and let them know, you open your mouth, there's 15 guys ready to take your job.
Brent Spiner
Right.
Ron Perlman
And this is why we have. The politics we have today is because people are so disrespected and so passed over and so beaten down with how little they. They're worth that they're ready to burn it all down.
Brent Spiner
Right.
Ron Perlman
Even the democracy.
Brent Spiner
Well, I hope it works. It sounds great.
Jonathan Frakes
It does sound great.
Ron Perlman
It's working already.
Brent Spiner
Oh, good.
Jonathan Frakes
Because that's funny. I didn't get a call. You had a call.
Brent Spiner
I. I did. I didn't want to hurt you, but, yeah, Ronnie, we're on board.
Ron Perlman
No, but the thing of it is,
Jonathan Frakes
is that we can bring you stuff.
Ron Perlman
Here's the thing.
Brent Spiner
Yeah.
Ron Perlman
People say to me, oh, you know when. In these early interviews, because it's very early, and I'm just starting to talk about it now. I just. We just announced the first movie that's in production. But. And I. I was very deliberately not talking about it at all until I knew I was going to be able to pull it off, because I didn't want anybody getting the impression that I was coming to them for help. You have to. When you're going to do something as dangerous as this and go against the entire flow of how things are done, you have to do it yourself. You have to prove you can do it before anybody's going to feel safe enough to join in. And so we're at that. That. That tipping point now. But people say, okay, so you have your own studio. So what kind of things do you want to do? And I go, no, the question is, what kind of things do you want to do? I'm just here to facilitate the environment and the resources to open my arms to every great fucking artist on the planet, whether they're from Korea or Italy or somewhere in Uganda. Like, there's filmmakers everywhere ready to tell incredible stories. And our job at Asylum Studios is to. Is to say, oh, That's a great idea. Let's help you make that. That's what. It's. So. I don't. It's not what I want to do.
Brent Spiner
Yeah.
Ron Perlman
How do we facilitate making your dream come true without having it be some result of an algorithm that's telling us what the public. What you think the public wants.
Jonathan Frakes
Right.
Ron Perlman
That's not how you make art. You don't pander to the public. You show the public what's beautiful and. And. And sweep them into a dreamlike state.
Brent Spiner
Oh, good for you, Ron. Good for you. I hope. I hope this turns out to be
Ron Perlman
huge for you, whether it does or it doesn't. You know something, Brent? I'm having such a good time waking up every morning working on this, because it's. It's. This. This. This industry has meant so much more to me than the current climate is reflective of. And I. I'm betting, because I've seen the effect that great movies have had on everybody across the world throughout my entire lifetime. I'm betting that this devalued, tiny, little fucking home entertainment model is a blip, but that people are longing to go back to the days when they could go into a darkened theater, sit there with 2,000 strangers and. And have a collective consciousness moment where they walk out at the end with tears in their eyes and they go, oh, you too?
Brent Spiner
Yeah.
Ron Perlman
Oh, yeah, man. I was like, oh. And then. And people are hugging each other because they just shared something that shed a light on the human condition and made us all realize we're all in the same fucking boat. Which is why cinema is too important to. To be home entertainment only to watch it in your piss stain sweats. It's way too important. It's like asking somebody to go to church in their piss stain sweats, but we're going to bring it to your living room, right? Because, you know, who really wants to get up and put on a nice, you know, jacket and look nice, you know, in public? Is that how you go to church? No.
Brent Spiner
No.
Ron Perlman
You have to go somewhere and humble yourself in public. That's what worship is. And we happen to be in an industry that should be worshiped.
Brent Spiner
Yes.
Ron Perlman
Because what we're doing for the connectivity of reminding everybody that we're not enemies, we shouldn't be hating each other. We should be recognizing our collective consciousness. That's a fucking noble endeavor and needs to be treated as such.
Brent Spiner
Amen.
Ron Perlman
So. Asylum Studios, baby.
Brent Spiner
Okay? Asylum Studios.
Ron Perlman
Ron Perlman, send me your week. You're shattered and you're hungry, huddled masses and you're worthy.
Jonathan Frakes
You're fabulous, powerful man.
Brent Spiner
Thank you. Ronnie. Loved having you here.
Ron Perlman
I'm sorry I took up so much time.
Jonathan Frakes
No, it was fascinating.
Ron Perlman
We. We talked about stuff that's near and dear to all of us. I know you guys. I've gotten to know this guy, you know, worked. We worked a bunch together. We've never worked together. We've got to know each other over the last few years. And I know where your heart is.
Jonathan Frakes
I was thrilled when you said yes to me.
Ron Perlman
That's. Everything is like, you know, where your heart is is everything. And none of us are. I want to do anything, but just.
Jonathan Frakes
None of us are done.
Ron Perlman
Spread joy.
Brent Spiner
That's right.
Ron Perlman
We just want to spread joy. And if you can get paid while you're doing it, that ain't bad either.
Brent Spiner
Exactly.
Ron Perlman
But if. But whether you get paid or not, we're still going to spread the fucking joy.
Brent Spiner
Well, that's true.
Jonathan Frakes
Ron Perlman, we love him.
Episode: “Wedding Crasher Tales and Hollywood Secrets with Ron Perlman”
Date: June 3, 2026
Hosts: Brent Spiner & Jonathan Frakes
Guest: Ron Perlman
This lively episode features actor Ron Perlman joining Brent Spiner and Jonathan Frakes for an open, candid, and frequently hilarious discussion about careers in showbiz, iconic encounters, stage fright, and the ongoing evolution of Hollywood. Expect wedding crashing stories, tales from major film sets, reflections on camaraderie, and an early peek at Perlman’s ambitious new venture, Asylum Studios.
The tone is intimate, irreverent, and nostalgic, with a blend of behind-the-scenes insights and heartfelt industry commentary.