Unhinged Trump Retaliates Against the EU by Leaking Private Greenland Texts with Macron | Will Smith, Jennette McCurdy, Josh Hart | Tuesday, January 20

Summary

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The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon

Episode: “Unhinged Trump Retaliates Against the EU by Leaking Private Greenland Texts with Macron”
Guests: Will Smith, Jennette McCurdy, Josh Hart
Date: January 21, 2026

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Episode Overview

This lively episode of The Tonight Show mixes Jimmy Fallon’s signature offbeat monologue with A-list guests: Will Smith (discussing his bold adventures in “Pole to Pole”), Jennette McCurdy (on embracing dark comedy in her new novel), and Knicks guard Josh Hart (on sports, fatherhood, and candy superstitions). The show’s tone is energetic and irreverent, ranging from political satire to confetti-filled celebrations.

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Main Segments & Discussion Highlights

1. Monologue: Cold Snaps, Trump Satire, and Surreal Headlines

[01:10 - 05:31]

• Extreme Cold in NYC & DC: Fallon riffs on how cold it is, with tongue-in-cheek lines about hockey players spooning and Trump’s Nobel Peace Prize being traded for a Hot Pocket.
• Trump’s Year in Review: A comedic “recap” runs through a fictional list of Trump’s antics: flipping off an autoworker, leaking Macron’s private texts, blocking Epstein files, and bizarre meetings about whole milk.
• Greenland & Macron Texts: Fallon satirizes Trump posting a baffling text from France’s President about Greenland, then “retaliating” with a made-up tariff on all Emilys living in Paris ([03:05]).

Memorable Quote:
“Speaking of Trump, today marks the one year anniversary of him taking office for his second term... We thought renaming the Gulf of Mexico would be the craziest thing... and now, he’s leaking Macron’s Greenland texts.”
— Jimmy Fallon [01:33]

• Interview with “Trump Pollster” Stephen Hunter: A bit lampooning poll spin; Stephen “explains” how 6% satisfaction with Epstein files release is “basically 100%,” employing deliberately ridiculous math ([03:45 - 05:31]).

Memorable Quote:
“If you take 6% and round up, you’re at 10%, which is halfway to 20%, which as everyone knows, is basically 25%. So that means one in four Americans are satisfied.”
— Stephen Hunter [03:54]

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2. Warm-Up & Musical Comedy

[05:31 - 09:26]

• Indiana’s Championship: Fallon congratulates the Indiana Hoosiers for their win and jokes about celebrating in Bloomington, not Miami.
• Las Vegas Sphere Expansion: Jimmy and Will lightly tease the idea of two new Spheres in DC—“but they have to be blue.”
• Irish Drinking Song Segment: The Roots and Jimmy lead the audience in a tongue-in-cheek drinking song about football, Oscars, and marriage, calling back to classic pub sing-a-longs ([07:56 - 09:26]).

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3. Interview: Will Smith — “Pole to Pole” & Facing Fears

[09:36 - 21:49]

• Adrenaline Traveler: Will details filming “Pole to Pole” for Nat Geo/Disney+, traveling from the South to the North Pole, and enduring extreme temperatures ([11:16 - 17:50]).

  • South Pole Temperatures: “It was negative 37... It stops feeling cold. It feels like fire. The opposite of cold.”
    — Will Smith [11:27]
  • Explorer Beard Ambition: Will jokes his main goal was to “have icicles hanging out my nose” like an old explorer ([11:49]).

• Daredevil Stunts & Denzel’s Wisdom: Will credits Denzel Washington for inspiring his adventurous phase, sharing Denzel’s concept of the “funky 40s” and “eff-it 50s,” about embracing new challenges ([13:23 - 14:32]).

  • “Everybody’s 40s are funky... then you get to your 50s and you just say, eff it.”
    — Denzel via Will Smith [13:28]

• Deepest Dive & Thin Ice Fears:

  • Will recounts a terrifying under-ice dive at the North Pole, getting lost beneath the ice and nearly panicking before finding his way out ([15:27 - 17:50]).

    Quote:
    “I put my mask back on my face and I was like, oh, no. And I was like, well, calm down. And I was like, if I get out of here, I'm going to only do black stuff from here on out.”
    — Will Smith [16:19]

  • Fallon jokes: “I promise, Lord. African American behavior from here on out.” [17:00]

• Amazon Jungle Adventures: Will describes milking a tarantula and boating with Amazonian natives on a hunt for an anaconda, all for conservation research ([18:07 - 19:44]).

• Confronting Snake Phobia, Live: Jimmy challenges Will to hold a live boa constrictor for 30 seconds. Will nervously accepts and succeeds, while panicked banter ensues ([19:55 - 21:13]).

  **Quote:**  
  “No, it’s moving. It’s constricting you right on your shoulder. It’s happening.”  
  — *Jimmy Fallon*, as Will holds snake [21:07]
  

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4. Interview: Jennette McCurdy — Manifesting Success & “Half His Age”

[21:49 - 30:43]

• Breakout Memoir & Manifestation: Jimmy praises Jennette’s memoir, “I’m Glad My Mom Died,” with Jennette revealing she predicted its success in her manifestation journal:

  • “I wrote, 'I'm Glad My Mom Died is gonna become a pop cultural phenomenon.' So you put it out there.”
    — Jennette McCurdy [23:02]

• Viral Video: Jennette describes a viral celebratory video in which a loud confetti cannon gave her a genuine jump scare ([23:34 - 24:18]).

• Transition to Fiction: Now promoting her debut novel, “Half His Age,” she shares her lifelong love of fiction, admitting to writing a childhood “Harry Potter” knockoff starring the ‘sherbet bus’ ([24:28 - 24:47]).

• Old Scripts and Writing Years: Jennette and Jimmy swap stories of abandoned, cringeworthy screenplays involving monkeys and saving the rainforest ([25:30 - 26:54]).

• About the Novel:

  • “Half His Age” explores female rage, power, and desire through the eyes of a “very lonely and very ravenous 17-year-old girl” ([27:26 - 27:44]).
  • Jennette started the book’s concept while on a bullet train in Japan at 24 — it took eight years for the idea to return and two years to complete ([27:48 - 28:10]).
  • Humor in Dark Places: She emphasizes her love for comedy that brings light to heavy subjects—“making tragedy funny without watering it down” ([28:36 - 28:57]).

• Audiobook Pet Peeves: Jennette complains about narrators’ slow delivery:

  • “Everybody talks at a snail's pace... so my goal was to try to get people to listen to this on A1.”
    — Jennette McCurdy [29:13 - 29:46]

• Celebration with Noiseless Confetti: Jimmy and Jeanette joyfully flick confetti to commemorate her new novel going public ([30:13 - 30:39]).

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5. Interview: Josh Hart — Knicks Life, Viral Dad Moments & Superstitions

[31:06 - 37:09]

• NY Knicks Review:

  • Hart is optimistic about the Knicks overcoming a rough patch; promises New Yorkers “that’s the goal” for a championship ([31:39 - 31:49]).

• Roommate Tales: Jimmy brings up teammate Jalen Brunson calling Hart a “hoarder”; Hart admits he likes keeping things (“That’s what a hoarder is,” Jimmy jokes) and that Brunson always raided his snack drawer ([32:04 - 32:33]).

• Kid at the Game Viral Clip:

  • Hart recounts the nerve-wracking end of a game when he had to urgently hand his son to Mitchell Robinson to reenter play — a moment that captured the internet’s affection ([33:15 - 34:44]).
    • “I just threw my kid to the closest person, and it was Mitchell Robinson. Not my first choice.”
      — Josh Hart [34:12]

• Parenting Chaos & Fashion Shows:

  • Hart describes the unpredictability of his twin sons on a children’s runway — adorable photos, but full of toddler chaos ([34:46 - 35:46]).

• Game Day Rituals:

  • Hart ritually eats Mike and Ikes before every game, a habit dating to his teens: “You will never see me without these”—he even became the “President of Kandy Operations” for the brand ([36:03 - 37:00]).

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Notable Quotes

| Timestamp | Speaker | Quote | |-----------|-----------------------|------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 03:54 | Stephen Hunter | “If you take 6% and round up, you’re at 10%…basically 25%. So that means one in four Americans are satisfied.” | | 13:28 | Denzel (via Will Smith)| “Everybody's 40s are funky... then you get to your 50s and you just say, eff it.” | | 16:19 | Will Smith | “If I get out of here, I'm going to only do black stuff from here on out.” | | 23:02 | Jennette McCurdy | “I wrote, 'I'm Glad My Mom Died is gonna become a pop cultural phenomenon.' So you put it out there.” | | 27:26 | Jennette McCurdy | “Half His Age is an exploration of female rage and power and desire as told through the lens of a very lonely and very ravenous 17 year old girl.” | | 34:12 | Josh Hart | “I just threw my kid to the closest person, and it was Mitchell Robinson. Not my first choice.”| | 36:59 | Josh Hart | “You will never see me without these.” (about Mike and Ike’s candy) |

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Key Timestamps

| Segment | Time | |-------------------------------------------------------------------|-----------| | Monologue: Trump, the cold, Macron texts | 01:10 – 05:31 | | Drinking song segment | 07:56 – 09:26 | | Interview: Will Smith—Pole to Pole, facing fears | 09:36 – 21:49 | | Interview: Jennette McCurdy—memories, fiction, “Half His Age” | 21:49 – 30:43 | | Interview: Josh Hart—Knicks, snacks, dad moments | 31:06 – 37:09 |

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Episode Tone & Style

Jimmy and guests blend sharp political satire (complete with absurdist “alternative facts”), personal storytelling, and warm, playful humor. The recurring theme (from Will Smith’s “eff-it 50s” to Jennette’s comedic approach to trauma) is embracing life’s messiness, finding laughter even in the dark, and not taking oneself too seriously.

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For Listeners Who Missed It…

This episode epitomizes late-night at its best: topical jokes, outrageous sketches, and authentic interviews. Guests open up about wild career turns (Smith’s arctic adventures), the struggle and payoff of creative work (McCurdy’s leap to fiction), and the juggling act of sports and parenthood (Hart’s viral kid moment). The comedic highlight is the affectionate absurdity with which Jimmy and his guests approach even the strangest of subjects—from milking tarantulas to recalculating poll numbers.

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Guests’ Plugs:

• Will Smith: Pole to Pole (NatGeo/Disney+)
• Jennette McCurdy: “Half His Age” (novel, out now)
• Josh Hart: Catch him with the Knicks and on the NBA on NBC

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Transcript

[Jimmy Fallon]

From Studio 6 being Rockefeller's center in the heart of New York City, it's the Tonight show, starring Jimmy Fallon. Tonight, join Jimmy and his guests, Will Smith, Jeanette McCurdy, Doc Park. And featuring the legendary Roots Kirk, 2243. And now, here he is.

[Announcer]

Jimmy.

[Jimmy Fallon]

I love you. Thank you very much. Enjoy yourself, everybody.

Welcome, welcome, welcome, welcome.

To the Tonight Show. That's right.

Well, guys, right now we're experiencing a major cold snap. It is freezing in New York City.

[Will Smith]

Whew.

[Jimmy Fallon]

This morning my face was so frozen, I kept getting mistaken for one of the Real Housewives. Seriously, it's so cold. Even straight hockey players are spooning, you know.

[Will Smith]

Wow.

[Jimmy Fallon]

That's how cold it is.

Whoa.

It's so cold. Al Roker said he walked into Benihana and squatted over an onion volcano. What is he talking? What is he talking? That's cold. Meanwhile, it's also freezing in Washington, D.C. oh, yeah. It is so cold. All the animal on Trump's cognitive test were arctic themed. Polar bear, penguin, walrus, Walrus. It's so cold. Trump traded his Nobel Peace Prize for a hot pocket. It's so cold. Trump said, forget Greenland, we're invading Cancun. It's so cold. Trump styled his hair into a hat with the ear flaps. Reason cold. That's cold. Speaking of Trump, today marks the one year anniversary of him taking office for his second term. It's amazing. Just one year ago, we thought renaming the Gulf of Mexico will be the craziest thing he does. Today marks the one full year since Trump took office. So we thought we'd take a look back at everything Trump has done this year. Here we go.

[Announcer]

Flipped off an autoworker. Took someone else's Nobel Peace Prize. Held a meeting about the importance of whole milk. Fell asleep during a meeting about the import of whole milk. Got up in the middle of a different meeting just to stare out the window. Threatened to invade Greenland, threatened to invade Iran, Threatened to reinvade Venezuela. Leaked the French president's private texts. Vacationed at Mar a Lago, and blocked the Epstein files.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Wow, what a crazy year that was just last week. Did you guys see this? Last night, Trump posted a private text message from French President Emmanuel Macron that said, I do not understand what you were doing on Greenland. Then Trump threatened Macron, saying they'll put a 50% tariff on all Emily's living in Paris. I saw that a new poll found that only 6% of Americans are satisfied with how many of the Epstein files have been released so far. Here now to talk about this is a pollster who works for the Trump White House, Stephen Hunter. Welcome to the show, Stephen.

Great to be here, Jimmy.

So how are you feeling about this new poll?

[Stephen Hunter]

We've never felt better.

[Josh Hart]

Seriously?

[Stephen Hunter]

Definitely. I mean, think about it. If you take 6% and round up, you're at 10%, which is halfway to 20%, which, as everyone knows, is basically 25%. So that means one in four Americans are satisfied. Another win for the Trump presidency.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Hang on, that math is a little confusing there.

[Stephen Hunter]

I don't think so. Six becomes 10, 10 is half of 20, then you're at 25. Then when you round up, you're at 50%, and that means one in two people are satisfied.

[Will Smith]

Booyah.

[Jimmy Fallon]

That's not accurate. The number released is 6%.

[Stephen Hunter]

Yeah, sure. But this poll had a 94% margin of error, which means that 6% instantly becomes 100%. So everyone is satisfied.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Stop doing that. Stop.

[Stephen Hunter]

God, Jimmy, I'm sorry. You're not a numbers guy.

[Jimmy Fallon]

I don't think you are either.

[Stephen Hunter]

Okay, okay, let me take this slow for you. The number reported is six. That could easily be incorrectly flipped and actually be a nine, which rounds to 10. Then you carry the one.

[Jimmy Fallon]

What one?

[Stephen Hunter]

That becomes 11. That's one away from 12. And 12 is a dozen, which Americans love. We're talking eggs, donuts, juries, all very patriotic things. And if 12 people are satisfied, that's basically a full table at a restaurant. And who doesn't love to eat? I mean, come on.

[Jimmy Fallon]

What are you talking about?

[Stephen Hunter]

This is all basic math. I mean, this is what I studied in college.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Where did you go to college?

[Stephen Hunter]

Trump University.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Okay, there we go. Trump culture, everybody. T U T U. Alright, thank you.

[Stephen Hunter]

Thank you.

[Jimmy Fallon]

We're gonna sue you.

T U Song he's still here. Thank you. All right, switching gears, I want to say congrats to the Indiana Hoosiers for beating the Miami Hurricanes and winning their first national championship.

Wow, that was a great game.

What a game. Indiana announced that they will celebrate this Saturday in Bloomington, Indiana. They're in Miami and they're like, no, we got to go where the party is. Bloomington, Indiana. Well, get this. I saw the company that built the Las Vegas Sphere announced plans to build a smaller version in the D.C. area. Ooh. Actually, I heard that they might get two of them, but I think the placement is a little weird. That's. I just think it's just. I don't think they should. I don't. I wouldn't do it.

[Will Smith]

I wouldn't do it.

[Stephen Hunter]

And they're Blue.

[Jimmy Fallon]

No, I wouldn't. They have to be blue.

[Josh Hart]

Wow.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Family show. I don't think they're. And finally, I read that Magic Mike live is coming to New York City. All the performers were like, hey, could you come see the show when it's a little warmer out?

We have a great show. Give it up for the Roots, everybody. Slowly before buzzing with the start. They were, oh, thank you very much. What a show we have for you tonight.

He's a giant movie star who you can see in the National Geographic series Pole to Pole, which is the number one trending series right now on Disney.

Will Smith is here tonight. Yeah.

She is a New York Times best selling author whose new book Half his age is out now. Jeanette McCurdy is joining us. Love Jeanette McCurdy. And he's a starting guard for the New York Knicks.

Josh Hart is here tonight. Go New York. Woo.

Gonna be fantastic. I had a good night last night.

What did you do?

I went to Molly's pub.

[Will Smith]

Ooh.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Over there on 3rd Avenue. Had a couple of beers watching the game. We were singing. It got me thinking that I love nothing more than I love than a good old fashioned Irish drinking song that everyone can sing along to. And I thought that tonight with all of you, it could be kind of fun. Let's do one here. It's time for the Tonight show drinking song.

[Josh Hart]

Here we go.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Tonight show drinking song.

Tonight show drinking song. All right, everybody. When I get to the refrain, I want everyone to sing along. You ready? Here we go.

[Singer/Musician]

The football playoffs started. They're already so fun. Whether college or the NFL. I bet on everyone. Well, draftkings makes it easy. I can bet right from my phone. And when I go and lose it all they come and take me home. Oh, hey ho, Tonight show Upsy Daisy, down she goes. Hey ho, tonight show Upsy Daisy, down she goes.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Cheers. Cheers.

[Singer/Musician]

Well, the Oscars are a comin'. They're the best films of the year. Some of them made us laugh and others filled our eyes with tears. But exactly what they were about to me it isn't known? Cause I watched them all while scrolling through TikTok on my phone. Oh hey ho, Tonight show Upsy Daisy, down she goes. Hey ho, tonight Upsy Daisy, down she goes. Cheers.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Cheers.

[Singer/Musician]

There we go. My wife she has been distant in.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Her room she's locked away?

[Singer/Musician]

She says she's been reading books?

[Jimmy Fallon]

But I sent some things astray?

[Singer/Musician]

She must think that I am a fool? And I can plainly see that she's binging every episode of heated rivalry oh, hey ho, tonight show Upsy daisy down she goes hey, ho, tonight show Upsy daisy, down she goes Cheers.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Thanks for staying with me. Our first guest is one of the.

Biggest movie stars in the world. You can see him in the new National Geographic series, Pole to Pole. It's streaming now on Disney. Everyone please welcome Will Smith.

That's how you do it. That's how you do it.

Thank you.

That's right. Come on now. Oh, my God. That's what I'm talking about.

Welcome back to the show, Will Smith.

[Will Smith]

It's been great.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Thank you, Will Smith, everyone. Take care.

[Stephen Hunter]

Welcome.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Welcome back to the show, bud.

Looking good.

What is up, man?

Thanks for being on the show. It's a big show for us because we're following the NBA game. I know you're on NBC and I know that you are a big basketball fan.

[Will Smith]

Yes. I used to love it, but when my knees were younger.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah, No, I found a photo of you that I wanted to ask you about. Playing basketball.

[Stephen Hunter]

No.

[Jimmy Fallon]

This is Jaleel White going past you and Reggie Miller.

[Josh Hart]

Wow.

[Jimmy Fallon]

I mean, what is.

[Will Smith]

What.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Do you remember this?

[Will Smith]

What is that? That's what the MTV is. That's the rockinjojin.

[Jimmy Fallon]

The rockinjob.

[Will Smith]

Rockin John. Yeah, that is. I mean, I thought Reggie had him. You know, he got passed by, I think Reggie Miller, like, he should have been able to stop something. Yeah, like Urkel, like, you know.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah, exactly. Urke, go past.

[Will Smith]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Cuz I. I was defending somebody else.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Of course you were.

[Singer/Musician]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, of course.

[Josh Hart]

Yeah.

[Jimmy Fallon]

We'll take you right out. I want to talk about your show Pole to Pole. By the way. It's trending number one right now on Disney Plus. Congratulations. People are loving it.

[Josh Hart]

Yeah, man.

[Jimmy Fallon]

It's. It's a travel show. It takes Will Smith around the world. It's South Pole, North Pole. It's frightening. And it's freezing. How cold is it?

[Will Smith]

Yeah, it was negative 37 at the South Pole. Yeah. And it's funny. Cause it stops feeling cold. It feels like fire. It's like. It feels like the opposite of cold.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Because all the way around.

[Will Smith]

Yeah, yeah. And it was like I had explorer beard. That was the one thing I really wanted. Like where, you know, you see the explorers.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Will Smith]

Where they have like the ice icicle hanging out their nose.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah.

[Will Smith]

So I had that. So I was very happy to have that.

[Jimmy Fallon]

That was your goal.

[Will Smith]

That was my whole goal for the whole show. We could have ended right there.

[Jimmy Fallon]

We have a Couple photos here.

[Josh Hart]

This is.

[Jimmy Fallon]

You're climbing up this ice wall. So here's your guide.

[Will Smith]

Yes.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Your guide is climbing up the ice wall. That looks giant.

[Will Smith]

He went first. He went first.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Here's a picture of you climbing the ice wall behind him.

[Will Smith]

Yes.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah. So I can't. Well, I can't see you.

[Will Smith]

A storm. A storm came in, so he climbed up first. And the way we do the show is I don't know what we're doing before we go, because I want the audience to see me.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Genuine reaction.

[Will Smith]

Genuine reaction to what we're doing. So I go, and I know we're doing the South Pole, but I don't know exactly what we're doing. So he goes up first, lowers the cables down. So I'm going up. And I had never done the ice climbing, and a storm came in while I was climbing.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Now, this is the craziest stuff and the craziest footage.

[Will Smith]

Yeah.

[Jimmy Fallon]

What do you do there? Do you go, hey, let's do this tomorrow?

[Will Smith]

Yeah. No, it was like I was there. I was like, where the hell is my stuntman?

[Jimmy Fallon]

I'm an actor.

I don't do this type of stuff.

[Will Smith]

Yo, National Geographic don't know the movie star rules.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah. Different budgets.

[Will Smith]

They don't do the movies.

[Jimmy Fallon]

But you, when did you start doing all this daredevil stuff? Cause I know that you've dove to the deepest parts of the ocean you've climbed. You're on the tallest building in Dubai and stuff.

[Will Smith]

Yeah. You know, it was. You know, I blame Denzel, actually. You do?

[Jimmy Fallon]

Thank you.

[Will Smith]

It's a long story. It's a long story, but probably like 15 years ago, I went to go to talk to Denzel, you know, so we go to his house, and, you know, Pauletta and Jada go off, and Denzel had worked all day, right? So he comes in, he sits down, and I could tell Pauletta made him talk to me, you know, so he sits down and he says. He says, everybody's 40s are funky. I call it the funky 40s. You know, you've built this life up for yourself and everything, and, you know, some parts of it don't work for you anymore. But then you get to the eff it 50s, and you get to your 50s, and you just say, eff it. Thank you for sending me.

[Stephen Hunter]

Thank you.

[Will Smith]

You just say, eff it. And he said. And you decide you're just gonna be yourself, go for it, and you're gonna do what you wanna do and take what the world gives you.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah.

[Will Smith]

And then.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Then we Were you thinking of Denzel when you'. That's what I would say right there.

I'd say effort.

We're not doing this show.

[Will Smith]

Yeah, no, but, you know, it was really, you know, I wanted to. I wanted to go out and I wanted to venture. Like, I was at the point in my life where I was kind of like, beyond my material pursuits.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah.

[Will Smith]

You know, I'd like, achieved my material stuff. And I, like. I knew there was, like, another thing I was looking for, and I knew it would be inside of, like, my deepest fears. So I wanted to do some of the things I was most terrified.

[Jimmy Fallon]

The ice thing is the most scariest thing I've ever seen.

[Will Smith]

Yeah, yeah. This is the ice thing. No, let me tell you, the one was. Oh, yeah, that's. Yeah, that right there.

[Jimmy Fallon]

No, this scared me because.

[Will Smith]

So we went scuba diving at the North Pole, right? So we did a dive under the ice.

[Jimmy Fallon]

So you have to go under the ice.

[Will Smith]

So you go under and you go under the ice. And the ice can be up to like, 10ft thick. So we're under. We went out about 40 yards away. And you have a tether on that goes back to 40 yards, 40 yards away. So it's like an upside down ice mountain range. Right. So we went under and I start hearing, abort dive, abort dive, abort.

[Jimmy Fallon]

This is real.

[Will Smith]

Abort dive. And I'm like, oh, no. Right. So I went to ascend and hit ice. So I'm under the ice.

[Jimmy Fallon]

This is like everyone's biggest.

[Will Smith]

See you go.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Where is that? Help.

[Will Smith]

And I was like, oh, no. Will, calm down, calm down. I had to grab. So you have a tether on and you have to grab your tether and pull yourself back to the hole. Right. I grabbed and accidentally pulled my mask off to oxygen. To oxygen. And I was like. And I put my mask back on my face and I was like, oh, no. And I was like, well, calm down. And I was like, if I get out of here, I'm going to only do black stuff from here on out.

[Jimmy Fallon]

That's so funny. What am I doing? I promise, Lord. I promise, Lord. African American behavior from here on out.

And you made it out.

[Will Smith]

Oh, man. And it was. So I'm laying there and I'm calm down, and then I feel myself just start floating. Like somebody had grabbed my tether up top and started pulling. And when I realized I was good, I just relaxed and I looked around. And when I tell you, like, the sun is coming through the ice and all of that, and it went from like, terror to, like, the most spiritual, beautiful thing. And I was just like, whoever up there, don't let go of my tether.

[Jimmy Fallon]

I love you. I love you. I promise. No. Oh, man.

In the Amazon, you see all sorts of bugs and. And snakes, and you don't like snakes.

[Will Smith]

Not like. Like bugs and. And like, that was the rough one. I was. We were. So we went to the. The Amazon jungle, and I was. We weren't doing real expeditions, so I was with real scientists, and I was, like, tagging along on real expeditions. And we went down in there. We milked a tarantula. Did you know. I didn't even know you could do that.

[Jimmy Fallon]

I didn't know you could do that. I don't even know if you can.

[Will Smith]

Yeah. So you get the tarantula.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Little udders.

[Will Smith]

The little udders. And you put the. And you get. They were, like, trying to get the. I mean, I had never milked a tarantula.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah, I don't think many did.

[Will Smith]

The tarantula looked like he had never got milked before either.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah, he was like, what's going on, man?

[Will Smith]

So we did that, and then we went. We went on a hunt for an anaconda. So we were with the. We were with the natives, and, like, they didn't even have no clothes on, right? Like, their whole name and address was hanging out.

[Jimmy Fallon]

In the waters.

[Will Smith]

And so we're going, you know, down the river, and they see the anaconda and jump out of the boat into the water and swim for the anaconda.

[Jimmy Fallon]

No, no, no.

[Will Smith]

Yeah. So it was for conservation. So what they do is they. Can they. They had a sense that there was some kind of illegal dumping going on. And the scales of the anaconda, they hold whatever in the water. So they would take a scale from the anaconda and test it to be able to use it in court to.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Isn't that wild?

[Will Smith]

Yeah, it was really wild. I don't know why they needed me, but, you know.

[Jimmy Fallon]

No, it made this.

[Will Smith]

But it was.

[Jimmy Fallon]

So you're not afraid of snakes anymore?

[Will Smith]

No, I mean, I've been with an anaconda.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah, but I mean, like, if I say, I don't know, brought out a boa constrictor, would you be cool with it?

[Will Smith]

I mean, in hypotheticals, man, we could really talk about.

[Jimmy Fallon]

This is a Tonight Show. We don't live in hypotheticals. We live in reality. We always got a snake back. What if I brought out a boa constrictor? Could you have it? Can you hold it for 30 seconds without freaking out.

[Will Smith]

I mean, I just don't know why you would do that.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Because you're our first guest. You're a good friend of the show.

[Will Smith]

You have a boa constrictor.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Let's bring out that snake. Come on. Let's see what's up.

[Will Smith]

Hey, how you guys doing? How you doing?

[Jimmy Fallon]

Oh, my God. All right, Will, don't freak. Don't wow. Is it. No, no, no.

Okay, start the timer. Start the timer. Start the timer.

[Josh Hart]

Go.

[Jimmy Fallon]

30 seconds on the clock. Go.

All right, Will, it's moving, yo. No, it's moving. It's moving. Guys, don't clap too loud, all right?

[Josh Hart]

No.

[Singer/Musician]

Will, how's it feeling?

[Jimmy Fallon]

He's not looking at you, but his tongue is really strong.

[Will Smith]

Like, you can feel it. I've never had, like. It's all muscle.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Really? You feel this, dude? I could feel. This is happening.

Yeah.

No, it's moving. It's constricting you right on your shoulder. It's happening.

[Will Smith]

It don't like my shirt.

[Josh Hart]

You don't like.

[Jimmy Fallon]

It's a different ass. It's a different animal. 38. You did it. 38. Yay. All right, Will. The pole is streaming now on Disney plus for international. After the break, everybody, No matter how dry it gets, 215 is a set. Our next guest is a New York.

New York Times best selling author whose brand new novel, Half His Age is available everywhere now. Please welcome Jeanette McCurdy.

Great to see you.

Good to see you, too.

[Jeanette McCurdy]

It's been so long.

[Jimmy Fallon]

It's been a while, but congrats on everything. Congrats in your book Half His Age. It's out right now. It's a big deal. Before we get to this, I want to congratulate you on your memoir. I'm Glad My Mom Died was the title. And man, oh, man, it was a giant success. And it was amazing. It was interesting. It was sad, but it was funny. You had such a great sense of humor. And I just heard your voice when I read it, and I was like, oh, my gosh. It was just, well, well, well done. Congratulations on that. And that, Missouri.

Thank you.

[Jeanette McCurdy]

Thank you so much. Thank you.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Did you expect the reaction when you wrote that book or had the idea?

[Jeanette McCurdy]

Well, there are sort of two different responses to this, and both are true. One is that I was completely shocked and blown away. And then the other is that I. This is gonna sound kind of woo, woo, but I have, like, a manifestation journal.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Okay.

[Jeanette McCurdy]

And in my journal at that time period in my life, I wrote, I'm Glad My Mom Died is gonna become a pop cultural phenomenon. So you put it out there. I put it out there.

[Will Smith]

Put it out there.

[Jeanette McCurdy]

I guess this is your sign to start manifesting, all of you. If you wanna start manifesting at work, apparently.

[Stephen Hunter]

Yeah.

[Jimmy Fallon]

I love it. The memoir hit 80 weeks on the bestseller list.

80 weeks. That's fantastic.

It's actually currently still on paperback. Just came out. You posted a video to celebrate that and it went viral, but it has over 50 million views. We have a little bit of this.

[Josh Hart]

Watch this.

[Jeanette McCurdy]

Oh, boy. I'm scared. Okay, I'm. I hate. This is a bad idea. I hate loud noises.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Oh, my God.

[Jeanette McCurdy]

Oh, my God.

[Jimmy Fallon]

What?

[Will Smith]

I'm sorry.

[Jimmy Fallon]

What happened?

[Jeanette McCurdy]

I have a loud scream. I'm very jumpy. That's my genuine scream. I'm sorry, but was it louder than.

[Jimmy Fallon]

You thought it was gonna be?

[Jeanette McCurdy]

It was so much louder. It was so like. It's a modestly sized confetti can. And I figured it would have a modestly sized sound, but instead it literally sounded like a can and went off. I have never written an Amazon review in my life. I came this close to writing one and just saying, do not get this.

[Jimmy Fallon]

It's.

[Jeanette McCurdy]

You cannot do it. Save yourself for volume.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah. Save yourself. Well, you might have to celebrate again because your new book, Half His Age, is out now and is a novel. This one here. How does it feel to write fiction this time?

[Jeanette McCurdy]

Well, I've actually written a lot more fiction over the course of my life. Just growing up, you know, I'd write little short stories and I wrote a novel once. Where have you seen Harry Potter?

[Stephen Hunter]

Yeah.

[Jeanette McCurdy]

You know, like the Night bus. The three decker bus.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yes, of course.

[Jeanette McCurdy]

So I had a three decker bus in my thing, but I just made it multicolored and called it the sherbet bus instead and thought I could get away with it.

[Jimmy Fallon]

The sherbet bus.

[Jeanette McCurdy]

The sherbet bus, yeah. Rainbow sherbet. I love rainbow sherbet. It's very good.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah, it is good.

[Jeanette McCurdy]

Do you like. What other flavors do you like?

[Jimmy Fallon]

I like. I think rainbow's the only jam I go with. I guess rainbow and orange sherbet's different than sorbet, right?

[Jeanette McCurdy]

Yeah, sherbet. I feel like it's more nice, creamy texture. And sorbet is like, icier.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. I go rainbow.

[Jeanette McCurdy]

I don't want sorbet. No, I like the chunkier kind of.

[Josh Hart]

Yeah.

[Jimmy Fallon]

I want to read this rainbow shirt. What else have you written that you haven't released?

[Jeanette McCurdy]

Well, all throughout my 20s, I quit acting when I was 24 and I just was pursuing writing endlessly into a void with nobody reading anything I wrote. But I think that was good for me. I think I needed those years where I was just writing for myself. And so I wrote screenplays and short films and plays and a bunch of things.

[Jimmy Fallon]

What screenplays? What movies? What's something that we can get now?

[Jeanette McCurdy]

The first one, I wrote some bad ones. I'll tell you the real stinkers. It was called Henry Road. And it was a little boy with a single mom and his neighbor was a little girl with a single dad. And they were trying to put their parents together and it ended in a Universal Studios dance sequence.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Wait. I would watch this tonight.

[Jeanette McCurdy]

Popping and locking in front of E.T.

[Jimmy Fallon]

I would watch that immediately. Are you kidding me? That's fantastic.

[Jeanette McCurdy]

Then I would like. I tried to go edgier and I wrote one. I tried to go darker and I wrote one about a quadriplegic and their capuchin monkey. That was the follow up. I was 12.

[Will Smith]

Wow.

[Jimmy Fallon]

And they had a monkey.

[Jeanette McCurdy]

Yeah.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah. I wrote a screenplay once. It was terrible.

[Jeanette McCurdy]

What was it?

[Jimmy Fallon]

Let's Help Jared Save the Rainforest.

[Jeanette McCurdy]

I love the name.

[Jimmy Fallon]

That was a long name.

[Jeanette McCurdy]

It's a great name. It's a great title.

[Jimmy Fallon]

And they did. He found he had a monkey friend.

[Jeanette McCurdy]

Okay. Oh, my God.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah, I know. We should combine script.

We should.

And he became friends with the monkey and the monkey stole his camcorder. This is back when camcorders exist. And the monkey found an indigenous tribe and then ended up saving the rainforest.

[Jeanette McCurdy]

Did you write the thing with the camcorder to try to make it low budget so you could do it yourself?

[Jimmy Fallon]

No, I thought that was just cool.

[Josh Hart]

Okay.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Monkey with a Camcorder. That should have been the other title. I like that idea too, but yeah, that never came out. That was awful.

[Jeanette McCurdy]

Oh, man.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Let's help Jared save the rainforest.

[Jeanette McCurdy]

I want to see it.

[Jimmy Fallon]

It's so bad.

[Jeanette McCurdy]

But do you have footage of it somewhere?

[Jimmy Fallon]

No, I didn't shoot it.

[Will Smith]

You didn't?

[Jeanette McCurdy]

Ever?

[Jimmy Fallon]

Oh, no. I wrote a terrible script that went nowhere. It was the worst thing ever.

[Jeanette McCurdy]

My favorite movie. Shot it, like literally on a camera.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Then I have an idea for a book too. What? It's called Hawaii by Night and it's about a guy who has to get to Hawaii or else he's doomed for the rest of his life.

[Jeanette McCurdy]

Okay.

[Jimmy Fallon]

A guy put a curse on him and he has to go kill the guy.

[Jeanette McCurdy]

When did you write this?

[Jimmy Fallon]

I didn't write it yet, but so bad. This is a real book. This is getting crazy good reviews. How do we describe what is Half His Age about?

[Jeanette McCurdy]

I would say Half His Age is an exploration of female rage and power and desire as told through the lens of a very lonely and very ravenous 17 year old girl. Which I feel like all 17 year old girls are lonely and ravenous, but she's particularly lonely and particularly ravenous.

[Jimmy Fallon]

When did you first come up with the idea for this one?

[Jeanette McCurdy]

Randomly? I was on a solo trip to Japan when I was 24 and I was on a Shinkansen, a bullet train. And that's when I first kind of knew that I was gonna write this. I had the seed of the protagonist, Waldo, and then the seed of just kind of the hook of it. But it didn't come back around until about eight years later. So I've been working on it for two years and yeah, now it's out in the world and I can't believe it.

[Stephen Hunter]

Yeah.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Your writing is very. Also, the topic is heavy because she was dating a guy who's half. She's half his age, but. So it's a tricky topic, but it's also very funny. Are you good at that? Making comedy out of tragic moments or stressful moments or real serious moments?

[Jeanette McCurdy]

Well, it's really the only way I know how to write and I like to do that. It's also the kind of art that I appreciate the most, whether it's a book or a film or a TV show. I really appreciate when somebody can take a subject matter that's inherently heavy and make it funny and make it, you know, bring some levity to it and make it more palatable in that way without watering it down or making it flippant. That's like, that's the goal. I certainly try to do that.

[Jimmy Fallon]

And when you do your audio books, which I also listen to as well, you do it in your voice. It's very straightforward. It's almost like I'm talking to you and you're just like saying, do you like doing that?

[Jeanette McCurdy]

Well, I have, I'm. I have so many strong opinions about audiobooks.

[Jimmy Fallon]

What's that?

[Jeanette McCurdy]

Well, okay. I feel like everybody talks at a snail's pace when you're listening. They're like. And then I went to the store. I don't know why it's so slow. So I'm always listening to audiobooks on two, like times two volume. Right?

[Jimmy Fallon]

You do?

[Jeanette McCurdy]

Yes.

[Jimmy Fallon]

I don't do that. What you're doing?

No. I go negative two.

[Josh Hart]

Yeah.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Then I went to The a great book, by the way.

[Jeanette McCurdy]

I feel like they're so slow. So my goal was to try to get people to listen to this on A1.

[Josh Hart]

Yes.

[Jeanette McCurdy]

I want you to not have to speed it up at all when you're listening. And then the other piece is that I really don't like when there's, you know, a female narrator and she gets to like a guy character and she goes, hey lady. And she like does a husky guy's voice. I find it so unsettling. Uh huh. I can't stand it.

[Jimmy Fallon]

No, it's so good. Congratulations on this book. It is out. We can celebrate. This is a big deal. Half his age. I figured it'd be kind of something fun. Let's do a little confetti. But these are, these are noiseless confetti.

[Jeanette McCurdy]

Oh, okay, great.

[Jimmy Fallon]

So all you have to do is, all you have to do is flick it.

Okay.

You flick it and it will.

[Jeanette McCurdy]

Amazing.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yes. You want to flick it at me? I'll flick it at you.

[Jeanette McCurdy]

Should we stand? Should we sit?

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yes, we should stand. We'll hold the book because this is a big deal. It's finally out. You worked so hard.

[Jeanette McCurdy]

Thank you.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Where do we shoot it? That way. Towards the camera or you're going to do it at me? I'm going to do it up there.

Ready?

[Josh Hart]

Three.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Are you doing 1, 2, 3 or 3 2, 1?

[Jeanette McCurdy]

3, 2, 1.

[Stephen Hunter]

Okay.

[Jimmy Fallon]

3, 2, 1.

Congrats. Oh my.

Yes.

Jeanette McCurdy, half his age is available everywhere now. We'll be right back with Josh Hart.

Stick around.

Whether you disapprove or y' all showing love your appreciation, this is but a token of.

Our next guest is a standout guard and fan favorite for the New York Knicks. Please welcome Josh Hart.

Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank.

You for being here. I'm always so happy to see you. Usually I'm at the, the Garden when I see you and I, I, I, I just want to kind of ignore you because I want you, I just want you to play well and not look at me and cuz I'm like, hi.

[Josh Hart]

You know, I, I like to interact with you guys.

[Stephen Hunter]

Yeah.

[Jimmy Fallon]

No, do you? Yeah. But how are you feeling? Come on, are you, are you giving us a championship? Come on.

[Josh Hart]

That's the goal. New York, you know, they, they love their Knicks and it's, you know.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Are you feeling it? Are you feeling like you, you got this?

[Josh Hart]

Yeah. I think, you know, we had a rough couple games but I think where our mentality is, I think we're gonna Respond very well and continue to improve for the rest of the season.

[Jimmy Fallon]

You and your Knicks teammate, Jalen Brunson. You guys were roommates, right?

[Josh Hart]

Mm.

[Jimmy Fallon]

He called you a hoarder. Are you. Are you a hoarder?

[Will Smith]

What?

[Josh Hart]

Um, I have a lot of stuff. Um, at times, it's hard for me to part with some of those things.

[Jimmy Fallon]

That's what a hoarder is.

[Josh Hart]

Yeah. But he was always in my room. Cause I had the snack drawer, and he just. He always came in there, grabbed snacks. So he never complained about it when he was doing that.

[Jimmy Fallon]

But now all of a sudden, yeah.

[Josh Hart]

All of a sudden, I'm the hoarder.

[Jimmy Fallon]

So how was he as a roommate?

[Josh Hart]

He was pretty good. He was quiet, cleanly. Kind of annoying.

[Jimmy Fallon]

There you go. That's what I'm saying. Give him something back.

[Josh Hart]

Yeah, you couldn't. Y' all are gonna hear that. Yo, what are you doing? That's like, bro, just leave me alone. We just had two classes together.

[Will Smith]

We just did practice.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Come on. Give me a break. Yeah, let me play video games. Yeah, you guys are the best together. I love your chemistry. It's so fun to watch. You have twin sons, Hendrix and Hayes. Two of the cutest kids I've ever seen. There was one clip that went viral from a game last month. You know what we're gonna talk about?

[Josh Hart]

Yep.

[Jimmy Fallon]

You were sitting on the bench with Hayes, and all of a sudden, you realize you had to go back in the game.

[Josh Hart]

Yeah. Normally in a basketball game, you know, when you're up by, like, 15. I think it was like, a minute and a half left in the game.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Right.

[Josh Hart]

So we were playing, I think, the Magic. They took their starters and everything out, and when you do that, you kind of wave in the white flag. So Mike took, you know, all of us out, and it was kid day, so my kids were there. They normally don't come to games.

[Jimmy Fallon]

So I was like, oh, this is so cool.

[Josh Hart]

We're winning. I had him on the bench. Hendricks did not want to be on the bench, but Hayes was loving it.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Minute left.

[Josh Hart]

Minute left. Yeah. I'm just like, it's over soon. And then we have a turnover. They score. Turnover. They score. They're shooting free throws, and I'm just like, oh, God, please don't, like, don't make me go back in. I'm like, I'm so mentally checked out. My kid's right here. And I'm looking at Mike, like, looking down, and he put Jalen in the game and put Kat, and I'm just like, oh. Oh, for the love of God, please don't. There's 19 seconds left.

[Jimmy Fallon]

There's no way.

[Josh Hart]

And then he yells, josh. I'm like, oh, no. And I just. I threw my kid to the closest person, and it was Mitchell Robinson. Yeah. Not my first choice. But the funniest thing is that if you look at Mitch's face when I do it, he's so clueless. He has a kid. He looked so lost. He had no idea what to do. He was just like, oh, God. And then, like, pass it to the next person. Poor kid was just.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Just all the way around the garden. It was like everyone did a wave. They just passed haze around.

[Josh Hart]

It was a tough 19 seconds.

[Will Smith]

Yeah.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah.

It was really. You did something fun with your kids, too. You did this fashion show, and your kids walked to get ready.

[Will Smith]

Look at this.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Stop it.

[Josh Hart]

Yeah.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Stop it. Come on. I mean, is that the best thing ever? What was that?

[Josh Hart]

It was an adorable photo right after chaos. So they're doing this Runway shoot. All the parents in here, y' all know, like, if your kid is doing something at two and a half, you're. You're nervous because you have no idea what they're gonna do. You don't know if they're gonna walk in a straight line. One's gonna fly off the stage one way, one's doing. So they come out a little timid, but they came out.

[Jimmy Fallon]

It's like a kid fashion show.

[Josh Hart]

Yeah.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Funny family thing.

[Josh Hart]

Yeah. And they were good. They started walking, and then Hendrik's just drops and refuses to get up. And I'm sitting there. It's like Russell Wilson's. And I'm looking at him, and he's like. He's like, yeah, you might want to go get him. I'm like, yeah, I think I got to.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah.

[Josh Hart]

I had to, like, pick him up at one point, right after the photo, I had to pick him up and, like, drag him off to. It was. It was tough. But an amazing photo. Yeah.

[Jimmy Fallon]

I mean, no, this looks like it's a protection.

Hendrick did a great job.

[Will Smith]

He did a great job.

[Jimmy Fallon]

You did a great job. I know athletes can be very superstitious, and I was wondering, do you have any things that you're superstitious, anything you have to do before a game?

[Josh Hart]

I eat Mike and Ike's before every game. You eat Mike and Ikes before every game?

[Jimmy Fallon]

That's your candy?

[Josh Hart]

Yep. That's my candy of choice since I was 14. So, yep, do that.

[Jimmy Fallon]

But you would eat that before every game?

[Josh Hart]

Yeah, before every game in college. I used to do it. Coach Wright wouldn't really let me, so I used to, like, take a box, like, dump them out of my parka jacket, and like, periodically go back and forth from my locker. Doesn't sound the most like, you know, it kind of sounds nasty now that I say it out loud. No, but you know that I got eat popcorn. My dad sends me scriptures that I read before every game. And then I just. I go out and hoop.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Yeah, but I heard that you, Mike and Ike reached out to you and made you, like, the president of Kandy Operations.

[Josh Hart]

Yes, they did. And it was a dream come true. I have them on me at all times.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Come on.

[Josh Hart]

You will never see me without these.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Is that right?

[Josh Hart]

Yeah.

[Stephen Hunter]

Go ahead.

[Josh Hart]

I'll have a little bit. They'll change. I told you. They'll change your life.

[Jimmy Fallon]

You're the best, bud. Come on. I love you. Best of luck for the rest of the. Go Knicks.

[Stephen Hunter]

Thank you.

[Jimmy Fallon]

You got this, bud.

[Jeanette McCurdy]

Appreciate it.

[Jimmy Fallon]

Seth Hurt. You can catch the NBA on NBC all season long, Tuesday nights right here at NBC. We'll be right back.

[Josh Hart]

Yes.

[Jimmy Fallon]

My thanks to Will Smith, Jeanette McCurdy, Josh Hart. The Root Drive there from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Good night, everybody. Got involved. Gotta get involved Gotta get it. Got involved Good.

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 podcasts. Watch the Tonight show starring Jimmy Fallon. Weeknights on NBC and streaming on Peacock.