TCB Infomercial: Brett Gelman

Summary

The Commercial Break: TCB Infomercial Featuring Brett Gelman

Release Date: August 15, 2025
Guest: Brett Gelman
Host: Bryan Green and Chrissy Hoadley

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Introduction and Welcome [02:22 - 03:22]

The episode kicks off with Bryan Green enthusiastically welcoming listeners back to The Commercial Break, introducing the special Tuesday "TCB Infomercial" edition featuring Brett Gelman. Bryan highlights Brett's extensive career, noting his roles in Stranger Things, Fleabag, his podcast Erotica, and his upcoming Netflix show Entitled. Chrissy Hoadley echoes the excitement, adding her own appreciation for Brett's diverse body of work.

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Diving into Brett Gelman's Career [03:22 - 07:45]

Bryan delves into Brett Gelman's journey, emphasizing his significant contributions to both mainstream and alternative comedy. He remarks, "If you don't immediately recognize Brett Gelman as a guy who's been in a million things, then you're just not paying attention to pop culture because he's a million things" ([04:12]). Brett shares his initial uncertainty about his role in Stranger Things, explaining how his character Murray was initially not intended to extend beyond season two. However, due to his compelling performance, Murray's role expanded in subsequent seasons, making Brett a central figure in the show's evolving narrative.

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Stranger Things and Its Impact [07:45 - 22:45]

The conversation shifts to the cultural phenomenon that is Stranger Things. Brett expresses his pride in being part of such a monumental series, stating, "It's amazing to be a part of something that is so gargantuan in such a way that that has not, you know, happened that much in this business and in this art form" ([17:21]). Bryan and Chrissy discuss the show's global impact, with Bryan humorously predicting that aliens in the future would marvel at the show's originality and humor ([07:20]). Brett reflects on his audition process, the creative freedom granted by the Duffer Brothers, and his excitement for the upcoming seasons, hinting at potential spin-offs centered around his character Murray.

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Exploring Brett's New Projects [22:45 - 43:11]

Brett introduces his latest venture, the Netflix series Entitled. He describes it as a "gothic horror comedy" where he plays a disgraced plastic surgeon navigating bizarre family dynamics after his estranged wife’s death. Brett elaborates, "And it’s not clear. There's a lot of secrets. There's some supernatural elements. It gets very gothic horror" ([43:34]). Bryan expresses his enthusiasm for the show, comparing its unique blend of genres to beloved British comedies like Mighty Boosh and Peep Show. Brett credits Netflix for providing a platform that saved the show from a rocky start, allowing it to reach a wider audience.

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Adult Swim and Alternative Comedy [43:11 - 47:19]

The hosts and Brett discuss Brett’s involvement with Adult Swim, a network known for its avant-garde and unconventional comedy programming. Brett reminisces about his time working with Adult Swim, praising its support for unique comedic voices: "They really gave me a major platform to do things that you could never do anywhere else on television" ([42:24]). Bryan laments the network's downsizing but acknowledges its lasting influence, stating, "Adult Swim is a great American gift to comedy because it gave a home to comedic voices that were far from mainstream, but absolutely hilarious" ([47:00]).

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Acting Process and Methodology [36:18 - 40:06]

The discussion shifts to Brett’s approach to acting. Brett explains his classical training at North Carolina Performing Arts and his immersion in method acting, though he clarifies it's more about having a process rather than being a character constantly: "just when people ask you that, tell them that you have a process" ([37:21]). He emphasizes the importance of balancing preparation without overcomplicating the performance, allowing for authenticity and originality in his roles. Brett shares anecdotes about his audition experiences and the challenges actors face in portraying complex characters.

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Podcast and Book Projects [56:16 - 61:20]

Brett talks about his podcast Erotica, hosted with his wife, Ari Dayan. He describes it as a space where they "riff the whole time and talk about a lot of the aspects of our relationship," aiming to make listeners feel like they're having dinner with the couple ([56:16]). Additionally, Brett introduces his book, The Terrifying Realm of the Possible, which delves into the lives of five characters dealing with various personal struggles in a humorous and surreal manner. He expresses pride in his work, calling the book "very Jewish, it's very neurotic and it's very... funny" ([61:00]).

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Audience Interaction and Closing Remarks [61:20 - 69:52]

As the episode wraps up, Bryan and Chrissy encourage listeners to check out Brett’s projects, including his new Netflix show and book. They engage in light-hearted banter about fan interactions and the challenges of maintaining privacy amidst fame. Brett expresses his gratitude for the show's support and hints at future collaborations. The hosts conclude with a reminder to visit their website for more information and to follow them on social media.

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Notable Quotes:

• Bryan Green: "TCB thinks we're one in a billion" ([67:02]).
• Brett Gelman: "I love when fans come up to me. I love when fans come up." ([63:25]).
• Chrissy Hoadley: "Whether it's a date night, a special event, or just another Tuesday, our over 800 stylists are here to help you look and feel your best." ([64:46]).

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Conclusion

This episode of The Commercial Break offers an in-depth look into Brett Gelman's multifaceted career, his experiences on Stranger Things, and his ventures into new creative projects. Bryan and Chrissy provide a platform for Brett to share his insights on acting, comedy, and the entertainment industry, all while maintaining the podcast's signature chaotic and humorous charm. Whether you're a fan of Brett Gelman or curious about the behind-the-scenes of a hit TV show, this episode delivers engaging content filled with laughter, thoughtful discussion, and genuine camaraderie.

Transcript

[Brian Greene]

This episode is sponsored by our good friends at five Hour Energy. All right, Labor Day is right around the corner and that means I've taken one more spin around the sun. What if my energy boost could taste like my birthday cake? A big old birthday party in my mouth without the awkward singing from Steve in accounting? That's what you will get with the new five Hour Energy Confetti Craze flavor. It's a vanilla y buttery, full on birthday cake vibe without all the sugar and the need to crash. It's got as much caffeine as a fancy 12 ounce cup of coffee, but as mentioned, zero sugar. And here's the best part. The thing is, you can toss it in your bag, your glove box, your sock drawer, or keep it in your fridge. So next time you go to grab an emergency snack, you've got confetti in your mouth. And the confetti craze is only here for a limited time. Translation. Get it now before it's gone and you're back to pretending that the office room donuts are festive. Five Hour Energy Confetti Craze flavor is available online. So head to FiveHouseEnergy.com or order yours today on Amazon and start living that big birthday life. And Happy Birthday to me.

[Chrissy Hoadley]

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[Brett Gelman]

And use code smooth at cart for an exclusive free gift with $65 purchase.

[Brian Greene]

Hey, we're gonna get right to this episode of the commercial break, but I wanted to drop in and tell you a little story. The very first piece of merch that I ever owned was a Michael Jackson Beat It T shirt. It did not age well. Neither did my Dick Tracy memorabilia collection. But you know what might age well? A TCB T shirt, hat or hoodie. You can pre order our limited edition [e-mail] that's shoptcbpodcast.com this is our very first merch drop. We're only doing it for a limited time and you must order before this window closes on August 22nd. So go to shoptcbpodcast.com and get yourself a piggy fronting T shirt. Good luck explaining that One to the neighbors.

[Unknown]

On this episode of the commercial break, it wasn't totally clear, I don't think how Murray would exist past season two, basically because they were focused on season two. But also, yeah, it was a different kind of character that was joining the cast, which is part of my immense gratitude that I not only got to be on the show, but got to play this very singular character on it that the Duffers brilliantly created for me. And.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah.

[Unknown]

And then, you know, they, they liked what I did, thankfully, and, and made. And made Murray grow, you know, from. From, you know, third to fourth to the upcoming season. So made me a major part of the, of the fan. The next episode of the commercial break starts now. Oh, yeah.

[Brian Greene]

Cats and kittens, welcome back to the commercial break. I'm Brian Greene. This is my dear friend and the co show, Chris and Joy Hoadley. Best to you, Chris.

[Brett Gelman]

Best to you, Brian.

[Brian Greene]

Best to you. Out there in the podcast universe, aliens is the absolute correct noise for today because it's a TCB infomercial Tuesday. And we have a superstar of a human being on our show today, Chrissy from Stranger Things, the little known show on Netflix that we're hoping gains some steam here in its fifth and final season. Murray from Stranger Things, also known as Brett Gelman in his real life, is here to talk to us today, and we could not be more excited.

[Brett Gelman]

I am so happy to talk to him.

[Brian Greene]

Fleabag. His own podcast, Narotica. He's got a book out we'll talk to him about. And he has done many, many, many things in his career. Adult Swim. I mean, on and on and on. I can't.

[Brett Gelman]

Yeah. Just looking at all of the things that he's done, I was like, my God.

[Brian Greene]

Yes. If you look at the COVID of this podcast and don't immediately recognize Brett Gelman as a guy who's been in a million things, then you're just not paying attention to pop culture because he' a million things. He really has. And I think now he's kind of. He's hit his stride. Chrissy. I would say he's got a brand new Netflix show out that we'll talk Netflix show coming out. It's actually out right now as you're listening to this called entitled and it's on Netflix. And I'm interested to hear the story behind that. But he is the lead in this.

[Brett Gelman]

Television show and executive producer.

[Brian Greene]

That's right. So Brett is. I did. When did he join Stranger Things? One or two.

[Brett Gelman]

Second.

[Brian Greene]

Second. Okay. He's the conspiracy theorist known as Murray. And then his role in the show grows.

[Brett Gelman]

Yes.

[Brian Greene]

As three, four, and now five come out. Is this. Am I right about. This is the last season. It is of Stranger Things, so. But I could easily see spin off happening with Murray. Just a show about Murray, because he.

[Brett Gelman]

I know he's so unique.

[Brian Greene]

That's what I. That's what I like about Brett and I. And I look forward to telling him this. Is that any role that he is in, he brings a, Like, a very unique quality to it where it's hard to imagine somebody else being placed inside of that role because it's uniquely Brett Gelman. I don't know. He's one of those guys. He's got a face. He's got that. Those mannerisms, that attitude, that voice that is undeniably Brett. So we are so happy to have him listen anybody from Strangers.

[Brett Gelman]

We're extremely thrilled.

[Brian Greene]

We're extremely thrilled. He does such an extremely fantastic job on Stranger Things and Fleabag, which I haven't watched a lot of.

[Brett Gelman]

Oh, I loved Fleabag. It's been a few. It's been out a few years now, but, I mean, it's a fantastic show. Only two seasons. I wanted more, but Jeff and I kind of stumbled into it on Amazon, everybody. And, yeah, I loved it.

[Brian Greene]

Every time I say that I'm a huge fan of British television shows and British comedy, everybody asks me, have you seen Fleabag? And it's been on my list for years to watch, but I've only caught a couple of episodes.

[Brett Gelman]

Bring it up to the top of the list.

[Brian Greene]

I know I. I must do. It's a do do for Brian Green. Brian must do do that very soon. If. If immediately, if not sooner. As one of my friends used to say, it's a funny immediately, if not sooner.

[Brett Gelman]

Yes.

[Brian Greene]

Oh, actually, I think that might be from Caddyshack, but my friend used to repeat it. He said, bring my. Bring my valet. Bring my car around immediately, if not sooner. That's the judge. Caddyshack. Bring my car around immediately, if not sooner. So let's do this. Why delay talking to Brett Gelman? Let's get as much Brett Gelman as we possibly can. I want to talk to him about his early days in acting, his time with ucb, his long run with Adult Swim, which is just. I mean, Adult Swim is brilliant. Anybody doesn't think of D. Swim is brilliant. You don't need to be a friend of mine. And if you haven't heard of Adult Swim or you haven't gotten on board yet, it might Be too late. But who knows? Did they take Adult Swim down or something?

[Brett Gelman]

They've really downsized Adult Swim, unfortunately.

[Unknown]

That.

[Brett Gelman]

I know.

[Brian Greene]

Fuck that. Turner Broadcasting, hbo, Max plus, minus, Double Cinemax, whatever you're calling yourself these days. Fuck that. If there's one golden nugget out of all of the content that you have, it should be Adult Swim. That should get treatment as if it was the Dead Sea Scrolls itself. Do you know what I'm saying?

[Brett Gelman]

Yeah, it was so just.

[Unknown]

It's.

[Brett Gelman]

It's so weird and unique and weird and I mean, there's so many shows on there that are just incredible.

[Brian Greene]

I mean, when aliens come down, you.

[Brett Gelman]

Can'T believe it's on TV.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah, 50 million years, billion years from now, when we are dead. And then life repopulates the planet. You know, it shakes off the shitty human beings that are living here now, and it reforms. And some other life form is here, intelligent life form, and they're digging in the dirt one day and they find something related to Adult Swim. It's a treasure that they can mine. And they're gonna go, whoa, it was a lot weirder than we ever thought it. But they'll be laughing. At least they'll be laughing. And that's what matters. Adult Swim. Why? Why, why? Why Adult Swim?

[Unknown]

Why?

[Brian Greene]

Shame.

[Unknown]

Shame.

[Brian Greene]

All right, let's do this. Let's take a. Let's take a short break, and when we get back through the magic of telepodcasting, Brett Gelman from Stranger Things, fleabag, Adult Swim and UCB will be right here in the studio on our tv, and we can talk to him about all these things on Poof. It's magic.

[Unknown]

It's magic.

[Brian Greene]

You can be anyone that you desire. Magic. I got a lovely text message from a listener of ours, Elizabeth, who shared with me that she had pre ordered some of our [e-mail] she then went on to explain that she got the university sweater and the TCB logo T shirt. But as she was checking out, she wanted to put a bit of spice in her life, so she ordered the piggy fronting T shirt. But Elizabeth is no regular listener. Just like everybody, she's got a story. Elizabeth is involved in event production and often deals with the Teresa Caputo tour itself. Not all heroes wear capes. Some wear piggy fronting T shirts. And in case anybody at the Caputo offices are listening, Elizabeth is not her real name. Enjoy the piggy fronting t shirt. Shoptcbpodcast.com Available until 22 August Pre order now and get a free TCB sticker with every order. Also, when you get that merch, tag us on Instagram. We may send you free additional merch. Now let's hear from some sponsors and we'll get back to this episode of the commercial break. This episode is brought to you by Squarespace. I'm out on our little break. I'm over at the local coffee shop and I'm talking to one of the people behind the counter and they say, I want to start my own podcast. To which I reply, you already have more listeners than we do. But their question to me was, what do I need in order to launch a podcast? Three things. A microphone, an idea, and a website. And our good friends at Squarespace, they have the all in one website platform designed to help you stand out and succeed online. Whether you're creating content, selling something, offering a service, or just want to keep people informed about your comings and goings, you can build your website, grow your brand, and get paid all in one place. And if a website is a building block of a business, what's the building blocks of the website? Two things in my opinion. Number one, design. You got to have a good looking design and Squarespace has a collection of cutting edge design tools that anyone can use to build a website that fits your brand perfectly. Number two, building block. You have to be found. As I've often said about podcasting, if you want to be heard, you have to get found. No different out there on the world Wide web. And search engine optimization is the key to doing that. While some companies and services may charge thousands or tens of thousands of dollars for search engine optim, it's included with every single website on Squarespace. And the great news about all of this is you do not have to be some designer, programmer, search engine optimization expert. Squarespace is designed to help me build a website, and if I can do it, you can do it. I'm really not all that smart. Go to squarespace.com commercial to save 10% off your purchase of a website or domain using the code commercial and start building your business or grow the one that you have or refresh that multi billion dollar conglomerate. Squarespace.com commercial and when you're ready to launch, make sure to use the code commercial. And thank you to Squarespace for always being a sponsor of the commercial break.

[Chrissy Hoadley]

Hello, it's Lena Dunham. I host a podcast called the C Word with my dearest friend and historian of bad behavior, Alyssa Bennett. What is up? It's a chat show about women whose Society is called crazy. We're going to be rediscovering the stories of women's society dismissed by calling them mad, sad, or just plain bad. Listen to and follow the C Word with Lena Dunham and Alyssa Bennett. Available now wherever you get your podcasts Planning a trip this year? Imagine how much richer your travel experience could be if you could speak the local language. Whether you're traveling abroad, planning a staycation, or just shaking up your routine, what better time to dive into a new language? With Rosetta Stone, you'll gain the confidence to have real conversations and create deeper connections wherever you go. Rosetta Stone is the trusted leader in language learning for over 30 years. Their immersive, intuitive method helps you naturally absorb and retain your new language on desktop or mobile, whenever and wherever it fits your summer schedule. With 30 years of experience, millions of users, and 25 languages to choose from, Rosetta Stone is the go to tool for real language growth. Don't wait. Unlock your language learning potential now. Listeners of this podcast can grab Rosetta Stone's lifetime membership for 50% off. That's unlimited access to 25 language courses for life. Visit RosettaStone.com RS10 to get started and claim your 50% off today. Don't miss out. Go to RosettaStone.com RS10 and start learning today.

[Brian Greene]

Brett, thank you very much for joining us.

[Brett Gelman]

You're welcome.

[Unknown]

Thank you. Thank you so much for having me.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah, of course. We are big fans of your now seemingly large body of work.

[Brett Gelman]

Seriously.

[Brian Greene]

And so many things that everyone will know, of course. Do you. Is Stranger Things the thing that makes you, like, not be able to get through an airport because people are. People, like, fawn over you. Is that the one thing that everybody goes, oh my gosh, you're the guy from Strange or Fleabag or which one do you get noticed more for?

[Unknown]

I would say Stranger Things. Yeah, I would say Stranger Things is the most. Yeah, that's like I, Yeah, I have the same level of fame no matter where I go in the world. It's wild. It's.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah, it's got to be. Spend a few minutes on it and then we'll move on because. But I imagine this has got to be like, life changing because very few television series have captured the collective imagination like Stranger Things. It really was a global phenomenon and it's, it's unbelievable. Did you know when you jumped on board, did you understand the juggernaut that this thing was going to, was going to become you?

[Unknown]

Yeah, well, I jumped on in season two, so I already knew but, you know, and so that's true, but I didn't know what. I didn't know what my involvement would be necessarily, you know, was it. I came to play this character. I don't have, like, a ton in season two, and it wasn't totally clear, I don't think, how Murray would exist past season two, basically, because they were focused on season two. But also, yeah, it was a different kind of character that was joining the cast, which is part of my immense gratitude that I not only got to be on the show, but got to play this very singular character on it that the Duffers brilliantly created for me. And. Yeah. And then, you know, they, they liked what I did, thankfully, and, and made. And made Murray grow, you know, from. From, you know, third to fourth to the upcoming season. So made me a major part of the, of the fan. And when does that come out?

[Brett Gelman]

I'm so excited about it coming out. I've watched them every year.

[Unknown]

So it's coming out this summer.

[Brian Greene]

Right?

[Unknown]

You got to look up the, the trailer, okay. The teaser for the upcoming thing. It's the ultimate flex. There's three installments. There's three installments. It's the day before. It's the day before Thanksgiving, the first installment.

[Brett Gelman]

Okay.

[Unknown]

So this fall. Second is Christmas.

[Brian Greene]

Oh, my God.

[Unknown]

Third is New Year.

[Brian Greene]

And the end.

[Unknown]

They're saying, you love this show so much, you're gonna spend your holiday this way. But the thing is, though, is most people, a lot of people spend their holiday at home anyway.

[Brian Greene]

Of course.

[Unknown]

So it is like, a brilliant marketing thing. But even people I know who probably who have plans to go out, you know, that's what the fandom of this show is. They will sit. They will choose to stay home instead, now that they know that it's coming out.

[Brian Greene]

Raucous numbers. That's going to be raucous numbers. Because I, I imagine a lot of people do go out Thanksgiving, Christmas, they're traveling, but no one in their right minds does not have their device in their hand at night and go, I've got to. I've got to do this. I gotta.

[Unknown]

No, I mean, like, you know, if they're, like, on a road trip or something, they're gonna pull over and they're gonna watch it on their phone in a gas station bathroom. I mean, like, it's just that type of thing. It's gonna. No, I, I, it's amazing to be a part of something that is so gargantuan in such, like, a way that that has not, you know, happened that Much in this. In this business and in this art form. You know, the original Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, and then this show, and. But the best thing about it is that it very much deserves to be that big. And then I'm artistically very proud of it and very proud of being a part of it. I mean, I've said this a lot. I was. I mean, I watched the first season in, like, two days. I binged you in two days. I was a massive. I was like. Somebody was like, you check out this show, Stranger Things on Netflix. Oh, yeah. House of Cards. House of Cards. Orange is the New Black.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah, that's it. Yeah, exactly.

[Unknown]

Yeah, yeah. Those two shows. Those two shows on that thing over there. Yeah, it's got this new, great show. Okay, I'll check it out.

[Brian Greene]

You mean the people who mail the DVDs to you. Yes. You can now see a thing on the thing, and you get the thing with your thing.

[Unknown]

I think they were still. We were still getting DVDs mailed to us by the time this came out, I think. And it was like, yeah, okay, cool. I was filming this film, Lemon, you know, that I co wrote.

[Brian Greene]

Oh, yeah.

[Unknown]

And it was. I was co producing it. It was like. The week was, like. Had one day off. A week or two days off anyway. No, it had to have been two days off. But, like, the week was so intense. And then I remember just being like, okay, gonna watch. Gonna watch the show on the weekend. And I turned on, and after 10 minutes, I was like, this is what I'm spending my weekend doing, I guess, because this is one of the greatest things I've ever seen. And. And then I did call my agent, and I was like, you got to get me on this show. And you do that a lot in your career.

[Brian Greene]

Sure.

[Unknown]

And sometimes it happens, and your agent goes, yeah, yeah, we'll try. Like, I mean, that's.

[Brian Greene]

That's what happens. That's what you pay your agent to do, is give you the good news and never the bad. Right. Yeah, we'll try.

[Unknown]

Exactly. Exactly. I mean, they don't want to tell you bad news and bum you out. And, you know, I get it. And they can't force anybody to hire you.

[Brian Greene]

Sure.

[Unknown]

And they can't force anybody to get you in the room. You know, obviously, there's cases where agents are not working for you, but I am lucky that I don't have that. You know, my agent. My reps work very hard for me, and I'm very grateful to them, but. Yeah, but he called. He's like, I got you. I got you in there. And I went in. I had no idea. It was like a monologue. It's like, this guy's a conspiracy theorist. That's all you were given. He's like a strange conspiracy theorist. You don't totally know what he is. So the rest I just kind of did with my imagination in the room. And I remember seeing an actor who I very much admire. He was in the waiting room. And as I came out and I just did a very. You know, to me, it was like a very simple thing with him in a way. You know, there was just. It wasn't. You didn't want to do too much with him.

[Brian Greene]

Right.

[Unknown]

Because what was swarming around him was so much. And then I remember doing a very, like, simple read and letting all of that conspiracy and paranoia come through. And then I walked out of the waiting room. This guy had a hoodie up, and he was like. I was like, ah, that guy's getting it. That guy's getting it. I'm not getting this. And that guy's, like, methoding out in the. Yeah, in the waiting room. He's dead. I should have put more in and I should have done more and. But no, I got it. I got it.

[Brett Gelman]

Speaking of being out of town real quick while the seasons come out, I think it was season two. My husband and I had gone up for, like, a North Georgia mountain weekend, but season two had just come out, and we ended up watching it, like, the whole, like, binged, like, the whole season.

[Brian Greene]

Chrissy went to go get to get into nature, and she watched it. She watched Brent for the entire weekend.

[Unknown]

Oh, man.

[Brett Gelman]

It's one of those shows, though.

[Unknown]

It really is. It really is. I've binged every season, and as I watch seasons that I'm in, I'm still watching it as a fan and like, even, like, feel like I'm not watching my. Like I'm watching my character. It's. It's really wild.

[Brian Greene]

Great art is that even when you're a part of it, it becomes something completely different that even you yourself don't recognize. It's like. And you're filming it probably in some ways, I don't know, but I imagine some parts are disconnected. You get little three min. The chunks that you're filming, you're in certain parts, they're in certain parts, and then they piece it all together. When you go in for that original audition and they say conspiracy theorist, and you're like, oh, okay, when. When you do an audition like that, and they don't give you a lot to work with. Are those the hardest to do when they don't give you a lot of direction, they just say, conspiracy theorists here, take it and run with it. Or. Or in a way, does. Is it liberating because there's a piece of paper you can color with?

[Unknown]

Oh, there is. There is nothing for me that's liberating about an audition. No. I saw two actors talking. I won't say who, and I was so jealous of them because they were like, I love auditioning. I miss it. I miss it because it's my chance to perform. It's my chance to perform. And I have to, in an audition, constantly remind myself, this is a performance. This is a performance. This is a performance because rather than it's me trying to get the job, because that's where my brain is naturally going to be. And I think it's like a reaction to all of the rejection, all of the years that you just, you know, a big part of your brain knows and this is the reality. I think no matter how successful you get, that there's a great likelihood you're not going to get the role.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah.

[Unknown]

That this will be the only time you'll be saying these lines and all playing this character. And so there's this thing, this, like, sort of, like, I think for me, that starts to, like, just be like, oh, don't, you know, just, like, don't worry about it. And I have to fight that so hard, which now I'm. I'm really. I'm. I'm the best I've ever been at fighting that, that sabotage, you know, inside of my head.

[Brian Greene]

But, you know, the urge to want it too much and that starts to affect what's going on in the room instead of just being present in the moment and letting whatever happened happen as the performance unfolds. Yeah.

[Unknown]

Fighting the urge to want it too much and then that urge to compensate for that by not mentally and emotionally prepping in the right way to where you are, like, sort of throwing it away and not, you know, treating it like it should be.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah.

[Unknown]

But I, you know, I, I. What helps me with that, though, is, is I, I, I mean, I work really hard on auditions. I do when I read because I'm lucky that the things I read for, I really want, and they're really good most of the time. And even when they're not, it's, you know, it's a job I want. So, you know, sometimes, hey, this isn't, like, the best thing, but I see that It'll be good for me and I'll be able to make this care, I'll be able to enjoy playing this character. And, and so then I just, you know, really focus on, I have, you know, I have my, my guru who helps me, my coach, Martha Gaiman, who is, you know, my getting into it with her now, which I have been for the last few years. It helps that too, because it makes it more of a part of, it makes it more part of like you're engaging in the art, you know, and not the, just trying to get the gig, you know.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah, not so much the, the hustle of it, but the, the moment of it. I think one of the things that is immediately identifiable about you in the things that I have seen you in is that there's an originality. You bring an originality to each of the roles that you play that's unique and identifiable. Where there are a lot of other actors and actresses that I don't identify.

[Brett Gelman]

Could be interchangeable.

[Brian Greene]

It could be interchangeable. You could put anybody in there and it would be. And that's not to knock the actors and actress. Everyone's working very hard at what they do, I'm sure. But you bring something, there's a little extra spice, there's some magic, there's some, you know, all spice in there. I don't know how to, I don't know how to say it, but it's very unique. And you're, you're immediately bringing something to that role where you can't imagine somebody else as Murray. Like, it's just not an easily. And in my opinion, I wouldn't imagine anybody else in that role. Now, I agree, where there are other people, maybe not in stranger spirit things, but in other roles, I can think of where I would be like that could be anybody that looks like that could play that same part. So I think that says something about your ability to channel a certain creative force.

[Unknown]

Thank you. That means a lot, man. That means a lot. I, yeah, I strive for that. I strive for that. I think, you know, I, I, I'm lucky that I've got led into learning a lot of different schools of acting. A lot of different, you know, I was, I'm classically trained, which, you know, is basically like conditioning your body to act. Everything. Yeah, most, you know, and especially music, classical theater, which, you know, if you're not trained in that, it, it can be more difficult, you know, you have to learn. It's just such a beast. Like no other, you know.

[Brett Gelman]

Did you learn some of that at North Carolina, Am I right?

[Unknown]

Yeah.

[Brett Gelman]

You went to North Carolina Performing Arts.

[Unknown]

Yes, it's a classical training program. It was a conservatory. So it was like you lived and breathed acting, voice, script analysis, you know, all different, which.

[Brett Gelman]

Quite a few people have. That school, you know, have gone to that school. I know Danny McBride. I kind of perked my ears when I saw you.

[Unknown]

Well, Danny was in. Danny was in film. Danny wasn't in the acting program. But, yeah, Danny. I was there when Danny and Joey Hill and David Gordon Green were in the. In the film program. And they basically, I mean, were sort of the pioneers of that program and sort of brought it to be what it is now and then. And Craig Zobel and like, you know, these people, but. And, yes, but getting that training. And then when I graduated, I couldn't, you know, get a job, and so I was like, I'm going to be on Broadway. People be like, you know, you should do, like, sketch, too. You'd be great on Saturday Night Live. And I was like, no, I'm going to Saturday Night Live. Pish posh, posh.

[Brian Greene]

Shakespeare.

[Unknown]

Exactly. You know, all the major playwrights of the day. 1:1 man.

[Brian Greene]

Angels in America for the Queen. Yeah.

[Unknown]

Yes, exactly. And then. And then it was like, no, who are you? By like, I think, like, I. We did this, like, like, was performing for all the agents and casting directors of the day, and nobody. Nobody wanted to sign me. And then. I've said this so many times, but the only advice I got was from one, like, battle axe of a casting director who agreed to have a sympathy meeting with me. You're a character actor, kid. You'll work when you're 50. But then I was lucky that the Upright Citizens Brigade was coming into fruition in New York. You know, it was in its early days. This was 1999. I was 10 years old. I was a prodigy and skipped through. I mean, I'm acting. Stukey Hauser. No, but, yeah, it's crazy to think that it was that long ago and then it was really much in its infancy. Even though it was, like, the hot thing in town, though. It was like. I mean, they were. They were. The four of them, you know.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah.

[Unknown]

Amy, Matt Besser, Ian Robertson, Matt Walsh were. And then everybody, like, associated with that. They were, like, the coolest show in town then, you know, you have the student body, which was us, and we all built it to be, you know, under their guidance and, you know, we all, like, as a group, built it to be what it. You know, to make it equal the groundlings in Second City is like a place to find comedic performers and writers and you know, and then like, it reawakened in me, like my love of sketch and every. And like how much that was like my roots and that, that, you know, I really needed to be reminded of. Like, yeah, I, I did want to be on Saturday Night Live and, and like the Saturday Night Live performers were. Are still some of my favorite actors and, and just, you know, sketch in general and comedy in general. Everyone from Mel Brooks to Monty Python. So yeah. And because I knew how to be on a stage, unlike some of the weirdos. They were letting him there in the early days.

[Brett Gelman]

Right.

[Unknown]

Because it was such a dope, which I'm very grateful for. It was like so at all because like, you know, the UCB would be like, wow, this person is one of a kind. Strange and they're not an actor. But people need to see them on stage and we need to see like how somebody like vibes up against that person. And I don't know if that's like really what it is anymore. I haven't, I'm not sure.

[Brian Greene]

Sure.

[Unknown]

But that was really great to see and to be in this like, rough environment and, and be going from. So it was like putting yourself out there and like seriously sucking a lot of the nights was another great training. And just like. And being so heavily involved in long form improv. And then like the alt comedy scene, which was like the standup scene, that was not the club. So the weirdest you could be, the better even it was more important to be strange than funny at some times.

[Brett Gelman]

That seems more fun.

[Brian Greene]

Well, listen, I've been doing a lot of homework on the, on this kind of early 2000s alt comedy scene that was going. I mean, Zach Galifianakis might be one of the most famous examples of someone who is just weird as fuck. But he would keep the bit going long enough that it just all of a sudden. Yeah, it was, it was Kaufman esque. Honestly, it was. And there were places they'd be in like the, I don't know, in the bathroom of a coffee shop doing like comedy. And people would show up to, to be there because it was just performance art that had this comedic twinge to it. And yeah, it sounds like the UCB early on wasn't that, but they were butting up against like they were welcoming that energy into the room at times. Like, hey, that absolutely. Let's bring him in and see how it goes.

[Unknown]

Yeah. Then the two scenes like started to merge in a more like concrete way. And you started to have, like, you know, a lot of all comedians doing shows at ucb. And then, like, yeah, I mean, you were striving to be. I was striving to be like Zach or like John Glazer, you know, I mean, John Glazer is my Louis, you know. Well, Louie was a lot to a lot of people. Or like, you know, Chris is to a lot of people. It's like. Like, John Glazer would do these bits that I just. And this is when John was writing on, like, Late Night with Conan o' Brien and just like, coming in and doing these bits and you have people like him and Brian Stack and Andy Blitz and just doing these wild, bizarre bits. That was like what we were all striving for. I'm like, you know, Mr. Show with Bob and Dave, you know, Odenkirk and David Cross. So it was like that stuff was like, what was fueling the alt scene. And then that was also fueling ucb. But what was also fueling ucb, which was as much of a heavy influence on me, was like, that was when Will Ferrell was on Saturday Night Live. That was the height of Conan o'. Brien. That was like. It was just a very, very exciting time in comedy.

[Brian Greene]

It really was.

[Unknown]

And yeah, and so, like, we. And that was what we were all vying to get on Saturday Night Live. And they had lots, you know, that you'd see Tina Fay and Rachel Dratch come and do Ascat every Sunday. You know, it was amazing. And so then there was that. And then I also started studying the method, you know, with certain teachers, and getting into that teacher named Tony Greco.

[Brian Greene]

And then what did you Strasberg's about method acting? Because I've read a fair amount about method acting, and we've all have examples of method actors who have put down performances on celluloid that were just remarkable. Is. But it seems like a very hard. Seems intense place to go sometimes. But I don't know. I've never met that actor.

[Unknown]

Yeah, no, it's very hard. It's very hard, but very fulfilling. And it doesn't, you know, and my former personal trainer asked me one day. He was like, it's like, hey, man, are you a method actor? And I was like, oh, wow, I don't know how to answer that question. And then I asked Martha, you know, and so after Tony, then I. I started, you know, working with Martha on all of my roles. And Martha's the head of the Actors Studio, which basically. Lee Straw, you know.

[Brett Gelman]

Yeah.

[Brian Greene]

Yes.

[Unknown]

Created you know, created the American acting form in this country, which by way of Russia, obviously by way of the Soviet Union. But so. And she's the daughter of Estelle Parsons, who is like, you know, at Method act, you know, American acting royalty and. Yeah. And you know, Roseanne's mother, if you, you know, if you wanna. Which is an incredible performance. But yeah, so she. I was like, hey, somebody asked my personal trainer asked me if I'm a method actor and. And I'm like, am I? She's like, just when people ask you that, tell them that you have a process.

[Brett Gelman]

It does seem like a process.

[Unknown]

I think that's what it is. Like, I don't think it's like one thing. Like, I think it depends on the thing you're doing. And I've said this a lot that like you can over prepare one thing that I remember Tony telling the class, he's like, you can over prepare for a role as much as you can under prepare. So not every role is going to be given the same things.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah.

[Unknown]

And it shouldn't be otherwise. You're not. It's just not doing the thing service or you're. You're weight. You know, if you, if you put too much of like what some may call, you know, refer to as like the method methodology into a role, it's going to weigh it down potentially, you know.

[Brian Greene]

And all of a sudden it's just another thing altogether. It's like you're adding too much to it. It.

[Unknown]

But it was what it does do though, across the board is it gets you thinking about the role. And the thing in an immersive way that leads you to, you know, hopefully doing it in the way that it needs to be done.

[Brian Greene]

When you hear.

[Unknown]

And because it's not always like every. And everybody thinks about method acting is that you're the character the whole time. And that's not necessarily. That's not technically what it is. It's more about like sensory and you know, sense memory, emotional memory and these things. Being the character the whole time is. Is not like what's taught at the studio, you know, but that's something that a lot of actors choose to do because they develop their own process to do that. And I'm not going to hate on that. No, a lot of great people do that, but it's not necessarily the classic, classic method acting.

[Brett Gelman]

Interesting.

[Brian Greene]

I saw this really funny reel the other day. Dave Chappelle is on stage and he says, my dad died and I couldn't get over it. And I got a phone Call. I forgot who. Who it was from. Conan or somebody. And he said he knew that I was a fan of Jim Carrey. And he said, you want to go and meet Jim Carrey? And he said, Dave said, this is the first time I can remember being excited about anything since my dad died. I really wanted to meet Jim Carrey. He was kind of my hero. So I go to set, and I didn't know he was filming man on the Moon. Of course, when he's playing Kaufman, he says, so I go into the trailer and I'm waiting, and all of a sudden Jim Carrey walks in the door and I go, oh, my God, Jim Carrey, I've been wanting to meet you. And the whole room goes dead silent. And they. And somebody leans over and goes, his name is Andy.

[Brett Gelman]

Yeah.

[Brian Greene]

And he goes, who the fuck is Andy? Who the fuck is it?

[Unknown]

Yeah.

[Brian Greene]

And he wasn't responding when I was saying he. Jim. He. I reached my hand and he goes, I came all this way to meet Jim Carrot. I met some named Andy. And he said, but it was a. He was telling the story about how amazing it was to be in that. Years later, he recognizes how amazing it was to be in that trailer at that moment when someone is doing, you know, preparing for this performance or being in this moment that ended up being such a great movie. Such a great performance, by all accounts, Right?

[Unknown]

Yeah, amazing.

[Brian Greene]

But I think that that's. Like you said, that's probably a very exaggerated version of what method acting is. But if. If. Maybe that's just where Jim Carrey needed to go in that moment to get that performance that he wanted. I.

[Brett Gelman]

Do you use the method with all of your Adult Swim things that you did?

[Unknown]

I did a. I mean, I did a bit. I did a bit. Because with that stuff, I mean, we're huge fans.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah.

[Brett Gelman]

Huge fans, especially in Atlanta here.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah.

[Unknown]

Of this. Of Adult Swim or in General.

[Brett Gelman]

And especially Miss.

[Unknown]

Oh, my God, Mr. Pickles. I saw that.

[Brett Gelman]

That was credited.

[Unknown]

That was an honor.

[Brett Gelman]

Got to ask him about it. That show is so incredibly. Just bonkers crazy. It's so amazing. My husband and I laugh so hard at that show.

[Unknown]

I do Adult Swim a lot. I owe Adult Swim a lot. You know, we had a little bit of a tricky thing, you know, over, you know, a little bit of a falling out. But. But. And you can look it up in the.

[Brett Gelman]

In the news.

[Unknown]

Yeah, I don't want to talk about it. No. But I like. I mean, but that. But they, you know, really gave me a major platform to. And gave A lot of people, a major platform to do things that you could never do anywhere else on television. I mean, like. And that was a major thing, too. That was a major, like, force of my life for a while, was doing Eagle Heart and doing my dinner specials that were. It was, you know, I mean, I remember watching my dinner specials, and I'm like, I can't believe this is on television. And I think, like, Entitled has, like, a little, you know, the show that's coming that I'm. Oh, yeah. We only mentioned this in the pre.

[Brian Greene]

Interview. Yeah. Talk about this. Let me tell the audience.

[Unknown]

I fell into this. Yeah, you tell him.

[Brian Greene]

He's gonna. We're gonna talk about this. But he described this right before we came on air in our little intro chat here. He described this as a gothic horror comedy that even if you don't like it, you're gonna ask yourself, why the fuck is this on television? So now tell us about Entitled.

[Unknown]

Definitely.

[Brian Greene]

What's the story there?

[Unknown]

I made it with the fleabag producers.

[Brian Greene]

Great job.

[Unknown]

Myself and my wife are the only Americans in the show. Everybody else, Ari Dayan, who I'm sure we'll talk about in a second. But. And then it's. I play a disgraced plastic surgeon.

[Brett Gelman]

I already like it.

[Brian Greene]

It's already right up my alley. It's British plastic surgeon.

[Unknown]

I play a disgraced plastic surgeon. And it. I. My wife dies in who's British? In a freak hot tub accident. She's electrocuted. And I've never met any of her family. She says she's estranged from her family. She grew up. She told me she grew up poor. And. But in her will, it says, I want my body to be returned to my family in England. And I strap her coffin to the roof of a car. And once I land in the airport, and because I'm broke, I'm broke, I have to transport it there myself. And I bring her body to an address that she's given me, and it's a gigantic mansion. And it turns out she lied to me. She was a part of the aristocracy, this family. And this family is very strange and. And it's not clear. There's a lot of secrets. There's some supernatural elements. It gets very gothic horror. And, yeah, it's a gothic horror comedy. I should have said that to begin with. And then the family maybe is trying to kill me, maybe drive me insane. And that's, you know. And from there, I don't want to reveal too much, but that's like a lot of the gist of the Show.

[Brian Greene]

You wrote this and did this two years ago.

[Unknown]

I didn't write it. Matt Morgan. Very talented writer named Matt Morgan.

[Brian Greene]

You guys produced this two years ago.

[Unknown]

I was one of the executive producers on it. I was one of the producers on it with two brothers who made Fleabag and with Matt. And it's directed by Tim Kirkby, who is a fantastic director who, you know, came up in the whole, like, alt. Like, when I was coming up in. In comedy too. Like, we were watching Look Around You. Which, you know, which. Which Tim directed and. And things like the Mighty Boosh and of course, the British Office. So good, you know, all of these. That there was such a, like, vibrant, alt British comedy scene that was making all of these amazing television shows that me and my friends were. Were watching and that we're heavily influencing. So, like, this is like kind of like a culmination of that in. In this. Of, like, you know, that. That influence on me.

[Brian Greene]

This sounds like my kind of television show. Yeah. Because already what you're describing sounds wild, but then, you know, the kind of. The organic roots are like, Mighty Boosh, in my opinion, is a brilliant comic television show, but I just have a weird sense of humor that. That I'm sure that sounds like you share, you know. Yeah, the, like, adults.

[Unknown]

Absolutely.

[Brian Greene]

Mighty Boosh peep show. Like all these weird British television merengues.

[Unknown]

Dark place.

[Brian Greene]

Yes.

[Unknown]

You know, like. Yeah, that Adult Swim showed a lot on the. On the network because it was very much in line with, you know, adults and Tim and Eric and stuff like that.

[Brian Greene]

Tim and Eric, awesome show. Great job. Like these. These shows. And if you grew up in a certain time, Adult Swim was everywhere. I don't know that it is so much anymore. Things have changed. I'm sure it's different now. New ownership and all that other stuff. And I know they've been downsized in some ways. That's what I've read. But it is. It's a great American gift to comedy because it gave a home to comedic voices that were far from mainstream, but absolutely hilarious. Like people who should have been platformed when Reba was on or King of Queens. Not that, you know, listen, they have their place too. But, you know, I. I guess my comic sensibilities are just a little bit more. I don't know, a little bit more spicy than. Than those types of shows.

[Unknown]

But, yeah, like, you were Xavier in that. Yeah, it had Xavier, Renegade, Angel. Like, I mean, this amazing, brilliant piece of art, you know, And I mean, it just, like, had so much stuff that there's no way any other network would have greenlit it ever.

[Brian Greene]

So is on Netflix. I just want to let the. The listeners knowled is on Netflix. As you're listening to this entitled Is on Netflix. It just came out July 15th, so go, go watch it. It's a series.

[Unknown]

My gratitude. Netflix saved it. Netflix saved it. It was floating around. It didn't really have a home for various reasons for a couple years and we didn't know. And I'm very grateful to Netflix for, for saving it to put it out there so the world can see it in the best way possible.

[Brian Greene]

I have to say to Netflix, there's a lot that I don't like. There's some stuff that we can all argue about and I think in some ways streamers broke something that maybe wasn't or they broke something that maybe didn't need to be broken. But anyway, I put that aside to say that Netflix in a lot of ways does support comedy. Comedy in a large way. They have bough in big, especially on standup comedy. And, and they do put, you know, they do tend to come in and take chances on television shows that otherwise are just not going to get made. They're not going to be there.

[Unknown]

Yeah, absolutely. I mean, you know, I. They're a business and they're not unlike. It's like the way in which this comes to us changes, but it's still the same thing you're still going to be getting from every outlet, every studio, every network. Most things are going to be shit. And then you're going to get your special things that you love. And the fact that Netflix is and everywhere really is willing to support special things still, we're doing okay. We're doing as good as we've ever been doing. This is, is. This is not an easy business.

[Brian Greene]

You know, and it never has been, by the way. You know, it's. It never has been. And the, the listen the big studios and all the, all the drama, blah, blah, blah, blah blah, they will be around and they will just morph into. You know, things are just changing. That's. That's it. It will figure. It will shuffle itself out and it will figure out its way and you know, as long as there are companies like Netflix to support creators visions, then things will come to light hopefully if. If they should. Stranger Things.

[Unknown]

Yeah.

[Brian Greene]

Is a example of the one in a billion television or movie projects that is just defies gravity and unintended pun intended. Right. It just defied gravity. And that's. And you. I. I have to go back, way back. To the beginning of this conversation. The one question I, I didn't ask that I would love to hear what happens when you get the phone call that you got it. You're it. Here you go. You got the, you got the. You got the gig on Stranger Things slipped out.

[Unknown]

I mean, like so beyond happy, so ecstatic, and then immediately worried that something is going to make it fall through.

[Brian Greene]

Where is the other. What is the other shoe gonna drop?

[Unknown]

Yeah, yeah, exactly.

[Brian Greene]

Oh, exactly.

[Unknown]

I'm so excited. I will be more excited when I am on set and when I've not been cut out and I'm kept in.

[Brian Greene]

When I see the finals. When I see the finals and I'm there and my words are there.

[Unknown]

Yeah, yeah. But then it was always this thing because, you know, the duffers are really secretive. So you do have this thrill every season when you get to see, you know, what you're going to do. And so they always surprise me with of incredible things. You know, it's just fun to see it just be laid out in real time in front of your eyes. I mean, obviously they give you enough time to prep, but, you know, it's, it's understandable. Yeah, you can't like tell actors too much.

[Brian Greene]

Yes. You can't tell anybody.

[Unknown]

No, no, no, no.

[Brian Greene]

When you come here to Atlanta, do you live here in Atlanta for a period of time?

[Unknown]

I mean, I've lived there a lot.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah.

[Unknown]

I never like moved there totally because the way in which the. I had a house there at some point. But you know, you come in and out because a lot of times they're shooting a lot of your stuff really condensed and then you have some time off. So. Yeah, so I, I would be there for long stints, but not like crazy long stints, not like relocating there.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah, one day. I don't want to mention it because I don't, I don't want to give an indication of where I live. I love our fans, I love our listeners, but I don't want them at my.

[Unknown]

No, keep it private. Don't do it. You know, all it takes is one lunatic. Yeah, yeah, that's it. Totally.

[Brian Greene]

But we're here in Atlanta and one day we're looking out the window to see a couple of police officers are sitting across the. Sitting outside the neighborhood across the street. And then all of a sudden trucks are pulling up, trailers are pulling up, lighting rigs, gears. I mean, this is all happening like within three hours. Right. All of a sudden it's like a full blown movie set out there. We have to Go somewhere. We go somewhere. We have dinner. It's like two and a half hours later, we come back and they're shutting everything down and moving. You know, they're essentially gone. And we were like, wow, that was weird. And, you know, they have all these signs and people put online what the signs mean. You know, here, go there. This. This is. This film. That's that film. And I thought to myself, what the hell did they just do that in three and five hours? They went up and they came down. That seems. And anyway, so we. We went to learn from the neighbors across the street that what were they were doing was pickups for Stranger Things, like some kind of, you know, second photography or whatever they call it. Like they were doing some extra shoots or scene shoots or whatever. But it's all over Atlanta. If you lived here long enough, you've seen a Stranger Things center, too, somewhere around here.

[Unknown]

Totally.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah.

[Unknown]

No, it's. It's as much of a part of Atlanta as outcasts or future. You know, it's. Yeah, it's like. But I'm proud of that. I'm proud of that. It's like in Atlanta production, we're on that. Yeah. Because Atlanta's an incredible. You know, Atlanta has driven the culture, you know, pop culture in such a huge way, especially the last 30 years. I mean, in such an important, prevalent way, whether it's music or television or film, it's just, you know, and so it's cool to be there for that, you know, in so many different ways. And I mean, even when I wasn't filming there, you know, Adult Swims in Atlanta Network and was very much, like, coming out of the spirit of Atlanta and was aligned with, like, the experimentation of Atlanta that people don't give it enough. Still don't give it enough credit for. And so I think, like, that's like, a very big thing about the. Regarding the creativity of the show.

[Brian Greene]

Love them or hate them, Ted Turner gave a lot of people a lot of freedom to do a lot of stuff. We can thank him for 24 hour news. We can thank him for adults. We can thank him for TNT and Braves baseball being popular across the world. I mean, we can thank Ted for a lot of things, including owning a lot of land out.

[Brett Gelman]

Yeah. There was a recent documentary that came out on HBO about him and his life is incredible.

[Brian Greene]

He. The things he's done with his life. Yeah, it's just. It was. It was incredible. Brett has a podcast also that I find very entertaining. Please tell us a little bit more about. Thank you you're welcome. I find it extremely entertaining. Let me be clear about that. I find it extremely entertaining.

[Unknown]

I do that to my, my rep. Like, good, you know, my manager. Good job on the, you know, on the, on the show. What do you mean, good? I have, like, a weird thing with good. I, I, I, I. It's again, insecurity. Insecurity. No, it's called Erotica. It's hosted by myself and my wife, Ari Dayan, who's also an actress and a singer songwriter. And we basically, I mean, we basically riff the whole time and talk about a lot of the aspects of our relationship. And you know, it, we, you know, it really is meant to make the listener or viewer feel like you're sitting down to dinner with us. It's the same case, that and same experience. If you were just like in a restaurant or a bar or at our house with us. And it's like, no boundaries. The two of us are sensual beings and neurotic beings. Hence neurotica. So I was listening to an episode.

[Brian Greene]

A couple of weeks ago. Chris or a week ago. A couple weeks ago. Can't remember. And Brett goes, so tell me about your love life. His wife. This is displayful energy the two of you have that I can really, I really appreciate. I really do. A lot of ways I, I, I. There's some familiarity there to the relationship that I have with my own wife. It's, it's really funny. So wherever you get podcasts, Enlightened is coming out. Let's make that something to that. That gets a season two, or does it include. Is it a miniseries or could it be season two? Is it limited?

[Unknown]

There could be a season two. Absolutely. Right.

[Brian Greene]

Go.

[Unknown]

Well, I would be, I would be more than down for it to be a season two, but we got to see how it does. You know, everyone must pray to the algorithm.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah.

[Unknown]

And I'm hoping, I'm hoping that the ST fans, you know, need a little appetizer before the season five premiere and need me that bad.

[Brian Greene]

Yes.

[Unknown]

No, but I'm really, I'm very proud of it. It's one of the best things I've ever done. And. Yeah. And you know, you get, you get to see me in the lead. For better or worse. You're with me for most of the time. You're with me for the most of the time. Hanging out with me.

[Brian Greene]

Do I sniff a Stranger Things spin off coming in the works? I don't know.

[Unknown]

Oh, my God.

[Brian Greene]

Read some Internet that fandom that, that says, you know, people say a lot of things, you know, who knows Whatever.

[Unknown]

That is, you know, there is not.

[Brian Greene]

Nothing in the works.

[Unknown]

In the works. But I would, I would be more than down for that. I would love, I would love Murray to have a spin off. I think that that would be really, really. I, I see how that could work and I think it could be really, really fun. And, and there'd be a lot of karate and a lot of language and a lot of foreign languages and foreign dialects. I think we'd start getting really, a lot more into disguises and it'd be like my way of being of like doing my Harrison Ford fantasy continuing that and my Peter Sellers. My Peter Sellers fantasy.

[Brett Gelman]

See?

[Unknown]

And yeah, I would be so down if Murray became the better call Sal of Stranger Things.

[Brett Gelman]

Yeah, yeah.

[Brian Greene]

Brett Gilman. It was going to be appearing in a little show called Stranger Things. Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's.

[Brett Gelman]

Your whole, your holiday season.

[Brian Greene]

You don't even have to mark it on your calendar. It's already there. Just scratch out Christmas and put Stranger Things.

[Unknown]

Yeah.

[Brian Greene]

Enlightened is available now on entitled.

[Unknown]

Entitled.

[Brian Greene]

I'm sorry, why'd I say enlightened?

[Unknown]

Light and light. Enlightened was a great show.

[Brett Gelman]

A great show.

[Unknown]

Fantastic show. Unsung. Unsung masterpiece.

[Brett Gelman]

I agree.

[Brian Greene]

I'm with you on that one. Entitled, available now on Netflix. There are links in the show notes. He also has a book. I'm going to put the links in the show notes. So we didn't get to that this time, but we will get to it next time because you are welcome back anytime. Maybe as we get closer to season five and the. It's a fevered pitch that you can come on and, and discuss.

[Unknown]

The book is. The book is the Terrifying Realm of the Possible. It's, it's very Jewish, it's very neurotic and it's very. I love it.

[Brian Greene]

I love it.

[Unknown]

No, but I, I think people, it's, it's, it's five characters who are stricken with a lot of stuff. So in a funny, surreal way, you are the jabby. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I'm the jaddy. The Jewish daddy. The jazzy. I coined that in fashion.

[Brett Gelman]

Nice too.

[Unknown]

You know, somebody had to do it. Like Elliot Gould is like, you know, 80 by now. So, you know, I gotta, I gotta take that torch.

[Brian Greene]

My favorite reel that you have put out lately is the one where you're wearing like a fur skinned robe with slippers on, walking through the airport and somebody stops you and says, excuse me, are you Brett Gelman from Stranger Things? And you just Trying to quietly get to my gate for my flight or whatever. It was really funny.

[Unknown]

No. Well, it's. First of all, the first fake. I would not, you know, the first fake unless it was vintage. A vintage real fur.

[Brett Gelman]

It's already been done.

[Unknown]

But it's a fake fur. It's a faux fur. It's very nice. I love it. And I'm walking through the airport, and I'm with. I'm with Ari. I'm with my wife, and I'm like, like, wow. Can you imagine, like, what an I would be if anybody comes up to me and, like. And I'm like, hey, no, thanks. Like, most people who are, like, you know, famous or kind of famous, like, they're wearing, like, all blacks and, you know, and I'm like, in this loud thing. So obviously I'm a. I'm A for attention. And she's like, oh, that's so funny. That's so funny. Let's make a video of me coming up to you as a fan and you saying that to me. So that's what that.

[Brian Greene]

That. Meanwhile, Leonardo DiCaprio is at Jeff Bezos wedding in Venice getting into a boat with the hoodie pulled all the way over his face. And I'm like, you're at Jeff Bezos wedding? Dude, you didn't expect that. We're going to be photographer. I mean, come on. I like. I like Leo, but I felt like that was a little bit over the top anyway.

[Unknown]

Yeah. I mean, I have no idea what it's like to be Leonardo, so I don't know. You know, I don't even know what.

[Brian Greene]

It'S like to be Brett Gelman. So there you go.

[Unknown]

I have no idea what it's like to be you. You guys, you know, nobody knows. Nobody knows.

[Brian Greene]

Filled with love and happiness. And I can go to the store.

[Unknown]

You both glow. You both glow incredibly. I love. What? I love when fans come up to me. I love when fans come up.

[Brian Greene]

Well, we do, too. It's happened twice, right? Brett Gelman, thank you very much, my friend.

[Unknown]

Thank you guys so much. So great talking to you.

[Brian Greene]

Talk to you soon. Okay.

[Chrissy Hoadley]

You're probably wondering why I, Rachel, have taken over the voice duties at tcb. It's pretty simple. Astrid asked me to shut Brian up, even for a minute. Well, lovely Astrid, your wish is my command. Do you want to help Astrid, too? You know you do. Leave a message for her or me or Chrissy at 212-4333, TCB. That's 21 32, 22. You can be on the show too. Just call and say something, anything. Or text us and we'll text you right back. Promise. Then head over to tcbpodcast.com and get your free sticker. It's your constitutional right to a sticker and we must abide. You get the point? Follow us on Instagram at the commercial break and watch all the episodes on [e-mail] the commercial break break. Best to you and Astrid. Especially Astrid. Whether it's a date night, a special event, or just another Tuesday, our over 800 stylists are here to help you look and feel your best. We're about personalized style that fits your life, made for real life moments.

[Brian Greene]

Maurices Avoiding your unfinished home projects because you're not sure where to start. Thumbtack knows homes so you don't have to do. Don't know the difference between matte paint finish and satin or what that clunking sound from your dryer is. With Thumbtack, you don't have to be a home pro, you just have to hire one. You can hire top rated pros, see price estimates and read reviews all on the app Download today. Brad Gelman giving it bringing a little Stranger Things right back to Atlanta, where it has always belonged. Atlanta is truly a place where magical things happen like Stranger Things. And I have seen my fair share of sets. I have not seen Brett Gelman, but I look forward to seeing him in his new spin off show, Murray, a comedy by Stranger Things. Wouldn't that be great? Yeah, wouldn't that be great?

[Brett Gelman]

I would love that.

[Brian Greene]

Make it happen, Netflix.

[Brett Gelman]

We need to demand it.

[Brian Greene]

Make it happen. All right. All of Brett's prescient information is down in the show notes as it is about all of our guests, all of their pertinent details right there. Just open up your podcast podcast player and there will be a hyperlink. And you know how it works. You put your finger on it and you go wherever it tells you to go. That could be Brett Gelman's book. That could be Brett Gelman's new Netflix show entitled that Could Be Stranger Things Season 5. That will not be out for another couple months. So don't try and watch it right now. But maybe the old seasons you can catch up on before Christmas, Thanksgiving and New Year's are all taken by Stranger Things. The entire holiday season taken up by Stranger Things. But I mean, honestly, it's the right move by Netflix. Oh yeah, it's the right move. They're gonna have billions of views before 2026 even arrives. Billions of views. I mean I just can't imagine in my own head what it would be like to be part of a cultural phenomenon like Stranger Things. Maybe someday the commercial break will have the same weight as Stranger Things.

[Brett Gelman]

Aliens dig up our show?

[Brian Greene]

Yes.

[Brett Gelman]

They might not have the same.

[Brian Greene]

Probably not. They're gonna go, wow, someone asked for a thousand episodes of this. I can't even get through one. However, Chat, TCB seems to think we're on to something.

[Brett Gelman]

That's right, Chad.

[Brian Greene]

TCB thinks we're one in a.

[Unknown]

Oh.

[Brian Greene]

Chat, you're my best friend. I love you. You're so good to me.

[Brett Gelman]

Not he. It is our hype. Hype machine.

[Brian Greene]

It's our hype machine. It's my personal coach. It tells me, get up in the morning and drink my. Eat my Wheaties and drink my Oval King.

[Brett Gelman]

Yes, your personal self help coach.

[Brian Greene]

All right, so thanks very much to Brett for coming on and of course, if he's ever here in Atlanta, he's welcome to into the studio.

[Brett Gelman]

Yeah, we gotta have him there.

[Brian Greene]

Yeah, that would be cool to have Brett here. And his wife. His wife's pretty entertaining actually. That might be the thing is get them both on at the same time, let them go at it with each other. They're pretty entertaining. They're one of those couples that you always want to invite to a dinner party because they're always going to make some kind of trouble. A good trouble, but some kind of trouble. All right, 212-4333 tcb 212433822 go ahead, dial us up. Questions, comments, concerns, content, ideas? Tcbpodcast.com audio, video and your free sticker and YouTube.com thecommercial break for all the episodes on video when they are here on the audio. Okay, Chrissy, that's all I can do for now.

[Brett Gelman]

I think so.

[Brian Greene]

I'll tell you that I love you.

[Brett Gelman]

And I love you.

[Brian Greene]

Best to you and best to you out there in the podcast universe. Until next time, Chrissy and I will say we do say and we must say goodbye.

[Chrissy Hoadley]

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[Brett Gelman]

Thanks for selling your car to Carvana. Here's your check.

[Brian Greene]

Whoa. When did I get here?

[Unknown]

What do you mean?

[Brian Greene]

I swear it was just moments ago that I accepted a great offer from Carvana online. I must have time traveled to the future. It was just moments ago.

[Brett Gelman]

We do same day pickup.

[Chrissy Hoadley]

Here's your check for that great offer.

[Brian Greene]

It is the future.

[Unknown]

It's. It's the present.

[Brett Gelman]

And just the convenience of Carvana. Sorry to blow your mind.

[Unknown]

It's all good.

[Brian Greene]

Happens all the time.

[Chrissy Hoadley]

Sell your car the convenient way to Carvana.

[Brett Gelman]

Pick up.

[Chrissy Hoadley]

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[Brian Greene]

Sam.