Claire Danes

Summary

Good Hang with Amy Poehler – Claire Danes

The Ringer | January 27, 2026

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Episode Overview

This lively, funny, and heartwarming episode of “Good Hang” features Amy Poehler in conversation with acclaimed actress Claire Danes. The discussion is wide-ranging: from Claire’s prolific early career and New York upbringing, to parenthood, personal growth, and the craft of acting. The episode also includes a playful and affectionate cameo from Mandy Patinkin, Claire’s “Homeland” co-star, who shares stories and questions for Claire. Throughout, Amy and Claire’s chemistry sparkles as they reveal truths about creativity, boundaries, and what genuinely makes them laugh.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Mandy Patinkin’s Warm-Up: Admiration and Hilarity

[03:28–13:03]

• Mandy Patinkin joins via call to share stories about first meeting Claire (in North Carolina rehearsing “Homeland”) and reflects on her unique talent and warmth.
• Mandy coins Claire as a “thoroughbred” and shares a humorous anecdote about her using the term “schmacting” during their first scene together.
  • Quote (Mandy, 06:43): “She’s as good as they come... a thoroughbred.”
• Mandy provides Amy with a list of offbeat and charming questions for Claire, such as who sets better boundaries for their kids (Claire or her husband Hugh Dancy), what his father’s favorite chewing gum is, and whether Claire needs to pee before every take.
• Mandy on their working relationship:
  • Quote (Mandy, 11:53): “She learned mine [my vulnerabilities] ... she just took care of me.”
• The segment is peppered with jokes about podcasting, bread, and gentle ribbing.

Memorable Moment:

• Mandy to Amy: “And you’re just the dumbest fucking person on the planet.” (12:54)
• Sets the comedic and intimate tone for the episode.

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2. Enneagram, Astrological Twins, and Organization

[13:54–18:22]

• Claire enters with an ‘8’ balloon, referencing both Amy and Claire’s shared Enneagram number (the Challenger).
• Claire reveals she’s an Aries with Virgo rising, while Amy is a Virgo, hinting at their mutual inclination toward leadership, intensity, and organization.
• Both confess their passion for the Container Store—Amy: “A good container will change your life.” (16:40)
• Claire on the paradox of material items:
  • Quote (Claire, 16:59): “It’s a paradox. They don’t mean anything, and they mean a lot.”

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3. Creative Curiosity and Early Fame

[17:40–23:54]

• Amy praises Claire for her intellectual curiosity and her pattern of taking on groundbreaking roles (“My So-Called Life,” “Homeland,” “Temple Grandin”).
• They discuss the difficulty and importance of being both present in mind and body as an actor—and the role of dance in helping Claire ground herself.
• Claire as a New York child: Growing up in SoHo with artist parents, riding swings and roller-skating in a converted loft, meeting artists like Basquiat and seeing Keith Haring around.
  • Quote (Claire, 23:10): “Basquiat lived in our building. I remember being really little, and he... was very charming and kind of tender—that’s what I remember about him in the elevator.”

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4. Law & Order, Teen Stardom, and ‘My So-Called Life’

[24:25–34:39]

• Claire recalls her first acting job on “Law & Order” at age 12, playing a teenage murderer—delivering an anecdote about watching the screening and expecting instant fame (“It was fine. Everybody was fine.” 26:22).
• The conversation turns to “My So-Called Life”—from auditioning at 13, the specialness of the pilot script, and what made Angela Chase’s perspective groundbreaking.
  • Quote (Claire, 29:11): “It’s still radical... not very often that we spend that much time, intimate time, with a teenage girl. Not really. We’re seeing the world from inside of her.”
• Amy reminisces about the iconic hand-hold scene with Jordan Catalano, and how the show captured the psychic lives of all its characters.

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5. Navigating Adulthood and the Craft of Acting

[34:39–44:06]

• Claire discusses what it was like growing up as a “serious” child and actor, recalling her pre-verbal memories and a constant sense of being aware, even as a baby.
• On preparing for emotional roles (i.e., Beth’s death in “Little Women”):
  • Quote (Claire, 34:47): “I got too excited about the death rattle... Matthew Reese calls me Death Rattle Danes.”
• Before Yale, Claire was in 13 movies by age 20—she would have studied English had she finished, with a parallel love for therapy and character study (“If I weren’t an actor, I’d be a therapist.”).

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6. Perspective, Parenthood, and Serendipitous Surprises

[44:06–52:24]

• On the comforts of adulthood: same breakfast, exercise routines, not lifting enough weights (“I like yoga these days, but it’s not enough—apparently.” 40:44).
• Claire recounts the story of her third pregnancy at 44—a complete surprise, confirmed after her best friend/therapist Ariel dreamt of being in Claire’s body (“I am not authoring this thing... the illusion that I am driving this thing.” 43:56).
• Amy and Claire reflect on the awareness of time and the sense of joy and sadness that comes with middle age.
  • Quote (Claire, 45:29): “There’s a lot of power in that and joy in that. And it’s also sad, because I’m really aware of time now.”

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7. Homeland: Rigors and Rewards

[46:05–50:57]

• Claire shares behind-the-scenes stories from “Homeland”: shooting all over the world, balancing motherhood, and the challenge of traveling productions.
  • Filming locations included Charlotte, Berlin, Cape Town, and Morocco.
  • On being home in NYC for shooting: “That was actually almost the hardest season, because there was this illusion that I was living my life and I couldn’t.”
• Amy asks about memorable and difficult things to film—Brody’s death, intense storylines, and being “on the crane.”
• Amy: “Did you have a thing you liked to do on the show when you saw the call sheet?” Claire describes the unique feeling of power—walking onto set as Carrie Matheson.

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8. Family, Kids, Languages, and Embroidery

[58:03–62:49]

• Mandy’s Questions:
  • Who sets boundaries for the kids? Claire: It goes back and forth between her and Hugh.
  • Mandy’s father’s favorite gum? Claire: Blackjack. She commemorated it by embroidering a gift for Mandy (61:00).
• Claire’s crafting passion: She loves embroidery, finding it both meditative and a way of staying connected to friends and family.
  • Quote (Claire, 61:13): “There was a point when I embroidered everything around me... It’s a great on-set activity.”
• Reflections on parenting: Shorts in winter, TikTok trends, and accepting kids’ quirks (“Let them freeze their bunnaroonies off. Don’t mention a coat.” 58:48).

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9. Producing, TV vs. Film, and Pop Culture Pleasures

[62:34–67:08]

• Claire discusses her experience producing “The Beast in Me”—enjoying the chance to build a set of collaborators and “invite people to the dinner party.”
• On being an actor vs. producer: She likes having input on set and creative direction.
• Claire and Amy both admit a love for “excellent TV” over films, and share viewing habits.
• Claire’s top “brain checkout” show: Tim Robinson’s “I Think You Should Leave” (“The focus group sketch... We watch this all the time in our family now.” 65:33), plus South Park and Only Murders in the Building.

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10. Comedy, Character, and Standing Up to Bullies

[67:21–70:34]

• Amy reads Enneagram 8 “annoyances” to Claire—talking for the sake of talking, fake people, and “others asserting power in a situation where they have none.”
• Claire recounts her history of standing up to bullies—sometimes quite literally (“I slapped a bully... we talked through it and made progress, but I had to stop that because it was going on my record.” 69:07).
• Both reflect on childhood fantasies of standing up for others—a testament to their real-world and artistic values.

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Notable Quotes

• Amy Poehler (on Claire's work):
  “You have the ability as an actor to stay in your body and be in your brain. Those are two very hard things to do.” (18:49)

• Claire Danes (on being a child actor):
  “People would say, ‘It’s so remarkable that you can deliver performances at such a young age.’ I was like, what are you talking about? I feel like I’ve been here for... an eternity.” (34:15)

• Claire Danes (on “My So-Called Life”):
  “It’s not very often that we spend that much intimate time with a teenage girl... we’re seeing the world from inside her.” (29:12)

• Claire Danes (on family life):
  “We’re a well-matched pair and our parenting styles are pretty level and equal.” (59:51)

• Claire Danes (on her surprise third pregnancy):
  “That was deeply humbling because I realized, oh, I am not authoring this thing—the illusion that I am driving this thing.” (43:55)

• Mandy Patinkin (on Claire’s talent):
  “If I had a daughter, it would be Claire.” (05:51)

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Timestamps by Segment

• Mandy Patinkin Intro & Questions: 03:28–13:03
• Enneagram and Personality Chat: 13:54–18:22
• Dance, Childhood, and Becoming an Artist: 18:49–24:25
• Law & Order, “My So-Called Life”: 24:25–34:39
• Reflections on Childhood Perspective: 34:39–44:06
• Parenthood & Ageing: 44:06–52:24
• Homeland Memories: 46:05–50:57
• Parenting Styles & Embroidery: 58:03–62:49
• Producing and TV: 62:34–65:13
• Pop Culture & Comedy: 65:13–67:21
• Bullies and End: 67:21–71:44

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Closing Thoughts

The episode is a prime example of “Good Hang” living up to its name: it feels genuinely like a hangout among old friends. Amy Poehler’s light but thoughtful touch brings out the best in Claire Danes, who is by turns cerebral, self-deprecating, and disarmingly honest. Listeners gain insight not just into a beloved actress’s career, but her values, vulnerabilities, and everyday joys—solid parenting, a healthy sense of humor, crafting, and a commitment to standing up for what’s right, on and off the screen.

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For further fun: Go back and watch early “Law & Order”—“Whoever you recognize, they did it.” (Amy, 71:06)

Transcript

[A]

This episode is brought to you by Too Good and Co Coffee Creamers. How do you take your coffee? Piping hot, iced, strong, frothy. If you love rich, creamy goodness and delicious flavor in every sip, try Too Good and Co Creamers. They're made with farm fresh cream, real milk and contain 3 grams of sugar per serving. That's 40% less than the 5 gram per serving in leading traditional coffee creamers. Two good creamers are available in sweet cream, roasted, vanilla and lavender. So which one are you trying first? Find two good creamers at your local retailer in the creamer aisle. Hi, everyone. Amy here. I'm recording this the day before our new episode with the Great Claire Danes comes out. And it's an episode we recorded a few weeks ago. And since then, so much has been happening in our country and. And honestly, it felt strange not to address it. The intention of Good Hang has always been to bring levity and joy and laughs in these tough times. And we're gonna keep doing that. But before we start this episode, I just wanna send much love to the best people in the world, also known as Minnesotans. What we are all witnessing is terrifying and enraging and illegal. But we are also seeing neighbors helping neighbors. And if you wanna help, there is a directory of local organizations and and mutual aid groups that you can check [e-mail] Minnesota, you're in our hearts. Okay, on with the show. Hello, everyone. Welcome to another episode of Good Hang. Very excited about our guest today. It is the incredible Claire Danes. I cannot wait to talk to Claire today. She is such a pro. She's so good at so many things and I know she's gonna be a good hang and we are gonna get into it today. We are gonna talk about her big brain. We are gonna talk of my so called life and how people still love it even to this day. We're gonna talk about her stint on Law and Order and what that was like. And we're gonna hear about how she met Basquiat in an elevator when she was a New York kid. So much to talk about. Before we do, we always like to speak to somebody who knows our guest who has a question for me to ask our guest and we talk well behind their back. And we have a great one today, the incredible Mandy Patinkin. Mandy, actor, singer, activist, now podcaster. You can check out his podcast, Don't Listen to Us. Out now with his wonderful wife Catherine and his son Gideon and Mandy. Hi, can you hear me? This episode of Good Hang is presented by Nespresso. For those who never compromise on their morning rituals, especially their coffee rituals, Nespresso's new Vertuo up makes your first cup irresistible. With a three second start, easy open lever and dedicated coffee creations mode button, it's even easier to brew bold coffee over ice or milk. It's your coffee your way. Nespresso. Shop now [e-mail] and use code Amy to receive a set of Lume coffee mugs when you spend $50 or more while supplies last.

[B]

Hi, Amy.

[A]

Hi, Mandy.

[B]

Don't look, Amy. I'm eating something again.

[A]

Yum. What are you eating?

[B]

Murray's tuna Perfect and vegetarian chopped liver on Ezekiel Cinnamon raisin toast.

[A]

Wow, that's a lot of flavors.

[B]

Well, I love the cinnamon raisin and I eat that. Cause my. My trainer tells me not to eat this other bread, that this is the one he wants me to eat and I'm feeling good and so I do what he says.

[A]

You're a podcaster now?

[B]

Yes, I'm a podcaster. Do you only talk to podcasters? Is that the deal?

[A]

I can't stand talking to someone who doesn't have a podcast.

[B]

Oh, trust me, Amy, I know, right?

[A]

When you see someone, you're like, what are you doing with your life?

[B]

It's unconscionable to even think of doing that. It's horrible. So I wouldn't even even hearing you say it upsets me. So that's not an option.

[A]

You do a show with don't listen to Us with Katherine, your wife and your son Gideon. And congratulations on that.

[B]

And they don't listen to me. So it always. The title is always in operation.

[A]

How has it been? What have you been learning about yourself? And in the process of meeting Amy,

[B]

it's just great being with your family 24 7, never a break. What more could you ask? You know, be at home, work with them. You know, just like, you know, my son, you know, just can't get enough of his parents. It's just. It's a total joy 24 7. It's just like being in paradise.

[A]

Before we get to Claire, just one more time because I know Gideon will want me to get the logline. How would you describe the podcast?

[B]

Oh, just in the podcast. To describe the podcast is just. It's a podcast. It's indescribable. It's just extraordinary podcast. It has my wife, who I love. I've been with her for 47 years. If I can stay with her for 47 years, you can tune in and stay with her. For 47 minutes. And my son, my glorious son, Gideon. It's all his. And then the one mistake is having me at the table as well.

[A]

I am such a humongous fan of your work, Mandy. It meant so much to me that I was talking to you today. And we're talking today to Claire Danes, who I know you absolutely love.

[B]

I adore her. If I. If I had a daughter, it would be Claire.

[A]

Oh. Can you tell me where you two first met?

[B]

We first met in the rehearsal room in Winston Salem, North Carolina. I believe that's where we met. I think that's where we were where we had the first read through of Homeland. And I think that's where. I think that was the name of the town where we shot the first three seasons. Pretty sure it was Winston Salem. But I could be wrong. I'm at that age. I don't just look at. It's the same thing inside my brain. It's just this wiry, gray, white mess up there. And I'm pretty sure I know it was North Carolina. Charlotte. No, no, it was Charlotte, North Carolina.

[A]

So that's interesting. So you met in rehearsal for the first time, and obviously you. I'm familiar with each other's work. What was your first impression of her?

[B]

Well, I knew she was of the highest pedigree, and so I just was thrilled to be with her. And I knew that I wanted more than anything for her, both as Mandy and the character Saul. I wanted her to feel safe with me, and I wanted her to feel protected by me, and I wanted her to trust me. And I knew that was a tall order. But we sat down with our director to just have our first read through. And she finished the first scene and she said something that I never forgot, and I just left. She said, well, that was some of the worst smackting I've ever done. And I never heard that word schmachting. And I loved it. And I never heard her say it again because I think she's brilliant. I even thought she was brilliant when she thought she was schmacting. And so she is. She's as good as they come, you know, in the arena. She's a thoroughbred. Which leads me to my second thought that I had to offer you. Would you like that, or do you want to run this?

[A]

No, I love. I don't think with you and I that I'm ever going to run anything. I think, Mandy, whenever you're going to be running it, I can.

[B]

Shut up.

[C]

I can.

[A]

I know. I heard that you wrote down a bunch of questions for her, which I love because I, too, have so many questions for her. How many do you have on that page?

[B]

I have. I wrote down 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9.

[A]

Okay, great.

[B]

No, no, 8.

[A]

Perfect. I understand why.

[B]

And you can buy these questions from me.

[A]

Just go to your website.

[B]

Everything I have is for sale.

[A]

But I understand, have all these questions for her because she is, to your point, thoroughbred is a perfect word. Like, so incredibly gifted. And also your story tells me that she also does not take herself too seriously. It's that combination that's incredible to be around.

[B]

She was a kid actor, you know? And the thing is, as you've known from working with kids, the magic of them. It's literally magic. They sit there, they play, they play with the other kids, and then the director goes, action. And they're there with a believability that if you worked at this craft till the day you die, you would never get to be that good the way these kids are. And she's one of the rare ones that took it into adulthood. And she has that. She just believes. She just believes in a way that is. I'm transfixed. I had to do the least work in my life because all I would do was just sit and listen to her.

[A]

You can really feel the love between you two. So let's get to those eight or nine questions.

[B]

You got it. So the next one that I wrote down.

[A]

Wait, what was the first one again?

[B]

Oh, God, I didn't know it was going to be a challenge, the first one. I have no idea what the first one was. What did I say?

[A]

Okay. Okay. Forget it.

[B]

Look at me, will you? Amy, I'm so sorry.

[A]

You start in the middle.

[B]

Don't even ask me my name anymore. Just please have a little, you know.

[A]

Sorry, Mandy.

[B]

Okay. In Yiddish, it's called rachmonis. Have some rachmonis for what you're dealing with here. Regarding her children.

[A]

Mm.

[B]

I'm very curious, because she's married to an exceptional young man. Young in my book and young in everybody's book. I would like to know who is better in the family at setting boundaries for the children. Ooh, is it Claire or Hugh?

[A]

Hugh or Claire? Her great elder husband, Hugh. Nancy.

[B]

Now, I would like you to ask her something that only she would know. What is Mandy's father's favorite chewing gum?

[A]

That question seems like what you have to answer to get into an exclusive private club.

[B]

You are right on the money. And how did she commemorate the answer to that gift to me?

[A]

Excellent.

[B]

Which Was one of the great gifts that I've ever been given.

[A]

Wow.

[B]

Oh, here's a good one. How often does she feel she pees? She needs to pee before every take or every scene.

[A]

Love that.

[B]

It's not a downside. It gives everyone a chance to breathe. We all know that there's a rest period coming up. Okay. Okay. That was it.

[A]

Okay. These are great. These are great questions. And they all speak to what I'm learning about her. And, you know, I've known Claire over the years through friends and loved my time spending time with her. But what I've learned about her is she's a really considerate person. She's a very considerate person. She really considers other people. I think it's what makes her a good actress and human in the world.

[B]

You know, the gift of the. One of the great gifts of the television series, in my humble opinion, is that you get to be there for a long time and you really get to know each other and you get to know each other's strengths and also each other's fragilities. And she learned mine. I sort of wear them on my sleeve, but she learned them quickly. And she. She just took care of me. She knew how to take care of me when I needed holding and when I needed. You know, and she knew how to leave me alone when I needed to leave me alone. Time.

[A]

Beautiful. I know she's gonna be so excited that we talked. I don't know if she knows. This might be a surprise to her.

[B]

I didn't tell her. I saw her recently at a political event for mom Donnie. Which I was thrilled that she was there, But I did mention I hadn't known about this at that point.

[A]

Oh, that's great. I think she's gonna be so.

[B]

No idea from me.

[A]

Happy that we talked.

[B]

Please take my phone number. You have it.

[A]

I'm gonna take your phone number and I'm gonna call you for advice on a lot. Basically on.

[B]

And you're welcome. Well, and you're just the dumbest fucking person on the planet.

[A]

Thanks, Mandy. Take care.

[B]

Bye. Have fun. Bye. Bye.

[A]

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[C]

And you do talk about this being a number eight business a lot.

[A]

Enneagram.

[C]

Enneagram.

[A]

Wait, you're pretending you don't know what the Enneagram is?

[C]

I know now because of you.

[A]

Do you know what your number is?

[C]

I did it last night. Yes.

[A]

Don't tell me what it is. I want to guess.

[C]

I, too.

[A]

You're an 8.

[C]

I'm an 8. I'm an 8. I screamed.

[A]

Oh, my God.

[C]

I yelled out loud. Freaking out. Yes.

[A]

Claire Danes just walked in with a balloon with the. By the way, thank you. These are beautiful. Yeah.

[C]

You're welcome.

[A]

A beautiful eight balloon.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

I'm gonna bring it into frame. Look at that. A gorgeous eight balloon. In reference to the fact that we are the same. Enneagram number.

[C]

Well, I didn't know that when I bought the balloon. I just knew that you were an eight girl. Cause you do talk about it pretty consensually.

[A]

This is an intervention. And everyone's like, and now you've got the balloon, and now shut up about it.

[C]

It's. Oh, my gosh. Thank you. You're so welcome. But I was so excited that I got to be your twin 8 sister.

[A]

If you're gonna start with Enneagram, we're gonna go. Because I'm very pleased that you're an enneagram8.

[C]

Okay.

[A]

That makes perfect sense to me.

[C]

Does it? I don't. I'm very new to this. Did you learn about it?

[A]

Did you read the descriptions of it and feel like it was you?

[C]

Sure. But I also worry that I might just be a little impressionable and, you know, kind of absorb and accept.

[A]

Interesting. Well, that.

[C]

That's not very 8 like, is it?

[A]

It's not. But perhaps you've got a wing. You know, you can get a wing.

[C]

I'm just learning about. I don't know. I don't know what.

[A]

My pie chart. I'd love to see what your pie chart looked like.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

Like, what you actually. What were your big. I wish you had told me you were taking the test, because I would have sent a text that said, send me your pie chart. Send me here. Okay.

[C]

I'm sure I can find it again. What's your sign?

[A]

Virgo.

[C]

Okay.

[A]

What are you?

[C]

I'm Aries. Virgo Rising oh my God.

[A]

Like, Claire, run all of the things. Run all of the things. Do all the things.

[C]

Be in charge of all of the things.

[A]

I mean, do you find yourself to be like a. I mean, we know each other, but we don't know. Know each other. And I've had the pleasure of being around you a lot. A lot. And humongous fan of your work, of course. Thank you. And we were very excited that you said yes today. And do you think you're a organized person? Like, are you an organized.

[C]

I've gotten much more organized over time. But I do love the Container Store. I love the Container Store so much.

[A]

A good container will change your life. Jenna, why are you laughing? Jenna, why are you laughing so hard? And what I love about. I love the idea of figuring out what things. What do things mean to you in your life?

[C]

Cause they actually, it's a paradox. They don't mean anything. And they mean a lot. They can be really valuable tools. And I think they do carry energy. Like, I really do believe that. And they can transport you. They can be little tiny time machines.

[A]

Yes, but. Okay, of course you're an organizer. Of course you're Virgo. Of course you're Aries. Of course you're an eight. Claire Danes is here. I mean, Claire, if I did not love you already, I mean, the theme of I feel like the theme of today is I've always felt like you and your work were ahead of its time.

[C]

That's very nice. That's very, very nice.

[A]

You've always brought me as an artist into worlds that I didn't know I was ready for. You're an intellectually curious person who's interested in interesting things. And therefore you kind of. You're drawn to those things almost like, you know, like the cartoon character when the pie's on the windowsill. Like, I feel that with you, you're drawn to interesting things.

[C]

I am. That's true. Thank you for saying that. That's actually very, very touching and meaningful that you say that really well.

[A]

I can sense it from the choices you made as an artist. And you know, it is like my so called Life and Homeland and Temple Grandin and the Beast in Me. Like all these projects and the way you. You're kind of leading us into some new territory.

[C]

Always.

[A]

It feels like. And new territory for you too, which is very exciting.

[B]

Of course.

[A]

You're an Enneagram 8 year challenger. You're incredible. But I'm sorry that we're the best. But we are. And I'm sorry to all the other numbers, but like it. And I just want to say this as we get this thing started finally, which is you have the ability as an actor to stay in your body and be in your brain. Those are two very hard things to do.

[B]

Oh, gosh.

[C]

This is so.

[A]

Claire, you're so, so smart.

[C]

This is so nice. This is so nice.

[A]

But it's hard to balance those two things, body and brain. And that's why I'm obsessed with the fact that you love to dance.

[C]

I do love to dance. I love to dance.

[A]

For me. It gets me out of my brain.

[C]

Yeah. Yeah.

[A]

Jinx.

[C]

Yes. And I don't dance as much as I. I don't dance enough anymore. I had a good. The other night all by myself in my bathroom. I really needed it.

[A]

And that's where I've seen you probably the most, is on the dance floor.

[C]

Yeah. Well, where. Our friend Rashida is a pretty great dancer.

[A]

She's had some parties, and we've danced in our pajamas together.

[C]

Yes.

[A]

And I feel like there's been some awards shows where we've been on the floor, like, where dancing regulates. What does it do for you? What does it do for your body?

[C]

Oh, God, it's so funny.

[B]

Well.

[C]

Cause it's my second birthday today. My eldest son, he's turned 13, and it's like a superpower I have. I just. Like a little tiny wiggle in public. He will cross the street. It's just. But I can mortify him within a millisecond.

[A]

And even worse is you stop and go, I'm a good dancer. People think I'm a good dancer. And they're like, mom, please.

[C]

Oh, my God.

[A]

Mom.

[B]

Mom, Mom.

[A]

Everyone's watching your dance.

[C]

Yeah, but what does it do for. Well, I mean, the best is when you enter that, like, flow state, when you. Yeah, when it's. When there's no thought and you're just totally synchronized with whatever sound is coming into, you know, through your ears. I love watching toddlers dance. You know, when they jump, they do that thing. They do the bouncing thing. So true. We all do it. And Shay, my baby, she's very kind of in her head and dreamy, and sometimes she'll do this kind of dance. I'm like, that's fabulous. Anyway, how old is she? She's two and a half.

[A]

Okay, I heard something that's amazing, which is that kids from 3, like, from 3 to 4, 3 to 5, are. Consider them, like, on mushrooms, like hallucinogenic mushrooms, because they're like. The floor is lava and Like, I'm feeling the music. And they're like, why do we die? And you're like, oh, you are tripping. And it's so true. That's true.

[C]

She's really fun.

[A]

You're a real dancer.

[C]

Well, but never not like a formally trained one. I had this amazing teacher here in the city, a woman named Ellen Robbins. And she was great. And from the age of four on, I worked with her. I say that, like, intentionally, it sounds ridiculous. Cause I was a tiny human. But she really took every kid very seriously. And over the course of the year, you would work towards choreographing your own piece, and you would choose the theme and the music. And I was a moth to flame one year. Yes, I was. There was a lot of that.

[A]

Closing up and opening again. Finding your light. Little Claire in dance class at 4. You are a New York kid.

[C]

Yes.

[A]

Now, I'm really always interested in kids that grew up in New York. What was SoHo? What was your version of a little kid in New York?

[C]

It was funky.

[A]

Yeah.

[C]

And, you know, a little. I was born in 79. My parents were artists. They moved to the Bowery in the late 60s. And my dad's mom, Claire, whom I'm named after, died when he was a kid. And then I guess he kind of had this money finally. And they bought a loft building with another couple that they still own on Crosby street, where I was growing up. So it was, you know, we had a swing. We had a trapeze. I would roller skate. You know, it's kind of how we picture.

[A]

It was like a roller rink to be living.

[C]

I had some shame about it, too. And I had cousins who lived in the suburbs. And all I wanted was to be in a cul de sac and have, like, a basement and carpet on the floor.

[A]

I get that when we're little, we don't want to be different, interesting. We want to be exactly the same.

[C]

But, you know, it was also very cool. And, you know, Basquiat lived in our building. And, you know, like. Yes. Like, did you meet him? I remember him. I remember being really little, and he, you know, he was kind of. He was very sweet. Like, he was very charming. Charming and kind of tender. That's what I remember about him in the elevator. Wow.

[A]

Wow, wow, wow.

[C]

Keith's herring was just around and. Yeah, but there was. It was also violent. And the Mafia still existed. So we were on Crosby and Prince. So just on the other side of Lafayette, that was a different world. And felt quite active.

[A]

And did you become a vigilant Are you a vigilant person or a vigilant kid?

[C]

Because on the street.

[A]

No. In life, like, was there some hyper vigilance that was created because of that?

[C]

Yes, because of New York. And also I have very funky, groovy artist parents. Parents, totally. So there was a rigidity that developed.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

Speaking my language.

[C]

Yes. And like a hyper observance. Yes, for sure.

[A]

So you go. And speaking of vigilance and hyper observance, you were on Law and Order as a young person?

[C]

I was.

[A]

How old were you?

[C]

I was 12.

[A]

Can you tell me about.

[C]

Sure. I. Bleeding on.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

It was amazing. It was amazing. And I played a teenage murderer. Yeah. My mom was a prostitute, like high end. And her pimp was grooming me to basically do the same thing. But he was kind of presenting himself as a modeling agent. And he was, you know. And he took these photos of me.

[A]

Typical Law and Order Lightfair.

[C]

And my mom found out about it and she intercepted. And I was furious. And I took the scissors from the dark room and stabbed him. I think that's what it was.

[A]

God, I would have killed to have been. That was what I wanted to do so bad. Is to murder. Yeah. On Law and Order.

[C]

I then dated a boy. Another guy, A kid. Another kid actor. We met an audition who also had been a teen murderer on Law and Order. That was like our cute story. And now Hugh is on Law and Order.

[A]

I know.

[C]

Which is wild.

[A]

I know.

[C]

And we have so much good like gear. Like swag. Law and Order swag. We have a giant button that goes dun dun. That the kids really, really like. And we do have to hide sometimes.

[A]

But that show is. It's just. First of all, he just employed so many actors and still does.

[C]

It's such a break. I was also very sure the day after it aired there was like a screening party. It was that, like it was gonna be a problem for me to ride the subway, like. Cause I was gonna be so famous and it was fine.

[A]

Everybody was fine.

[C]

No, it was. It was pretty comfortable still for me.

[A]

Now you brought up my so called life. How old were you when you auditioned for that?

[C]

I was 13 when I did the pilot. Dang. And I was. And then it didn't get picked up. Yeah. And I'd gone to public school my whole life, but then had made money from these acting jobs and could afford to send myself to private school. So I went to Dalton. But yeah. Then the very start of my freshman year, we got this call saying, oh no, they are going to pick it up. So I was only physically there for a semester and then we were off to LA and was kind of tutored from that point on.

[A]

Now, I mean, I know you've talked ad nauseam about the experience you had making that show, and it is still so zeitgeisty, that show.

[C]

It's really. It was a very special thing when

[A]

you were making it. It felt like a special, sparkly thing.

[C]

I remember reading the pilot, I guess, before the audition, and just having a very profound experience. And it was really powerful to have some woman, some writer person, so perfectly articulate my internal life.

[A]

And that was Winnie Holtzman.

[C]

Yeah, Winnie Holtzman, who's still a dear, dear friend and just a wildly inspired, hilarious person.

[A]

And people should know, wrote Wicked.

[C]

Wicked, yes.

[A]

Just this little indie called Wicked.

[C]

Yeah. Which is basically teenage girls, you know, and their intimacies and their friendships. Yeah, she's divine.

[A]

And Winnie was the creator of the show.

[C]

Yes, she was the creator of the show. And we were both working so hard, we barely saw each other, but we were, you know, in this very deep relationship in our imaginations, you know? Yeah.

[A]

Did you chemistry read with Jared Leto for.

[C]

No, no, no, no.

[A]

He just got hired and then you guys had to kind of find the chemistry there.

[C]

He was like, in the Noxzema commercial. That was very exciting. Yeah, he was so hot. Oh, my God. It was ridiculous. You're kidding me.

[A]

You know, Jordan Catalano is like, become.

[C]

And it's also one of those names that's always the full name. Yeah. And there was also a character in the show called Tino that you never saw. Anyway, there were so many.

[A]

But do you have a theory? Because, you know, now with perspective, like, what do you think resonates still with Angela's like.

[C]

Well, it's still radical.

[A]

Yes. Ahead of its time, I think.

[C]

And it remains ahead of this time, like, why it shouldn't have been made. It almost wasn't made many times. And it just wills itself into existence. I don't know. It's not very often that we spend that much time, intimate time, with a teenage girl. Not really. We're seeing the world from inside of her and really through her vantage point. And she's so earnestly wrestling with big stuff, you know, and it's. I. Yeah, it's just so well balanced and it's so. It's so. Of her, you know, but it's. There's some zingers, there's some really well crafted lines.

[A]

You know, I was rewatching that moment, the like, beautiful moment where that is played over and over again on TikTok every day of my life. Cause it's on my FYP. But of when Jordan comes over to Angela and says, can we go somewhere? And you say, sure. And you walk off with him and he takes your hand in front of you. And that feeling of being chosen publicly is a big major deal for a young woman and young man. But why the show, I think separates itself from others is also. Editorially, we know what all the other characters are feeling in that moment. Like we cut to everyone else's feeling about not being chosen or the wrong person being chosen. Like everyone's having a feeling. Like we're. We're feeling everybody's pain. Psychic pain or joy in that moment. It's so good.

[C]

That's a very well stated. Yeah. Well analyzed scene.

[A]

I've watched that many times.

[C]

Yeah, I forgot about that many times. No. Yes, it was. I feel wildly fortunate that that was my entry point.

[A]

The world moves fast. Your workday even faster. Pitching products, drafting reports, analyzing data. Microsoft 365 Copilot is your AI assistant for work built into Word, Excel, PowerPoint and other Microsoft 365 apps you use, helping you quickly write, analyze, create and summarize so you can cut through clutter and clear a path to your best work. Learn [e-mail] M365 copilot and you've worked with what I imagine, only imagine, are really some very interesting, complicated and maybe at times difficult people at a young age. I project on you that you have to like, figure out how to be self possessed and be your own artist and your own, you know, like, protect yourself and also be among these like really complicated adults. Do you feel like there was some inner Claire thing that helped you navigate all that early stuff?

[C]

I feel like kids are doing that all the time anyway.

[A]

Not every kid.

[C]

Okay.

[A]

You know, I think this is.

[C]

I don't know. Also I remember people. I never felt like a kid. And now that I am a parent and I have actual children, I'm like, yeah, no, I for sure was a kid. There's no way.

[A]

Do you think you're gonna. I sometimes think I never felt like a kid either. When I was about 8 or 9, I was like, I'm in charge here. I did. I was like. These people were like, I just remember being like, no, I'm in church.

[C]

My first memory, I don't know if it's real or not. Obviously no idea. But was pre verbal. I was an infant. I remember where I was. I was by the Windows in our loft on Crosby street, overlooking Lafayette Street. And I had been handed to some other adults that I didn't know very well, and they didn't know how to hold a baby. And I remember having. I was like, okay, this is one of those grownups who don't know how to do this. They're uncomfortable.

[B]

Wow.

[C]

There's nothing I can do about it. I'm just gonna have to wait it out. Yeah. And then I remember. Yeah, Lou. Re. And then my second memory was being on the kitchen island. And. And I was just about. I just was starting to have some language, but not quite enough. And I was kind of playing charades with my mom, and I wanted to get to the counter, like, the other side of the kitchen. And she was really frustrated. And I felt such empathy for both of us. And I was like, this cannot continue. Like, I really, really need to crack this language thing, because, I mean, poor us. This is too hard. Amazing. So, yeah, it was like that always. And people would say, like, how. You know, it's so remarkable that you can deliver performances at such a young age. I was like, what are you talking about? I feel like I've been here for. This has been an eternity. Like, 11 years is so many years. And it felt very rich. I was like, I've got enough material for four lifetimes.

[A]

It makes total sense to me. Because when you're in Little Women and you're dying, I was like, she's.

[C]

You had to reshoot that scene. Just my side. Because apparently I got too excited about the death rattle. Because of course, I read, like, five stages of dying. I like. And really studied whatever illness Beth had.

[A]

Sure.

[C]

And I got a little carried away. You rattled a little tourist. Matthew Reese. And he calls me Death Rattle Danes. But Gillian Anderson, the director, lied to me. I only learned this, like, last year, literally. And said that coke had spilled on the negatives of the film and that we needed to reshoot.

[A]

Oh, that's a nice thing to do.

[C]

Cause she needed to calm the death rattle down a little bit. Yes. So that's a factoid.

[A]

By the time you were 20, you were already in 13 movies.

[C]

So that's a few movies. That's a lot.

[A]

And you went.

[C]

I did not know that.

[A]

Went to school. Went to Yale. What did you study there?

[C]

I thought I was going to be a psychology major. And then there ended up being, like, a lot of lab work involved with that. That's not what I meant. Eventually, I think I would have been. I didn't complete my time, and I never had to declare a major. But if I had, I think I would have been an English major, which is what I meant. You know, I didn't want it to be. The science part was less interesting to me than the character studies.

[A]

You have a bit of like a slidy doors fantasy that you would be a therapist in another life.

[C]

Well, my best friend in the whole wide world from the age of 9 on is a therapist.

[A]

Congrats.

[C]

Thank you. I did pretty well.

[A]

Best friend of the year.

[C]

I chose well at nine. And. And actually it's really fun. We do kind of play Barbies together with my characters. Like if I'm starting a project, we'll think about it in those kind of formal terms and she'll diagnose her and yeah, cool. It is. It's actually very handy. And occasionally at lunch, like, I'll see her kind of. It'll be do, do, do, do. I see her shift from Ariel, you know, into Thera. And she'll ask, she'll say, is it okay if I, you know, go into actual formal therapy mode with you now and be like a dream? Yes, please.

[A]

A dream.

[C]

So yeah, I mean that. So, okay, so I'd wanted to be an actor from the age of 5 onwards. And then people would tell me, you know, most actors actually don't make that much money. It's a fairly insecure career choice and continues to be. And I had a practical side and I thought, okay, all right, fine, I'm gonna be a therapist and I'm gonna live in the suburbs. I was gonna live next door to Ariel. We were gonna share a pool and we would have two slides in our respective yards that would go into the same pool. I would be a therapist and do acting workshops. Yes. To like nourish the soul. And that was my plan for a good year. And I made an actual announcement one night at the dinner table and I said, look, guys, who am I kidding? There is no plan B. I am an actor. Money or no money, this is my calling. And my parents are like, uh huh, Sure. I was so serious, it's ridiculous.

[A]

But I love that person because that person's making a declaration.

[C]

And I really meant it. And I went to, you know, I took Saturday acting classes at Lee Strasburg, which is in my neighborhood. And I pass almost every and is a total trip. But yeah, anyway, so. Yes. But actually my favorite class was a graphic design class. Ooh, my very favorite class. And then I thought, oh, maybe if I weren't an actor, I would be that kind of person.

[A]

I can See a graphic designer, I can see all these things. Like, what I love about your work is that it feels. And again, it just feels like when you're watching you work, that there's just real life that exists in your life. Like you have a real life. You're a real person, sane, real person.

[C]

I'm trying.

[A]

And then, so then when we're watching you play, people when you're. They feel like real people, there's just a little bit you just kind of can't explain it. People have it or they don't, or they feel like they've actually existed on the earth and had a real life. And people that are kind of in a. Just a different way, sphere of I don't know. And there's something that feels like you have taken care of other parts of your life.

[C]

It was good for me to do that. I really needed a timeout. I needed to not have so much responsibility and I needed to fuck around a little bit and get stoned and play Mario Kart.

[A]

That doesn't need to go away. That doesn't need to go away.

[C]

As important as, you know, the work I was doing in class, which was also really, really wonderful. And I also felt validated as a thinking person.

[A]

I feel like you've spoken about the kind of wonderful things about perspective and getting older. What's the best thing about being the age you are?

[C]

That it's perfectly okay to have the same breakfast every morning, to exercise for 45 minutes to an hour.

[A]

How's your bone density?

[C]

I don't know. And I should know. And I don't lift enough weights.

[A]

Nobody ever knows you have to lift so many weights

[C]

forever. I like lifting my own body weight. I really like yoga these days, but it's not enough, apparently. You have to lift actual.

[A]

Not enough iron. And you run. You're a big runner.

[C]

I used to run more. The third pregnancy really kind of put a dent.

[A]

So for people who don't know. You had a pregnancy a few years ago. Yeah, kind of a surprise.

[B]

Whoa.

[C]

Out of the blue, whoa.

[A]

Did you burst into tears like, oh, no, I have to be pregnant again?

[C]

Yes, totally. I called my obgyn in convulsive tears. Yes. No, it was a pure. Like it was all meltdown. Oh, no.

[A]

Because you had what, like a 12 year old or like a 10 year old and a 6 year old or something?

[C]

Yes. I mean, he must have been around 11, 12. Yeah. They're five years apart, each kid. None of this was by design, but yeah, I didn't know it was Physically possible. I was 44. And actually, Rowan was very hard earned. I had to do two rounds of ivf. Like, it just was so unlikely. So this is a funny story that I'm gonna share about my best friend. Okay, so.

[A]

And this is Arielle.

[C]

This is Ariel.

[A]

Okay, Ariel.

[C]

She gets name checked a lot in these things.

[A]

Well, she is your therapist, and she's

[C]

other people's therapist, too.

[A]

And I would like her to be mine.

[C]

I've just ruined her.

[A]

I'd like her to be mine.

[C]

But, yeah, so we had this, like, spa day scheduled, and I admitted to her and I wasn't coping very well with the heat I kept. I was like, I'm sorry. I'm such a pussy. I gotta get out of here. Anyway, and so I wasn't gonna say anything, and finally I admitted. I was like, you know, I totally lost my mind last night and just decided that I was pregnant. I went down this crazy rabbit hole and finally looked up, what are the odds of naturally conceiving at 44? And they're like, less than 1%. And I was like, so that obviously is ridiculous. And she said, whoa, that's really weird, because I had this dream last week. She said it was really vivid, and I told people about it. I mean, I didn't say it was you, but I had this dream where I was pregnant, and I looked down and I saw my distended belly, and I said, oh, I'm. Wait, but this is a really. This isn't my torso. This is a long torso. This is Claire's torso.

[A]

You have a great torso.

[C]

Thank you. But, yeah, she was in.

[A]

She was.

[C]

She had this dream where she looked down and saw that she was pregnant, but she wasn't pregnant. She was in my pregnant body. And then the. You know, I had two strong cocktails when we had dinner, and then first thing in the morning, hit the cvs, and it was just, like, bold cap locks, you know, pregnant. And I burst into tears because for

[A]

me, the thing would just be like, you know what? You know, now you know what you're in for.

[C]

I. Well, that was. That was deeply humbling because I realized, oh, I am not authoring this thing.

[A]

Like, yeah, yeah, yeah.

[C]

Okay.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

Okay.

[A]

Yeah.

[C]

This is really. This is the illusion that I am, like, driving this thing. Yes.

[A]

So you had to surrender.

[C]

I really did.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

And then this beautiful girl emerged, and she's the best, and none of it was up to me, and I'm just delighted.

[A]

Yeah.

[C]

But she was disruptive. We had to move. It was a thing. It Was a lot of work. Well, it's still a lot of work.

[A]

It's interesting. Like, her origin story will be, I bet, will just like, naturally be like, you really wanted to be here.

[C]

She did. And she's psyched. Like, she is all about it, having a great time, unequivocally, like, into this living business. Yeah.

[A]

I mean, that's the thing about. I think about the best and worst thing about late 40s for me, mid-50s, is you kind of know the deal. So it's like, okay, that's gonna be this and okay, this one's gonna hurt. Or, you know, there's still stuff to discover, certainly. But there is a sense of.

[C]

It's amazing. So much of your life, like, established and, you know. Yeah. Realized, like, and set.

[A]

Well, you've experienced. It's basically, you've come through things and you've made it. Made it through something.

[C]

Yeah. And there's a lot of, I don't know, power in that and joy in that. And it's also sad because I'm really, really aware of time now.

[A]

Me too. It's really like the thing I crave. I crave. Time is a thief. And it's actually, and I'm sure you're this way too, more and more with work or with any project. It's the thing I care about the most, how much. And, you know, it makes me think about your work on Homeland, which was a 10 year commitment.

[C]

Yeah, Yeah.

[A]

A lot of time.

[C]

A lot of time. Hard work. Yeah, it was hard work. And we were all over the planet. Like, we were in so many different countries. And I had two kids. Yes. And I was like, fighting terrorists while deeply pregnant. It was weird.

[A]

Did you have a thing like you liked to do on that show when you saw on the call sheet, you were like, ooh, today I get to do this. You know, because, like, it was like today. And, you know, maybe it was like today I get to.

[C]

Well, it was cool that after a while, like, you know, a few seasons in, people knew Carrie Matheson and every. It was almost like an anthology series. Like, we would reimagine ourselves every year. But, you know, so a new set of actors, you know, I'd walk into a room and they would, like, get quiet and be chastened. And I, like, had this power that, you know, I had earned over seasons, you know, and that was pretty fun.

[A]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[C]

You know, and never have I ever had that experience in my life, nor will I ever again, even in a fictional realm, you know, but that was like Amazing to have that kind of swagger.

[B]

Yes.

[C]

Yeah. And.

[A]

And what was that? What was hard to shoot? Like, was it like. I mean, just like, balancing life, I'm sure. And traveling all over. Cause it shot everywhere. It shot all over.

[C]

Especially when Brody died. Spoiler alert. Spoiler alert.

[A]

Claire.

[C]

I remember. So it was also, like, really rough. Just really graphic. Like, they really went there. Over, like. Come on.

[A]

Intense.

[C]

It was so intense. But, like, he dies on a crane. I know. But then the crane, when we were filming, broke.

[A]

Oh, no.

[C]

So, like, we were really hung up by that. But I don't know. It was like landing in a new. Because that was in. Where did we shoot that? That was in Morocco. But yeah. So the first three seasons, we were mostly in Charlotte, North Carolina, which was standing in for D.C. and then we would make these jackets, like, shoot a month in Israel or Morocco or something. But then when we had to really redefine the show in a more macro way, we then became this traveling, you know, enterprise. So we were shooting in Cape Town for half a year, which was standing in for Palestine and Afghanistan. The next year, we were. Where were we? There was a year in Berlin, then a year in New York, which. Yeah, that was kind of. That was actually very strange to be home and weirdly stressful because, like, people expected me to go to dinner. Like, my friends were like, you're here. Let's hang out. And I was like, I am working so hard.

[A]

You're like, I had to get tired and beat up tomorrow, and then I have to tie someone else.

[C]

I can't do this and live my life. There was something nice about being on location and just being allowed to give myself entirely to it. Cause I didn't have any energy to spare. That was actually weird. That was the. Almost the hardest season because I kept, like. You know, there was this illusion that I was living my life and I couldn't. And then where were we? Then we were. I don't even. Then it was a full year in Morocco. Wow.

[A]

What's Morocco like?

[C]

Pretty great. I was nervous about spending so much time there, and I grew to really love it. Cyrus went to school in all these places, too. So he still can't eat couscous because he ate it at every meal every day for six months at this school.

[A]

That must be very cool for him to have his memories of traveling.

[C]

Yeah. I wonder what he. What he can consciously recall. I think that he was, like, five or six. So maybe six that he could. His first school that he went to was in Berlin, and He was around 3, and he started to have temper tantrums, like, half in German, and he would scream, nein, nein. He'd be like, whoa. Suddenly this sounds. This is a lot scarier in this language. And he would. Around that time, like, when we would come home and we'd be at the playground at Washington Square park, you know, he would toddle over to other tiny people and say, hi, my name is Cyrus. I speak English. Because it was, like, not a given that another person would speak.

[A]

Does he speak another language?

[C]

9.

[A]

If I could, you know, put a chip in my brain and be able to speak in a different language.

[C]

Oh, same bat and fly.

[A]

Yeah, fly.

[C]

I mean.

[A]

Yeah.

[C]

Yeah. But the language almost feels like it has the same thrill level.

[A]

And you know what I love about speaking other languages is you have to do, like, a version. Like a funny. You almost. You have to move your body and your face in a version that feels insulting, it feels stereotypical, but you have to. To get the language right.

[C]

Well, there is that kind of.

[A]

Yes, you have to. Or if you're Italian, you have to gesticulate or, like, there's all these different things. Like, there's a reason why people move

[C]

the way they do.

[A]

Getting back to movement.

[C]

Yes. I love learning dialects for this reason. Look, I think humans are humans, and it is mostly a universally shared experience, whatever that is. But it's also true that there are real differences, and we do see the world through these slightly different. These different filters, and it does shape us and inform us, and that is also kind of amazing.

[A]

Well, I'm really into that. Those kinds of differences again, without appropriating them or getting them wrong. But because we are in a monoculture now, everything is the same now. So now it's like, I'm like, whoa. The way you express this thing or the way you like, language still feels sometimes like a way of getting into some new little world.

[C]

Yes.

[A]

And it's okay. Like, it's. I delight in the ways that we're not the same anymore, because everything is the same. Every fucking store is in the same city and in the same kind of sad that we're.

[C]

I mean, that is what we do. You and I do. And I think a lot of people.

[A]

No, I don't. I don't do.

[C]

Well, you do. You totally do. You imagine yourself, you know, as being a different person.

[A]

True, but dialects are their own. Real. I mean, that's real. That's real acting. Now, look, Claire.

[C]

Look, I can't just riff, though. Like, I'm this oo. Oo. Ooey person. If I have a good coach, I'm all about it.

[A]

Do you like to improvise when you act, or.

[C]

I haven't had that many opportunities to.

[A]

Oh, interesting.

[C]

I don't.

[A]

I guess in more dramatic stuff, it's hard to do. Right.

[C]

They don't let you. They're very strict about.

[A]

Because they're on the crane. They're like, he's up on the crane. You can't. And you're like, just give me. I just want to riff.

[C]

Yeah. Crane work is pretty strict. But no. I don't know. I would be really intimidated by that, actually. I feel like you'd be so good. I feel like that seems scary. I did one episode of Portlandia, and they did give me pages, and then they disappeared.

[A]

They were like, don't look at those.

[C]

Yeah. And I was like, but wait, I learned them. And they were like, oh, sorry. You should have known that. And they were like, you know what? We're just gonna do it as we wanna do it in the moment. And I wanted to vomit.

[A]

I have no. I worked at SNL and stuff, like, where I realized, like, oh, preparation is this thing that people do. No, it's this thing. It's this thing that when people bring it to the process and someone says, like. And also, let's try this. It's hard to not feel like, wait, wait, what are we doing? It is a learned skill to just assume that things aren't wrong if we are not doing what we prepared.

[C]

I mean. I mean, I. I mean, I'll go to the writer and say, is it okay if I, like, put the comma here rather than there? And they're like, don't come to me with this bullshit. Like, I'm sorry, but. And I think, actually, because I started at such a young age, my socks are still up to my knees a little bit. You know, like, there's still that little girl who's just wanting to do a good job. I don't know if that's because I was actually a little like a literal. Literal little girl. Say that five times fast when I began. Or maybe that's just in me and what I'm. If I started at 30, but I don't know.

[A]

Yeah, you do such a good job.

[C]

Thank you.

[A]

You're so. You're so good at your job.

[C]

You are so good at your job. Thank you.

[A]

You are so good at your job.

[C]

And I love listening to your show. I listen to it a lot.

[A]

Thanks, Eric. You hear that? You love podcasts.

[C]

I love Podcasts.

[A]

Me too.

[C]

But you have one of the very best ones.

[A]

Oh, my God. Thanks.

[C]

And it's really wonderful. Thanks. And clear. Really.

[A]

Speaking of wonderful, we do a thing on this podcast where we talk to someone who knows our guests. We talk to Mandy Patink.

[C]

Mandy. Mandy who I saw the other night. I hadn't seen him for a long time.

[A]

You guys were celebrating Mamdani together?

[C]

Yeah, celebrating Maumdani. I mean, he.

[A]

His. I mean, you could tell in the show. But I also loved knowing that outside of the show, the relationship you two had. Yeah, it felt very paternal, very respectful. There was a lot of love there.

[C]

I love him madly, truly, deeply. And also he's just an amazing person to.

[A]

How come?

[C]

Okay. He's very musical. But this was a weird thing. In the first read through, we barely met each other and it just, like, the music worked. You know, my cadence and his cadence were in really good harmony with each other. And that was like, nobody can take credit for that. That was just really good fortune. And, you know, I played this manic person I'm almost like, getting into now that you're saying. I'm thinking about it. So she's like a stone skipping, you know, on the water. And he's, you know, has a much. You know, he has this, like, low pulse rate as Saul and is so steady and is her ballast and, you know, this counterpoint.

[A]

Yeah, well, he adores you. He calls you a thoroughbred.

[C]

Oh, well, thanks. He's just a really, really, really good performer. I don't quite know how he does what he does, but it was also always fun to see him at the gym, the hotel gym or whatever weird apartment complex we were living in. Like, singing his Yiddish songs, prepping for his tour, like, on a StairMaster.

[A]

Right.

[C]

It's just. It's also.

[A]

I just love a big man.

[C]

Yes, I do.

[A]

Yes, I'm a big man sometimes. I love feeling small, like, in relationship. Do you know the, like, the idea of, like, big and small?

[C]

No.

[A]

Which is basically, like, some days you wanna feel big and some days you wanna feel small. So some days you wanna be like, I'm gonna get us to the airport. I'm in charge of whatever. I'm big today. And other times you're like, I wanna be small today. And it's like being taken care of, but also can just kind of feel physical. Like, sometimes when you're, like, at. I don't know, you're bossing it up all day at work, you wanna come home and feel small and vice versa. And being able to have someone kind of do that with you.

[C]

It's like CEOs who go to doms.

[A]

Exactly. It's a sub dom thing. So those are all Mandy's questions. No, I'. Mandy wants to know, are you? No. Okay, so he had 10 questions for us.

[C]

That's a lot of.

[A]

We're not gonna. We can't get to.

[C]

That's a lot of questions. This is. Mandy had 10 questions.

[A]

Yeah, he really over prepared, which is very nice. But also, he couldn't get on the zoom. And he was eating when he was on the Zoom, too. So it was like, mixed messages.

[C]

But.

[A]

But he was.

[C]

So he was eating the latkes that he had made.

[A]

He was eating a delicious. The Mayor cinnamon raisin bagel, I believe, with some other stuff on it.

[C]

Okay.

[A]

And it looked delicious. Okay.

[C]

He likes peanut butter on an apple, too.

[A]

Oh, that's a great snack. That's a great sad snack. Okay, so he had a couple questions.

[C]

Okay.

[A]

Who is better at setting boundaries for the kids, you or Hugh?

[B]

Oh,

[C]

goes back and forth.

[A]

Okay, that's good.

[C]

So Cyrus wants to wear shorts. He's like a gaffer all the time.

[A]

There's a whole thing. You're not on TikTok, I'm sure.

[C]

No.

[A]

Oh, congratulations. But there's a whole thing about middle school kids always wearing shorts.

[C]

It makes me so upset.

[A]

Let it go. I'm here to tell you, my boys are older. Let them freeze their bunnaroonies off. Don't say one thing. Don't ever. Don't mention a coat.

[C]

Okay? So don't mention a coat. I've said 50 or below. You have to wear shorts. Hugh is more team class.

[A]

50 or below, you have to wear pants. Yeah, Sorry.

[C]

Pants. Sorry. Thank you. And son, now, he was kind of being more permissive, and that number went down to 40.

[A]

There's literally a whole scientific thing about middle school kids waiting for the bus. By scientific, I mean it's on TikTok about kids waiting for the bus with shorts. Boys love shorts in middle school. It's a whole thing.

[C]

What? Okay, whatever.

[A]

And they run hot. And they're not gonna get a cold from the cold. You know that. And just let them do it. And they will grow out of it, I promise. Then they'll become obsessed with sweats and sleeping and being warm, and they'll always be freezing.

[C]

Yeah. Okay. All right.

[A]

It's just a warm period.

[C]

I got that. My family thanks you. But I actually think that Hugh and I are pretty. We're very lucky. Like, we're. Well Matched humans. And I think our parenting styles are pretty level and equal as well.

[A]

Love that.

[C]

It's good.

[A]

You guys are a really, really special couple.

[C]

Thank you. He's a very. He's a swell dude.

[A]

Yeah.

[C]

You can tell.

[A]

And you can tell you have a lot, like, a lot of love and a lot of like for each other. Both those things are important.

[C]

We do. And so many children now.

[A]

Yeah, so many. They're outnumbered.

[C]

Yeah, they're outnumbered. Anyway.

[A]

Okay, Mandy's next question.

[C]

And this.

[A]

Now Mandy's referring to himself in the third person. Sure. What is Mandy's father's favorite chew? Chewing gum.

[C]

Oh, it's the black licorice. Oh, I embroidered something for him.

[A]

That's what he was asking. How did you commemorate?

[C]

Because he would chew it as saw. And I think he mentioned at one point that. But I'm forgetting the name of the brand.

[A]

Did it come like in a tin?

[C]

Blackjack. Blackjack.

[A]

Blackjack was the gum.

[C]

Was the kind of gum.

[A]

And you embroidered something.

[C]

I went hard on the embroidery for a while.

[A]

Let's talk about this embroidery. Do you embroider? Do you? I don't really.

[C]

There was a point when I embroidered everything around me. I embroidered an umbrella. That was weird. So my mom taught me. And, you know, it started because in my 30s, I was away from my friends and we were at the. Everybody was having babies and I was really missing them. And so I embroidered onesies from my friends. Babies. I embroidered their name and then an image that related to the name someh. But it was really more about just communing with them.

[A]

Embroidery by hand.

[B]

Yes.

[C]

Okay. And we started with the onesies, and then it just. Then it went haywire. It's a great on set activity.

[A]

Yes.

[C]

And I did it a lot more before I had children. And I also found the contrast amusing and enjoyable. Like that I would be fighting terrorists as Carrie. And then I would go back to my seat and. Embroidery.

[A]

Knitting or crocheting. Do you do that?

[C]

I went on a knitting jag too then. That didn't take. So I embroider onesies for, of course, all of my kids. And I have one for Shay, this third child. She doesn't wear onesies anymore. I've missed that chance.

[A]

It's okay.

[C]

I'm confessing. I'm actually confessing to you. You know, I mean, it's by my bed, half done, you know, Anyway, you've done it all.

[A]

I mean, no more. You gotta start giving us.

[C]

I don't.

[A]

That's what I tell every woman. And then I Wanna talk about the beast in me? Because I love the fact that you are producing on this, and I wanna know what that experience has been like. Producing.

[C]

I loved it. It was just really fun to, like, you know, hire people who I admired and trusted.

[A]

And you have a. I mean, like you said, you've been producing, probably you've been producing without credit for a long time. And you've been producing and seeing. You've been on sets for. And you're realizing, like, oh, I wanna bring my system here.

[C]

Yeah. And that first week, I was just. I just had a blast. I was really like, I like everybody here. And I realized, oh, right. Cause, you know, I asked them to the dinner party. Right?

[A]

Yeah. Right.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

And it was so nice to, like, I don't know, not be surprised by the home that suddenly I was discovering on the first day of filming. Like, I got to have a say on what that house would actually. Yeah, I really enjoyed it. And it was just like, a lot of zoom calls. And that's okay. Yeah. But they were conversations I wanted to have and be a part of. And. Yeah. So it's on this next gig. I'm more of an actor for hire.

[A]

So you're playing a neurosurgeon. And. Can we talk about the Pit?

[C]

Sure.

[A]

Because you love it.

[C]

I do love it. What do you love about it? Well, Noah Wylie. I mean, Noah Wylie.

[A]

Okay. Did you watch ER when it was on?

[C]

No, but I would think I was a little too little. It was on maybe while I was shooting My Soul Called Life. Is that right? I don't know. Maybe I'm getting that timing wrong, but. Yeah, I was aware of it, but I didn't watch it. But, no, he feels so credible. And I really think all those hours he put in as a TV doctor have accrued.

[A]

Totally.

[C]

And he has a kind of gravitational, you know, gravity now.

[A]

Yeah. He does this. It feels like he's doing his blocking without thinking.

[C]

I'm so convinced.

[A]

Totally.

[C]

And no. And I just think it also feels a little throwbacky. Like, it's so nice to watch excellent TV. Love, love.

[A]

You've made excellent TV.

[C]

Thank you. But I enjoy watching excellent TV.

[A]

It's my favorite thing to watch TV or better than movies. Sorry? TV's better than movies. I love movies. Movies are very special.

[C]

I'm a little worried about movies. I really am a little bit worried about movies.

[A]

Well, they gotta get their shit together. No, I'm just kidding. I love movies. I love movies. I love it all. Is there anything that you watch? I know you are a big pot. Listen to podc. Is there anything you watch just for kind of brain checkout fun?

[B]

Yes.

[C]

So what? Okay, I know you ask this sometimes, so I had a prepared answer. There is.

[A]

You're the only person that's ever prepared. I want you to know this, of

[C]

course, Claire, but is it. Okay. Tim Robinson.

[A]

Yes.

[C]

So there's this one sketch from the show.

[A]

Which one?

[C]

Focus group.

[B]

Incredible.

[A]

Look, you just gotta o. You just gotta o from Belle.

[C]

We watch this all the time in our family now.

[A]

Does this. Do your kids watch it?

[C]

Well, so all the kids are allowed to watch this. So Cyrus is. So we tuck the little guys in, and then we have, like, special mature viewing hour. And it started with, like, the Simpsons, and then it was.

[A]

The Simpsons is always the gateway.

[C]

Only murderers in the building. Omib. Which is basically Scooby Doo for grownups. And it's. And then English husband introduced him to Monty Python stuff. He got really into that. Yes. But now we've been watching mostly because of this focus group, his latest show, which is the Chair Company. Yeah.

[A]

Which. There was a not safe for work

[C]

moment in that show. I mean, the whole genius of the show that it takes you very quickly to places that you are not prepared for.

[A]

Totally.

[C]

We're all, like, cuddling in bed. Totally. And then there is this giant erect penis. And Hugh says, close your eyes. Everybody close your eyes. Close your eyes. Everybody close your eyes. We all. Yeah, it was intense. We're still recovering. It was intense, but it was great. So we do love that show.

[A]

I think that, like. What, Claire? What? I understand why you would like this, because, number one, I think you are, like. I've known you to be a very fun, funny, and, like, comedy. You love comedy.

[C]

I do.

[A]

Yeah. And you have good taste.

[C]

Thanks.

[A]

And there's a tiny bit of a disruptor in you that I imagine is fun to watch.

[C]

Yes, I think you're right. And we. The other thing that we've been watching is the latest south park, which. Talk about what they're just saying the thing.

[A]

Just a chicken in a henhouse. A fox. No, it's a fox in a hen house. I didn't get that right.

[C]

Chicken in a hen house. Thank you for that. Well, thank you. This was amazing. This was so. This was really nice.

[A]

This is so fun.

[C]

Birthday present to me.

[A]

No one's ever brought me a balloon. Thank you for bringing a balloon. And again, for people that are sick of me talking about the Enneagram, I don't know what to say, but let me just read you this as we wrap up and see if any of these land. These are things that annoy an enneagram 8. Are you ready?

[C]

Sure.

[A]

People who talk just to talk.

[C]

That's very annoying. That is deeply annoying.

[A]

And I have a podcast. But yes, people who talk just to talk. Fake people beyond. I mean, I'm like. I literally, if someone's like I'm a piece of shit or whatever, I'm like, okay, great. But fake. No way, babe. People who aren't on.

[C]

I have to have some tolerance for that because I am not the same.

[A]

I was late today.

[C]

Jenna's always on time, the most punctual person.

[A]

And then this one really scratches an itch for me. Others asserting power in a situation where they have none.

[C]

So I went through a period in junior high where I became like a vigilante. And I would like rough. I would like confront the bullies for eight.

[A]

Hate bullies.

[C]

Yeah, really. And I went to the principal's office one time because I like, like I hit a bully. I slapped a bully. And that's exciting. And we talked through it, the bully and I, and actually we made some progress. And then he was so deferential to me and so. And he would open doors. Like he was really, you know. But I had to stop that because it was like going on my record. But yes, I mean, so I think I. Yes, that that makes sense.

[A]

That there would be an impulse that I stand up to bullies and that everybody stands like, that's my embarrassing fantasy that I stick up for people in public.

[C]

So there was a bully in elementary school and I admitted to my mother at one point that like my self soothing fantasy, there'd be a circle of people and this boy and I were at the center of it and I was just beating the shit out of him and I was like, is that okay to have that fantasy? Like your thoughts are your own. Enjoy them. Which was a nice bit of mothering there. Nice bit of mothering there.

[A]

Yeah.

[C]

Really.

[A]

We've come full circle back to New

[C]

York, back to the apartment. It did help. It was nice.

[A]

Yeah. I could talk to you forever, Claire.

[C]

I could too. Thank you. Thank you so much. It was so fun.

[A]

Thank you so much, Claire Danes. That was so fun. I could have talked to you forever. And ah, you're so interesting and smart and funny. So thanks so much for that time and for the polar plunge today. I guess I just want to remind everybody how good Law and Order is, especially the first 10 seasons. Okay, just go back and watch Find Claire as the young you know, child maniac and just go back and here's a little tip. Whoever you recognize, they did it. So if it's a young actor just starting out, they're the murderer. So take that tip with you and go check out a little show called Law and Order. I can't get enough of it. And you know, it's these kind of new things that I'm going to fill you in on when you take the time to listen to the Polar Plunge. So thanks so much for listening and see you soon.

[C]

Bye.

[A]

You've been listening to Good Hang. The executive producers for this show are Bill Simmons, Jenna Weiss Berman and me, Amy Poehler. The show is produced by the Ringer and Paper Kite for the Ringer production by Jack Wilson, cat Spillane, Kaia McMullen and Alaya Zaneris. For Paper Kite production by Sam Green, Joel Lovell and Jenna Weiss Berman. Original music by Amy Mil.

[C]

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