Brendan Fraser on Eisenhower, The Mummy 4, and Chris Farley

Summary

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Fly on the Wall with Dana Carvey & David Spade

Episode: Brendan Fraser on Eisenhower, The Mummy 4, and Chris Farley

Date: May 21, 2026
Host: Audacy
Guest: Brendan Fraser

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Episode Overview

In this lively, wide-ranging episode, Dana Carvey and David Spade welcome Brendan Fraser back to the podcast. The chat blends Fraser’s new projects—including his portrayal of Dwight D. Eisenhower in "Pressure"—with reflections on his career renaissance, the status of "The Mummy 4," working with directors, pop culture, and personal stories about resilience, comedy, and Chris Farley. The tone is friendly, open, comedic, and brimming with nostalgia and inside-Hollywood tidbits.

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Major Discussion Points & Insights

1. Brendan Fraser’s “Brenaissance” and Post-Oscar Life

• Fraser’s comeback: The hosts and Fraser discuss the so-called "Brenaissance"—his surge in popularity following "The Whale" and his Oscar win.
• Oscar reflections: Fraser describes the surreal, communal competition and the emotional gauntlet of awards season.

  "It's an affirmation that you don't really understand what the protocol is until it happens to you... It's just a way of me remembering how many people helped me get to that place."
  —Brendan Fraser [09:25]

• Impact of the Oscar: Fraser remains humble despite the acclaim, joking,

  "I'm still a doofus." [09:15]

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2. "Pressure": Dwight D. Eisenhower and the D-Day Decision

• Film premise: “Pressure” dramatizes Eisenhower’s D-Day decision, focusing on the crucial weather call that determined the Allied invasion (32:51–44:33).
• Research & challenges: Fraser reveals his doubts about playing Eisenhower and his research into the general’s real characteristics.

  "When Anthony said... I got the offer, I said, 'Me?'... He sent me two photographs alongside myself and I went, 'Oh, hang on, hang on.'"
  —Brendan Fraser [46:23]

• Eisenhower’s leadership: Fraser explores Ike’s leadership philosophy, comparing him to Darren Aronofsky in how both take input but make the final call (49:51).
• Historical authenticity: The film uses restored archival footage for realism (37:03–38:44).

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3. Fraser’s Filmography & Working with Directors

• Acting process & directors: Fraser and the hosts discuss directors’ styles, from taskmasters like Kubrick and Fincher to improvisational settings enabled by digital filmmaking (15:59–21:39).
• On finding the right tone:

  "There are some directors who I don't understand their direction. I will smile and nod... 'Yes, that was it.' You're like, 'I have no idea what you told me.'" —Fraser [15:59]

• Drama vs. comedy: Fraser feels vulnerable in dramas, but comedy roles also come with their own insecurities.

  "I always feel like someone's gonna walk in the door and hand me a dish towel and say, 'Fraser, get back to the...'"
  —Fraser [22:56]

• On "The Whale": The experience was exhaustive and transformative, with Fraser crediting his co-stars and director Darren Aronofsky for its success (13:20–14:44, 23:14–24:40).

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4. Upcoming & Recent Films

• "Rental Family": Fraser describes playing an actor hired to "fill in" as family connected to Japan's "rental relatives" business model (26:51–32:03). The film touches on loneliness, identity, and the search for authenticity.
• "Pressure": In-depth conversation about the stakes, strategy, and emotional weight involved in Eisenhower’s D-Day leadership (32:08–45:35).

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5. "The Mummy 4" & Pop Culture Legacy

• Fraser confirms "The Mummy 4":

  Q: "Is there maybe a Mummy 4?"
  A: "Yes." (Smiling)
  —Brendan Fraser [59:14–59:27]

• Excitement & nostalgia: Fraser reflects on why the fourth film took so long, what went wrong with the third installment, and the ongoing fan passion.

  "People have been wanting another one for 20, what, five, four years... I go to fan conventions and... I lost count of the number of young women... who have said, 'I'm an Egyptologist, I am an archaeologist—because they saw The Mummy.'"
  —Fraser [63:10]

• Fraser on the tone: He promises the comedic/action "rollercoaster" vibe is returning.

  "You want the band to get back together, which is what we are... The band is back together."
  —Fraser [64:54–64:59]

• On physical demands/Q&A: Brendan jokes about training and past injuries, including being choked out while filming the first "Mummy" [65:49–66:06].

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6. Industry & Hollywood Anecdotes

• Mailbox money/residuals: Fraser shares that his smallest residual is 13 cents from "Glory Days"—joking about the realities of acting economics (61:03).
• Role variety: The hosts and Fraser riff on comedy vs. drama and the unpredictable nature of showbiz trends.

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7. Memories of Chris Farley and "Airheads"

• Storytime: Fraser recounts wearing Chris Farley’s iconic jacket and shares a fond, funny memory of filming with Farley on "Airheads" (68:25–69:07).

  "That's how I met Farley." —Fraser [68:25]

• Pop culture touchstones: The group reminisces about "Wayne’s World," "Encino Man," and the enduring nature of 90s and 2000s comedy.

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Notable Quotes & Moments (with Timestamps)

• On awards & humility:
  "You don't really know if you're in it... You don't really know where you are on the 'no' level."
  —David Spade [08:46]
• On being recognized:
  "Every single one [person I tell says] I love that guy... I don't know how they got a memo or went to a meeting."
  —David Spade [09:02]
• On "The Whale":
  "With The Whale, I did everything I humanly possibly could. It was 2022. We all thought we were going to die tomorrow anyway because of COVID."
  —Fraser [23:14]
• On "Pressure":
  "Pressure is the weekend before the D-Day invasion... the biggest logistical operation ever..."
  —Fraser [32:51]
• On historical accuracy:
  "The Americans... were reliant on analog. If the Farmers Almanac in 1912 said it didn't rain, it won't rain today."
  —Fraser [41:21]
• On directors:
  "He credits right away with whomever came up with whatever suggestion... but he's also quick to say, no, that's not right. And he's always correct." —Fraser on Aronofsky [13:20]
• On The Mummy legacy:
  "I lost count of the number of young women... who've said, 'I'm an Egyptologist, I am an archaeologist'... because they saw The Mummy and it gave them so much dopamine when they were young."
  —Fraser [63:10–63:43]
• On injuries:
  "Oh, I got choked out... day three or four, doesn't get choked out. A noose."
  —Fraser [65:49]
• On nostalgia:
  "And it's nostalgia to a generation in its own right now, too."
  —Fraser [67:37]

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Timestamps for Key Segments

| Timestamp | Topic | |-------------|------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 02:20 | Fraser enters; discussion of career & personality | | 09:25 | On Oscar win and its meaning | | 12:00–16:44 | Discussion of "The Whale" and working with directors | | 23:14 | On risk, vulnerability, and the emotional cost of acting | | 26:51–32:03 | "Rental Family" — premise and production details | | 32:08–45:35 | "Pressure" — D-Day, meteorology, filming challenges, Eisenhower portrayal | | 46:23–51:32 | Getting into character as Eisenhower; leadership style; long-take direction | | 59:14–65:36 | "The Mummy 4" announcement, franchise legacy, production anecdotes, injuries, fan culture | | 68:25 | Meeting Chris Farley, "Airheads," 90s comedy memories | | 73:15 | Release date chat: "Pressure" in theaters May 29th |

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Tone & Style

The conversation is vibrant, self-deprecating, and full of showbiz camaraderie. Carvey and Spade riff (often comically) with Fraser, who matches their warmth and humor with candor, humility, and sharp insights about acting, Hollywood, and history.

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Final Thoughts

This episode is an excellent deep-dive for movie buffs, history enthusiasts, and fans nostalgic for the peak Fraser years. Whether reviewing critical WWII moments or leaking news of "The Mummy 4," the hosts and guest deliver an engaging blend of wit, wisdom, and personal touch. Fraser’s palpable gratitude and zeal for the craft shine throughout, making this fly-on-the-wall conversation a must-listen.

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Transcript

[A]

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[C]

I always feel like someone's going to walk in the door and hand me a dish towel and say, fraser, get back to the.

[A]

Get out of here.

[C]

You know, I. It just. It's in me. Yeah, the third one. It's. It, it's. It's kind of. It's sort of the problem Child.

[B]

Okay.

[C]

Which had the strange elements that the audience were like, you know, you're giving me something that I. I don't. You're telling me it's one thing and it's.

[A]

You got away from what people like.

[B]

I hate that.

[C]

We.

[B]

We can't do that. We did it in the other movie. They want to see something new.

[C]

And then it's like, you can't reinvent the wheel.

[B]

No. You want. If you want to eat an Oreo, you want that cookie tastes like you want.

[C]

You want the band to get back together, which is what we are going to.

[B]

And the band is back together.

[C]

Yes, we're getting the band back together. The fly on the wall aspect of being in the room. To see what.

[B]

Thanks for the plug.

[A]

That's the name of the podcast.

[C]

Oh, excellent. That's right.

[A]

So Brendan Fraser, you. You say it wrong. I say it right. Brendan, a phrase you were. I say it funny because he did a cameo in Dickie Roberts and he knew the director because the director did George of the Jungle. Was it not Tarzan? George of the Jungle.

[B]

George of the Jungle, which was a parody of Tarzan.

[A]

And he was funny and it was a big movie.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

100 million dollar movie. And he had done the show before and he was nice enough to say, I have a movie coming out. Can I come on again? We had a good time. Movie is called Pressure. It's about dj.

[B]

He plays Dwight D. Eisenhower to make a decision about the weather.

[A]

I'm definitely seeing it because you know more about history than me, Dana. But I. Hearing about it made me want to see it. I like those kind of movies. So.

[B]

Yeah. Tense, a lot of tension.

[A]

It's in the theater. And then last night, coincidentally, I ran into Paulie Shore at the Comedy Store and he said, oh, I said, we had Brendan. And I go, Brendan's very soft spoken and very. Has a very sweet vibe to him. And I said, was he always like that on Encino man where he played like.

[B]

Good question.

[A]

And he said. He said he was he even back then. He's very careful how he talks to you. And he's even on the podcast. Very quiet and he's very. We talked after. So did you. Very nice to me. Very nice to you after. So couldn't be a cooler dude. A lot of talent packed in there. Oh, he tried on Farley's coat, by the way. Yeah.

[B]

Oh, yeah. Dance in it.

[A]

Because he saw Chris's coat up from.

[B]

And he started doing some. Chris Farley.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Yeah. Very sweet. Yeah.

[A]

So this.

[B]

This one's Interesting. We had him a couple years ago and it was really about just his travails in show business. He had injuries and his wilderness years and how he came back and he did the whale. And then we talk about what's going on now and that and this new movie. And another surprise. If you listen to the end, a surprise to me. Anyway, happy surprise.

[A]

And his post Oscar life because before he hadn't won it, I think he was just up for the whale and.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Okay, here he is. Brennan. Fraser. You got in. There's a rumor you got in yesterday. Yeah, and Dana got in yesterday from New York.

[B]

I did a one nighter in New York.

[C]

Did you come in?

[B]

I came in. I left at 3:30 at Kennedy, heavy on American Airlines. And so we climbed south for a bit and then. Well, you don't need the details. But anyway, the guy came on and said, we just got a weather report. We're going to have two hours. And it's. It could get. It could get pretty rough.

[A]

Yeah, you got it too choppy.

[C]

Yeah, yeah.

[A]

I would calm down a little choppy than rough.

[B]

I didn't think it was bad because I was ready for rock and roll. I was ready for barrel rolls. World War II, kind of. Yeah. We will go in the counter, free back, full circle.

[C]

There's a guy playing harmonica.

[A]

Dennis. Dennis used to say, I got a little light chop or dirty air. Those are ways of saying it's going to get bad. But I'd rather hear it tamped down like that. A little bit of dirty air coming up.

[B]

Dirty air.

[C]

Peter Dinklage told me that. Pete, he said that he is a pilot in his family and he said that just to put your mind at ease. If something bad's going to happen, it's after takeoff. Like, you know, once you're in the air, you're good landing. It is a lot of, you know, comparing the risk. And if you think of, you know, air chop as like skipping a stone on water, like, you know, it's not,

[A]

that's not as bad.

[C]

So you give yourself a mental image.

[B]

Well, I heard two minutes. Like it's probably a million to one when you take off. It's 10 million to one after two minutes. So I just count backwards and take deep breaths and then we get to 120 seconds, which would be two minutes, right?

[C]

Yeah. What about the landing metric minutes?

[A]

Is the landing more dangerous than the takeoff?

[C]

God.

[B]

Depends on the weather.

[C]

Depends on. I don't know.

[B]

Well, the takeoff proves the thesis that the thing's going to fly again.

[C]

Okay. Yeah.

[B]

Because, you know, they do stuff like,

[C]

oh, we've only got one engine. You're like, yeah, yeah.

[A]

I don't like that.

[B]

I flew on an A380 once out of Paris.

[A]

A380?

[B]

A380. It's a shopping center with an engine. You know, it's just so fucking big.

[C]

Bowling.

[B]

So we go on up in the. My wife and I go out, and we're first class.

[A]

Whoops.

[B]

And we meet Maurice Chevalier, if you know the reference, the pilot. We may not be taking off today. We have a little engine problem. So, anyway, so we did go. I was kind of nervous. The exact same flight seven days later, lost an engine. Emergency. Landed in Greenland. Wow. They interviewed the French guy. It was a. I'm so punchy, I can't even.

[A]

It's Brendan's jet lag.

[C]

It's Brendan.

[B]

One thing I wanted to say to you because I was looking at some of the comments on the trailer, and someone said, I am so down for this. Brenneraisance.

[C]

Brenaissance.

[B]

Oh, you've seen this? Is it a meme?

[C]

I've been.

[A]

This is.

[C]

Is it a meme? I think it's painted on someone's ceiling. Sistine Chapel.

[A]

Yeah. It's been. Has it been around? People are saying it. People told me the other day, they go, I want to see you make a comeback. I go, oh, am I gone?

[C]

They're like, I've always been here.

[A]

Jesus. Yeah. You just never really know if you're in it. You don't really know where you are. On the no level.

[B]

I heard probably 10 times this week, because just casually. Where are you going? What are you doing? While I'm doing this podcast, I'm gonna interview Brendan Frazier. I love that guy.

[C]

Oh, really?

[B]

Every single one?

[C]

Every single one.

[B]

Every single one. I love that guy. I don't know how they got a memo or went to a meeting. But anyway, you know, I'm going to

[C]

have to send him a. Jeez.

[A]

He's an Oscar winner.

[B]

It's very. It's difficult.

[A]

It's a little intimidating.

[C]

Is it intimidating? Come on. Not for you guys. I'm still a doofus.

[A]

Definitely. We don't have.

[B]

But it's very cool.

[C]

It's an affirmation that you don't really understand what the protocol is until it happens to you. And in, you know, the final analysis, I think it's just a way of me remembering how many people helped me get to that place where you're even considered. And then when it comes down to that envelope opening moment. It could be anyone. I mean, any other. You know, we don't know. And there's relief because you said something. We know an answer, you know, and there's among, you know, in your category at least. The year I was there, we'd been through a gauntlet of press. And that's a question, all of that. And yeah, that's your job. You should do that. But it takes a toll. And what it does is just makes you.

[A]

It's an odd job, it's a weird

[C]

job, but you've become like, you know, you know, you. You get a lot closer. You care for one another and you're

[B]

pulling for who was in your cadre. Not that they're losers. They did lose.

[A]

Oh, Bill Nighy. And who was the first one called Bill Nye?

[C]

Austin Butler.

[A]

Okay. Yeah, I like him.

[C]

Yeah, all great guys.

[A]

And you smoked them. But now when you.

[C]

Not true.

[A]

No, not true.

[B]

It could have been by 1%.

[A]

You don't know. It could have been like this.

[B]

How were you crawling up to the Oscars? Like Golden Globes, all the critics choice. What was your batting ratio?

[A]

Yeah, how are you doing?

[B]

I'm just trying to remember.

[C]

No, no, no, no. Colin was winning everything since Venice.

[B]

Or Colin.

[C]

Other Colin.

[B]

The other Colin. Hey, Colin.

[C]

Banshees of insurance.

[A]

A man at work.

[C]

You can say it.

[A]

Oh yeah. The Banshees of insurance. I really committed. I just said it. I got. I knew it was a lot of letters.

[B]

No, I know you call a meme or you think it's Colin Farrell.

[C]

I just want to see how many Colins you know?

[A]

I know I don't know that many.

[B]

Colin Quinn.

[A]

If it's not the guy from out at work, I'm out.

[B]

I'm going to tap out on call.

[A]

No, Colin from England.

[C]

Ireland. Come on.

[A]

That guy, you know that guy Firth.

[B]

Well, Colin Farrell.

[A]

No.

[B]

Was it Colin Farrell?

[C]

Yes.

[A]

Did we already do it? And we kept guessing and I guess

[B]

it's the first time you kept asking us. Listen, we'll be right back.

[A]

I saw that.

[B]

Fun times. We'll be right back.

[A]

And I saw the whale.

[C]

You did?

[A]

Interesting.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

The Banshees had no chance against the Whale.

[B]

No, the whale. The whale performance is like. Yeah, it's supernatural. I mean, it's historic. I mean, I mean, it was just like insane.

[C]

It was a lot of real hardcore rehearsal with Darren Aronofsky is the first to tell you that he would have been on Baseball umpire if he wasn't a director because he's kind of guy Sees everything. He gets the last call.

[B]

He knows the play, and he couldn't cast it.

[A]

Right.

[B]

He saw you in some older movie and went, ah, that guy can do it.

[C]

What he said.

[B]

Yeah, yeah.

[C]

He had that intention to make the movie for a number of years, I guess. But when we met, I was. I was this formidable director. And if you. He's got eyes that are kind of like you, very kind. Behind, you know, formidable frames, you're looking at.

[A]

Dana, Come on.

[B]

I can go anywhere to go. Get your facts straight, Jack.

[A]

Go. This Trader Hormuz, Joe Biden,

[B]

he's Clark

[A]

Kent, and Joe Biden takes him off.

[B]

But. Yeah, is he kind of considered. Is he a taskmaster in a way, but brilliant, Darren? I mean, I don't know, but he's.

[C]

He has high standards. And the thing about him is that he does get the ideas from the best. He calls every. You know, he gets everyone's opinion. He's diplomatic. He's a very good leader. Like, he. And he credits right away with whomever came up with whatever suggestion, answer, you know, what to submit. But he's also quick to say, no, that's not right. And he's always correct. Like, you ask that from any department. Wardrobe, makeup, all of it. He knows the answer. And he has a real spontaneity and a confidence to him. Like, if he sees something, a scene is playing out, he'll change the order of the coverage to capture a performance from an actor from a different angle just automatically.

[A]

Because he saw it, because it's working. Like, let's get that.

[C]

Yeah, he saw that. So he'll turn the room around just to get that now.

[A]

Yeah.

[C]

And he's. I think he's one of among the directors who we admire who have courage, who kind of fear no art in a way. You know, they. They. And having courage doesn't mean, you know, you're not challenged or you're fearless or something like that. But he.

[B]

He, He.

[C]

He does take risks. And I think that's where, you know, big rewards come.

[B]

You kind of work with less location. So he has that ability to kind of flip the camera. It's not like, we're going to the

[A]

beach now, or you had less location.

[C]

In the case of that film, the Whale, it was. It was in one room, right?

[B]

Literally in one room.

[C]

Yeah. It was Charlie's apartment. And, you know, it was in.

[B]

It was like a stage play in that sense that you could really get intimate with the play, the way it felt.

[C]

Well, it was written by. As.

[B]

As a stage play.

[C]

Yeah. And adapted for the screen.

[A]

Yeah. Dana, why?

[C]

Sam?

[B]

Let me look at my notes.

[A]

I knew that. No, is it better to have, like, a director? Because you've had a lot of directors. We've all had a lot of directors. And I think it's better when. Because there's ultimately a final say, so. Which makes the system work. You know, when everyone pitches in, you give your ideas. I'm in these movies. You give your ideas, but someone's going to make the final call. Sometimes they take your suggestions, but ultimately it's better when you think they're really good because it's easier to take when they make the final call. Because some movies, you don't, down deep, think they're any good. And then you go, so this is what we're going with. Okay. And then you kind of go in knowing, I don't think this is right. And that's a tricky situation. But luckily you got this guy. And you probably work with better and better guys all the time.

[C]

They're all good in their own way. There are some directors who I don't understand their direction. I will smile and nod.

[A]

Yeah. And then I'll try to get what they said. You don't even know.

[C]

And then afterwards they go, yes, that was it. You're like, I have no idea what you told me.

[A]

I do the same thing. I know.

[B]

You try.

[A]

You go, I think this is what they mean. I've done that. Where they go, nope, nope. And then. Yep. And you go, I don't know what happened.

[B]

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[B]

I like that. Yeah.

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Choosing pieces that are comfortable enough for everyday life but still feel put together with not a lot of effort, you know, it's made getting dressed way easier, especially in the mornings when I don't want to think. Quince has been really my go to for that balance. Their spring staples are exactly what I've been reaching for. Like 100% European linen shorts, very light, and shirts starting around 34 bucks. That's not a lot. They're lightweight, breathable, still clean and elevated. They're 100% Pima. Cotton tees are unbelievably soft, the kind you immediately notice the first time you wear them. And the pants that have that same easy feel, but you still look polished enough to do pretty much anything, right?

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[C]

I think I'm a first take, best take kind of guy.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Okay. Well, there you go.

[C]

Or early once. Once I start doing too much, then gilding the lily.

[B]

So Kubrick would have been a nightmare for you.

[C]

It would have been a long day.

[B]

200 takes.

[A]

Even Fincher, they say that. And I'm like, I would not envy being 100 takes. Like, some people brag, like Tom Cruise. Like, we did 100 takes to get it right. And I go, how bad is everyone? You can't get it in 50. I mean.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Or what?

[C]

Things are different now considering that it's digital. Right.

[B]

That's the difference.

[C]

Cameras are like flipping on a light switch. You know, you just leave them on all the time. And then the kind of. We used to say, you know, we'll fix it in post or, you know, you do it in the box right now, overnight even. Yeah, Digital, it takes longer and longer. The rhythm of change.

[B]

And like. Sorry to interrupt, but I kind of like sometimes if you're comedians, you like to improvise. So digital was revolutionary for people like Will Ferrell. Adam McKay. Just put the camera on him for like 10 minutes and will would just

[C]

throw lines, do what he does and

[B]

pick the best one.

[C]

Right. And that can also be prohibitive in a sense that.

[A]

Too much time.

[C]

Too much time, yeah. And you feel like you are in almost a theatrical sort of venue when it's inherently work cinema for a smaller size performance. We're not acting out a whole play scene. But then sometimes there's pros and cons, of course. I mean the physical act of taking magazines of film off the top of the camera and having the rhythm of, okay, well they got to reload. That means I can breathe for a second. I can check in with the whatever, have a chat about this, talk to the camera guy. Now a whole new generation's come of age in a period where it's ubiquitous and constant and it gives you a sense of needing to be on all the time. Yeah, it's open ended. It's not really.

[A]

There's an interesting thing when this happens when you're shooting and then they're doing more and more takes and if you even feel like you're getting it right, maybe they're looking for something else. And then I start changing my performance because I go, we're not moving on. So I'm going to try different things. And sometimes when they move on, I'm thinking the early ones were better. I think maybe they're looking for someone else's coverage. They go, oh, that was better. And I'm like, well, now I'm stuck in mine. That I didn't love these things as inside baseball, but you know what I mean? I'm just changing because we're not moving on. So I'm tweaking and trying to try anything else to feel like it hits. And then sometimes the one they go, got it. And you go, wait.

[C]

And then you have your own inner critic going, you know, 10 minutes later, oh, I should have, I could have.

[A]

That's the worst. When you move on.

[C]

Wait. And then you gotta feel like you're gonna run up the escalator to get to the top again. I just want to do one.

[A]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[B]

Since you did you know, big comedies or, you know, and then you've done real drama, do they scare you equally or it's like, what's the most frightening for. Because I think just being very vulnerable on a set would be harder than comedy in some ways.

[C]

I'll shoot just straight. Dana. I always feel like someone's gonna walk in the door and hand me a dish towel and say, fraser, get back to the.

[A]

Get out of here.

[C]

It's in me.

[B]

So even after the Oscar, it didn't kind of affect you a little bit. Not cocky, but a little bit. I must be doing something right.

[C]

Well, I got. Yeah, I mean, like. Well, in that case, I do know that with the whale, I did everything that I humanly possibly could. It was 2022. We all thought we were going to die tomorrow anyway because of COVID It was existential threat for everyone. Actors are, you know, ideally supposed to do this like, it's the first and last time you ever will. So, you know, leave it everything. Give it everything you got that's. That's right for the part when. When I can remember feeling like I had everything to prove at that time in my career, and if the film didn't land with an audience or it was not received in a favorable way, you know, with everyone has best hopes for the work, then I just would have taken it straight up. No chaser. That. Okay. I really don't know what I'm doing because I was all out of moves. I didn't have any other ones. So that really did exhaust what was in my repertoire at that time. And so it's nice that it was well received and that it was awarded and given all this recognition, but it is not because of anything that I specifically did. It was Hong Chao. It was Sadie Sink. It was daring.

[A]

Sadie Sink was good in that. Yeah. I think it's also. You get in a place where you go, I hope this is the one that works. Because it feels like to get the elements to come together, you got the cast and the director and the script, and then you go and the editing and the promotion and the trailer, and you go, so far, we're doing good. I've seen the final product. We just gotta get people to see it. And a lot of movies that the wheels go off earlier and you're like, I don't think this is the one. I don't think this is gonna hit it on all cylinders.

[C]

And then there's that X factor of who knows what audiences where they are culturally in their headspace.

[A]

What you hit it at the right time.

[C]

What do they need to see? What do they want to feel more about? You know, we all go through these sort of trends of culture. Right. What you think about the way they.

[B]

That's true.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Especially with comedy. It really there was, you know, Tropic thunder and the hangover movies like that.

[C]

Right.

[B]

Only till recently there was an R rated comedy. Kind of felt like it was from the 90s. A brief, brief run at the box office. It was called busboys that David made. It's very quick.

[A]

It's great. I did a movie but it was low budget movie.

[B]

It was post any kind of woke stuff. It's all politically incorrect.

[A]

Yeah.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

Which brings me to this question. Brent.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

Is it too late for you to be in Busboys? No. Is it? No. When you did.

[C]

I did answer the call back in the day.

[A]

Oh, you came. Oh, I love it. That was Sam Weissman. Right. Because he did Tarzan, right? George. George of the Jungle. Yeah.

[B]

What did you say? George of the Jungle. You played Tarzan.

[C]

George.

[B]

You're like George was based on Tarzan from the cartoon. So you got quite a range, man. You do.

[A]

Let's just say some comedies then you get really deep all the way to the whale. You did a rental family which was a very nice feel good movie.

[B]

Now there's sort of 38 on rotten tomatoes.

[C]

Not bad, right?

[B]

Yeah. An incredibly cool.

[A]

I got 88 with all mine combined.

[B]

I read a review, it was 86. I'll call it later. I read a review said Oscar worthy. This is for them.

[C]

Really?

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

Possibly if an audience's headspace was in a place where it needed to hear that kind of story or appreciate it. In the case of Reynold family, it's a movie about a guy who is in a country that is not his own and the country he's not in his the United States. And he hasn't been there for about seven or eight years. I mean, you figure out why did he leave America?

[B]

Who is this guy?

[C]

Who is this guy and what was it that he doesn't want to go back to? Well, you know, what's the temperature in America today? That's a whole other conversation.

[B]

Right.

[C]

But he finds himself in a new place and he's extraordinarily lonely in one of the busiest cities of the world and is realizing that, yeah, he's going to die a lonely man who with father issues of his own if he doesn't have some sort of sense of connection with people that he can't get through his acting career. Because let's Face it, he's not a very good one. He's big gig was Mr. Clearbright man in the toothpaste commercial. And you know, and that's a trope. It is. You know, if you've ever been. You've been in Tokyo. You see, there's mascot culture is huge.

[A]

Yeah.

[C]

And expats taking those jobs are plastered all over advertising everywhere in Japan and it's still not enough. And once he stops performing in this sort of buffoonish, clownish way and is able to make proper connections with people in a meaningful way when he's not performing for a camera, but instead he's working at a service industry to give companionship to people who are, in a word, desperate for authenticity. It's a good premise and if that can help. It does. Sometimes it can't. And that's where this film really lives. What are those thorny questions about standing in as surrogates in people's lives?

[B]

Is it kind of fun playing an actor who ends up acting like he's pretending to be the long lost father

[C]

or whatever he goes on?

[B]

So the guy you're playing is also pretending.

[C]

It's a performance of a performance. You're right. Until the logarithm gets a little bit too confusing and he just realizes, I'm going to stop doing that and jump in with both feet and just be. And then learn, of course, that he indeed is actually being.

[A]

Is there anything like that in Japan?

[C]

Yes, it's a business model that existed since the 80s.

[A]

I did not.

[B]

Wow.

[A]

That's why it's a great idea. And then. Yeah, I saw a scene with you and this young girl and she was Shannon Gorman.

[C]

She was nine years old. Never acted before.

[A]

She was nine. Oh, she was good. Yeah.

[C]

She's 12.

[B]

Almost never acted before.

[C]

No, she's nine years old. I mean, she was a little kid. It was perfect.

[A]

Around the block by that.

[B]

She should be a little worn out by nine.

[A]

A couple sitcoms.

[B]

That was so she was really good, Right? There is something about the purity of a kid, you know, maybe not overthinking.

[C]

Well, when you're. When you're casting a kid, you're also casting their parents. Yeah, you know, for sure.

[B]

How were they?

[C]

Terrific.

[B]

Oh, good.

[C]

I mean, just terrific. Supportive. Her mother is Japanese, her father is Irish. So I mean, she fit the bill to a T. She was, you know, naturally gregarious and interested in pleasing the grownups and performing on her own. So, you know, it fit the, the criteria perfectly. And we quickly learned we had to stop rehearsing with her because she had. Because she hadn't acted before. She was learning. Kids are sponges. Right. You know, and we didn't want her playing her game in a locker room. So just get her on set. Shoot it. Captured lightning in a bottle.

[A]

You know, I liked it. This, this Hikari, was that the director?

[C]

Yeah, that's right.

[A]

And is Hikari some one who you knew something they did or you just. The script is the part that got you.

[C]

The script was first. I did not know her. I met her, of course, but that was just before the strike. And then we had to wait for a year. She and her writing partner Stephen Blahoot were in Tokyo, trapped there during the lockdown. And he's an American and he was looking for a job and he was going through like classifieds and. And he saw an advertisement looking for rental boyfriend or rental. That sounds a little hokey and a little dodgy. In some ways those services exist. You can't. It's a whole nother movie. And he said, what's this? He asked her. She said, I'm Japanese, I don't know what this is. And that's how they started researching and finding out.

[B]

Interesting.

[A]

Well, the fact that it's real is even better.

[B]

And what's this latest one? I'm sorry?

[C]

It's called Pressure.

[B]

Yes, I'm very excited to see that.

[A]

Are you really?

[B]

Honest to God, I saw. Because it gave me vibes of the Churchill movie with Gary Oldman Focus features.

[C]

Yeah, that's what they do.

[B]

Yeah. And I love that movie. I've seen it probably five times. My wife and I visit it every once in a while. But this one, knowing a little bit about it and how intense the weather thing was and how rudimentary our weather thing was. So how did this come to you? And I want to just know what you, you know. You're going to play Dwight D. Eisenhower. I mean, at first you kind of go, okay, and then what do you do?

[A]

Yeah. And tell the crowd a little bit about what it's about.

[C]

Sure. Yeah. Well, Pressure is the weekend before the D Day invasion, which was. History tells us Tuesday, June 6, 1944. I didn't know that. The date originally was Monday, June 5, 1944. Largest amphibious attack, 300,000 troops in a morning ever. That's the biggest location detail logistical,

[B]

new equipment, never been done in battle before.

[A]

Early call sheet for extras.

[C]

Exactly.

[A]

We got to get there at 2am we got to start shooting at 6.

[B]

Well, one of the most indelible moments of my cinematic life, seeing the longest day with my dad when I was like 8. And the Germans are like that, you know, they don't think there's any attack coming. And then he goes, oh, like that. You see like a million ships.

[C]

Yes.

[B]

And as a kid, I was like, holy.

[C]

That weekend, of course, they factored in everything that goes into an invasion and certainly meteorology and the weather plays a huge part. That's another combatant, essentially. And it was for the efforts of a meteorologist named Skagg, who was courageous enough to stand up and tell everyone, almost Cassandra, like you need to heed the warning that there is an inbound storm and not just a storm like a big storm that would completely up 6 foot waves. Air Force couldn't hit targets. Landing craft, I mean, those were dodgy enough to begin with. Many of them didn't make it under good circumstances. And he said, you, you have to take this seriously. And they did delay, actually. It was going to be later. I think it was the 18th was the soonest they could do it considering the phases of the moon, the amount of reflected light to attack level times, everything. And we are then deciding.

[A]

You're the guy that decides.

[C]

Pardon?

[A]

You're the guy that decides.

[C]

Well, he had the final word. You know, he was Eisenhower of the Joint Chiefs of Staff was the last word and the final word. And, and the responsibility was his and his alone. And he took it. He did. I mean, he's. As I studied and learned, he wrote a letter in advance of a response to whatever the outcome of, of the invasion would be in victory and one that was in defeat. And the one in victory was the one that we know of. But he cared for the troops intensely. That's, I mean, no secret. He definitely didn't have we will get boots on the beach. No matter what. They knew they were going to go and have a bare knuckle fight with a chainsaw as it was already. But he didn't want there to be the. He wanted the fewest reasons for people for his soldiers to prevail. Knowing that there's an estimated 75% casualty.

[A]

Oof.

[C]

Anticipation.

[A]

That's on a good day under those circumstances.

[B]

Whoa, whoa, whoa. We can talk about it. And hearing you say that and seeing you get a little emotional, it is sort of like hard for us to fathom his responsibility. Sending people that task, those young men that happen to be 18 or 19 or 20 or 21 on those landing craft. We all saw Saving Private Ryan, which sort of, it's.

[C]

It's anthem. It's an anthem for you know, the genre. Yes. There are battle sequences to put us in the right place that are in the film Pressure because, you know, they're required. But also pressure takes advantage of archival footage, documentary footage that we're all pretty familiar with. We all watch the History Channel growing up. But that imagery was actually a dupe of a dupe of a dupe of a dupe. And so Anthony Maris, director, went to the source and he upres'd the originals and, you know, whatever our feelings about so, you know, guardrails around CG or AI, which was formerly cgi, you know,

[A]

freaking up res going.

[C]

It does give you a feeling of authenticity when it's also in different eyes,

[A]

you're seeing it because it's very real.

[C]

It is. Ken Burns film on the First World War was inspiration for this. And, you know, and in that one, you can see soldiers breath. They brought in lip readers and to learn that somebody in the trench was going, oh, the sergeant, he's lost. We're gonna, you know. Or they're swearing at each other, who took my boots? Or, you know, whatever it is you can. And it gives such reality to. And. And. And the way that we see the footage in the film Pressure. It seriously looks like it was shot, you know, last week. Yeah. On a news broadcast. But it's a real thing.

[A]

You probably wouldn't have used it if it wasn't looking up to snuff anyway.

[C]

Well, that too. And also, hey, let's, you know, it saved a lot of money because a lot of that gets recreated and, you know, to various big, big levels of success, things to recreate.

[B]

Yeah, right. Yeah. Charlton Heston, Chuck, he told me once they couldn't make Ben Hur again. And they tried in maybe 15 years ago because of the real chariots. And if it's a thousand people, it's actually a thousand extras.

[C]

Right.

[B]

2,000 extras. It's just so vast. But we'll see where AI goes. But you're trying to get it connected to. You can't tell that it's not a real guy on a horse running and stuff. I guess it's when we don't see

[C]

the construction lines around the images, our brains are satisfied. I mean, you know, we gentlemen, we live in an age now where the next generation has had their lobe trained by digital imagery to recognize what smacks of authenticity and what does not. Just automatically by virtue of looking at phones in their hands. Since childhood, I didn't. We had something completely different. I mean, we can all remember looking at CGI heavy movies in the 90s and the 80s and you know, giving a pass to really funny looking effects. But they all had their certain charm at that time too.

[A]

I can tell what's written on the first.

[B]

The first Jurassic park is the best, best I saw.

[A]

First Jurassic Park. First Jurassic park is Spielberg.

[B]

The dinosaurs.

[C]

Was it when he jumped at the, the, the raptor? Who jumped? I, I jumped when I saw that film, the one they're in the kitchen and the dinosaur they're trying to climb, I think through a hatch in the ceiling and the point of view is down and the raptor comes in, looks up and jumps and you ah, boost

[B]

G. I think so.

[A]

I remember they brought Spielberg.

[B]

There's five of them now. Right.

[A]

A thing about the movie before they did it and what convinced him was they showed him what the dinosaurs would look at and he watched it and he goes, oh shit, this is better than I thought, let's do it. If they can look like this, we can do the movie around this. Which they did and it worked. I have some trivia for you.

[B]

So anyway, so the film really centers on this incredible decision that lands on Dwight D. Eisenhower's head.

[C]

Well take into consideration in 1944 that meteorology was kind of just looking out the window.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Wasn't it? No, no, literally. Right. Actually raining over out here in the North Sea. And then you try to extrapolate.

[C]

Yes.

[B]

What made the gentleman the meteorologist special?

[C]

Well, the, the Americans as depicted in the film were reliant on analog. So they went off of records. If the Farmers Almanac.

[A]

Almanac.

[C]

That's right. In 1912 that it didn't rain and it won't rain today.

[B]

Wow.

[A]

Farmers. Farmers Almanac doesn't get enough props.

[B]

Million men are ready to go. Go. Let's see what farmers out in America.

[A]

When did the crops grow last year? It's just really. Look out, it's cloudy like you do all growing up. You're like, oh, it's raining.

[C]

This is very less Nessman from WKR or Barometer. You know, didn't he just. Wouldn't he like go and he would give a report from the helicopter.

[A]

Oh, that's right. Yeah.

[B]

That was his big move.

[C]

Well, you know and using science is essential if. Which is the point of the film to say, hey, give me the data. So weather balloons and barometric readings and all of that are the collision of ideology and which one will prevail and which is the tried and true method and which is the obvious difference. The North African campaign had pretty dry conditions, so it was safe to say, hey, it's not going to rain tomorrow. But in Northern Europe, there's 10 different weather source systems that come through every hour. And we. We really take it for granted in. In. In a manner of speaking. You know, when our airplane starts chopping

[B]

up and down, says here, you know. Yeah, I know.

[A]

So weather boy comes in and starts saying, hey, I don't think you guys should go. I like that anyone even listen to this guy.

[C]

You know, that's. That's to a certain extent. And that is dramatized now for. Because it's. Look, face it, it's a movie. But he didn't show up, really, at the last minute and go, hold the phone. Yeah, he had been.

[A]

There's some grumblings.

[C]

I'm sure there was dissent. And so that's the point of the film is what were the conversations in the 72 hours or so leading up to it? And what really was at stake and the weather was just. I mean, imagine the punch list of things to do that was just one item, right?

[A]

And you're gonna stop it for that. And that's. And you're like, this sounds crazy, but he's probably like. When you see in the trailer, it's like two storms coming. It's like the perfect storm with Clooney. You go, this is going to be worse than you guys think. Don't go. And then you go, I've been in storms. And you go, well, if it's this bad, that will make it go from 75% ineffective. Yes, 95.

[C]

I did not know that. And I did not know this about the weather delay when D day was taught to us. What Stagg did was he did accurately predict that there was a break in that storm.

[A]

That was a big thing, right.

[C]

12, 14 hours, something like that. And if they were going to go, go, then. Otherwise they would have to wait until the 18th. And the Germans would know a whole other reasons why it would have been calamity. So if you think about it again now, okay, this thing is delayed. We're not going to go on Monday. We're going to go on Tuesday. All right.

[A]

We're already delayed. You're going to wait for one storm to pass.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

Okay.

[C]

And a lot of them are already at sea.

[A]

Yeah.

[C]

Because. And a lot had to turn back, gas up again, you know, and it's not like you're rerouting your FedEx package delivery here. And that they did go during that narrow window of opportunity made the Germans think they'd be crazy to attack in weather like this. So they really did catch them unawares in that regard. I mean, the Germans were rooted in.

[A]

Was there some red herring, like the Germans thought they were coming some other way.

[C]

Oh, misinformation was used so many ways. But, yeah, they were convinced that they would be attacking from Cherbourg, but they had been misdirected with all kinds of, you know.

[A]

Sure.

[C]

Operative, smart guy.

[B]

I love that about World War II. And that's the fascination of fake planes from afar. They're made of cardboard or whatever.

[C]

Inflatable tanks.

[B]

And the parachuting little men, little down.

[C]

You'll see those in this film.

[B]

Oh, good. With the clickers.

[A]

Just one of the buttons. One of six. I don't know if you know this. Sustain it.

[B]

One in six.

[A]

One in six paratroopers landed in the right place. Just one of six. This is trivia. I'm just going to take.

[B]

I just want to ask some questions about getting into Dwight D. Eisenhower and trying to get. Because. Like into forming whatever you're going to bring to it. The. Because I was reading about him today and he was. It's interesting in any kind of hierarchy how he's going around, going around. Then he becomes the guy at a given point, he deals with Patton. Later on, it's Churchill. And of course, Damian Lewis plays Monty. That's a great. I love seeing him in a movie. So what was your process where you got it? Were you terrified or you're like, I'm playing Dwight?

[C]

No, no, I was daunted. Absolutely. And when Anthony said on a call that I got the offer, I said me. Like. I mean, why?

[B]

Well, you look just like her.

[C]

But do I? I don't know. I didn't. It's not the first thing I would think of, but I'm like, okay, yeah, the hair. All right, well, you know, I could probably. I just didn't. I didn't. And then he said. Sent me two photographs alongside myself and I went, oh, hang on, hang on. We're about the same age at the time. I'm 57. And he was, I think 54. When at that time in his life. And we did have similar features. I am taller than he was. I have a much different build than he does. He was eating, like everyone rations at that time. I knew that my body type as it is, is kind of what you see is what you get. So I couldn't will myself into looking like the shape of another human being that I'm not reductively. As opposed to what I did in the whale, which is the other way Around. So I had to find a way, honestly, to just give myself a break and alleviate the. I have to give a facsimile performance because, honestly, I'm not the kind of actor who knows how to do that. There are those who are great. Gary Oldman, Fantastic.

[A]

Disappear.

[B]

Yeah, that was Churchill. I don't know how many people really know how Eisenhower talked. I know he's president in the 50s, but he didn't seem to have a big hook, you know, or a weird

[C]

accent or, like, you know, he was from Kansas.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

Midwestern Abilene.

[B]

He.

[C]

He graduated, you know, top of his class. He wanted to go into the first war, but the timing was he graduated and the war was over. So for the next 40 or so years of his career, he never fired a shot in anger, never was fired at in battle. He was an excellent strategist, excellent diplomat. He was a product of his time, as everyone was. And I tried to dismiss the things that I, you know, ethically, morally, didn't.

[B]

Don't.

[C]

Don't concur with. However, that's not my job.

[A]

Different time.

[C]

But he was prescient in the sense that he really cared about partnering with an enemy rather than rubbing their nose in it. Hence NATO, hence the beginnings of civil rights, NASA. You know, he.

[B]

Yeah, he was part of a lot of things.

[C]

Yes. He was a leader. And he didn't demand respect. He could. He commanded it because he earned it for the sincerity and the truth that he brought to how he did his job. Everybody wanted to follow him.

[B]

It is interesting, a brain trust, if it's a military one. Even in Hollywood movies, you're around a table and you're discussing an idea, and then you go person to person. So was Dwight the kind of mic drop guy? Like, people going, we should do this, we should do that? Hey, guys, this is what I think.

[C]

My take is that he was kind of like Darren Aronofsky in that he heard everyone's opinion, whether he agreed with it or not. He went around the room and the good idea was. The good idea that we all. Because. And he knew what it was, but he. But he did hear from everyone, and he gave credit right away for where it came from. So, I mean, this is the. You know, these are. This is.

[A]

This is.

[C]

This is not sitting around a table in Hollywood somewhere. This was, you know, supreme. So the fly on the wall aspect of being in the room to see what.

[B]

Thanks for the plug.

[A]

That's the name of the podcast.

[C]

Oh, excellent. That's right. The fly on the wall point of

[B]

View it's the first time anyone's seen

[C]

it is what makes this movie, because you get to see what really would they have had been talking about. Who are the people? When we know you're polite and everything, you're nice, but what do you really think? And that's how Anthony directed this movie. And I expressed a little bit of consternation about long takes and all that, but he definitely had a method where we did very long takes, repeated ones reset. But working in England with British actors, they all come from grand tradition of, yes, theater. And you'd be surprised how much you find yourself upping your game when you're surrounded by incredible actors.

[A]

That also helps.

[B]

So long takes like that the camera's moving around, goes elsewhere and. And you got to stay in character. Comes back around. Yeah.

[A]

You talking about that, like, with movement or just even regular?

[C]

There were two. Yeah, like two or three cameras, depending

[A]

on other cameras going at all times. Like a couple.

[C]

There was always at least triple or double.

[B]

Whoa.

[A]

You think that speeds it up? You think?

[C]

You'd be surprised, right?

[B]

Go slow.

[A]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[B]

You know those weeks where your schedule is just completely packed and somehow you still need a fully stocked fridge?

[A]

Yep.

[B]

That's where Instacart has really come through for me.

[A]

Yeah, that's every week for me. You know, I've been using delivery through Instacart for my weekly grocery restock. And what I like most is how much control I have over quality, because.

[B]

That's right.

[A]

You don't know this about me. I'm pretty particular. So, yes. Whether it's specific brands, fresh produce, or ingredients for meals I've already planned, I can be really specific. When you're on the app, you know, you can message your shopper if you want certain ripeness on avocados, you can really just get on them and say, swap that out. It all makes a big difference.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Honesty, Convenience is huge. Yep.

[B]

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[A]

By the way, I have a trivia for you. Another one. Is it true? Four packs of Camel cigarettes for Eisenhower every day, filterless. Did you ever hear that?

[C]

I did. Oh yeah.

[A]

Not that prescient. On the cancer.

[C]

Kay Summersby. His. His left arm. His right arm is his girl Friday. Would ration. Would ration them to him. He could get four and six a day or something like that because. Yes. And he drank pots and pots of coffee.

[A]

Did they ever talk about sports or anything like that? Would be in the movie. Like they're trying to just get their mind off what's going on. Does anyone like what's going on at the time in the world or is it all just about the world?

[C]

I like to talk about fishing.

[A]

Oh, he did. Okay.

[C]

That's what he talked about.

[A]

Fly fishing to like calm him down. Like just talk about anything else.

[B]

And he played bridge a lot.

[C]

Yeah, of course. He organized baseball, football leagues in his youth.

[A]

Okay.

[C]

I mean he was a team player. There are very famous photographs before the airborne takeoff. And you look at these pictures and you think, you know, like, three and five of these guys are not going to come back.

[A]

Oh my, it's so horrible.

[C]

And you see him shaking hands with them and they're talking about fly fishing is what they're doing. He was just a regular guy and it wasn't an affectation. I mean, he was the boss, definitely. He wore those four stars on his shoulder. And what's the quote like? They weighed a ton apiece is what someone said of him.

[B]

Yeah, I see. Because you think of Montgomery and Patton as being very theatrical. At least that's the way they're presented in really big Easter egos. And Eisenhower, at least he was presented as kind of the steady hand that, like you said, created all this respect.

[C]

And there was, you know, East Coast, west coast, you know, Americans and the Yanks and the Brits, you know, you do it your way, we do it our way, we work together. Here come the Americans again, you know, that's all. And that's appropriate. That's right. But there's no room for any kind of like, you know, sociopathic approach when, when, when the stakes are this high, you know, will. Will get boots on the ground no matter what. Leave it to me. Was the off an account of, of Montgomery's approach to it. But he, of course, had been in battles many, many more and he had, you know, a real ego about. You're the new guy here, Ike.

[B]

Right.

[C]

But you're also my boss. And yes, there was friction, if there had to have been.

[B]

Was that fun? Did you have some, you know, blow ups with Damian Lewis playing Montgomery versus Eisenhower or scenes where you're arguing and

[C]

yelling and we butt heads? I think when you can tell, it's around the office. But the, the house that they were in, kind of in a way, they'd been locked there for weeks. They weren't allowed to come and go for, you know, private secrecy reasons. And, you know, it must have been in one way like, you know, some really weird summer camp for them.

[B]

Right.

[C]

And Ike insisted on sleeping out in a tent with the men. And that was also because they didn't want him in the building in case he got bombed by a target, you know. But yeah, there's, you know, that headbutting and who's in charge here and who's pulling rank is certainly an aspect of it. Montgomery was avidly anti, anti smoking and would, you know, at that time would. It was kind of like astonishing as someone, you would ask someone to put their cigarette out Right, right.

[B]

Yeah, totally.

[C]

It was ubiquitous, and I think that I ike would comply. But you know that it was like an issue around the office for sure.

[A]

The balls of someone telling you to put your cigarette on.

[B]

Yeah. Do you have a question?

[A]

Of course I do.

[B]

Because I like to ask.

[A]

There's, you know this movie, the Mummy, Right, sure. Now, did you.

[B]

It's a wrap.

[A]

Is there another movie?

[B]

Is there maybe a Mummy four?

[C]

Yes.

[B]

More than maybe. Did we get a banger here?

[A]

No, I think I heard that.

[B]

Has it been announced?

[C]

Yeah.

[B]

Oh, really? Try not to smile.

[C]

You can smile.

[B]

I mean, is that exciting to go back?

[C]

Yes.

[B]

You're really. That's great.

[C]

Yeah.

[B]

Now we hear it.

[C]

I'm looking forward to it.

[B]

I'm seeing a smile. I can't even believe it. They're holding this.

[A]

Don't you get Yahoo News? I mean, my gosh, no.

[B]

But I'm so happy everyone, you know.

[C]

Me too.

[A]

And when was the last mommy that you did?

[C]

The last one?

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

The third one was in China. It was the year that. 2007. Year of the nine. 2009. Or eight or nine.

[B]

Emperor or something. Yeah, yeah.

[C]

NBC had the rights to broadcast the Olympics, and so they went, oh, I got it. Let's put the Mummy in China.

[B]

And so is Tom Cruise going to do a cameo in this mummy?

[C]

Not to my knowledge.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

Oh, did he do the mummy?

[B]

Was he a mummy or something? He did one kind of correct. He did do a mummy.

[C]

Yes, he did.

[A]

Stay in your lane, Tom.

[B]

Geez Louise. And he flew in on a F15 and attacked mummy. Right.

[C]

It was more of an AC130 kind of looking thing.

[B]

I like Tom Cruise because he hangs off things. He holds his breath for a half hour. I mean, you just gotta go, I will watch this guy

[A]

hold my breath. And how can I jump off the plane?

[B]

And his. Is he really running that fast? That's me.

[C]

But yeah, faster than me these days.

[A]

He can run fast.

[B]

So the Mummy. I'm so excited about that, you know, Me too. I was gonna ask you a question because I asked Chris Rock the other day. I thought it was interesting. Mailbox money. Which. Which thing that you've done, you know, checks residuals or whatever. Which thing that you've done pays you the most?

[C]

The most?

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

The least is more interesting, isn't it?

[B]

Well, that's not better. What's the tiniest? Who's the ch. Keep us.

[C]

Oh, that's right. Rock likes to talk about what people earn and make, too.

[B]

Yeah, he's very. You got.

[C]

He's got a yacht.

[B]

I like boats. I like boats. He calls them a 500ft long. Yeah, he's been on everyone's boat, by the way. Space loves it. So what's your tiniest residual?

[C]

My tiniest residual check. I still, I got one the other day from a film called Glory Days that Ben Affleck was in. It was in the 90s.

[A]

Really? Young Ben Affleck?

[C]

Yes. And I rode a bus in it for one day morning. And I talked to someone else. I will be honest to say I never saw that movie. But I still get like, you know, a 13 cent check.

[B]

13 cents go to residuals.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

You ever been to residuals?

[B]

Man, it all adds up.

[C]

The bar, they're stapled up on the wall, right.

[A]

If they're under a dollar, you get a free drink. And they're all under. I mean the ones I get from whatever. But Mummy, it's nice when you just get one out of the blue. Yeah, I get stuff from Just shoot me. Probably that old sitcom.

[B]

Yeah, Mike talked to him a couple months ago. Yeah. We're doing two more Shreks.

[A]

Oh, Jesus.

[B]

I just think this is a full circle moment because when last time you're on, we talked about, you know, the peak stardom and then injuries and all that, you know, Dark side of the Moon thing. Then the whale.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

And, and, and now this, you know, in the other movie. These are kind of serious acting things. And now you're full circle, doing a mummy again. And you look great.

[C]

Thank you.

[B]

Mummies are fun. That's just kind of cool, right?

[C]

I'm looking forward to this because I,

[B]

I, you got beat up. Hollywood beat the shit out of you for a while, you know, and I

[C]

love, I beat it back. Don't worry.

[B]

No, but now it's, now it's not only the Oscar, it's also the tent pole.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Billion dollar potential movie.

[C]

People have been wanting another one for 20, what, five, four years I've been hearing it. I go to fan conventions and I'm serious. People show up dressed in costume, like Evelyn Carnahan, Rachel Vice's character. There's Rick o' Connells than me that come through to get an autograph. I'm not kidding. There are. I lost count of the number of young women I've met who have said, I'm an Egyptologist, I am an archaeologist, I am a historian, I have studied ancient languages because they saw the Mummy and it gave them so much dopamine when they were young. And they went, that's what that, that that's what I want to do. And they pursued it. I mean, it was a real, real catalyst of springboard.

[A]

And Rachel does a good job. I mean, so you guys go back and forth and that has to work. And it worked. And so what was the problem for 20 years? I missed that part. Just the rights went somewhere else or what happened for the last 20 years about not doing that?

[B]

Oh, going back to 2006. Seven, actually.

[C]

Well, I don't know if we break it down.

[B]

Well, they made three. Usually things are trilogies.

[C]

Yeah. The third one, it's. It's. It's kind of. It's sort of the problem child.

[B]

Oh, okay.

[C]

Which had the strange elements that the audience were like, you know, you're giving me something that I. I don't. You're telling me it's one thing and it's.

[A]

You got away from what people like.

[B]

I hate that. We can't do that. We did it in the other movie. They want to see something new, and then it's.

[C]

You can't reinvent the wheel.

[B]

No.

[A]

You want.

[B]

If you want to eat an Oreo. You want that cookie?

[A]

Yeah.

[C]

You want. You want the band to get back together, which is what we are.

[B]

And the band is back together.

[C]

Yes, we're getting the band back together.

[B]

Full tilt.

[C]

Look, everyone's been approached. I hope they're available.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

If I'm around, can you wrap me up and just have me come at you like that? If I'm just in town, I don't need to be seen. I mean, you know, jj, but you got to make a movie.

[C]

That's form Trooper, you know, you got to make a movie. It's fine. I mean, there's roller coasters of the Mummy at Universal and here in Hollywood.

[B]

That's right.

[C]

And it's a roller coaster ride of a movie, you know, and that's what people want. They want to get thrilled. They want to have a little boost, scare. They don't really want to feel terrified. Like they didn't really just witness a homicide or something, you know, on screen, but.

[A]

Right.

[C]

They want to come back and do it again.

[B]

Well, this is because some of the younger people who saw that movie then, now they have kids that they know they have kids will be blown away and grow up to be archaeologists. But were you injured on one of those, or what was the movie you got injured on?

[C]

Oh, I got.

[B]

I'm just wondering about this one. Are you going to meet the first

[C]

one I got choked out on? Day three or four doesn't get choked out. A noose.

[B]

That's crazy. Oh, that's right. You talk.

[C]

I've talked about this.

[B]

I know, but I mean, I'm only using his context for this movie now. Are they going to choke you out again?

[A]

Don't let him.

[C]

That's not a bad idea. Actually, we should.

[A]

You need a good story.

[B]

Looks like you. He's very athletic. If you need a stunt double, just cut. Brendan, go to your trailer now. We'll hang this guy.

[C]

I'll be the first to say, bro, you're going to be great in this shot.

[A]

You're going to be good.

[B]

Well, are you going to have to run through tunnels and are you going to have to. Are you going to really train for this or. You're just fine.

[C]

You're looking at a worker. You're working at a work in progress right now. Doing my best.

[B]

When I saw you, is that you looked fit.

[C]

Oh, thanks. I'm trying to get my gear together here and I got some time. I'm.

[B]

How long have you got?

[C]

Like 67, like 80 days or something like that.

[B]

80 days.

[C]

89.

[B]

Around the world. That amount of time.

[C]

I know.

[A]

Yeah.

[C]

I tried to make that movie. That's another story.

[A]

I think it's nice that you go to do some because it's comedic, so it's good that. I was going to say earlier, you're doing these comedies, you do these dramas all the way to an Oscar. And these last two are, you know, I think it was lighter on Rental Family. And then pressure. Sounds like pressure.

[B]

Another.

[C]

It's a knee slapper.

[A]

But just to go back to. You're good at being light and funny and I think the Mummy has a lot of that.

[C]

Let's be hope. I hopeful. Thanks for.

[B]

It has a tone of what it does. The Mummy, you know, it's not slapstick, it's funny. But it's also for kids of a certain age, it's kind of cool. Cool.

[A]

Yeah, it's cool and it looks good.

[C]

And it's nostalgia to a generation in its own right now, too.

[B]

Man was with AI. Could Mike and I make another Wayne's World?

[C]

Yes.

[B]

Look, just take this out this down this year.

[C]

Why bother? We should have Wayne's World come and like, meet Wayne's World meets the Mummy.

[B]

Will you play the nemesis or if we do a Wayne's World. Yeah, I'd be glad to.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Yeah. You're the ghost of Dwight D. Eisenhower.

[C]

I said hair brain. That was another movie I made that. Airheads, is what I'm saying. Yeah.

[B]

Yeah. You brought him to show business, you

[C]

know, I think it's the other way around. Come on.

[B]

I'm just so happy to hear about the Mummy.

[C]

And that's how I met Farley.

[A]

I saw Airheads there. I saw airheads and that 60th street one over by Columbus Square, that theater. We were doing snl.

[B]

It was fun.

[A]

Yeah.

[C]

At the time, though, people were like, no, no, I don't get it. Because it was too contemporary. It was like, now it's nostalgia now. At the fan conventions, people show up in Chaz Darby outfits.

[A]

Ah, yeah.

[C]

A lot of.

[A]

What was Farley a security guard?

[C]

Yes, he was.

[B]

Why you can't go here. Back it up.

[A]

He was one in Wayne's World. Huh? He was one in Wayne's World.

[B]

Yeah. Or two.

[A]

Wayne's World. Two.

[C]

I think he pulled the guy's nipple ring off in Airheads.

[A]

An Airhead.

[B]

How funny he was, I think was Chris. And scene at 2, where I was doing. I was just talking casually and then occasionally I would. Girls would walk by. Swing. So anyway, I don't know, we may go there on Saturday night. Swing. Swing, I think. Sorry. It was comedy back then. Disgusting. Well, anyway, this feels like after talking to you last time in the Whale, it just has all this beautiful kind of thing. Now this. It's blowing my mind. I had no idea.

[A]

So you got pressure and you got the Mummy.

[B]

Do you feel pressure by doing the Mummy?

[C]

Yes, but I do normally, under any circumstances, whatever.

[B]

But is that like putting on an old, old friend in a way, when you get the gear on and there I am.

[C]

You know, it's funny you say that, because I was at a fitting for a Western thing that I did, a saga like, I don't know, like 89 years ago. It was about the Texas Rangers. And at the fitting, someone pulled the boots from deep freeze at Universal that I wore in the Mummy and brought them to the fitting and design or. No, no, they were the boots, the riding boots, the Rick o' Connell boots.

[A]

So.

[C]

From the Mummy.

[B]

Oh, and then you put them on.

[C]

And I put them on. They still. Because your feet don't change. Right. The rest of you does. And I did get a real. Suddenly I could smell the camel spit. And, you know, it was really. It was unique. Exactly.

[A]

You know where you're going to do it?

[C]

Yeah. In Tangier in North Africa.

[A]

Oh, it's the nicest time of year.

[C]

And the uk, it's a coastal dry heat.

[A]

Okay, good.

[C]

You know, it's the same. And also locations that are, if not the. Then very similar. Ones from the first.

[B]

Have you negotiated completely what you're going to get for Mummy for.

[C]

I haven't signed anything.

[B]

I got a feeling about pressure. And that's going to put pressure on the negotiating team at Universal, or is that where it's going? I think pressure is going to do really well.

[C]

Hey, you know, let's be hopeful. It's a film that does show us what we need to remember about why the number of people who lived and died at that time made the effort to stop fascism from becoming the scourge of the world. And it makes us compare ourselves today to that time. And I will leave the audience to make their own summary judgment. But my hope. My hope is that we will be reminded not just of the sacrifice, but of the reason why we were even fighting that war in the first place.

[A]

Well, that's heavy. And I also thought you were going to fall back in the chair, the whole podcast. And that was my pressure. I was worried because every time he leans back.

[B]

No, he's a natural. That was a st. That was a crap fall. That was like Danny K that.

[C]

Seriously, dude, this is.

[A]

This. Look at how easy it is for him to fall back. And it's. It's sort of inching up when he

[C]

Talk was one of my favorite bits in auditions when I was running out of ideas, I would throw myself over. Oh, yeah. All the time. Oh, he's so funny. Bring it back.

[A]

Did you do that? That's a great think.

[C]

I got hired for Frenzino, man.

[A]

Oh, that's great.

[B]

You just threw yourself off.

[C]

I was wrestling with the plants in the room.

[A]

I was eating them. Yeah.

[B]

Really? He just went and went crazy.

[C]

There were no lines. I was. I was a weird theater kid from Seattle. Of course.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Yeah. All right, well, good Lord.

[A]

Got anything? Thank you for coming. That was very. View. Dana's gonna look at this.

[C]

May 29th toilet paper.

[B]

May 29th. I always like to get that out there. I don't know. May 29th. May 29th. So it's in, like.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

I don't know when this airs. 2028, I think,

[A]

right?

[C]

Yes.

[A]

Theaters. Remember? Theaters, everyone.

[B]

Theaters.

[C]

Big see it in a theater.

[A]

Fun to go see.

[C]

It's. It's. It's. It's a cinematic experience. It's, you know, it's. It's British filmmaking in the sense that this is what they do. The detail.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

You know, it's. Yes.

[B]

You shall see it in the theaters. We'll see it in the lounges. We'll see it in the cineplexes. I don't know if I'm JFK or no Winston Church. I was doing jfk. Anyway, thanks for coming.

[C]

I could chat with you guys all afternoon. I'm so grateful for your time.

[B]

I saw your name on the dock. I go, of course. This is fantastic. Of course I remember how much fun and interesting it was the first time I chatted with you.

[C]

So, all right, so let's never do this again.

[A]

Let's never do it again.

[B]

Let's do it after the mummy 5.

[A]

Hey guys, if you're loving this podcast, which you are, be sure to click follow on your favorite podcast app, give us review 5 star rating and maybe even share an episode that you've loved with a friend.

[B]

If you're watching this episode on YouTube, please subscribe. We're on video now.

[A]

Fly on the Wall presented by Odyssey and executive produced by Danny Carvey and David Spade, Heather Santoro and Greg Holtzman, Maddie Sprung Kaiser and Leah Reese Dennis of Odyssey.

[B]

Our senior producer is Greg Holtzman and the show is produced and edited by

[A]

Phil Sweet Tech booking by Cultivated Entertainment.

[B]

Special thanks to Patrick Fogarty, Evan Cox, Maura Curran, Melissa Wester, his Hillary Schuff, Eric Donnelly, Colin Gaynor, Sean Cherry, Kirk Courtney and Lauren Vieira.

[A]

Reach out with us Any questions to be asked and answered on the show? You can email [e-mail] that's a U-A C-Y dot com.