Part 2: Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg on Rejecting Tim Cook, Pitching Ice Cube, and Plans for More ‘The Studio’

Summary

Podcast Title: The Town with Matthew Belloni
Host: Matt Belloni, Puck Founding Partner
Episode: Part 2: Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg on Rejecting Tim Cook, Pitching Ice Cube, and Plans for More ‘The Studio’
Release Date: May 23, 2025

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Introduction

In the second part of his engaging conversation with Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg of Point Grey, Matt Belloni delves deeper into the intricacies of their production company, the creative processes behind their shows and movies, and the highs and lows of navigating Hollywood. This episode offers listeners an insider's view into the dynamic world of Seth and Evan, blending humor, candid anecdotes, and insightful discussions about the entertainment industry.

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Navigating Hollywood Relationships and Challenges (00:00 - 04:10)

Matt begins by addressing the duo's long-standing relationship with industry veteran Amy Pascal, former head of Sony. He recounts a humorous anecdote about their office reportedly smelling like weed, leading to the need for specialized cleaning—a claim Seth playfully disputes:

Matt Belloni (00:22): "Why do you say about 10 times 'old school Hollywood buffet' in the episode?"
Seth Rogen (21:31): "I think I just started saying it."
Evan Goldberg (04:08): "She was very helpful in even..."

The conversation reveals the close-knit nature of their professional relationships and the playful tension that can arise on set. Evan acknowledges their possible role in Amy Pascal's departure from Sony, taking responsibility in a lighthearted manner.

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Cameos and Creative Decisions in Shows (05:00 - 09:00)

A significant portion of the discussion focuses on the purposeful use of cameos in their productions. Matt highlights the intentionality behind each cameo, differentiating their approach from other shows like "Entourage":

Evan Goldberg (06:07): "Every one of them had the same thing, which is, what's my joke? They just wanted to know what their joke was, and if it wasn't good enough, they didn't do the show."
Matt Belloni (07:37): "Is it true you guys wrote and shot the casting episode with Usher and Usher got cold feet after you shot it and you replaced him with Ice Cube?"
Seth Rogen (07:37): "I have no comment on that."

This segment illustrates the meticulous planning behind their shows, ensuring that each guest appearance serves a narrative purpose. The replacement of Usher with Ice Cube exemplifies their adaptability and commitment to comedic timing.

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Behind-the-Scenes Insights and Set Anecdotes (14:00 - 19:00)

Matt shares his experiences on set, particularly highlighting a chaotic yet memorable day filming in a casino:

Seth Rogen (15:27): "The day in the casino where Chase sees you. Also, because we didn't know, we kept showing up and then we would get to the..."
Evan Goldberg (18:05): "Which is a compliment to your act that's right."
Nathan Hubbard (18:05): "Oh, my God. Are you David Fincher? What the fuck is that?"

Despite unforeseen challenges like tight shooting schedules and dealing with weather conditions, Seth and Evan emphasize the exhilarating nature of live, single-take scenes essential for comedic timing. Matt's portrayal garnered fewer takes than typical, underscoring his natural acting prowess.

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Professionalism and Production Quality (19:00 - 34:00)

The conversation shifts to the high level of professionalism on set, which Matt found surprising given his initial perceptions of Seth and Evan's laid-back working style:

Matt Hubbard (31:53): "The main takeaway was how professional, meticulous and like on their shit everybody was."
Seth Rogen (32:26): "We work with, like the absolute best people we can work with."
Matt Hubbard (33:05): "And like, I was reading the script, I was like, oh my God, Cranston's going to eat out of a live lobster."

From costume designs meticulously curated to ensure authenticity to the construction of realistic props that adhere to regulations (e.g., the faux lobster scene to comply with PETA guidelines), Seth and Evan demonstrate their commitment to quality and detail. They also discuss the crossover of actual crew members appearing in their shows, blurring the lines between production and performance.

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Future Plans and Company Vision (34:00 - End)

As the episode nears its conclusion, Seth and Evan share their aspirations for Point Grey over the next few years:

Seth Rogen (27:43): "We want to get back to focusing on movies more."
Evan Goldberg (30:35): "We're tearing it down and coming up essentially with emotional stories for Matt's character and the other characters..."
Seth Rogen (31:18): "What's fun about Hollywood... is show business."

They express a desire to expand their TV projects while gradually reintegrating theatrical movies into their portfolio. Notable mentions include potential high-profile collaborations and expanding their creative horizons with projects like "Ninja Turtles," which Seth praises for its thoughtful and resonant execution.

Matt wraps up the discussion by praising the professionalism of Seth and Evan's teams, highlighting how their well-organized and supportive environment fosters creativity and excellence.

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Notable Quotes

• Seth Rogen (00:22): "Sometimes you have to save them from themselves."
• Evan Goldberg (04:08): "She was very helpful in even..."
• Seth Rogen (09:35): "I was pitching that joke to Ice, like, there's a lot of meta moments throughout the show..."
• Nathan Hubbard (21:27): "So it's not. Nobody said that to you at a party when you were 19 or something?"
• Matt Hubbard (31:53): "The main takeaway was how professional, meticulous and like on their shit everybody was."

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Conclusion

This episode of The Town with Matthew Belloni provides a comprehensive look into Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg's creative processes, the operational excellence of Point Grey, and their nuanced understanding of Hollywood dynamics. From handling unexpected production hurdles to fostering meaningful industry relationships, Matt Belloni captures the essence of what makes Seth and Evan's ventures both successful and uniquely entertaining. Whether you're a fan of their work or aspiring to understand the inner workings of a dynamic production company, this episode offers valuable insights and plenty of laughs.

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Listeners who haven't tuned into the episode yet will find this summary both informative and enticing, offering a clear portrayal of the candid and professional dialogue that defines Matt Belloni's interviews with Hollywood's creative minds.

Transcript

[Nora Princioti]

What's up, everyone? I'm Nora Princioti.

[Nathan Hubbard]

And I'm Nathan Hubbard.

[Nora Princioti]

And we're coming in like a wrecking ball to announce a brand new series.

[Nathan Hubbard]

That's right, it's every single album.

[Nora Princioti]

Miley Cyrus deep dive with us into the career of one of our most creative and confounding pop stars.

[Nathan Hubbard]

We're starting, of course, with the Best.

[Nora Princioti]

Of Hannah Montana and ending with her brand new album, Something Beautiful in June.

[Nathan Hubbard]

And don't forget about Miley Cyrus and her dead pets.

[Nora Princioti]

We certainly will not be doing that. So listen now on Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Matt Belloni]

Critics and audiences agree. Netflix's Nobody wants this is the best comedy of the year.

[Seth Rogen]

You're the rabbi. It's hot, right?

[Matt Belloni]

The Hollywood Reporter raves. Kristen Bell and Adam Brody share crackling chemistry.

[Nathan Hubbard]

Is there a world where this works?

[Seth Rogen]

Yeah.

[Matt Belloni]

Nobody wants this is 2024's winner of the American Film Institute TV program of the year.

[Nathan Hubbard]

Godspeed, Hot Rabbi.

[Matt Belloni]

It sets the romantic comedy standard for the new age.

[Nathan Hubbard]

You called me your friend in front.

[Seth Rogen]

Of the teens whose opinion I care about most.

[Matt Belloni]

That was so sus, nobody. For your Emmy consideration in all categories including outstanding comedy series, this episode is.

[Nathan Hubbard]

Brought to you by Acorn tv, the home of brilliant mystery. Acorn TV presents murder mystery May, featuring a new mystery series every Monday and a killer movie every Friday. Later this year, Acorn TV welcomes Alicia Silverstone in a gripping new drama called Irish blood. And in 2026, Brooke Shields plays a best selling novelist who forms an unlikely alliance with an influencer to find the killer of a close friend in Allie and Andy Brilliant mysteries, exclusively on Acorn TV. It is Friday, May 23rd. Today, it's part two of my conversation with Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg of Point Grey. If you haven't listened to part one, I highly recommend you do that. First, it's in the feed for the town. This part two, we're gonna get more into their company, Point Grey, what they're up to, some of the shows and movies they are producing. We'll get a little bit more backstage stories from the studio, some of the stuff from the episodes that I was in. We'll also talk about their process and some of the theatrical comedy issues that are out there that they want to very much address. So today it's part two of my conversation with Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg. From the Ringer and Puck, I'm Matt Bellani and this is. How about Amy Pascal? Because you have a long relationship with her. She ran Sony, when you were there, the famous story is that your office smelled so much like weed that they had to have a special cleaner come in periodically. I don't know if that's true, but she.

[Evan Goldberg]

That's not how weed works, but I see why you're talking that.

[Nathan Hubbard]

She left the studio after the whole interview debacle and she became.

[Seth Rogen]

It was our fault.

[Nathan Hubbard]

Well, not your fault. I mean, listen, I covered that pretty extensively. Were several things along the way that.

[Evan Goldberg]

Maybe we were a significant player in the situation.

[Nathan Hubbard]

Absolutely.

[Seth Rogen]

Well, it was funny because we had these. We had this amazing bungalow on the Sony lot, which they gave us because we kept smoking weed in other offices. It was the only building that was, like, structurally independent of other.

[Evan Goldberg]

It was a. Will Smith's office was above us, and they didn't like it, so we got kicked out of.

[Nathan Hubbard]

I'm sure. Yeah, yeah.

[Seth Rogen]

They would always. I think Will Smith was always, like, calling security on us. Um.

[Nathan Hubbard]

Amazing.

[Seth Rogen]

They put us in this bungalow, which was called the schoolhouse, which was like the original schoolhouse where the kids would go to school while making. It's like where, you know, like, Dorothy and the, you know, the dwarves are going to school. And it was Louis D. Mayor's office, I believe, like, when the. When the studio first opens, it was incredible office.

[Nathan Hubbard]

I hope you had it sterilized.

[Seth Rogen]

Yeah. And Amy would always joke, like, if I ever lose my job, I'm taking your office. And, like, little did we know that not only would it happen pretty fast, it would sort of be because of us. And then it actually come to life in, like, a very real way.

[Evan Goldberg]

He made it a lot more beautiful than we did.

[Nathan Hubbard]

I'm sure she has good taste, but the story of Catherine o' Hara's character has a lot of parallels with hers. Was she. Did she reach out? Was she upset? Was she cool about it?

[Seth Rogen]

No, we talked to her the whole time.

[Evan Goldberg]

We sat with her and talked for hours, and she gave her stories and pointers and notes. Like, she was very helpful in even.

[Nathan Hubbard]

That first shot of Catherine o' Hara with the stringy hair. I was like, oh, my God, Amy.

[Seth Rogen]

Yeah. And honestly, like, Amy's house is the first house I ever went into in my life that was, like an architectural, like, marvel, you know what I mean? And it was like, she just had such good taste and was a true appreciator and still is. I say it in past tense because it's like I was young when I was first experiencing it all, but, like, one of the first people I met was like, oh, you, like Appreciate art and architecture. And you read. And you really read these scripts. And she's telling me quotes from Robert Towne about screenwriting that are unbelievably helpful and valid and useful. And I remember meeting her and just being like, oh, I'd heard about her for years. We finally meet her. I'm like, she could not have been more different than I was expecting her to be. And she was so human and passionate and knowledgeable about film in a way.

[Evan Goldberg]

And not just her as a person, but like, a studio head.

[Seth Rogen]

I didn't.

[Evan Goldberg]

Studio head could be like that.

[Nathan Hubbard]

Possible season two cameo, Amy Pascal.

[Seth Rogen]

Hey, I would. If she would do it, that'd be great.

[Nathan Hubbard]

By the way, there's lots of things. All the thing that's great about the cameos is that they were all purposeful. Like, I didn't feel like they were gratuitous. Like, you know, you'd watch Entourage and, like, they'd be in a bar or whatever.

[Seth Rogen]

The record, I don't think me and Evan, between us, have seen one full episode of Entourage.

[Evan Goldberg]

I've seen one episode where Turtle wanted shoes, and then the other guy bought him the shoes. That's all I've seen.

[Nathan Hubbard]

All right, so I don't. I don't mean to besmirch you by mentioning, but. But my point is all of the cameos are purposeful. Everybody in the show is doing something that actually moves the show along. And I imagine you probably called in a lot of favors to get that. Do you owe a ton of people now favors?

[Evan Goldberg]

It's honestly not favors. Every one of them had the same thing, which is, what's my joke? They just wanted to know what their joke was, and if it wasn't good enough, they didn't do the show.

[Nathan Hubbard]

Oh, interesting, because there's a lot. Even in the script that I read for my episode, there was a whole sequence with Brian Grazer at a poker game that ended up in the show. How did that not end up in there?

[Evan Goldberg]

That was a budgetary issue. We couldn't afford to do the poker thing in the place we needed to in the time we needed.

[Nathan Hubbard]

So you didn't even shoot it?

[Seth Rogen]

No, we didn't shoot it. We replaced it with me and my mother, and actually, it was bad. I think part of it also was we wanted sort of like a more emotional way into these last two episodes. And that was also. But, yeah, it was a combination of favors and people we had never met before that I'm amazed came and did it.

[Nathan Hubbard]

Honestly, you also had a whole sequence That I watched you film with Cranston getting accost by a bachelorette party in the scene.

[Seth Rogen]

Oh, yeah, yeah, we cut that. Yes, we did cut that.

[Nathan Hubbard]

Just time. Or it wasn't funny.

[Seth Rogen]

Or it just wasn't really, like, propelling things forward. Like, we're very hard on the pace and rhythm of the show, but they.

[Nathan Hubbard]

Put the penis hat on him. So if you're watching the show and you're like, how did Cranston end up with a penis hat?

[Seth Rogen]

But then we thought. We thought that's almost funnier that you just kind of. With the penis hat. Like, it works just as well.

[Nathan Hubbard]

Yeah.

[Evan Goldberg]

Yes.

[Nathan Hubbard]

Same with. The same with the lobster. I also heard, is this true that you guys wrote and shot the casting episode with Usher and Usher got cold feet after you shot it and you replaced him with Ice Cube?

[Seth Rogen]

I have no comment on that.

[Evan Goldberg]

I have no comment on that.

[Nathan Hubbard]

Okay, enough said there. That is hilarious.

[Seth Rogen]

The casting episode turned out exactly the way we hoped it would.

[Nathan Hubbard]

I'm sure it's very funny. And honestly, it's better with Ice Cube because there's a little. He has such an edge that Usher doesn't. That. That last scene, you get why you might be a little afraid of him.

[Seth Rogen]

He's very scared.

[Nathan Hubbard]

Yes.

[Seth Rogen]

I was pitching that joke to Ice. Like, pitching the episode to Ice Cube. Like, there's a lot of meta moments throughout the show where I'm like. Like, I'm literally living the show as I'm trying to make the show.

[Nathan Hubbard]

Yeah, well, talking about meta moments, you're currently on the podcast that is featured on the show that is making fun of your character.

[Seth Rogen]

It's a very meta moment. Pitching the joke to Ice Cube where it's like, well, you drew the kool aid pan, and we think maybe that's racist. We don't know if it's racist. And just, like, trying to read his reaction in real time where I'm like, is he getting this? Is this happen? Am I actually offending him in real life now? Is that what's happening?

[Evan Goldberg]

And it's like, is he gonna say, great, I'm in, or slap you?

[Seth Rogen]

Yeah, exactly.

[Nathan Hubbard]

And he got it immediately.

[Seth Rogen]

Totally got it. He thought it was hilarious.

[Nathan Hubbard]

That is funny. Is it true you said in one of the interviews, Seth, that Apple asked if you would consider using Tim Cook instead of Ted Sarandos. Is that true or was that a joke?

[Seth Rogen]

That is true.

[Nathan Hubbard]

Oh, my God. That would have been so terrible.

[Seth Rogen]

Sometimes you have to save them from themselves.

[Nathan Hubbard]

I mean, please. Like, he's not even a content Executive like Ted Sarandos. Makes sense. Everybody knows him. He's at all the award shows. He's the head of Netflix.

[Seth Rogen]

Also, the biggest problem is I didn't believe Tim Cook would know who the fuck my character was. Right. That's a big part of it is, like, we like this idea that it's like a Hollywood community and everyone in Hollywood sort of knows each other. And like, we to me, and I always just thought it was funny that when Ted sees me, he's like, hey, man. Like, I'm just like another guy he works with from time to time.

[Nathan Hubbard]

I know. And everybody's like, oh, my God. I. I can't believe they got Ted Sarandos to do this. I'm like, of course Ted did it. Like, he's. I mean, say what you will about Ted, like, he's in the business for the right reasons. He actually likes movies, TV, comedy. He would 100% get this and would 100% do it in a second.

[Seth Rogen]

Yeah. I've known Ted a very, very, very long time. The first conversation we ever had was about movies and how much he loves movies. And. And I. I would see him. It's funny. Like on Fabelman's. I was on the award circuit. I would see him, and I'm like, I saw him meeting Steven Spielberg and, like, losing his mind.

[Evan Goldberg]

Like, it was, like, legit and for the show. That's why he was very specifically the perfect person, because he's a true lover of the art form. And his character in the show is.

[Nathan Hubbard]

Like, you're not an artist.

[Seth Rogen]

Exactly.

[Nathan Hubbard]

Yeah.

[Evan Goldberg]

It's so much more brutal coming from him.

[Seth Rogen]

And he is the most powerful person in all of Hollywood by most metrics, you know, and so, like, the idea of the person who really has, like, cracked the code of. Of success in many ways, just telling my character, like, you're looking at this all wr, felt very impactful. And as much as. I just don't think coming from Tim Cook that means the same thing necessarily.

[Nathan Hubbard]

It does not. While Eddie Gurnel. Plus, I don't think Tim Cook wants the association with the Golden Globes. Last time we saw him there, he was getting made fun of by Ricky Gervais over Apple's labor practices.

[Seth Rogen]

So I don't think we would never want to do that.

[Nathan Hubbard]

The origin of this show is interesting because I had read and I met her on the set. Frida Perez, one of the co creators, was your assistant. And did she pitch this while she was an assistant?

[Seth Rogen]

We sort of came up with it conversationally, talking Together, like, and, like, I was. I think we were. She was on the set of the Fabelmans while I was shooting the Fabelmans. And I was very inspired by, like, how personal the movie Steven was making was. And me and Evan hadn't really, like, made, like, a thing in a long time. That was. We wrote and directed, and I was in. And we were sort of struggling to conceive of what that could be that was, like, reflective of our lives. And then I had rewatched the Larry Sanders show, and she was rewatching it as well, and we were just talking about it a lot, and I was talking to Evan about what we could do as well. And it's all sort of, like, came together in this thing. But she was, like, a part of the inception of the idea, which is why I was like, oh, she should be a meaningful part of this show.

[Nathan Hubbard]

But just to be clear, that is not normal. Typically, the heads of a production company do not allow their assistant to A, pitch ideas or be involved in ideas, and B, become a co creator of the show. That results from those discussions.

[Evan Goldberg]

Well, our company's a lot different than most every assistant. Like, we don't hire people outside to come in. We hire people's assistants, and they move up. So in our company, it is. It is encouraged to suggest ideas like, they are participatory in the creative process, a lot more than you would imagine. But Frida certainly, like, excelled beyond everyone else. And she writes, she directs, she went out and made her own short films. Like, she really went for it.

[Seth Rogen]

Yeah. And I really look at how, like, I. You know, when I was, like, 18 years old, Judd made me, like, a writer and producer on a television show. And when we were 23, we were writing and producing Superbad, and there were many days where we were, like, the most senior producers on the whole set of the movie, you know, and so, like, we were given an amazing amount of responsibility and faith in our abilities from, like, a very young age. And so that's something I always look for is, like, people who are really working to show that they have, like, a lot of passion and a strong work ethic and a good ability. And so, like, with Frida, it was very obvious that she was doing all that stuff and that there was no reason not to to do it other than, like, out of some weird corporate principles that I don't have or care about. Right.

[Nathan Hubbard]

It's funny. She was there on set. If you look at the scene I'm in where Cranston bets the lobster, Frida Perez is sitting at the blackjack table along with Chase Wonder's mom, who was.

[Seth Rogen]

Also there that night.

[Nathan Hubbard]

Yes, exactly.

[Seth Rogen]

It was a real family affair.

[Nathan Hubbard]

Yeah. Are there other Easter eggs in the show? Like people from the industry you plopped in or other people?

[Evan Goldberg]

When. When Cranston's eating the ice cream cone, our DP jumps in. Adam Newport Bera for a hot second and takes.

[Seth Rogen]

He's taking a selfie with him as he's, like, passed out. And Robbie, one of our ACs, is there as well. A lot of the crews. Like, when you're seeing the crews in the show, it's like our actual crew that is both, you know, like camera.

[Evan Goldberg]

Operator Jesse and Aaron Simpkin, our stills photographer.

[Seth Rogen]

Like, they are like our actual Steadicam operator was the operator in the oner episode. It's like a lot of blurring of the lines in that and I like.

[Evan Goldberg]

To throw myself into the background, but there was no time.

[Nathan Hubbard]

I know. Evan, when are we going to get you in a co starring role?

[Evan Goldberg]

Oh, you've seen me. You just don't know. I sing. I'm too sexy in the night before in an elf costume.

[Seth Rogen]

I'm a rat.

[Nathan Hubbard]

Interesting. Okay, you pop in.

[Seth Rogen]

What's funny? When we first made, when we were like 13 years old with like a camcorder. Making movies.

[Evan Goldberg]

Making a spoof of Spaceballs.

[Seth Rogen]

Yes, we mean a spoof of Spaceballs, which is not.

[Nathan Hubbard]

Which in full Hollywood fashion has now come around and they are doing a new Spaceball. They are.

[Seth Rogen]

Well, but what's funny is I was the director and Evan was the actor. Like, I had no interest in being in the movies we made. I thought Evan should be in them. And I directed.

[Nathan Hubbard]

That's very funny. Yeah. You guys. You know, they say that. I don't know if this is paraphrasing, but you're not. You know, don't shoot with babies, don't shoot on water, and don't shoot in open casinos. It was so chaotic. I was shocked. You guys were just shooting and there were like couples from Wichita coming up to me, like, is that Seth Rogen? Like, it was amazing that you guys pulled this off in the casino when they didn't close it. Like, our final scene we did that was like 2am There were random people cruising by going like, hey, man, super bad. Yeah.

[Evan Goldberg]

It was utterly insane. The day you were there was probably the craziest day of filming I have ever experienced.

[Seth Rogen]

Yeah, the day in the casino where Chase sees you. Also, because we didn't know, we kept showing up and Then we would get to the. Look, we had almost no access to the casino before the shoot. Normally, we don't really rehearse much, but we at least will very carefully block all the scenes before we arrive. Generally speaking, if there's a lot of movement in them, just to literally make sure that the dialogue is filling up the space we're trying to cover and stuff like that. But we had no access to the casino. Like, I'd never been in that place essentially before we filmed there. And then we get there, and they're like, oh, by the way, we'd be out of here 90 minutes from now. And it's just like, what? Okay, I guess we have to make that work. I think it's good that that specific. Those episodes have. Like, the show is very chaotic in general, but I think those episodes have a particularly chaotic energy, which I actually think it was helped in some ways.

[Nathan Hubbard]

Well, and I had no knowledge that seemed normal to me. I was like, oh, okay, we're just going to keep doing this. And, like, those people are taking selfies with me in the background. And. And Catherine o' Hara, like, wasn't feeling great. Like, I kind of felt bad.

[Evan Goldberg]

She had Covid.

[Seth Rogen]

She had.

[Nathan Hubbard]

Oh, nice. I didn't know that.

[Evan Goldberg]

And in hindsight, maybe many of us had Covid. I remember people, including myself, saying, like, it was. It's so hot in this casino. It's not hot in casinos.

[Nathan Hubbard]

Right, Right. No. There's actually a very fun oral history of these final episodes on the ringer.com, you can check that out and read it there. The 2:00am Final shot that I was in, it was hilarious because everyone. It was the last shot of the show. Everyone was, like, somewhat miserable and ready to be done.

[Evan Goldberg]

11 days inside a casino without leaving.

[Nathan Hubbard]

And if you do leave, it's 110 degrees outside, so you don't leave. And Catherine and others were sick, and I'm like, oh, you know, I was only there for a couple days. So I'm like, oh, yeah, everyone's hugging each other. Like, great, great, great. And then I turn around to say goodbye to, like, Cranston, and they're like, oh, no, no, they're on the jet. They're all home.

[Seth Rogen]

Yeah, they're gone.

[Nathan Hubbard]

Literally the second that you guys said cut, they were like, oh, yeah, yeah, let's hug each other. And then I'm out of here.

[Seth Rogen]

Oh.

[Evan Goldberg]

One thing I want to tell you is also, you got less takes than almost anyone because of where.

[Nathan Hubbard]

Really?

[Seth Rogen]

Yeah.

[Evan Goldberg]

Which is a compliment to your act that's right.

[Nathan Hubbard]

Save it for my Emmy. Save it for my Emmy campaign.

[Seth Rogen]

Yeah.

[Evan Goldberg]

You should have got nine, 10, 12, 15 takes, but you got three or four.

[Nathan Hubbard]

Oh, wow. Oh, God. I would have been so frustrated 10 times doing that over and over.

[Seth Rogen]

We averaged 16 takes, like, for most of these.

[Nathan Hubbard]

Oh, my God. What the. Are you David Fincher? What the fuck is that?

[Seth Rogen]

It's just really hard to get it right.

[Nathan Hubbard]

Usually.

[Evan Goldberg]

Usually the first four are no good. And in Vegas, we only ever had four per scene.

[Nathan Hubbard]

Yeah.

[Seth Rogen]

Also, like, you came in when we, like, had really, like, cracked the code as to how to do. Like, there was a real learning curve for everybody.

[Nathan Hubbard]

No, I actually got it. I won't. I won't out this person. But I was texting with a filmmaker, and because they saw me and they're like, I can't believe they did this. Like, people don't realize how big of a pain in the ass it is to stage these one shot takes because every little thing fucks up the scene and you can't have coverage. You can't have different angles to hide it. He's like, I can't believe they did this.

[Seth Rogen]

It's especially hard in comics because timing is so important.

[Nathan Hubbard]

Right. And so much of it is the little one off comments that people are making. And Zoe all of a sudden is repeating herself, which is hilarious. And Ike's face has to be perfect, and all these other things have to go into it.

[Seth Rogen]

Yeah. And to us, that's what was exciting. We like to think that we do comedy at a level that is hopefully pushing our own boundaries and assembling a cast that we view as the best there is when it comes to this stuff. And so it is sort of like when you capture a stunt in one single take or a monologue in one single take. It is in some cases a showcase of the abilities of the people doing it. And to us, that was exciting. Was like, how to showcase comedy kind of being performed at a very high level in a way where there's no sleight of hand or trickery behind it.

[Nathan Hubbard]

What a pain in the ass, though, man. I heard you were very nice. You took everyone to see Dead and Company on the Saturday night between the.

[Evan Goldberg]

Episodes, which is probably where Katherine got Covid.

[Nathan Hubbard]

Oh, nice. Yes. That keeps on giving.

[Seth Rogen]

Yeah, exactly.

[Nathan Hubbard]

This episode of the Town is brought to you by Hulu. Presenting Paradise. Paradise is Hulu's critically acclaimed addictive drama series starring Sterling K. Brown, Julianne Nicholson and James Marsden, filled with nail biting twists and turns. The Daily Beast calls Paradise your Next TV obsession. And the New York Times says it's exhilarating in all the right ways. Paradise is for your Emmy consideration in all categories, including outstanding Drama series. For more information, visit fyc.hulu.com the town is supported by FX's Dying for Sex. Starring Michelle Williams, Jenny Slate, Rob Delaney and Jay Duplass, the series follows Molly, who goes on an adventure to explore her sexual desires after being diagnosed with stage four metastatic breast cancer. Supported by her best friend Nikki, who stays by her side until the very end, Variety calls Dying for Sex superb and defiantly joyful. Dying for Sex is Emmy eligible in all limited series categories. All episodes now available on Hulu. Where did the phrase old school Hollywood buffet come from that you say it about 10 times in the episode? I laughed every single time.

[Seth Rogen]

I think I just started saying it.

[Nathan Hubbard]

So it's not. Nobody said that to you at a party when you were 19 or something?

[Seth Rogen]

I think it was as silly to us that I kept saying, like, it became a joke that I just kept saying. And I think I said it one time and then just kept repeating it over and over again. And when Zoe Kravitz is like, will you stop fucking saying that? Like, all that, all that was sort of we. That. I don't think that was in the script. I think that was something we sort of came up with as we were shooting the episode. Basically.

[Nathan Hubbard]

Yeah, because we all have those friends who, like, they come to LA to work in Hollywood and they, like, adopt what they think is the lifestyle they are supposed to have when they are working in entertainment. And maybe it's just me being cynical, but, like, you know, those people, like when, you know, Ike says to you, can't we just go drink at the Dresden? Who fucking goes and drinks at The Dresden at 5pm on a Tuesday? Nobody. But, like, there are those people that work in Hollywood that think that that's what you're supposed to do because they saw it in swingers 25 years ago.

[Seth Rogen]

And God bless those people. But to me, what's fun about Hollywood in many ways and what's great about it is it is not as rigid as other industries. And I think it had maybe too few rules for a time, and better rules are being instituted. But I think what is fun about it is that it is show business. And I think at times people gripe about the overwhelming pressures of the business side of things. But I think showing how people kind of revel in the show side of things is also important and something that. That I see in real Life. And like when me and Evan are scouting and there's like a place to like, like we'll indulge in the fun things.

[Nathan Hubbard]

You got to do that because so much of the business sucks.

[Seth Rogen]

Yeah.

[Nathan Hubbard]

Have fun where it's fun.

[Seth Rogen]

Yeah. If there's. If there's good food or drink somewhere you can do it then, like, do it like it's one of the few jobs no one will. You can't. You won't get fired for. You know what I mean?

[Nathan Hubbard]

What's something you really wanted do in season one and weren't able to do either budget wise or talent wise or something Like, I remember when we were standing there at the venetian and we were joking about the Italian motif and you actually said you're like, maybe season two, we go to the real Venice.

[Seth Rogen]

We actually want to do that.

[Evan Goldberg]

We want to do that. We want to do that for sure. The poker game is something we tried to work in in numerous different ways because there are these Hollywood poker games with high power people.

[Seth Rogen]

There's a few just ideas we quite cracked. But like we really wanted to do like a test screening based episode and I think, like, we may have found a way at it. It was also we wanted to shoot it at the AMC in Burbank where they do all the test scenes, which was incredibly expensive and. And restrictive as to when we could do it.

[Nathan Hubbard]

We have a relationship with Adam Aaron at amc. Maybe I can get you.

[Seth Rogen]

Please get us in there.

[Nathan Hubbard]

Please.

[Evan Goldberg]

Yes, please.

[Seth Rogen]

Well, I've also found already is that locations are going to be easier to get in the second season. And several things.

[Nathan Hubbard]

And stars, I mean, at the premiere, like, I don't know if I can say that, but didn't you say you got a nice note from Spielberg?

[Seth Rogen]

Yeah. A lot of people, a lot of actors and filmmakers and stuff have really responded to the show. And so, yeah, like one of the hardest things was just conceptually making these people kind of understand what we were trying to do and to sign on to it. And so it seems like that'll be easier this time. Yeah.

[Nathan Hubbard]

Leo. You need Leo in season.

[Seth Rogen]

I want Daniel Day Lewis.

[Nathan Hubbard]

Daniel Day Lewis, Absolutely. That would be amazing. All right, I want to. Before we're done here, I want to get to a little stuff about your company and what you guys are up to. Like, I feel like you in some ways have cracked the code a bit in this moment where it's so hard to get stuff made. You guys are doing pretty well. Like the Lionsgate relationship. Why Lionsgate? You guys probably could have gone to multiple places. Lionsgate is a company that is smaller but has a great reputation in tv. Weirdly, they are perhaps about to be sold, which would be a nice dovetail with what's going on in the studio. Why Lionsgate and why did you split your deal between Lionsgate for TV and Universal for film?

[Evan Goldberg]

I mean, Universal for film. Like, we just like how they roll. We've had good success with them. We like the people who work there. They really know how to market very well, especially the types of movies we make.

[Seth Rogen]

Exactly.

[Nathan Hubbard]

But are they making theatrical comedies?

[Seth Rogen]

I think to us, we don't gripe it. I think the term what makes a theatrical comedy has changed and will keep changing and we'll maybe go back, but currently, I think a genre being ascribed to it is very important. And Universal does make big movies that are funny, but there's like a genre mixed in there with it somewhere. And we get that. And it's like, would a movie like Superbad do incredibly well in theaters at this exact moment in time? Like, would you be able to get a company to invest that kind of campaign behind it and all that? Like, I don't know. But luckily we have a lot of ideas and like, we aren't trying to specifically, like, put like a round peg in a square hole, you know. And so I think we're also very fluid and we get like, if you want to make a theatrical comedy, there has to be something to it that that makes it at this moment, like a little more. You know what I mean? And so these are the conversations that we were having with them.

[Evan Goldberg]

And then Lionsgate for tv. Like, we used to work with Sony a lot on tv. We're doing with Lionsgate now. We like that we can pivot and go to lots of places because we have a wide range of different stuff we like to make. And also just like with Universal film, like, we really like the people who work there. They get us. We have a great rapport and. And we trust their taste.

[Nathan Hubbard]

Yeah, interesting. All right, well, that's good. And what. So where do you see Point Gray in three, five years? What are you not doing that you'd.

[Seth Rogen]

Like to be doing to make more movies for theaters? Like, and we have a few. We just made a movie for Neon LeBron Girls, Kristen Stewart and Aaliyah Shawkat. And that's like a. It's like, it's like an R rated stoner comedy. Like, it's as. Exactly what you would hope we would be doing as, as. As anything, you know?

[Evan Goldberg]

Yeah. And also we want to We, Seth and I want to direct some theatrical things.

[Seth Rogen]

I had.

[Evan Goldberg]

I had kids. There was the pandemic. We've just kind of been off that track and doing a lot of TV for a while, but we want to.

[Seth Rogen]

Get that very deliberate. Like, we want to build up our TV business and make that, like, a real thing and then kind of go back to focusing on. On movies more. And it's funny that we made that. We came up with this idea for this TV show kind of as the shift back to movies was happening. But, you know, for us, things like Ninja Turtles and stuff also give us, like, a good opportunity to, like, make a high school movie, you know?

[Nathan Hubbard]

But, like, I was shocked how good the Ninja Turtles movie was.

[Seth Rogen]

Thanks.

[Nathan Hubbard]

Yeah, I'll be honest.

[Seth Rogen]

That was.

[Nathan Hubbard]

I mean, I knew you were involved, but I, you know, I went because of my kid. And, like, I was like, oh, my God, this is actually fun.

[Seth Rogen]

That's exactly what we were going for. And we knew that that was exactly the reaction. That was like, the perfect reaction was like, what if we made this actually really good and actually really thoughtful and actually, like, emotionally resonant? And again, to their credit, like, Paramount, Brian and Ramsey, like, they really let us do what we wanted on that movie. And there was, like, very little creative restrictions put on us, which is fantastic.

[Nathan Hubbard]

You know, I love that you guys find CinemaCon as absurd and funny as I do.

[Evan Goldberg]

It's the weirdest thing ever.

[Nathan Hubbard]

It is. I was reading your comments in the Ringer oral history, and it's so true. It's like, you're sitting up there and it's like, oh, and here's Martin Scorsese, and here's Leo DiCaprio. And also, there's a new flavor of nacho cheese that we're going to be offering this year.

[Seth Rogen]

And also these seats vibrate.

[Nathan Hubbard]

And it's a perfect vehicle for your show because it is one of the only places where the studio executives take center stage and are expected to perform, essentially. And it's hugely important to these studios that they come across. I mean, it's changed over the years now with social media and the Internet. Used to just be for theater owners, but now it's for the media, and you get buzz after these presentations, and it's just. It's so absurd. Craig. I brought Craig for the first time this year, and he loved it. He wants to go back next year.

[Evan Goldberg]

I am excited to get back there every year. I hope we have a reason to go back. It's always fun. It's just nuts.

[Nathan Hubbard]

Did you See, the Cinemacon Twitter feed was joking about your show. No, they tweeted. I mean it was a little sad, but they tweeted that they were very happy to welcome Continental Studios to the 7:30am slot and they would, afterwards there would be an old school Hollywood buffet.

[Evan Goldberg]

That's an easy joke for them.

[Nathan Hubbard]

There you go. You got a joke out of it. All right, season two. What are you guys going to do in season two besides go to Venice? What are you guys going to do?

[Evan Goldberg]

I mean, we're, we're writing it. We have like 20 episode ideas that we like and now we're tearing it down and coming up essentially with emotional stories for Matt's character and the other characters and combining them with different areas of the industry we haven't messed with.

[Seth Rogen]

Yeah, for us it's so like episode, like what is the episode? Is always the question that we are asking. And it's like. And again, because it's not a show with like a season long arc and these like storylines that like play out, it's in some ways easier to crack than I would say probably another show because we're not like committing to one idea that has to sustain five hours of entertainment. But it's harder in some ways because it puts immense pressure on each individual episode to be its own thing that stands out hopefully. So there's other things we've been wanting to explore, you know, press junkets, test screenings, park theme park rides. Theme park rides. The Kool Aid ride is a funny, is an idea we do.

[Nathan Hubbard]

That is a funny idea. And you haven't, I mean you haven't resolved the central problem you raise, which is the company could be sold. You got to get Bezos into next season.

[Seth Rogen]

He'll come down in a rocket ship and run.

[Nathan Hubbard]

He'll come down. Jeff Bezos comes down and tries to buy Continental Studios. Look forward to that. All right, guys, thanks for doing this. I know we ran long. Appreciate you doing the show. It was quite an experience for me, something I'd never ever done before and I'm glad I did it.

[Seth Rogen]

I have a question. Do you have a different perspective? Is there anything you came out of it with being like, you know what this is? It's different than I thought it was.

[Nathan Hubbard]

The main takeaway was how professional, meticulous and like on their shit everybody was. Because I had always read about your sets being loose and fun and cool and it's, you know, everybody's high. And I got there and it was like a well oiled machine. Maybe it was because it was the end of the season. But it was like everything was scheduled and I had a handler and there was like, it was just a very well run and professional operation. And that surprised me a bit.

[Seth Rogen]

I don't know why that's what allows us to be relaxed on set is we work with, like the absolute best people we can work with. We really try to give them, empower them to do their jobs incredibly well. And I think that's why we can be relaxed and happy and in a good mood. It is because, like, it's a very well fine tuned machine that is being powered by like, truly the best people that are working.

[Nathan Hubbard]

Yeah. Like, I showed up and they told me to wear my own suit. I showed up and they're like, ugh, no, come over here. They had five suits that I could have picked from for the Globes.

[Seth Rogen]

Our costume designer dressed every single background actor.

[Nathan Hubbard]

Oh, my God.

[Seth Rogen]

Because she didn't trust they would have things that looked like they would be at the Golden Globes. And like, I was blown away. That, like, and that's like, not a thing. We had a conversation about, like, that was a thing. She's just like, I need to do this, you know, like, like I like in order for this to look properly, work properly. And it was like, great.

[Nathan Hubbard]

And like, I was reading the script, I was like, oh, my God, Cranston's going to eat out of a live lobster. And they're like, no, no, no, no. PETA doesn't allow us to have live lobsters. We have a prop guy and he's made several lobsters. And Cranston's going to be able to pick and there will be lobster meat inside the fake lobster. And I'm like, holy shit. Someone has, like, spent days on the lobster.

[Evan Goldberg]

I, we, I, I have that lobster sitting on my boat right now. Also. Just quick, quick thing on that.

[Seth Rogen]

After, as we were filming it, the.

[Evan Goldberg]

Person who was at the hotel, our like, liaison at the hotel was like, why didn't you guys just use a real lobster? I was like, what are you talking about? They're like, you could have just used a real lobster. And I was like, we spent like $9,000 building this fake lobster.

[Nathan Hubbard]

No, I was, I was told it was PETA that there, there are animal cruelty rules. Even though the lobsters are all there at the buffet, 20 yards away at the.

[Evan Goldberg]

Literally within spitting distance.

[Nathan Hubbard]

Yes, I know.

[Evan Goldberg]

Let's not get bogged down by this lobster. We've had a great discussion.

[Nathan Hubbard]

I know, I know. This is dovetailed into the lobster conversation. All right, guys, this was very fun. Appreciate you guys how you treated me. I. I had a great experience.

[Seth Rogen]

Thank you for doing it. You'll be back in season two. You're an integral part of the show.

[Evan Goldberg]

You exist in the studio universe.

[Nathan Hubbard]

Yeah, I am in the world. I know. You can. I can go to the Kool Aid premiere and tell everybody how I thought it was a great idea to do the movie even though everyone's already heard me shitting on it from the get go.

[Seth Rogen]

Exactly. It's ownership and distance.

[Nathan Hubbard]

Exactly. Of course. All right, thanks, guys.

[Seth Rogen]

Thank you so much.

[Nathan Hubbard]

Thanks, man. All right, no call sheet today. I want to thank my guests Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg, producer Craig Horbeck, our editor Jesse Lopez, and you. We will see you next week. Tuesday. Next week, Not Monday. Holiday.