Trump Dines Out in D.C. as White House Continues Dealing with Epstein Scandal Fallout | Stephen Curry, Billy Crudup, Steven Bartlett | Wednesday, September 10

Summary

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The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon

Episode: Trump Dines Out in D.C. as White House Continues Dealing with Epstein Scandal Fallout
Guests: Stephen Curry, Billy Crudup, Stephen Bartlett
Date: September 11, 2025

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Episode Overview

This episode of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon combines sharp topical monologue jokes about the day's politics and culture with thoughtful, engaging interviews. The highlight guests include NBA superstar Stephen Curry, acclaimed actor Billy Crudup, and bestselling author and podcast host Stephen Bartlett. The episode is a lively blend of sports triumph, Hollywood storytelling, and deep dives into the art of interviewing and personal growth.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

Monologue: Current Events and Humor (01:22–04:17)

• Trump News & Political Satire:
  • Jimmy jokes about President Trump going out to dinner in D.C. and signing bills at dinner (01:22).
  • "The only people who have drained more shots are the pilots for Spirit Airlines." (Jimmy Fallon, 01:22)
  • Skewers Trump’s move to decrease drug ads on TV, lampooning direct-to-consumer pharmaceutical commercials (02:03).
  • Quick jibes at Saudi Arabia, Russia, and RFK Jr. in faux ads (02:19–02:26).
• NASA’s Mars Simulation:
  • Involves a comedic back-and-forth with band members about simulating Mars life at home, blending absurdity with pop science (02:35–04:08).
• Inflation & the Tooth Fairy:
  • "The average tooth fairy visit costs about $15. It’s nice to know that inflation is also destroying the mythical economy." (Jimmy Fallon, 04:08)

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Stephen Curry Interview (05:47–14:47)

Paris Olympics Gold & Iconic Celebrations (06:18–07:45)

• Reflecting on Olympic Gold:
  • "To have waited that long, 16 years to then finally play in my first Olympics. And then the way that it ended, you can’t draw up a better storybook ending."
    (Stephen Curry, 08:17)
• Game Moments:
  • Jimmy shares fan footage of Curry’s big moments, with Curry responding playfully on whether he pointed at Jimmy in the stands (07:09–07:26).
  • Curry credits Carmelo Anthony as a key mentor during the Olympics: "He was like our third coach over there." (07:57)

Success, Mindset, and Stories Behind the Book ‘Shot Ready’ (11:44–14:47)

• Book Inspiration & Philosophy:
  • “Being shot ready means the work ethic, the process, the self-confidence that you’re ready for whatever comes your way. That’s what we do on the basketball court. You’re shot ready.” (Stephen Curry, 12:00–12:35)
• Flow State:
  • Curry talks about the mental aspect of elite performance: "When I’m out there on the court, there’s not much thought... I’m having fun out there. The joy and the gratitude come with every experience." (13:01–13:29)
• Stories with Kobe Bryant:
  • Shares his "welcome to the NBA" moment going up against Kobe and later getting a rare nod of respect.
  • "It was kind of cool to get the initiation and then get the torch passed." (Stephen Curry, 14:15–14:27)

Fun Asides: Multisport Talents

• Story of his hole-in-one during a celebrity golf tournament, celebration antics, and talk of a possible future in the Senior PGA Tour (09:11–10:12).
• Jokes about his infrequent (but celebrated) dunks and the day he was goaded into dunking by Jerry Stackhouse at practice (10:27–11:27).
• Asked if he would join both the dunk and three-point All-Star contests, Curry quips, "I’ve been successful at choosing what I’m good at, so..." (11:37).

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Billy Crudup Interview (15:10–24:32)

Theater Legacy & Family Stories (15:30–19:46)

• Sardis Portrait & Stage Legacy:
  • Crudup reflects on the honor of having his portrait hung in famed NY theater haunt Sardis and recounts his nerves at signing it (16:07–17:07).
• Family Memories:
  • Tells a vivid, colorful story about his father’s life as a bookie and loan shark, and the adventures (and occasional misadventures) being his son brought:
    • "He was always looking for an investment on a potential business opportunity." (Billy Crudup, 17:59–18:19)
    • Recounts his father cornering Tom Cruise at the Toronto Film Festival with business pitches (20:17–20:53).

Reflections on Fatherhood

• Discusses his own son’s rapid growth and the shifting dynamic of discipline:
  • "It went from, ‘All right, none of that… that’s a timeout’ to ‘Daddy’s going to take a walk.’" (21:24–21:52)

‘The Morning Show’ & Acting Insights (21:56–24:32)

• Jimmy praises his Emmy-winning turn as Corey on AppleTV's The Morning Show, noting Crudup’s skill at playing a character nothing like his real self.
• Crudup credits “the writing” as the core of great performance:
  • "It’s always the writing. You get it right, and all I have to do is execute it." (Billy Crudup, 22:33)
• Details on acting process—preparing for dense, “sweaty” dialogue and modeling Corey after smart, expansive friends and poker sharks (22:43–24:00).
• Season 4 setup:
  • “We’ve got AI. We've got corporate malfeasance and greed and lust and death. It's a face full of drama. Jimmy, get ready.” (Billy Crudup, 24:04)

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Stephen Bartlett Interview (25:01–33:22)

Art of Interviewing and the ‘Diary of a CEO’ Experience (25:20–28:51)

• Jimmy raves about his appearance on Bartlett’s podcast, the depth of research and the thoughtfulness of the guest experience, including a personalized photo book given at interview’s end:
  • "When I left him, I started crying. I was like, it’s the greatest thing ever. I loved it. Thank you for that." (Jimmy Fallon, 26:32)
• Bartlett explains the show’s ethos:
  • “Our culture is to really sweat the small stuff... it means thinking about the music, the smell, the CO2 levels in the room, because that has a huge impact." (Stephen Bartlett, 27:05–27:41)
• On ending experiences well, quoting the “peak-end rule,” and why meticulous attention to the guest impression is so important.

Podcast Beginnings and Lessons Learned (28:51–32:43)

• Humble podcast origins; recorded first episode alone in his kitchen, using a sock as a microphone pop filter (29:13–29:28).
• "The show recently surpassed one billion streams."—Fallon's congratulatory note (30:09).
• Bartlett recounts a disastrous preparation mix-up: preparing extensively for the wrong guest, then improvising a “blind” interview that became one of the most-downloaded episodes.
  • “Your job isn’t to lead, it’s to follow. And if you listen, people will take you where they want to go with a conversation, because most people haven’t had someone just listen to them, really, for more than 10 minutes ever in their life.” (Stephen Bartlett, 32:15)

Memorable Moments & Presents

• Jimmy gifts Bartlett an on-the-spot drawing as a gesture of appreciation for his interview style (33:06).

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Notable Quotes and Memorable Moments (with Timestamps)

• On Olympic dreams:
  • "To have waited that long, 16 years to then finally play in my first Olympics... you can’t draw up a better storybook ending." (Stephen Curry, 08:17–08:30)
• On preparation and confidence:
  • "Being shot ready means, you know, the work ethic, the process, the self-confidence that you’re ready for whatever comes your way." (Stephen Curry, 12:00)
• On podcast hospitality:
  • "Our culture is to really sweat the small stuff, and that's been our philosophy since day one." (Stephen Bartlett, 27:05)
• On interviewing lessons:
  • "Your job isn’t to lead, it’s to follow... most people haven’t had someone just listen to them, really, for more than 10 minutes ever in their life." (Stephen Bartlett, 32:15)
• On fame and family:
  • “He was a con man and a loan shark. Was he a bookie? Yeah, yeah, he was a very fascinating guy.” (Billy Crudup, 18:19)

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Timestamps for Important Segments

• Monologue & Topical Jokes: 01:22–04:17
• Stephen Curry Segment: 05:47–14:47
• Billy Crudup Interview: 15:10–24:32
• Stephen Bartlett Interview: 25:01–33:22

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Episode Tone

The show remains fast-paced and playful, but with pockets of sincerity and insight—especially in the guest interviews. Fallon’s energy keeps things buoyant, with Curry’s humility, Crudup’s storytelling, and Bartlett’s business wisdom yielding real, memorable conversations.
The dialogue blends comedy and authenticity, with honest tributes and warm moments layered between punchlines, making this episode both entertaining and unexpectedly moving.

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Transcript

[Announcer]

From Studio 6P in Rockefeller center in the heart of New York City, Mr. Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. Tonight join Jimmy and his guests, Stephen Curry, Billy Cruda, Stephen Bart. And featuring the legendary Ruth 2185 Jim. And now here he is, Jimmy Raoul. Love you guys. Please enjoy yourself.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Welcome, everybody. Welcome, welcome, welcome to the Tonight Show.

[Announcer]

This is it, you guys. I'm excited about this.

[Jimmy Fallon]

From the Golden State Warriors, Stephen Curry.

[Announcer]

Is my guest tonight.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Legend Steffan holds the record for most three pointers made in NBA history. That's right. The only people who have drained more shots are the pilots for Spirit Airlines. And that's. Well, let's get some news. Last night, for the first time since returning to office, President Trump went out to dinner in Washington D.C. it was a great dinner until Trump signed the bill like this. I thought that was weird. I shouldn't have done it. I just, you know. Well, I read that Trump just signed an executive order to decrease the number of drug ads on tv. I think it's all because Trump saw this ad.

[Hims Commercial Voice]

Do you suffer from hair loss?

[Announcer]

Yes.

[Hims Commercial Voice]

Do you struggle with your weight?

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yes.

[Hims Commercial Voice]

And do you have issues in the bedroom?

[Jimmy Fallon]

Oh yes, yes, yes.

[Hims Commercial Voice]

Then hims can help. Side effects include swollen ankles, bruised hands, skin discoloration, sensitivity to light.

[Announcer]

No. Get those lights off.

[Hims Commercial Voice]

And slurred speech.

[Announcer]

Saudi Arabia and Russia will Repeat your.

[Hims Commercial Voice]

Ask RFK Jr. If Hims is right for you.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Oh gosh.

[Announcer]

Interesting. Well, listen to this.

[Jimmy Fallon]

NASA announced that they've chosen four researchers to participate in a year long simulation of a mission to Mars. That's pretty wild. What do you think about that, Tariq? It's cool, but I don't think I could do it. What about you Quest? I agree, man. I could never be holed up for that long. James, could you do it?

[Tariq (Mars Simulation Guest)]

Jimmy? I know I could. Because five years ago I turned my entire house into a floor full time Mars simulation. My floor is covered in red dirt instead of a bed. I just sleep on a big red rock and I keep my air conditioner set At Mars average temperature of negative 80 degrees Fahrenheit 24 hours a day. My wife is fully in character as a little green alien named Flasgar Meep. She speaks Martian and when I say I love you she she says squeeeble zeeble, squeeeble merzen, zoink, bleezber squanky.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah.

[Tariq (Mars Simulation Guest)]

And sometimes she swootures another little green alien named Doug. I have no idea who he is or how he got inside, but I allow it because I think he's actually a real Martian. And I do all this and I still don't get the job. Well, to use my favorite Martian word, NASA can go floink themselves.

[Jimmy Fallon]

And finally, a new report found that the average tooth fairy Visit costs about $15. It's nice to know that inflation is also destroying the mythical economy.

[Announcer]

We have a great show. Give it up for the moose everybod. What a show we have for you tonight.

[Jimmy Fallon]

He is one of the greatest basketball players of all time. A four time NBA champion, an 11 time All Star, an Olympic gold medalist. His new book Shot Ready is out now.

[Announcer]

Stephen Curry is here tonight.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Stephen Curry. He's a very talented actor who stars in the hit Apple TV series the Morning Show. Season four premieres September 17th.

[Announcer]

Billy Crudup is joining us. One of my favorites.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Love that dude. Speaking of one of my favorites, he is the host of the popular podcast the Diary of a CEO. Stephen Bartlett is here tonight. One of the best. Love that one. We'll be right back with more tonight. Good night to everybody.

[Announcer]

Our first guest is one of the.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Greatest players in NBA history. He's a four time NBA champion, an 11 time All Star and an Olympic gold medalist. His new book, Shot Ready is available now. Please welcome Stephen Curry.

[Announcer]

Great. Yes. Come on. But just take the love in. They love you.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Come on.

[Announcer]

We love you. Welcome back. Appreciate it.

[Jimmy Fallon]

How are we doing? Good to see you, bud.

[Stephen Curry]

Great to see you too.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Shot Ready. We got to talk about this book. It's fantastic. I haven't seen you since you won a gold medal in Paris. Yeah. For usa. Congratulations. You won the gold medal.

[Stephen Curry]

Thank you.

[Jimmy Fallon]

You were unbelievable. You were on fire. You scored a giant three pointer and after you did it here, I have a picture right here. You pointed.

[Stephen Curry]

What did I do?

[Jimmy Fallon]

No, you pointed. You pointed at me. That's me sitting right there.

[Billy Crudup]

And I.

[Jimmy Fallon]

And I'm so excited. I actually happen to be taking a video at this exact moment when this happened. Yeah. Take a look at this.

[Stephen Curry]

Oh my God.

[Jimmy Fallon]

This is real.

[Announcer]

Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. Barry. Yeah, dude. Now my big question.

[Stephen Curry]

I hadn't seen that before.

[Jimmy Fallon]

My big question is, were you pointing at me?

[Stephen Curry]

This is your show. This is your house. I'm gonna let you have this one.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Thank.

[Stephen Curry]

There may have been somebody behind you.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Okay. All right, I'll take that.

[Stephen Curry]

But then I plead the fifth.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Thank you. But then also at the end of the game, you did the night night celebration. You just crushed it with another three pointer. There you are doing the night night celebration where you. Yeah, like go to bed. Go to sleep then. Over here.

[Stephen Curry]

Scroll down on you.

[Jimmy Fallon]

I'm doing it with you. I'm doing it because I'm a big fan. I'm doing it with you, man.

[Stephen Curry]

Yeah, you were locked in. I will say, though. I will say you had great energy the whole time.

[Jimmy Fallon]

I did.

[Stephen Curry]

The whole time. I mean, obviously it was Carmelo. It was a bunch of other.

[Jimmy Fallon]

By the way, Carmelo was great, too. Cause honestly, when the game ended, a lot of you guys came over and hugged Carmelo.

[Stephen Curry]

Oh, for sure. He was like our like, third coach over there. He was yelling plays and telling us what to do. He's Mr. USA, he's played in some of the Olympics, so it was nice to have his presence. But you helped as well. Don't get it.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah, yeah. You're very nice. Four time NBA champion, two time mvp, Finals mvp. What does it mean to add gold medalist to the resume?

[Stephen Curry]

It is one obviously representing your country. There's nothing like it. To have waited that long, 16 years to then finally play in my first Olympics. And then the way that it ended, like, you can't draw up a better storybook ending.

[Jimmy Fallon]

That was unbelievable.

[Stephen Curry]

With those other, you know, all 12 of us getting it done in Paris.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Against France, Trust me, I can't say it was insane.

[Stephen Curry]

I'm gonna take it. I'm gonna take it.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Cause I was watching you, obviously. You were walking on the car. I was like, just watching everybody. I'm like, oh, this is such a moment. Like, everyone was like, you could feel it for sure.

[Stephen Curry]

It was the first time, like, everybody's a fan of their own NBA team, right? Yeah, of course. The first time. You got every market, every background coming saying, we love this team. We want this team to win. And I kind of felt that energy.

[Jimmy Fallon]

It's an amazing. You're an amazing basketball player, but you're also an amazing golfer, too. I've gotten to see. You're unbelievable. You've done something that not many people have accomplished. You got a hole in one.

[Stephen Curry]

I did.

[Jimmy Fallon]

And it was caught on camera. That was during the American Century Championship. Can you believe it's on camera? No, I mean, this is in a.

[Stephen Curry]

Tournament, like, with that many people watching. It was. It was special.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah. What did it. You. You ran up and down the hole. What. What is. What's a better feeling a hole in one or making a game winning shot? Basket.

[Stephen Curry]

Well, making a game winning shot. That's what I'm. That's what I get paid to do.

[Jimmy Fallon]

I'm supposed to. Yeah, you're supposed to do that. Yeah, exactly. Yeah.

[Stephen Curry]

A hole in one. Like, you can't. You can't make that happen. That's kind of. Obviously, maybe a little bit of skill. Mostly luck. So I celebrate as if I hadn't. I blacked out, basically. Airplane.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Airplane. Yeah. You're going like this. Down. It was so fun.

[Stephen Curry]

My playing partner who was with me, he had to hit after me, but I ran all the way to the green. He chased me halfway down the fairway. He didn't know what to do. He's like, wait, I have to go all the way back.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Exactly. There's been some talk that you would maybe considered actually joining the Senior PGA Tour when, After your NBA career.

[Stephen Curry]

I'm competitive golf wise. But after watching what I just watched, I need to go join the Savannah Bananas.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Are they unbelievable?

[Announcer]

That was unbelievable. That was unbelievable, right? That was unbelievable. No, it's not.

[Stephen Curry]

Are we going back?

[Announcer]

Yeah.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah, exactly.

[Stephen Curry]

Encore.

[Jimmy Fallon]

You were statistically the greatest three point shooter of all time, but last season you did. Yeah, absolutely. Of all time. Crazy. But last season you did something that you hadn't done in six years. You dunked during the game.

[Stephen Curry]

You know when you get recognized for dun, like, I'm six' three. I should be able to get up there a little bit. But this is a funny game. This is in Philadelphia. One of our assistant coaches, Jerry Stackhouse, in. In practice the day of or the morning of that game, he's like, I've been here all year. I haven't seen you dunk. Not one time.

[Jimmy Fallon]

No.

[Stephen Curry]

And I was like, oh, that's not what I. Three is better than two. Like, I'd rather do that.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah, you're right.

[Announcer]

You're right.

[Stephen Curry]

But then that night, that night, I get a dunk opportunity. So after I dunked it, I actually pointed at him. He was up on the beach, jump up and down.

[Jimmy Fallon]

It was. When do you know that you're going to go up and dunk it? Like, are will you get.

[Stephen Curry]

Like there's no. There's no planning for me. Like, it was a spur of the moment. Just try and. It took everything I had out of me. I'm probably still feeling it right now.

[Jimmy Fallon]

No way.

[Stephen Curry]

I'm still. I'm still feeling it.

[Jimmy Fallon]

I think what you should do is at the Allstar game, you do the three point contest and the dunk contest. If you could win both of those, that's another thing. Another feather in your cap. Would you do that?

[Stephen Curry]

I've been successful at choosing what I'm good at, so.

[Announcer]

Yeah.

[Jimmy Fallon]

So I just keep my Mouth shut.

[Stephen Bartlett]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Jimmy Fallon]

I want to talk about your new book, by the way. Shot Ready. Congratulations on this.

[Stephen Curry]

Thank you very much.

[Jimmy Fallon]

You don't even have to even be a basketball fan to love this book because it's just even about more way of life. And it's part memoir, part philosophy. Can you explain the meaning of Shot.

[Stephen Curry]

Ready Me and Shot Ready? This is a kind of a culmination of images from throughout my journey on and off the court, mixed with, like you said, philosophy, wisdom that's been instilled in me and things that I've learned through the ups and downs in life. Not just the successes, but the failures as well, and what it's taught me. And so hopefully the images kind of bring you into a moment that also is attached to a lesson. And to your point, being shot ready means, you know, the work ethic, the process, the self confidence that you're ready for whatever comes your way. That's what we do on the basketball court. You're shot ready. You're not results based. But if I'm ready to, you know, catch that ball, lock in on my target. For me, that's been, you know, the whole thing that's driven me this entire way. Like, again, if I fail, I'm coming right back. If I succeed, I learned something about it. So hopefully, you know, the stories and the pictures in there can inspire anybody.

[Jimmy Fallon]

I loved it. There's so many things I want to underline and just memorize. Michael, it's so good, just about just being ready and being there. So much work and practice goes into all this stuff. When you play, do you even feel like you're playing basketball or are you.

[Stephen Curry]

In a zone or you're in a flow state? But, like, you know, working out this afternoon, it was all about, like, envisioning what could happen down the road and the preparation that's going into it. But when I'm out there on the court, like, there's not much thought. Like, obviously there's not a lot of thought because I'm pointing to Jimmy Fallon during the medical.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Come on, bud. Sorry.

[Announcer]

Yeah, I appreciate that.

[Jimmy Fallon]

You don't ever have to do it again. I'm so happy. I'm set for the rest of my.

[Stephen Curry]

Life, but I'm having fun out there.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah.

[Stephen Curry]

The joy and the gratitude and appreciation that comes with every experience is a big part of the book as well.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Also, there's just great stories in here, too. There's a great story in here about you playing with Kobe Bryant.

[Stephen Curry]

Yeah.

[Jimmy Fallon]

And that was a preseason game that.

[Stephen Curry]

Was Kind of my welcome to the NBA moment preseason game, getting us. I got switched on to him and he was giving me those like body blows with his elbow, like, you know, things.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Now you're going into this fan, obviously of Kobe. Yeah.

[Stephen Curry]

And going, dude, I'm in awe.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Right? Yeah, yeah. What am I doing playing with Kobe Bryant and he's elbowing you.

[Stephen Curry]

He's elbowing me.

[Jimmy Fallon]

It's kind of cool, but also hurts.

[Stephen Curry]

And my 100% and my naive self is looking at the ref like asking for a call, like they're going to give me a call. And then he caught the ball, did a little left shoulder, faded and then ran on the court and I was like, all right, all right. Welcome to the NBA.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah. Yeah. He schooled you. Did you ever get to play him again?

[Stephen Curry]

I did. About three years later. I hit a shot on him on the top of the key and that was kind of his passing the torch moment back to me. He kind of gave me a little, little pat on the way back down.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah. He said, you got it, bud.

[Stephen Curry]

So, yeah, it was kind of cool to get the initiation and then get the torch passed.

[Jimmy Fallon]

That's what I'm talking about. Those little things like that you never forget.

[Announcer]

Right.

[Jimmy Fallon]

I just want to show a picture.

[Stephen Curry]

What are you doing?

[Jimmy Fallon]

No, I. This little guy. This kid would have been proud.

[Announcer]

Look at how cute. Yeah. Come on.

[Jimmy Fallon]

They're great photos.

[Stephen Curry]

Oh, man.

[Announcer]

Stephen Curry, everybody. His book shot.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Ready? This is the best.

[Announcer]

It's out now. More tonight. You after the break. Stick around, everybody.

[Billy Crudup]

Oh, my.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Our next guest is a Tony and two time Emmy winning actor who stars in the morning Show Season 4, premieres September 17th on Apple TV. Everyone please welcome Billy Cruder.

[Announcer]

Come on.

[Stephen Bartlett]

Steph Curry and the Bananas firing him up. I like it.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah, they're opening. Opening act for you. Yeah. I love having you on all the time. You know, you're one of my faves. But. But last time you were on our show, we surprised you.

[Stephen Bartlett]

Yeah, it was a genuine surprise.

[Jimmy Fallon]

A genuine surprise that you got a portrait of you painted and drawn and put up at Sardis.

[Stephen Bartlett]

That's correct. I don't know if you guys know, but Sardis is an institution in New York. And if you're an actor in the theater, you kind of really would like for your portrait to be up there so you could join the pantheon of people like Jimmy who were up at the restaurant, done a lot of theater in New York. He got me a portrait there.

[Jimmy Fallon]

I did. I did eight shows. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Stephen Bartlett]

And really, I worked Hard theater here for 30 years. I said that last time. I'm not going to go into it again. You can look at the last tape, but it.

[Jimmy Fallon]

I did over a week.

[Stephen Bartlett]

It's water under the bridge, Jimmy.

[Announcer]

Over.

[Stephen Bartlett]

Over.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Over a week of work.

[Stephen Bartlett]

It was a celebratory moment for me and my family when I.

[Jimmy Fallon]

On the stage. When I just want to get near the stage, I get the vibration.

[Stephen Bartlett]

You did eight shows and his was up there. Go ahead, let's see it.

[Jimmy Fallon]

This is you and your portrait. Look at it.

[Stephen Bartlett]

How about that?

[Jimmy Fallon]

That's what I'm talking about, buddy. Congratulations.

[Announcer]

It's a big deal. That's the portrait.

[Jimmy Fallon]

That's me.

[Stephen Bartlett]

I guess they took it from an older photograph.

[Jimmy Fallon]

No, it's so good, though. And you signed that here, by the way. You know, by the way, here's a real true story about Billy. You signed it because you were so nervous because we really didn't sign.

[Stephen Bartlett]

I didn't believe it.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah, yeah.

[Stephen Bartlett]

It was true.

[Jimmy Fallon]

And so you wrote Finally Billy Crudup on your. You signed it, but then you go, dude, I think I spelled finally wrong.

[Stephen Bartlett]

Yeah, I was finally confident. It's hard to spell under pressure.

[Jimmy Fallon]

No, you spelled it correctly. Yeah. But then the best thing came because they do a big presentation at Sardis, and.

[Stephen Bartlett]

Which was a little embarrassing. I didn't realize that. I thought they would just maybe put my portrait up and then I could go and see it, like, happen into Sardis, say, oh, maybe we'll go for lunch at Sardis today.

[Announcer]

What?

[Stephen Bartlett]

There's a portrait of me. I had.

[Jimmy Fallon]

No, no. They have to do a whole thing.

[Stephen Bartlett]

Yeah, they invited the cast from the play that I was.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Which was.

[Stephen Bartlett]

It was a little bit embarrassing, but my mom was there, and my mom was over the moon. She was the one who's really supported me, gotten me into acting from very early on. So she was as proud as she could possibly be.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Is that the greatest thing in the whole world? There's Mom. There's Mom.

[Announcer]

Hey, we love you, Mom. Come on. Your son did pretty well, George. Your boy's doing good.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Your boy's doing good.

[Stephen Bartlett]

And I got to see the portrait of you as well.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Oh, you did?

[Stephen Bartlett]

Yeah. Now.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah.

[Stephen Bartlett]

No, that wasn't the act. Let's see if they've got a. Oh.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah, there you go.

[Stephen Bartlett]

That's the one. That was a selfie I took. That's my impression of Jimmy. You're not the only one who does impression.

[Jimmy Fallon]

That's pretty good, actually. Yeah, it is. It. Oh, I love that, dude. I Love that you stopped and said hi to me.

[Stephen Bartlett]

Well, I'm honored that you included me. I'd like to ride on your coattails as long as I possibly can. But you know my family that's seeing my mom there. My family has been incredibly supportive of me my entire career. And my brother has been like a bulldog and a bodyguard. The only one who wasn't invited early on was my dad because he was always playing angles. He was kind of a con man and. Not kind of. He was a con man and a loan shark. Was he a bookie? Yeah, yeah, he was a very fascinating guy. So I didn't want to bring him. Well, I'll give you an example of what kind of guy he was. He coached my Little league soccer team. And sometimes he would wake me up early on a Saturday and say, hey, Disky, we gotta go for a run. He called me disco because I liked to dance when I was younger. And so he's disky, we gotta go on a run. And I'd say, what we got? Deadbeat. We gotta drop by on a deadbeat. Now that meant that somebody hadn't paid him for the bet that they had illegally made with him. And that on my way to the Little League soccer game, he was going to collect the cash. But not before stopping by. No, to meet his heavy, who was Mr. Oh, who was a 6 foot 4 former boxer with a pit bull named Bullet. And so the three of us would ride in his green Cadillac over to pick up the money from the deadbeat. He'd have me wait in the car and put on some Lou Rawls and say, just hang out for a second, we'll be back. You will never find. And then I'm like watching him and Mr.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Roll walk.

[Stephen Bartlett]

I hope we get to soccer practice.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Oh, my God.

[Stephen Bartlett]

So in any case, he wasn't invited to the opening early on for fear.

[Jimmy Fallon]

He never came to it.

[Stephen Bartlett]

Well, he did. I was doing a film that was produced by Tom Cruise. And it was about a runner named Steve Prefontaine. And my dad was really interested in athletics because he bet on them. But so he said, is there going to be a premiere? And I said, oh, no, Dad, I don't think there's going to be a premiere. It might, you know, it's just going to come out. I don't know how Hollywood does these things, but it is because you don't.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Want him to come to the.

[Stephen Bartlett]

Yeah. I was afraid that maybe he would corner some of the people that I was working with and propose a business opportunity. He Was always looking for an investment on a potential business opportunity. And sure enough, I told him we were at the Toronto Film Festival. And he goes, ah, might have some business in Toronto. And I was like, well, okay. I mean, if you're there, fine. And after the movie. I don't see him before the movie. I find him. He's cornered Tom Cruise and is proposing a couple of business ventures.

[Jimmy Fallon]

What was Tom.

[Stephen Bartlett]

Apparently Tom was into it.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Good job.

[Stephen Bartlett]

Nothing ever happened.

[Jimmy Fallon]

I think good job. Either way. Come on. You turned out fantastic. And by the way, I saw a picture of your son. There's a picture of Billy Crudup's son, William, 21, towers over him as father, son pair stroll together in New York City. Man, he's tall.

[Stephen Bartlett]

No, we were doing reenactment of Lord of the Rings. I must have been on the curb.

[Jimmy Fallon]

He's tall. He is tall.

[Stephen Bartlett]

He is tall. He's much taller. His mom has got a lot of height in her family, but not me. And, you know, I realized that at a certain point as he was growing up that I was going to have to adjust the ways in which I disciplined him. So it went from, you know, all right, none of that. All right, that's a timeout. You and I are going to have to talk. Daddy's going to take a walk.

[Jimmy Fallon]

You think about that next time you do that, okay?

[Stephen Bartlett]

I'm going to walk around the block, and I hope you think about that.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Let's talk about the morning show. This is. You're so good in this show. Gosh. Oh, my. Everybody's great in this, but you are fantastic. You have won.

[Billy Crudup]

Thank you.

[Announcer]

You've won two Emmys. Thank you.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Playing this part.

[Stephen Bartlett]

It's a hell of a part.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Your character, Corey is. I love him.

[Stephen Bartlett]

He's something else.

[Jimmy Fallon]

You're great.

[Stephen Bartlett]

You love him.

[Jimmy Fallon]

I do.

[Stephen Bartlett]

You like what? The duplicity, the backstabbing.

[Jimmy Fallon]

I do.

[Stephen Bartlett]

But I like rage.

[Jimmy Fallon]

I like that it's you. Watching you perform is a treat. I love it. I love it because I know you, and you're nothing remotely like anything you play. And I go, how does he do this? You're a magician. Thank you, pal.

[Stephen Bartlett]

I appreciate that.

[Jimmy Fallon]

But what are the secrets? Because you're a real actor. I'm.

[Stephen Bartlett]

It's the writing. It's always the writing. You know this with the jokes. It's the writing. You get it right. And all I have to do is execute it.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Do you have any secrets to executing a Corey, you work.

[Stephen Bartlett]

I drill that all the time. I don't talk to anybody when I'm on set, I just stand in the corner, focus on my lines. I'm not very pleasant to be around, but doesn't matter.

[Jimmy Fallon]

You get the performance.

[Stephen Bartlett]

Yeah, well, I mean, that's a sweaty job playing crorey because he speaks and thinks in paragraphs and. And I don't typically. I mean, aside from that story about my dad, which came out of nowhere, I don't typically speak in paragraphs. And he's very shrewd and very bright. And so I'm not in the same way. So I have to really just rehearse it and drill it myself all the time. So it's just a question of, like.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Do you get a persecution? Do you know anyone like him at all?

[Stephen Bartlett]

Well, there were three guys that I sort of based it on. There's this one friend of mine, Kevin Chinoy, who I went to college with, who's one of the smartest guys I know. But he's got such an expansive brain. He'll get tickled at his own ideas. So he'll start to think about something that never occurred to him before and he'll just start cracking up to himself before he tells you what it is. And Cory's got a bit of that. So whenever Corey has a good idea, I start cracking up a little bit.

[Jimmy Fallon]

That's such a good nuance.

[Stephen Bartlett]

Just delighted by his own imagination.

[Jimmy Fallon]

He's like, oh, yeah.

[Stephen Bartlett]

And then a couple of guys I played poker with are total sharks and they will stare you down and wear you out with the stare. And Cory's got some of that too.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Oh, it's so good. How do we set up this new season?

[Stephen Bartlett]

Well, if you've seen this show before, the writers try to write about everything that's happening in the current climate. And we've got obviously a lot going on right now. So they have thrown everything at this season. We've got AI. We've got corporate malfeasance and greed and lust and death. And it's a face full of drama. Jimmy, get ready.

[Jimmy Fallon]

We also have Jennifer Aniston and Reese Witherspoon. Pretty good right there. Yeah.

[Announcer]

Billy Crudup, everybody. Season four of the Morning show premieres September 17th on Apple TV. More Tonight show after the break. Stick around. Go to Sardis. Our next guest is a best selling.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Author, a successful entrepreneur, and the host of the popular podcast series the Diary of a CEO, which is available wherever you get your podcast. Everyone, please welcome Stephen Bartlett.

[Announcer]

The Roots.

[Jimmy Fallon]

I mean, come on. Welcome to the show. I was lucky enough to be a guest on your show and now you're a guest on my show, so hopefully you have the same experience. A Diary of a CEO. You treated me so great, and you were so kind, but so intelligent. Your questions were phenomenal. I was blown away of how much work you put into that show, down to every little detail. When I walked in, everyone was so friendly. We do this interview, we talk for. Do the whole interview. And we went everywhere and we talked about my upbringing, my mom, everything. I was like, oh, my gosh. I didn't know I was going to talk about any of that stuff. But you did your homework and kept it moving. And on the way out, I go, thanks a lot, dude. That was great. And we were leaving, and you go, here, Jimmy, and you gave me this. And I go, oh, thanks. And it's the Diary of a CEO. And it's. It was photos of us doing the interview and, like. And timestamps. This is me in real time. I was wearing that sweater. Yeah, but that's not the joke. But, I mean, these are quotes that I was saying as we were doing the interview. You were. Someone was making this book as we were talking, and then you handed it to me, and I got in my car. When I left him, I started crying. I was like, it's the greatest thing ever. I loved it. Thank you for that.

[Billy Crudup]

Thank you so much.

[Announcer]

Oh, thank you.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Do you plan all that stuff?

[Announcer]

Yeah.

[Billy Crudup]

Like, we. I have to give the credit to our team because we have the most incredible team, but our culture is to really sweat the small stuff, and that's been our philosophy since day one. So it means everything. It means thinking about the music to play when you. When you walked in and researching. You know, I researched the first. Wait, what was?

[Jimmy Fallon]

The Beatles.

[Billy Crudup]

The Beatles, yes.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah.

[Billy Crudup]

You're a big fan of Sting. I know that the first concert you went to with your parents was AI Weird Yankovic. I don't even know who that is.

[Jimmy Fallon]

But so weird how Yankovic. Oh, get ready, get ready for Christmas. You're gonna get a nice package. You're gonna get a nice package for me. Yeah. Weird Al is my favorite first concert.

[Billy Crudup]

Of course, I never heard of that, but we played that. We put it in a nice little playlist, and then you walk in, and you probably don't remember this, but the first thing you remarked. Cause remember, I had those glasses on that were recording everything.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yes.

[Billy Crudup]

The first thing you said was, oh, my God, it smells so nice in here. So we think about the smell, the CO2 levels in the room, because that has a huge impact on both our CO2 level.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah.

[Billy Crudup]

There's some, like, crazy stats that I read a couple of years ago that if the CO2 levels get above about 400 parts per million, it's like drinking alcohol. It's like having a beer. If it gets from 400 parts per million to 1,000 parts per million, which is just me and you sat in an unventilated room for 30 minutes, you lose about 20% of your cognitive capacity. It's 21% of your cognitive capacity. But in my interviews for the first time, couple of years in the diary of a CEO, we realized that the CO2 levels in the room were about 15. So I was, like, drunk for the first 200 interviews. Genuinely, it has a huge impact. So, you know, our game is, we think sweating the small stuff over time and if you have patience is a much easier strategy than trying to find some profound way to win. And also with this, this was. This is, I think, partly inspired by a study I read many years ago called the Peak End Rule, which is how Uber built their company. They understand that the people remember the very peak of an experience and the end of an experience. So we do everything we can to make sure the end of the experience is really, really great for you. And this is, you know, so, like, if you miss the flight on the way to a holiday, it's much worse than if you miss it on the way back. And people say that when they're asked. So we try and make the ending really, really good.

[Jimmy Fallon]

So I'm so glad you mentioned what I'm talking about. It's this type of stuff on the podcast all the time. It's like, stuff you're like, oh, that's the greatest thing. I will never forget that you just told me that. But tell me like, a little bit of your story. I mean, you started in your kitchen doing this in 2017, and you just. Do you remember hitting record for the first time, going, I'm gonna give this a shot? Yeah.

[Billy Crudup]

My team had told me there's this thing called a podcast. So I went on my way home from work, went to the Apple Store, bought this microphone, actually recorded it under the stairs near my kitchen. And I remember taking my sock off at 2am in the morning, and I put it on the microphone because I was getting lots of.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah, with the P sound. Yeah.

[Billy Crudup]

So I stick that on there, I plug it into GarageBand on my laptop, I record it, and I'm talking about very graphic things. And then I posted it. And, you know, like, 26, 27 people listened to it.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Oh, 26 people. Yeah.

[Billy Crudup]

Like, you know, I thought you were.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Gonna say 27 million people.

[Announcer]

No, no, no, no, no.

[Billy Crudup]

Like, 26 people. Like, 26 downloads. And, like, one of them was my friend, and my friend was like, that was good. And he's the type that tells you when you do bad things.

[Stephen Bartlett]

Yeah.

[Billy Crudup]

He roasts you. So. So he was like, that was good. So I was like, ooh. And I carried on doing it, and then life happened. I forgot about it for a couple of months. And then that friend came to me again, my friend Ashley, and said, when's the next episode? You need to carry on doing that. And so I carried on doing that, and, yeah, it's been crazy.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Well, the show recently surpassed one billion streams, so congratulations.

[Billy Crudup]

Thank you so much.

[Stephen Curry]

One billion.

[Announcer]

One billion.

[Jimmy Fallon]

From under your kitchen. You've done about 500 episodes. Now. Have you ever had an interview not go as planned or. I feel like you're so rehearsed. I mean, not rehearsed, but you do your homework. Oh, tell me, please. Yes. Whatever you're about to say, say it.

[Billy Crudup]

I did really well. Now, there was this one day where I had two interviews in the same day, and my research team blessed them. They sent me the research. So they send me the books, the research. I click on the file, I start reading. I spend five hours reading the research. I'm ready to go. I've watched all the videos. I know everything about this person. I know their kids, their favorite music, everything. And then I walk into the studio to meet the guest, and I look up, and I have no idea who this person is. I've accidentally done the research for the other guest that was coming on in the evening. So I've spent five hours, and I didn't even know this person's name. So I walk up and I shake their hand, and we sit down, and my producer, who I think is actually here tonight, says to me, like, ready to go? And I don't know what this person's name is, let alone what they do. So I said to the guy, I said, tell me how you spell your name, which is what you do, right? And I'm hoping for, like, such a good move. Of course, you know.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Tell me how you spell your name. He's like, john.

[Announcer]

Yeah, this is a problem.

[Billy Crudup]

If you go for that strategy, it has to be, like, an Anastasia, a Malika. It has to be something. The guy said his name was K. The letter K. His name was K. He's called Dr. K. They call him K. So I was like, k. Okay. K or K A Y or. He's like, no, K. I go, yeah. No. My first question to him. Producer goes, ready to go. My first question to him is for anybody watching at home, Kay, if they don't know who you are and what you do, please, can you let them know and tell them why they should listen to this conversation? God bless him. He's, like, kind of genius, and he said he. Amazing answer. And do you know what? We had one of the most downloaded conversations in the show's history for the next three hours.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Is that right?

[Billy Crudup]

Yeah, it was one of our. It was one of my favorite conversations ever, and it was one of the most downloaded that we've ever had. And it taught me to never do research. No, it taught me. It taught me that as to be a good interviewer. Your job isn't to lead, it's to follow. And if you listen, people will take you where they want to go with a conversation, because most people haven't had someone just listen to them, really, for, like, more than 10 minutes ever in their life. And it was a beautiful conversation. So.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Oh, my God.

[Billy Crudup]

Yeah. So now I don't do any research.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah, right. No, that's not true. Well, I can't tell you how much of a fan I am of you and also your team and everyone took care of me. I've never gotten more better feedback on any interview I've ever done, ever. Than your interview. So thank you so much. And I wanted to say as a gift to you, while we were doing this interview.

[Billy Crudup]

Oh, no.

[Jimmy Fallon]

I did a drawing. There's you and there's me. There you go. That's for you. Thank you.

[Billy Crudup]

Nice to see you.

[Announcer]

Stephen Bartlett, everybody. Check out all new episodes of the Diary of a CEO every Monday and Thursday, wherever you get your podcast. Yes, more tonight, Joe, after the break. Stick around, everybody. My thanks to Stephen Curry, Billy Cruda, Stephen Barlett, and the Roots right there from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Good night, everybody. Get into it and you save yourself. Just let your mother right started so hard working, Mr. Dynamite. Work, work, work, work, work, work, work.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Thanks for listening to the Tonight show starring Jenny Fallon. Don't forget to subscribe to get the latest episodes weekday mornings, wherever you get your podcast guests. Watch the Tonight show starring Jimmy Fallon, weeknights on NBC and streaming on Peacock.