Trump Fails to Make Peace with Iran | Olivia Rodrigo, Richard Gadd, The Crew of NASA’s Artemis II Moon Mission | Thursday, April 30

Summary

Podcast Summary: The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon

Episode: Trump Fails to Make Peace with Iran | Olivia Rodrigo, Richard Gadd, The Crew of NASA’s Artemis II Moon Mission
Date: May 1, 2026
Host: Jimmy Fallon
Guests: Olivia Rodrigo, Richard Gadd, Christina Koch, Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Jeremy Hansen (NASA Artemis II Crew)

Overview

This lively episode of The Tonight Show combines timely political satire, celebrity interviews, and captivating conversations with astronauts fresh from a record-breaking mission. Jimmy Fallon delivers his signature comedic take on current events, hosts rising and established stars, and creates memorable moments with a series of heartfelt and playful segments.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Monologue & Political Satire

• Presidential Parody:
  • Fallon riffs on President Trump’s “telephonic” negotiations with Iran, leading to a comedic phone “conversation” with a Trump impersonator offering outlandish deals—backstage passes, family members, and everything in Kash Patel’s liquor cabinet.
    • Notable Quote ([02:19]):
      • Trump (Impersonator): “Let’s make a deal. If you open the strait, I’ll give you Don, Jr. and Eric.”
    • Fallon: "Sir, I cannot negotiate with you."
  • The bit pokes fun at modern diplomacy by imagining peace talks on FaceTime, WhatsApp, and Harry Potter’s owl post.
• Light News Jokes:
  • King Charles and Queen Camilla’s U.S. visit is joked about, referencing Mary Poppins with:
    • Fallon: "They waved goodbye and opened up their umbrellas and floated away." ([01:46])

2. Pop Culture & Upcoming Events

• Kentucky Derby Satire:
  • A parody commercial listing oddball sponsors for the Derby, e.g., Spirit Airlines (“We’re all about bumpy rides that smell like manure”), Waffle House, and Trader Joe’s. ([03:47])
    • “Trader Joe’s: our salami sticks aren’t not, not not made of horse.”
• Fashion & Viral News:
  • Chanel’s new “shoeless” shoe is mocked as “an eyepatch for your foot.” ([04:29])
• Show Announcements:
  • Mick Jagger will appear next week with a new Rolling Stones album. ([05:06])

3. “Tonight Show Toasts” (Group Celebration) ([06:27])

• Fallon, Questlove, Higgins, and Tariq trade comedic toasts on pop culture, AirPods, the Kentucky Derby, almond milk, and Mother's Day.
  • Questlove on Mother’s Day:
    • “[07:19] You gave me the gift of life…so here’s a scented candle, because I guess that means we’re even.”
  • Higgins on Kentucky Derby:
    • “[07:44] The build-up is so exciting. The horse run without limits. And just like me in college, it only lasts two minutes.”
  • Fallon on almond milk:
    • “[08:34] Almond milk…I'd hate to be the poor SOB whose job is milking nuts.”

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Main Interviews

Olivia Rodrigo — Pop Singer/Songwriter ([09:14–15:33])

• Milestones:
  • Announces new album, You Seem Pretty Sad for a Girl So In Love (out June 12).
  • Became the first artist to debut three lead singles at #1, including her latest, “Drop Dead.”
• Career Talk:
  • Hosting and performing as the musical guest for SNL this weekend.
  • Talks about creative process:
    • “[10:22] The song is basically about a really awesome first date…and so I always kind of knew that I wanted to be the first step in the journey…”
    • Album focuses on “romantic love in more of a positive sense,” with elements of sadness and longing (“all of my favorite love songs”).
• Influences:
  • Sad love songs she loves: “Love Song” by The Cure, “Video Games” by Lana Del Rey.
• Fun Anecdotes:
  • Songs inspired by Sex and the City’s Miranda and Steve.
  • Jack White left her a pre-SNL good luck note hidden in her dressing room:
    • Rodrigo: “He sent me a text and he look up, like, keep your head up…” ([14:25])
• SNL Preparation Advice:
  • Fallon: “[13:31] ...the end of Siren Live at the end, when you're saying good and you're hugging, that always hit me...that was sad. A sad love story for me...because you can't go back...Enjoy it.”

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Richard Gadd — Emmy-Winning Actor/Writer ([15:57–23:46])

• Recognition:
  • Update on meteoric rise after Baby Reindeer: over 80 million viewers, three Emmys.
  • Met Steve Martin, who wanted a photo with him—"pinch me" moment ([17:54]).
• Influences:
  • Credits Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant (The Office UK) as formative:
    • “I knew, clear as day, like a clarion in my head, that's what I want to do.” ([18:48])
• Soccer/Fame Stories:
  • Surprised his dad with World Cup trip (but still searching for tickets); shares the brutal honesty he faced while playing Sunday League football post-fame:
    • “[20:54] I skied it about 40 yards over the crossbar. And everyone goes, ‘Stick to Netflix, mate.’”
• Soccer Aid Participation:
  • Describes nerves playing center-back in Soccer Aid charity match.
  • Reflects: “[22:16] …either I let this nerves get me, or I lived the dream that I've had since I was a kid. And I took a big deep breath in…I had the best time of my life.”
• New Show: Half Man
  • Tackles “male repression, male violence,” flashing back to 1980s Scotland to explore the roots of masculinity issues.
  • Critics hail it: “Half Man is the best show of 2026…appointment TV at its finest.”
  • Gadd: "It's an exploration of sort of male repression and masculinity." ([23:20])

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NASA’s Artemis II Crew — Christina Koch, Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Jeremy Hansen ([24:12–35:46])

Mission Highlights:

• Crew spent 10 days in space, setting the record for furthest distance humans have traveled from Earth.

Re-entry Experience:

• “Reentry—way wilder of a ride.” ([25:34], Jeremy Hansen)
• “...you are a literal plasma ball...in the flames.” ([26:03], Jeremy Hansen)
• Tiny Earth:
  • Once at distance, dubbed Earth “tiny earth” (“it’s like this big out the window”). ([28:00], Victor Glover)
• Behind the Scenes:
  • Jeremy Hansen described as “the rookie,” but everyone supportive:
    • “We had a lot of conversations about that in the containment plan, but luckily didn't need it, so it was great.” ([27:02], Christina Koch)
• Human Moments:
  • Christina Koch prompted the iconic photo of Earth from far orbit.
    • “I think you should come here and look at the [Earth]…” ([27:19], Christina Koch via Victor Glover)
• Naming a Lunar Crater:
  • Crew named a moon crater for Reid Wiseman’s late wife Carol—a moving, spontaneous crew gesture:
    • “That moment...was a great honor for my kids...that kind of solidified us as a crew. We are bonded.” ([28:47], Victor Glover)
• Spacecraft Size Comedy:
  • Compared their living quarters to “one and a half minivans.”
  • Fallon joins re-enactment, crowding together to mimic space constraints ([29:50])
• Space Mates Game (Bonding Segment):
  • Crew guesses who did the coolest space tricks (differences of opinion), who’s most likely to watch TV late (Christina loves surfing videos), and whose hair looked best (Victor wins unanimously).
  • Final question—who missed Earth the most? “Everyone gets ice cream!” ([34:36])
• Shows their camaraderie and the lighter side of extraordinary achievement, capped by Fallon gathering autographs on a Pink Floyd Dark Side of the Moon album.

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Memorable Quotes & Moments

• Jimmy Fallon on SNL’s emotional goodbyes ([13:31]):
  “You can't go back. You can't do it twice. You can't do it again. That's the last time you're ever gonna do that sketch.”
• Olivia Rodrigo on love songs ([10:55]):
  “I wanted this record to be about romantic love in more of a positive sense…But I also wanted to inject them with a little bit of sadness and longing…Because those are all of my favorite love songs.”
• Richard Gadd on sudden fame ([19:28]):
  “Even when I was playing on the pitch…everyone goes, ‘Stick to Netflix, mate.…’"
• Jeremy Hansen (Artemis II) on re-entry ([26:03]):
  “You come back, you are a literal plasma ball. And you see the fire outside every single window.”
• Victor Glover (Artemis II) on the crew’s gesture ([28:47]):
  “That moment was a great honor for my kids…It’s deeply moving for them, but also for the four of us, that kind of solidified us as a crew.”

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Important Timestamps

| Timestamp | Segment/Highlight | |-------------|------------------------------------------------------------| | 00:52-02:14 | Monologue: King Charles, Iran-Trump Call Parody | | 03:32 | Kentucky Derby Fake Sponsors Skit | | 06:27-09:00 | “Tonight Show Toasts” Segment | | 09:14-15:33 | Olivia Rodrigo Interview | | 15:57-23:46 | Richard Gadd Interview | | 24:12-35:46 | NASA Artemis II Crew Interview + “Space Mates” Game | | 28:45 | Lunar Crater Named After Wiseman’s Late Wife (Emotional) |

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Tone and Style

The episode maintains a playful, irreverent, yet heartfelt tone throughout, balancing sharp satire, self-deprecating humor, and genuine admiration for the night’s guests’ accomplishments—musical, personal, and scientific.

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Conclusion

This episode of The Tonight Show spotlights major news, pop culture, and human achievements with Jimmy Fallon’s signature style. The Artemis II crew delivers awe-inspiring stories of exploration and camaraderie, Olivia Rodrigo charms with vulnerability and insight into her creative process, and Richard Gadd reflects candidly on fame and masculinity. The episode is packed with laughs, poignant moments, and memorable exchanges—a perfect snapshot of late night at its best.

Transcript

[Jimmy Fallon]

From Studio 6B in Rockefeller center in the heart of New York City, Mr. Tonight show, starring Jimmy Fallon. Tonight joins Jimmy and his guests, Olivia Rodrigo, Richard Gas, the crew of NASA's Artemis 2 moon mission, and featuring the legendary Ruth Curt, 2285. And now, here he is, Jimmy. Jesus. Hey, come on, y'. All. Let's do. Come on, you're good. Let's go.

Come on.

Hello, everybody. Oh, looking great. Looking great. Welcome.

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

You're here. This is it. That's it.

Well, guys, I'm excited about this. The crew of NASA's Artemis 2 moon mission is here tonight.

Pop off.

They were in space for 10 days and traveled farther than any humans in history. Meanwhile, there's some people in our crowd thinking, big deal. I just flew southwest into Newark Airport. That was. Talk to me about that. Let's get to some news. Well, guys, earlier today, King Charles and Queen Camilla wrapped up their trip to the U.S. yeah, it was sweet. They waved goodbye and opened up their umbrellas and floated away.

[Christina Cook]

It was very.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Some more news from Washington. The situation in Iran is at a standstill, and President Trump just said that US negotiators aren't flying 18 hours anymore for peace talks, and instead that they're talking to Iran, quote, telephonically. They were communicating telephonically? Oh, wow. Yeah. Anyway, uh.

Oh, sorry about this.

[Richard Gadd]

Uh.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Hello?

[Donald Trump (Impersonation)]

Hello, Iran. This is President Trump, and it's time to negotiate.

[Jimmy Fallon]

I'm so sorry. I think you have the wrong number.

[Donald Trump (Impersonation)]

Oh, playing hardball, I see. Well, that won't work on Iran. Let's make a deal. If you open the straight, I'll give you Don, Jr. And Eric.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Sir, I cannot negotiate with you.

[Donald Trump (Impersonation)]

I'll also give you backstage passes to Kid Rock and a passport with my face on it.

[Jimmy Fallon]

No, I, I, I can't do it. I can't do it.

[Donald Trump (Impersonation)]

Sir, final offer. Everything in Kash Patel's liquor cabinet and everything in J.D. vance's makeup cabinet.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Sir, this isn't going to work.

[Donald Trump (Impersonation)]

Why? Because we're doing it telephonically.

[Jimmy Fallon]

No.

[Donald Trump (Impersonation)]

If you prefer, we could do it FaceTime. Illogically,

[Jimmy Fallon]

no.

[Donald Trump (Impersonation)]

WhatsApp or Snapchatilopically,

[Jimmy Fallon]

no.

[Donald Trump (Impersonation)]

Slide into your DMs. Unteneronically, no. Messenger owl from Harry Potter. Olotologically, no.

[Jimmy Fallon]

I'm sorry, sir. I'm hanging up now.

[Donald Trump (Impersonation)]

You're meaner than the Pope.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Oh, my God.

What's meaner than the proof? What does that mean? Soft on crime.

Well, switching gears, this weekend is the 152nd Kentucky Derby. Come on. It airs right here on NBC. And they've got some interesting sponsors this year. Very interesting. Take a look.

[Kentucky Derby Sponsor Announcer]

The 152nd running of the Kentucky Derby is brought to you by Spirit Airlines. We're all about bumpy rides that smell like manure. Waffle House. Horse tracks aren't the only place where you might get kicked in the head. Dasani. You can lead a horse to water, but it still won't drink. Dasani. Trader Joe's. Our salami sticks aren't not, not not made of horse. Nature Valley. Crunch on some messy oats, you little pony boy nerds. Gummy clusters like sugar cubes for people. Hoka Shoes. We'll have you clomping around like Seabiscuit. L'. Oreal when the horse's hair makes you look chopped. Ancestry.com or as it's known here in Kentucky, Tender. And of course, Elmer's.

[Jimmy Fallon]

You know why that's interesting, right? I found that interesting. And finally, this is going viral. Chanel just debuted their new soless shoes. This is real. Take a look. That's not a shoe. That's an eyepatch for your foot.

We have a great show. Give it up for the Roots, everybody.

[Questlove]

Sierra Leone raps the death. Big Homie and them raps the best. Y' all know me from somewhere.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Oh, come on now. Thank you, Ruth.

Thank you, Ruth. Hey, guys, I just want to quickly mention, be sure to tune in next Wednesday, May 6th. We have a very special guest stopping by the show. He's a rock and roll legend and one of the coolest humans alive. He has a new album coming out this summer with his band, the Rolling Stones. Mick Jagger will be here next Wednesday, May 6th.

Come.

But first, what a show we have for you tonight. She is one of the biggest artists on the planet. Her new album, you Seem Pretty sad for a Girl so in Love is out June 12th. She just announced a new tour and she's the host and musical guest on Saturday Night Live this weekend.

Olivia Rodrigo is here.

That's my butt.

[Questlove]

Great.

[Jimmy Fallon]

She's fantastic. Doing great. He created and stars in the new series Half Mate, which airs Thursdays at 9pm on HBO and HBO Max and is getting rave reviews. Richard Gad is joining us tonight. They just made history by successfully traveling the farthest distance humans have ever gone from Earth. The crew of NASA's Artemis 2 moon

mission are here with us tonight.

Bruce Hornsby in the house. You know, there's so much going on in the world, sometimes it's important to Just take a step back, I think, and celebrate the little things in life. Don't you agree? Yeah. It's time for tonight's show toasts. Here we go.

Tonight, show toast.

To the devil wears Prada, too. The first film was a triumph. Hathaway and Streep are back. But this time, because of the economy, the devil's wearing Nordstrom Rack. Hey, can I do one, Jimmy? Yes, yes, of course. Quest Love. Okay. A toast to Mother's Day.

Oh, of course.

Yes.

Very nice.

[Questlove]

You gave me the gift of life,

[Jimmy Fallon]

Something to believe in. So here's a scented candle, because I guess that means we're even.

Oh, that's very nice.

Very good. You're even with your mouth. That's very nice of you.

Oh, Jimmy.

Oh, I have a toast. Oh, yes, of course, Higgins. Please buy all means. May I, Jimmy? To the Kentucky Derby.

Oh, that's right. Yes.

Yes. The buildup is so exciting. The horse run without limits. And just like me in college, it only lasts two minutes. Thank you. Thank you.

[Questlove]

My turn, my turn.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Oh, yes. Very good, Tariq.

[Questlove]

A toast to AirPods. Ooh, so tiny, sleek and wireless. Your design is very clever. But one sneeze near a subway grate and it's goodbye, AirPods forever.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Rather. Rather.

Yes, yes, yes. I'll go.

Oh, come on.

Absolutely.

Do a toast. A toast to what? A toast to what?

A toast to almond milk.

Oh, yes. Almond milk.

Almond milk. You make my coffee taste so great. The case is open and shut, but I'd hate to be the poor SOB whose job is milking nuts.

Oh, thank you very much. Thank you for the toast, everyone. Stick around. Our first guest is one of the

biggest artists on the planet. Her new album, you Seem Pretty Sad for a Girl so In Love, comes out June 12th. She just announced a new tour and she's the host and musical guest on Saturday Night Live this weekend.

Everyone, please welcome Olivia Rodrigo. Oh, my gosh. Feel the love for Olivia Rodrigo. That's right.

We are so excited to have you back on our show and back in.

[Jeremy Hansen]

Thank you so much for having me

[Jimmy Fallon]

back in the building.

[Olivia Rodrigo]

Yes.

[Jimmy Fallon]

This is a huge week for you. You're the host and musical guest on Saturday Night Live this weekend. You announced. I want to talk to you about that. You're going to be great. You announced a new tour this morning.

[Olivia Rodrigo]

Yup.

[Jimmy Fallon]

And you made history on Monday with your new single, Drop Dead. Congratulations on this. Drop Dead went to number one. You became the first artist in history.

[Olivia Rodrigo]

History.

[Jimmy Fallon]

To debut their first three lead singles at number one. Congratulations. That's what I'm talking about. What are you talking about?

How fun. Thank you.

[Olivia Rodrigo]

I'm a very lucky girl. Thank you so much for having me on the show.

[Jimmy Fallon]

I'd love to. Please. Now, you said that the song is the first chapter to your new album. What is it setting up?

[Olivia Rodrigo]

Yeah, I mean, the song is basically about a really awesome first date. And so I always kind of knew that I wanted to be the first step in the journey of youf seem pretty sad for a girl so in love. So the journey definitely like ebbs and flows and goes in lots of different places from here. But this is like the first.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Your first two albums were sour and guts. Were you tempted to have this be a four letter album?

[Olivia Rodrigo]

You know what? I always knew it wasn't gonna be four letters. Yeah, I just think I wanted to just break it out.

[Jimmy Fallon]

You don't wanna be stuck.

[Olivia Rodrigo]

Yeah, I didn't wanna be stuck in it, but yeah.

[Jimmy Fallon]

I love the title of the album. You Seem Pretty Sad for a girl so in love. Yeah, it's beautiful.

[Olivia Rodrigo]

Thank you. Yeah, I knew that I wanted this record to be about romantic love in more of a positive sense. Cause I think my last two obviously were a little heartbroken and angsty, as it should be. And so I knew I wanted to write some kind of love songs. But I also wanted to inject them with a little bit of sadness and longing and, you know, melancholy. Because those are all of my favorite love songs.

[Jimmy Fallon]

What are your favorite sad love songs?

[Olivia Rodrigo]

Ooh, like Love Song by the Cure or Video Games by Lana Del Rey Sad. What are yours do me.

[Jimmy Fallon]

God. I mean, I listen to nothing but sad, sad love songs. I love all songs. My friend and I. I got this Bee Gees box set when I was in high school and I split it with my dad. He played half iPad. We had the three CD set and we would just get together and listen to sad songs. Me and my best friend in high school and just every and harmonized with the Bee Gees.

Oh, my God.

That's amazing.

[Olivia Rodrigo]

Yeah, I love that image.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah. Which kind of led to probably me doing the Barry Gift talk show. But that's. It all happens. There's inspiration everywhere. I heard there's a song on this record that's inspired by Miranda and Steve from Sex and the City.

Yeah.

[Olivia Rodrigo]

There's actually multiple songs that are inspired by Miranda and Steve.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Miranda. Yeah, Miranda. Miranda. Miranda.

I love Miranda and Steve. Why? How were they?

[Richard Gadd]

How?

[Olivia Rodrigo]

Yeah, it's my favorite show. I love Sex and the City. I think I've Watched, like, every episode, maybe three times. But there's this, like, when Miranda and Steve are getting back together, she's crying, and she's like, steve, anytime something funny happens, I just want to tell you. And I remember watching that and being like, oh, my God, I have to write a song.

[Jimmy Fallon]

That's a great line.

Oh, no.

[Olivia Rodrigo]

Yeah.

[Jimmy Fallon]

All right, good. So we know. So next time you come, we'll decide which song was inspired by them. This morning, you announced you're going on tour. This is gigantic, Olivia. Massive, massive tour. Everyone's going nuts. It's called the Unraveled Tour. Do we know why yet, or will we find out?

[Olivia Rodrigo]

We'll find out soon. We'll find out soon. I can't give too much away, but I'm really excited. I've been working so hard on it, and I'm just, like, so stoked to play these songs live.

[Jimmy Fallon]

The ticket Presale starts on May 5th. Tickets go on sale May 7th at oliviarodrigo.com. this weekend, we get to see her perform on SNL. Host and musical guest. I'm so happy because Vampire is one of my favorite performances. When you did that live on snl, you were just amazing.

[Olivia Rodrigo]

Thank you.

[Jimmy Fallon]

But now you want to do double duty. Yeah.

[Olivia Rodrigo]

I'm so, so excited. It's always been a huge dream of mine, and so I'm so grateful that Lauren let me do it. And just getting to be there and with all of the funniest people on the planet and just having fun and just making jokes all day, it's literally a dream. And I'm just so honored.

[Jimmy Fallon]

We heard the buzz already. Everyone's, like, loving you upstairs. They're like, she's the greatest.

[Olivia Rodrigo]

Do you have any tips for me, Jimmy?

[Jimmy Fallon]

Enjoy it, obviously. But no, I always feel like the end of Siren Live at the end, when you're saying good and you're hugging, that has always hit me. That was sad. A sad love story for me. Because you can't go back. You can't do it twice. You can't do it again. That's the last time you're ever gonna do that sketch. And you feel like you wanna do it one more time, but you don't have that anymore. Time. That's it. That show is it. And it's, like, done. But you're like, we know all the lines. We have the costumes. We have the wardrobe. Nope. This is it. Enjoy it.

[Olivia Rodrigo]

Be present. Live in the moment.

[Jimmy Fallon]

It's perfect the way it is.

[Jeremy Hansen]

Yeah.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah. And you're gonna crush it. You know it's gonna be great. You actually got left a note. I heard from.

[Olivia Rodrigo]

Oh, my gosh. Yes, I did. This morning, like literally an hour ago. I love Jack White. He is like my favorite.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Who does not love Jack White is the best.

He's rock and roll.

He is badass. I love him.

[Olivia Rodrigo]

Wonderful person, always stands up for what's right.

[Jimmy Fallon]

I think he really. I totally agree with that.

[Olivia Rodrigo]

But I was like, on the phone with him the other day. I was like, oh, my God, I'm gonna host snl. He's like, I'm leave a note in your dressing room. I was like, ha ha. Okay, fine. Me. I feel like I've maybe said that to someone too and never done it. And he sent me a text and he look up, like, keep your head up. You're gonna find something. I was tearing apart the SNL dressing room. I was like, taking the ceiling tiles off. I was like, he left me something in here.

[Jimmy Fallon]

We actually have video.

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Finding Jack White's note in the dressroom.

[Olivia Rodrigo]

Take a look, please. No, no, no. Did you find it?

[Jimmy Fallon]

Oh, my God. Ooh. Oh, isn't that sweet?

[Olivia Rodrigo]

Isn't that sweet?

[Jimmy Fallon]

He's the best.

[Olivia Rodrigo]

Yeah, he's the best. That's my little, like, good luck charm.

[Jimmy Fallon]

And Katie, tell us what you will be performing on Saturday Live.

[Olivia Rodrigo]

Yeah, I'm gonna be singing drop Dead and then a brand new one that no one has heard of.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yes, I cannot wait for that.

I know. You have to get back up to snl. Thank you so much for coming by. We love you so much. Olivia Rodrigo, everyone.

See you on SNL this weekend. And her album, you seem pretty sad for a girl so in Love is out June 12th.

We'll be right back with more Tonight Show.

[Questlove]

Everybody breaking records, big beer brothers in it on a serious tip in the back in a black church.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Our next guest is an Emmy winning

writer, actor and producer who created and stars in the new series Half man, which airs Thursdays at 9pm on HBO and HBO Max. Please welcome Richard Gad. Hello, my friend. Welcome back to the show.

[Richard Gadd]

Oh, thank you, thank you. Thanks for having me.

[Jimmy Fallon]

It's great to see you again. Last time you were here, we were talking about baby reindeer, which is your show and your creation. And it was just starting to get buzz and then everyone was talking about it. And now I can say proudly, you are a three time Emmy winner, Richard Gad.

That's what I'm talking about. Come on.

[Richard Gadd]

That's quite a suggestive picture you've got there.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yes. You and the kilt there spread out

[Richard Gadd]

quite a lot of knee.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yes. A lot of you. Yeah. This is a pretty good album cover, by the way. This is pretty good. If you ever want to release an album, keep that one in mind. Why not? Yeah. Last time when you came on the show to talk about Baby Reindeer, I know we had, I think, Ariana Grande and Ron Howard here, and they all came up to you and they were like, we love the show, Richard. Beau. And you were like, I can't believe Ariana Grande knows the show.

[Richard Gadd]

Yeah. I mean, I think she said she'd watched it about four times, which I couldn't actually believe. It was crazy. That was.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Does it freak you out?

[Richard Gadd]

It's mad. I mean, the thing that just surprises me is just how many people have watched it. I think within the first eight weeks, over 80 million people watched the show.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yes.

[Richard Gadd]

And I sort of.

[Jimmy Fallon]

It's amazing.

[Richard Gadd]

I mean, it's crazy. And then it means that pretty much everywhere I go, I get recognized to some degree. And that was just such an overnight sort of thing. The amount of people I remember, even, funnily enough, at the Emmys, I remember seeing so many of my heroes. Like, I'm a big fan of Steve Martin. And I went up to. I thought, maybe I should leave him be. I don't wanna pester him. He's Steve Martin. And I remember going up to him and saying, hey, hey, could I get a photo? Is that right? And he said, only if I can get one, too. And I'd grown up watching this guy.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Like, I mean, he's the best. Steve Martin. He. Steve Martin wants a picture with me. Yeah.

[Richard Gadd]

It was crazy. And he asked for one. He took out his phone, he did it. And I. And it's one of those pinch me moments, you know?

[Jimmy Fallon]

And you also had accepted a Peabody Award from the one and only Stephen Merchant.

[Richard Gadd]

Who.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Man, he's one of my favorites. Gosh, he's a funny guy. But you said that you had said that he's one of the reasons Baby Reindeer exists in the first place.

[Richard Gadd]

Yeah, yeah. No, absolutely. I mean, I grew up. I was about 12 years old when the UK office came out, and I absolutely loved it. And I remember, I don't know, it was almost like a coming of age for me. Like, I sort of understood human behavior almost, in a way, because there's something so funny about it, but also so tragically sad, I guess, inhuman. And I remember researching into it and researching into these Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant guys, and I knew at that age they'd written it, they were in it. And I said, that's what I want to do. And I knew, clear as day, like a clarion in my head, that's what I want to do. That's what I want to be.

[Jimmy Fallon]

And then you did it.

[Richard Gadd]

Yeah.

[Jimmy Fallon]

You crushed it. Yeah. I mean, come on. Not only. Not only are you creating giant television shows and winning awards, but I know you're a huge soccer fan or.

[Richard Gadd]

Oh, yes.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Or football. What do you call it? Yes, yes.

[Richard Gadd]

Football, of course.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah. Are you excited about the World cup coming up?

[Richard Gadd]

Oh, yeah, I'm excited. You know, it's funny because I've been. I surprised my dad for Christmas. Right. You won't believe this. I surprised my dad for Christmas with, like, all the flights and all. Like, I treated him like, I'm gonna take you to the World Cup. And I still, if you can believe it, haven't managed to get any tickets. That's how. Yeah. So almost, like, have to take the Christmas present back at this point. But isn't that.

[Jimmy Fallon]

What else do you want, dad? Yeah, I can't get. It's tough to get Tick tough.

[Richard Gadd]

It's unbelievable. And because Scotland haven't been there since 1998.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Well, that's you.

[Richard Gadd]

You smartest. Yeah, yeah. Like, they're the most in demand tickets. I heard that the most in demand ticket at the World cup is Scotland v Brazil because it's the nation that haven't been there in over 20 years. And then it's the world's most famous footballer nation. And so it's. It's gold dust. Yeah.

[Christina Cook]

Yeah.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Oh, no, you can't do it. Yeah, but you gotta find a way.

[Richard Gadd]

Yeah, I've got to find a way.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Come to Jersey. You can stay at my house. Yeah, you're welcome. Yeah, well, at least your dad can stay.

Whatever.

Yeah, we'll take care of you.

[Richard Gadd]

I'll sleep on the porch outside.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, no problem. You've gone from playing on pub teams to playing Soccer Aid. This is a huge charity game and you played it for the first time last year. Look at you. Come on, sporty. You can do it all. Look at that. That's FIFA. That should be in the video game. Yes. Yeah, that should be in FIFA. The next year of FIFA. How does it compare to any matches that you played growing up?

[Richard Gadd]

Well, there was a lot less Wayne Rooney growing up. I can tell.

[Jimmy Fallon]

I can tell you that.

[Richard Gadd]

I sort of. It was crazy. I mean, I remember fun enough when I did Sunday League. I played all the way till when Baby reindeer Came out, I was still playing football for a pub team called the Ultrale fc. And I remember the decision I decided to stop playing was because Baby Reindeer came out. And I couldn't escape it. Even when I was playing on the pitch. I remember I was going through on goal and I took a shot and I skied it about 40 yards over the crossbar. And everyone goes, stick to Netflix, mate. You should stick to Netflix.

[Jimmy Fallon]

See? Humble you a little bit.

[Richard Gadd]

Oh, it was crazy. And I remember I just couldn't escape it. And the other teams always thought it was so funny. I always remember I was at a corner and some guy was marking it. He goes, hey, are you that guy from Baby Reindeer? And I'm like, yeah, yeah. He goes, well, thank God you found acting.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Cause your comedy was, oh, my God, why not? Why not? I come with you a little bit. But I mean, you gotta. That must be a pinch me moment.

[Richard Gadd]

Oh, yeah. Oh. Going to Soccer Aid was unbelievable. I mean, I remember it was crazy because, you know, I'd grown up idolizing all these football players. And, you know, you get to play not with them. You get to play with amazing actors and musicians and all these kinds of things. And I remember I was backstage. Backstage. That's the actor in me. I was. I was in the dressing room and I was. And I remember they were reading out the lineup and everyone wants to start at Soccer Aid. It's like a big honor. You're in the starting lineup, so everyone's sitting there hoping they start and you put down your positions beforehand. So I put down left back or left wing, because those were the positions that I played for my pub team. And then they're reading out the lineup, and it's the goalkeeper. And then they say, and centre back Richard Gadd. And I'm like, whoa, out of position. I'm completely out of position. And I remember these nerves. I remember being like, oh, excuse me for a second. I went to the bathroom and I was putting on my shin pads and I was literally shaking. And I remember thinking, okay, this is

[Jimmy Fallon]

like, that's a lot of pressure.

[Richard Gadd]

Oh, it's so much pressure. Because the centre back is one of the key positions. If you make a mistake, they're throw on goal.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Throw on goal. Yeah.

[Richard Gadd]

And I remember thinking, either I let this nerves get me, or I lived the dream that I've had since I was a kid. And I took a big deep breath in, I emptied myself of the nerves, and I went out there and I had the best time of my life. I remember playing in the pitch. And a lot of times, because I've worked so hard in my life and I've been behind the laptop, I've always been existentially, what is it all for? But I remember as I was kicking the ball about Old Trafford, I remember thinking, oh, this. This is what it was all.

[Jimmy Fallon]

This is what it's all for. Yeah. Congratulations.

[Richard Gadd]

Oh, thank you.

[Jimmy Fallon]

That's great.

[Richard Gadd]

No, it's amazing.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Your dad must have been proud, too. Yeah. Oh, yeah. Let's talk about your new show, Half Man. It premiered last week, is getting rave reviews. Just quickly, if you want to plug your ears. Half man is Richard Gad's outstanding return to tv. Riveting and profound, says Variety. Half man is the best show of 2026. And appointment TV at its finest as digital spy. And then New York Post, they say Halfman should sweep the Emmys. Come on, brother. That's what I'm talking about. Thank you.

Congratulations.

[Richard Gadd]

Oh, thank you so much.

[Jimmy Fallon]

How do we set up the show? It starts kind of between an intense scene between two brothers.

[Richard Gadd]

Yeah. It's kind of about men and sort of male repression, male violence. We meet me and Jamie Bell, the fantastic Jamie Bell. We meet us in a very odd situation in the present day, and we flash back to all the way to 1980s Scotland and where we see all the kind of learned behaviors and prejudices that these characters soak up, which go on to make them kind of broken males in the present. It's an exploration of sort of male repression and masculinity.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Richard Gad. Halfman airs Thursdays at 9pm on HBO and HBO Max. We'll be right back with the crew from NASA's Artemis 2. Stick around.

[Questlove]

Mesmerize state of the art caffeine over your heads like Omniverse screens. Not the average savage.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Our next guests are the astronauts behind NASA's Artemis 2 moon mission, who just successfully traveled the farthest distance humans have ever gone from Earth. Please welcome Mission specialist Christina Cook, Commander Reid Wiseman, pilot Victor Glover and Mission specialist Jeremy Henson.

Oh, they love you. We love you. We love you. Come on. Thank you so much. Welcome. Come on. Welcome to the show.

Please enjoy yourself. Before we get into it, Victor, I just want to say Happy birthday. Happy 50th birthday.

G'. Day. Happy birthday. Thank you. Thank you.

Happy, happy, happy.

[Reid Wiseman]

Can't think of a better way to spend it.

[Richard Gadd]

Oh, yeah.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Good. I'm so happy you're all here. I'm sure you had so many emotions during this mission. I was going to ask you, when were you the most nervous. Was it takeoff? Was it landing?

[Victor Glover]

About 30 seconds ago.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Could it be that as well?

[Jeremy Hansen]

I mean, you know, launch. People think of launch because they see the rocket, but it's actually for us. Reentry. Way wilder of a ride. Yes.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Really.

[Jeremy Hansen]

Coming back to a planet is no joke. You might think, let's land the plane. No, it is nothing like that. You know, you're taking off and it's just a little rumble. You don't see anything. You're looking around your plane.

[Jimmy Fallon]

You don't hear the explosions?

[Jeremy Hansen]

Not so much now on reentry. Yes, exactly. You come back, it's loud.

[Olivia Rodrigo]

When it's.

[Jeremy Hansen]

Here it is, but in there, not so much. You come back, you are a literal plasma ball. And you see the fire outside every single window. And then you're like, so I'm in. In the flames, yeah.

[Jimmy Fallon]

He goes, so I'm that far away. We are the fire. Really?

[Jeremy Hansen]

Right there.

[Reid Wiseman]

Right there.

[Jimmy Fallon]

And are you.

Are you.

Are you. Is it hot? I'm clearly not hot. It's a little warm. It does.

[Jeremy Hansen]

It actually does.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Really?

[Victor Glover]

And we have to set the stage like you're coming. We're watching the altimeter click down. You're going six miles a second.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Six miles a second.

[Victor Glover]

39 times the speed of sound. Six miles a.

[Jimmy Fallon]

A second. Hearing clicks. Are you hearing.

[Reid Wiseman]

No, but we're, like, talking about it, and you're watching that number click down, but you don't really feel that speed until you hit the atmosphere and then you start to slow down.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Everyone had been to space before, right? But Jeremy, you hadn't, right? No.

[Christina Cook]

Yeah. My first trip, so I was a liability.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah.

[Jeremy Hansen]

Not true.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Was everyone looking at you like, oh, he's going to throw up. He's going to throw up. Here he goes. Here he goes. Yeah.

[Christina Cook]

We had a of lot conversations about that in the containment plan, but luckily didn't need it, so it was great.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah, good. Reid, you took one of the coolest pictures I could even imagine. It's you looking at Earth. It seems unreal.

[Victor Glover]

It's incredibly emotional, but about five seconds before that photo was taken, I was looking at Christina and she was taking a selfie out the window. I was like, what are you doing? She's like, I think you should come here and look at the. And I popped my head in the window next to her. And that's the view. That's all of our planet right there. And we were lucky to have some phones with us and able to take those pictures.

[Reid Wiseman]

We were talking about the feelings of launch and entry. But those feelings are impressive, and, I mean, they get your attention. But the thing that is hard to understand is we're constantly going away from or back to the planet, so it's changing the whole mission. And the view, that is really what gets you. We would be eating or washing up, getting ready for bed or something. You look out the window, and you just see that earth out there, and it was so amazing to see.

[Victor Glover]

Around day three, we started to dub it tiny earth. Tiny earth, because it's like, this big out the window.

[Jimmy Fallon]

It's like tiny earth. Yeah. That's tiny earth. There's tiny earth, yeah. And then you got to see the dark side of the moon. I mean, really, to the far side of the moon. What did it feel like? When did you first kind of see it? And you go, guys, we're seeing it. We're seeing something that no one's seen. Yeah.

[Christina Cook]

It actually happened earlier than we thought. A couple days before. We looked at the moon, and we're like, whoa, that looks weird. It's because of the angle we had. We were now seeing parts of the far side from a distance, and we all glued to the windows just to check that out.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Reid, you had a very special moment where you named a crater in honor of your late wife Carol. It was an incredibly moving gesture.

[Richard Gadd]

Did you always.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Was that the plan?

[Victor Glover]

That was definitely not the plan. But when you're flying in space with three of the greatest humans you could ever fly in space with, Christina came up with that idea. And at Kennedy space center, before we launched, Jeremy asked me if that was something that we should do as a crew. That was a crew decision. And Jeremy gave one of the most moving speeches, and that moment was a great honor for my kids. My kids were in mission control, Ellie and Katie, when that happened, and they didn't know anything about it. It's deeply moving for them, but also for the four of us, that kind of solidified us as a crew. We are bonded.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Fore.

I have to ask you, how big is it or how small is it? I heard it's like the size of maybe two minivans, which is a weird comparison. But are we talking about the spacecraft

[Reid Wiseman]

that's being a little gracious? Two minivans.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Too many vans is being gracious.

[Reid Wiseman]

Maybe one.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Like, could you show me one of them what it would look like?

[Jeremy Hansen]

Very full with like.

[Reid Wiseman]

You guys want to.

[Christina Cook]

Yeah, yeah.

[Reid Wiseman]

But, Jimmy, you have to.

[Jimmy Fallon]

You have to be part of this. I'm part of the mission.

[Reid Wiseman]

You really have to Physicalize this. So can you.

[Jeremy Hansen]

And if you're not touching, it doesn't. It's not being an Orion. So.

[Olivia Rodrigo]

Yeah, yeah.

[Jeremy Hansen]

You get in there.

[Reid Wiseman]

Okay. You stand right there.

[Jeremy Hansen]

Yeah. All right, so just go ahead and work for the next 12 hours because we're very busy.

[Jimmy Fallon]

No, this is not.

[Richard Gadd]

We'll find the ways about it.

[Jeremy Hansen]

We have to, like, fist sometimes.

[Reid Wiseman]

What?

[Jeremy Hansen]

You need water?

[Jimmy Fallon]

Hey, Christina.

Yeah? Is that your water?

There you go.

[Jeremy Hansen]

That is mine.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Can you pass me that?

[Donald Trump (Impersonation)]

No.

[Jimmy Fallon]

I will pass you that.

You're welcome.

[Reid Wiseman]

That's exactly what it feels like.

[Jimmy Fallon]

No way. That 100% of the time. And you were all patient with each other.

[Olivia Rodrigo]

We were.

[Jimmy Fallon]

You were patient.

[Olivia Rodrigo]

Yeah.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah. You spent 10 days together like that?

[Reid Wiseman]

Yeah, we kind of had no choice.

[Jimmy Fallon]

You really did.

[Jeremy Hansen]

After three years of training together a lot.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah.

[Christina Cook]

Well, I'll say. I do think we kind of surprised ourselves late in the mission. We were like. We gave each other a lot of grace.

[Victor Glover]

A lot of grace.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Good for you. Yeah. You're the cast of Friends. You are the. You're the roommates together. And I thought it'd be kind of fun if we maybe played a game. Let's play a game of how well you get to know each other. This is a game called Space Mates. Here we go.

Space Mates.

Here we go. So you all get. You all get these boards right here. Okay? And I'm going to read a question, and you'll write down, who do you think the answer is? And you're gonna try to match or just see. I just want to see who matches, who has a story about it. Okay. And how well you guys know each other. Here's the first question. No cheating. No lucky. Who did the cool, coolest space tricks? So I know someone had to do a flip or a thing or. I remember seeing a jar of Nutella floating around at one point. Okay, reveal your answer. One, two, three. Whoa.

They're all different.

Jeremy. Jeremy.

What? Two Jeremy's.

Two Jeremys, two Jeremy's. Victor and a Reed. All right, so I think Jeremy. I actually.

[Christina Cook]

I didn't see it in real life, but I saw it on Instagram when I got back, and someone showed me. And Victor's just doing this, like, little twirly thing through the cabin. I'm like, I must have been in the washroom.

[Reid Wiseman]

I don't even remember that. But I saw Reed film Jeremy doing some spinning, and I was impressed. I was like, I should have got that on camera.

[Victor Glover]

I wrote, Jeremy, because you were a rookie, and we got to be there when you went to the bathroom for the first time in space.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Don't say. No, no. We'll cut that out. We'll cut that out. Oh, don't embarrass.

That's so funny. True. Okay. All right. How about this one here? If you were roommates on Earth, who is most likely to stay up late watching tv, bonus points. What would they be watching? If you were roommates on Earth, who is most likely to stay up late watching tv, bonus points. What would they be watching if they were. Yeah. Christina. Okay. Oh, interesting. All right, very good. Are you ready? Reveal your answers in three, two, one. All right.

Oh, I love it.

Christina, you would watch me. You would be watching Jimmy Fallon.

[Victor Glover]

You win.

[Jimmy Fallon]

You're the best. Christina, you would be watching surfing videos. Everyone said you, Christina.

[Jeremy Hansen]

Yeah, I guess you did.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah. What would you be watching?

[Jeremy Hansen]

Well, gosh, they are probably right. Probably some surfing videos. Videos. Yeah. Surfing videos. I was definitely the latest night owl in space.

[Jimmy Fallon]

You were. And you wrote Jeremy and he would be watching hockey.

[Jeremy Hansen]

Well, you know, he's Canadian.

[Jimmy Fallon]

He's Canadian. Yeah. Just trying to protect what he represents.

[Christina Cook]

But the funny thing is, she knows it's a lie.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Christina Cook]

Shuts up for me.

[Jimmy Fallon]

All right, how about this one? Whose hair look best in space?

[Christina Cook]

Oh, that's easy.

[Jimmy Fallon]

I'm sorry about that. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I didn't even think. I didn't. I'm so sorry. I didn't even think. Okay, this is a. This question's kind of a bust. I think everyone should probably have. Hopefully have this. I might even write the answer down. Yeah. All right. On three, two, one.

Victor.

Yeah.

Yeah. Consistent.

Yeah.

You know what's up, James?

Yeah, James knows what's up. Yeah, that's good. Yeah. Very good.

Very good.

Consistent. I can't believe you wrote this for yourself. For this last one. How about this? For this last one? If two of you match with the right answers, since our logo. The Tonight show logo is the moon. That's why I'm so psyched you're here. If you have two of the correct answers, everyone here will go home with a pint of Ben and Jerry's tonight. Dough ice cream.

You got it. All right, here is the question. Who, who.

Who missed earth. Earth the most?

Ooh.

[Jeremy Hansen]

You can't cheat.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Okay.

[Christina Cook]

All right.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Are you ready for your answers? On the count of three? One, two, three.

That's. That's perfect. That's perfect. That is perfect. Everyone goes home with some ice cream. Oh, I was wondering, since you guys are great space mates.

Do you guys mind autographing my copy of Dark side of the Moon, one of the greatest albums from Pink Floyd? Would you mind autographing this for me? Sure. Thank you so much. Oh, my gosh.

I'm honored to have you here. The crew of NASA's Artemis 2 moon mission. We'll be right back with more tonight. Joe, come on back, everybody. Now, my thanks to Olivia Rodrigo, Richard Gad, Christina Cook, Richard Wiseman, Victor Glover, Happy birthday, Jeremy Hansen and the Roots right there from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Good night, everybody. Thank you. Gotta involve, gotta get involved. Get, get, get involved. Y' all get into it good.

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