Mason Thames | 'Black Phone 2'

Summary

Podcast Episode Summary

Podcast: The Late Show Pod Show with Stephen Colbert
Episode: Mason Thames | 'Black Phone 2'
Date: October 18, 2025

---

Overview:

Stephen Colbert sits down with up-and-coming actor Mason Thames to talk about his whirlwind year, including starring roles in How to Train Your Dragon, the Colleen Hoover adaptation Regretting You, and the highly anticipated horror sequel Black Phone 2. The conversation explores Mason's career trajectory, his first experiences on late night, driving mishaps, working with Ethan Hawke, and a shared love for classic horror films.

---

Key Discussion Points & Insights

Mason’s First Late Night Experience

• Colbert welcomes Mason to the show, noting this is Mason’s first ever late night appearance.
  • Stephen: “You were telling me this is the first late night show you’ve ever been on.” 01:31
  • Mason: “This is. Yeah, yeah, yeah… You are.” 01:43
  • Mason expresses excitement and gratitude to be on the show, calling Colbert a childhood favorite:

    “I've always wanted to be on a late night show and I'm such a big fan of yours. I've been watching you since I was a kid and I… love you.” [01:53]

A Busy and Eventful Year

• Mason is juggling multiple major projects and just turned 18.
  • Stephen lists Mason’s recent projects:
    • How to Train Your Dragon (live-action)
    • Regretting You (Colleen Hoover adaptation)
    • Black Phone 2 (horror sequel)
    • Turning 18 [02:04–02:25]
  • Mason on handling the pressure and excitement:

    “This year has been just insane, period, with just all that's going on, and I'm just genuinely so lucky and just trying to take it all in…” [02:33]

Early Career and Driving Anecdotes

• Mason filmed his first major movie at 13, before getting a driver’s license.
  • Mason explains his “biggest dream” was getting a license, but he’s been driving on movie sets with police escorts:

    “I've driven an ice cream truck, a taxi, a Honda Civic, a lot… and it's so funny. I'm driving illegally with police escorts.” [03:28]

  • Fun moment when Mason playfully describes making his co-star nervous:

    “She knew I didn't know how to drive, and she was terrified. So on purpose, I just kind of stepped on the gas a little bit.” [03:47]

Black Phone: From Teen Actor to Franchise Star

• He was too young to legally watch his own first R-rated film.
  • Stephen: “So your first movie… Black Phone. How old were you?”

    Mason: “I was 12 when I got the job. 13 when I filmed it.” [04:22]

  • Mason reflects on sneaking into his own movie:

    “My friends would be like, 'he's in the movie!' and like point at the poster and the guy would just look at me… I don't care.” [04:39]

    • Their workaround: buying tickets to The Super Mario Movie and sneaking into Black Phone [04:45]

Working with Ethan Hawke

• On not knowing Hawke’s work at 13, and building a unique on-set relationship.
  • Mason admits:

    “I was not [familiar with Ethan Hawke]. I hadn't seen any of his work.” [05:21]

  • Hawke helped young Mason through scary scenes:

    “He just made sure I knew all the time that we were just having fun and we were making a movie.” [05:41]

  • Mason has since "drilled him on questions" after viewing Hawke’s oeuvre.

Black Phone 2 — Story and Exclusive Clip

• The sequel sees Ethan Hawke’s character haunting Mason’s.
  • Mason provides setup:

    “In this movie we’re basically at this winter camp… The grabber… comes back as this ghost figure haunting us. This is kind of my first conversation with him since I killed him.” [06:20]

  • Clip features a chilling ghostly exchange between Finney (Mason) and The Grabber (Ethan Hawke).

Horror Films — Shared Fandom

• Mason and Stephen bond over love of classic horror, especially John Carpenter’s The Thing.
  • Mason’s “new favorite” is The Thing, for which he gets “a lot of crap”:

    “Just like, the practical effects, the acting, just the setting itself is… so fantastic.” [07:57]

  • Colbert calls it his “comfort film”:

    “That’s my favorite. That’s my comfort film.” [07:55]

  • They debate the film’s famous ambiguous ending — is Childs the Thing?
    • Mason: “I'm gonna say he isn't.”
    • Stephen: “We’ll all find out when we die and go to heaven, I guess.” [08:41]

---

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Mason on sneaking into his own film:

  "We would like buy tickets to the Super Mario movie and then just sneak into Black Phone." [04:45]

• On working with Ethan Hawke:

  "...he just made sure I knew all the time that we were just having fun and we were making a movie." [05:41]

• On horror films and The Thing:

  Mason: "The practical effects, the acting, just the setting itself is … so fantastic." [07:57]
  Stephen: "That's my comfort film." [07:55]

• Debate about The Thing's ending:

  Stephen: "Is Childs, the thing?"
  Mason: "I'm gonna say he isn't." [08:21–08:41]

---

Important Timestamps

• [01:31] Mason’s first late-night TV appearance
• [02:25] Discussion of Mason turning 18 and managing big projects
• [03:28] Driving stories from film sets
• [04:39] Sneaking into his own movie as a teen
• [05:21] Working with Ethan Hawke
• [06:20] Mason introduces exclusive Black Phone 2 clip
• [07:55] Shared love for The Thing and horror debates
• [08:41] Light-hearted debate on The Thing's ambiguous ending

---

Conclusion

The episode is a lively, revealing look at the rapid rise of Mason Thames, exploring his experiences as a young actor navigating both Hollywood and everyday coming-of-age moments. The chemistry between Colbert and Thames shines, especially in their nerdy horror deep-dive. Black Phone 2 opens Friday, and Mason leaves with infectious enthusiasm and humility.

Transcript

[DSW Narrator]

Ah, dsw Earth, place of the humble. Brag here. The shoes are so good, no one would ever know how little you paid. If you didn't go telling everyone, that is. And with never ending options for every style, mood and occasion, all at really great prices, they'll definitely give you something to brag about. So go ahead, stock up on fresh sneakers from your favorite brands or try those boots you always secretly knew you could pull off. Find the shoes that get you at prices that get your budget at DSW stores [e-mail] web let us surprise you.

[Ryan Reynolds]

Hey, Ryan Reynolds here from Mint Mobile. Now, I don't know if you've heard, but Mint's Premium Wireless is $15 a month. But I'd like to offer one other perk. We have no stores. That means no small talk. Crazy weather we're having.

[Mason Thames]

No, it's not.

[Ryan Reynolds]

It's just weather. It is an introvert's dream. Give it a [e-mail] Switch upfront payment.

[Announcer]

Of $45 for three month plan. $15 per month equivalent required. New customer offer first three months only, then full price plan options available. Taxes and fees extra. See Mintmobile do.

[Mason Thames]

It's the Late Show Poncho with Stephen Colbert.

[Stephen Colbert]

Welcome back, everybody. Ladies and gentlemen, you know my next guest from how to Train youn Dragon for All Mankind and the Black Phone. He now stars in black phone 2. Please welcome to the Late Show. Mason Thames.

[Ozzy Osbourne]

Wow.

[Mason Thames]

Oh, my gosh.

[Stephen Colbert]

Welcome, welcome, welcome to the Late Show. Welcome to the Ed Sullivan Theater. I understand. We were just talking backstage. You were telling me this is the first late night show you've ever been on.

[Mason Thames]

This is. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. You are.

[Stephen Colbert]

Yeah. This is like you're getting in just under the wire, my friend. How's it, how's it going so far?

[Mason Thames]

This is insane. I mean, I've always wanted to be on a late night show and I'm such a big fan of yours. I've been watching you just since I was a kid and I. I love you. So this is being my first late night show.

[Stephen Colbert]

Thank you very much. I really appreciate that. That's lovely.

[Mason Thames]

Y.

[Stephen Colbert]

Well, they're not always this good. Now you're having a busy year. You start. Let me get all this down here. You starred in the live action how to Train youn Dragon. You're now starring in the Colleen Hoover romance Regretting youg as well as the sequel to your first film, Black Phone 2. And on top of that, you also turned 18 this summer.

[Mason Thames]

I did? Okay.

[Stephen Colbert]

I did.

[Mason Thames]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Stephen Colbert]

That's a lot to take in.

[Mason Thames]

It's crazy.

[Stephen Colbert]

That's a lot to drink in. Are you giving yourself time to enjoy all this?

[Mason Thames]

I mean, this year has been just insane, period, with just all that's going on, and I'm just genuinely so lucky and just trying to take it all in and. Yeah, yeah, it's been great.

[Stephen Colbert]

So, wait, so, first movie was Black Phone? How old were you in that one?

[Mason Thames]

I was 13.

[Stephen Colbert]

Thirteen.

[Mason Thames]

Thirteen. That's five years ago.

[Stephen Colbert]

Okay. Okay. So big milestone of being a teenager is getting your license. Have you. Oh, no, don't tell me. Have you not?

[Mason Thames]

That has been my biggest dream since I was a kid. And.

[Stephen Colbert]

Yeah. Why? Why have you not. I mean, how many movies have you made? Why can't you? You don't. Have you taken any driving lessons or anything like that?

[Mason Thames]

I mean, I know how to drive. I've not taken, like, driving lessons, but I've. I've driven vehicles in the streets.

[Stephen Colbert]

You're just a natural. You're a natural.

[Mason Thames]

I mean.

[Stephen Colbert]

Wait a second. Did you say you've driven vehicles in movies?

[Mason Thames]

Yeah.

[Stephen Colbert]

Are you confessing to breaking the law?

[Mason Thames]

Well, no, no, no. I had, like.

[Stephen Colbert]

Cameras are on.

[Mason Thames]

I had police escorts, so it was different. I drove. I've driven an ice cream truck, a taxi, a Honda Civic, a lot. And it's so funny. I'm driving illegally with police escorts.

[Stephen Colbert]

Are other people in the car with you?

[Mason Thames]

Yeah.

[Stephen Colbert]

And do they know that you don't actually know how to drive?

[Mason Thames]

Yeah, I mean, I did the regretting you and my co star, McKenna. I had this scene where I was just pulling out, and she knew I didn't know how to drive, and she was terrified. So on purpose, I just kind of stepped on the gas a little bit. Yeah, but I can drive enough.

[Stephen Colbert]

You can't drive me. Okay, all right. That's crazy. That's crazy. Okay, so your first movie, as you said, was Black Phone.

[Mason Thames]

How old were you?

[Stephen Colbert]

12.

[Mason Thames]

I was 12 when I got the job. 13 when I filmed it.

[Stephen Colbert]

13. So what was that rated?

[Mason Thames]

That was rated R. Yeah, I legally wasn't even allowed to see it.

[Stephen Colbert]

You couldn't go see the movie?

[Mason Thames]

Well, I walked.

[Stephen Colbert]

Did you get, like, a copy at home or something?

[Mason Thames]

Well, when I walked into the theater. Cause, I mean, you can watch it if you go with your parents, but, like, me and my friends obviously just wanted to enjoy it.

[Stephen Colbert]

Didn't want to go with your parents.

[Mason Thames]

And, sorry, mom, but, like, we'd walk into the theater and then they'd just be like, oh, you're not 18, can't walk in. My friends would be like, he's, he's in the movie and like point at the poster and the guy would just look at me and just be like, I don't care. And so that doesn't keep his job. No, no. But what we would normally do is this was like our method. We would like buy Tick the Super Mario movie and didn't just sneak into like Black Phone, which is.

[Stephen Colbert]

You guys figured that one out, did you?

[Mason Thames]

Yeah, that was great.

[Stephen Colbert]

Yeah, yeah, you got to act. I mean, pretty for first movie to act opposite Ethan Hawke, that's gotta be a lot of fun right there. Did you know, I'm just curious, as a 13 year old, were you familiar with the Ethan Hawke? Did you know from Ethan Hawke?

[Mason Thames]

I was not. I hadn't seen any of his work.

[Stephen Colbert]

Hadn't you seen like the Dead Poet movie?

[Mason Thames]

No, nothing. I mean, if I watched that at 13, I think there'd be. I'd had a lot of problems, but you know. Yeah, to me he was just Ethan and he was just a scary guy in a mask and you know, aren't we all though?

[Stephen Colbert]

Aren't we all ultimately just scary guys in masks?

[Mason Thames]

But yeah, yeah. I mean, what was the fun part about it is getting to work with him. And I was so young at the time, he just made sure because the scenes we had were terrifying and just really creepy. So he would just make sure I knew all the time that we were just having fun and we were making a movie. And then later on in my life I'd watch all of his work like dead poets. And now that I got to work with him again, I just drilled him on questions and he's so fantastic and I'm so lucky.

[Stephen Colbert]

He's very good. Horror. I don't do that well with horror, so I can't promise I will see Black Phone or Black Phone.

[Mason Thames]

Fair enough.

[Stephen Colbert]

But I understand you have a clip. Do we need anything about this?

[Mason Thames]

Oh, I do, yeah. So in this movie we're basically at this winter camp and. Yeah, the grabber. Spoiler alert. He dies in the first film and he comes back as. That's Ethan Hawke's character called out of the draft. Yes. And he comes back as this ghost figure haunting us. And this is kind of my first conversation with him since I killed him. Yvonne? Yeah.

[Ozzy Osbourne]

Hello, Finny.

[Mason Thames]

What do you want?

[Ozzy Osbourne]

It took me a long time, but now I remember.

[Stephen Colbert]

You're dead.

[Ozzy Osbourne]

Oh, Finney, U of all people know that dead is just a word.

[Mason Thames]

Tell me why you're here.

[Ozzy Osbourne]

Why do you think I'm here?

[Stephen Colbert]

Yeah. Messed up. I don't.

[Mason Thames]

Yeah, I'm sorry. Not your thing.

[Stephen Colbert]

Do you like horror?

[Mason Thames]

Do you like.

[Stephen Colbert]

I mean, I can appreciate horror, but I get. I jump scare very, very easily.

[Mason Thames]

I do. I love horror.

[Stephen Colbert]

Do you like.

[Mason Thames]

Oh, really?

[Stephen Colbert]

Do you have a favorite horror film?

[Mason Thames]

My new favorite one is which. I just watched this recently, which I get a lot of crap from when I tell people. But the Thing, John Carpenter's the Thing is my favorite.

[Stephen Colbert]

That is paradoxically, because I'm not a big horror fan. Yeah, that is my favorite.

[Mason Thames]

I know. They told me backstage. Oh, really crazy. That.

[Stephen Colbert]

Yeah, no, that's my. That's. That's my comfort film.

[Mason Thames]

Yeah, that is. Yes. Just, like, the practical effects, the acting, just the setting itself is. And the score, it's so fantastic. And it's like. Which is crazy to me because when that film came out, it didn't do well because it came out the same year as ET So it was great.

[Stephen Colbert]

And everyone wanted, like, the fuzzy, touchy.

[Mason Thames]

Head, chops up your arms, basically, and that's crazy.

[Stephen Colbert]

Quick question. Is Childs, the thing.

[Mason Thames]

Oh, my God. What do you think?

[Stephen Colbert]

I'm the host.

[Mason Thames]

I mean, see, I've seen so many things about the breath, right.

[Stephen Colbert]

And the whiskey bottles and who's got facial hair and who doesn't and all that.

[Mason Thames]

I'm gonna say. I'm gonna say he isn't.

[Stephen Colbert]

All right.

[Mason Thames]

I'm gonna say he isn't.

[Stephen Colbert]

We'll all find out when we die and go to heaven, I guess. Mason, thanks so much for being here.

[Mason Thames]

I'm glad to be here, man.

[Announcer]

Of course.

[Stephen Colbert]

Black Phone 2 opens in theaters Friday. Mason Thames, everybody. Thank you for listening to the Late Show Pod show with Stephen Colbert. Just one more thing. If you want to see more of me, come to The Late Show YouTube channel for more clips and exclusives.

[Ozzy Osbourne]

Tulsa is my home now. Academy Award nominee Sylvester Stallone stars in the Paramount plus original series, Tulsa King. His distillery is a very interesting business. And we got to know the enemy from Taylor Sheridan, co creator of Landman. What are you saying? I'm all right. If you think you're gonna take me out, it's gonna be really difficult. Tulsa King, new season, now streaming exclusively on Paramount Plus.

[Announcer]

Now streaming on Paramount Plus. Witness an intimate look at Ozzy Osbourne's fights.

[Ozzy Osbourne]

I should take pills for fun.

[Announcer]

I take just that long to reclaim the magic.

[Mason Thames]

I took dad to the studio every day.

[Ozzy Osbourne]

God, he's having a great time. Of course, he's making music.

[Mason Thames]

I think that that' for my dad.

[Announcer]

One last time.

[Ozzy Osbourne]

What do you think about big farewell show?

[Stephen Colbert]

I'm not good at being sick.

[Ozzy Osbourne]

I belong up there, you know.

[Mason Thames]

Had a brilliant career and it ended in a brilliant way.

[Announcer]

Ozzy no Escape from now new documentary now streaming on Paramount plus.