Podcast Summary

Podcast: Sibling Revelry with Kate Hudson and Oliver Hudson
Episode: You Can’t Fake Funny with Paul Feig
Date: December 8, 2025
Guest: Paul Feig (director, writer, producer)

Episode Overview

Kate and Oliver Hudson welcome the acclaimed director, writer, and producer Paul Feig to discuss the nuances of comedy, the evolution of the entertainment industry, and Paul’s journey from a small-town kid with showbiz dreams to helming hit TV shows and movies. Together, they deep dive into topics like the challenges and rewards of making people laugh, the undervaluation of comedic talent, the team spirit of comedy, and Paul’s upcoming psychological thriller, The Housemaid.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Introductions and Connections

• Sibling Banter and Setting the Tone
  • Kate and Oliver share family anecdotes, poking fun at Oliver’s son Wilder’s attempts to negotiate a visit:

    “He writes me these long, like, manipulative text messages. I’m like, stop. Just say you want to come.” – Kate (03:41)

• Paul Feig’s Early Creative Encounters with Kate
  • Paul reminisces about seeing Kate early in her career in 200 Cigarettes, raving about her comedic talent:

    “Who was that woman? That’s the funniest woman I’ve ever seen in my life. And it was you.” – Paul (05:25)

2. The Influence of Casting Directors and Industry Gatekeepers

• Kate credits female casting directors (Mary Vernieu, Gail Levin, etc.) as champions of her career, noting how underacknowledged they are (06:36).
• Paul calls legendary casting director Allison Jones "the mother of modern comedy," having discovered countless comedic actors and casting Freaks and Geeks (07:09).

3. Paul’s Childhood, Family Dynamics, and Route into Showbiz

• Background
  • Raised outside Detroit in a blue-collar family with an army surplus store.
  • Only child with parents who had latent artistic leanings (07:45).
• Early Pull Toward Performance
  • A formative moment came at age five, playing the lead elf in a pageant:

    “The minute I walked on stage, the whole place went crazy laughing... I just made all these people laugh. I want to do this for the rest of my life.” – Paul (13:41)

• Pursuing Hollywood
  • Audaciously cold-called movie studios; landed a job as a Universal Studios tour guide at 17 (12:57).

4. The Empathy Inside Comedy

• Humor Rooted in Real Life
  • Paul emphasizes comedy’s foundation in empathy and relatability:

    “I just like things to be real, you know. I find, you know, life is funny because it’s serious and then it’s hilarious and then it’s serious again.” – Paul (15:33)

• Comedians as Empaths
  • The group discusses comedic sensibilities, noting that some comics are deeply empathetic, transmuting pain into humor — while others are less so (16:47).

5. The Underrated Challenge of Comedy and Awards Bias

• Comedy vs. Drama in Industry Respect
  • Kate laments that comedic actors often don’t receive their due for serious roles (22:23).
  • Paul shares his frustration that Steve Carell never won an Emmy for The Office:

    “The reason you don’t win awards is it looks easy. If you do it right, it looks easy, and so then you get no credit for it.” – Paul (23:35)

  • Oliver challenges notion: “I would love to get the nominees together and say, okay, you do the office now, Steve. You do this show and see. See who’s — what’s the most difficult. And I can guarantee you no one could do what Steve did.” (24:09)

6. Industry Trends, Luck, and What Makes a Hit

• Award Season “Anointing” and Personal Voting
  • Paul critiques the insularity of awards season and votes for what he genuinely enjoys:

    “I always feel like I waste my academy votes, but at the same time, I vote for the movies that I, I really like... They entertained an audience.” – Paul (25:32)

• The Value in Big vs. Small Films
  • Discussion of how the business shifted to prioritize smaller, critically anointed films over crowd-pleasers, with Kate pointing to the difficulty and artistry of making “movies people want to see” (26:16).

7. From Actor to Director: Paul’s Professional Evolution

• Inspirations
  • Influenced by Woody Allen, Albert Brooks, and Steve Martin; wanted to both perform and create:

    “I just wanted to be kind of like a clown, but like a realistic clown.” – Paul (32:21)

• Breaking Out of Acting through Writing
  • Acting jobs dried up; wife suggested going behind the camera — leading to writing and creating projects like Freaks and Geeks (30:45).
  • Created Freaks and Geeks based on his own high school experience; Judd Apatow picked it up (33:15).

8. The Comedy Community: Collaboration and Improv

• The Power of Comedy Teams
  • Kate and Paul praise collaborative, improv-trained comedic actors, who “make something out of anything” (35:28).
  • Paul: “Comedic actors are great because they’re team players... you can’t do it by yourself.” (34:53)
  • Improv is valuable on his sets, but it’s always “controlled chaos” within a tight script (38:03).

9. Broad vs. Behavioral Comedy; Evolving Styles

• Broad Comedy vs. Nuance
  • Paul reflects on how comedy now prizes authenticity and behavioral humor, influenced by the popularity of user-generated online content (40:30).
  • He has admiration for those who can go “big” effectively:

    “You have to be a smart performer to be broad. It’s almost like... you have to be a great singer to sing badly.” – Paul (42:06)

10. The Allure and Risks of Standup

• Standup’s current cultural boom discussed; Paul appreciates craft but doesn’t miss performing:

  “You’d have to put a gun to my head to go do it again.” – Paul (43:00)

The Housemaid and Directing Thrillers

11. Paul’s New Film: The Housemaid

• Transition to Psychological Thriller
  • An adaptation of a bestselling book, starring Sydney Sweeney and Amanda Seyfried. Paul’s love for thrillers influenced his decision to take it on (47:16).
• Casting and Chemistry
  • Amanda Seyfried and Brandon Sklenar were dream choices, each bringing unique strengths to the cast (48:35).
• Comedy in Darkness
  • The film isn’t a comedy, but Paul says all his movies have comedic elements, even if dark:

    “All my movies are comedies. Ultimately, they’re just... very, very dark.” – Paul (49:54)

  • Compares audience reactions at horror/thriller screenings to the pleasure of landing a big laugh; horror, like comedy, is about triggering primal responses (51:36).
• Future Projects
  • If The Housemaid is successful, a sequel is possible since the book series continues (53:48).

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• "You can’t manipulate [making someone laugh], can’t fake laugh. If you can, you’re really good." – Paul Feig, on the authenticity of laughter (51:55)
• “I call [Allison Jones] the mother of modern comedy. She’s discovered everyone.” – Paul Feig, on the legendary casting director (07:25)
• “You have to be a smart performer to be broad. It’s almost like... you have to be a great singer to sing badly.” – Paul Feig (42:06)
• On women and comedy: “Women are... We can laugh at ourselves. We can be Rated R.” – Kate Hudson, discussing comedic roles for women (56:09)

Timestamps of Important Segments

• Introduction & Family Anecdotes – 03:03
• Paul’s Early Career and Family – 07:45
• The Power of Empathy in Comedy – 15:33
• Comedy vs. Awards/Industry Respect – 22:23
• Paul’s Evolution from Actor to Director – 29:36
• Freaks and Geeks Origin – 33:15
• Improv and Comedy Collaboration – 35:41
• Comedy’s Evolving Style – 40:30
• The Housemaid: Shifting Gears and Casting – 47:16
• Audience Reaction & Humor in Horror – 51:36
• Future of The Housemaid Sequel – 53:48
• Tribute to Bridesmaids/Comedic Women – 55:45

Conclusion

This episode is a rich, candid, and funny exploration of the craft of comedy, the challenge of making it look "easy," and a heartfelt appreciation for the collaboration and empathy at the heart of great work. Paul Feig’s reflections are honest and inspiring for both aspiring creatives and fans, rounding out with anticipation for his genre-bending new film, The Housemaid.

For anyone interested in the inner workings of comedy—and the joys and frustrations that come with pursuing laughter and connection as art—this conversation is both insightful and uplifting.