Morris Chestnut | 'Watson'

Summary

Podcast Summary: The Late Show Pod Show with Stephen Colbert – Episode Featuring Morris Chestnut on 'Watson'

Release Date: January 25, 2025

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Introduction and Guest Background

In this engaging episode of The Late Show Pod Show with Stephen Colbert, host Stephen Colbert welcomes actor and producer Morris Chestnut as his guest. Morris Chestnut is renowned for his roles in hit films such as Boyz n the Hood and The Best Man. He joins Colbert to discuss his latest venture, the new CBS drama 'Watson', where he not only stars but also serves as a producer.

Notable Quote:

• Morris Chestnut (00:39): "My next guest tonight from his hit films Boyz n the Hood and the Best Man. He now produces and stars in the new CBS drama Watson."

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Personal Life and Relationship Insights

A significant portion of the conversation delves into Morris Chestnut's personal life, particularly his long-standing relationship. He shares insights into maintaining a meaningful and lasting partnership, highlighting the importance of respect and effective communication.

Notable Quotes:

• Morris Chestnut (02:46): "You and your lovely wife Pam. Okay, here you are, the two of you together. You've been together for almost 30 years."
• Stephen Colbert (03:15): "Always treat your wife or your partner with respect."

Chestnut emphasizes, "We never really hit below the belt whenever we get into an argument" (03:37), underscoring the value of respectful disagreements. He humorously adds, "I don't like to go to sleep when she's mad at me. Cause I may not wake up. But we at least argue with respect" (03:42).

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Hobbies and Shared Interests

Transitioning to lighter topics, Colbert and Chestnut discuss their shared hobbies. Both enjoy watching crime documentary series, which serves as a bonding activity contrasting their other divergent interests—Colbert's sports enthusiasm and Chestnut's preference for his own pastimes.

Notable Quotes:

• Stephen Colbert (04:07): "Every year. Really? Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah."
• Morris Chestnut (04:01): "So. Yes, so we do. The main two things that we do together is we love to watch the crime docu series together."

Additionally, they explore their mutual interest in casinos, with Colbert enjoying poker and Chestnut engaging in bingo, even humorously questioning the feasibility of James Bond playing bingo (05:15).

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Deep Dive into 'Watson' – The New CBS Drama

The core of the episode centers around Morris Chestnut's new show, 'Watson'. Colbert seeks to understand how this series offers a fresh perspective on the classic Sherlock Holmes narrative by focusing on Dr. John Watson.

Key Highlights:

• Modern-Day Retelling: Chestnut explains that 'Watson' is a contemporary adaptation of Sherlock Holmes stories, narrated from Watson's viewpoint (05:25).

• Unique Premise: Unlike traditional medical dramas set solely within hospital walls, 'Watson' integrates detective work outside the hospital to solve complex medical mysteries. This hybrid approach labels them as "doc tectives" (05:30).

• Authenticity and Medical Accuracy: Chestnut emphasizes the show's commitment to medical accuracy, mentioning that all cases are vetted by real doctors. He shares intriguing cases featured in the series, such as a person with a "nipple on their foot" (06:44) and a character with "alien hand syndrome" (07:32), illustrating the show's dedication to portraying rare medical phenomena authentically.

Notable Quotes:

• Morris Chestnut (05:25): "It's a modern day take on the Sherlock Holmes mythology told from Watson's perspective."
• Stephen Colbert (05:50): "We are doc tectives."
• Morris Chestnut (07:12): "There's no way that's real. And you're gonna look it up and it'll be real."

Chestnut also touches upon the challenges of portraying medical professionals, noting, "The medical jargon is very tough to really get a grasp on" (06:31), and the show's ambition to balance complexity with entertainment.

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Conclusion and Show Promotion

As the episode wraps up, Chestnut promotes the premiere of 'Watson', set to air on CBS following the AFC championship game. He invites listeners to tune in and experience the unique blend of medical drama and detective storytelling.

Notable Quote:

• Morris Chestnut (08:03): "Watson premieres this Sunday on CBS following the AFC championship game."

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Final Thoughts

This episode offers listeners an insightful glimpse into Morris Chestnut's latest project, 'Watson', while also shedding light on his personal life and the principles that sustain his long-term relationship. The discussion balances professional insights with personal anecdotes, making it both informative and relatable.

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Timestamp Reference Guide:

• 00:39 - Introduction of Morris Chestnut
• 02:46 - Discussion on Morris’s relationship
• 03:15 - Relationship advice from Morris
• 03:37 - Respectful disagreements
• 03:42 - Importance of not going to sleep angry
• 04:07 - Shared hobbies introduction
• 05:15 - James Bond playing bingo comment
• 05:25 - Introduction to 'Watson'
• 05:30 - Explanation of 'doc tectives'
• 06:44 - Medical accuracy and unique cases
• 07:12 - Authenticity of medical cases
• 07:32 - Alien hand syndrome
• 08:03 - Premiere announcement of 'Watson'

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This summary aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the episode, capturing the essence of the discussions and highlighting key moments through notable quotes and structured sections.

Transcript

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[Stephen Colbert]

It's the Late Show Poncho with Stephen Colbert.

[Morris Chestnut]

You know my next guest tonight from his hit films Boyz n the Hood and the Best Man. He now produces and stars in the new CBS drama Watson.

[Harold Perrineau]

Ho.

[Stephen Colbert]

Oh.

[Morris Chestnut]

Please welcome back to the late show Morris Chestnut. It's good to see you again. It's been like nine years since, since you were last here. I apologize for whatever it was I said that kept you away so long, but let's toast your return. Let's do it. You brought me a present?

[Stephen Colbert]

Yes. Yes. That's a sable.

[Morris Chestnut]

Explain what that is.

[Stephen Colbert]

This is a sable bourbon. That myself, Harold Perrineau, Taye Diggs, Malcolm Lee, all of us from the best man. We have a sable bourbon up.

[Morris Chestnut]

Let's do it.

[Stephen Colbert]

Let's do it. Let's do it.

[Morris Chestnut]

Tongs don't work.

[Stephen Colbert]

You'll notice it has like a very dense smoker aroma. Has a burnt sugar to the palate with a very smooth finish. That's what it is.

[Morris Chestnut]

You have a more exacting tongue than I do.

[Stephen Colbert]

It is. Cheers.

[Morris Chestnut]

To dry January.

[Stephen Colbert]

There you go.

[Morris Chestnut]

That is lovely.

[Stephen Colbert]

Yeah. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

[Morris Chestnut]

You and your lovely wife Pam. Okay, here you are, the two of you together.

[Stephen Colbert]

That's.

[Morris Chestnut]

You've been together for almost 30 years.

[Stephen Colbert]

Yes, yes.

[Morris Chestnut]

People love to hear that.

[Stephen Colbert]

Oh, they do.

[Morris Chestnut]

Oh, people love to hear the people been together for 30 years, especially Hollywood people.

[Stephen Colbert]

Yes, yes.

[Morris Chestnut]

Debbie and I, it's not a cont, but we've been together for 31 years and I'm winning. People ask me all the time, well, why do you make. Why is 31 years like, how do you do that? What's your advice for a meaningful, long lasting relationship?

[Stephen Colbert]

So I would say always treat your wife or your partner with respect. I think that's one of the things that have helped us stay together outside of us just being really good people. I feel that she's a good person, I'm a good person. We never really hit below the belt whenever we get into an argument, you know, you're with someone so long, you're getting these knock down, drag them out, disagreements about whatever.

[Morris Chestnut]

Maybe you're answering mail on national television.

[Stephen Colbert]

Maybe something like that.

[Morris Chestnut]

You get into a fight or something.

[Stephen Colbert]

You get into a fight or something like, you know, could have happened here earlier tonight. Right, exactly. And. But yeah, we've all. We don't hit below the belt. We just treat each other with respect and we argue with respect. Now I don't like to go to sleep when she's mad at me. Cause I may not wake up. But we at least argue.

[Morris Chestnut]

Exactly.

[Stephen Colbert]

With respect.

[Morris Chestnut]

What do you do together that's fun? Like what do you have? Like you have hobbies or anything?

[Stephen Colbert]

So. Yes, so we do. The main two things that we do together is we love to watch the crime docu series together.

[Morris Chestnut]

Oh yeah?

[Stephen Colbert]

Yeah. Every year. Really? Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. See. Cause I can't take the house reality shows and she can't take my sports. So we watch the docu series and we also go. We like to go to casino together.

[Morris Chestnut]

Casinos?

[Stephen Colbert]

Yes, yes.

[Morris Chestnut]

Like, do you like hit Vegas and stuff like that?

[Stephen Colbert]

We hit Vegas. There's a lot of casinos in California.

[Morris Chestnut]

What's your game?

[Stephen Colbert]

My game is poker.

[Morris Chestnut]

What does your wife play if she's. You're poker.

[Stephen Colbert]

What do you. So she, she'll play table poker, but she also loves bingo.

[Morris Chestnut]

You can play bingo in Vegas?

[Stephen Colbert]

No, you can play. Yeah, you can play bingo in Vegas. But there's a place in Los Angeles that's a casino that she goes and plays bingo. But it's not the typical church based. Yeah, exactly. No, it's like you have to be on it. You really have to. You have to really be able to hit those numbers. It's hard. I mean, I probably couldn't keep up.

[Morris Chestnut]

But it goes fast.

[Stephen Colbert]

Oh, it goes fast.

[Morris Chestnut]

Oh, okay.

[Stephen Colbert]

It goes fast.

[Morris Chestnut]

So it's not like, you know, B7. It's not like that.

[Stephen Colbert]

No, no, it's like it's B7I8. I mean, it really goes fast.

[Morris Chestnut]

Wow.

[Stephen Colbert]

And you do. I know, right? It's bingo. And it seems like it should be easy, but it can be very challenging, trust me.

[Morris Chestnut]

Yeah. I'd like to see James Bond play bingo.

[Stephen Colbert]

Oh, that'd be nice. Interesting.

[Morris Chestnut]

So tell me about Watson. It's a new take on the classic Arthur Conan Doyle character.

[Stephen Colbert]

Yes.

[Morris Chestnut]

How is this different than other Sherlock and Watson relationships we've seen in the past?

[Stephen Colbert]

Well, I'm glad you asked. No, so it's a modern day take on the Sherlock Holmes mythology told from Watson's perspective. And this is what makes our show different. So the show opens up when Sherlock dies and he gifts me a clinic to solve medical mysteries, however.

[Morris Chestnut]

So it's modern day.

[Stephen Colbert]

It's modern day. It's modern day, however. So the traditional, traditional medical drama, they typically solve the medical cases inside the hospital, but we work inside the hospital as doctors, but we also go outside as detectives to gather all the information to help solve the medical clin. The medical mystery. So we're not just doctors. We're not just detectives. We are doc tectives. Yes. Yes. And that's what makes our show different.

[Morris Chestnut]

This isn't the first time you played a doctor though, right?

[Stephen Colbert]

No, I played a couple of doctors before.

[Morris Chestnut]

Couple of doctors before, yes. So do you get a sense of, like, give me a prescription pad, I could do this thing now.

[Stephen Colbert]

Oh, no.

[Morris Chestnut]

Are you still.

[Stephen Colbert]

Oh, no.

[Morris Chestnut]

Do you learn a lot doing these roles?

[Stephen Colbert]

You know, it's very challenging, you know, this type of show. So we're a very ambitious show because we have a great cast and what we do is the medical jargon is very tough to really get a grasp on.

[Morris Chestnut]

Is it accurate?

[Stephen Colbert]

Oh, it's very accurate. So that's another thing I would like to tell you and your audience and the people on tv. We have so many rare medical cases that you have to look it up to see if it's real. And it is real. All of our medicine on our show is vetted by real doctors. In some of the extreme cases, like there was one case that we referred to, a woman or a person had a nipple on their foot. They had a foot nipple. Wow. Yes.

[Morris Chestnut]

So just didn't want to wear a bra.

[Stephen Colbert]

Well, interestingly enough, the nipple on the foot has sensations. Really? Yes.

[Morris Chestnut]

Literally, like a literal foot nipple.

[Stephen Colbert]

A foot nipple. Wow. We have another case on our show.

[Morris Chestnut]

You don't want to wear open toed sandals. I guess.

[Stephen Colbert]

We have another case on the show where a gentleman has alien hand syndrome.

[Morris Chestnut]

Alien hand?

[Stephen Colbert]

Alien hand. What does that mean? It's a syndrome to where he can literally try to button up his shirt with this hand, but this hand is unbuttoning his shirt at the same time and acts on his own accord. Wow. So we have so many very interesting cases. They're very rare cases on our show. Everything's fully vetted by doctors and that you're gonna see. You're gonna say, there's no way that's real. And you're gonna look it up and it'll be real.

[Morris Chestnut]

All right. Watson premieres this Sunday on CBS following the AFC championship game. 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 YouTube channel for more clips and exclusives.

[Harold Perrineau]

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[Morris Chestnut]

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[Harold Perrineau]

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[Morris Chestnut]

The CIA sends us out into the world to behave in dangerous ways.

[Harold Perrineau]

Whatever it takes, make it impressible. You deploy undercover for years. People come back. Damage from that dispute.

[Stephen Colbert]

The Agency. Nothing is personal.

[Harold Perrineau]

The agency New series now streaming on the Paramount plus with Showtime plan now streaming on Paramount plus.

[Stephen Colbert]

What's your job?

[Harold Perrineau]

When people go missing, I get hired.

[Morris Chestnut]

To help find them.

[Harold Perrineau]

Catch up now on Tracker. I'm here to help the CBS original series that critics are calling a breakout hit. Nothing good comes without risks.

[Stephen Colbert]

I would drink to that.

[Harold Perrineau]

Justin Hartley stars.

[Morris Chestnut]

Hold on. Did you say Arrow Run?

[Stephen Colbert]

That's a new one.

[Harold Perrineau]

Coulter in the CBS original Tracker. Catch up on the latest episodes now on Paramount plus.