This Is Important – Ep 275: Smile For The God Damn Camera

Date: December 16, 2025
Hosts: Adam Devine, Anders Holm (“Ders”), Blake Anderson, and Kyle Newacheck (absent)

Episode Overview

In this episode, the TII crew (minus Kyle) tackle everything from awkward childhood smiles and conspiracy theories to weed culture, American history, and their recent wild Las Vegas live show with Thunder From Down Under. As usual, it’s a mix of sincere discussions about parenting, absurd improv runs that get dark, and genuine group camaraderie—even when the jokes go off the rails.

Warning: This summary preserves the group’s raw comedic tone, including explicit jokes and absurd tangents, as per host style.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

Fame, Conspiracies, and “Lizard People”

• Miley Cyrus “Lizard People” Conspiracy (04:09)

  • Adam falls down a YouTube rabbit hole and jokes about being accused of being a lizard person.
    • “Now my thing is, I want people to now think I'm a lizard person.” (Adam, 05:01)
  • They riff on celebrity conspiracy theories and the absurd idea that only ultra-famous people get attached to the wildest rumors—e.g., Tom Hanks and pedophile ring conspiracies.

• Creeps in Film & Morality in Casting (06:19)

  • The group discusses typecasting actors who look sinister—referencing Jeffrey Jones (“Ferris Bueller’s Day Off”) and casting real-life creeps for prison productions as a joke.

“Smile For The God Damn Camera”: Parenting, Photos & Generational Habits

• Kids’ Awkward Smiles (08:30–10:22)
  • Adam reflects on seeing his friends’ kids on Facebook—how kids don’t know how to smile naturally for photos.
  • Chris notes there’s a difference between a genuine smile and the “smile” you make when told to.
    • “There's the smile you make when you're smiling, and then there's a smile you do when you're told to smile." (Chris, 09:01)
• Philosophy of Forcing Kids to Smile:
  • Chris doesn’t make his kids smile for photos, allowing them authentic expressions.
  • Adam and Blake joke about the value in just telling kids to “smile for the goddamn camera.” (10:22)
• Classic Parent Tricks (10:25–11:02)
  • Chris shares his go-to: telling his kids not to fart during the picture, which gets real laughs.
    • “Please, nobody fart during this…” (Chris, 10:46)

Modern Weed Culture: From Hotboxing to Dabs (29:29–33:19)

• Nostalgia for Illegal Weed
  • Adam: “Remember how fun it was?” (29:29) — reminiscing about hotboxing convertibles in high school.
• Shift in Weed Experience
  • Blake, who DJed at PuffCon, observes weed culture now “took a turn,” referring to dabs and extreme potencies.
    • “It’s just too strong. You’re like losing your bowels high.” (Blake, 32:26)
  • Adam and Chris discuss the difference between flower and modern concentrates.
• AI-Generated Porn, Changing Technology (33:35–35:02)
  • The crew jokes about the slippery slope from “chicks working out” to huge-titted AI women in their algorithms.

Parenting, Gifts, and Toy Mayhem

• The Overabundance of Toys (67:02–68:58)
  • Chris and Adam discuss the flood of toys at holiday and birthday time and how much kids enjoy simple things like boxes more than the actual toys.
    • “I'm like, I should have just bought a box.” (Adam, 68:58)

American History, Capital Cities, and Quiz Failure

• Testing Each Other on U.S. History (41:22–50:03)
  • Blake tries to name the original 13 colonies and U.S. state capitals with relative success (and a lot of jokey self-doubt).
    • “I keep going. What else do you want me to tell you, brother?” (Blake, 42:12)
    • The group bonds over not knowing all 13 colonies, dunking on East Coasters, and failing a capital quiz.
• Generational Interest in History
  • Adam confesses, “Admittedly, the older I get, the more interested in I am in American history.” (52:04)

Live Las Vegas Show with Thunder From Down Under (70:13–75:36)

• Vegas Recap: Epic Dance Battle
  • The group shares details about their live show, including a surprise appearance by Thunder From Down Under and an impromptu dance-off.
    • “We all ripped our shirts off. Very sexy. Very hot… we all looked pretty good.” (Adam, 71:03)
• Backstage Stories
  • Adam talks about mingling with Joey Fatone, Luis Fonsi, and Joe Gatto after the show, learning they all went to high school together in Florida—an “Illuminati” moment.
    • “How is this not… That’s Illuminati, dude!” (Blake, 80:12)

Other Highlights

• Weed & Alcohol Regulation (16:06–21:20)
  • The team discusses the impending ban on THC beverage cans in mainstream stores, blaming political maneuvering and comparing weed to alcohol.
• The Ongoing Pants-less Zoom Call Bit (63:11–64:55)
  • Running gag where each member tries to one-up the prior’s wild claim about not wearing pants on Zoom.
    • “Yeah, I’m not wearing pants. I’m jacking off. My dick is in my hands.” (Chris, 63:31)
• Adam’s Tribe-Wide Wish: Being known as a lizard/reptile person for “brand” purposes (82:03–82:21)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Conspiracy Aspirations:
  • “Now my thing is, I want people to now think I'm a lizard person.” – Adam (05:01)
• On Parenting Photos:
  • “There's the smile you make when you're smiling, and then there's a smile you do when you're told to smile.” – Chris (09:01)
  • “Smile for the goddamn camera.” – Adam (10:23)
• Vegas Strip Recollections:
  • “We all ripped our shirts off. Very sexy. Very hot… we all looked pretty good.” – Adam (71:03)
• Childhood Weed Smoking Nostalgia:
  • “You and your friends in high school would get so stoned in your car… park underneath a street light and then drop the convertible top, come out, billow out like smoke weed every day.” – Adam (29:47)
• On American History:
  • “I know it started on the east coast with colonies, and then we spread west. I know all this, dude.” – Blake (42:10)
• Boxing-Day Wisdom:
  • “They play with the Box. They don't play with the toy. They have more fun with the box.” – Blake (68:51)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Welcome, Intros & Immediate Absurdity — [03:18]
• Lizard People & Conspiracy Jokes — [04:09–07:00]
• Awkward Kids’ Smiles, Parenting Photos — [08:30–11:02]
• Frozen & Pixar Movie Ratings — [13:18–14:44]
• Weed Culture, Illegal Nostalgia, Dabs — [29:29–33:19]
• Pornhub Anniversaries & AI Porn — [35:25–36:36]
• Chicken Fingers in Winnipeg — [38:43–41:12]
• US History/Civics Quiz — [41:22–50:03]
• American History Interests — [52:04–53:28]
• Toys and Parenting Realness — [67:02–69:00]
• Las Vegas Live Show & Thunder Down Under — [70:13–75:36]
• Vegas Afterparty [Joey Fatone, Luis Fonsi, Joe Gatto] — [79:05–80:49]
• Wrap up, Takebacks, Apologies & Lizard Branding — [81:16–82:21]

Tone, Language, & Flow

The episode flows with the hosts’ signature blend of shameless, raucous humor and surprisingly sincere takes on adult life, parenting, and the passage of time. The laughter is often anarchic, but beneath the bits are moments about generational change (how we parent and are parented, how culture changes), a little bit of nostalgia for their own wild youth, and an ongoing meta awareness of their own comedic “brand.”

For Listeners Who Missed It

• This episode is a quintessential sampler platter of TII: rapid-fire jokes, nostalgic detours, and weirdly profound moments about smiling for photos and growing up.
• The Vegas live show recap is peppered with outlandish backstage stories, stripping, and admiration for the unyielding core strength of male dancers.
• The weed segment acts as a bridge between “old school” rebellion and today’s all-too-available mainstream highs.
• There’s inside baseball on American history and trivia, which spirals quickly into self-mockery and jokes about regional ignorance.
• Parenting is a through-line: how to get your kids to smile, how to regulate mountains of holiday toys, and how to weigh genuine connection over posed perfection.
• The crew never lets a premise stay grounded for long—everything’s on the table for escalation, misdirection, and callback.

Closing Thought & Takeaways

If you want to know what these friends are obsessing about lately—awkward childhood photos, the evolution of stoner culture, live shows, or what it feels like to throw your back out on stage—this episode covers it. Their blend of biting satire and earnest reflection makes for a hilarious ride, whether or not you ever smiled for the goddamn camera.

“With the three of us combined, we can get 10 of the 13 colonies.” – Adam (49:51)

Listen if you enjoy:
• Adult irreverence, group improv, and fast, layered jokes
• Peeled-back, sincere moments about parenthood and growing up
• Wild Las Vegas tales and behind-the-scenes showbiz bits
• Satirical takes on historical ignorance and pop culture