Mike Birbiglia’s Working It Out, Ep. 189 — Nick Offerman: The Man Behind the Mustache

Release Date: October 27, 2025
Host: Mike Birbiglia
Guest: Nick Offerman

Episode Overview

Mike Birbiglia sits down for an engaging, wide-ranging conversation with actor, writer, and woodworker Nick Offerman. The two discuss Offerman's new woodworking book Little Woodchucks, his intense dramatic turn in the film Sovereign, why woodworking still grounds him, and the lessons and stories behind his acting, craft, and philosophy of life. Offerman opens up about growing up in a working-class family, the balance of technology and groundedness, the creative process behind both drama and comedy, and shares practical—and sometimes hilarious—advice from his career and life’s journey.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Roots in Carpentry and Family Ingenuity

(04:15 – 06:01)

• Offerman's upbringing involved big, hands-on projects, thanks to his resourceful father, a teacher and part-time builder.
• Anecdote: His father physically moved a farmhouse three miles and made it their home, instilling in Nick the ethos that "sometimes you move a house" to take care of your family and community.
  • Nick Offerman:
    “I had that sense of, like, oh, this is how you lead a family or a community by, like, you move a house sometimes.” (05:45)
• This foundation became crucial for his approach to both theater and woodworking.

2. Finding His Place in Theater, Not Improv

(06:41 – 07:37)

• Nick gravitated toward straight theater in Chicago (Steppenwolf, Shakespeare), not the improv scene popularized by peers like Amy Poehler, Steve Carell, and Stephen Colbert.
  • Nick Offerman:
    "I was so ignorant. If I had any idea that if I had known that that was a pipeline to SNL ... I would have been all over it." (07:13)
• Was amazed at the creativity of improv and its unexpected career pipeline.

3. Approach to Acting, Especially in Sovereign

(07:49 – 12:36)

• Nick’s acclaimed performance in Sovereign emerged from a place of deep empathy and a desire to humanize those who might be led astray by misinformation.
  • Mike Birbiglia:
    "I was taken with your acting being so authentic that I don’t know where the script begins and ends." (06:36)
  • Nick Offerman:
    "With a couple of bad cards in the hand I was dealt, I could easily be this guy ... It humanizes this guy who’s a victim of banks and the governmental institutions that in a predatory way, put their thumbs on the working class..." (10:58)
• Nick reflects on real people from his hometown, explaining how divisive information streams create intractable but deeply human divides.

4. Working with Jacob Tremblay

(13:14 – 14:06)

• Spoke warmly of his on-set rapport with his younger co-star, Jacob Tremblay.
  • Nick Offerman:
    “He’s so talented and good looking that I, you know, that I openly despise him.” (13:22)

5. The Role of Carpentry in His Life

(14:10 – 20:46)

• Explained how technical and practical skills developed in theater school fueled his parallel love and career in carpentry.
• Built sets, did fight choreography, prosthetic makeup, and established his own scenery shop—eventually leading to the founding of Offerman Woodshop.
• Emphasizes the synergy between creative (acting, theater) and tactile (woodworking) pursuits.

6. Origins and Purpose of Little Woodchucks

(21:01 – 24:57)

• Offerman’s sixth book, Little Woodchucks, written with longtime collaborator Lee Buchanan, is designed for families and kids but is a welcoming on-ramp for anyone to enjoy woodworking.
• Stresses the importance of making things with your hands in the age of looming artificial intelligence and virtual distractions.
  • Nick Offerman:
    “We need to urge families and people to make things together and to remember how to make things with our hands.” (24:23)
• Shares concern about the future dominated by tech, referencing WALL-E as a cautionary tale.

7. On Tech and Modern Disconnection

(24:56 – 26:12)

• Appreciates technology but believes it should be treated like dessert, not the main course.
  • Nick Offerman:
    “I feel the same way about all these things. Video games are obviously a total gas, but I avoid them completely because I know I’ll lose my life to them.” (25:09)
• Encourages moderation to avoid losing one's “monkey brain” to addictive tech.

8. Preparing for Comedy vs. Drama

(26:12 – 28:43)

• Preparation differences: Comedy is often at higher stakes, shot quicker; drama allows for more “marination.”
  • Nick Offerman:
    “Good comedy is generally, I think, harder than good drama because it's the same stakes generally, but the stakes are higher, which ... makes it funny because it's a little over the top.” (26:32)
• Praises Amy Poehler’s improvisational prowess and reflects on how he found success as Ron Swanson by being the deadpan counterpoint.

9. The “Deadpan” and Parks and Rec Dynamic

(28:43 – 29:47)

• Nick’s comedic formula: let the improvisers (like Poehler) create the tornado, and he’d be the unbreakable fixed point.
  • Nick Offerman:
    “Amy’s like a Robin Williams or something where she’s just a tornado … unless I just shut the fuck up and let her be really funny.” (29:33)

10. Woodworking and the Offerman Woodshop

(32:26 – 36:27)

• Shares insights into fine furniture: solid wood construction, how wood “moves”, and what makes a piece heirloom-worthy.
  • Nick Offerman:
    "My favorite thing to make ... is a table made of one slab of a tree ... It's like a big slab of fudge." (35:29)
• Discusses his workshop’s ongoing legacy in LA, high-end commissioned pieces, and the joy of creating something tangible and lasting.

11. Slow Round: Personality, Jealousy, and Regrets

(36:39 – 44:32)

People’s Favorite and Least Favorite Things About Him

• Favorite: Pleasant disposition and camaraderie on set.
  • Mike Birbiglia:
    “You have a way about you that is very calming disposition.” (37:18)
• Least Favorite: Overextending himself and “assholing” himself by saying yes to too many things, affecting his wife Megan and family.
  • Nick Offerman:
    “My vice is that I overload myself. I call it assholing myself.” (40:50)

On Jealousy

• Jealous of friends George Saunders and Jeff Tweedy and their prolific creativity.
  • “I always … feel like I’m being allowed to ride in the back of their Trans Am.” (42:35)

What He Used to Believe

• Once believed show business was more merit-based; now sees how much is subject to inscrutable systems and luck.
  • Nick Offerman:
    “Our business could be more merit based than it is. ... These days you do … pitch to those six people and every one of them are like, this is great. … And then [nothing happens].” (44:13, 47:00)

12. Honesty, Integrity, and Learning from Mistakes

(50:34 – 54:23)

• Confesses to youthful lying and a comical college theft (eight Ronnie Milsap cassettes as a prank).
• Credits his parents for instilling the values that ultimately guided him to an honest, grounded adulthood—and a call home that signaled the transition from rebellious kid to responsible man.

13. Perseverance in Showbiz and Life

(54:53 – 58:29)

• Nick and Mike reflect on what it takes to stick around in the arts: endurance, willpower, and sometimes just being willing to “eat more shit” than the next person.
• Not all who endure succeed, but those who don’t endure certainly fall away first.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On acting and empathy:

  "With a couple of bad cards in the hand I was dealt, I could easily be this guy. ... There's no point in shaking my fist at sovereign citizens. I'd rather try and understand why they think that way and how we can have a conversation so maybe they don't shoot at people."
  (Nick Offerman, 10:58–12:16)

• On his comedic partnership with Amy Poehler:

  “Amy’s like a Robin Williams or something where she’s just a tornado ... unless I just shut the fuck up and let her be really funny.”
  (Nick Offerman, 29:33)

• On technology and being human:

  “We need to urge families and people to make things together and to remember how to make things with our hands.”
  (Nick Offerman, 24:23)

• On integrity and growing up:

  “I called my dad and I said, Dad, I’m really sorry for the last couple years ... I just wanted to learn this. I wanted to be the best at it and devour it.”
  (Nick Offerman, 54:36–54:52)

• On perseverance:

  “It's endurance. The people who I see around me who've stuck around ... It's the people who stop who do fall away.”
  (Mike Birbiglia, 56:17)

Timestamps for Important Segments

• 04:15: Offerman on his dad moving a house and the family’s hands-on ethos.
• 06:41: His early path in theater vs. the rise of Chicago’s improv scene.
• 08:01 – 12:16: How Offerman approached his role in Sovereign and thoughts on the humanization of “villainized” figures.
• 14:10 – 20:46: Origin story of Offerman’s woodshop and its crucial role in his artistic journey.
• 21:01 – 24:57: Motivation and message behind Little Woodchucks and the importance of analog, hands-on skills.
• 26:12: Insights into the craft of acting—comedy versus drama.
• 28:43 – 29:47: Offerman’s “deadpan” comedic strategy on Parks and Rec.
• 32:26 – 36:27: Technical and soulful aspects of woodworking, heirloom furniture, and Offerman’s Los Angeles shop.
• 36:39: “Slow Round” exploring personality, jealousy, and hard-learned life lessons.
• 47:00: Reflections on the elusive nature of showbiz success.
• 50:34: Honesty, lying, and the story of being caught stealing in college.
• 54:36: Paying tribute to his parents and the work ethic at the core of his perseverance.
• 56:47: The reality and necessity of endurance in the arts.

Additional Highlights

• Team and Community Spirit: Offerman prides himself on being a team player and bringing a sense of well-being and cheer to any project or set (38:28).
• Genuine Friendship and Admiration: Expresses deep gratitude for the creative friendships with George Saunders and Jeff Tweedy, which inspire him (42:14–42:59).
• Cautious Optimism: Despite frustrations with tech and the business side of entertainment, Nick remains a “stubborn optimist,” inspired in part by Conan O’Brien’s big-picture view of social progress (43:12–44:32).
• Lessons for Aspiring Creatives: Endurance, flexibility, and staying true to one’s foundational values are essential for longevity.
• Giving Back: Nick highlights the nonprofit Girls Garage, a design and construction school for girls and gender-expansive youth (59:22).

Overall Tone

The conversation is warm, reflective, funny, and unapologetically open. Offerman’s trademark blend of earnest Midwestern humility, deep thoughtfulness, and sharp wit shines throughout. Birbiglia provides gentle, self-effacing prompts, making the dialogue both intimate and lively.

For Further Info:

• Little Woodchucks is available at bookstores.
• Sovereign is streaming on-demand.
• The nonprofit Girls Garage can be found at girlsgarage.org.
• More on Offerman’s woodworking: offermanwoodshop.com

Recommended if:
You appreciate candid conversations about art, craft, acting, and surviving both Hollywood and the 21st century—plus a few good laughs about saxophones, mustaches, and moving an entire house.