"Laura Linney"

Summary

Podcast Summary: SmartLess – Episode Featuring Laura Linney

Release Date: September 30, 2024
Hosts: Jason Bateman, Sean Hayes, Will Arnett
Guest: Laura Linney

---

1. Welcoming Laura Linney

The episode kicks off with a warm and humorous introduction as hosts Jason Bateman, Sean Hayes, and Will Arnett surprise their co-hosts with the esteemed actress Laura Linney. The hosts express their admiration and excitement to have her on the show.

• Will Arnett [00:50]: "There's a princess."
• Laura Linney [11:03]: "Hi, guys. Hi."

2. Laura Linney’s Journey in Acting

Laura Linney delves into her early inspirations and journey into acting, highlighting her formative experiences in theater influenced by her playwright father.

• Laura Linney [15:00]: "I grew up around the theater, so I always knew I wanted to be a part of it in some way."
• Sean Hayes [14:13]: "I love the idea of being a waiter just for the performative element of it..."

3. Education and Early Career

Linney discusses her academic pursuits at Brown University and Juilliard, emphasizing the transition from academic theater studies to professional acting. She shares anecdotes about her first roles and the challenges of transitioning to professional settings.

• Laura Linney [17:57]: "I was more an academic theater nerd at Brown, studying theater history..."
• Jason Bateman [18:22]: "Oh, wow."

4. Professional Challenges and Growth

The conversation shifts to the rigorous demands of acting, particularly in theater, where Linney performed multiple shows a week. She contrasts this with her experiences in film and television, illustrating the physical and emotional toll of different acting mediums.

• Laura Linney [20:37]: "It does not get easy."
• Sean Hayes [21:00]: "You have to deliver."

5. Transition to Directing

Laura shares her foray into directing, particularly her work on the limited series "Black Rabbit." She credits Jason Bateman for encouraging her to explore this role and discusses the learning curve involved in shifting from acting to directing.

• Laura Linney [42:44]: "I couldn't have done this unless Jason really pushed me to do it."
• Will Arnett [41:32]: "She crushed this so hard."

6. Personal Stories and Relationships

Hosts and Linney exchange personal stories, including how Linney met her husband Mark Schauer at the Telluride Film Festival. They reflect on the importance of friendships and professional relationships in their lives.

• Laura Linney [35:21]: "Mark sort of bounded up to us and said, hi, I'm Mark Schauer."
• Will Arnett [37:18]: "How do you get rid of bodies? You put them in a car and...?"

7. Supporting the Arts and Mentorship

Linney emphasizes the critical role of the arts in society and discusses her involvement with Juilliard, where she serves on the board and mentors aspiring actors. She advocates for increased support and funding for arts education.

• Laura Linney [56:16]: "It's unbelievably medicinal. You cannot... engage with the arts. It will make everything better."
• Sean Hayes [62:07]: "Listen, what's going on at the house?"

8. Advice for Aspiring Actors

Laura offers practical advice for young actors, highlighting financial challenges and the importance of perseverance. She stresses the need for supportive communities and accessible arts education.

• Laura Linney [58:05]: "Money. It's impossible... Juilliard's making such a concerted effort to go tuition-free."
• Jason Bateman [58:25]: "Right."

9. Reflections on Collaboration and Friendship

The hosts and Linney reflect on their collaborative projects, particularly "Ozark," and how working together has strengthened their bonds. They celebrate Linney's contributions and her multifaceted talents as both an actress and director.

• Sean Hayes [49:46]: "What is something that Jason, Doug does that's kind of unique that you've noticed about him?"
• Laura Linney [50:12]: "We work completely differently. I love watching him work."

10. Final Thoughts and Closing Remarks

As the episode wraps up, the hosts express their gratitude towards Laura Linney, reaffirming her integral role in their projects and personal lives. They share lighthearted banter and plan for future collaborations.

• Jason Bateman [67:07]: "I love all three of you."
• Will Arnett [70:11]: "That was lovely. It was painful for me. It was a lot of love to receive."

---

Key Takeaways

• Versatility in Acting and Directing: Laura Linney showcases her ability to excel both as an accomplished actress and a budding director, highlighting the importance of continuous growth and exploration in the arts.

• Importance of Mentorship and Support: Linney’s involvement with Juilliard underscores the value of mentoring the next generation of artists and advocating for accessible arts education.

• Balancing Personal and Professional Lives: The episode sheds light on maintaining friendships and professional relationships, emphasizing mutual support and understanding amidst demanding careers.

Notable Quotes

• Laura Linney [20:37]: "It does not get easy."
• Laura Linney [56:16]: "The arts are unbelievably medicinal."
• Sean Hayes [62:07]: "What can people do to support the arts wherever they live?"

---

This episode of SmartLess offers an insightful and heartfelt conversation with Laura Linney, exploring her journey in the performing arts, her transition into directing, and her dedication to mentoring young artists. The hosts' camaraderie and genuine admiration create an engaging narrative that underscores the significance of the arts in personal and societal development.

Transcript

[Jason Bateman]

It takes a lot to grow your business. A lot of audience attracting, a lot of lead scoring and all the channel managing you can manage. Plus a lot of long days, late nights and weekends. A lot of wishing there was an easier way. But with HubSpot's new collection of AI tools, Breeze, it's easier than ever for marketers to attract audiences, increase leads and score customers fast. Which means pretty soon your company will have a lot to celebrate. Visit HubSpot.com marketers to learn more.

[Will Arnett]

So, listener, we all know English. You know it because you're listening to me, you're understanding me. But what if I was talking in a different language? Like that annoying co host of mine, Will Arnett loves to twat on in French. You know, he likes to prove he's Canadian. He's proud of it. Like, I get it. I'm a little jealous. That's why you're picking up the tone in my voice. So this Rosetta Stone company, they can teach you how to speak, understand, write any language you want, I think. But I know they got French covered. So I'm making a big threat to myself, to the world, to you, and to specifically Will Arnett, that I'm going to learn French so that I can stop rolling my eyes and actually get excited. The eyebrows go up next time I hear him talking French. Or if you're watching a foreign film and you're tired of reading, you want to watch a movie, you don't want to look at the subtitles. All of these things make Rosetta Stone a good fit for me. So, you know, maybe it would fit for you after all. Rosetta Stone is the most trusted language learning program to truly immerse yourself in the language you want to learn. It's available on desktop or as an app. It's trusted for 30 years with millions of users and 25 languages offered. Do not put off learning that language. There's no better time than right now to get started. Smartless listeners can get Rosetta Stone's lifetime membership for 50% off, visit rosettastone.com smartless that's 50% off. Unlimited access to 25 language courses for the rest of your Life. Redeem your 50% [e-mail] SmartLess today. Is your team winning? Yeah. Wait, but it's Sunday. I thought they play Saturday.

[Sean Hayes]

It's Sunday. Yeah, they play both in it.

[Will Arnett]

This is Liverpool that you're rooting for.

[Sean Hayes]

Yeah, mate. Yeah.

[Jason Bateman]

Oh, did they score a goal yet?

[Sean Hayes]

Did they score a goal yet? Oh, hang on a second. We're Doing a cold open. But we have a special surprise guest and a princess.

[Will Arnett]

Do not turn around. Do not turn around.

[Sean Hayes]

You're surrounded by a princess.

[Laura Linney]

There's a princess.

[Sean Hayes]

You wanna say hi?

[Will Arnett]

Yeah.

[Sean Hayes]

Yeah.

[Will Arnett]

That's a tiny Terry.

[Jason Bateman]

Tiny Terry.

[Sean Hayes]

That was a tiny, tiny Terry. And this is an all new Smart, smart list. All new smartless, smart less. Smart less, Smart less. Sean. I just did this stupid thing to Sean, but it reminded me before you came on jb. Yeah, the other day. I keep finding new ways to embarrass Alessandro. We were at dinner, just the two of us over there in the Sag harbor.

[Will Arnett]

And you forgot to wear your wig.

[Sean Hayes]

No. And I. No. How can you forget? The glue is so thick.

[Will Arnett]

And you keep it by the keyboard, right?

[Sean Hayes]

Well, the glue's thick. The glue line, it says six weeks, but let's be honest, after five weeks, it starts to crack.

[Will Arnett]

You have to reapply.

[Sean Hayes]

Yeah, yeah, you're reapplying. But I have, like, a caulking gun. I can get under there sometimes and just. I can just do a touch up in the moment. You know what I mean? Like, if I'm windsurfing, get a good cock.

[Jason Bateman]

Get a good cock in there.

[Sean Hayes]

Yeah, but. Right. Right. As the. Right. As the. As our server came to the table, I just go. I look up the server. I go, one second. I go, oh, sorry. So to answer your question, it's Guess who's back. Back again, Shady's back, Tell a friend. As if Al Sutter had asked me the lyrics to that Eminem song. And then I go, sorry, yeah, we're read.

[Will Arnett]

Did the waiter have any idea?

[Sean Hayes]

No idea did.

[Will Arnett]

It would have been lost to me.

[Sean Hayes]

Waiters don't. First of all, they're not there. They're not there for entertainment. They're not psyched. They don't want to laugh at your stupid shit.

[Jason Bateman]

Haven't you ever been?

[Sean Hayes]

No, but, you know, like, a waiter goes like, hey, we're all out of the salmon. You go, all right, we're out of here. The waiter's like, hey, fucko, I've heard that a million times. I just want to take.

[Will Arnett]

You know. But I've said it a bunch before, so apologies, but I have always kind of. I love the idea of being a waiter just for the performative element of it, where you have different. Each table is a different stage and different audience, and you gotta figure out who they need you to be in order to get the biggest tip.

[Sean Hayes]

Well, let's hope.

[Will Arnett]

That would've been my game.

[Sean Hayes]

Let's hope this your new limited series hits. Cause if it doesn't, you might get a chance to try it out. You know what I mean?

[Jason Bateman]

Wait a minute. Speaking of.

[Sean Hayes]

Yeah.

[Will Arnett]

Black O'Shaughty did the nicest thing last night. He came over last night with Scotty and took a look at the first two episodes. Cause we're not locked yet. I need eyes on it. I need opinions.

[Jason Bateman]

And you're going to shut your mouth for one second because. Will, have you seen the two episodes? The first two episodes?

[Sean Hayes]

No. Well, no, I'm not there with you.

[Jason Bateman]

No. I just. I didn't know, like, if you could send it to him. It's so fucking great. It's so good.

[Will Arnett]

Of course you're going to say you.

[Sean Hayes]

Don'T need to go out.

[Jason Bateman]

I don't need to. Yeah. I'd be like, oh, it's really good. Anyway. Well, that's kind of. It's so good. And Jay, that character is unlike anything I've ever seen you play before. It's so surprising and exciting and so it's likable. Yeah. No, but. And it's going to be one of those series everybody talks about.

[Sean Hayes]

Of course it is.

[Jason Bateman]

You're completely sucked in right away. Who's that? Why is that guy? And you start asking your questions as an audience member, and you know they're going to get answered in the few episodes that follow. But it's so exciting when you didn't.

[Will Arnett]

Run after the first episode. I knew I was in good shape. Because you do like to be in bed. 5:30.

[Sean Hayes]

JB you must feel good. And you got to get a bunch of demographics. You got the moron demographic now. He's covered. They're in.

[Will Arnett]

I was really pressing him and Scott. I was like, you guys sure you understood everything?

[Jason Bateman]

He asked me that. After he asked me that. After you sure you understood everything.

[Sean Hayes]

I bet it's gonna. I bet it's gonna be great. I have no doubt. And, JB I'm gonna say this, too. While you're. While we're in this vein, I was thinking about the breadth of stuff that you've done. I was thinking about the last couple years. I was thinking about a movie that I love that doesn't get enough attention. Which air? Bud 2 no, no, no, no. Game Night.

[Will Arnett]

Game Night.

[Sean Hayes]

Game Night, I think, is so one.

[Jason Bateman]

Of the funniest movies ever.

[Sean Hayes]

So good. And then you do, like, Identity Thief. Then you do Ozark. You've done so many different things, and hats off to you. You don't get enough credit. You Do a lot of great shit. So congrats and I'm excited for Black Rabbit. And the reason I bring it up is because you've been working so fucking hard. I know how exhausted you are, but you've been fucking doing it. And it's very inspiring.

[Will Arnett]

Yeah, I really appreciate that, listener. I apologize for all of this.

[Jason Bateman]

No, no, this is.

[Will Arnett]

We're going to pay it back in space.

[Sean Hayes]

Having said that, I know I should.

[Will Arnett]

Go on a couple thoughts.

[Jason Bateman]

Keep your email open. Jay, I got some thoughts.

[Will Arnett]

I was sort of not to throw back the wind up the bum, but I was thinking for some reason this morning. Oh, I know why. Because our next guest is a fancy pants in the Tony world that. Sean, you wanna fucking tone?

[Jason Bateman]

Okay.

[Will Arnett]

No, no, no, but I mean, that's like. We did spend a little time on that, but it does keep coming back to me. That's not something they hand out, you know, it's a. Tony is a real deal.

[Jason Bateman]

Believe me. It's not lost on me.

[Will Arnett]

It's like that's a whole different community that I just. A very, very.

[Jason Bateman]

You both will do it. You both will do it and you'll both be nominated and you'll both win.

[Will Arnett]

Yeah, I doubt it, but no, it's pretty.

[Sean Hayes]

It is. It is pretty amazing. I was. And I was even about to do handout to Tony and Sean in handy from a Tony, but I didn't. I'm like, fuck it, I'm not going to do that because I respect you too much and I love you too much. And I'm not going to make a stupid joke and try to connect.

[Will Arnett]

It's easy.

[Sean Hayes]

It's too easy and it's too thin.

[Will Arnett]

You know, what else can we talk about while our listener or listener and guest?

[Jason Bateman]

I got a couple of things, but we should probably.

[Sean Hayes]

We should probably go off the list. Open up the list.

[Jason Bateman]

No, I was just going to say on the way home, I told Will, Will, you and I were driving home from a friend's house we visited in the hills a couple months ago.

[Sean Hayes]

Yeah.

[Jason Bateman]

And I told Will the story. But Jay, I haven't told you. So when you go past Greystone Mansion.

[Will Arnett]

Yeah.

[Jason Bateman]

And there's a runaway ramp there. Yeah, right.

[Will Arnett]

Yeah. For trucks.

[Sean Hayes]

You heard this?

[Will Arnett]

No. Oh, no.

[Jason Bateman]

So like several years ago, I was.

[Will Arnett]

Like, oh, let's try that.

[Jason Bateman]

Yes, I did.

[Will Arnett]

Come on.

[Jason Bateman]

I swear to God, I tried it because I was like, what would it feel like? Because I want to know what it felt like. Well, I didn't know it was. I thought it was just like an inch of gravel. It was just to stop a truck, but it's like 80ft of gravel, so when I.

[Will Arnett]

To stop a truck?

[Jason Bateman]

Yeah.

[Will Arnett]

It's supposed to completely absorb you. Like quicksand.

[Jason Bateman]

I drove up it and I God dammit, you're dead. I know. And I started singing. I was like, holy shit. I got so scared. I peel it out, I kicked some gravel up and I thank God I got out of there.

[Will Arnett]

You got out?

[Jason Bateman]

Yeah.

[Will Arnett]

Wait, what car were you in? Your Audi?

[Jason Bateman]

No, it was before that.

[Will Arnett]

Oh, my God. You're so lucky you weren't the dumbass next to it. Calling a tow truck like quicksand. Just, like, with your hands up. Like, had to try it. Sorry.

[Sean Hayes]

I know. I would have loved to have seen that. To open up the Daily Mail and see pictures of you next to the tow truck and just explaining to the cop. And then you have to pay because they had to come over.

[Will Arnett]

All right, here we come. Guest, Wake it up, listener. Pull the car over. Our next guest is one of my favorite people in the world, period.

[Jason Bateman]

Wow.

[Will Arnett]

There are some people that you meet, have a connection. You become friends. The connection grows, carries through many years, many stages of your life and theirs. These people become your family. There aren't many in our lives. So when you have one, you smile and bounce a little every moment you spend with them. And if you're lucky enough to work with one of these, you end up doing a lot of smiling. So between you guys and her, my cheeks are killing me. She's one of our finest actors, an accomplished producer, a rising director, an incredible mother, wife, and daughter. She's the recipient of three Academy Award nominations, five Tonys, nine Sags. Won one of those. A bafta, eight Golden Globes, won two of those. And seven Emmy nominations. Won four of those. She also has a doctorate from Brown and Juilliard. Guys, please welcome my fake wife, but true bestie, Laura Linney.

[Jason Bateman]

Oh, my God.

[Laura Linney]

Oh, my God.

[Will Arnett]

Laura. And a dead dog in the background.

[Laura Linney]

And the dog in the background. Hi, guys. Hi.

[Jason Bateman]

This is a long time coming.

[Sean Hayes]

Is it ever?

[Jason Bateman]

And you had to suffer through all that bullshit we were talking about.

[Will Arnett]

I know.

[Laura Linney]

And I thought I had to earn my place.

[Sean Hayes]

I thought that maybe you and Jason were in a fight. It's been so long. I thought, what happened?

[Will Arnett]

She's tough to schedule. You know, she's busy. And her deal. It was a tough deal.

[Sean Hayes]

Sure.

[Laura Linney]

Well, I am thrilled to be here. It is great to see all of you.

[Jason Bateman]

You too. I mean, when he was going through all noms like Nine. I mean, I know. Five Academy. I mean, it's unbelievable.

[Will Arnett]

People like her.

[Laura Linney]

It's bonkers.

[Jason Bateman]

It's unbelievable.

[Will Arnett]

She doesn't suck.

[Sean Hayes]

Laura, I'm going to say this. Would you ever think about getting a T shirt made that had listed all your nominations front and back that just says, ask me about the seven Academy Awards, the BAFTAs.

[Laura Linney]

The thing about it is that every once in a while, I mean, I don't know if you guys are like this, but I have to stop. And every once in a while it'll hit me and I'll have to remind myself. Cause you never feel like that's happened, right? I mean, you never, you know, And I've been nominated a lot, and I don't win all that much, but I'm nominated a lot. But every once in a while, I'll be walking down the street and it will hit me and I'll be like, oh, my God.

[Sean Hayes]

Yeah.

[Laura Linney]

Oh, my God. Like Sean. Like Tony winner, right? Tony winner. It's amazing. Congratulations. I know.

[Sean Hayes]

In a soft year, but Laurie, Laura, I think the thing that keeps us all sort of grounded is. And I'm looking at again, pointing out that your dog is asleep in the background of your shot. No matter what you do, how many nominations, no matter how accomplished somebody is, they're always likely in a room where there's a dog that's asleep and doesn't give a shit.

[Jason Bateman]

Yeah.

[Sean Hayes]

Do you know what I mean?

[Will Arnett]

Yeah.

[Laura Linney]

And the sock drawer is a mess. And there's stuff that hasn't been taken care of, and I'm behind on everything. And I have family members who are peeved at me because they haven't heard from me in so long. And so there's all of that stuff. Absolutely. But then there is the wild moment where you're like, oh. Oh, my God. I cannot believe my life has led me here. I cannot believe I've been able to do everything I've been able to do.

[Jason Bateman]

Yes. And the thing that you chose to do with your life actually paid off.

[Laura Linney]

Oh, my God. Come on.

[Will Arnett]

Crazy. What about what a great writer you are, too? I'll bet you've got some spin out. You've won plenty of things, but you've been nominated to shit done, too. So I'll bet there's some speeches now. Do you keep them in a drawer? Do you remember them?

[Sean Hayes]

Great question.

[Will Arnett]

Because I want to have, like a coffee table book once of all the unused speeches and whether it would be anonymous or not.

[Sean Hayes]

Great idea.

[Will Arnett]

Wouldn't that be great?

[Sean Hayes]

Yes.

[Laura Linney]

The thing That I found is that you sort of. You have a sense if you're in the running to win, and then there are times where, you know, like, I'm not winning. There's no way I'm going to win. So in some ways, that's the nicest because then you go and you get to have a good time and you're nominated, but, you know you're not going to win. So you don't have to worry about, I'm gonna forget nothing.

[Jason Bateman]

Prepared.

[Laura Linney]

Cause I know. And then there are the times when, you know, you're in the running for things and you do have to prepare. So I must admit, I do have a few.

[Sean Hayes]

Well, Laura, would it be interesting to go back and look at some of those unused acceptance speeches and go like, oh, I was gonna thank that person. I wouldn't. Not today.

[Will Arnett]

Not today.

[Sean Hayes]

Not today. I wouldn't.

[Will Arnett]

It's like going over your will. You're out of the will.

[Laura Linney]

The winds have changed.

[Will Arnett]

So all of which is, as I did say, you don't suck. You're great at what you do. And it started a long time ago. Tell us about, like, remember, like, the first thing you saw or were exposed to that made you think, oh, I think I'd like to see if I could maybe do that. Was it a show? Was it a movie? Was it a play?

[Laura Linney]

It was the original production of Vanities that was downtown at St. Clement's Theater.

[Will Arnett]

How old were you in the church?

[Laura Linney]

I was. Well, my father was a playwright, so I grew up around the theater, so I always knew I wanted to be a part of it in some way. I really didn't think I'd be an actress. I really. It took me a long time to sort of get there, but I went and saw this play and Kathy Bates was in it.

[Jason Bateman]

Oh, my.

[Laura Linney]

Yeah.

[Sean Hayes]

Wow.

[Laura Linney]

It's a three person play. You know, it's not the greatest work of, you know, dramatic literature ever written, but there was something about it and being in that space and watching those three women be so wonderful. And I remember leaving, I was like, oh, I'm. I'm different. Something has changed.

[Will Arnett]

Yeah.

[Laura Linney]

And it's the power of really good work, you know?

[Will Arnett]

Teenager.

[Laura Linney]

Oh, no, I was younger. Definitely younger.

[Will Arnett]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Laura Linney]

I think I was 11 or 12, probably.

[Will Arnett]

Wow.

[Jason Bateman]

Yeah.

[Will Arnett]

Wow, That's. That's really cool. All right. So then from there, do you say to your dad, hey, what do you think the best first steps might be for me to go in this direction or how did that start?

[Laura Linney]

No, what happened was my father was an apprentice at a theater in New London, New Hampshire, called the Barn Playhouse. The New London Barn Playhouse. And I used to spend the summers with my dad. My parents split when I was very young, so I would spend time with my dad during the summers. And I begged him to let me go work there. Begged him. So I went. And I was a technical apprentice, and I broke every child labor law known to man. I was there for 14. Oh, yeah. Making a mess and doing all sorts of stuff and being way too young to be doing what I was doing.

[Jason Bateman]

But it was sleeping drunk in the.

[Laura Linney]

Dressing room, like, seeing everybody hook up and break up.

[Will Arnett]

And you're refereeing a lot of hookups.

[Laura Linney]

Yeah, yeah, absolutely.

[Will Arnett]

But then what about the first time you got on stage and, like, risked, you know, look at me. Let's see if I got it.

[Laura Linney]

Yeah, it was a production of. It was a Christmas show at school.

[Will Arnett]

Wait, which school?

[Laura Linney]

How old I was. I was really young. It was middle school. And it was the same year that Ms. Magazine came out. So we did.

[Sean Hayes]

Oh, that was 1981.

[Laura Linney]

That's right. That's right. We did a feminist turn. We did a feminist turn on Santa Claus where Santa got a cold and Mrs. Claus had to take over. So it was that.

[Will Arnett]

Oh, nice.

[Jason Bateman]

I remember one of the first things I ever saw that made me go, wow. I was, like, 12 years old and I saw A Chorus Line, and I always thought how different my life would be if I'd only seen it sooner. Like at 5, 6, 7, 8.

[Laura Linney]

Anyway, go ahead.

[Sean Hayes]

6, 7, 8. Is that what. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Will Arnett]

So then. All right, now we get. We get. We. We. You start. You start going. You start building up some momentum, and then you end up. You end up at. Now, does. Does Brown really kind of formalize your. Your.

[Sean Hayes]

Your.

[Will Arnett]

Your leap into this. Into this world, or was it at Juilliard?

[Laura Linney]

I. Well, I think probably at Brown, I was more at sort of an academic theater nerd. So I studied theater history and all that sort of fun stuff. And then Juilliard was where it got serious. Yeah.

[Will Arnett]

And the first sort of job that exposed you to the world would be.

[Laura Linney]

I was the understudy in a production of Six Degrees of Separation, which was right across the street at Lincoln Center.

[Jason Bateman]

Oh, wow.

[Laura Linney]

And I was actually at that theater yesterday watching Holland Taylor in NA So it was fun. Every time I go in that. That space, it's, you know, it's professionally where I started, so.

[Will Arnett]

Wow.

[Jason Bateman]

That's.

[Laura Linney]

I was the happiest. I was the happiest understudy around There was this room of understudies who were like, hello. Yeah, Hi, kid. How you doing? They've been understudies for years. And I would bounce in, happy as can be, and I would sit in the catwalk and watch the show.

[Will Arnett]

That's up top. That's overlooking.

[Laura Linney]

Yeah, yeah. Where the lights are. And I would sneak up there and watch, just to watch Stalker Channing get better and better and better and better and better. And there was one night, I remember Katharine Hepburn came to see the show.

[Will Arnett]

Yeah.

[Laura Linney]

And I was in the catwalk watching Katharine Hepburn watch Stalker Channing.

[Jason Bateman]

Wow.

[Will Arnett]

And you're by yourself or are you with somebody else?

[Jason Bateman]

There's somebody in the catwalk. I think they haven't got it.

[Will Arnett]

Wait, Laura, I've never heard that before, that you're up by yourself in the catwalk at Lincoln center. At what, a teenager? Young.

[Laura Linney]

No, no, no. This was after Juilliard. So I was early mid-20s.

[Will Arnett]

Yeah. Oh, my God.

[Laura Linney]

And because I had done stock and was a technical apprentice, I knew how to get up into the catwalk.

[Jason Bateman]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Will Arnett]

And you got a little snack with you? A little.

[Laura Linney]

No, you just like enjoying. Yes, I.

[Jason Bateman]

In high school, I used to hang out up there and just. Yeah, it's no fun when there's no show. We would just go up there and.

[Laura Linney]

Oh, yeah.

[Will Arnett]

Except Sean did have a snack with him. Right.

[Jason Bateman]

What was his time? Probably. It was probably Swedish fish, but.

[Sean Hayes]

But, Laurie, like, it occurs to me that you're. You were so, like, you had no choice but to do this life that you chose, or it chose you a little bit because it was at such a young age and it was just. That was your life. You were around. You were in summer stock. You were the thing, your dad, you know, it was all around you. You wouldn't know.

[Laura Linney]

Thank God it worked out. And thank God I love it as much as I do. Yeah.

[Sean Hayes]

Do you still love it as much as you do?

[Will Arnett]

I love it more now or less?

[Laura Linney]

Oh, I think more because the longer I'm in it, like a new set of problems sort of unlock themselves. It's like I've earned the right to a new set of problems. And so it just keeps going.

[Jason Bateman]

And talk about the eight shows a week thing. You still enjoy that?

[Laura Linney]

Yeah, hi. I do. But how insane is that? No one has any idea what happened.

[Jason Bateman]

The most difficult job in the world.

[Laura Linney]

Unbelievable. And that type of fatigue is a very specific fatigue.

[Will Arnett]

Well, plus, in the one woman shows you've been doing too, like, that's massive.

[Laura Linney]

That was bonkers why didn't.

[Sean Hayes]

Nowhere to hide in a one woman show. Right?

[Laura Linney]

Yeah, I know. And I did it three times. You know, I did it once in London. This was a show called My Name is Lucy Barton. And then I did it again in London to see if it would get easier because my first run wasn't that long. I was like, well, if it comes to New York, will it get easier? And what I learned is, no, it does not get easy.

[Jason Bateman]

It does not get harder.

[Laura Linney]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Will Arnett]

So you get all this incredible training at Juilliard, and then you come out into, let's say, showbiz. What were the biggest challenges coming out of that and into this into a.

[Sean Hayes]

Professional situation, you mean?

[Laura Linney]

Yeah.

[Will Arnett]

That's less sort of theoretical, protected in sort of this, you know, theater world and technique and study and culture and entering more of sort of a business.

[Laura Linney]

Well, you have to learn how to translate what you've learned into an appropriate setting.

[Will Arnett]

You mean camera versus stage?

[Laura Linney]

Well, there's that, but then also just on stage, I mean, there's like going to school is very different than being in the profession and going to school. There's a certain type of concentration and there's a certain ability to get things done, and you have to learn how to translate that. So you're still doing what you're doing, but that it's appropriate for the situation that you're in. No one wants to hear about your process when they're working. Right. No one wants to hear about it. You got to zip it.

[Sean Hayes]

You have to deliver.

[Will Arnett]

Will loves that, actually.

[Laura Linney]

You gotta. I remember because I did it with him on Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. We just.

[Sean Hayes]

I know.

[Jason Bateman]

We sure did.

[Sean Hayes]

We did a lot of processing.

[Laura Linney]

We did a lot of processing there. You know, decisions, choice.

[Jason Bateman]

How would a turtle walk?

[Laura Linney]

That's right.

[Will Arnett]

I think that turtle's going too fast, realistically. But what about. What about. How about like going away from the. Sort of. Going into much more of a world of, now I gotta make a living doing this. And how do those two things reconcile?

[Laura Linney]

You know, you just sort of throw yourself in it and you just hope to God it's going to be okay.

[Will Arnett]

Right.

[Laura Linney]

You know, and you wait tables.

[Will Arnett]

Yeah.

[Laura Linney]

And you just sort of keep at it. And you realize that's what Jason wants to do. That's right.

[Will Arnett]

I wouldn't be bad. I don't think I'd be. Were you any good as a waiter.

[Laura Linney]

You wouldn't be good at it because you'd have to touch things. You'd have to touch other people's food and that would not go terribly well for you.

[Sean Hayes]

I don't trust people who know you. You'd be awful at it.

[Will Arnett]

I could deliver the food. I don't think I could clean up afterwards. You know like when they take the utensils and they gather them in the mid the plate instead.

[Laura Linney]

No, you'd have to touch them. You'd have to do that.

[Will Arnett]

I'd be so gloved up.

[Laura Linney]

I don't think so.

[Jason Bateman]

We'll be right back. There's a lot to say when buying a new home or car, but only one thing to say that can help you protect them. Like a good neighbor, State Farm is there. And just like that, a State Farm agent will be there to help you choose the coverage you need. No matter where you are in life, when you need coverage options, your State Farm agent is there to help. Help on the phone or in person. Like a good neighbor, State Farm is there. Our show is sponsored by BetterHelp. Ever hear people say that something is like therapy for them? Playing tennis is therapy for me. Listening to music is my therapy. Cooking is like therapy. Well, you know what's therapy for me? You guessed it. Therapy. Because when it comes to sorting out issues, figuring stuff out and just making you feel better about yourself, you can't beat the real thing. BetterHelp Online therapy is the easiest way for you to try out therapy for yourself. BetterHelp is convenient, flexible and built around your schedule. Start by filling out a simple questionnaire to be matched with a licensed therapist who fits your needs and preferences. Connect with them via phone, video, text or chat. Whatever works for you at a time and place that works for you. It's surprisingly affordable too. So if you ever struggle with depression, relationship problems, social anxiety or family conflicts, give BetterHelp a try. It's not a substitute for therapy. It is therapy. I talk about it all the time. I've benefited from therapy myself. As you all know. I've been in New York for almost three months now. Three months is a long time to be away from home and Ricky and all my familiar surroundings and stuff like that. So I talked about it in therapy last week. Not that earth shattering end of the world, but it just helped to talk it through and that's what therapy does for me. You can visit betterhelp.com smartless today to get 10% off your first month. That's BetterHelp. H E L p.com smartlash Empowering young people across the nation through mentorship is crucial. That's why Macy's has partnered with Big Brothers Big sisters whose aim is to help children in under resourced families thrive by providing transformational one to one relationships with caring adult mentors. Join the effort by rounding up your purchase in store and donating online to this incredible cause. November 1st through December 24th, shop@macy's.com.

[Will Arnett]

All right, back to the show.

[Jason Bateman]

I have to ask you, Laura, I was going to wait till the end, but I'm going to ask you now.

[Sean Hayes]

Any great theater stories?

[Jason Bateman]

Yes. Not just.

[Laura Linney]

Well, not just that.

[Jason Bateman]

Like something you must have, like a classic. Something that went. Went horribly wrong.

[Laura Linney]

Oh, Lord. You can come back to it.

[Jason Bateman]

Yeah, we can come back to it.

[Will Arnett]

Because he. He doesn't. He wants a good one.

[Jason Bateman]

I love them. They're the funniest stories.

[Laura Linney]

They are the funniest stories because so much funny shows.

[Sean Hayes]

Did somebody have a heart attack while they were doing a show once?

[Jason Bateman]

Yeah. Who was that?

[Sean Hayes]

One of our guests. Who was that?

[Will Arnett]

No, they didn't.

[Sean Hayes]

No, they did it. But somebody in the audience did.

[Will Arnett]

Yeah.

[Laura Linney]

Yeah. It's usually the good stories usually happen when you're in a show that's really bad.

[Jason Bateman]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Laura Linney]

I mean, really bad. Of which I've been in several. And it's so painful. And you really think you're gonna rip the skin off your body just to get out of the embarrassment and the humiliation of it.

[Jason Bateman]

Yeah.

[Sean Hayes]

What about, Laura? What about. Is there any show that you did that you. And by show, I mean, you know, any kind of a stage show that you did where. And not to make anybody feel bad, but that you thought this is gonna be the thing and it just didn't click with audiences?

[Laura Linney]

No. You sort of know. You kind of know if it's really bad. You kind of know. It's the ones where you think like, oh, this is right on the edge. I don't know. I don't think this is terrible. I think it's pretty good. I don't know how good it is. You never know how good it is, but you know how bad it is. That's something you can't run away from.

[Sean Hayes]

That makes sense. Then, conversely, was there ever. What was the thing that you people will like this, but you were surprised at how well it resonated with people, I think.

[Laura Linney]

Well, I did a production of the Crucible a long time ago with Liam Neeson that Arthur Miller was actually involved in. And before I accepted the job, I was offered Goody Proctor. And I thought, oh, for fuck's sake, who wants to do the Crucible? Oh, God, ye buckle shoes and ye oldies Speak. Oh, forget God's sake. And I called my dad and I was like, I've been offered Goody Proctor. And I don't know. I don't know if I'm. And he was like, oh, no. He was like, you do that. You must do that. He's like, it is a great play. And it's only because we've all seen nine hour high school productions of that play that it's sort of, you know, it's badly represented. Not that it shouldn't be done there. It should. But, you know, you don't realize how great that play is. And I had no idea what a masterpiece that thing was. A masterpiece.

[Will Arnett]

And then you had incredible audiences for that, I'm sure. And that sort of. Was that a bit of rocket fuel in your career as far as things that followed that? I mean, can you identify a particular job or moment where it felt different to you? Like, oh, the next few years might be a little bit easier than the last few.

[Laura Linney]

No, I've never been someone who feels a big boost from any one job. I really haven't.

[Sean Hayes]

Wow.

[Laura Linney]

I think it's been very subtle and consistent and I'll take that, thank you very much. I mean, that's fine by me.

[Will Arnett]

Just for me, just as an audience member, I would say you hit my radar significantly three separate times early on with Mystic River Squid and the Whale. And you can Count on Me. Those were big, big moves for me. Just as a, just as a fan.

[Laura Linney]

It'S funny because different people have different things. You know, some people, there's the love actually crowd, there's the indie movie crowd. There's the Clint Eastwood crowd. There's, you know, there's the theater people. So it's sort of, it's always interesting. The John Adams people.

[Will Arnett]

Yeah.

[Jason Bateman]

I mean, you conquered it all.

[Sean Hayes]

I know.

[Laura Linney]

Well, hardly, but.

[Sean Hayes]

No, but when you hear those credits, you go like, holy shit.

[Will Arnett]

Yeah, right.

[Sean Hayes]

And they're so varied. I mean, we were talking about with JB a little bit before and actually Sean too, if you think about, you did sitcom, you've done, you've won a Tony. I mean, these are.

[Laura Linney]

Oh, I have not won a Tony. Oh, no, but I mean, Sean won the Tony.

[Sean Hayes]

Sean did. No, no, without question. He won a Tony.

[Jason Bateman]

Oh, we should all have one.

[Sean Hayes]

Yeah, yeah. In what was a, you know, a very quiet, quiet year. But do you. But you did so many things that were like, that worked on so many different levels. I mean, you think about Ozark or your Can Count on Me, which I love. I mean, we Love, Kenny Lonergan.

[Jason Bateman]

Yeah. Was that your first nom. Was that your first Oscar nom. Encounter? Me?

[Laura Linney]

Yes, it was.

[Jason Bateman]

I remember that. I remember sitting at home. I was so blown away, of course, everything before that. But that movie really had an impact on me. And you especially. I was just. That's when I first was like, oh, my God, I gotta find out more about this person.

[Laura Linney]

And I just thought, you know, there was. They did a 25 year, like, fundraiser thing and I. And I had. I don't like to watch myself. So as Jason knows.

[Will Arnett]

I know. I just don't get it. Why would you treat yourself to it?

[Laura Linney]

Oh, please. So I went and saw the. I went and watched it for the first time in 25 years and I think I maybe only seen it once and it was so wild. And Jason, I don't know if you feel this way when you look at stuff from a long time ago, but I saw things in myself. Well, I saw things in myself that don't exist anymore.

[Will Arnett]

Yeah.

[Laura Linney]

There are parts of me that are just from another time that because of age or where I was or the relationship I was in, or parents and dynamics and.

[Jason Bateman]

Yeah.

[Laura Linney]

And all of that's gone. And then I could also see the things that I recognize, you know, that is still there. So it was a wild thing to.

[Jason Bateman]

Yeah, they're time capsules, kind of.

[Laura Linney]

Yeah, they're moment in your life.

[Will Arnett]

We had Ruffalo on and he taught. He talked really lovingly about sort of how he got the role on youn Can Count On Me and his collaboration with Kenneth lonergren. Does it all still sit fondly for you? Was that as great as experience as it seemed like it was?

[Laura Linney]

It was a very tough shoot. You know, they had like 2 cents. So we were sitting outside and then we had to clean out. Finally I was like, guys, we need a place to sit. Like, I can't sit outside. I can't change outside. Like, I need a place. And so behind the house where we were filming, there was a chicken coop that literally the chickens had left like two days prior. I mean, it was like, you know, chicken shit was like hanging in the cobwebs. And I was like, perfect. So I went and we cleaned it up and we all sat in the chicken coop.

[Jason Bateman]

Oh, that's great.

[Laura Linney]

You know, so it was very rough and tumble, but, you know, it bonded us all for life. I mean, Mark is literally like my brother and Kenny and I are still close and all of us are sort of bonded. And that's the thing about what we get to do. The connections that you make. Jason Bateman are deep and meaningful and very, very significant in your life.

[Jason Bateman]

That's what it's about.

[Laura Linney]

Yeah. And you do develop chosen family along the way. And it's really. It's one of the greatest things.

[Will Arnett]

You do end up spending more time with people on set than you do your family at. When you're working on something, it's 12 hours. Yeah. You know what else I'd love is Truman Show. Let's not forget about Truman Show.

[Sean Hayes]

I know. Truman Show. You see, There you go.

[Will Arnett]

It just keeps going.

[Sean Hayes]

I know it goes. It's on and on, but I like to see the idea, Laura, that you brought up about this about, like, it being sort of a different life and a different parts of you that kind of go away. I was talking about this recently with somebody, and it's an interesting thing as you get older, when you start to recognize that.

[Laura Linney]

Oh, yeah. When you literally have a history. Like, you have a history. You have different periods of your life that you've been through. Not just one, not two, but many. And it is wild to think.

[Jason Bateman]

Yes. You know, last night, Scotty and I went down a YouTube rabbit hole of opening songs to old shows from the 70s and 80s and 90s.

[Laura Linney]

God, how fabulous.

[Jason Bateman]

We did Silver Spoons. We looked at the. Yeah. All those Dukes of Hazzard, like, Facts of Life, Dallas.

[Will Arnett]

God, I want your life. I'd really love to come back as you, Sean. I mean, this is how we film nights. We go over.

[Jason Bateman]

But I was watching these openings of these shows, and it took me right back to being a kid like you. Something clicks in your brain, whether you. Yeah.

[Laura Linney]

Barnaby Jones.

[Jason Bateman]

Yes. All those. And I didn't, like the second I saw them. I actually had the feeling of a moment, like you said, of a stage in my life which you don't sit around and think about until something triggers it.

[Laura Linney]

No.

[Jason Bateman]

You know.

[Will Arnett]

All right, so now you've got, you know. Will you tell these ding dongs about this great, super romantic story of you and Mark meeting each other in one of the most magical places in the world? Oh, yeah. And I just. She's got two incredible dudes in her life, her son and her husband. All right, you go ahead. So there you are.

[Laura Linney]

Okay. So here I have been, very, very single for five years or so, and I'm invited to the Telluride Film Festival, where there are two films screening there. And I think, oh, you know what? I've never taken my mother anywhere. I should take my mother to this. This Will be good. I'm just going to fly in, fly out. Terrific. So I bring my mother the greatest. We go and, you know, sometimes you're paired with, you know, a liaison who's a little, you know, eccentric. Sometimes those people can be a little, you know, out there.

[Sean Hayes]

Sure.

[Laura Linney]

And Mark sort of bounded up to us and said, hi, I'm Mark Schauer. I'll be taking care of you for the weekend. And I was like, oh, okay. Like a nice. A nice person. Okay. And we spent the weekend together. And I can remember we were waiting to go to a screening, and we were waiting for Bill Cond and my director to come downstairs and join us so that we could leave. And I remember I turned my head and I looked at Mark, and I was like, am I attracted to this person? Am I attracted to my handler at the Telluride Film Festival? I was like. I was like, calm down. Like, how wonderful I was feeling. Anything at all.

[Jason Bateman]

He's got the title of handler.

[Laura Linney]

That's right. That's right. Yeah. And I thought, I'm gonna be gone in 24 hours. Just be happy you're still alive and get out. Get out. And, you know, my mother was with me, so there wasn't a whole lot.

[Will Arnett]

Now, were you collaborating with her on this? Did you ask her what her take was?

[Laura Linney]

Oh, no, no, no, no. My mother, on the way to the airport, she was, well, Mark, are you involved with anyone? At which point I wanted to fall into the center of the earth.

[Sean Hayes]

No way.

[Laura Linney]

Center of the earth. And he was like, no, actually, I've been single for a bit. She goes, oh, how interesting.

[Will Arnett]

So we.

[Laura Linney]

I left, and we ended up. Mark and I ended up just emailing each other. I just. Thank you. And I had a great time. And we emails sort of started to fly. And then he started to get a little nervous. He was like, I don't understand what's going on? And I immediately called. I said, look, I don't know what this is. I have no idea what this is. I don't know if we're friends. I don't know if it's more. The only thing I know is I don't want to let it go. So I don't know what to tell you. You. And he goes, well, when can we spend some time together? And I said, well, I said, I'm on a tour, a press tour, when they used to do that. And he goes, well, where are you going to be? I said, I was going to be in Seattle. I'm going to be in Chicago. He's like, I'm from Chicago. When are you in Chicago?

[Will Arnett]

Oh, boy.

[Laura Linney]

And I was. Well, this date. He goes, I'll meet you in Chicago. At which point I got very nervous, very scared, and tried to get out of it several times, of course. And I can remember going down the elevator in Chicago to meet him in the lobby. Just terrified. Like, what am I doing? What in the world am I doing?

[Sean Hayes]

I'm on a date.

[Laura Linney]

Jesus. God. Someone. I don't. What is happening?

[Will Arnett]

So at this point, you hadn't been on a date in quite some time?

[Laura Linney]

Yeah. No, no.

[Jason Bateman]

So when you say you're scared, is that what you mean? You're, like, scared? Like, I don't know how to do the date.

[Laura Linney]

I just. I didn't know if you. I didn't know this guy. Is he a serial killer? Like, what am I doing?

[Will Arnett]

Right.

[Sean Hayes]

Yeah, Yeah.

[Laura Linney]

I don't know anything about this guy.

[Will Arnett]

She's flown across the country to cross, or is it flattering?

[Laura Linney]

What is.

[Sean Hayes]

And where did. Did he live in Telluride at that time?

[Laura Linney]

Yes, he drove. He had to. He drove a friend's car, which he had to drop off. Anyway, he was doing a favor for a friend, and he just made it work.

[Sean Hayes]

So full of bodies. How do you get rid of bodies? You put them in a car and.

[Laura Linney]

You put them in a swap.

[Sean Hayes]

Sure, I know how to get rid of a body.

[Laura Linney]

And I got out of the elevator and I turned and I saw him there, and, like, every fear evaporated.

[Jason Bateman]

Oh.

[Laura Linney]

And I was like, oh, this is going to be fine. Yeah, this is going to be okay. And that.

[Will Arnett]

That wasn't amazing how you read that in people's faces.

[Laura Linney]

Yeah, it was really. Yeah. Like, there's just a chemical vibe there.

[Will Arnett]

Yeah.

[Laura Linney]

Yeah. Like, you just. You're like, oh. Oh, okay.

[Will Arnett]

This was how many years ago?

[Laura Linney]

Oh, my God. 18, 22,004. So almost 20 years ago. Yeah.

[Will Arnett]

Oh, wow. Yeah, Ben. And how old is Bennett now? He's your son?

[Laura Linney]

He's 10.

[Will Arnett]

Oh, my God.

[Jason Bateman]

Isn't that wild?

[Laura Linney]

I know. So everybody go to film festivals. That's all I have.

[Will Arnett]

Telluride is a magic place.

[Laura Linney]

It is. Just go, go, go, go.

[Sean Hayes]

That's a great. You know what? That's a really nice story.

[Will Arnett]

Yeah. You didn't have to do any swiping. Nothing like that. Although I hear swiping is very. Is very nice nowadays. I hear it's. I hear it's easy. Imagine now Bennett showing any interest in. In. In doing what you do?

[Laura Linney]

No, absolutely not. And refuses to Watch I've ever done.

[Will Arnett]

I mean, I made my kid's the.

[Laura Linney]

Same way I made Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles specifically for him, because anything else would emotionally damage him and scar his life.

[Jason Bateman]

Did he see it?

[Laura Linney]

No. Won't see it. Refuses.

[Sean Hayes]

Won't see it.

[Jason Bateman]

What?

[Laura Linney]

Refuses?

[Will Arnett]

Does he explain what his problem is? Cause my kids do. They're just like. It's just weird. You know, I think it's weird. And they don't like when something bad happens to me. Like, they can't deal with, like, any sort of pain or even any sort of, like, challenge, like running from someone or something like that.

[Jason Bateman]

A black Rabbit with you?

[Will Arnett]

Yeah. I'm not gonna like that.

[Laura Linney]

Oh, and I agree with you, Sean. I've seen the pilot.

[Jason Bateman]

Amazing.

[Laura Linney]

And I knew it was gonna be. No, listen, I knew it was gonna be good, but I was floored by how great it was. And the thing is.

[Sean Hayes]

Phoebe, tell us why.

[Will Arnett]

Well, Laura, Laura, hold on, hold on, hold on. No, no, no. I'm not.

[Laura Linney]

I'm not done. The thing that is amazing, when you have a relationship with someone who you've worked with for a long period of time and you watch them grow and to see Jason turn into this unbelievable director. I know, I mean, always great, but this is a whole other level. And I've said this to him. I mean, it is. It was absolutely. I was undone when I saw it.

[Jason Bateman]

Yeah. He was so proud of it.

[Sean Hayes]

I agree. And I agree. And I want to say this, too, I agree with you, and we mentioned it before. I don't want to embarrass you, jb but it's also very confusing to watch somebody, your friend, somebody you love, grow while simultaneously, they are shrinking.

[Will Arnett]

Yes, that has been total atrophy. Yeah.

[Sean Hayes]

Yes, that.

[Will Arnett]

Well, I'm playing a drug.

[Jason Bateman]

I saw JB at the pool at his house two days ago. I came over two days in a row.

[Sean Hayes]

How'd you see him?

[Jason Bateman]

And he was at the light.

[Sean Hayes]

Must have been hitting him directly.

[Will Arnett]

Now, speaking of directing, Laura Kane came in heroically and agreed to direct episode three and episode four of Black Rabbit. She just finished. I did Laura. And she crushed this so hard. She was.

[Laura Linney]

We haven't seen it yet. We don't.

[Will Arnett]

No, no. I was there for every single day. And I've seen the dailies, I've seen the stills, et cetera, et cetera. But, you know, I knew she was going to be an incredible leader on set as far as just, like, this culture of friendliness and kindness and support and all that stuff. Like the crew. Jesus, Just freaking loved her. As did the cast, I'm sure. But her comfort with this added responsibility, like, as actors, not to belittle acting at all, but actors simply are kind of insulated from, you know, like, almost three quarters of the process because things need to be decided on and set up and assets need to be put into motion and et cetera. Then the actors come in and do their magical thing. She took on all of that, had only done it once before on Ozark. Directed one of our best episodes ever. And her place is about three blocks from our studio. And I said, hey, it's real close. It's not terrible stuff. There's a good crew, there's a good cast. We would love to have you. We please consider it. And it would have been so easy for her to say no. So much free time.

[Jason Bateman]

Let me ask you this. And you don't have to pat yourself on the back, but isn't it a gift to have been an actor and then a director?

[Laura Linney]

Without a doubt. And also, like. But I really. I can't emphasize enough how I would never have done this unless Jason really pushed me to do it, ever. I had no desire to do it. None. Why I would a. I didn't want to be one of those, like, you know, idiot directors who you're saddled with, who didn't know what they were doing. I didn't want to be one of those people.

[Sean Hayes]

You're looking at JB Why are you looking at them?

[Will Arnett]

Yeah, she's staring right at me.

[Laura Linney]

And then. And also, I didn't want to jeopardize my relationship with Jason.

[Sean Hayes]

Yeah.

[Laura Linney]

I mean, that's another thing.

[Will Arnett]

Yeah, but that horse left the barn on Ozark. He did such an incredible job on that episode.

[Laura Linney]

I know, but still, you know, I don't think of myself as a director at all. I think of myself as an actress who's directed a few things now. But, you know, I don't know, as I've said to Jason, like, I don't know how to thank him for that. How do you thank someone for giving you a whole other sort of.

[Will Arnett]

You do it all the time. But what about now? Do you see? I'm going to get you to talk to you casually about now. I'm going to get you on record. What part of your life going forward do you see directing being in? Like, what's our ratio going forward? I mean, as you. You talked a little bit earlier about how the roles. You kind of implied this. So the roles get better and better the older we get. Because they're more complicated, they're more nuanced. You're drawing on more from yourself. So acting, I'm sure, won't slow down, but there is time to do the directing as well. Did you, did you get enough of a challenge and satisfaction from it to make it a bigger part of your life?

[Laura Linney]

You know, I think I will go with it the way I have gone with the other stuff, which is if it comes my way or if there's something I find or if there's something I want to do, then I'll do it.

[Will Arnett]

But will you tell your people to look?

[Laura Linney]

I think they will look okay.

[Will Arnett]

I think they're looking good.

[Sean Hayes]

What has it done for you as an actor? How has directing this much now changed? Has it changed? Not a lot, but. Yeah, but no. But do you think it's going to change the way that you approach, that you approach the work now that you approach material? Not to get into process, but just like when you, when you're reading material, do you look at it through a different set of eyes? A little bit.

[Laura Linney]

I, you know, I'll have to see because the Ozark, which I did, was such a blip and sort of, I was, my head was spinning the whole time and, you know, I just didn't know what had happened. And then this one was so intense in the best way and so all consuming, literally. We finished on Thursday. I just got out of bed this morning. Yeah, I mean, it took me like three days to, you know, really the fatigue. It's a whole other level of fatigue.

[Will Arnett]

Look how wiped out her dog still is.

[Laura Linney]

Exactly. You know, so, you know, so I'll be really curious to see what it does. Hopefully it will make me a better actress. I mean, that's the, that's the hope.

[Will Arnett]

Did it take more out of you than doing a one woman show? Eight shows a week?

[Sean Hayes]

Absolutely.

[Laura Linney]

Are you kidding? Absolutely. I didn't have to deal with any people. I didn't have to deal with anybody. It was just me. I only had to deal with my own horrible stuff. But I didn't have to deal with.

[Will Arnett]

200 people and 4,000 questions.

[Jason Bateman]

Yeah, you don't have to reveal any names, any things. What's the thing that you find difficult in any working relationship? Something that gets you that you won't, first of all, that you won't stand for, or second, that really kind of rubs you the wrong way and you look out for. To avoid?

[Laura Linney]

Yeah, I think it's always hard when people have a preconceived notion of what something is supposed to be. And then you come and you see something very different or you see something way beyond that. And that is always a painful negotiation for everybody. And I understand from the other point of view, like why that would be hard. I totally, totally get it. And we were very lucky on this one one, you know, how amazing all these writers were and all of that stuff. But I've seen that from the acting standpoint as well. I've really seen it more as an actress. Like people don't see what I can just see things very clearly sometimes. And it's I turn to these people and go, but you wrote this. I'm just doing what you wrote. Like whether you are aware of it or not, you wrote this.

[Jason Bateman]

Right, right, right.

[Will Arnett]

We'll be right back.

[Jason Bateman]

You're probably good at a lot of things like watching tv. And finally, that greatness is being recognized and rewarded by Sling Introducing Rewards from Sling With Slings Watch and Win Sweepstakes, all you have to do is watch 30 minutes of TV daily for chances to win up to $10,000 in cash and other prizes monthly. There's no cat. Sling is seriously giving away chances for you to get paid by your TV provider just for watching the TV they provide. You can earn rewards by signing up for Sling or for a free account with Sling Free Stream, which gives you 500 plus channels of always free TV and movies. Slings cloud DVR lets you record your shows to watch on your schedule. There's no complex technology, no long term contracts, and no hidden rigmarole. Watch TV anywhere at any time and get rewarded with Sling. Sign up for free [e-mail] winner that's sling.com win watch TV every day and improve your chances of winning $10,000 in cash and other prizes monthly. Sling.com win while Hilton is always expected to have top notch service, you'd be surprised at the unexpected places they're offering it now. They've partnered with Auto Camp, which offers insanely cool airstreams and iconic outdoor destinations. Hilton also has an exclusive partnership with Small Luxury hotels of the world world, providing Hilton Honors members access to over 300 luxury boutique hotels across the globe. And they've added romantic and refined nomad hotels and graduate hotels in your favorite college towns to their portfolio. Explore all the new ways to stay with those Hilton Honors points you've been [e-mail] Hilton for the stay, the new Sonic Queso Smasher is now available and you're going to want to try this. They took the Sonic Smasher you love and added the New creamy queso in hand. Smashed patties made to order. The Sonic Queso Smasher is the perfect combination of Angus patties, creamy queso jalapenos and a Southwest aioli. Sounds like juicy goodness to me. All that's left to do is choose a double or triple the new Sonic Queso Smasher. Live free.

[Laura Linney]

Eat Sonic.

[Jason Bateman]

And now back to the show.

[Sean Hayes]

Now, you've been Jason's on screen wife for many years. You were.

[Laura Linney]

Yes. Lucky me.

[Sean Hayes]

Lucky you.

[Laura Linney]

Yeah.

[Sean Hayes]

What is it? What's something about Jason Bateman that people.

[Will Arnett]

Might not know that you'd like to divorce him about?

[Sean Hayes]

Yeah.

[Will Arnett]

If we were gonna have a divorce, what would it be?

[Sean Hayes]

What is something that Jason, Doug does that's kind of unique that you've noticed about him? Like a quirk.

[Laura Linney]

Here's one thing I think why our friendship is so, you know, fulfilling for me at least, and why working is so good, is that we work completely differently.

[Sean Hayes]

Sure.

[Laura Linney]

I mean, we come from totally different cultures. Completely different. And I love watching him work. It's just kind of amazing. And it can only. That sort of work can only happen. And now I believe as well, the directing is benefiting from this as well, from someone who's been doing it as long as Jason's been doing it. I mean, it's in his bones in a way that it will never be with most people. He's just, you know, had the time with it and, well, he's only got.

[Sean Hayes]

Bones left now, you know, it's true.

[Laura Linney]

He needs several cheeseburgers.

[Jason Bateman]

I know.

[Laura Linney]

No, it's really.

[Will Arnett]

But this is probably what would lead to our divorce. It's too much work. It's a workaholic. It's Amanda and I talk about it all the time, although she doesn't tell me not to. But she's just like. She was asking me this morning, too. We were talking about this other thing. She's like, well, is that if you were to direct that, Is that all consuming? I was like, yeah, it always is.

[Jason Bateman]

It's always, you know.

[Will Arnett]

I know, but that's. That's why. That's why we love it.

[Sean Hayes]

Could we get Amanda on here at some point too, do you think?

[Will Arnett]

Let's talk about a deal.

[Sean Hayes]

And now we're working our way into reality, towards your real wife, into having Amanda on me. Amazing.

[Laura Linney]

I'm the stand in.

[Will Arnett]

We'll go around the circle. Next one will be either your current partner Will. Or an ex or something like that. Sean, you as well. We'll all take turns. It'll just be sort of just like a rotating bloodbath, you know?

[Sean Hayes]

Yeah.

[Laura Linney]

Well, you sort of test the waters with me. I'm sort of.

[Sean Hayes]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Laura Linney]

You know, as close as you'll get.

[Jason Bateman]

At this point, Laura, what do you do to zone out after you've been working 14 hours and you're done directing? Something like that or a big play or something.

[Laura Linney]

I go to bed.

[Jason Bateman]

Yeah.

[Laura Linney]

You know, I mean, honestly, there's not a whole lot that happens.

[Sean Hayes]

I mean, what are you gonna do this week? You're not. You finished directing that show last week, and now, like, this week is your recuperate. Are you going to yoga? Are you going to Pilates? Are you going to the gym?

[Laura Linney]

No, no. I'm staring at a wall.

[Sean Hayes]

You're staring at the wall?

[Laura Linney]

I'm going to stare at a wall.

[Sean Hayes]

Yeah.

[Laura Linney]

I'm going to be really quiet. Really quiet.

[Will Arnett]

Right. Your quiet activity is reading? Watching bad reality tv Occasionally.

[Laura Linney]

Yes. Guilty.

[Sean Hayes]

You're reading anything good? Right. What are you reading right now? Anything good? Good.

[Laura Linney]

I just picked up. Oh, God. What's it called? I won't leave you. Do not leave me. I forgot. Right, right, right. But I was reading, you know, vigorously until. Until Black Rabbit happened.

[Sean Hayes]

Yeah, yeah.

[Laura Linney]

And then it all. It all fell apart.

[Will Arnett]

And then. You're gonna start editing next week, right?

[Laura Linney]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. But tomorrow. Tomorrow. And tomorrow is. Is one of the things I read last year, which I just still am floored by.

[Jason Bateman]

Really?

[Laura Linney]

If Tomorrow, Tomorrow and tomorrow.

[Will Arnett]

It's wonderful fiction.

[Laura Linney]

Wonderful fiction. Yeah.

[Will Arnett]

Huh?

[Laura Linney]

Spectacular. Yeah.

[Jason Bateman]

Is it a thriller?

[Laura Linney]

No, it's about three friends who make video games. It's a world I know nothing about, don't care about. And, boy, this book is glorious. It's so beautiful. It's beautiful.

[Will Arnett]

Are the options available?

[Laura Linney]

I think they're already. I'm sure they're already taken. Also, the librarian is really good.

[Jason Bateman]

I've heard.

[Laura Linney]

Patrick DeWitt.

[Jason Bateman]

Yes, I heard that.

[Laura Linney]

Very, very good. Yeah. So you can join my book club. I'll send you some recommendations.

[Sean Hayes]

I've just been reading this. I'm reading this biography. It's 20 years old. On de Kooning right now. That is just absolutely fascinating. On Bill de Cooney.

[Jason Bateman]

What's that?

[Sean Hayes]

Willem? On the painter Willem de Kooning.

[Laura Linney]

There's a Sylvia Plath biography that everybody loves.

[Sean Hayes]

I'm gonna write that down, too.

[Will Arnett]

Laura, what about if. Would you. If you weren't an actor or director, what do you think you would do? You had to do not. Not where you would have possibly hit the. Hit a left fork instead of a Right. Fork. Early on. But, like, today, if you had to pick a different career, what do you think you're best suited for right now? Like, would you. Would you write books? Would you. Would you teach at Juilliard?

[Laura Linney]

I think medicine.

[Will Arnett]

Medicine.

[Jason Bateman]

Medicine, Yeah.

[Laura Linney]

I think medicine.

[Jason Bateman]

Really? I love medicine.

[Sean Hayes]

Like a doctor or something? Yeah.

[Laura Linney]

Yeah, I think so.

[Jason Bateman]

Yeah. Do you love medical stuff? And, like, I can't get enough of it.

[Laura Linney]

Yeah, no, I do.

[Sean Hayes]

I like.

[Jason Bateman]

I like to know people's issues, how they got it. What.

[Laura Linney]

And I weirdly know things like, how do I know what a pericardium is? Why do I know that?

[Jason Bateman]

You know?

[Sean Hayes]

But I could. I could see you working with people in maybe medicine and maybe teaching, maybe doing something. You have such a. And I'm gonna say that you have such a kind smile.

[Will Arnett]

Yeah.

[Sean Hayes]

And you really do. That's true.

[Will Arnett]

You know, all the way through Ozark, every weekend almost, she would be flying off to give some sort. Because of her show, the Big C, which was centered around cancer. Yes. She would give these speeches to. Correct me, Laura. Patients, doctors, medical institutions, recovery homes, et cetera. She'd just deliver these speeches about the will to live and the joy of life or how to deal with grief, et cetera. You'd write these things and you'd fly across the country with your weekends off to talk to these people and buoy them. I just.

[Jason Bateman]

I didn't. I love that.

[Laura Linney]

And I sort of use it also as a way for arts advocacy, you know, which is just to talk about the arts as much as I can, anywhere I can.

[Jason Bateman]

Yeah.

[Laura Linney]

As long as I can. Because it's.

[Jason Bateman]

It's.

[Laura Linney]

It's so important.

[Will Arnett]

Like, Sean. She's not sitting at home making sloppy Joes and figuring out, you know, what.

[Jason Bateman]

Who loses.

[Sean Hayes]

Sean and Scotty sit around, talk about farts, advocacy. Am I right? These two.

[Will Arnett]

But I just think it's like, you're gonna cut lines upstairs after you're done with all this angel work. I don't know. Where does it come from? Mom, Dad?

[Laura Linney]

I don't know. I think I like people. And I think I. You know, And I love the arts. I love the arts. I think. I think, like, more than just like, a selfish thing. I think it's unbelievably important for cultural culture and society.

[Sean Hayes]

I couldn't agree more. I couldn't. It is so undervalued.

[Laura Linney]

It's unbelievably medicinal. You cannot. There is no wasted time when you're engaged with the arts. It will make everything better. I mean, it's Just at a time.

[Will Arnett]

When the brain is growing too. So, like, with. With you, like with the work that you do at Juilliard, too. And kids are. I mean, they're not. They're not. They're not toddlers anymore. They're young adults.

[Laura Linney]

Yes.

[Will Arnett]

But I imagine that work for you is super fulfilling. What is. Remind me what your role is currently there at Juilliard. What did you do? Tell Tracy in Wisconsin what you're doing there? Juilliard. And what Juilliard is for Tracy.

[Laura Linney]

Juilliard is a arts conservatory school, which is sort of one of the leading schools in the country that teaches music, opera, dance and drama.

[Will Arnett]

There are four departments at Lincoln center.

[Laura Linney]

Right across the street from Lincoln center. It's the Juilliard School. It's there. It has a long, illustrious history. I somehow, by the grace of God, got in there, there. And, you know, people will ask, like, what was your big break? And for me, it was getting into that school hands down. Hands down. So I was there for four years, and about 15 to 18 years ago, they called and asked me to give the commencement speech, which I did. And they also invited me to join the board of school, which I did. I was the only. I think there were only two artists on the board at that time. And I've been on it now for a long time, and I'm now vice chair for a limited period of time. So I'm very involved there and seeing, like, what institutions like Juilliard, what they do, how they do it, why they do it, and the, you know, the challenges that are facing young artists today.

[Jason Bateman]

Yeah.

[Laura Linney]

You know, so. And also I try to, when I have the time, I try to mentor the outgoing class. I will go in and talk to students. I'll take them out to lunch. I'll, you know, and sometimes I can do it and sometimes I can't.

[Sean Hayes]

What.

[Jason Bateman]

What is the biggest challenge, Laura, for, you know, young aspiring actress today? What do you think that biggest challenge is? Yeah.

[Laura Linney]

Money.

[Jason Bateman]

Right?

[Sean Hayes]

Yeah.

[Laura Linney]

I mean, it's impossible. I mean, and which is why Juilliard's making such a concerted effort to go tuition free. You know, it's. And why a lot of schools are. Because we train these artists at this very, very high level. They leave and then they can't support themselves, and then they drop out and we lose them.

[Jason Bateman]

Right.

[Sean Hayes]

Do you. Do you spend a. Do you spend a lot of time raising money or working with people or working with groups to try to raise money for the school? Are you guys dealing with high net worth individuals all these people that you need, these patrons, as it were, Who. Some of them. I mean, I'm sure some of that's tough, but you need that, right? You need to have these people in order to keep it running.

[Laura Linney]

Yes, the angel people. Yes. And then you need the small donations as well. You need people just involved. You need people who just to care about the arts.

[Sean Hayes]

Open your pocketbook for once.

[Will Arnett]

No, J. I just did a whole new winter wardrobe. I. It's thin right now. Listen, okay?

[Laura Linney]

He lost a lot of weight. He needs a New clothes.

[Sean Hayes]

He just got back from Paris.

[Jason Bateman]

He goes, speaking. Speaking of books, tell me something you've seen that you. That you love recently. A TV show.

[Will Arnett]

Wait, wait. Before we leave the Juilliard thing, let me just. And speaking of angel people. So Laura just continues to blow my mind. So we have this young actor on the show. His name is Robert Elijah Coleman. He was going to Juilliard. He got cast in this show. He was working on a day, this is a month ago, when Juilliard graduation was happening. He had done his four years at Juilliard. It's incredible to graduate from Juilliard. But he was scheduled to work on that day. Partly my fault. I was directing. But Laura was prepping her episodes coming in. So she was around the set. And what she decided to do as a big shot at Juilliard was to grab his diploma, grab his cap and gown, write this long speech, an incredible speech that one would receive if they were lucky enough to be at their ceremony when they were graduated. But he couldn't because he had to be sitting on set. She asked me if she could stop production for about five or 10 minutes, bring in a cake, do the whole thing, gather the whole crew. And she delivered the speech, and she put on the graduation music and everything. This kid, the greatest, greatest guy, was so bowled over, as was the whole crew and cast, and she presented him with his diploma and full graduation ceremony right there, there on set. After four years of Juilliard. Like, it's.

[Sean Hayes]

That is.

[Will Arnett]

It's like, who has that idea, you.

[Sean Hayes]

Know, that is really, really, really sweet. That is incredible.

[Laura Linney]

You know, it's a. There are moments in your life. They're big moments that need to be recognized. And, you know, Eli had been through. I know what it is to go through Juilliard. I know what it is to graduate from that school, to feel like you've, you know, you've done something, and now. Oh, God, what's going to happen now? And you've done it with an ensemble of People. And it killed me that he was not going to be with his.

[Will Arnett]

And he didn't tell anybody on set. He had not mentioned it to anybody that he was missing his graduation.

[Laura Linney]

Yeah, I knew. So I went to him. I'm like, are you okay about this? And he was so good natured about it. He was so happy to be there. He was like, I'm fine, I'm fine. And I just. I just sort of couldn't stand it. So I. And Jason was kind enough to let me sort of hijack the set for a bit. So it was fun. It was really fun.

[Jason Bateman]

The performance of being at a graduation doesn't come close to doing the thing that you graduated for.

[Sean Hayes]

Right, to get the job.

[Laura Linney]

Yeah, absolutely right.

[Sean Hayes]

And it didn't matter that they had to move that day, that he had to shoot that day because Jason had a golf game on the other day.

[Laura Linney]

That's right.

[Sean Hayes]

That doesn't matter. It doesn't even come up. No, it doesn't even come up.

[Will Arnett]

We'll work it out. Cause he's got a tee time with his buddies now. Sean, what was your question? That was a good one. I just.

[Jason Bateman]

See, I'm always interested in what people are watching recently that you liked or any recommendations, documentaries, movies. Hello.

[Laura Linney]

Been watching alone.

[Will Arnett]

Me too.

[Jason Bateman]

Oh, Jason loves that.

[Sean Hayes]

I love alone. Can I just say one more thing? I want to talk about alone before we get out of the Juilliard stuff. What can people do to support the arts wherever they live, wherever anybody is? Like, what would be a really important thing that people who listen to our podcast could do to try to help young people get involved in the arts? And what could be.

[Will Arnett]

Oh, I know. Vote for the Democratic ticket.

[Laura Linney]

There's that.

[Sean Hayes]

Well, apart from that, what could people do? Honestly, Laura, go, go.

[Laura Linney]

I mean, I think, Sean, I just.

[Jason Bateman]

Thought that was a really good suggestion.

[Sean Hayes]

Listen, what's going on at the house?

[Will Arnett]

Sean's got that Update on his iOS where he does double thumbs up. It's fireworks.

[Laura Linney]

You know, I think it's, go find something in your community that is there. Go with your family, have a communal experience and go, yeah, just buy a.

[Sean Hayes]

Ticket, get off your phone and see what happens. Yeah.

[Laura Linney]

You know, here's a big name dropping moment, but Edward Albee said to me one time, Jesus, he was.

[Will Arnett]

I know, pick it up.

[Laura Linney]

He said, listen to Bach for 10 minutes every morning. He says it organizes the mind.

[Sean Hayes]

Wow.

[Laura Linney]

And he's right. And so I tell people, when I give these speeches around the country, I tell people, like, try it for two weeks. See what happens. Just 10 minutes. And, Jason, you know, because you love classical music, you know that it does. It permeates your being and it realigns you in a way music does. I mean, Sean, you know this as well. You know, it's a powerful thing, the arts, and I think it's the most underused resource we have, or one of them in this country. And it makes me crazy that our government has never really leaned into that, you know, to be. And. Except now our surgeon general is using it for mental health. You know, he's encouraging people to get involved.

[Jason Bateman]

Yeah. I was going to say there's probably a lot less violence in the world. I know that's a crazy thing to say. But, like, if people. If more people are exposed to the arts.

[Laura Linney]

Absolutely.

[Jason Bateman]

Yeah.

[Laura Linney]

And graduation rates skyrocket, if a kid is involved in the arts. Yeah, it's just skyrockets. And there's always something somewhere, and you don't have to be good at it. You don't have to be an artist yourself.

[Will Arnett]

I mean, exposed Willie's talking about, but starting to paint. He's gonna start painting a bit.

[Laura Linney]

I mean, I can do stick figures. I mean, that's, you know, way beyond.

[Will Arnett]

We're not expecting more than that from.

[Sean Hayes]

Will, but it's not.

[Jason Bateman]

It's not gonna be.

[Sean Hayes]

I'm not gonna be showing anything. It's gonna be.

[Will Arnett]

Yes. Yes, you will. For this Christmas, I want. That's all I want from you.

[Sean Hayes]

It's gonna be really shitty. I'm excited about it. I was just thinking about it this morning, actually.

[Will Arnett]

Good.

[Jason Bateman]

I can't wait to see some of that.

[Laura Linney]

But I think it's like, you know, grab someone you love or grab someone you like and go and have an experience and just see what happens.

[Sean Hayes]

I grabbed somebody I liked at the Stop and Shop, but I didn't know that.

[Will Arnett]

You're going to find out what happens when this gets adjudicated.

[Sean Hayes]

Check out the Daily Mail. Wait, so let's get to. You were talking about alone. You love alone. Like jb.

[Will Arnett]

Yeah. Brand new season just started.

[Sean Hayes]

I watched it because of him as well.

[Laura Linney]

I know. It's intense, isn't it? I mean, I love the guys who go, and this is early in first few seasons, the really tough guys who are absolutely going to crush it. And they're gone in two hours.

[Will Arnett]

Like.

[Laura Linney]

A rustle in the waves. And they're like, I'm tapping out, I'm tapping out, I'm tapping out. And I think that would be me. You know, I wouldn't last for two.

[Jason Bateman]

Seconds, I tap out before they land.

[Will Arnett]

The helicopter, celebrity alone would be hilarious.

[Sean Hayes]

I'd be tapping out when I'm connecting flights in Minneapolis, I'd be like.

[Will Arnett]

I would hang up on my manager on the phone call without the request. The great Aline Kashishian would get. Would get the hang of it.

[Laura Linney]

That's right. I love, like, the places they build for themselves.

[Will Arnett]

Yeah, I know.

[Laura Linney]

You know those huts, and it's just sort of.

[Jason Bateman]

It's like they took naked and afraid and, like, kind of just heightened it a little bit.

[Laura Linney]

Yeah, yeah. And I also love, like, these poor people filming themselves at the same time.

[Will Arnett]

I know. That's all part of it.

[Sean Hayes]

I like it when they build a great house. Like, when a guy. There's a guy once in one of those seasons up in the Northwest Territories in Canada, and he built, like, this stone house with moss and stuff.

[Laura Linney]

You're like, yeah, the moss. Who knew moss was so.

[Will Arnett]

And then they. And then they got it. They got to rip it down. When they leave, you know, they do that little time lapse thing. When it all goes away, it's like, no, Laura, we're over. We're over time. You will be compensated checks in the mail. We love you. I love you most.

[Jason Bateman]

Yeah. I'm a massive, massive fan and have always been truly.

[Laura Linney]

You know, I love all three of you. And, you know, I've been lucky enough to work with two of you and Sean, we're due to figure that out. And thanks, J.B. thanks.

[Will Arnett]

I love you. I'll see you in a few days. Say hi to Mark and Bennett.

[Laura Linney]

I sure will.

[Will Arnett]

And go feed your dog.

[Laura Linney]

Love the family. Will do. I'm going to go wake them up. Okay.

[Will Arnett]

All right.

[Laura Linney]

Bye.

[Will Arnett]

Bye, Laura. Thank you. Bye. Well, that was lovely. It was painful for me. It was a lot of love to receive. I'm not good at that. But thank.

[Jason Bateman]

But you're doing better. You're doing better.

[Will Arnett]

She's. You know, she's. I love if you could. If you could pick a second wife, she would be it.

[Jason Bateman]

Well, imagine if it wasn't her. I mean, it was her for a reason. You know, you guys really connected, and I can't imagine anybody else playing that part.

[Will Arnett]

I remember. I still remember the day she was the first person I went to on Ozark. I took her out to breakfast at this restaurant in the bottom of this hotel I was staying in in New York. It was there scouting, I think. And we share a manager, Alene Kashishin. And I said to Alina, I said, do you think Laura would ever consider doing a show again? And she's like, we should just talk to her. Just, you know, and I met her at that restaurant and just pitched her for an hour and a half and was really nervous about even the possibility of her saying yes or no. It was such a big swing. Cause I knew by having her on the show, not only would she be an incredible actor on it, but what she would sort of signal to the audience and to the community in the business about what the show is and what the show isn't like. She's just such a great recruiter of high quality people and a declaration of sort of the quality we're kind of shooting for. And it was just such a gift that she said yes. The show never would have happened without her ever.

[Jason Bateman]

Yeah, I mean, I can't imagine. I can't imagine anybody else doing that part.

[Will Arnett]

Yeah, yeah. So lucky. And what a great guest.

[Jason Bateman]

Yeah, she's. I've always been such a massive fan. Like, she's an actor's actor and she really is.

[Sean Hayes]

Exactly.

[Jason Bateman]

And you look at. You look at her body images goes on and on and on and on and on IMDb.

[Sean Hayes]

Yeah.

[Jason Bateman]

It's crazy. I love that she was here and by the way, long time coming.

[Will Arnett]

Yes, exactly. Yeah, that was. I mean, I remember talking to her when we got. When we first got started, we were still doing Ozark, right? Yeah.

[Sean Hayes]

Oh, God, yeah.

[Will Arnett]

Yeah, right at the end. That's right. Yeah.

[Sean Hayes]

During COVID I mean, we. For a year, right?

[Jason Bateman]

Yeah, Yeah.

[Will Arnett]

I remember talking to her. Yeah. I remember her sort of just looking at me. Like I could just sense she was kind of looking at me like, you're doing what? Yeah, every week. You're what? Yeah, yeah, exactly. And then, yeah, then she started saying, well, you know, some people are talking to me that apparently they've listened to your podcast or something. People are liking it. I'm like, you got it. You got to come on. You got to come on. And she was like, yeah, okay.

[Jason Bateman]

Well, I was nice. It's nice to know. Here we go. It was nice to know.

[Sean Hayes]

Now you're just telling us.

[Will Arnett]

This is a guy who, when you.

[Sean Hayes]

Merge, must have heard a drop by or something like that. Is that what it was going to be?

[Will Arnett]

You know, Sean, is just a terrible merger on the freeway you had comes in doing 120 miles an hour or doing 30 miles an hour and everyone's got to slam on the brakes. Go ahead, zip her in.

[Jason Bateman]

No, I just thought it's nice that she said hi to directing, but she definitely didn't say bye to acting.

[Will Arnett]

Christ.

[Sean Hayes]

Oh fuck man. Yes, you hear the words fuck fucking fuck dude. Holy shit. That is rough. We might have to put you on a hiatus. You can initiate Smart Less Smart less Smartless is 100% organic and artisanally handcrafted by Michael Grant, Terry Rob Armcharv and Bennett Barbara. Go Smart Less.

[Jason Bateman]

Have you met All Modern? Whether your style is Scandinavian inspired, iconic mid century modern or pared down minimalism, All Modern has the best of modern furniture and decor all in one place. Every design is hand vetted for quality by their team of experts and upgrade your space in days not weeks with fast and free shipping. Plus right now you'll save big on every style of Modern with Black Friday deals all month long on holiday hosting must haves and more that's modern made simple. Shop [e-mail] or visit them in store at Linfield and Dedham, Massachusetts or in Austin, Texas.