The Late Show Pod Show with Stephen Colbert

Guest: Jessie Buckley (Extended)

Date: January 5, 2026

Episode Overview

This episode features celebrated actor Jessie Buckley, known for her roles in "Wild Rose," "The Lost Daughter," and "Women Talking." She returns to chat with Stephen Colbert primarily about her starring role as Agnes (Shakespeare’s wife) in the new film "Hamnet." The conversation touches on Buckley’s recent entry into motherhood, her creative process, insights into her dream work, and upcoming projects—including her role as the Bride in a remake of "Bride of Frankenstein" directed by Maggie Gyllenhaal. Throughout the episode, the tone remains playful, warm, and intellectually curious, blending the personal and professional with wit.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Jessie Buckley’s New Motherhood

• Colbert congratulates Buckley on becoming a mother since her last appearance.
• They lightly discuss the lack of sleep in early parenthood:
  • Buckley: “Who cares about sleep? That’s what I think I like... they’re so magical and I’m completely in love and changed by her. Y’know, I’ll sleep sometime.” (02:48–03:11)
• Her daughter is five months old.

2. About "Hamnet" and Embodying Shakespeare’s Wife

• Buckley outlines the premise: "It's about love and loss and … how a story can help transcend the parts that are too hard to hold by ourselves." (03:28–03:40)
• Colbert is struck by her phrasing:

  "Say that again. I'm sorry. How a story can help hold the parts that are too hard to hold by yourself." (03:40–03:45)

• The film offers a behind-the-curtain look at Shakespeare’s personal life and how tragedy inspired the writing of "Hamlet."
• Buckley describes Agnes (Shakespeare’s wife) as:

  "A woman of the woods and a wild, embodied force of her own nature... she’s rich, she’s like, got an epic landscape inside her and is a match for this epic man." (04:28–04:59)

3. Shakespearean Lore & The Anne Hathaway Joke

• Colbert jokingly asks about the confusion between Shakespeare’s wife (Anne Hathaway) and the actress of the same name.
• Buckley quips:

  "Apparently there's a new criteria that you must be called the actual names of the characters to get jobs nowadays." (05:21–05:38)

• She jokes about her own surname possibly making her eligible to play Jeff Buckley:

  "Actually, my dad’s name is Tim Buckley, who was Jeff Buckley’s dad. So I’m really close to that role." (05:41–05:48)

4. On-Set Levity: Dance Parties with Director Chloé Zhao

• Buckley shares how director Chloe Zhao kept spirits high during emotionally heavy shooting for "Hamnet" by organizing weekly dance parties:

  "...at the end of the week, she would spend an hour setting up the camera to do a dance take where she basically would blast Rihanna, ‘We Found Love’... whether it was just the family or 300 extras dressed up in period costume, we'd all kind of create our own little mosh pit..." (06:02–06:36)

• There is amusing frustration over not being able to show the dance footage due to licensing ("Rihanna, come on, do a solid here!"). (06:49–07:02)

5. Dream Work in Buckley’s Creative Process

• Buckley discusses working with a ‘dream coach’ for a decade, using dream exploration in both personal and professional contexts:

  "I’ve been curious about my dreams, and I’ve done this work for about 10 years." (07:12–07:18)

  • She uses dreamwork as part of her method to inhabit characters:

    "Anytime, you know, you open a book, the world of the book, you start responding to it in the world that you're in. And if you're really cooking, your unconscious kind of starts dreaming within that world…" (08:39–08:55)

• Colbert relates this to improv theory from Keith Johnstone:

  "He talks about being able to attend your dreams... just try not to name what's happening in your dream while it's happening... if you name it, it's like making a noise when a deer goes by in the forest, it flees." (09:48–10:18)

• Buckley emphasizes the usefulness of not overanalyzing dreams:

  "You don’t analyze it... actually, I just find that a source to be more creative." (10:18–10:43)

6. Returning to Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre

• The film’s final scene is set in the reconstructed Globe in London.
• Buckley’s first professional job was at the Globe, in "The Tempest" playing Miranda:

  "And I thought I was a rock star." (10:53–11:11)

• Performing at the Globe was formative:

  "Shakespeare has been so instrumental to me recognizing myself as an actress... I thought I needed, like, something bigger than just words to express through. And then I did Shakespeare, and it blew my mind..." (11:11–11:39)

• The unique experience of outdoor theatre ("People get wet... it’s part of it. It’s beautiful. Like. Yeah. Heaven and hell.”) (12:05–12:10)

7. On "The Bride" Directed by Maggie Gyllenhaal

• Buckley confirms she’ll play the Bride in a new "Bride of Frankenstein" directed by Maggie Gyllenhaal (her "The Lost Daughter" director).
• On the Bride finally having a voice:

  "In other iterations, [the Bride] has never had a voice... in our version, she has a lot to say..." (12:31–13:06)

• She praises Gyllenhaal’s creative leadership as "brilliant, wild, provocative, uncompromising."

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On motherhood:

  "Who cares about sleep? ...they’re so magical and I’m completely in love and changed by her." (02:48–03:11)

• On storytelling and grief:

  "...a story can help hold the parts that are too hard to hold by yourself." (03:40–03:45)

• On Agnes (Shakespeare's wife):

  “...a woman of the woods and is a wild, embodied force of her own nature...” (04:28–04:59)

• On being mistaken for Anne Hathaway:

  "Apparently there's a new criteria that you must be called the actual names of the characters to get jobs nowadays." (05:21–05:38)

• On dream work and creativity:

  "It’s changed, like, how I work. I’m so crap at working linearly...I would never want to project an idea of who I think these women are until I discover them..." (08:13–08:35)

• On Shakespeare’s impact:

  "...it blew my mind...how powerful just one word could be and the depths that you could go within one word to express so much." (11:23–11:39)

• On “The Bride”:

  "In our version, she has a lot to say, and it’s about..." (13:03–13:06)

Timestamps for Important Segments

• [02:03] Jessie Buckley’s Entrance & Motherhood Discussion
• [03:28] "Hamnet"—Themes of Love, Loss, and Storytelling
• [04:28] Playing Agnes, Shakespeare's Wife
• [05:21] Anne Hathaway Name Joke
• [06:02] On-Set Dance Parties
• [07:12] Dream Work and Dreams as Creative Tools
• [08:39] Dreams Informing Character Development
• [10:53] Performing at the Globe Theatre
• [12:31] Upcoming Role in "The Bride"
• [13:06] End of Interview & Gift Segment

Summary

Jessie Buckley’s animated conversation with Stephen Colbert offers a blend of wit, emotional honesty, and artistic insight. From navigating early motherhood to inhabiting the emotional world of Shakespeare’s wife, Buckley reveals how deeply she invests in her roles—using both joy and difficult personal experiences (even her dreams) to fuel her artistry. The lively banter covers everything from backstage dance parties to dream interpretation, all while celebrating storytelling’s power to transform grief and reveal hidden depths. Fans of cinema, theatre, and creative process will find Buckley’s candid reflections especially rewarding, punctuated by laughter and charming asides unique to Colbert’s hosting style.