Ron Howard | A Royal Pain

Summary

The Late Show Pod Show with Stephen Colbert

Episode: Ron Howard | A Royal Pain
Date: September 18, 2025
Host: Stephen Colbert
Guest: Ron Howard

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Overview

In this episode, Stephen Colbert welcomes acclaimed filmmaker Ron Howard to celebrate the 30th anniversary re-release of Apollo 13 in IMAX and discuss his new film Eden. The episode blends Colbert’s signature political satire, pop culture references, and comedic banter with a warm, revealing conversation about storytelling, filmmaking, and survival—both on-screen and in real life. Key topics include the continuing allure of Apollo 13, the real-life drama behind Eden, and personal stories from Howard’s legendary career.

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Key Segments & Highlights

1. Monologue: The Royal Visit and American Politics

[03:56 - 10:03]

• UK Visit Satire: Colbert opens with a riff on Donald Trump’s visit to the UK, poking fun at royal customs, Trump’s culinary habits, and public perceptions.

  • “He’s banging their mash. It’s a royal fantasy vacation for our President.” – Stephen Colbert [03:59]

• Royal Protocol & Etiquette: Makes jokes about the Trumps’ interactions with British royalty, especially focusing on Melania, King Charles, and Prince Andrew.

  • “…if Trump runs into Prince Andrew, the correct address is we never met. Remember? I have no idea who you [are].” – Stephen Colbert [06:30]

• Stateside Politics: Satirical take on rising anti-vaccination sentiment and the response by RFK Jr. and Susan Monorez.

  • “I’m not comfortable letting my children use the wheel before they leave to school. On an ox drawn sledge. I always remind them fire bad.” – Stephen Colbert [08:29]

• Quote Highlight:

  • “He called the President every day. Bobby. Bobby. Why are you calling the President of the United States at 4 o’clock in the morning?” – Stephen Colbert imitating RFK Jr. [09:45]

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2. Technology and the New Space Race

[10:03 - 14:52]

• TikTok’s Future: Jokes about a new TikTok deal involving China, Oracle, and Larry Ellison.

  • “Nothing says TikTok like an 81 year old guy named Larry.” – Stephen Colbert [11:05]

• Mining Helium on the Moon: Explores the international rush to mine Helium-3 on the moon, referencing quantum computing, international treaties, and commercial interests.

  • “You can’t take the helium out of the moon. That’s how it stays up there, you fools.” – Stephen Colbert [12:27]

• Quote Highlight:

  • “The US can’t own stuff in space. But a company can just do whatever they want up there. So get ready for near Earth asteroid yr4, brought to you by Bush’s Baked Beans.” – Stephen Colbert [13:54]

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3. Odd News: Sex, Drugs, and Drunk Chimps

[16:03 - 21:17]

• Doctor’s Rendezvous: Reports on a Manchester hospital doctor leaving surgery for a sexual encounter, with plenty of puns and banter about Grey’s Anatomy.

  • “The doctor was gone for a mind blowing eight minutes. Forget about the patient. I feel bad for that nurse because sex should last a different time than that.” – Stephen Colbert [16:54]

• Cocaine Consumption in America: Discusses how US focus on fentanyl increased the purity and affordability of cocaine.

  • “That really sounds like we’re advertising for cocaine now.” – Stephen Colbert [17:50]

• Drunk Primates: Covers a study revealing chimpanzees routinely get tipsy on fermented fruit, veering into comedy about public behavior and animal habits.

  • “Turns out this is not unusual. In fact, in 2015, researchers showed that chimps were known to indulge in regular habitual drinking. Some of the apes started at 7am. That’s a little early.” – Stephen Colbert [18:40]

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4. Special Guest: Ron Howard

[21:26 - 34:16]

a. Apollo 13’s 30th Anniversary

[21:26 - 28:48]

• IMAX Re-release: Stephen and Ron reminisce about Apollo 13, its impact, and how good it looks in IMAX.

  • “There is no number of times to watch Apollo 13, in my opinion, that is too many.” – Stephen Colbert [22:28]

• Making the Movie: Ron details the technical challenges filming zero-gravity scenes on the KC135 “Vomit Comet,” sharing behind-the-scenes stories including the cast’s preparation and tests for zero-G sequences.

  • “We tried wires and other things and it just looked so fake. And it was so important, the authenticity.” – Ron Howard [24:44]

• Personal Anecdote: Howard admits to passing out during the physical exam and jokes about being “one degree from Kevin Bacon,” referencing both the cast and the classic “Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon” game.

  • “It led to Ron blacks out and Ron makes wee wee. Because I hadn’t done the urine test yet…” – Ron Howard [26:30]
  • “I just go, 10 extra close ups in this movie, buddy. If you don’t say a word.” – Ron Howard [26:49]

• Honoring Jim Lovell: Howard notes his pride in having real-life Apollo astronaut Jim Lovell appear in the film and reflects on Lovell’s recent passing.

  • “[Lovell was] a remarkable individual… true patriot and in the most unassuming ways, you know, committed to service, unbelievable intellectual capacity.” – Ron Howard [28:18]

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b. New Film: Eden

[30:35 - 34:16]

• Film Overview: Eden is a true crime drama set in the Galapagos in the 1930s, following German émigrés attempting to build new lives off the grid—at deadly cost.

  • “It’s like a season of Survivor, but people really died.” – Ron Howard [31:15]
  • “People are a little surprised, but it’s a story that I met—I found on a family vacation. It’s an infamous story there in the Galapagos.” – Ron Howard [32:00]

• Relevance Today: How the search for self-reinvention and mistrust of public institutions makes the film relevant to contemporary audiences.

  • “As people lose faith in their public institutions, they’re like, well, I’ll just do it for myself.” – Stephen Colbert [32:23]
  • “And they quickly find out why there are public institutions.” – Ron Howard [32:28]

• Family Tradition: Cheryl Howard, Ron’s wife, appears as an extra in every one of his films. In Eden, she disguises herself as a “rather effete cabin boy.”

  • “She always, at first, had to be an extra because we needed people. Right. And then I started succeeding, and I felt like she was a good luck charm.” – Ron Howard [33:06]
  • “We got a wig and a mustache.” – Ron Howard [34:00]

• Memorable Moment:

  • “I think her expression says it all. I cannot believe I’m doing it for this guy, but here I am.” – Ron Howard [34:11]

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Notable Quotes

• “He looks like two turkey meatballs you forgot overnight in the microwave.” – Stephen Colbert, on Trump and King Charles [04:11]
• “Failure is not an option. Which actually came from research.” – Ron Howard, on Apollo 13 [23:16]
• “If they could get a washing machine to fly, my Jimmy could land it. And that was my mom delivering that line.” – Ron Howard, sharing a family connection in the film [23:22]

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Timeline of Main Segments

| Timestamp | Content Summary | |--------------|--------------------------------------------------------------| | 03:56-10:03 | Monologue: Trump in the UK, vaccine skepticism, RFK Jr., TikTok-China deal | | 10:03-14:52 | Helium-3 space race & moon mining satire | | 16:03-21:17 | Hospital sex scandal, cocaine, and drunk chimp research | | 21:26-28:48 | Ron Howard on Apollo 13, filming zero-G, Jim Lovell tribute | | 30:35-34:16 | Ron Howard on Eden, family cameos, public institutions |

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Tone and Style

The episode exudes Colbert’s signature blend of irreverence, wit, and incisive cultural observation, balanced with Howard’s warmth, humor, and humility. Their exchange brings both hilarity and a heartfelt appreciation for storytelling, scientific achievement, and the human drive to reinvent and survive.

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Conclusion

This installment of The Late Show Pod Show is a rich mix of topical satire and cinematic nostalgia, highlighted by Ron Howard’s candid insights and personal storytelling. For fans of late night comedy, space history, and filmmaking, this episode delivers a memorable, engaging listen.

Transcript

[Stephen Colbert]

Hey, everybody. Stephen Colbert here about to read the copy for our sponsor. This is from our friends at Wonderful Pistachios. And I was the wonderful pistachio spokesman for years. Yeah, I have a real close association with nut meat. Okay. You know what they say when they reach for a snack? Don't hold back. And that's exactly the approach with Wonderful Pistachios. The don't hold back snack. These little wonders are so tasty, it feels like getting away with something. But surprise. Each serving has 6 grams of protein and 0 grams of regret. That's right. No guilt. Just glory, glory in our nuts. Whether it's a satisfying crack of in shell pistachios, and that's capitalized in shell, or the smooth, instant gratification of no shells. No judgment. That's just it. Just eat. No judgment. I take issue with one thing. It's instant gratification. It's super tasty smooth.

[Guest or Co-host (possibly a comedian or commentator)]

It's a hard nut smooth.

[Stephen Colbert]

Exactly. I mean, even out of the shell, it's still a nut.

[Guest or Co-host (possibly a comedian or commentator)]

We can't disparage the nuts.

[Ron Howard]

You.

[Stephen Colbert]

I'm not disparaging the nut. I'm describing the nut.

[Guest or Co-host (possibly a comedian or commentator)]

Don't disparage any flavors.

[Stephen Colbert]

I'm not. I am celebrating the pistachio right now. I'm on board. I love pistachios. I love a crushed pistachio. Like a pistachio crusted trout. Oh, unbelievable. Instead of a trout amandine, a trout pistachio. Fantastic. Enough butter? Who cares?

[Guest or Co-host (possibly a comedian or commentator)]

Very good.

[Stephen Colbert]

And I love pistachio ice cream.

[Guest or Co-host (possibly a comedian or commentator)]

Have you had the sea salt and vinegar? Wonderful pistachio. It's delicious.

[Stephen Colbert]

I didn't even know I get them.

[Guest or Co-host (possibly a comedian or commentator)]

Before the softball games.

[Stephen Colbert]

But that's. You see, it's been a while since I've been the spokesman for wonderful Pistachios. I didn't realize we'd achieved new pistachio technology. Yeah.

[Guest or Co-host (possibly a comedian or commentator)]

Yeah.

[Stephen Colbert]

Wow. Wonderful pistachios has every snack style covered right now. There's an obsession with jalapeno lime. There is an obsession session. It's almost a disorder. It's spicy, it's zesty. It's basically a flavor roller coaster in a nut. Snacking on the go. Grab a bag of no shells. Feeling contemplative and want to work for it a little. So earning it, they're saying, if you want to earn your nut, crack open those in shell beauties. Either way, it's snacking like a champ. So the next time hunger strikes, don't hold back. Unless it's a hunger strike, and then it's important that you do, because whatever you're doing that for, I'm sure it's a worthwhile cause snack like you mean it with wonderful pistachios. Visit wonderfulpistachios.com to learn more.

[Guest or Co-host (possibly a comedian or commentator)]

That was a wonderful.

[Stephen Colbert]

I wonder what more there is to learn. We just told them so much. We just told them so much about pistachios. But evidently there's a whole other world. There's an unexplored vista.

[Guest or Co-host (possibly a comedian or commentator)]

They got a bunch of flavors. They got dill pickle, jalapeno lime, as we learned, smoky barbecue. There's a lot of different flavors.

[Stephen Colbert]

Wow. And I would not disparage any of them.

[Guest or Co-host (possibly a comedian or commentator)]

No, no, no.

[Stephen Colbert]

Bring it on.

[Guest or Co-host (possibly a comedian or commentator)]

Nothing bad to say.

[Stephen Colbert]

Nut me, nut. Nut me with nut meat.

[Guest or Co-host (possibly a comedian or commentator)]

We're nut.

[Stephen Colbert]

No, we got nothing but nut. Nutty, nutty, nutty, nutty. Talk about, talk about, talk about, talk about nutty. Good.

[Guest or Co-host (possibly a comedian or commentator)]

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[Stephen Colbert]

Welcome one and all in here, out there, all around the world to the late show. I'm your host, Stephen Colbert. Folks, is this a little. These people. These people are feeling good. It might be because Donald Trump is still in the uk. He's not here for the next, next couple of days. He's banging their mash. It's a royal fantasy vacation for our President. He started off today taking a magical carriage ride with the king. Let's take a peek inside for a regal close up. There you go. They look like two turkey meatballs you forgot overnight in the microwave. Melania, she got her own carriage ride. She rode behind in a separate carriage with Queen Camilla, seen here wondering how to turn on this purple lamp. After the horsey ride, Trump and King Charles. King Charles went back to Windsor Castle to inspect the Beefeaters. Man, I bet Trump was excited about that. Hold on a second here. Let me get this straight, fella. You're telling me you get paid to eat beef, that's what you're saying? For years, I've been doing it pro bono. The president did some America stuff over there, too. He and King Chuck checked out displays from the royal collection about the relationship between Britain and the United States. Reportedly when he looked at an item related to American independence, he said, wow. Yes, echoing the stirring words of George Washington at Valley Forge. Huh? Yeah, people don't give him credit for that. First lady also gets to look at stuff. Tomorrow she is set to tour Queen Mary's doll's house, which has working plumbing. Apparently royal dolls poop. Why do you need plumbing? There's a lot of etiquette to remember when you meet the royals. For example, when meeting King Charles or Queen Camilla, the first address is your majesty for Prince William and Princess Catherine, it's your royal highness. And if Trump runs into Prince Andrew, the correct address is we never met. Remember? I have no idea who you it appears the Trumps may be kind of picky guess because even though the king's bed linen is the finest Egyptian cotton, President Trump reportedly had his sheets shipped in from America. That's not surprising to me. I've always suspected that Trump sheets his own bed. Now back in. I can do it too. Back stateside, we just learned about a new plan from attorney general and class mom who just said my you daughter has a healthy appetite. Pam Bondi in response to the shocking Charlie Kirk assassination from last week, this week Bondi announced that the Justice Department will target hate speech. And conservatives were not thrilled by this news. Fox News host Brit Hume wrote, someone needs to explain to Ms. Bondi that so called hate speech, repulsive though it may be, is protected by the first amendment. She should know this. Yes, the founders wanted even repulsive speech protected. That's why Ben Franklin wrote there is no such thing as public liberty without freedom of speech. Hey James Madison. The dog pound called. They caught your wife again.

[Ron Howard]

Boom.

[Stephen Colbert]

You just got frankled. That's why they called him Franklin. It was a nickname. Thank you. It's September. Kids are back in school learning their sciences. Unfortunately, the parents are not because according to a new report, childhood vaccination rates are backsliding across the US we have successfully. Yes, we have successfully cured a myriad of terrible childhood diseases and we're just deciding not to use it anymore. What other scientific advances are people going to toss out next? I've done my own research, thank you. And I am not comfortable letting my children use the wheel before they leave to school. On an ox drawn sledge. I always remind them fire bad. A lot of the anti vax conspiracies out there have been stoked by health secretary and baked potato that went to men's warehouse. Well, that was just late. RFK Jr, this guy has thrown our public health agencies into complete chaos, forcing out career health experts. Today, the Senate heard testimony from recently fired head of the CDC and mom from who's the Boss, Susan Monorez. Monorez explained that Kennedy was obsessed with changing our kids access to vaccines, something he repeatedly promised not to do.

[Guest or Co-host (possibly a comedian or commentator)]

He did say that he had spoken to the President. He spoke to the President every day about changing the childhood vaccine schedule.

[Stephen Colbert]

He called the President every day. Bobby. Bobby. Why are you calling the President of the United States at 4 o' clock in the morning? Okay? I'm busy tweeting an AI video of me as a talking baby fighting a lion that's on fire. What do you want? What do you want? Huh?

[Ron Howard]

Huh?

[Stephen Colbert]

Let me ask you something. What's the nurse wearing in this scenario? She got an eye patch or something? Fun. I think I took too long with that joke. Good news. Good news from the world of tech. According to Treasury Secretary Scott Besant, the US and China have finally agreed on a framework for a TikTok deal. For my reaction to this news, please join me on the TikTok cam. You ate that king. Six, seven Le Boo Boo. Six' seven. You get the six' seven. So who are the potential buyers? Well, it's a group led by Oracle, which is owned by the richest man in the world, Larry Ellison. He's perfect, because nothing says TikTok like an 81 year old guy named Larry. So far, looks like China will license TikTok's powerful algorithm to the new US owners. But US officials warn that the algorithm that fuels what users see on the app is vulnerable to manipulation by Chinese authorities. I would not worry about that. Okay? I had to explain why you should not worry about that. Join me once again in the TikTok cam. There is only one China. Under the visionary leadership of Xi Jinping Taiwan will be absorbed. Slay king now. Slay king boots now. Ladies and gentlemen, strap in because there's some breaking moon news. We are in the middle of a new space race to become the first to mine helium on the moon. You can't take the helium out of the moon. That's how it stays up there, you fools. Specifically, specifically, the moon contains a rare form of the element known as Helium 3. Helium 3, of course, is the one where the moon teams up with Apollo Creed to fight Mr. T. Fantastic tech companies want the Helium 3 because it's needed to build quantum computers which are way faster than our current computers. For instance, for the math problem, a salesperson must travel to 22 cities, visiting each city only once and returning to the first city in the most efficient route. A laptop computer would take about 1,000 years, but a quantum computer could one day compute the solution in minutes. Totally worth fracking the moon, son. I'm shipping out on the next lunar mine transport. Yes, I'll be gone for years, and yes, my organs will be microwaved by solar radiation. But finally, we may know the shortest route between Chicago and Dubuque. One Finnish tech startup has jumped in as the leader in lighter than air moon mania by spending over $300 million to mine the moon. The largest purchase of a natural resource from space. Okay, but no one owns the moon. Who do you pay the money to? The boy in the dreamworks logo?

[Ron Howard]

He.

[Stephen Colbert]

Not there? Yeah, he doesn't need your money. He's got Shrek residuals. Plus, in the 1960s, major nations agreed that no celestial body is subject to national appropriation by claim of sovereignty in what was called the Outer space treaty of 1967. Everyone remembers that historic summit at Space Yalta. But here's the thing. Here's the tricky part. In 2015, in 2015, the United States pulled a little sneaky sneak and passed the Space act, which said the Outer Space Treaty can't be applicable to private US companies. So the US can't own stuff in space. But a company can just do whatever they want up there. So get ready for near Earth asteroid yr4, brought to you by Bush's Baked Beans. Zero gravity, zero sugar added. Anyway, baked bean fans. Anyway, they're gonna go up there and suck out all the lunar helium. And we know the moon's got a lot of it because remember Neil Armstrong's famous words, that's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind. We got a great show for you tonight.

[Guest or Co-host (possibly a comedian or commentator)]

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[Stephen Colbert]

Turning back to jolly old England, where the bends are big and the hams are bucking. In a Manchester hospital, a doctor walked out of an operation to have sex with a nurse. Call it time of bang sex 30, but what do we expect here? This is what doctors do. Have you not seen the long running documentary series Grey's Anatomy? Apparently the surgeon had asked a colleague to monitor a patient so he could go to the bathroom, but was then caught with the nurse in a compromising position, and rumor has it, a reverse compromising position. While the patient was under anesthesia, the doctor was gone for a mind blowing eight minutes. Forget about the patient. I feel bad for that nurse because sex should last a different time than that. I mean, it should last a normal number of minutes, right, Lewis? It shouldn't be eight. It should be a different number of minutes, probably. That's what we all. Yeah. Yeah. Right? Yeah. Am I right? No more, no less or less than that? Something like that, yeah. And we all know what the normal number of minutes for sex is, right? Aren't you saying. Yeah. You don't even have to say we're guys, we know. Exactly. And the quickie in question took place in Manchester's Tameside Hospital. Eight minutes. Yeah, I'd say that's on the tame side. Okay, come on, come on. Speaking of sex drugs, according to the Wall Street Journal, America loves cocaine. Again, to be fair, I don't think anyone ever stops loving cocaine. I think they just run out. Turns out in the last six years, cocaine consumption has increased 154% because US focus on fentanyl has made it easier to smuggle cocaine in from Mexico. And now cocaine sold in the US is cheaper and as pure as ever for retail buyers. That really sounds like we're advertising for cocaine now. Are we sponsored by. Are we sponsored by the Medellin cartel? Is it right after Skyrizi? Thank goodness that something in America is still affordable. Looks like instead of eggs, I'll be having my morning bacon with a plate of crack Benedict. Another reason, another reason cocaine demand has gone up is because. Oh my goodness. That sound means we have Breaking monkey news. This is an ooh ah ah welcome. According to new research, in the wild, chimpanzees likely ingest the equivalent of several alcoholic drinks every day. Good Lord. That means our oo oo ah ah update is now officially under the chimp fluence. Welcome. Research shows the chimps imbibe alcohol by guzzling ripe fruit, which puts their ethanol intake at about 14 grams per day. You're telling me that animals that fling their poop and masturbate in public might be drunk? Turns out this is not unusual. In fact, in 2015, researchers showed that chimps were known to indulge in regular habitual drinking. Some of the apes started at 7am That's a little early. That's a little early. Keep drinking like that and you're going to wind up in ooh ooh aa and wow. This applies to other primates as well because another type of primate known as slow lorises will down the strongest alcoholic drinks they can get their hands on. Whoa. Explains why those lorises are so slow. But now that I've seen them, I don't think that's booze. That's some of that cheap cocaine. We'll be right back with Ron Howard. My first guest tonight is a two time Academy Award and three time Emmy award winning filmmaker and actor. He has directed many gorgeous films including A Beautiful Mind, Frost, Nixon and Apollo 13. Which is celebrating its 30th anniversary by returning to IMAX this Friday. Hey, we've got a problem here.

[Ron Howard]

What did you do? Nothing.

[Stephen Colbert]

I stirred the tanks.

[Ron Howard]

Whoa.

[Stephen Colbert]

Hey.

[Ron Howard]

This is Houston.

[Stephen Colbert]

Say again please. Houston, we have a problem. We have a main bus V undervault. We've got a lot of thruster activity here. Houston, it just went offline. Oh, there's another master alarm.

[Guest or Co-host (possibly a comedian or commentator)]

Houston.

[Ron Howard]

I'm checking the quad. Franks.

[Stephen Colbert]

That was no repress battle. Maybe it's in quads. We've got a computer restart. We've got to reconfigure the rcs. We've got a piece light. Doesn't make any sense. We got multiple caution and warning. Houston, we've got to reset and restart.

[Ron Howard]

All right, I'm going to sds.

[Stephen Colbert]

Let's just watch the whole thing, please. Welcome back to the late Show, Ron Howard. Hey, nice to see you again.

[Ron Howard]

So good to see you guys. This is.

[Stephen Colbert]

Listen, I could not endorse this idea of re releasing this movie in Imax for the 30th anniversary. More heartily.

[Ron Howard]

Oh, thank you.

[Stephen Colbert]

Like I just. There is no, there is no number of times to watch Apollo 13. In my opinion, that is too many.

[Ron Howard]

Well, I appreciate that. And I gotta say, it looks great.

[Stephen Colbert]

Thank you.

[Ron Howard]

It looks and sounds great on imac.

[Stephen Colbert]

Oh, I can't. I just can't wait.

[Ron Howard]

So if you're into it, check it out.

[Stephen Colbert]

Totally into it. Like when Evie and I are at home and like, we're scrolling through, you know, in the night. Oh, what are you gonna watch? Wherever the needle drops in that movie, we'll both go. Yeah, let's just keep. Let's just keep watching.

[Ron Howard]

It was an amazing. It was an amazing story honoring an amazing period of time and a group of individuals that, you know, achieved so much.

[Stephen Colbert]

Do you have a favorite moment or favorite line in that movie? Oh, you, sir, are steely eyed. Missile.

[Ron Howard]

I do love that one.

[Stephen Colbert]

Yeah, exactly. Don't give me anything that he doesn't have up there.

[Ron Howard]

Failure is not an option. Which actually came from research.

[Stephen Colbert]

Wow.

[Ron Howard]

Where I was meeting with the mission controllers.

[Stephen Colbert]

So if they could get a washing machine to fly, my Jimmy could land it.

[Ron Howard]

And that was my mom delivering that line. And that was your mom? Yes, yes.

[Stephen Colbert]

Oh, my God, now I'm going to cry. That's fantastic. Well, you know, what do you remember about making the film?

[Ron Howard]

Well, so many things. Meeting astronauts, including, of course, Jim Lovell, Dave Scott, who was our technical advisor. But I think the big thrill, the thing that all of us recall is doing the zero G shots. We did it on the KC135, known as the Vomit Comet.

[Stephen Colbert]

Right here it is.

[Ron Howard]

And we filmed all of our scenes by locking down the capsule inside. And as this airplane does parabolas in the sky, at a certain point it starts diving to the ground and it simulates zero gravity. And astronauts used to train for EVAs, opening the hatch and floating out this way. Steven Spielberg, in fact, was the one who turned me onto that footage. And I went to Jim Lovell and I said, oh, Stephen was telling me about this process and he says, oh, you mean on the Vomit Comet? He said, it's brutal. It's brutal. But we thought we'd like to try it. We tried wires and other things and it just looked so fake. And it was so important, the authenticity. And we went into it and they said, well, we're not sure whether you guys can do it, but we will give you one test run just to see how you cope and see if you think it's actually workable. But you actually have to come and pass three days of tests. You have to do some classroom work in order to be cleared and insured. And so forth. And so we did that. We were wearing our flight suits and we were taking our tests. We were in a parabolic chamber so in case the cabin lost pressure and we'd know how to cope with that. Got through all of that stuff. Aced it, feeling great. Finally, we have to take a complete Air Force physical. And so that's okay. I'm in there getting my physical with Kevin Bacon. I'm 40 years old, 30 years ago. Yeah, yeah. And so we're going through the whole thing. I mean, it's everything. It's the treadmill, it's urine, blood works, the heart monitoring monitor, the whole thing. And now I have a condition which is called vasovagal syncope. And what it really means is that I'm a little more prone to shock and I can get lightheaded and at times I can even faint. I mean, things can.

[Stephen Colbert]

Or like drawing blood or something like that.

[Ron Howard]

Drawing blood and things like that. So in this particular case, we're going along, doing the physical and they're doing the blood test, and I start to get woozy. And in this case, the vasovagal syncope led to. I've never told this story, by the way, for this reason.

[Stephen Colbert]

Did you pass out?

[Ron Howard]

It led to Ron blacks out and Ron makes wee wee. Because I hadn't done the urine test yet.

[Stephen Colbert]

You've been holding it.

[Ron Howard]

Well, yeah. And so now I come to and I wake up and Kevin Bacon is looking at me. He's looking down and he's looking up. You know, I'm one degree from Kevin Bacon. And I look and I just take a beat and I just go, 10 extra close ups in this movie, buddy. If you don't say a word.

[Stephen Colbert]

He said, he said. And today he's a star.

[Ron Howard]

He said, I'm with you, boss, but remember, right here, bang, bang, bang. And Kevin, as far as I know, has lived up to that promise. And. And so I'm releasing you from that covenant right now. Kevin.

[Stephen Colbert]

Fantastic. We gotta have him on. That's fantastic. You did this. This wasn't your first movie. You'd made many movies before this, but this was your first true story.

[Ron Howard]

Yes, it was.

[Stephen Colbert]

That you had based it on, as you said. You met Jim Lovell. I got a chance to interview him once. It was a wonderful fellow, Amazing, great conversation. Was it your idea to put him in the movie? Because people may not know this, but he appears.

[Ron Howard]

Yeah. Yes, it was our idea. And, yeah. He plays the captain of the aircraft carrier that retrieves sewing Hank's capsule. That's Jim Lovell. It was a great. Jim was incredible. And that whole breed of individual. Dave Scott, who was also our technical advisor. But so many of the men that I met, he's just passed. Oh, Jim Lovell passed away.

[Stephen Colbert]

He wakes you at 97.

[Ron Howard]

Remarkable life, but the, you know, the courage, true patriot and in the most unassuming ways, you know, committed to service, unbelievable intellectual capacity. I mean, when we were, you know, he's in his late 60s and we're going through flight plans and things like that, and I'm trying to understand the science and the technique and all of it. And all of a sudden I look at my watch, it's 11 o', clock, I'm fried. It's 11 o' clock at night and he's going strong. So he was just a remarkable individual.

[Stephen Colbert]

We have to take a quick break, but right back with more Ron Howard, everybody.

[Guest or Co-host (possibly a comedian or commentator)]

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[Stephen Colbert]

We'Re back with the one and only Ron Howard, your latest film. Your latest film is called Eden, also based on real events. What's the story here?

[Ron Howard]

Well, and by the way, this goes a vod. It's been just finishing up theaters. It goes VOD also this Friday, so it's kind of a big Friday for me between the two.

[Stephen Colbert]

Thank you.

[Ron Howard]

I'm gonna do a two things. Well, it's good to be staying busy. Great film, based on real events, but this is quite different. Not the inspirational true story. This is a cautionary tale. It's a true crime thriller. Great cast. Jude Law, Sydney Sweeney, Ana De Armas, Vanessa Kirby. And it's like a season of Survivor, but people really died.

[Stephen Colbert]

When was this?

[Ron Howard]

It was in the Galapagos in the early 1930s. Three separate groups, all from Germany, fleeing the fascism and autocracy and the Depression, the worldwide depression. Separately, they all believed they could, you know, they could go off the grid. They could make their lives anew. They could recreate themselves in Galapagos. In the Galapagos. And they went. And eight people among the groups went. Principal people.

[Stephen Colbert]

Oh, for a minute, I thought you said they ate people.

[Ron Howard]

No, no. Well, not quite. But only four of them survived.

[Stephen Colbert]

Oh, wow.

[Ron Howard]

It's a tough story. People are a little surprised, but it's a story that I met. I found on a family vacation. It's an infamous story there in the Galapagos. But it's riveting because it really is people from all walks of life, you know, trying to remake themselves. And by the way, today, if you search off the grid, you know, it's one of the most searched phrases on the Internet.

[Stephen Colbert]

No. As people lose faith in their public institutions, they're like, well, I'll just do it for myself.

[Ron Howard]

Exactly.

[Stephen Colbert]

And they quickly find out why there are public institutions.

[Ron Howard]

So as I thought about this story over time, it started off as a kind of interesting, you know, sort of events from the past. And it became more and more relevant as we went along and got closer and closer to actually making the movie.

[Stephen Colbert]

Now, your wife Cheryl has appeared as an extra in every single one of your movies.

[Ron Howard]

Well, yeah, she's not a professional actress. She's a writer. Along with being a mom and so forth. Here you guys are at 21.

[Stephen Colbert]

21.

[Ron Howard]

Holy cow.

[Stephen Colbert]

You're 21.

[Ron Howard]

Going through, you know, all the Super 8 movies and on into the professional stuff. She always, at first, had to be an extra because we needed people. Right. And then I started succeeding, and I felt like she was a good luck charm. This is, in fact, not her favorite thing to do, but she has to do it. And.

[Stephen Colbert]

Is she an extra? Is she one of the. There are only eight people in the. Well, that was a problem, but we solved it.

[Ron Howard]

We solved it. Well, Hancock of Hancock Park, La Brea, Tar pits and so forth in California. Well, he was an explorer, wealthy explorer, and he came and visited at one point, and he brought his yacht and a group of scientists and others who went along. It was all male, male visitors. But it struck me they could have a rather effete cabin boy and Cheryl.

[Stephen Colbert]

Could play that part. Is that what this is? Is that what this is?

[Ron Howard]

That's what this is. So we got a wig and a mustache.

[Stephen Colbert]

That.

[Ron Howard]

I think her expression says it all. I cannot believe I'm doing it for this guy, but here I am.

[Stephen Colbert]

Ron, thanks so much for being here. Good to see you again. 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.

[Guest or Co-host (possibly a comedian or commentator)]

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[Ron Howard]

In you.

[Guest or Co-host (possibly a comedian or commentator)]

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[Stephen Colbert]

Now streaming on Paramount + someone is trying to frame us until our names.

[Guest or Co-host (possibly a comedian or commentator)]

Are cleared we're fugitives from interval Like.

[Ron Howard]

Bonnie and Clyde with better snacks.

[Stephen Colbert]

Espionage? You still as good a shot as.

[Ron Howard]

You used to be?

[Guest or Co-host (possibly a comedian or commentator)]

Better.

[Stephen Colbert]

Is there love language?

[Ron Howard]

We like to walk that fine line between techno thriller and romantic comedy.

[Guest or Co-host (possibly a comedian or commentator)]

We make up our own rules.

[Stephen Colbert]

NCIS Tony and Ziva now streaming on Paramount plus.