Trump Taps Todd Blanche for J6er Slush Fund & Makes Bank After Boosting Stocks | Brendan Fraser

Summary

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The Daily Show: Ears Edition – May 20, 2026

Episode: Trump Taps Todd Blanche for J6er Slush Fund & Makes Bank After Boosting Stocks | Brendan Fraser
Host: Ronny Chieng
Main Guest: Brendan Fraser
Theme: Satirical coverage of political corruption, financial scandals, cultural trends, and a deep-dive interview with actor Brendan Fraser about his new WWII film “Pressure.”

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Episode Overview

This episode skewers the latest in Trump-era political corruption and financial hypocrisy, including a surreal “slush fund” to benefit January 6th defendants and new revelations about Trump’s personal profiteering via stock market manipulation. The news team mixes incredulous journalism with biting comedy. Later, Ronny Chieng sits down for a warm and thoughtful interview with Brendan Fraser, discussing history, acting, and how to survive (and thrive) in Hollywood.

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Key Segments & Discussion Points

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1. Trump’s “Corrupt Tales” – New Ballroom & Slush Fund

[02:00 – 08:45]

• Trump’s New Ballroom and Corporate Sponsorships

  • Trump is giving reporters a tour of his new ballroom, built and paid for by corporate interests.
  • Ronny Chieng mocks Trump’s description of the architecture, particularly the redundancy of describing “see-through glass” and the confusing claim that “the roof also goes down into the basement":
    • “Okay, what do you mean the roof goes into the basement? What MC Extra shit is this?” (Ronny Chieng, 03:31)
  • Chieng jokes about how Trump’s corrupt dealings almost elicit reluctant admiration:
    • “Trump figured out how to be both the Karen and the manager. Like, no one has ever done that before. This guy's playing 5D chess with corruption here.” (Ronny Chieng, 05:33)

• The DOJ’s “Anti-Weaponization Fund”—A Trump Slush Fund

  • The Justice Department, under Trump, is creating an $1.8 billion fund, supposedly for “victims” of the Biden DOJ, which notably includes over 1,600 January 6th defendants.
  • Chieng’s incredulity and mockery:
    • “So our taxpayer money is going to the people who did Gen 6, so effectively, the rest of us are being taxed for not doing Gen 6.” (Ronny Chieng, 06:39)
  • The fund’s actual controller is Todd Blanche, Trump’s erstwhile personal lawyer and now Acting Attorney General. Chieng ridicules the lack of objectivity:
    • “At this point, it's pretty clear that Donald Trump's former personal lawyer is just there to deep throat his corruption boner. But just don't say that to his face.” (Ronny Chieng, 07:41)

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2. Trump’s Stock-Market Scheme

[08:45 – 11:13]

• Trump's Dubious Stock Trades and Public Endorsements
  • Michael Kosta reports Trump has made 3,700 prolific stock trades, valued up to $750 million, often just before publicly endorsing those companies—a brazen abuse of the presidential platform.
  • Chieng summarizes:
    • "It's undeniable at this point that Trump has achieved the level of corruption no one has ever imagined before." (Ronny Chieng, 10:27)
  • Notable examples include:
    • Buying $1-5 million in Dell stock and then encouraging the public, days later: "Go out and buy a Dell computer." (Quoted Trump, via Chieng, 09:38)
    • Hailing Palantir’s “war capabilities” after acquiring shares.

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3. “Costa Doing Business”: Ube Craze & Counterfeit Perfume

[11:51 – 18:05]

• Ube (Purple Yam) as the Latest Gentrified Food Trend

  • Explores Starbucks’ new ube lattes, the skyrocketing demand, and the links to social media trends.
  • Kosta’s satirical take:
    • "Ooh, bae, let's make some ooh bucks... I'm putting my money into russet potatoes and purple spray paint." (Michael Kosta, 13:05)
  • Satirical business idea: “U. Bayer” delivery service.

• Counterfeit Perfumes Contaminated With Horse Urine

  • Reports on the dangers and real cases of fake goods, including disgusting perfume scams.
  • Kosta’s lampooned faux-ad campaign:
    • "La Yarin Dasheva, the new fragrance from a horse that Michael Costa chased until it stopped to pee. Would you accept anything less?" (Michael Kosta, 15:19)

• Tax the Rich? “NAACP” for Billionaires

  • Billionaire Steven Roth outrageously compares “tax the rich” rhetoric to hate speech.
  • Kosta, spoofing:
    • “I'll say it. Rich people are not just some economic class. We're a race. I didn't choose to be rich. I was born this way.” (Michael Kosta, 16:53)
    • Jokes about starting an “NAACP: National Association for the Advancement of Cha Ching People.” (17:55)

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4. Interview: Brendan Fraser – “Pressure” & Historical Heroism

[20:02 – 38:43]

Overview

A thoughtful, funny conversation about Fraser's latest film “Pressure,” which tells the untold story of scientists, D-Day, and the value of evidence-based leadership. The segment is rich in both historical insight and personal reflection.

Key Points & Quotes

• Playing Dwight Eisenhower & What “Pressure” Is About
  [21:21 – 27:27]

  • Fraser details Eisenhower’s background, D-Day planning, and historical meteorologist James Stagg’s crucial role.
    • “He never fired a shot in anger. He was never fired at his entire career... he kept getting promoted as an excellent strategist and diplomatic.” (Brendan Fraser, 21:26)
    • The high-stakes weather forecast before D-Day:
      “I’ve never seen a more tension filled weather report than this movie...” (Ronny Chieng, 23:01)

• On Science, Leadership, and the Value of Experts

  • Discussion of how leaders once listened to scientists—and the film as a lesson:
    • “Back in the good old days, when leaders met with scientists to make informed decisions...” (Ronny Chieng, 25:38)
    • Fraser: “That kind of respect is... earned, it's not commanded. And... it goes a long way to understanding why they're even doing that in the first place.” (Brendan Fraser, 25:57)

• Historical Accuracy & Research

  • Fraser’s acting method and historical surprises uncovered during research, including the tragic story of Operation Tiger—a D-Day rehearsal gone deadly.
    • “I took that as a springboard to understanding who Eisenhower was...he could not have seen his own son's eyes when he wished them well...” (Brendan Fraser, 28:07)

• Hollywood, Genres, and Surviving a Wild Career

  • On being beloved in Hollywood:
    • "You're genuinely one of the most beloved people and you know, you've had this really wide ranging career, man... You've done it all." (Ronny Chieng, 33:01)
    • Fraser: "I just want a job, man. You know, keep working, repeat if I can, you know, and it's not always like that. There are ups and downs, and it is a... corkscrew, you know." (Brendan Fraser, 33:05)

• Industry Evolution & Sequel Culture

  • On changing movie trends and sequels:
    • "I think early on I had a sort of personal creed... one for them, two for them, one for me, you know... maybe around the 1980s..." (Brendan Fraser, 34:02)
    • Chieng: "You mean the last millennium. Yeah, when you were..." (Ronny Chieng, 33:31)
  • Admits there were always bad movies too:
    • "We can make crappy movies back then too. Don't worry. Guilty." (Brendan Fraser, 35:47)

• On Choosing Indie Projects & Taking Risks

  • Fraser on what drives his recent choices:
    • “I think it's good to take creative, calculated risks. That's where the most growth can come from, creatively speaking... We want to be taken somewhere. We want to be shown something new. We want to feel like we've learned something.” (Brendan Fraser, 37:35)
    • Cites how history can pivot on small moments—like D-Day’s weather.

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Trump’s corruption:
  “It's so blatant and corrupt that it's actually fine. I mean, I wanna be mad, but I'm also kind of impressed.” (Ronny Chieng, 05:31)

• On Trump’s stock trading:
  “If you're telling people to buy a Dell computer in 2026, you're probably doing something illegal.” (Ronny Chieng, 09:54)

• Michael Kosta on horse-urine perfume:
  “I'm not a horse piss whisperer. But the real shame here is this counterfeiting hurts everyone.” (Michael Kosta, 14:49)

• Brendan Fraser on Eisenhower:
  “He cared intensely for the troops. And that kind of respect is. It's earned, it's not commanded. And in my view...almost like a secret asset weapon of sorts...” (Brendan Fraser, 25:57)

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Segment Timestamps

| Segment | Start | End | |---------------------------------------------------|----------|----------| | Trump’s Corrupt Tales (Ballroom & Fund) | 02:00 | 08:45 | | Trump’s Stock Trades & Endorsements | 08:45 | 11:13 | | Costa Doing Business (Ube Trend, Counterfeits) | 11:51 | 18:05 | | Brendan Fraser Interview – “Pressure” | 20:02 | 38:43 |

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Tone & Style

• Satirical, sharp, irreverent in news coverage—punching up at corruption and absurdity.
• Warm, engaged, nerdy during the interview: a mix of gentle ribbing and sincere admiration for Fraser and his thoughtful approach to both history and acting.

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Summary

This episode offers a whiplash juxtaposition of absurd, infuriating political news—Trump’s ever-expanding, increasingly obvious corruption—and cultural satire, before landing on genuine, enriching conversation as Brendan Fraser illuminates lessons from WWII and the art of film. The team’s irreverence gives way to depth, reflection, and hope, making the episode both hilarious and unexpectedly inspiring for listeners.

Transcript

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[Ron Chang]

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[Comedy Central Announcer / Ronnie]

listening to Comedy Central.

[Ron Chang]

From the most trusted journalists at Comedy Central.

[Comedy Central Announcer / Ronnie]

It's America's only source for news. This is the Daily show with your host, Ronnie.

[Ron Chang]

Welcome to the Daily Show. I'm Ron Chang. We got so much to talk about tonight. Donald Trump makes his bank account great again. White people find a new food to gentrify. And the new get rich quick scheme is taking a shit on Nancy Pelosi's desk. And later on, Brendan Fraser will be joining him. So first, yeah, Brendan Frazier. But first, Donald Trump has found many new ways of getting rich. So let's get into it. Our new segment, corrupt Tales. Corrupt Tales. We grab money. Money, money. I love money. This morning, Donald Trump gave reporters a tour of his upcoming ballroom site that big companies are paying for. And no, they're not just paying for it to get political favors. It's to support his passion for D. But since everyone is so skeptical about it, Donald Trump made sure to defend it loud and clear. Everything. I spelled it across and I'm sorry for Washington. So that's important. Thank you for clearing that up. Honestly, just as informative as any of your other press conferences. But once the noise calmed down a bit, Trump did have a chance to explain some of the unique Architectural innovations that justify the cost of this ballroom. I think you can see the complexity. All of these columns go directly up to the roof. That's right up to the roof. We're not doing any of those columns that stop halfway. Okay. Very innovative. Any other incredible breakthroughs we should know about? The glass is approximately 4 inches thick, and yet it's amazing. You can see through it as though it didn't exist. It's amazing. Wow. Glass you can see through. Very cool. It sounds like you're just describing every building. Can you do something interesting with it? It's all knit together. The roof goes with the ground floor. The ground floor goes with the roof. The roof also goes down into the basement. Okay, wait. Now it's too weird. Okay, what do you mean the roof goes into the basement? What MC Extra shit is this? People inside will be like, am I dancing on the floor or the ceiling? Both. But whatever laws of physics this roof violates. Having a giant ballroom built as a favor by your corporate friends, it's hard to think of how things could get more corrupt than that. Tonight, the Justice Department announcing a new so called anti Weaponization Fund. $1.8 billion in taxpayer money to be given away to allies of President Trump who claim they were unfairly treated by the Biden doj. I stand corrected. I think my brain's roof just fell into his basement. I mean, if you're confused by what's going on here, I went to law school. Okay, so let me explain it to you visually. So Donald Trump, the man, is suing the irs, which happens to be headed by Donald Trump the president, which then reached a settlement with the Justice Department, headed by a man named Donald Trump, to create a slush fund controlled by, you guessed it, Donald Trump. It's so blatant and corrupt that it's actually fine. I mean, I wanna be mad, but I'm also kind of impressed. Trump figured out how to be both the Karen and the manager. Like no one has ever done that before. This guy's playing 5D chess with corruption here. I mean, I bet he's building the ballroom just so he can do a slip and fall. He'll be dancing in there, he'll hit his head. He's gonna leave the office with a fake neck brace and $3 trillion. Now the settlement says the money is gonna go to the victims of the Biden administration, which is pretty broad. I mean, hell, I'm a victim of the Biden administration. I mean, I stir up PTSD from watching that guy die slowly on television. But who Does Trump have in mind for this money? Among those who could see payouts, the 1,600 people charged in connection with the riot at the Capitol on January 6th. Okay, okay, hold on. So our taxpayer money is going to the people who did Gen 6, so effectively, the rest of us are being taxed for not doing Gen 6. Well, if I knew that, I would have gone there. Wait, I mean, I was there. I just remembered. Didn't you see me? I was the guy in the video doing this. The election. Anyway, Venmo. Me. But look, I don't want to be too cynical here. I'm sure Donald Trump doesn't get to hand the money out to whomever he wants. I'm sure there's someone else who's actually controlling the fund.

[Comedy Central Announcer / Ronnie]

The fund itself will be controlled by

[Michael Kosta]

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, who, of

[Comedy Central Announcer / Ronnie]

course, was the president's personal lawyer.

[Ron Chang]

Okay, it's his personal lawyer, but that's still a professional relationship. I'm sure he's still objective.

[Comedy Central Announcer / Ronnie]

I love working for President Trump. It's the greatest honor of a lifetime.

[Ron Chang]

If he chooses to nominate somebody else

[Comedy Central Announcer / Ronnie]

and asks me to go do something. El, I will say thank you very much. I love you, sir.

[Ron Chang]

Okay, fine. He's his personal lawyer, and he's also in love with him. Whatever. At this point, it's pretty clear that Donald Trump's former personal lawyer is just there to deep throat his corruption boner. But just don't say that to his face. I'm the acting Attorney General, okay? The fact that I used to be

[Comedy Central Announcer / Ronnie]

President Trump's lawyer is just a fact.

[Ron Chang]

So don't say the president's former personal

[Comedy Central Announcer / Ronnie]

lawyer will do something. The acting Attorney General will do something, mister.

[Ron Chang]

Okay, okay. Geez. I'm sorry. What I meant to say is if the honorable acting Attorney General could please stop throwing Trump's corruption bonus so hard that his corrupt balls tickle your acting Attorney General chin, that would be great, my good sir. The one. The one good thing about the settlement is that it doesn't let Trump get the money personally. So at the very least, it's nice to know that Trump isn't just gonna go around trying to make himself rich.

[Michael Kosta]

New reporting this morning on President Trump's financial disclosure, showing he publicly praised companies after buying their stock. Prolific stock trades making 3700 of them. Accumulative value between 220 million and around $750 million.

[Ron Chang]

Holy shit, this guy is grinding. How does he even find the time to do all? I mean, I thought he was falling asleep during meetings. But I think he's just looking down at his E Trade account. I mean, it must have been more subtle than that, right? It's not like he was buying a stock and then going out and telling people to go buy the company's products.

[Michael Kosta]

President Trump bought between 1 million and $5 million of Dell stock on February 10th. Nine days later, he delivered an economic speech in Rome, Georgia, where he said, this Dell.

[Ron Chang]

Go out and buy a Dell computer. Wow. Okay. This guy does not give a anymore. They're gonna have to start replacing the presidential seal with a hashtag ad. In hindsight, we should have suspected something. I mean, if you're telling people to buy a dell computer in 2026, you're probably doing something illegal. Okay? Cause even the people who make Dell computers are like, do they still make Dell computers? When you look back on it, though, the clues were pretty obvious.

[Commercial Voice]

Weeks after buying shares of Palantir, Trump

[Ron Chang]

touting the stock posting.

[Commercial Voice]

Palantir Technologies has proven to have great war fighting capabilities and equipment. Just ask our enemies.

[Ron Chang]

I mean, he's even putting the stock ticker symbol in his tweet. You know, the way we all drop stock symbols into our everyday conversations, like, hey, officer, officer. That man stole my iPhone. AAPL. Here's the bottom line. It's undeniable at this point that Trump has achieved the level of corruption no one has ever imagined before. And if I may be serious for a second, this is. This is unacceptable. Mr. President, you owe it to the public to explain yourself loud and clear. Okay, I can't. I can't hear you. I can't hear what you're saying. Fine. I'm sure he's apologizing here. All right? When we come back, Michael Costa will tell you how to get rich. So don't go.

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[Ron Chang]

Welcome back to the Daily Show. If you want honest and rigorous financial news, then go eat a dick. But if you want to get rich, then you want Michael Kosta in another installment of Costa Doing Business.

[Michael Kosta]

Yo, yo, yo, yo, yo. My money makers and my profit takers, welcome to Costa Doing Business. Let's make some fat stacks of that stanky cash.

[Ron Chang]

Mm.

[Michael Kosta]

And we better make it quick because I got a hot date tonight. That's right. I'm planning on warming up a salad, dried date in the microwave and eating it for dinner. No, I'm just kidding. It's not even a date. It's more just like a big raisin. Anyway, let's talk making green, which these days comes in purple. Hit me.

[Ron Chang]

UBE has been finding its way onto social media feeds as the new must have drink ingredient. The purple yam, native to the Philippines, is gaining a reputation as the new matcha. Starbucks recently launched an entire line of UBE flavored lattes. Its appearance on menus across the country has increased by 230%. But Filipino farmers are struggling to keep up with the demand.

[Michael Kosta]

Ooh, bae, let's make some ooh bucks. Okay. And I get all in on drink crazes. Pomegranate juice, protein shakes, whatever's left in people's glasses at the end of a wedding. It's like I'm being paid twice to cater. Unfortunately, because of supply chain issues, this UBE got consumers saying, ooh, boy. And I haven't been this upset by a Filipino supply chain issue since my dominant mistress, Manila, lost the keys to my genital cage. Now, again, apologies to my locksmith, Mr. Manila, but damn, if people are paying top dollar for purple spud, then I'm putting my money into russet potatoes and purple spray paint. And here's how it works. First, you eat the potato for energy. Then, to help you come up with a business idea, you huff the paint. And that's exactly what I did last night. And I'm proud to announce the launch of my new UBE delivery business, U. Bayer. It's a great name. Nobody take it. Moving on. For those of you not making fat stacks of stanky cash, right now, you might be doing a little thing the K Dog likes to call struggling to make ends meet. And I'm sorry about that. But if you're thinking of saving some cheddar on cheaper products, you might want to make sure that big deal isn't a big dud. Don't hit me. Don't hit me.

[Ron Chang]

Don't.

[Michael Kosta]

Don't hit.

[Ron Chang]

Hey, hey, hey, hey.

[Michael Kosta]

You can hit me now.

[Ron Chang]

Fake products rapidly being sold around the world. And they're getting harder to catch.

[Comedy Central Announcer / Ronnie]

One disturbing case in particular involves counterfeit perfume being sold online that was contaminated with horse urine.

[Ron Chang]

We've had some tested that have actually had horse urine in them. So you don't Want to be putting that on your skin?

[Michael Kosta]

Look, I know, I know you guys got a lot of questions. Why use specifically horse urine? Couldn't you use dog urine or human urine maybe. Why even. No urine, maybe? Look, I don't have all the answers. I'm not a horse piss whisperer. But the real shame here is this counterfeiting hurts everyone. Not just the people buying perfume contaminated with horse piss, but also the people buying horse piss contaminated with perfume. Gross. But hey, where some people smell horse piss, Costa smells a pissness. Opportunity hit me with my new ad. In the wild, the alpha always leaves his scent. Capture it. Every last drop. La Yarin Dasheva, the new fragrance from a horse that Michael Costa chased until it stopped to pee. Would you accept anything? Oh, come on. Semen again?

[Ron Chang]

Wow. Wow.

[Michael Kosta]

That came out way better than I expected. Now let me tell you, this stuff is great, but warning, do not wear it around police horses. They will bite you and are immune from prosecution. Moving on. If I may for a moment, be serious with all my moneymakers and profit takers.

[Comedy Central Announcer / Ronnie]

Come here.

[Michael Kosta]

Come on.

[Ron Chang]

Hey, hey.

[Michael Kosta]

Bring it in. Come on. You know, there's a lot of. I don't think anything happened. Come on. Come a little closer. There's a lot of economic injustice in this world. And it's important to remember we all have to take a stand against it. That's why I was so happy to see this. In New York, the mayoral push to tax the rich has one billionaire firing back.

[Ron Chang]

Real estate titan Steven Roth is sounding off saying, I consider the phrase tax the rich when spit out with anger and contempt by politicians both here and across the country to be just as hateful as some disgusting racial slurs.

[Michael Kosta]

Amen, my brother from another bank account number. Look, I'll say it. Rich people are not just some economic class. We're a race. I don't think that's a controversial thing to say. I didn't choose to be rich. I was born this way. My. My great, great grandfather came to this country with nothing more than the silk shirt on his back, a shitload of money, and several more suitcases filled with silk shirts and money. So this doesn't just hit home to me. It hits my vacation home as well. And despite all the hate, I still remain hopeful for all my fellow affluent Americans. Because let me tell ya, I have been to the mountaintop. Yes, it was to go hella skiing with the Winklevoss twins, but the view was so sick. Which inspired me to start my first non profit organization to combat anti rich hate. Introducing the national association for the Advancement of Cha Ching People. Or as I call it, the naacp. It's a great name. Nobody take it. All right, that's it for me. I can hear the clip clap of angry and aroused police horses stalking me outside the studio.

[Ron Chang]

But hey, that's just the cost of doing business. Thank you, Michael. When we come back, Brendan Fraser will be joining me on the show. So don't go away.

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[Ron Chang]

Welcome back to the Daily Show. My guest tonight is an Academy Award winning actor who stars in the new film Pressure. Please welcome Brendan Fraser. Outstanding ovation. This was the longest standing ovation anyone's ever gotten. As deservedly so. Mr. Brandon Fraser, I love you. You're the best man. I love you so much. I've been loving you since I was a kid.

[Comedy Central Announcer / Ronnie]

Ronnie, I'm Old.

[Ron Chang]

Let's talk about this project. So I love this Fantasy World War II movie where white people joined forces to fight Nazis. I wish we actually still did that.

[Comedy Central Announcer / Ronnie]

What leadership once looked like, why we did that in the first place.

[Ron Chang]

It moves pressure. So period, Peace and World War II. You play General Eisenhower.

[Comedy Central Announcer / Ronnie]

I am Ike. I didn't know a lot about him as a historical figure apart from the lapel pen. I like Ike in his war years. I learned that he never fired a shot in anger. I was never fired at his entire career. He intended to fight the first World War, but he concluded inconveniently for him. But over the next successive four or so years, he kept getting promoted as an excellent strategist and diplomatic. And so when we meet Ike in the world of this film, it's on the eve of D Day. And that was originally set for Monday, June 5, 1944. And I did not know when the project came my way that it was postponed from inclement weather that was inbound. That they really only learned about that weekend before at the initiative insistence of James Crick. Who Skagg. I should know this. Played by Andrew Scott. And he was the meteorologist. He worked with the home office for a number of weeks before then. And he was, I guess, the one who had the temerity to rely on science and facts for how to determine the weather when it was an age. When looking out the window was kind of the way it was done. Yeah, yeah.

[Ron Chang]

And I've never seen a more tension filled weather report than this movie. I watched the whole. The whole thing. And the whole time I was like engaged. It was like, is this gonna rain or not? Like, I didn't know what was going to happen. I followed this movie more than I was following the weather for my outdoor wedding. Right. The stakes were extremely high in this. And you see the. Literally the pressure building of the.

[Comedy Central Announcer / Ronnie]

You know, it's not just barometric pressure concerned about in this world.

[Ron Chang]

Yeah. And you're right. So I mean the story of this brave weatherman who. Who. Who. Who basically delayed Allied invasion of Normandy to reach to defeat the Nazis. And he called. He made the call. And as you said, it was back in the day when, you know, now we get weather sent to our phones while we're taking a shit on the toilet. But these guys had to deal with like paper charts and some guy letting off a balloon and then someone had to call from Ireland.

[Comedy Central Announcer / Ronnie]

That was science, you know, but prior to that, it was relying on analogs like the Farmers Almanac. Well, it didn't snow in 1888, it won't today.

[Ron Chang]

Analogs being kind of historical charts were

[Comedy Central Announcer / Ronnie]

just going off records and records of records. That's not good enough when you've got 300,000 troops standing by in relative secrecy

[Ron Chang]

and the fate of the free world in the balance.

[Comedy Central Announcer / Ronnie]

And to delay that or even, you know, turn it around is really quite near impossible. And when the Joint Chiefs of Staff received the report, it was conflicting because they couldn't just say, oh, we'll do it next week very easily. Although they would have had to wait a considerable amount of time because the phases of the moon would go through the tides.

[Ron Chang]

Yeah. In the movie, General Montgomery says that the paratroopers can only land when it's a full moon. And the next full moon would be the next week, and then the 18th, and then everyone's like, well, now the Nazis are going to find out we're invading, because we can't. No one can shut the up for two weeks. There's that. Yeah.

[Comedy Central Announcer / Ronnie]

But for the courage of the weatherman who came forward and said, if you're going to go, there is going to be a break in the storm following day, which is Tuesday, June 6th, which we all know is D Day. And if they were to attack, there was a window of opportunity. It would have been that morning. It wasn't ideal, but the chop was less on the ocean. Air Force could hit targets through the cloud cover. And did it work? Well, you'll have to come see the film. The Fate of your.

[Ron Chang]

I hope it works. Yeah. And the other theme of the movie is this idea, as you were kind of alluding to it, was this idea of. Back in the good old days, when leaders met with scientists to make informed decisions that benefited,

[Comedy Central Announcer / Ronnie]

gave them that forum, had the courage to believe in them, listen to them, didn't just hear them. And that's the kind of leader that. My big takeaway in my research was who Ike was. He was a diplomat, and at all accounts, he was a lot of fun at dinner parties where he probably did some of his best diplomatic work and, I don't know, like, magic tricks with napkins or something. I don't know. But he was a personable guy, and he cared intensely for the troops. And that kind of respect is. It's earned, it's not commanded. And in my view, I think that that in itself becomes almost like a. Like a secret asset weapon of sorts, that we show respect for one another, and it goes a long way to understanding why they're even doing that in the first place.

[Commercial Voice]

Yeah.

[Ron Chang]

Again, it's a great. It's a great takeaway from this movie. You know, the lessons we can learn, weirdly enough, from history of how to defeat Nazi.

[Comedy Central Announcer / Ronnie]

The scourge of tyranny and fascism.

[Ron Chang]

Yeah, right.

[Comedy Central Announcer / Ronnie]

Read a book.

[Ron Chang]

Yeah, yeah. You know, you're playing Eisenhower in this. Like, how much of this. Just If I could talk technique, a little bit acting technique. Like, how much of this were you trying to. Like, you know, when you're playing a historical figure, obviously, there's so much footage and materials available. And were you trying to, you know, how much of that were you trying.

[Comedy Central Announcer / Ronnie]

It was a first for me. I know I'm not a carbon copy to look like Eisenhower. I got about, you guys are both

[Ron Chang]

white guys in the ballpark.

[Comedy Central Announcer / Ronnie]

But I know that with an audience's generational perspective, I think we can go back and look at, you know, who the essence of it is, and remember, this is a film. We all kind of know the conclusion. But the compelling part is how we are on the edge of our seat watching this film, and we still wonder if we humans are arrogant enough to shake our fist at the sky and expect a different result. And you're gonna get it wrong if you do that. So it's a film that I know will mean a great deal to our veterans, and it will certainly mean a great deal towards understanding what went into the operation in the first place. It was news to me that only six weeks earlier, Eisenhower had given the order to use live fire on a training exercise called Operation Tiger. And that was in late April, the 28th and 29th, wherein American troops were rehearsing charging a beach in southern beach in England. And there was confusion at sea with frequencies. German E boats were harassing landing craft. And in the exercise, an hour was lost, and the first wave in the exercise attacked the beach. Unbeknownst to them, they walked right into Eisenhower's live fire and sadly, 749 army and lost their lives that day. And it wasn't until the late 70s, a man called Burns, who lived on that beach, was wondering, why did the fishing nets keep getting stuck at the same part in the surf? So somebody went down with a mask and came up and said, tank, oil, water, no Sherman tank. They had forgotten that that was the beach that was used for the exercise. So sad as that is, to answer your question, I took that as a springboard to understanding who Eisenhower was and that he could not have had seen his own son's eyes when he wished them well and greeted them. You only look at the file photos of the 101st. And you can tell that there's such concern there. And it wasn't just because he was talking about fly fishing and your mom and how bad the food is. And it was that he was even told by them that sir, don't worry, we'll take care of this. And I think it gave him some sort of sense of consolation knowing that he was sending these guys into bare knuckle fight with a chainsaw to begin with. But he's going to do it now in the eye of a storm. And this is all news to me. I got to ask, anybody know any of the this historical perspective? Nor I. So I read a book. Come see the film.

[Commercial Voice]

You'll see yourself,

[Ron Chang]

these guys asking the wrong crowd. These are tiktokers over there. Yeah. So I mean again, great movie. I was on the edge of my seat the whole time. Great portrayal, I appreciate it. And again, I didn't know about this and, and I.

[Comedy Central Announcer / Ronnie]

It gives you a new perspective.

[Ron Chang]

It totally does, doesn't it?

[Comedy Central Announcer / Ronnie]

I felt the same way. And hey, I'm glad that I worked with Andrew Scott. He's like a boulder in the stream. He plays the weatherman who brings this.

[Ron Chang]

Well, the cast is all star cast, I would say, you know, you got who's who, you got Damian Lewis Montgomery. You got K, I think Kerry Condon. Yeah, Kerry Condon playing K. And Andrew Scott.

[Comedy Central Announcer / Ronnie]

And Andrew Scott. And you'll likely recognize a lot of faces from really great British television who populated the rest of the cast. And the keen observers will see that the location we used was actually also used in the second Mummy movie.

[Ron Chang]

Oh.

[Comedy Central Announcer / Ronnie]

And I learned that because walking on I went. I think I jumped out of that window.

[Ron Chang]

It's weird. The universe is so weird.

[Comedy Central Announcer / Ronnie]

Well, it was a body double of me, but you know, it looked right,

[Ron Chang]

it looked like this. And this brings me back to you, I guess. I mean, you are one of the few beloved people in Hollywood. Seriously, everybody hates everybody. There's only like, yeah, look, there's only like four people. It's like you, Keanu Reeves, Randall park and me. You know, everyone else just hates everyone else. So how did. I mean, maybe it's too general a question, but how did you manage that?

[Comedy Central Announcer / Ronnie]

Bribery.

[Ron Chang]

Well, how much? Let us know so we can. You know, you're genuinely one of the most beloved people and you know, you've had this really wide ranging career, man. You've done it all. You've done, you did Encino man comedies, you did School Ties. You did, you did Crash you did Oscar. You got whale. You did the. You won Oscar for the whale. You did the rental panel. It's been everything.

[Comedy Central Announcer / Ronnie]

I've been really lucky.

[Ron Chang]

Is there a method to this?

[Comedy Central Announcer / Ronnie]

I just want a job, man. You know, keep working, repeat if I can, you know, and it's not always like that. There are ups and downs, and it is a. It is a corkscrew, you know.

[Ron Chang]

Well, I guess more specifically, it's that your career, you've done a lot of different genres and tones, is what I'm asking, you know, is that. I mean, is that I've seen a

[Comedy Central Announcer / Ronnie]

lot of changes, a lot of trends in the way films are made in my time and, you know, last century, in the early night, in the 1990s.

[Ron Chang]

You mean the last millennium. Yeah, when you were. When you were.

[Comedy Central Announcer / Ronnie]

When I was a whippersnapper, the films that were made were, you know, for one thing, they were shot on film. And what's that? It's this stuff that you gotta get it wet.

[Ron Chang]

The long shit that you have to,

[Comedy Central Announcer / Ronnie]

like, cut if you turn the light on.

[Ron Chang]

Right, right. Charlie Chaplin. Yeah, right.

[Comedy Central Announcer / Ronnie]

Good times.

[Progressive Insurance Announcer]

Yeah.

[Ron Chang]

No, but. But how did you pick these projects? I mean, what. You know, sorry. You're actually explaining your perspective on the industry that.

[Comedy Central Announcer / Ronnie]

I think early on I had a sort of personal creed, kind of like, you know, one for them, two for them, one for me, you know, sequel culture was, I think, really sort of coming into its own. And maybe around the 1980s, I don't remember really getting excited as a film goer since. For a sequel, since like Empire Strikes Back, you know, and.

[Ron Chang]

And this is an easy crowd. You just say

[Comedy Central Announcer / Ronnie]

and. And. But. But then films, you know, if it worked once, why not make it again? And then when I first came to town, I can remember there was a Three Musketeers movie getting made, but there were. There were nine musketeers running around Hollywood trying to get a musketeer movie made. So is sort of like monkey see, monkey do, you know, if it worked once, then keep doing now. I don't know if there's so much mimicry in how we approach which is going to be done. There's more of penchant to look for the next event film to get people to come to the theaters again. Covid changed everything for us. And you sink or swim if you decide. Oh, I'm just gonna wait and hope that it's audience. Your audience doesn't stay at home and, you know, look at their phone and

[Ron Chang]

on the toilet taking a shit.

[Comedy Central Announcer / Ronnie]

That too Looking out the window, see if it's gonna rain.

[Ron Chang]

Right. But I mean to ask you specifically, I guess we have this. There's this kind of vibe right now. Everyone likes to kind of shit on movies these days, you know, and you're one of the few guys who has a perspective on this. So how much truth is there to this idea that, you know, we used to make things better back then, or was it always a problem?

[Comedy Central Announcer / Ronnie]

We can make crappy movies back then too. Don't worry. Guilty.

[Ron Chang]

What do you mean? That's not true at all. Everything you made was great. But your perspective, as in your perspective. So is this kind of, you know, rose tinted glasses. We kind of look back and 50.

[Comedy Central Announcer / Ronnie]

50. I think that there's a whole generation now who really feel not empowered. But, you know. Yeah, TikTok generation. But everyone has an image rendering device in their pocket. And what it can do is pretty remarkable. And you can, you know, you can shake your fist at it like you can try to shake your fist at the sky, but that's what I do. You're not. Yeah, you're not always going to get your way. So I think that it's just a matter of accepting, you know, what the technology is, where it is now. And. And hey, if it worked once or twice, try it again. Like, maybe I'll make another Hami.

[Ron Chang]

Yeah. My last question is, you've been making some really cool indie movies lately. You did the Whale, you did Rental Family. Thanks. I just wanted to ask. It's great you worked with Fokaru. We had her on the show. She spoke very highly of you. I watched the movie. Your Japanese, I don't know. Can you speak Japanese? You look like you could speak Japanese in that movie. Sugar? Yeah. So I guess my question.

[Comedy Central Announcer / Ronnie]

I just told them you owe me 50 bucks. Oh, okay.

[Ron Chang]

Well, sure. I just want to know how did you go about picking these indie movies? Because it's not a. You're talking about the struggles the industries are having right now. The industry's having right now. And you managed to pick these really cool, kind of, I would say, Diamonds in the Rough.

[Comedy Central Announcer / Ronnie]

I look for what the content is in the story. Has it really been done before as some kind of sequel or not? Is it an idea that scares me a little bit. I think it's good to take creative, calculated risks. That's where the most growth can come from, creatively speaking. And I also honestly look to see. What do people really want to see? We want to be taken somewhere. We want to be shown something new. We want to feel like we've learned something. So a film like Pressure. I did not know that there was an operation that went horribly wrong that influenced the mind of one of our great leaders. And certainly I had no idea that the weather almost caused this catastrophic delay that would have. Have put us in, I don't know what kind of science fiction world we would be living now if they had attacked on that day.

[Ron Chang]

You'd be in a fascist dictator story. Thank God that didn't happen. Yeah, but great job.

[Comedy Central Announcer / Ronnie]

Yeah, thanks.

[Ron Chang]

But anyway. Brendan Frazier. Hey, you're the best, man. I love everything you do. Everybody loves you. You're the best and you're amazing. Thanks for coming on the show, Fraser. It's in theater. That's what makes me special. Speed previews nationwide over Memorial Day weekend. Brendan Fraser. We're gonna take a quick break. We'll be right back after this and make sure I got your name right. Tomorrow morning is knocking. Stock your fridge now. How about a creamy mocha Frappuccino drink? Or a sweet vanilla smooth caramel, maybe? Or white chocolate Moza? Whichever you choose, delicious coffee awaits. Find Starbucks Frappuccino drinks wherever you buy your groceries. I get so many headaches every month. It could be chronic migraine, 15 or more headache days a month, each lasting four hours or more.

[Commercial Voice]

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[Ron Chang]

Why wait? Ask your doctor. Visit botoxchronicmigraine.com or call 1-844botox to learn more. That's our show for the night. Now. Here it is, your moment of Zen.

[Comedy Central Announcer / Ronnie]

According to the filings, the President's been trading some intel in the quarter. Yeah?

[Ron Chang]

Yeah. Got nothing to say?

[Michael Kosta]

Yeah. All right.

[Ron Chang]

Don't worry.

[Michael Kosta]

We're not having technical difficulties here, everybody,

[Ron Chang]

but we gotta go explore more shows

[Comedy Central Announcer / Ronnie]

from the Daily Show Podcast universe by

[Ron Chang]

searching the Daily Show.

[Comedy Central Announcer / Ronnie]

Wherever you get your podcasts, watch the

[Ron Chang]

Daily show weeknights at 1110 Central on

[Comedy Central Announcer / Ronnie]

Comedy Central and stream full episodes anytime on Paramount.

[Ron Chang]

Plus,

[Comedy Central Announcer / Ronnie]

This has been a Comedy Central podcast.

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[Ron Chang]

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[Ron Chang]

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