#493 Golden Globes Prep, Wicked Reactions & Nikki Wants To Break This Habit...

Summary

The Nikki Glaser Podcast – Episode #493: Golden Globes Prep, Wicked Reactions & Nikki Wants To Break This Habit...

Release Date: December 5, 2024
Host: Nikki Glaser
Co-Hosts: Emily Litchardi, Sean O'Connor, Bowen Yang, Matt Rogers
Produced By: Big Money Players Network and iHeartPodcasts

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Introduction

In Episode #493 of The Nikki Glaser Podcast, host Nikki Glaser welcomes back co-hosts Emily Litchardi, Sean O'Connor, Bowen Yang, and Matt Rogers for a lively discussion filled with personal anecdotes, pop culture insights, and candid conversations about anxiety and performance. This episode delves deep into preparations for the Golden Globes, reactions to the musical Wicked, and Nikki’s personal journey to break a persistent habit.

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1. Wicked Musical Reactions

[24:07] Bowen Yang:
Bowen opens the discussion by sharing his recent experience watching Wicked in IMAX, expressing mixed feelings about the adaptation. He remarks, “I really knew nothing going in except I have been kind of in preparation of it getting into the Defying Gravity song… And so I knew those lines. I was like, I want to go to the song that has those. And that song is awesome.” His enthusiasm for the “Defying Gravity” performance sets the stage for an in-depth analysis.

[24:14] Emily Litchardi:
Emily chimes in, praising the visual spectacle of Wicked but expressing concerns about some narrative choices. She states, “I felt like I was in a ride at the beginning and doing a disservice.” The co-hosts dissect various elements of the musical, including character development and plot twists, highlighting both strengths and areas they believe could be improved.

[29:03] Matt Rogers:
Matt shares his surprise at discovering a subplot about animal rights within Wicked, noting, “I was shocked watching Wicked to find out there was an animal subplot.” This sparks a conversation about the integration of secondary themes in major productions and how they enhance or detract from the main storyline.

[37:43] Sean O'Connor:
Sean provides additional insights into character dynamics, particularly focusing on Glinda and Elphaba’s relationship. He reflects, “I thought Glinda was good, and then it's like, no, she might just be a shitty person.” This leads to a nuanced discussion about character motivations and the complexities of their friendship.

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2. Personal Stories on Anxiety and Performance

[02:54] Introduction to Main Content: After a series of advertisements, Nikki Glaser officially kicks off the main content of the podcast, introducing the co-hosts and setting a candid, conversational tone for the episode.

[22:26] Bowen Yang:
Bowen shares a heartfelt story about his nephew attempting to set a world record, illustrating the support system within families. He narrates, “He keeps showing up in my phone as World… It was amazing. He did such a good job on it.” This segue leads into broader discussions about childhood motivations and the desire for recognition.

[46:36] Matt Rogers:
Matt discusses experiences with the “yips” and performance anxiety, stating, “Have you ever guys ever gotten the yips in any way of your life where you, like, froze or had a bed?” The conversation becomes a shared exploration of the challenges performers face, emphasizing the universal nature of anxiety.

[51:05] Emily Litchardi:
Emily opens up about her own struggles with anxiety stemming from a medical procedure. She shares, “I have something going on because of the MRI that I took…” This vulnerability fosters a supportive environment among the co-hosts, highlighting the importance of addressing mental health openly.

[61:07] Bowen Yang:
Bowen delves into his reluctance to watch his own performances, revealing, “I hate watching myself for me. And the only way to…” His candid admission underscores the complexities of self-perception and the pressure of maintaining a public persona.

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3. Coping Mechanisms and Personal Growth

[51:18] Emily Litchardi:
Emily discusses her upcoming consultation with a hypnotherapist to address subconscious habits, expressing hope, “I'm gonna get hypnosis for what? To try to stop clenching my jaw.” This leads to a conversation about various methods to combat anxiety, including meditation and therapy.

[62:25] Bowen Yang:
Bowen shares insights into his relationship with self-criticism and the fear of losing success, stating, “I don't want to tie any of my happiness to numbers and fame…” This introspection highlights the delicate balance between professional achievements and personal well-being.

[64:27] Bowen Yang:
Bowen touches on the fear of tying happiness to external validation, noting, “That's why I don't spend a lot of money on big things, because I'm always scared it's gonna go away and I'm gonna be on the streets.” This confession reveals the deep-seated anxieties that can accompany success and public recognition.

[65:13] Matt Rogers:
Matt brings up the topic of resilience and the necessity of continuous effort in maintaining a career, comparing it to Dane Cook's journey. He observes, “The only way to keep doing it is to just never stop doing it.” This statement underscores the relentless nature of the entertainment industry and the personal toll it can take.

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4. Reflections on Fame and Self-Image

[58:45] Bowen Yang:
Bowen shares his discomfort with watching himself perform, saying, “I can't let it in because I'm scared it will go away.” This leads to a broader discussion about the impact of fame on self-image and the challenges of maintaining authenticity in the public eye.

[60:22] Matt Rogers:
Matt echoes Bowen’s sentiments, expressing disdain for self-viewing, “I hate hearing my voice. I hate seeing.” The co-hosts collectively explore the psychological effects of constant public scrutiny and the struggle to separate personal identity from public persona.

[62:46] Sean O'Connor:
Sean discusses the validation aspects of social media, highlighting the addictive nature of likes and views, “When you have 10 million views on everything, you can't pull out.” This commentary sheds light on the dependency on external validation for self-worth in the digital age.

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5. Anecdotes and Comedic Insights

[24:07] Bowen Yang:
Bowen reminisces about his interaction with a Munchkin from The Wizard of Oz, sharing a touching story, “He was like, you're gonna make it. He was Jerry McGinnis and he kind of had a southern accent…” This anecdote serves as a metaphor for unexpected support and encouragement in unexpected places.

[41:08] Bowen Yang:
Bowen recounts a challenging moment during a commercial shoot, revealing, “I start freaking out and I cried. It was so awkward.” This vulnerable moment provides a glimpse into the pressures of maintaining composure in professional settings.

[43:02] Emily Litchardi:
Emily shares her experience with the “Kia Hamsters” commercial, detailing the stress of memorizing long lines and the emotional fallout from a poorly timed joke about Melissa Etheridge, “I felt dumb because I got upset that she was dead.” This story highlights the unpredictable nature of live performances and the thin line between humor and insensitivity.

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6. Closing Thoughts and Future Plans

As the episode progresses towards its conclusion, the co-hosts reflect on their personal growth, coping strategies, and the importance of empathy in both personal and professional realms. They discuss the value of continuous practice, resilience in the face of setbacks, and the significance of supportive relationships in overcoming anxiety.

[66:35] Matt Rogers:
Matt draws parallels between past and present comedic influences, comparing Dane Cook to contemporary comedians, “It was the first comedy album for our generation. Yeah, you define born for that.” This reflection emphasizes the enduring impact of influential figures in shaping comedic landscapes.

[70:04] Nikki Glaser:
Nikki wraps up the episode by encouraging listeners to watch full episodes on YouTube and follow the podcast on social media, ensuring that the conversation remains accessible and continues beyond the audio format.

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Notable Quotes

• Bowen Yang [24:07]:
  “I really knew nothing going in except I have been kind of in preparation of it getting into the Defying Gravity song… And so I knew those lines. I was like, I want to go to the song that has those. And that song is awesome.”

• Emily Litchardi [24:14]:
  “I felt like I was in a ride at the beginning and doing a disservice.”

• Bowen Yang [46:36]:
  “Have you ever guys ever gotten the yips in any way of your life where you, like, froze or had a bed?”

• Bowen Yang [51:18]:
  “I hate watching myself for me. And the only way to…”

• Matt Rogers [62:25]:
  “The only way to keep doing it is to just never stop doing it.”

• Bowen Yang [58:45]:
  “I can't let it in because I'm scared it will go away.”

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Conclusion

Episode #493 of The Nikki Glaser Podcast offers a rich tapestry of conversations that intertwine personal experiences with broader cultural discussions. From dissecting the nuances of Wicked to addressing the pervasive challenges of anxiety and self-image in the performing arts, Nikki and her co-hosts provide listeners with a blend of humor, vulnerability, and insightful commentary. This episode serves as both an entertaining and relatable exploration of the pressures inherent in the entertainment industry and the universal quest for personal growth and mental well-being.

Transcript

[Nikki Glaser]

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[Emily Litchardi]

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[Emily Litchardi]

Card has no cash access and expires in six months.

[Brian Frangie]

ABC Tim Allen and Kat Dennings star in the new family comedy Shifting Gears.

[Bowen Yang]

Dad, I'm broke and I need a place to stay until I figure out what the rest of my life looks like. So a couple of days when his.

[Brian Frangie]

Daughter moves back in.

[Emily Litchardi]

The last time you walked out that.

[Nikki Glaser]

Door, you look back at me and.

[Brian Frangie]

Gave me a double bird.

[Bowen Yang]

I was 18. The double bird was how I ended all our conversations.

[Brian Frangie]

The wheels come off.

[Bowen Yang]

Can we try to talk to each other like rational adults? If you watch the news lately, that's.

[Emily Litchardi]

Not a thing anymore.

[Brian Frangie]

New Wednesdays, 8, 7 Central on ABC and stream on Hulu.

[Bowen Yang]

This is Matt Rogers from Las Culturistas with Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang. Save the date for your cordially invited, a hilarious new wedding comedy starring Will.

[Emily Litchardi]

Ferrell and Reese Witherspoon.

[Bowen Yang]

Chaos ensues when two weddings are accidentally booked on the same weekend at the same venue. Uh oh.

[Emily Litchardi]

Will Ferrell plays the father of the.

[Bowen Yang]

Bride and Reese Witherspoon is the sister.

[Matt Rogers]

Of the other bride.

[Bowen Yang]

And they go head to head to.

[Emily Litchardi]

Make sure the ones they love get.

[Bowen Yang]

Their special day together on screen. For the first time ever, it's Ferrell versus Witherspoon. Chaos comedy and alligator wrestling await you in invited watch January 30th on Prime Video. Spectrum Business knows that small business owners put in the work. It's unlimited hours, unlimited effort and unlimited passion. All to unlock the unlimited potential of your business. Get fast, reliable Internet, advanced WI fi with security shield and an unlimited mobile line, all only $49.99 a month. Learn how Spectrum Business can connect your business to unlimited [e-mail] business. It's your business made limitless. That's Life Unlimited. That's Spectrum Business. Restrictions apply often not available in all areas. Where'd you get those shoes?

[Emily Litchardi]

Easy.

[Bowen Yang]

They're from dsw. Because DSW has the exact right shoes for whatever you're into Right now. You know, like the sneakers that make office hours feel like happy hour, the boots that turn grocery aisles into runways, and all the styles that show off the many sides of you, from daydreamer to multitasker and everything in between. Because you do it all in really great shoes. Find a shoe for every you at your DSW store or dsw.com the Nikki Glazer podcast. Here's Nikki. Hello, here I am. Welcome to the show. It's the Nikki Glaser podcast live from LA in person with Brian Frangie.

[Emily Litchardi]

Hello.

[Bowen Yang]

Her. Hello, Sean O'Connor.

[Matt Rogers]

Hey.

[Bowen Yang]

And you know her, you love her, you hear about her all the time. She's been on the show before and she's back by popular demand and because Andrew Collin got really violently sick. So please welcome the show, Emmy Emily Lichardi. Sorry, wow, I was really focused on your last name. So I fucked up your first name.

[Sean O'Connor]

I thought you were supposed to say Gen zm, so.

[Bowen Yang]

Oh yeah, it's Gen zm everyone. Sorry, I meant to say that that's.

[Matt Rogers]

Her whack pack name.

[Bowen Yang]

Yeah, like no one. I barely know your last name. It's Gen zm Luchardi. Does it feel like, does it flippant? Because I remember one time you were like, of course you have me in your phone as up high. M Em. Emily. Emily up high. Everyone has me in as Emily up high. And I'm like, oh, Emily social media.

[Sean O'Connor]

Emily social girl.

[Bowen Yang]

Yeah.

[Sean O'Connor]

I was like, I'm more than that.

[Matt Rogers]

My wife is still in my phone. My wife is still in my phone as girl from bar.

[Bowen Yang]

That'd be amazing. My boyfriend actually is in my name or is in my phone right now under his name is World Record Association.

[Emily Litchardi]

Okay.

[Bowen Yang]

Which is really the story behind it is interest. But he, his nickname is seaworld because his name is Chris. So it's like Chris World. But it's like sounds like you're saying SeaWorld. So we call him, his family calls him SeaWorld and so shortened to that. A lot of people call him World. I don't, but I know that's what he's called. So he keeps showing up in my phone as World, which is what we call him. But the reason he's in my phone is World Record association is because this weekend, Thanksgiving night, My nephew, who's 7, your son Nolan's age, same age, like went out on the front porch and we were just like in the family room watching tv. I was at my parents house with my nephews and my niece and my sister and my brother in law. Matt and my brother in law Matt comes in and is like, hey guys, Arlo's doing this thing on the porch. He's like, he all of a sudden like, wants to set a record. And we were like, what? And they're like, he wants to. He just. He's on the porch. He was sitting on a ball he found in a tree, like a soccer ball. He's sitting on a ball on the front porch, on a bench on my parents front porch. And he asked for my phone and he just said, I wanna just like set a record for like how long to sit on a ball? And so we were like, where is he getting this from? I went out there to check on it and he was like, I'm gonna set a record. And we're like, oh my God, what is the record? He's like, I'm setting it. And I'm like, you're right. You are like, this is amazing. And so then we got in this whole thing of like, you're setting a record. This is the coolest thing that's ever happened. Oh my God, I can't believe you're doing this. It's so cold outside. You're gonna sit on this ball. How long are you gonna go? He's like, maybe an hour. I'm like, oh my God. And also we get for an hour, he's on the porch alone. We keep. So over the course of the hour, we're like amping this up. We keep bringing him out blankets. It's like 30 degrees outside. We're bringing him hot cocoa. We're like, how are you doing this? This is amazing. So he's just sitting like a bird on an egg on a ball on, on a bench on my parents front porch. We're watching TV in the family room. And then a couple times I bring him like, you know, a blanket and some gloves. And he just casually mentions like, you should call someone about this. Like, you should, you should like. Because he kind of knows I'm the one that might have connections to like getting things out there.

[Matt Rogers]

Yeah, yeah.

[Bowen Yang]

So he's like, you should call someone. And I'm like, I should, you're right. But I kind of like brushed it off when he first said, like, yeah, people deserve to know about this. We'll let people know, you know. And then the second time he said, I was like, I got to do something. Like, yeah, I got to like come through on this for him. So I texted Chris, who was at his parents house, and I was like, hey, I'm going to call you and will you just pretend that you are, like, at the World Record association and. Because he didn't know about Guinness Book of World Records, but we were like that you're. And we're telling you about this world record and where you just. He's sitting on a bench. Sitting on a ball on a bench. And so I called Chris and I put him in my phone because I. Because Arlo might have been suspicious and been like, is it really? And I go, it's the World Record Association. Like, I got their number. And Chris fucking nailed it. He was Jerry McGinnis and he kind of had a southern accent. And he's like, now tell me about what's going on there. And I go, we got a young. We got a boy who's sitting on a front porch in the cold. He goes, not in the cold. Really? The cold? Well, it's gotta be at least 60 degrees there, right? We go, no, it's 30. And he goes, oh, so you got a boy sitting on a bench. On a bowling bench. Now we got. We got little Timmy Flattery. He. Now, he did 53 minutes back in August of 77. And so he's going through, like, his records, and he goes, now this boy's got. He's gotta be about what, 15, 16, 17. And I go, no, sir, no, this is a seven year old. He goes, Seven years old? Well, this is going right to the top of the deck. So then he's like, so Arlo's listening to this on speaker and just like on this ball, like, so excited. And so then I was like, so does he get something in the mail? Once we, like, once he has achieved the record, because he's at 22 minutes now, and he goes, well, if he gets another 31 minutes, I mean, we will have no choice but to dethrone Timmy Flattery and send him a certificate. And so I go, and he'll get that in the mail. And I knew Chris would, like, mail him something. So I was like, this will be great. We'll do it later. But then Chris is like, no, I'm going to Photoshop it right now. So he, like, made this amazing certificate with, like, different colors. And then my dad of, like, who has a color printer in this world, Kinko's aren't open on Thanksgiving. No world would this have ever worked out, except my dad has a working color printer and never used. I never used the color cartridge. I'm excited to use that. So he printed up this certificate that Arlo is holding proudly. He couldn't believe it. He kept asking if there was money involved. And Chris almost put a caveat on the certificate for it to say, like, your favorite aunt must award you $100. I was like, that would have been so good.

[Emily Litchardi]

That looks really good.

[Bowen Yang]

He did such a good job on it. Wow.

[Emily Litchardi]

It's got a seal and everything. Is that. That looks like a real seal and.

[Bowen Yang]

It has a picture of Arlo holding his time.

[Emily Litchardi]

This is official, folks.

[Bowen Yang]

This is official, folks. Yeah. World Record Association. It's signed by Jerry McGinnis.

[Emily Litchardi]

Record for sitting on a ball on a porch. 57 minutes and one second temperature during record an impressive 36 degrees.

[Matt Rogers]

That is incredible. That is so well done.

[Bowen Yang]

It's so fun to like, I understand Santa now. Like, because he's going to. Because someone goes, when are you going to tell him it was a lie? Like everyone that night was like, when are we gonna tell him? And I go, you're all lying to him about Santa constantly. Like, why can't we add more lies to the bit? I'm gonna. Because I don't believe in lying about Santa. But if we're going to.

[Emily Litchardi]

Might as well. Here's what they gotta do next. You gotta get a call. He has to get a call from Timmy. Flattery. Being really pissed off.

[Matt Rogers]

Yeah. Like really.

[Emily Litchardi]

All by now he's probably in his 70s. If he was a 15 year old boy in 1977 when he broke the record.

[Bowen Yang]

Yeah.

[Emily Litchardi]

So you gotta get a 70 year old man, any 70 year old man, you know, to come up to him and be like, you broke my record. I'll never forget.

[Bowen Yang]

It is. But he's been flaunting it. He's been talking about it. They're like, it's. They're gonna get it framed. Like I just, you know. Do you guys remember as a kid like having any kind of like winning something or like having a. Like wouldn't that for us Threes, Sean? That would have been threes. Threes as an enneagram. 3 as you are too, because you did the quiz. Like, wouldn't you have. Like, wouldn't this have made your childhood? Like, I think I was just trying to gift him what I would have wanted.

[Matt Rogers]

Oh, absolutely. I want to be lied to. Like to the point where I wanted. I wanted to succeed so much. There was a Ghostbust comic book and I still have it at my parents house that I took my older cousin's drawing of Slimer and sent it in as me as like a four year old and I got full credit. They must have thought I was like the most talented four year old. I was just a fucking liar.

[Bowen Yang]

Oh my God. You were talented in devious ways.

[Emily Litchardi]

Yes.

[Bowen Yang]

Oh yeah.

[Matt Rogers]

I love li. I loved lying growing up and like.

[Bowen Yang]

I didn't like lying, but I just wanted. I wanted notoriety.

[Matt Rogers]

Oh, I wanted it so bad. Like I remember at basketball camp I told everyone I was Chris Farley's cousin because I like of look like Chris Farley and everyone called me Farley and I was in heaven. And then he died.

[Bowen Yang]

Did you get to take off school?

[Matt Rogers]

It was during summer camp and I like he like died in like July or something and I had to be. I was actually really sad, so I like to pretend.

[Sean O'Connor]

Did you play it up though?

[Matt Rogers]

Didn't have to play it up, no. No. But I think I. My mom told me to stop doing it at that point.

[Bowen Yang]

That's such a good lie. I never. I don't think I was like a lied to. That's a different type of three.

[Matt Rogers]

Yeah, no, that' that's a chemistry three.

[Bowen Yang]

Yeah, that's the one. Threes can go either way. They're some of the worst people in the world.

[Emily Litchardi]

Any number can go anyway.

[Bowen Yang]

Yeah, that's true.

[Emily Litchardi]

But you don't like taking credit for things that aren't that I haven't done. Yeah, there's a differentiation here.

[Matt Rogers]

I don't do that anymore. This is very much like.

[Bowen Yang]

No, that's who you are.

[Emily Litchardi]

You're a devious liar.

[Matt Rogers]

I was just an unremarkable like child and I wanted. All I wanted was to be like Matilda or something.

[Bowen Yang]

Oh, I wanted. Oh, I would stare at spoons so much and try to get them to move. I wanted some kind of power. Oh, all.

[Matt Rogers]

That's it. Like so that I feel like that's a three move.

[Bowen Yang]

Yeah. What I think of like, don't all kids want like attention? Like did you. Do you guys relate to that of like Brian, you. Probably.

[Emily Litchardi]

It's. It's in different ways though. It's not. It doesn't matter if you want attention or if you want power. It matters why. What is the thing? What is the reason for your trauma that you're covering up? What is your method?

[Bowen Yang]

But as a kid, what do you remember getting any kind of special attention that really made you feel so good?

[Emily Litchardi]

Well, for different reasons. For one reason. So I remember at camp I also lied about something. I was on a bus and it was a really hot day and we were stuck in traffic and like I think the bus overheated or something and I felt that this was unacceptable to have all these kids on the hot bus for hours and hours. And so I.

[Nikki Glaser]

It is.

[Emily Litchardi]

It is. It was hours and hours. It was like six or seven hours. We're on this hot bus on the side of the highway and we're all getting so hot and we're sweating. And then eventually I took off my shirt and I was like getting. I'm like, I'm so hot. I'm so hot.

[Bowen Yang]

What grade is this?

[Emily Litchardi]

This was. I was probably like seven or something. And I was like, I'm so hot, I can't take it anymore. And there was no water. It was like there was a bus driver.

[Bowen Yang]

Oh, my God.

[Emily Litchardi]

And then I pretended to faint.

[Bowen Yang]

Oh, man. Did you tell a friend you were gonna do it or is. It was.

[Emily Litchardi]

No, I just said, someone has to serve justice here. This is what happens.

[Bowen Yang]

You fell on the sword.

[Matt Rogers]

You are Rosa Parks of this summer.

[Emily Litchardi]

That.

[Bowen Yang]

Oh my gosh.

[Emily Litchardi]

Instead of sitting down, I fell over. So I pretended to faint. And then it was like a big deal. I didn't realize it was going to. Missed a huge deal. But they made a really big deal about this camp because it was like he fainted on the bus out of heat exhaustion. And they took me to the nurse all day and they were trying to give me all these.

[Bowen Yang]

But that makes sense because you saw that's what was gonna happen. I saw you leading to this to just do it to prove to them that this is a lot.

[Emily Litchardi]

Like, take this seriously. We're a bunch of 7 year olds. It's probably like 120 degrees inside this bus.

[Bowen Yang]

Yes.

[Emily Litchardi]

And we're just sitting here for four or five hours. Doesn't make any sense.

[Bowen Yang]

I. One time I was at a Dodgers game and there. I don't know if you've been up in like the like higher up seats there, but like there is a drop off, a sudden drop off where it, like, you know, there's like a place to go out to get concessions. So the stands drop off.

[Emily Litchardi]

Yeah.

[Bowen Yang]

And there's no. There's a very small shitty guard rail separating like seats that are very high up off of just pure pavement.

[Emily Litchardi]

Yeah.

[Bowen Yang]

And there was a child like by it. I was so distracted during the game, I couldn't like, I couldn't stop thinking about it. And I couldn't believe everyone else wasn't alarmed by this.

[Emily Litchardi]

It's amazing. More people don't fall any stadium believe. Yeah.

[Bowen Yang]

Oh, that's true. Or like hotel balconies. When I'm out there, sometimes I'm like, how are kids not dying all the Time. Because teens are always trying to show off.

[Emily Litchardi]

That's right.

[Bowen Yang]

And flirting.

[Emily Litchardi]

Right.

[Bowen Yang]

Like, how have flirty teens not died here more often?

[Emily Litchardi]

I don't know.

[Bowen Yang]

But I. Like, it's not like I was going to fall to make it happen, but I felt.

[Emily Litchardi]

You thought about throwing a baby over.

[Bowen Yang]

Yeah, I thought about pulling a Michael Jackson and showing my new song, but there was something in me that was like, I want this. These people. I need something to happen here for this to change.

[Emily Litchardi]

Yeah, right.

[Bowen Yang]

Because otherwise it's like. But no one seemed to care.

[Emily Litchardi]

Nobody cares.

[Bowen Yang]

People just walk on the road when there's traffic.

[Matt Rogers]

I will say it's crazy at, like, Dodger Stadium, very particularly, people are just getting wasted with their kids. Wasted and just letting their kids do whatever there. And it's wild.

[Bowen Yang]

I think kids are dying and they're covering up. There's no way kids are dying there.

[Matt Rogers]

Oh, it's like Disneyland where they.

[Bowen Yang]

Yeah. Cruise ships. There must be. Because you go, how is this not happening when you see a hazard like that.

[Emily Litchardi]

Yeah, I. I think someone's gonna. I mean, I don't wanna say this, but I. I'm waiting for the first sphere fall. Cause that's really steep. In the sphere fall. Sphere. In the sphere in Vegas. Cause it's so steep.

[Bowen Yang]

Wait, speaking of, I went to IMAX last night to see Wicked with my parents.

[Emily Litchardi]

Oh, that's.

[Bowen Yang]

IMAX is the same steepness. My parents. My parents, we said the same exact thing. Literally less, like, you know, less than 24 hours ago about how. How do people not fall in IMAXES all the time? Because there's this six inches to walk and it is a straight shot down.

[Emily Litchardi]

Yes.

[Matt Rogers]

It's crazy. Like, I mean, imax, at least you're not like, inebriated. But like, the sphere, like, fish is doing shows there. Like, it's wild.

[Bowen Yang]

How are people not getting hurt? It really is crazy.

[Matt Rogers]

Just like tripping balls and like.

[Bowen Yang]

And tripping over cuff. Yes. Y. You're so right.

[Emily Litchardi]

When I was watching Wicked, I was thinking at the beginning of it that it would be nice to see this in IMAX or in the sphere, because it was. It was visually stunning. And I felt like I was in a. On a ride at the beginning.

[Bowen Yang]

Well, yeah.

[Emily Litchardi]

And seeing it on a regular screen, I felt like was doing it a disservice.

[Bowen Yang]

I had the exact opposite thing where I go, you know what? I think I gotta see this in a regular one. Because the start of the IMAX show, it was. They showed a preview for the new line, the Mustafa.

[Emily Litchardi]

Mufasa.

[Bowen Yang]

Yeah, Mufasa. Mufasa, Mustafa. It seems like it's just the Lion King again.

[Matt Rogers]

Yeah, it's just kind of. It's basically the same story.

[Bowen Yang]

I was so distracted, though, because it was. The trailer was not fit to the IMAX screen, so it was just like, whoa. And my mom and I were like, this sucks. Like, if this is what Wicked is, we're leaving immediately because you can't focus on anything. And there were times where, like, on the side of the screen during. Wicked was much better formatted for it, but there were times during it where someone would appear on the side and you wouldn't even know that they were there because they're, like, way up on the sides.

[Emily Litchardi]

Like a character with lines.

[Bowen Yang]

Yeah, Character with lines would come in and you're like, whoa. She's all. You had to, like, turn your head over. But other than that, there were some cool moments when she runs to the edge of the cliff.

[Emily Litchardi]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Bowen Yang]

That was, I think, my favorite part of the whole. So we've all seen Wicked here. That's a real. Everyone applauded in my theater at the end of that. I mean, I'm sure everyone applauded at your theaters, too, because that whole time they applauded.

[Emily Litchardi]

People booed at that point. Culver City.

[Bowen Yang]

No, but nobody sang in mine.

[Matt Rogers]

Nobody's saying in mine.

[Bowen Yang]

They told us not to.

[Matt Rogers]

Oh, that's.

[Bowen Yang]

There was announcements. Two announcements before.

[Matt Rogers]

But the only cheering that happened outside of the end because it did get an applause break at the end.

[Bowen Yang]

Oh, yeah.

[Matt Rogers]

Like. But was the Nicole Kidman intro. Still is getting claps.

[Bowen Yang]

Wow.

[Matt Rogers]

Like, I'm so tired of it. I'm so embarrassed for people who like it.

[Bowen Yang]

That's so. But do they like it ironically at this point? Isn't that. If.

[Matt Rogers]

So.

[Emily Litchardi]

I don't know what you're talking about.

[Matt Rogers]

Do you not go to AMC's did.

[Sean O'Connor]

You see our merch video?

[Bowen Yang]

Yeah, we did. Waited a video on TikTok to it.

[Emily Litchardi]

I only go to the Culver City Theater, which is owned by Amazon now. Oh.

[Matt Rogers]

So every AMC showing for the last three years, to get us out of the pandemic, Nicole Kidman filmed this thing where she's alone in a movie theater and she's just swept away by films like Jurassic World and La La Land. And she does this, like. It's like this incredibly.

[Bowen Yang]

Doesn't she walk in from the parking lot?

[Matt Rogers]

It's raining. We come here to laugh. We come here to.

[Bowen Yang]

Yeah.

[Sean O'Connor]

It's like we come here for magic.

[Bowen Yang]

Yeah. Yeah. It's really just, you know, hammed up. Yeah. Melodramatic. And it became like, a meme. Like, people are making fun of it. So I now think that people like it because it's so ridiculous.

[Emily Litchardi]

Yeah.

[Matt Rogers]

Like, they're cheering when it comes on. But it's very funny because Nolan knows all the words, and he just mimes, like, says it along with it.

[Bowen Yang]

That's so cute.

[Emily Litchardi]

Like, it's an episode of Bluey.

[Matt Rogers]

Exactly.

[Bowen Yang]

But that's what we used to do at our movie theater in St. Louis. I still have the thing memorized of, like, we're in Berkeley, you know, like, the little song. Like, there was only. I would only hear it in that context. And, yeah, I still have it. It's burned in my. Because, yeah, I used to see so many. I was voted most likely in my 8th grade class to be Siskel and Ebert. Oh, that's both of them. Not when you want to be, like, a pretty girl on screen. You want to, like, review movies.

[Matt Rogers]

You are so Ebert.

[Bowen Yang]

I was like, I hated it. I legit hated it.

[Matt Rogers]

But would you give it two. Two thumbs down.

[Emily Litchardi]

I want to hear what you heard about how you felt about Wicked. But Noah's saying we got to take a break.

[Bowen Yang]

Okay, let's take a break. And then, by the way, Brian's telling us what Noah's saying because he's wearing headphones and I'm not because I just got my hair and my hair done, or no, sorry, my makeup done. My hair is not done. I haven't washed it in three days. But my makeup I just got done by a girl who I might be using from now on. Or, like, not from now on, but, like, mixing into my makeup team. So we did a trial run that Emily set, and we go, oh, we'll just bring it to the podcast. And so if you're watching at home or on, you know, on YouTube, that's why my face looks so different, because I had makeup done and it looks amazing. We'll be back after this, and we'll talk about Wicked.

[Nikki Glaser]

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[Bowen Yang]

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[Chris]

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[Bowen Yang]

Saw Wicked and I I really knew nothing going in except I have been kind of in preparation of it getting into the Defying Gravity song. Like I was like I gotta check out the song and I when Chris used to do his radio show, Wicked was coming to like the Fox theater and so they would play little snippets and it was like look to the western Sky. It was like that line. And then it was like, oh, that's a great line, those two lines. And I was like, I learned them from this ad that I heard over and over when I used to listen to Chris's show every day. And so I knew those lines. I was like, I want to go to the song that has those. And that song. Song is awesome.

[Emily Litchardi]

Oh, my God.

[Matt Rogers]

Which is incredible.

[Bowen Yang]

It's truly a showstopper songs in it.

[Matt Rogers]

Yeah.

[Bowen Yang]

Yeah.

[Emily Litchardi]

I don't know what's gonna happen.

[Bowen Yang]

Invincible Unlimited. Like, there's all these, like, different areas it goes to, and.

[Sean O'Connor]

Yeah.

[Emily Litchardi]

Wait, so you never saw the musical?

[Bowen Yang]

No. Whoa. I know. I knew nothing. I did, but I kind of. You've heard of the wizard of wizard of Oz? Like, I know the beats, and I obviously know everything, but I don't. I never really connected.

[Sean O'Connor]

Did you connect any of it?

[Bowen Yang]

No, I didn't. I don't remember anything about. I know there's, like, a witch that had the heart. You didn't read all the books, but you didn't connect.

[Sean O'Connor]

Like, can I, like, say things that.

[Bowen Yang]

Happen in the movie that Glinda is the good one?

[Sean O'Connor]

When they choose the color of the road.

[Bowen Yang]

Yeah, yeah, I know all the.

[Matt Rogers]

Yeah. Okay.

[Bowen Yang]

I didn't know. I know that Oz is, like, he has the big thing in front of him, and he's a small guy behind it. I didn't really. But I don't know the story.

[Emily Litchardi]

You knew that wizard of Oz was a movie, right?

[Bowen Yang]

Yes. And I knew that they used asbestos instead of snow.

[Emily Litchardi]

And then the one munchkin that hung himself is the.

[Bowen Yang]

Yeah, they all.

[Matt Rogers]

They all kind of died.

[Sean O'Connor]

Yeah.

[Matt Rogers]

And then also, all of the munchkins, they were kept in a hotel. They were all. There's like, a movie about it from the 70s. They were kept in a hotel, and they were all aggressively sexual and, like, they were, like, really weird with everything.

[Emily Litchardi]

Wasn't the hotel the Culver City Hotel? The Culver Hotel.

[Matt Rogers]

It might have been.

[Emily Litchardi]

Yeah. I think that was where.

[Bowen Yang]

Wow. No wonder contest stars in that movie. It's like Carrie Fisher and Chevy Chase.

[Matt Rogers]

I think so.

[Bowen Yang]

I think that's. I just heard about this morning.

[Emily Litchardi]

What movie?

[Bowen Yang]

On Chris's radio show, there's a movie about the munchkins.

[Matt Rogers]

The munchkins at a hotel?

[Bowen Yang]

Yeah, about. During the wizard of Oz.

[Emily Litchardi]

And, like, Carrie Fisher pretended to be a munchkin.

[Bowen Yang]

No, she was probably, like, played Judy Gartler.

[Matt Rogers]

Yeah. Saying, like, stop touching me.

[Emily Litchardi]

Okay.

[Bowen Yang]

So. But one of the munchkins, Jerry Marin, who died in May 24 2, 2018. I talked about this before, but it bears mentioning it.

[Emily Litchardi]

Half Jerry Seinfeld, half Marc Maron.

[Bowen Yang]

Exactly. M A R E N. But he is a munchkin. And in 2000, that's the correct term.

[Emily Litchardi]

He was a munchkin in the movie.

[Bowen Yang]

He was a munchkin. And he's a little person in real.

[Emily Litchardi]

Life, he's a little person.

[Bowen Yang]

He's almost like more than a little person. You know how like, he's like. There's maybe it's like dwarfism.

[Matt Rogers]

He's got lifts.

[Bowen Yang]

No, not taller than a little person. He's actually littler than most, I think, little people. He looked. He was. He was different. Different than like the basic. Not basic, but like the.

[Emily Litchardi]

The basic model of.

[Matt Rogers]

Well, yeah, because all. I mean, when you go to Munchkinland, there's a lot of, you know, standard size munchkins.

[Emily Litchardi]

Yes.

[Bowen Yang]

Well, this. Anyway, he. This. I go on a flight, it was like 2010-12, I want to say.

[Emily Litchardi]

Okay.

[Bowen Yang]

Before my life is really taken off.

[Emily Litchardi]

Taken off.

[Bowen Yang]

Wow.

[Emily Litchardi]

This is all planes.

[Bowen Yang]

A lot of flight stuff. So we're on the Runway. Literally. No, I am sitting next to him and his wife, who is also a little. And we're in the back, but I don't know who he is. He's just two little people that I'm sitting next to and I'm like, that's.

[Emily Litchardi]

Very nice for you.

[Bowen Yang]

Great. Yeah, it was. Yeah, that was. It was good. Yeah. And not for them. Yeah. So I. So at some point during the flight, we started talking and then it was revealed that he was in the wizard of Oz and one of the only living munchkins. And I was like, oh, my God. You know, like. And we're flying to LA from probably some date I was doing in Prague, Boston or something. So. But it was a long cross country flight and I make friends with him and his wife. They, like, give me some kind of like, memorabilia. I forget, like, a picture or something. I really was so dumb not to keep it all. But I'll never forget because of course I remember this part. He was like, you're gonna make it. He, like. And he was. No one had ever said that to me before. Like, I'm not like Lady Gaga claiming that no one believed in me. Like, and everyone said I wouldn't make it. And I'm here, dad. Like, I'm not. I don't. I don't talk like that. Like, no one was ever mean to me and was like, you're not talented, but no one ever really was like, you're. Don't worry. It's gonna be okay. He, like, kind of. It was a moment that I will never forget because it was obviously a munchkin from the wizard vase saying this to you, like a living legend that I then Googled. It was, I think, even before smartphones. But I looked at him later, I was like, holy fuck. This was a legend I spent the whole fight with. And they were so nice to me. And that's amazing. Yeah, it was really cool. Yeah. So that's all I knew about Wicked.

[Emily Litchardi]

Anybody saying that is nice, even if it wasn't a munchkin.

[Bowen Yang]

I don't. I don't do. I didn't get that a lot.

[Matt Rogers]

Yeah. No, but I feel like that's like an old Hollywood thing, so you kind of expect it from a living legend. Munchkin is like, yeah, like you're gonna make it.

[Bowen Yang]

And he had no. But we talked for, like, a couple hours, and I think I'd maybe done the Tonight show at that point or something, but it hadn't been going well. It was like. This was in, like, a couple years after that, and things were not. Nothing was happening. And it really. I had to make good on that. On. On his wish for me.

[Matt Rogers]

He needed to die in 2018 for you to soar.

[Bowen Yang]

I took his place in this business. That was the year. I love, but Wicked. Yeah. I didn't know, like, anything about the story going in.

[Emily Litchardi]

Defying Gravity is so good.

[Bowen Yang]

It's so good.

[Emily Litchardi]

My favorite lyric from Defying Gravity is when she rhymes was with Oz, which I don't know why I like it so much.

[Bowen Yang]

Oh, that's nice.

[Emily Litchardi]

I forgot the lyrics are so. I can't possibly even attempt it, but.

[Matt Rogers]

I was shocked, shocked watching Wicked to find out there was an animal subplot.

[Bowen Yang]

I mean, I was. I don't even understand, like, I can't believe no one's talked about. There is a subplot of Wicked about animal rights.

[Matt Rogers]

It feels like the biggest part of the movie.

[Bowen Yang]

It is the movie.

[Emily Litchardi]

Well, okay, so to be.

[Bowen Yang]

Why. Why are there talking animals in this play? Not in the play.

[Sean O'Connor]

Animals.

[Bowen Yang]

Why did someone.

[Emily Litchardi]

It feels she's in the book.

[Bowen Yang]

It feels a bit shoebox.

[Emily Litchardi]

It's in the book. It's in the musical. It's because it's taking every aspect of the land of Oz from the Frank Baum original books and the movie. And a big part of it were these. The enslavement of these flying monkeys. And how did those flying monkeys become flying monkeys? And why are they working for the wizard or whatever?

[Bowen Yang]

So we never really knew the story behind that. Or he. Or he wrote the story behind that, and that's what we're watching.

[Emily Litchardi]

Well, the new person who wrote Wicked, he wrote the book in 1995, the year that the wizard of Oz went to the public domain. He wrote his book, came out Wicked.

[Bowen Yang]

Oh, wow.

[Emily Litchardi]

Yeah. And that was a big part of. It is just. It's just that. That's all period.

[Matt Rogers]

It was just so shocking because I really just thought it was. And then there's, like, a goat who's, like, so sad. It's like, that's so sad.

[Bowen Yang]

It came out of nowhere. It literally. I didn't know there were any animals in this movie at all, let alone ones that talked that were really well done.

[Matt Rogers]

Well done.

[Bowen Yang]

So good.

[Emily Litchardi]

I'm worried. I'm worried about part two, because part one of Wicked is so good. It's got all the hits, it's got all the best scenes.

[Bowen Yang]

What is gonna be in two?

[Emily Litchardi]

Part two is pretty sad.

[Bowen Yang]

It is.

[Emily Litchardi]

And it doesn't have a defying gravity in it.

[Bowen Yang]

We know the witch is dead.

[Emily Litchardi]

Yeah.

[Bowen Yang]

Well, that's what I love. I love that we know the ending. I love a tragic tale.

[Emily Litchardi]

But there's, you know, the ending for her, but for the rest of the.

[Bowen Yang]

Characters, you're not sure she is the movie.

[Emily Litchardi]

Yes, it's Alpha Muslim. That is true.

[Bowen Yang]

Yeah.

[Sean O'Connor]

But there's more to her story that I think you'd lose it if you find out.

[Bowen Yang]

Yeah, that's. Well, I'm interested that I was reading. Like, you know what? Like, we all are just, like, little things here and there, and everyone's like, is Glenn, Glinda good or bad? And I'm like, I thought she was good. And then it's like, no, she might just be a shitty person, but, like, she has parts. Like, that's the only part that I kind of was, like, I didn't get there with. All of a sudden. She's like a good friend and they're best friends and they trust each other. The way. The way I kind of have thought about it the past 24 hours. Hours is that Elphaba was such a. Like, such an ostracized dork that had no friends that she would just take anything because Glinda was not a good friend out of the gate. She just was like, I'm just suddenly, oh, you show up at this party and because you got me the internship with the woman, I'm now gonna be nice to you. And do your weird dance with you. And like. And suddenly. Suddenly, I'm a great person. Like, no, I'm only being a great person because it's working out for me. Like, she's not really a good friend, but aren't we all just doing things for ourselves anyway?

[Matt Rogers]

But that's so quid pro qu. I don't buy that as, like, a reason a character turn for, like, I'm good now.

[Bowen Yang]

And I wanted to see Glinda freak out about the fact that the woman. The. What's her name?

[Emily Litchardi]

Michelle. Yeoh.

[Bowen Yang]

But what's her character's name? Professor Bollinger or something. Bowling ball.

[Matt Rogers]

Morrible.

[Bowen Yang]

Morribal. Yeah.

[Matt Rogers]

That's how you know she's bad.

[Bowen Yang]

Morrible.

[Emily Litchardi]

The horrible.

[Bowen Yang]

She tells Galinda, you. You suck, and I don't believe in you at all. That seems to wound Glinda. Glinda wouldn't just be like, yes, I get to work with her. And now I'm gonna be nice to this girl who got me. She would go. She would go to Elphaba. Like, what did you say? That I'm. Now she hates me. And then, like, I don't think it would turn into, like, I'm just gonna do this nice favor now. And why is. Why would any. Why would her grandma give her that hat? Yeah, like, why was that hat? That hat was shoehorned in the thing too. Is there a more story to the hat being there than it's in the book?

[Emily Litchardi]

There is.

[Bowen Yang]

What is it?

[Emily Litchardi]

I don't remember. It was a long time ago. A galaxy.

[Matt Rogers]

It did feel like there was a lot of story being told of how somebody got a broomstick.

[Emily Litchardi]

Well, it's the origin story of the Wicked Witch of the West.

[Bowen Yang]

I do like the fact that there's no green Witches with broomsticks and a hat are just. They weren't a thing before. This is the birth of that. That's interesting. Yeah.

[Matt Rogers]

And that there was a magic teacher at the school, but seemingly she's the only person who knows magic.

[Bowen Yang]

Magic.

[Emily Litchardi]

Yeah.

[Sean O'Connor]

Yeah.

[Emily Litchardi]

There's a little bit of confusion in terms of.

[Bowen Yang]

And the teacher has to repeat several times. I'm not working with anyone. Only if I want to. It's like, okay, we know. So maybe if you choose someone, it'll be very special. And I was responsible for that thing that Elphaba clearly did that was almost murdered thousands of students because there was marble and concrete falling like it was Dodger Stadium. It was crazy. And then she's like, I did that as a testament. Like, oh, thank you for putting our lives at risk. I mean, are they immortal? Can they get, like. Can they get.

[Emily Litchardi]

No.

[Bowen Yang]

Okay. They're not immortal.

[Emily Litchardi]

No one's immortal.

[Matt Rogers]

And we're just. Okay, so I really. I liked Wicked way more than I thought I was going to like it.

[Bowen Yang]

I did, too.

[Matt Rogers]

But you know what? I was just not okay with them going to a place called Chiz Universe in that area.

[Bowen Yang]

Shiz.

[Matt Rogers]

It's so wild.

[Bowen Yang]

It sounds like a bar that someone from the Real Housewives would open. Why. Why is it Vanderbilt Pump rules? I don't get it either. Is she short for something?

[Emily Litchardi]

I'm sure it is. I just don't remember.

[Bowen Yang]

I haven't read this book since I was 18, and. Sorry, I know we're being critical and it's, like, really wrong to do that about Wicked because.

[Emily Litchardi]

Yeah, because it's one of the best movies of the year.

[Bowen Yang]

It's not nice to make fun of theater kids if you make fun of it. I'm making fun of it because that's the only thing that we can do. Like, I did love it. There's no question about it. I don't. I'm. I'm. And I think I need to read the books to understand it, which I am not going to do.

[Emily Litchardi]

Yes.

[Bowen Yang]

There's no way. I hear they're really long and dark and, like, maybe. But, like, now that I know the story, I don't think I'm interested. But they say the. The words that they choose to, like, add a syllable to. It's amazing.

[Emily Litchardi]

A goal that I hate.

[Bowen Yang]

Why are we doing.

[Emily Litchardi]

I think it's because it's from the wizard of Oz.

[Bowen Yang]

Oh, it is.

[Emily Litchardi]

They do that sometimes in certain songs.

[Bowen Yang]

That did not catch on for me.

[Emily Litchardi]

I hate it. That. That repulses me.

[Bowen Yang]

It was just that. Again, shoehorned. We're just like. We're being forced to hear this little quit thing that you think is very cute and endearing, but it just takes you out of it and you go, is this person stupid?

[Matt Rogers]

No. Yes.

[Bowen Yang]

It just makes them look stupid.

[Matt Rogers]

It makes them look stupid. Like, because it's also, like, the only people who are doing it are, like, Ariana Grande. And, like, so I'm like, oh, she's horrible. She doesn't know real words.

[Bowen Yang]

That's. That's. That's how it read. You're so right. Like, my note would have been like, we got to cut that up. Because that makes her look stupid. And her character's already bordering on. She's a blonde. She's kind of Dumb. She's vapid and all these things.

[Emily Litchardi]

Legally blonde type.

[Bowen Yang]

Yes. But she's not. She's not supposed to be stupid, I don't think.

[Emily Litchardi]

No, no, she's not. She is. She is a. An unhealthy.

[Bowen Yang]

She's not a good friend.

[Emily Litchardi]

She's an unhealthy three. The most unhealthy three.

[Bowen Yang]

Yeah.

[Emily Litchardi]

Everything she does is for the approval of the masses. So even when she's doing things to be friends with Elphaba, it's because, like, the most clear moment is when they're at the train and she's jealous of the boyfriend and then she's with the boyfriend. Then Elphaba shows up, and at first Glinda's like, I don't give a shit about the animal rights. And then Elphaba shows up and then the boyfriend shows up and they're both, we care about the animal rights. Then she immediately changes and says, I care about the animal rights. And then she doesn't just say, I care about the animal rights to get the approval of them. Then she makes a big scene about changing her name. The most visibly, the most visible thing she could do.

[Bowen Yang]

And I like when she goes, I don't know why I did that.

[Emily Litchardi]

Right.

[Bowen Yang]

I think we can all relate to doing something where you're like, no one even wanted me to do that. No one cares.

[Emily Litchardi]

But she got the applause and she gets the applause over and over again.

[Bowen Yang]

Yes. That's good. Yeah. They're interesting characters that are very layered and have a lot going on. But it's like, I gotta say, Jonathan Bailey. Is that his name?

[Sean O'Connor]

Sure is.

[Bowen Yang]

Hubba Hubba.

[Sean O'Connor]

I know that book scene.

[Bowen Yang]

I love how he is just like, everyone's horned up for him. He is a B. Bisexual. Like Venom.

[Matt Rogers]

Yeah. He's very. He feels like a Disney cartoon. Like when he shows up where he's just amazing. Like, he has muscle definition through his clothes. Like, he was drawn.

[Bowen Yang]

Where did he come from? Who is he?

[Matt Rogers]

He's English. And I think we're about to see a lot of things.

[Emily Litchardi]

A lot of it.

[Bowen Yang]

Loved him. I want to see everything he. Like, he was so charming. Like, women were legit swooning in the audience. I know. I was kind of like. Like, I remember he did something that wasn't even that funny. And next to me was like. Like, the way you do with, like, a hot eyes. Like, we were literally. I've literally found myself being more, like. By the dumb stuff he was doing. I was actually almost like I was Glinda, like, being tricked by it. Yeah. And not even like, oh, we're being tricked by. Because he. You know, you're aware of how cunning he is and, like, how he is kind of like a cad. But I was. I was so enraptured by. I think he's amazing. And then their. All their voices are amazing. Bowen was hilarious. And, yeah, Bowen was there to.

[Emily Litchardi]

It was the quip machine.

[Bowen Yang]

Yep. The quit machine.

[Emily Litchardi]

Press the button, you get a punchline.

[Bowen Yang]

Yeah. Yeah. And he was great. And it just looked so much fun to be in. Like, I can't. Bowen's my only way to maybe ask someone, like, what was it like being in this movie? Like, I want to know, like, what? Cause I was thinking, like, because I heard something that Bowen said that he had learned the choreography to one scene they were shooting in, like, September. And then by February, they're like, oh, we're shooting it today. And he's like, I don't really remember the choreo. So then he did it, and he was able to nail it. But, like, I was like, oh, my God. What if you are the one person in one of those dance scenes that, like, fucks up the. The thing and you have to take it all over and everyone's nailed it? Like, I want to know from a dance perspective what that's like, because I would die, man.

[Emily Litchardi]

Yeah. No, man. Just be the only one. That's fucked up. It's like a field goal kicker missing the kick.

[Matt Rogers]

I mean, that is.

[Bowen Yang]

But if everyone on the team was kicking at the same time and they.

[Matt Rogers]

All made it, it's literally why I quit improv is I did not like having other people I could let down. Like, I don't like being part of that kind of team.

[Bowen Yang]

Yeah. Like, we were doing the TNF thing, the Thursday Night Football pre tape that we were doing the other day, and I kept fucking up. Like, I'd get a really long line of something and it'd be like, going. And then I fuck up the last line. And yeah, it's like everyone's like, oh, damn it. You know? And we all feel a little bit of like. But it's not. You guys don't have. Like, you weren't performing in that moment. I didn't just waste your performance. I wasted your time watching it. But it didn't feel as like. I don't know what I would do if, like, the very last step or something during a number where it's. Everyone. It does their best job. Oh, my God. Cause it must happen.

[Emily Litchardi]

There was one time on a set I Won't say what set? Cause I don't want anyone to figure it out. But there was one time on a set where there was this guy who had one really long line, and it was so long that they even did like a special camera move so that he could. Could say the line. It wouldn't be boring. And he just could not get it. It took. We were sitting there for like 45 minutes while he tried it over and over again. And it got to the point where we were like, should we just cut the line? It's like, what did he do?

[Chris]

Yeah.

[Sean O'Connor]

Was he not, like, aware?

[Emily Litchardi]

He just. He had to memorize it.

[Matt Rogers]

You know, you start panicking in that moment where you're just like, I know I can do this. And because you've now lost the confidence to do it.

[Emily Litchardi]

Yeah.

[Matt Rogers]

It's impossible to get it right.

[Emily Litchardi]

And at first you just go like, oh, sorry about that. And then you start doing the thing where you like, kind of of do that laugh where you go like, I'm drinking a can of. I'm drinking a can of Z. Yeah, yeah, yeah. And then you and that. And that's embarrassing because we all know what's happening in your head when you're making faces and noises like that. And then he. He got the equivalent of the yips, I would say. And it was like maybe like 14, 15 times. And we were like, we're going to have to bring someone else in or just cut the line.

[Bowen Yang]

And at that point, I would have said, I can't. I would have been the one as the actor to be like, I got you guys to bring someone else. Like, let me, like, don't make. Don't make. I'm not gonna make you tell me this. I will take myself.

[Emily Litchardi]

And we couldn't break it up into easier lines because there was a camera movement. It was like a one shot.

[Bowen Yang]

Oh, God.

[Emily Litchardi]

And then we were like, we're gonna have to break for lunch at least. And then we're like, okay, one last one before lunch. And then he just nailed it. He didn't crush it, but he barely crossed the finish line. But it was there and it was.

[Bowen Yang]

No. This happened to me for one of the first commercials I ever did. And it was. I only got the commercial because they hired Nikki and Sarah from Nikki and Sarah Live on MTV to do this, like, VMAs kind of cross promo with the Kia Hamsters. Like, we had to, like.

[Matt Rogers]

And you can't say no to that. Stop.

[Emily Litchardi]

What's the song? The Kia Hamsters song.

[Matt Rogers]

It's lmfao. Yeah, it's definitely sexy and I know it.

[Sean O'Connor]

Yeah, Sexy and I know it.

[Bowen Yang]

Sexy and I know it.

[Emily Litchardi]

No.

[Matt Rogers]

Yeah.

[Bowen Yang]

Did a lot of, like, party rocking. Yeah, they definitely did all those.

[Emily Litchardi]

They were good.

[Bowen Yang]

The hamster. Or they. Or they did the dance.

[Matt Rogers]

The hamster dance. Only threes.

[Bowen Yang]

Remember it. They were like this song, the Hamster Dance. It was like one of the first things that you could look up on the Internet. Oh, yeah, it was hamsterdance.com.

[Emily Litchardi]

Oh, yes.

[Bowen Yang]

I remember that, like, dance dancing hamsters that was going 24 hours a day. And you just tune in. They would go, anyway.

[Emily Litchardi]

I do remember this.

[Bowen Yang]

I had to do a scene where I was getting. We were getting ready for our date night with the hamsters or whatever. The hamsters weren't there in this scene, but we were in, like, a dressing room and Sarah's on the outside, like, throwing clothes to me. And I'm like saying, like, oh, this doesn't fit, or whatever. And I could not get the line. It was the same kind of thing. And it probably went on for a minute before I started totally freaking out. And then at two minutes, I. I fully broke down and started sobbing. Cry. Like, I was just in a bad space and I cried. It was so awkward. Oh. Oh, I remember. Oh, my God. Okay. Major part of this. So I'm already nervous to be on set. I start fucking up. I start fucking up the lines early on. I don't know what I'm doing. I feel ugly. I'm in a fight with my boyfriend. I remember it was just a bad day. And then I'm fucking up this line. And then they stopped down to change something. Probably just to get me to calm down and get rid of the yips or what. Take a break. So they're fixing some lighting or something.

[Emily Litchardi]

And then the Kia munchkin appeared to you and says, you're gonna make it, kid.

[Bowen Yang]

And it gave you the. Can I. Can I change my answer?

[Matt Rogers]

I've only said this to you. And one of the Kia hands.

[Bowen Yang]

And so this guy that was kind of like not a good vibe, just, like, kind of like, didn't want to be there. Like, one of the, you know, either sound guy, lighting guy, but like an older guy that was kind of just like smarm me and snarky and saying shitty things. I already didn't like him. And that's rare for me on set. I. I don't even remember not liking anyone else on set ever in my life. But so this. I remember this guy stood out. And then he goes, you're comedian. I got a joke. Or no, he. No, he goes. He didn't say that. Sorry. Most people say that. He goes, oh, do you guys hear that? Who did he. Hold on. Oh, do you guys hear? Melissa E. Died. And it's like, around the smartphone time. Right? And so I go, oh, my God. What? Like, I don't love Melissa Etheridge, but, like, her dying would be kind of sad because she's like, at this point, this was 10 years ago. She was young, 50, and that's, like, a thing. I was like, what? Really? And he was like, yeah, she drowned in Ricky Lake. I was just like, what? And so I felt dumb because I got upset that she was dead.

[Matt Rogers]

Yeah.

[Bowen Yang]

And then I felt dumb that it was just a dumb joke and everyone, like, laughed around, and I was just, like, sickened by the dumb joke. Like, it was. Didn't even make sense. Like, they're not even connected.

[Matt Rogers]

They're not connected. I'm actually trying to piece them together.

[Bowen Yang]

Is not gay at all.

[Emily Litchardi]

It would make sense. They're both gay. And then she was eating. She was eating her out.

[Matt Rogers]

Yeah.

[Emily Litchardi]

But then she wouldn't die.

[Bowen Yang]

He definitely did not say she died eating someone out. And I was like, who? You know, like, I would not have been sad by that setup. So it was definitely Melissa Etheridge died. And then I go, oh, my God. And so I looked. So I felt dumb. And then I, like, could not. Then I was just so mad at him and mad that he tricked me. And everyone laughed at me believing it and kind of made fun of me for being upset about Melissa Etheridge dude dying that I started crying and I. They had to, like, stop down for a really long time so I could, like, recover. And it was so embarrassing, but it, like, brother it. When it happens to you, like, there's no getting out of it. Like, it almost reminded me of that. That show we did.

[Matt Rogers]

I know. Because your brain stops working. Your brain.

[Bowen Yang]

Your brain stops working when you are failing at something that I feel like, at talking.

[Matt Rogers]

Yes. It just stops feeding you things to say. And you were just so stuck in that moment.

[Bowen Yang]

Awful. Awful.

[Matt Rogers]

It's truly terrible.

[Bowen Yang]

But.

[Matt Rogers]

Yeah.

[Bowen Yang]

Have you ever guys ever gotten the yips in any way of your life where you, like, froze or had a bed?

[Matt Rogers]

Doing voiceover with the script in front of me, Like, I just. I just could not nail a line.

[Bowen Yang]

Yes.

[Sean O'Connor]

It was, like, with a script, too.

[Matt Rogers]

With a script. And, like, it's just, like, in my head, I'm saying it the correct way and out loud. It Just was not coming out that way. And then I'm like, I got it. And then I just start tripping over it even though I'm reading it.

[Bowen Yang]

Salah.

[Matt Rogers]

Yeah, Salah, Robert.

[Emily Litchardi]

Salah.

[Matt Rogers]

Salah.

[Bowen Yang]

I couldn't say Robert Salah. We ended up saying like, no, we're sorry, Robert. Oh yeah, I think it did make it because I couldn't say Salah since I've seen you like salah, Salah. And then the other guy's name. Like these names, if you don't. If you read them enough in your head, you cement them and then someone says them and you go, oh shit. But yeah, it's.

[Matt Rogers]

It's pretty crazy. I feel like it affects literally everyone. Like, like truly like even like movie stars I've seen do it. Like they're just like doing the line and be like fuck. Like and starting over and going like fuck. Like it's just non stop. I think it's just part of the human condition. We're not supposed to be memorizing.

[Bowen Yang]

Oh yeah, that's probably it.

[Emily Litchardi]

Steve Martin famously got stage fright in his 50s or something and he didn't step on stage for like 15, 20 years or something.

[Bowen Yang]

Was it stage fright or was it. He said it was like the Friday Late show was his reason for quitting comedy because like drunk crowds just.

[Emily Litchardi]

Well, in Bourne standing up. I think you talked about how he got stage fright. God, like he couldn't step on stage anymore all of a sudden.

[Matt Rogers]

He also couldn't go to his own movie premieres because he like had his first panic attack at a movie. Cause he smoked a little bit of weed and had a panic attack. So he just never went to his premieres and stuff. But yeah, it was the Saturday Late show. And also I think he was like Saturday Late show doing or Friday Late show, one of them.

[Bowen Yang]

Because they work all day and then.

[Matt Rogers]

They'Re tired and drunk and doing like the amphitheater. Everyone like was not. They weren't listening to him. They were just shouting out like wild and crazy guy. Or like do King Tut.

[Bowen Yang]

Yeah, it wasn't fun anymore.

[Matt Rogers]

It stopped being fun for him. Like I saw that with Norm. Like one time, Norm was at the Irvine Improv and he like was truly bombing. Like bombing from beginning.

[Bowen Yang]

He was so insane that Norm would bomb.

[Matt Rogers]

He was like, you know, like he was just completely. They were not. He was not in sync with the audience. But at one point, like, hold on please.

[Bowen Yang]

When he would not be in sync with him, would he give a fuck? Was it really like, it didn't seem to.

[Matt Rogers]

If anything, he'd double and triple down.

[Bowen Yang]

Did he enjoy it? So he felt it. It wasn't like he didn't feel the bomb. Was he get a kick out of it? And then afterwards, would he be like, man, I bombed. That was awesome.

[Matt Rogers]

Or no, he was like, bummed he was bombing.

[Bowen Yang]

He cared a lot.

[Matt Rogers]

But he would run the light when he was bombing. I guess maybe somewhere.

[Bowen Yang]

Was he trying to get them back?

[Matt Rogers]

I think he thought he could get them back even with this. But, like, interesting. Like, he ran the light by an hour. Like it was. Adam Egan and I were sitting there and we were just like, we could not believe it. Because people were just like walking out and talking.

[Bowen Yang]

No, you would hear that Norm would walk rooms all the time and I wouldn't believe it. And then I got confirmation. Cause I go, well, people are just saying that. But it happened a lot.

[Matt Rogers]

It was crazy. Like, 40 minutes into a show, he got the five minutes of laughter when he first walked on stage. And then for the next 35 minutes, he had completely lost them. And I don't even know how. I think he smoked weed beforehand and.

[Bowen Yang]

Smoking weed before he stuck up his clicking timing.

[Matt Rogers]

Nothing was clicking. His timing was messed up. And like, at one point, 40 minutes in, someone yelled out, do dirty work. Adam Egan. And I laughed for five minutes straight. And I think it kind of reinvigorated Norm a little bit.

[Bowen Yang]

Yes.

[Matt Rogers]

When was this? The Laughing at 2012, 2013.

[Bowen Yang]

Oh, my God.

[Matt Rogers]

But yeah, he walked. I. It was a sold out show, so there's like 400 people there. Probably walked more than half the room.

[Bowen Yang]

Oh, my God.

[Matt Rogers]

And did two hours, including several poems.

[Bowen Yang]

Is he commenting on the people walking out or is not noticing it or.

[Matt Rogers]

Just sticking with it, like doing his material? And then he's like, oh, you guys don't like jokes, huh? And then he'd be like, oh, here's a poem that I remember reading. He would do like a poem about like the 1920s Yankees from memory.

[Bowen Yang]

Right. Well, it is interesting, like you were saying, getting like late in life phobias or when they just come out of nowhere. And we talked about it before, but I think Nate Bargazi said he got claustrophobia out of nowhere. Like one day it just appeared.

[Emily Litchardi]

Well, I think I have that I have something going on because of the MRI that I took.

[Bowen Yang]

Oh, yeah, that's right. That's right. We talked about that.

[Emily Litchardi]

And now there's a lot of things that I'm like, I. I can feel that anxiety building up and it's like, I didn't used to have this at all.

[Bowen Yang]

I know. I. I don't like this adult getting new, like, anxieties in adulthood.

[Emily Litchardi]

You really have to work on it.

[Bowen Yang]

You do. You have to, like. I think meditation is kind of.

[Emily Litchardi]

Well, speaking of, tomorrow I'm getting hypnotized. Well, not tomorrow. I'm not getting hypnotized. I am having a consultation with a hypnotherapist tomorrow.

[Bowen Yang]

Nice.

[Emily Litchardi]

Yeah. And so I'm gonna get hypnosis.

[Bowen Yang]

For what?

[Emily Litchardi]

To try to stop clenching.

[Bowen Yang]

Oh, yes. Like your jaw or just your body?

[Emily Litchardi]

My ass. Yeah, it's just too.

[Bowen Yang]

I'm sure your ass too.

[Emily Litchardi]

No, my jaw. Yeah, to stop clenching my jaw. Because it's subconscious. A lot of people say it's based on stress, and so. And you have no control over it because it happens while you're sleeping.

[Bowen Yang]

God, it sucks.

[Emily Litchardi]

I'm gonna see if that works. And then maybe they said, like, sometimes when you get hypnotherapy for something, other things start to, like, unravel and then you release. Yeah, Unravel and things go downhill fast. Then you go crazy. It starts to unwind or something, and it releases some sort of.

[Bowen Yang]

I'm so excited about this.

[Emily Litchardi]

Yeah. Like, maybe some kind of, like, deep rooted stre. Cause of the anxiety will be tempered because of whatever.

[Bowen Yang]

Maybe the clenching is just the fucking tip of the iceberg.

[Emily Litchardi]

Well, definitely. Yeah, it definitely is. So, yeah, I'm excited to report back on whether or not this works.

[Bowen Yang]

Oh, that's great.

[Emily Litchardi]

I have no idea what to expect, but I'm going into it 100% believing it will work, because I am. I'm absolutely desperate.

[Bowen Yang]

Well, that's when you start praying.

[Emily Litchardi]

Yeah.

[Bowen Yang]

Like you're Right away hypnotize. Like you'll maybe meditate and start to pray. Like, I remember I was, like, praying during COVID because I was so depressed, and I was like, I don't know what else to do. And I was like, oh, this is why people, like, turn to God when there's really no other option if this doesn't work. Same with those books that I read to quit drinking and quit smoking. I think it really helps going into something being like, this is gonna work, because I think that's a reason to.

[Emily Litchardi]

Well, that's the reason it works. Yeah. Well, there was a joke. I don't know if it was Patrice or Neil Brennan or someone like that who had a joke about, like, why, why. Why is it that all the.

[Bowen Yang]

It was Patrice O'Neill. Brennan.

[Emily Litchardi]

Patrice O'Neill Brennan. Yes. Yeah, from Ireland. Why is it that all the poor people that get are victims of natural disasters are always so religious and they're always like walking through these flood waters praying. Or maybe it's Louie actually.

[Bowen Yang]

Yeah.

[Emily Litchardi]

Praying to their, to God and it's like God just fucked you. Like he's. You're like his least favorite person. That's just similar.

[Bowen Yang]

But that reminds me of the Pat Oswald joke.

[Emily Litchardi]

Maybe it's Patton Oswald feeling kind of.

[Bowen Yang]

Patent where he was like, he was talking about Bush. Like this was back when we didn't like Bush. Yeah, he's like, he's like, it's so funny when you meet someone who loves but Bush and they're like, yeah, I love Bush. And he goes, bush fucking hates you. Bush would be caught dead with you. You know that, right? Like that kind of. Like what? Why of all people, why do you like this person? But yeah, yeah, I. You know what, we have to take a break. So let's do that and we'll come.

[Emily Litchardi]

Back with final thought.

[Brian Frangie]

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[Nikki Glaser]

Amazon One Medical presents painful thoughts.

[Bowen Yang]

I could catch anything sitting in this doctor's waiting room. A kid just wiped his runny nose on my jacket and the guy next to me sitting in a pool of perspiration insists on sharing my armrest.

[Nikki Glaser]

Next time, make an appointment with an Amazon One medical provider. There's no waiting and no sweaty guy. Amazon One Medical healthcare just got less painful.

[Chris]

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[Emily Litchardi]

Off season pickup Dave.

[Nikki Glaser]

I know, right? I was worried we'd bring back the same team.

[Emily Litchardi]

Oh, no. I meant those Blackout motorized shades. MVP of the room.

[Nikki Glaser]

Blinds.com made it crazy affordable to replace our old blinds.

[Matt Rogers]

Hard to install.

[Nikki Glaser]

No, it's easy. Even you could do it.

[Brian Frangie]

Nice.

[Nikki Glaser]

I installed these and then got some for my mom too.

[Emily Litchardi]

You fly across the country to do the install?

[Nikki Glaser]

Nope. Blinds.com can do it all. All she had to do was pick what she wanted. She talked to a design consultant for free and scheduled a professional measure and install.

[Emily Litchardi]

Look at you, hall of fame, son.

[Nikki Glaser]

Oh, I just picked the winning team. They're the number one online retailer of custom window coverings in the world.

[Bowen Yang]

Oh.

[Matt Rogers]

Blinds.com is the goat.

[Nikki Glaser]

The goat.

[Bowen Yang]

Shop blinds.com right now and get up to 45% off select styles plus a professional measure and a 100% satisfaction guarantee. Save up to [e-mail] blinds.com rules and restrictions may apply. I found that the thing that is new for me is like, I gotta get better. Final thought for me, me, I feel like my anxiety that I want to conquer that is like, showing up that I'm like, oh, this could spiral or unravel is not wanting to watch myself or not even. What? Like, it's gotten so bad that, like, even the Gracie Abrams.

[Sean O'Connor]

That makes me sad that you didn't watch that.

[Bowen Yang]

No, I did watch her. Talk about. I did watch it once.

[Sean O'Connor]

Okay.

[Bowen Yang]

But no, even that's okay for me to see people. I don't even really like watching people talk about me, but anything that has to do with me, I don't want to watch. Like, even. Even people who did my TikTok. Like, the TikTok I did. I couldn't watch people do the TikTok. That's like Nikki Glaser. You slayed this. I tried it too. Like, I don't even wanna watch that. And I don't even know what that is because I. Oh, you know what? What it is? Cause I feel like if there's a part of it that's not good, it's my fault. I should have made a cool move for them to make at this part and they didn't know what to do with their hands at that part. And that's my Fault. And I like made them come up with something. And it was my response. Like, I, I have to get over this because I hate watching myself for me. And the only way to. Because whenever I have to edit a special and I have to do it, I eventually by the end of it I could watch anything of myself. It's been, it's like trial by fire. Like you just get used to it and. But then I get, then I go step away from it. And I go, okay, now I can watch myself. And I step away too long and then it becomes like I would rather do anything than watch myself. Literally anything. And it's just not, it's not okay. Because that's what I do for a living, is ask people to watch me. Why can't I do it?

[Sean O'Connor]

That's what I do for living. Ask herself. But do you not watch the stand up clips I send you?

[Bowen Yang]

No, I turn them down and then I scroll through to make sure the captions are right. What the cap. No, I insulted. I would. That's.

[Sean O'Connor]

I guess my job.

[Bowen Yang]

I already hear. I already. I trust that the sound's going to be good. The Audi, the visually it looks good, but I'm not going to listen to myself and, and like watch it back. No fucking way.

[Sean O'Connor]

So you watch every and anything I send you?

[Bowen Yang]

What do you mean?

[Sean O'Connor]

Like Tik toks. Like, did you watch the full like karaoke, like us karaoke thing that.

[Bowen Yang]

Us karaoke?

[Sean O'Connor]

The one where you're like guessing the lyrics?

[Bowen Yang]

Yeah, I did watch that whole thing. I don't mind watching myself if I'm not like performing. If it's like something that I'm just like, it's clipped together and it's just me talking because the expectations are lower for myself. Because I'm like. Well, I didn't, I wasn't trying to be talk. Yeah. Not just for TikTok, but it's like I'm.

[Matt Rogers]

I'm a little bit more.

[Bowen Yang]

Yes.

[Matt Rogers]

There was no preparation.

[Bowen Yang]

I didn't need to. I couldn't have prepared for this.

[Matt Rogers]

Yes. And like when, when you've actually done the work, watching yourself, all you're seeing is the flaws that happened and it's impossible to not like.

[Bowen Yang]

It's.

[Matt Rogers]

It sucks so much. Like I can't. I don't like hearing my voice. I don't like seeing.

[Bowen Yang]

So you don't like it either?

[Matt Rogers]

I hate it. I hate hearing my voice.

[Bowen Yang]

Do you blindly post things or will you watch them before you post it?

[Matt Rogers]

Oh, I'm a blind poster. Like, I am like.

[Bowen Yang]

Well, That's a good. That's a good thing. As long as you don't. It doesn't stop you from posting, because I found it was stopping me from posting. And then as soon as I just go. If I don't. If I just post it, like, and I just separate myself from any kind of feedback on it, so I won't even know if it bombs. Like, I don't even get to know. Then I'm able to still do it, but not watch myself and still have a career.

[Matt Rogers]

Yeah.

[Bowen Yang]

But it does help to review your work.

[Matt Rogers]

It does.

[Bowen Yang]

It makes you a butterfly.

[Emily Litchardi]

Yeah.

[Sean O'Connor]

I'm like, I want to tell her that. Like, I want to be able to be like, look at. It blew up.

[Bowen Yang]

I can see like, a screenshot of the 10 or whatever, but I don't want to watch it again.

[Sean O'Connor]

I'll see this.

[Matt Rogers]

Listen, the numbers are the validation.

[Bowen Yang]

But Chris always says, like, but you. You. But, you know, why don't you want to rehearse this thing that you have to film and read the script over and over when you do stand up a thousand. Like, you'll do a thousand sets to practice something. And I'm like, because those sets aren't practice. It's a real perform. Like, it's not just me practicing to a wall. Like, it's. There's. It's a performance. So I. Every time I practice, if I work in that each practice is. Is a. Something's riding on it, then I'll practice.

[Emily Litchardi]

Sure.

[Bowen Yang]

That's why when I was learning guitar, it helped so much for me to go on. Well, I. I just haven't played that often because I just don't. I don't have time right now, and my nails are always too long to play.

[Emily Litchardi]

You haven't lost the desire. You're just.

[Bowen Yang]

No, I love it when I can, but I just don't have time. It sucks.

[Emily Litchardi]

It's like, that makes sense.

[Bowen Yang]

And so. But when I was learning how to play, I would go live on Instagram on the Nikki Glaser pod. And it. I wouldn't. There's no way I would have gotten good without it. I never would have practiced alone. Like, during COVID before I was going live on Instagram, I would go like, mom, Dad, I like. And I was living with them, and I, like, would learn a song and play it for them. And their responses were not good. Like, they were just like, okay, you.

[Emily Litchardi]

Know, like, well, Dad's a guitarist also, so he's got a special.

[Bowen Yang]

Yeah, but also I would think that he would be like more understanding of the learning process than he was. I had to have a little confrontation with him and say, hey, dad, you can't hold me the same standard as you hear a good job sometimes.

[Emily Litchardi]

What if like you had a. What if You're. If Arlo or somebody was like, I'm gonna wanna be a stand up. And they're like 16 at this point or 17 and they start doing standup how.

[Bowen Yang]

I would only compliment the. I would only compliment them and tell them the things they're good at that are like gonna make them better. Like, I would realize that everyone's supposed to suck at their stage and they shouldn't be as good as me out of the gate.

[Emily Litchardi]

Sure.

[Bowen Yang]

Wow. Because I have a thing called empathy that some people lack because they were raised by alcoholics.

[Matt Rogers]

Empathy.

[Bowen Yang]

And they're not. Not bad people. They just lack it sometimes. Dad, I love you. No, but it's like. Yeah, I. It's just. I think that's. If I, if, If you can get me. If you film me reviewing my work and we make a documentary of it or something, then I will do it.

[Sean O'Connor]

I would love us to do that. Because I didn't that upset because like, I feel like for me, who's in social media, like it's so hard, you know, to get a video to go viral. So it's like when for her, like, I know being. I've never. I think I've told you this but like any roast clip I post on Instagram will get a million views in like 15 to 20 minutes.

[Bowen Yang]

Right.

[Sean O'Connor]

And that's insane. Like, that's unheard of.

[Bowen Yang]

Yeah. And then I don't give myself credit for those. No.

[Sean O'Connor]

And then she won't because she's like, like. Or she'll heart the message. I hope so. She's pissed I sent her this. Great.

[Bowen Yang]

No, not pissed at all. I'll be like, I. I just. I can't. I can't let it in.

[Sean O'Connor]

I know, but I don't know because I'm like, look at that. Like that should.

[Bowen Yang]

Because what do I do if I let it in? Okay, let's. Let's explore letting it. Let it in. Wow. Everyone likes me so much. Okay. The thing is it's going to go away at some point. Like, I'm not gonna. This can't sustain. And even if it does, great. But when it. I don't want to tie any of my happiness to numbers and fame and like getting things like real happiness. Because the second I do, if it goes away, I will. I'm so Scared of that feeling. Like, that's why I don't spend a lot of money on big things, because I'm always scared it's gonna go away and I'm gonna be on the streets. Like, I need to save. I need to. I need to, like, I can't maybe that I'm trying to, like, psychoanalyze myself, but I think maybe that's it. Of, like, I don't want to let it in because I'm scared it will go away.

[Sean O'Connor]

I know.

[Bowen Yang]

And that's why I wouldn't, like, love Chris, my boyfriend until last May, because I was scared it was gonna go away.

[Sean O'Connor]

May is a great time for all.

[Bowen Yang]

Or I wanted to go away. I wanted. I want to be able to flee. So I don't want to let you in. Like, I want to be able to leave the industry. I want to be able to, like, if this is too much, I want to be able to leave. But if you have. If you're getting 10 million views on everything, like, you can't pull out. There's too many people counting.

[Matt Rogers]

The only way. The only way to keep doing it is to just never stop doing it. You just have to keep going.

[Bowen Yang]

Like, you have to keep going forever.

[Matt Rogers]

Never taking a break.

[Bowen Yang]

No, you can't take a break.

[Matt Rogers]

The break is like, look at somebody like Dane Cook, who was just such a huge, huge, huge star doing movies, still doing standup. Then he started doing so many movies, he stopped doing stand up, and then it just went away.

[Bowen Yang]

It went away, and he's building it back, which has been actually really fun to watch. And he's, like, doing it again.

[Matt Rogers]

Yeah.

[Bowen Yang]

Like, I just. I just subscribed to his YouTube and I'm like, I'm back on the Dane train. Like, I. I feel like this is like, MySpace 2004 or something. Like, I feel like I'm on the ground level of Dane Cook again, of, like, I'm actually interested in his. He's making me laugh again in ways that, like, are reminiscent of the first.

[Matt Rogers]

Time he was super funny on Spade's podcast to the end, like, talking about this documentary made about, like, his brother stealing all his money and. Oh, great, I can't wait to watch this documentary. He sold it so well that I'm like, oh, man, for the first time in 20 years, take my money, Dane Cook.

[Bowen Yang]

Dude, I made Chris watch a really, really long Dane Cook clip the other night that was, like, probably six minutes long.

[Emily Litchardi]

Relationship.

[Bowen Yang]

What is it?

[Emily Litchardi]

Relationship?

[Bowen Yang]

Is that the title of a.

[Emily Litchardi]

That's one of his six minute Long bits that I remember.

[Bowen Yang]

It was something about. It was about texting. It was longer ago than just the other day. It was like months ago, but it was about texting and just like, the intricacies of it. And it was reminiscent of his style of like. And then we do this and then the bubbles come up and the bubbles go away. You ever. The bubbles just don't come back. And it's like. It's stuff that maybe stand ups haven't explored, but I just. I was there for it. I'm 100% there.

[Emily Litchardi]

I. It's so annoying that people pretend like Dane Cook sucks at stand up. Everybody that's our age and he'll clip.

[Bowen Yang]

This and it's gonna end up somewhere because every time I talk about him all the time and say, like, it's that anyone says he's not funny. Well, his first.

[Emily Litchardi]

His first album. Album was one of the best comedy albums of all time and ever.

[Matt Rogers]

Like, it's the. It was the first comedy album for our generation. Yeah, you define born for that.

[Emily Litchardi]

It was like.

[Bowen Yang]

It was like he was so huge. Like, you don't understand how huge he was.

[Sean O'Connor]

No, I don't, but I. You're already saying the bubble thing and I relate to that.

[Bowen Yang]

Who would you compare him to now?

[Matt Rogers]

I mean, like, he was like Chapel Roan. I mean, yes, kind of. It was out. It was overnight.

[Bowen Yang]

Overnight. And it was stadium.

[Emily Litchardi]

Although it wasn't overnight because he was.

[Bowen Yang]

Working behind the scenes. Means to get email, but it was Sabrina Carpenter. It was like one of, like, years and years. And then all of a sudden, it was like millennial.

[Emily Litchardi]

Millennial. I think boys especially. There were a few things that defined their sense of humor. One of them was Family Guy and one of them was Dan without a doubt.

[Matt Rogers]

But it was, like, crazy because, like, I had just started stand up and, like, I bought that album and I, like, loved that album. I was listening to it and then. But then you kind of notice, like a year later, everyone you went to high school with, which is still so fresh to me, started liking him. And I'm like, you guys know him. This is like my secret thing.

[Bowen Yang]

Oh. I didn't get into him until probably like the masses did. Okay, we gotta go. But enough about Dane. Great show. We're gonna have one for you. We're gonna tape it right after this. So it'll be a continuation of this energy. We'll see you then. Don't be cut and bye. The Nikki Glaser podcast is a production by Will Ferrell's Big Money Players and I Heart Podcast Podcasts created and hosted by me, Nikki Glaser, co hosted by Brian Frangie, executive produced by Will Ferrell, Hans Sonny and Noah Avior, edited and engineered by Lean and Loaf, Video production Mark Canton and music by Anya Marina. You can now watch full episodes of the Nikki glaser podcast on YouTube, follow icky glazerpod and subscribe to our channel.

[Brian Frangie]

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[Nikki Glaser]

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[Bowen Yang]

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