Conan O’Brien Needs A Friend - Jordan Peele

Episode Date: January 1, 2024

Writer and director Jordan Peele feels honored, absolutely honored about being Conan O’Brien’s friend.Jordan sits down with Conan to discuss the movies that terrified him as a kid, the theory behind horror filmmaking, and creating a fake Christmas movie together. Later, Conan and his team celebrate Werner Herzog’s pronunciation of a certain reality show.For Conan videos, tour dates and more visit TeamCoco.com.Got a question for Conan? Call our voicemail: [phone].

Hi, my name is Jordan Peele and I feel honored, absolutely fucking honored about being on Conan O'Brien's. Oh, no, sorry, I fucked it up. It was going so well. Oh my god. Let me just say that. You should change it. I think I should change it.

So hi, my name is Jordan Peele. And I feel good about being a comment about... No! Yes! We had it! So you guys edit and stuff. Fuck that particularly. As you will. here, here the now, back to school, ring the bell, brand new shoes, walking blues, climb the fence, books and pans, I can tell that we are gonna be friends, I can tell that we are gonna be friends.

Hey there, welcome to Conan O'Brien, he's a friend, and I'm starting with an observation here sitting with my pals. Sonom of Sessian, Matt Gourley and this is a complete happening that we just realize as we all sat down. I am wearing uncharacteristically a green kind of hoodie, all of green sweatshirt that I never wear and I just put it on Waltz-Din. Sonom, you are wearing the exact same color. Yeah. In like, what is that? Like an overcoat.

It's like a trench coat. Trench coat. And then over here, Goryl just walked off the set of mash. And he's wearing, I guess, think in the role of Radar O'Reilly. And you are wearing the exact same green. Green too.

And then I'm noticing that we're sitting on the exact same green. And then I'm noticing that we're sitting on the exact same green pillows, and that the chairs are the exact same color, olive drab green. And it's almost as if I think when this airs will just be faces floating. Yeah, zip up your jacket. We're gonna look like three floating heads.

Three floating heads, just doing a podcast. I mean, of course, yes, this is an audio medium, but I know that people look at the clips. So if you want to check out the clip of, now what could we do? Don't we have to? We go. Is anyone actually going to kiss out or?

No, we don't need to. We don't need to. We're just playing back and forth. We look smart. No, I worry. Hold on, I worry that there's probably more technology needed here that the background also has to be all green. And then some kind of, is anyone here understand the technology at Wardo? Do you understand it or does Blay understand it? What do we need to do

to make our head just float? I understand it. I mean, basically, it would be because there's a black background, we would key out the green. So it would just be your heads on a see-through box. So we could make, we could key out the green. Is this gonna cost us like thousands of dollars? No, not at all. Okay, I could probably do it on my phone. I did in the background. I'm gonna cover up.

Yeah, if you cover up your arms. I can't do this. I can't do this. I can't put them under the table. This jacket is very small on me. So it's already up the hat in my arm. That jacket doesn't fit you. Did you steal that? Did you steal that jacket off a corpse? No. Did you steal that jacket

off a corpse? No. Okay. I don't steal things from corpses. I think I bought this a lot. I love getting I love getting I don't steal things from corpses. You know that what I love about sonnet she has standards. She has standards. That's the only time she could say I didn't steal it. If they're breathing, then I'm leaving. Yeah, keep doing whatever that is. Well, listen, I'm just saying we're trying to create, we don't have a big budget here, but we're creating a cool spooky optical image of our heads. Yeah, three days after Halloween. This is great. Yeah. And it probably air

long after that. Grim Grinning goes about to socialize. You know, I don't know. The three heads in the Han and Melchus. Yeah, not all of us did time professionally in an amusement park. You have to like, come on guys, you with me? Come on guys, the song you hear 75,000 times a day when you work at an amusement park. You gave it your all to in that for for me. You know what, I bear my soul for you to ask all this is what I get. Well anyway, we should probably quit doing this. It seems dumb. What do you think we should move on with the show? You said, but you know what? We should everybody should head over to YouTube. Oh, for a visual treat. Do you mean head as in pun the head over to YouTube? Because we're floating heads. Grim Grinning goes, could I do so July?

You're right now. He's the worst. You are the worst. You're the worst. Oh, no, you guys have a name. I'm a little great guy. All right. Well anyway, I'm just go to YouTube I'm not saying to watch this. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, go to YouTube. Don't listen to this Go on YouTube right now. Certainly. There's something you would look up there. Look up a great Olympic skiing fail Do not look at any of this Shit of our floating. Yeah. All right. Let's do it. Okay. Yeah, one more transition because we were all laughing.

I'm like, okay, my next guest. All right, everybody. Okay. Enough of your giggling. The sketch to it. No screwing around today. My guest is an Academy award winning writer and director behind such films as Get Out, Us and Nope. He also starred in the Hit Comedy Central sketch series, Key and Peel. To say I'm excited is just not adequate.

I'm thrilled. I'm overjoyed. I admire this channel and so much. I'm so glad he's here today. Jordan Peel, welcome. So glad he's here today. Jordan Pio, welcome. Can I say something to you? I have been dying to have you on the podcast and this is a huge delight for all of us, but I didn't know. Sometimes offers come in and they just don't sort of penetrate the wall of, you know, of advisors. No, I went to your house and I rang the bell. Yeah.

And you answered and I said, Hey, Jordan, what you want to do the podcast some day? And you said, and it wasn't convincing. You said I just had drops for glaucoma surgery. And I can't see what I'm talking to. And then you did that bit every time I came by. And the truth of the matter was I I wanna say this on the record, it is such an honor, it's always an honor because from us comedy people, you are the goat.

Oh, you know what that means? I can get up hard, rocky mountains easily. I can digest in cans. This one's like within the last 20 years. That is so nice of you to say. I, okay, I'm going to say when I first discovered you as a lot of people did watching key and peel sketches and I would watch these sketches and I would say, okay, these are so well-written, these are such great ideas, these are such perfect sketches. I mean, some of the sketches I've spent years relating them to people. Like, you know that one?

You know that one? There's the, the, the, the, the, the, burn victim was in the insult comic. That one, a lot of comedians really connect with this one. Yes. Yes. And I mean, to that one, I mean, there's so many great sketches, but that one, comedian, insult, comedian going around the audience and then respectfully passes over someone who clearly has been in a horrible situation. Burns all over them and he's just, but passes over, tries to start heckling and, you know, doing crowd work with the next guy and the guy goes, do me. And he says, and he says, no, no, no, sir, I went to you and he says,

I can take it. And you make him do it, and then he does it, and you're like, too far. I thought I could take it, but I can't. I was crying when I first saw that. I've watched it multiple times and you guys have many sketches like that. But I was like, okay, that's up there with, you know, take your favorite SETV pieces. Take your favorite, you know, your favorite sketch from SNL ever. Take your favorite Monty Python. I mean, just the whole pantheon.

You guys have a bunch of sketches that slide in there. Thank you. God, I know. God dammit, you're amazing. I believe Alex Rubens was the writer on that sketch as well. And we had an amazing team of writers. So if I'm wrong about that, I'm desperately mortified. But look, I,

but also the commitment, it's the, it's the ideas. And then the performances, I, uh, but also the commitment. It's the it's the ideas and then the performances. I was raised on Warner Brothers cartoons and my sense of humor has always been very cartoonish and when you guys would go into that cartoon world where reality bends in this beautiful way to to frustrate the expectation I was just over the moon. Thank you. Yeah. Yeah.

I have to and I have to bounce that right back at you so much of this. I mean, so much of this is born from your work and your your heightening, your sort of text, but the simpsons. Yeah. This, you know, and and it was a type of sketch comedy that you see in the best sketches where it's just kind of an aggressive and ridiculous heightening. And Mr. Show did it. And so we were just like, okay, we have this opportunity to do this thing.

Yeah. But it's so, yeah. And then I'm, you know, one of the reasons I've always, you know, I've, I've chatted with you. We've talked, but I've always thought, okay, if I get you in this format because I've spoken to Keegan and I'm loud, it's like you're here and I'm one of them, and I know like I always wanna find out,

what are these minds come from? At what point do you realize I think of very strange things? And I really like comedy or was was your first true love film or was it comedy or both or horror? What is it, where does it all start? I probably fell in love with comedy at the same time I was getting really scared by shit. And I mean scared like as a kid,

like you know, kid growing up in New York, I grew up next to a building called the Stradford Arms. That was a hotel for transients, is what it said on the side. And it was basically, it was, you know, very interesting characters. Let's just put it that way. And so I had a very blessed upper west side, you know, upbringing. I was, you know, cultured and that whole privilege, but it was also, it's just like, there's

a creepiness to it as well. So those two things, I think, developed side by side, but at some point, they collided for me. Yeah. And they did in film. So you start, what are the movies that you're watching that terrify you when you're a kid? Well, so, you know, if I'm first thing out of my gate,

this is a lot of people would say, but Nightmare on Elm Street was that imagery for my specific generation. I was like too young when that came out or too young. It was like, it was more seeing the posters and the thing that it just evoked such terror. And so that was formed. That's a formative boogie man. But then falling in love with cinema and stuff, it's like the stuff like the shining. I know you've referenced Rosemary's Baby. What I see in that film that I think the best directors try to harness or a similar feel is slowly turning the dial. You know, because I always loved about Rosemary's Baby.

And you can relate to this because it's filmed, you know, takes place in the Dakota, Upper West Side blocks from where you grew up. Some things, it starts out and everything's fine and it's the slowly turning of the knob where things are less and less fine but it's hard to identify the exact moment when things, is that, is that, bring true for you? I love that style and I love that location I do have this real nostalgia and connection with that of course that's where John Lenin was shot Yeah, and so there's there's all sorts of Connotations right with that area

that are so Dark but I also think that such a big part of the horror, kind of with comedy, is the grounding character. You know, the person that ropes us in and reacts. You know, with horror, it's the toad in the pot theory, right? If you throw a toad into a boiling pot, then that person's gonna walk, leave the scene. That character needs to get out of there. Right. And that's a, you don't want that as a horror film. You got to keep them in this isolated spot.

So you slowly turn up the heat. Right. The character. Yeah, the idea of being the toad gets in. It's like lukewarm kind of feels okay. And the temperature's slowly rising. Things are getting more and more uncomfortable. And you can kind of believe why the character would convince themselves, oh, well, maybe it's just me. It's so interesting, because I haven't thought about this at all, but there are their close brothers or their related comedy and horror. There's a similar thing going on. It's just because you need to acclimate somebody

to something that's very normal. My favorite comed just because you need to acclimate somebody to something that's very normal. My favorite comedies are, let's acclimate to something very normal. And then you slowly start to bend things and twist things. Of course, you get to this insane place. But a lot of comedies that are most effective work that way. They get you to buy into a reality. And then you have to start accepting a few premises here and there along the way, but you get sort of spoon fed them. And I think it's the same thing

with probably really good horror, or the kind of horror I respond to. Yeah, and just like the comedy, it's like the heightening, the pushening, the fantastical and the imagination, that becomes a certain type of project and exercise. But the exercise of grounding it is always what makes it work.

To me, in horror, especially, is the hardest part because how do you ground this idea that your protagonist would stay in this situation very long? It kind of always comes up. How can they not solve this? And you're putting the audience in this angst of wanting your character to solve it, but you're not giving that to them. And so the only way to make that in any way satisfying is to kind of like honor the grounded experience as much as possible. When you did get out, it's very important. As you said, if someone shows up,

goes away for a weekend with his girlfriend and goes to a house, meet the family, if things are fucked up right away, they're out the door. So you have all these reasons which I can relate to, which is, no, no, this is okay. This is all right. I'm gonna stay here. I'm gonna stay in this. Okay, I can handle this and then things you can, like you say, turn up the heat on the pot. But how you do it and how gradually you do it is really important.

And that's the guess who's coming to dinner set up is one that everyone kind of like connects to, which is like that anxiety of meeting your in-laws for the first time, your potential in-laws, and you want to crawl at your skin and leave, but you can't, you're there for reasons. So we all... I just love too. There's like, is it Bradley Wiffers says, oh man, Obama, great, great as president, right? And you just think, okay, this is, I would have voted for him a third time. I was just thinking like, to me, that's also a funny comedy situation too, which is, this white person is way over,

is, is pushing it. Do you know what I mean? Yeah. Well, yeah, that, that, that was the, that was the element of it. And I'm sorry, I said that to you when you came in today. Well, yeah, well, yeah, that that that was the Now is the element of it. I'm sorry. I said that to you when you came in today. What yeah, you sure? Obama man, right little tone that it was it was a little tone deaf. There's such a thing as being too colorblind I'm sorry I was trying to get in good with you right away. And it was weird. They're good.

We, you know, you know each other. Yeah, but then I was saying he should be a Supreme Court justice and you said, let's let it go. I like you. I don't need, yeah. I don't, you know, I don't need to be cast as your judge. I don't need to be, I don't need to be president in the United States.

No, but look, I mean, we're obviously joking, but it's this, and it is, and it's essence, it's kind of a key and peel sketch, it's an observation of being black and white spaces. And in that time, I don't remember it having sort of been said like that. And so I remember just writing that and feeling like it was the moment I realized

I had to direct the film that I was writing because I was like, I don't know anybody who can do that, who can direct that much. And that's a big leap. Yes, okay, you're right, this screenplay, obviously terrific screenplay and you're a known quantity writer performer and then you say I'd like to direct this. How was what was the reaction? You know it was surprisingly okay. Yeah

um to there's a Sean McKitrick to this guy at QC entertainment who I was pitching to by the way I pitched it like no no one's ever going to do this movie, but here's the pitch and pitched, you know, this crazy plot and started writing it about a couple months into writing it. And again, I knew the whole thing, but a couple months into writing and I realized, made this call and he said, go for it. And it's basically just like a $5 million movie. So it wasn't like, you know, it was like kind of the perfect type of risk. Part of it was we can't afford anyone else. You know what I mean? This is like Michael budget. I'll direct it and I'll be, you can pay me $6. I thought it would be more controversial, but he said yes way too quick. I was like, whoa, let's negotiate. Tend to backtrack.

Too late. Wait, five million dollars. Yeah, that was the budget now now supposedly it got done for 4.5, but who knows? William Blumhouse cooks the books. No one knows. Weirdly, I got a check for $500,000. And I didn't even think it was supposed to go to me.

I probably should have known. No, I'm not affiliated anyway, but I've cashed it. Nothing. Oh, you cashed it. Yeah, I bought a lot of cars and coats. I signed something when I did promotion on your show. You did. Remember when you did promotion on the show? And I thought it was just a standard I agree to be on the show.

Yes. You were the inspiration for Bradley. What was the other thing, right? Yeah. It's in August. His name in the movie is Crown in Orion. Just don't hear it that often. It's really weird. I feel like I've produced a film with you.

Let's talk about that. Do you feel that way? Well, you and I are in an interesting, and I don't know where it is going or what you're doing with this project. Yeah, I don't know. But I'm just going to say that I got this invitation to go to your office and I didn't know anything about what was gonna happen. And then you had this, it was absolutely fascinating.

I think it was over two hours you and I, and I think you've done this with a bunch of other people, but you just presented me with a bunch of decks of cards, and I would select different cards that would lead us towards the making of a movie. And so, okay, and I would, so I'd pick a, you know, you'd start out with genres, and I would just pick three genres, and you and I would talk about them. And produce it together. And this is your life.

Your life is making films. That is your life now. And you're making these films and you think about it and you're clearly extremely gifted at it. And this is what you've been put here to do. And then there's me and I'm just firing all these ideas at you about how we could make this movie. It was really fun.

So let me hug you a little. Do you think we ever, do you think we ever got close to making a movie together? In that. It could be made. Be honest. Yes. Yes.

Our premise was, was solid. Okay. Okay. And you were a big part of that. Now wait, can I backtrack for a second? Sure. Just a second. And because this is something that these are, these are a bunch

of sessions I've been doing with people who I admire. The Ryan Cougars, the Paul Thomas Andersons of the world. I don't know what's gonna happen of these, but they really are amazing at sort of like learning about how other creative people think about the filmmaking process. The Daniels, just incredible uh, something just incredible filmmakers and then Conan. Well done. You got to break it up every now and then. You know, every now and then it's like,

this is so this amazing French meal, VC Swas, and you know, just perfectly baked, you know, steaks and everything. And then you every now now and then you gotta just have. New perspective. Yeah. Fruit loops. Some fruit loops. Fruit loops. With a big, with a lot of almond milk. And so the whole thing was we did a,

we ended up, it's kind of like D and D, by making a movie. And it's a fake movie. And we ended up making a Christmas movie, a Christmas movie. Yeah, we ended up making a Christmas movie, a Christmas movie. Yeah, we ended up making a Christmas movie that I remember thinking at the time, I absolutely think this could be a Christmas movie. Yeah, that's the fun. I think this could be a Christmas movie. And we're not, you know, I don't want to get too much into it because we did record it. So

you never know, this could be something. I know what you're doing with all this. It could be a movie. I did spoil away. I don't care. Okay. Well, we we had it was it was really fun. It was a lot of fun and it was really fascinating because my thing is to just pitch pitch pitch pitch pitch pitch. And I threw so many bad ideas at you And my favorite part was watching the light go out of your eyes. Yeah. I'd be going down a really bad road. And I'd see you go, okay. Yeah. Conan.

Maybe and we really had to act like we're going to pitch this in a meeting with executives. So sometimes you'd say, just don't do that whole run. Exactly. Yeah. That's right. That was really fun. We had to, well, yeah.

And you had to, you had to talk some actors off of some ledges and stuff. Because that's part of the game is every now and then say, okay, now it's time to pick a disaster. There's a kerfuffle. There's a problem. So you'd play out other cards because there are all these different decks of cards and I'd pick one out and it would say, you know, your actor has lost his mind and run off set. Who was the bad egg?

Woody? Woody Harrelson was causing us some problems. Yeah. Anyway, it's um, which just, you know, I think the minute you draw the Woody Harrelson card, you know, he's going to be causing problems. I'm sure. I mean, we're shooting on location. And um, but I you sent me in to deal with Woody a bunch of times.

Uh, it's a deal with Woody and his issues. And then also Jen Aniston was part of our piece. That was one of the cards we drew. Right. And I was not allowed to speak to her. Well, as a producer, we made some early work. That was really funny. I remember it.

I was just not allowed to just. It's very real. You were so good. I could see why you're very good at what you did because you were very gentle with me, but you were like, Jordan. Jordan, I was legitimately honored. I just knew if I could mine, you know, that goal. Yeah, yeah.

You know, in this way, we did. Yeah. It's like, okay. And we had, I think also Charlize Theron is in there and you were saying like, yeah, I'll talk to them. I'll talk to them. Now, why don't you go talk to Woody. Woody's in the trailer. Go hang out with Woody and I'll deal with the ladies. And I'm like, all right. Okay. I still don't understand why I can't have dinner with them. with them. But I mean, all, you know, just out from the in the context of the of all of these sessions I've done, it's just, I mean, that one is just going to live forever for me. It's like, holy shit, I just got to like, it movie improv with Conan. It was really

fun. We had a very good time. Yeah. You know, I wanted to kill momentum with another compliment. That's okay. We play those. He always fast forwards them or takes them out. I take them right now. Yeah. It's funny because I think you asked me about the movie Halloween while we were there. And I know that this is one of your all-time favorites is the movie Halloween.

And I remember you asked me a question about it. I'm trying to think if it was about, was it about Mike Myers? Unstantut lies. Mike Myers and Michael Myers and the connection between the two. Yeah, that probably doesn't exist. But I just asked you about the rumor about him having a poster up in his office. Oh, okay.

I remember, I remember, we mentioned Halloween at one point. So I don't remember remember but I do love Halloween We can clean that up you love the movie Halloween. That is one of your favorites and what I love is you're so it's so specific But I've heard you talk about there's a way that Mike Myers There's something about his physicality and the way he kills that you find really fascinating Well, I mean, you know, the thing about Michael Myers is I think of him as a truly minimalist villain, which I just love that.

You know, I think that's always the scariest. I mean, the master class with him, you know the story about the mask, that it was a William Shatton or mask. I've heard that. That was painted, though prop guy, I just went to the store, it was like, fuck, we got to, you could be, you know, it could be this whatever, this clown mask or check this out.

And it, and it all clicked and Carpenter's a genius. So, you know, what I love about that, that film is how Carpenter tailored this monster in all the choices, the mask, the way he moves, the stillness, shot from across the street, and you can kind of, the where's Waldo aspect, it's just all very elegant for what's ultimately meant to be a brutal kind of killing tale. And that's kind of like, that's why I think horror is, you know, such elevated cinema, when Don Wright. I've noticed something that I was watching the movie

that came out a number of years ago, The Witch. And it's, is it Eggers who made that film? And I noticed that there was one thing that, to me, I love a movie that creates such an area environment things that aren't otherwise scary are frightening to me So there's one shot early in the witch which just shows a bunch of it's a tree line It's just a tree line and the winds moving through it. It's a new England tree line And the winds moving through it and the leaves are rustling and it stays on that shot and there's the music. And I remembered feeling like the hair on the back of my neck standing up.

And I thought that's to me, I like films, I don't necessarily need blood flying everywhere constantly. I love this idea of somethings amiss and otherwise normal sort of harmless looking objects or environments suddenly scare the shit out of me and I can't tell you why. Mm-hmm. I mean, so much is the music, right? I mean, like, the same moment can go so many different ways. And if the music is scary, then it'll be scary. If the music is too happy, it's even scarier.

You know, it's, yeah, I'm all about tone as well. So what is your all time favorite if you had to do? Wow. Horror. Horror. God, it's so hard because I don't know, I don't think I'm qualified to say because I don't know the genre as well. Sure you do. Come on. I mean, I see three men and a baby as a horror film. So, it has that ghost in the red dome. No, I'm always... No, comedy that hits me the wrong way

is to me the ultimate horror film. You know, if there's a comedy and I think I feel like, nah, I didn't like that, that's more horrifying to me than anything. It's like, really, you guys were going for comedy? That's horrible! Well, you know that ghost

in the behind-the-sh curtains in that one scene of three-man and a baby, you know about that that, you know, that, you know, that ghost in the behind this curtains in that one scene of three men and a baby, you know about that. No, I don't. I mean, I know of it, but I don't know with this. Well, so it's, you know, it turns out, you know, the whole urban legend was that there's a moment where you can see a ghost behind the curtain in this loft downtown at the minute, three minute baby. And the reveal was that, or reveal, that the truth supposedly is that it was,

you know, Ted Danson's character was an actor. And then it was a cardboard cutout of Ted Danson that if you look and look up YouTube, it looks like a child's ghost behind a thing. But I've always wanted to make a horror film where someone's being hunted by a cardboard cut out of Ted Danson. He's not in it. Do I need his, I probably need his permission. You probably need the permission.

But you know, we can get a photograph of him. But oh, there's another movie I really like it follows. Yeah, with masterpieces. I thought was so terrific. And it's just this concept of someone slowly walking towards you from like 800 yards away. And I watched that and I thought, I think a zombie walking is scarier than a zombie running. Yes, I mean, obviously I had a scene in my film where there's a guy running towards you.

So I have a little bit of a... Which is also very scary. I'm just saying, and I'm not, it depends on the situation. But zombie running to me is less frightening than zombie walking. What do you say? Man.

I mean, if you... What? Are you talking about something that gets to you later? It gets to me later. You're talking about something that gets to you later is scarier than something that gets me sooner. It makes an appointment. Yes, I like my zombies that call the day before and they say it's for good and by the way I hope you have a ramp because I can't use stairs. Well, to be fair, to be fair, it follows was,

I had seen it follows, I think by the time I had shot, get out, and part of that scene where a Walter is running straight out, I believe, if I'm not mistaken, I was thinking, well, you know, what I love about the energy of it follows is anything in any movie that comes from the back of the house towards you is doing the ultimate in film illusion. It's the train robbery, right?

A train coming through, people will dodge out of the way. Exactly. And so anyway, so I took a little bit of what it follows had done in North by Northwest before it. And Sped Walter had it, so k took what a little bit of what it follows had done and north by northwest before it and Sped Walter at it so kudos to that film. Well, it's terrifying when he's running right at when when Walter's running right at the lens It's absolutely terrifying. I also find it scary when they're all sitting around in in it follows and A character from way far away is just slowly walking. Now, yes, I like the idea that I have time to call an Uber.

Yeah. There is, and then debate which one is closest and wait nine minutes. And you're, and all that time, you're just, you're watching an experience more and more fear as it gets closer. Yes. And also fear about, should I have

gone, I don't know if I picked the right ride. Maybe I shouldn't have gone, maybe I just should have gone comfort. Do you know what I mean? Done an Uber pool and I would have come faster. But I don't know. I have comfort. This is not what most horror protagonists have on their minds. Well, again, agree to disagree. This is you. I'm opening you to a new kind of horror, and I want you to, you're free to use this in any of your films where something terrifying's happening,

but then the characters worried about what this is going to cost them financially. Yeah. And I just feel like the horrors in your life, you know, when I put something into my movie, I'm putting real horror, something I'm really afraid of. Like if I saw like a doppelganger or racism. Yeah.

But you're talking about things like, what's the right ride sharing app? So is this, is Amazon Prime, is that the free delivery, do I really need this in a day? Am I willing to pay more for it? So the guy in that out really was based on you. Yeah.

And by the way, I'd have voted for Obama. Oh, okay. I'm just, I'm sorry. I mean, really. Well, yeah. We'll work on a horror premise. This is why I don't get invited to any of these cool horror discussions. All right.

You know what I found? There was a movie, I think it was The Vanishing. Oh, The Original. The Original Vanishing. The Dutch. I love that one. That's what I'm hearing. It's harrowing.

I love moments of let the right one in. The original again, they've always keep remaking these movies, but I like the originals. And I do love, I mean, things like movies like mid-summer, freaked me out. So this tells me you are, in fact, a horror fan and you have very good tastes. These are good movies.

And you get the vanishing is fucked up. Yeah. That's dark stuff. It's really dark stuff. A dark movie in all daylight. That's the crazy thing. Yeah. So well lit.

I honestly, I didn't see that as being your cup of tea. Oh, you know, it's funny too. I love those movies and I was talking about this with my wife the other day. I said, you never watch these movies with me. And she said said because I don't like that stuff and she said when we got married I had no idea that this is and it's it's something that's been growing but I Really do love these films, but no one in my house my kids don't like horror as a genre and so I have to go and watch these things alone and then that feels creepy

So so maybe I'll get you to come over Hey, I'd like to bring the cards Bring the cards your cardboard And then but you know I love love that sense of eerieness. Hereditary goes so crazily off the rails. It's insane.

They're just iconic film. I love this movie and so scary too. Arey's and I don't know if you've met Arey. He did the same, I played the same game with him. And he's very, you know, he's very nice, very funny, very, you know, warm dude. And as you would imagine, these, the, our film just creeped into this like eerie, dark place

that I just, you know, I couldn't even wrangle it back. And so again, it's like, it, it, it, he, he's, from a horror perspective, you know, in many ways, he's like, he's from a horror perspective, in many ways, he's the champ. Well, I was gonna say, and I thought, cause this is something, it's sort of what we're talking about, but just as in the witch,

I was just looking at all these trees, unilating. But in nope, taking, when you're taking what is a very friendly looking sky, it's a friendly sky, and it's not even a menacing cloud, but it becomes menacing. It's for me, it's all about difficulty of the dive, which is how can you take something that really is, wouldn't frighten you in any other situation? You don't have this dark thunder cloud or whatever, it's this very calm, beautiful sky. And then you learn that if you stare at it

in the distance, you can identify that it's different from the other, but it takes a while. And I loved all that. I love the way you just kept really slowly, but just to notching it up and notching it up. I love that. Thank you. I mean, my sort of philosophy of the genre is, you know, I'm I'm confrontational with my audience, but I also want to, you know, I'm based on a comedic

sensibility. So I want to get the entire audience on board. And so one of the challenges with the genre of horror and nightmare shit is that you're asking people to come take time out of their lives and come to a worse world and a scarier world for a while. And so some people will just say, I'm in, I'm, let's go. But for most people, you kind of need a sort of special set of circumstances. And so what I found, and what I love in horror movies is when the aesthetic and the vibe and I love daytime horror, where everything about the viewing experience is soothing and warm to the audience. Yeah. Yeah. You know, what you're sort of noticing, of course, is in so many of the best movies, that that burves the creepiest sensibility because, you know, anything that's sort of trying to be

scary through trying to be scary kind of ends up in,, kind of ends up in a Halloween store. Yeah, it's, it's, I mean, again, we're jumping back with a similarity to comedy, but my favorite comedy is there is absolutely nothing funny going on here. Nothing funny is going on here. Like, nothing funny happening here, and that was, you know, something that the Zuckerbrothers stumbled on, which is, no, let's just get these great straight men actors to be an airplane.

And let's have them, do you know what I mean? Surely, I don't think I do, and don't call me Shirley. But they say it like, I'm sorry, but your son is dead. And it's just horrifying, but they're saying this absolutely hilarious stuff, but when the same way that they did on 1970s detective shows. So when you're nothing funny happening here is my favorite kind of comedy and nothing scary is happening here,

might be my favorite kind of horror, which is not a castle and nighttime and shrieking and howling in the night. It is something you can make, you know, ranch country that otherwise is quite beautiful, or you can take a beautiful weekend home, and someone's visiting his girlfriend, and make it absolutely terrifying. And to me, that's that's scary, or it's the end of it so much of the music. It's like if there was a, if for interview here for our discussion. There was a camera slowly

Moving around and as we as you're talking it was just more of a You know, you would be like what the fuck is coming about to do to Jordan? Yeah, yeah. What's about to happen? Yeah, yeah. And there is so... And lots of you talking and just, and me just staring at you. Yeah, exactly, yeah.

That's it, right. But to your point, you being friendly and nice, the nicer you are with that music, the scarier the scene even becomes and the more sort of joyous. So this is the reason like, you know, smiles in our big and horror. It's that that instant visual, visceral primal contradiction of your terror, you know, is and this is part of why I find if I can unlock the right horror engine and world, I can get more glee out of trying to tell that story

than, you know, even doing sketch or any other thing. But it's not like I can just go, okay, I'm gonna make a movie about, I'm gonna just gonna make my Michael Myers movie where I make a movie about some, you know, killer with a knife, and necessarily have that be fun for me. That's not gonna be my thing.

So I'm a respect, you know, that's why Carpenter is the goat in horror. But, you know, yeah, my I'm gonna be that Looking for some way to subvert it in my own way. Yeah, do you miss Performing do you miss it at all or is it like nope? That was that was fun done with that. Yeah, I mean I think it's it It does feel like it's it's it's hard to it's hard to, it's hard to say. I guess, I guess maybe a little bit, um, but it's just kind of starting. I mean, I did that run with key and peel really was getting to do everything. Um, and that came at the end of like you, you've been out there for a while. Yeah. You've been doing improv, you're on mad TV. So you, you had been working it for a while before people really got to know you in K&P.

Yeah, I was, I was slinging rock in a sketch comedy form. It's on Mad TV, you know. And then of course, my entire sort of, what meant to be a collegiate career was dedicated to improv and sketch in Chicago and Amsterdam. So I feel like I know I scratch that it. What I get to do now is just more fun. Yeah. But also, I mean, you're creating worlds, which is just, I mean, what could be greater than that? I mean, I'm, you know, and to be fair and clear, it's like there's something that's

possible when you have this, as you know, this privilege of working with this enormous team of people who are like, okay, I'm on board with your vision, let's go. And there's something that is just, you feel like, okay, it's not about me anymore, it's about this thing we've built and we're building and these things that we're gonna build. It's hard to look back at all that time especially because like 300 short films, short comedy films. If I wanted to do one again, I got to do it again. And then ultimately, I'm sick of watching myself. I don't know what you're talking about.

Yeah. You get it. You get it. You get it. I know it is really fun. All of these cameras on here are just on him. Yeah, we're not even, we don't even have your mic on. This is just, we're gonna later try and remember what it is you said.

I'm gonna read over where you have a transcript of what you said and I'm gonna read it back. Right. Well, that's the creepiest idea. A guy has lost his mind to that degree. But that's Alex Jones, right? Yeah, you know that, but he was, yeah. We're working our way towards that format. You just have to, yeah, we'll get there.

We'll try. Guys, it's a corporate move. Came from up top, so. I'm curious, what's it like now? You're in this position where you are getting to meet these directors, these people that made your childhood help form your sensibility. Do you have an easy time walking in and going,

hey, how are you? Or do you get a little self-conscious around the people like that? It depends who. And it's not necessarily, going, hey, how are you or do you get a little self-conscious around the people like that? It depends who. Yeah. And it's not necessarily a one to one who is, you think, would be easy to talk to. I remember meeting Michael Mann and, you know, you always hear he's kind of gruff and, you know, who there are all kinds of stories can can predate

me somebody and I just felt he was so kind of warm connected cool and and and so I had no nerves talking to the guy. Yeah. Yeah. Paul Thomas Anderson, you know, he's a good friend of mine. I've I've spent a lot of time with him, and I'm still very nervous around him. So it's very weird. Yeah. Cause he's just that fucking cool. He is, you get to call him PTA. My Pete.

P.T. Yeah. PTA. No, yeah, I think I have a problem. Cause Sandler's friend with him, he's always saying things like, Hey, Coney. Close me Coney.

Hey, since SNL days, but he just sticks with that. And he goes like, Hey, Coney. Yeah, I just had hey, since SNL days, but he sticks with that and he goes, hey, Coney, yeah, I just had, like, you know, I'm having a sandwich with BTA and I'm always remembering like, wait, you're, what, are you meeting the charity? The charity. I'm like, oh, I forgot, I'm not cool. But yeah, another, that was the goal.

You forgot for a second. I'm just, I'm sorry, I forgot I was, it's because you actually have lunch with the parent teachers. So, yeah, and I'm disappointed when Paul Thomas Anderson shows up. No, no one says Paul Thomas Anderson Yeah, no one says that anymore people say PTA Well, I guess I'm not it didn't get the memo my whole life My favorite writer not a burger. He's like I didn't get the memo

By the way, he would he would disagree with me by the way I think he would and he said no, please way, I think he would, I think you say, no, please come to Paul, probably, probably. I'll stop speaking for him. He does a pretty good job. Now, where are you in the midst of working on your next film? I mean, you probably can't say anything about it, but where, I don't even understand how your process works,

dude, does an idea come to you, and then it just percolates for a while? How does it happen? Yeah, I mean, this has been a obviously an interesting year because the writer's strike has had me sort of in a state of listening. Yep. You know, and that's kind of where I've needed to be. And I do feel like, you know, my next project is clear to me. And I'm psyched to that I have another film that could be my favorite movie if I make it right. That's awesome. I can't wait.

Yeah, yeah. Oh, yeah, that's very cool. I could be totally bullshit and guys right now I'm you guys hey, you can't wait. Yeah, I'm guessing well, I'll be comped. You'll have to pay Yeah, well, we'll do it. We'll just I'll get my yeah, we'll know that you want I'm gonna pay I don't just pay for us and then I don't because I'd like to go for free with pta Because I'd like to go for free with PTA It's my plus one No, that's on offer. I don't know that that's on offer

Have you talked this was going so well? I just want to I love this discussion and then I he pushed it too far I pushed it too far that's on me I'm gonna look at the tape later and go like yeah, that's the part that's the moment That's the real moment I ruined it out Yeah, that's the part. That was the moment. That's the moment I ruined it. But Alex Jones came out.

Yeah. No, I'm still think we should move in that direction. There's a lot of money in that. Sir, it's a serious, crazy honor to have you here. And you have just, I think of all the boxes of what makes an artist someone that I really like and you've just checked all of them. And so, and dammit, it's such a young age frustrates me. Oh, no, that's, but such a, I'm just very cool to have you here and to get to talk to you

and to getting to hang out with you the other day and have that crazy experience where we thought of a movie which I'm convinced it's gonna make a billion dollars. It's the next Barbie. Maybe that's his next project. Yeah, he's not talking. Maybe yeah, yeah, and I'll be conveniently cut out of it. There was no deal.

There was, there was no agreement that there would be any actual financial. I wouldn't need it. It would just be the joy of seeing my name above yours. Is that right? Do you know how many films I've made? Have you seen my films? Anybody? You haven't made any. Oh, right. Forgot. Again, way over my skis. Jordan, thank you so much. Thank you, Conan. Thank you guys for having me. So cool to have you here. And we got to do this again sometime. Wonderful. Wonderful. I would love it. All right.

All right, man. And work me in a cameo somehow. Oh, well, hey, if you're serious. I am serious. So we're doing a slender man. Ah! Ah! Ah!

Ah! Ah! Ah! Ah! Ah! Ah! Ah! Ah!

Ah! Ah! Many delightful things have happened on this podcast over the last five years, but I maintain that my favorite audio moment, and this is really saying something because I think we've had some great audio moments, but for me personally was recently we had Werner Herzog. Great filmmaker, director, documentarian Werner Herzog was on the show and we're chatting with him. It was amazing. I loved the conversation.

And I think we got a lot of terrific response about it. I think you guys know where I'm going with this. At one point, he was talking, I think about pop culture and how he's, yes, he tries to stay somewhat familiar with it. And then inadvertently, out of nowhere, he mentioned a reality show. And he, I think he qualified up by saying,

I'm not sure this is still on any longer. But then he mentioned the reality show and the name of the show combined with Werner Hurtzog's unique delivery delighted me. It didn't just delight me, but it stayed in my head for days afterwards. It's just this Lossage that just keeps on giving it doesn't lose its power. It was 100% the last thing I expected to come out of his mouth. Exactly. And he got the full title. Nobody calls it that. Everyone just calls it by the name. Yeah, but he got the full title.

He said it in his voice and then the way he says it. So Eduardo, if you would do the honors, this is Werner Herzurtzog saying something that really makes me happy in three, two, one. Here comes honey boo boo. I'm sorry. It's the. He comes honey again. Here comes honey boo boo. It's it. How does that not cure cancer and all wars? How does that not reduce carbon emissions worldwide immediately? Close the ozone layer.

Maybe it will. Yeah, I mean, I feel seen because I want to say I because I think he's so he's just on such a high pedestal. Yeah, yeah. But then there's something he and I have in common, which is shitty reality shows. Yes. And so we're the same person. Yeah, there's that.

There's that. But the best part is more about the, there's the sound. Yeah. To me, yes, that's nice. That's nice. I get what you're saying. But to me, it's about this. Here comes honey boo boo. Listen to the boo boo. I know. you're saying, but to me, it's about this. Here comes honey boo boo

Listen to the boo boo. I know. Listen to the belabored honey boo boo In fact, Eduardo, as we talk, just pepper it in as we talk whenever you like. Don't even wait for us. Yeah Here comes honey boo boo. Yeah, it's a boo boo. It's the here comes honey boo boo Yeah, that's really good, but not as good as this. Here comes honey booboo. Yeah. It's, I don't know, I think when it's my time to go, which is, who knows when, but people always talk about what, what is it they want?

And I'm thinking I want, you know, to have a really good pinot noir. I want to eat a really good Sicilian thin crust pizza. And then I want them to start turning up the dials on various things that will take me to the next plane. And then I just want to hear this over and over. Here comes honey boo boo. Over and over. Just here comes honey boo boo. Over and over as I leave this earth.

Here comes honey boo boo. Here comes honey boo boo. Here comes honey boo boo. I mean, I just I mean, I just want to I think that would make me happy The odds of that happening in our lifetimes aren't just astronomical and we got to be here comes honey boo boo Yes, the fact that has he ever said that maybe he has but he said it to us and there were microphones around and we capture Just the fact that we are living in a time where Werner Herzog existed and here comes honey booboo existed and they're saying it wrong. Oh, sorry. Here comes honey booboo. It's here comes honey booboo. I want someone to do a dance song and just have that

lute and loop that. Yeah, yeah, yeah. We have really creative fans. Maybe someone can do it. The question is, is there somewhere out there is honey Boo Boo herself going I watch little leader learns to fly. I watch what little leader learns to fly What is that Do it again, I want to see I watch little leader learns to fly. Oh, she also likes grizzly man. I like grizzly man. I like a Geerey Rathagore. Oh, that's the best one.

Yeah. I like to do that again. I like Geerey Rathagore. And then here comes honey Boo Boo. Now, now let's do. He's announcing that she's coming with her fate to say her favorite movie. And then you say, and then you come in honey Boo fate to say her favorite movie and then you say and then you come in honey Boo Boo and say your favorite movie and go here comes honey Boo Boo. I like a

gear a wrath of God. Perfect. That's really good. Do me a favor. This is what I want. I want Werner Herzog to say that he hears footsteps, okay? And so he says, here comes Honey Boo Boo. And then I wanna hear a door open and then I wanna hear Gourley, all set. So here we go. Here comes Honey Boo Boo. Eh?

I watched a Gere, a Rath of God. Now, that was. Because I don't, I think my door opening was okay, but I then I did. I think yeah, that was like a monster coming. But also I think I was, you know what? She was I think I had her on a pogo stick. Oh, that's good. Yeah, you do the foot. Yeah, yeah. No, that's even better. Let's try it. Let's try it again. Let's try it again. Yes, you can. You're gonna do it. Here we go.

Well, just so we have the order, it's got to go. Footsteps, here comes Honey Boo Boo door opens a Geary Rathikov. Yes. Footsteps are first. Yes. Here we go. And go. What?

What? What? What did you do? What was that? Piffy pit. Piffy pit. Piffy pit. What was Piffy pit? What was Piffy pitiffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Piffy Let's go! Alright, let's try it one more time. I'll get it, we'll tighten it up. Son of a go! Pit-pit-pit-pit-pit-pit!

Here comes honey booboo. Eeeeee! I watched Gary Rath God! I think we almost got it except... What is Pippi Pippi? Ha ha ha ha ha! Why is she wearing a weird slipper? It's made of like...

Well, how would you guys do foot steps? I... that's a horse! Yeah, she's coming in on a horse, how would you guys do footsteps? That's a horse. Yeah, she's coming in on a horse, or she's been shot. What are you doing? She's tap dancing in. Come on, no, you guys aren't better. Why does she hurt beat walk? She has a fib.

She has a fib of where form of a fib that travels down and it vibrates the IT band You guys are saying you had no idea to do footsteps. Yeah, except you pithy pithy pith Oh, I'd love to hear her do all the sound effects on a it was a cold night wishy washy wishy washy When the old man came pithy pithy pithy Why joke when you can get her to do it with his face with his face full horse Let's do the face and his face full horse was with in. And just then an alien ship landed.

Beer. Beer. So stupid. And then they made, all made smoothies and a blender. Beer. Beer. Beer. That was a good blender.

All right, listen, let's agree that his greatest sono was right now and is fantastic. Much fun as we had. Good times we had nothing beats. Here comes Hamibu Bubu. Mr. Herzog, you are here. Konen O'Brien needs a friend. With Konen O'Brien, Sonom of Sessian, and Matt Gourley.

Produced by me, Matt Gourley. Executive produced by Adam Sachs, Nick Liao, and Jeff Ross at Teen Coco, and Colin Anderson and Cody Fisher at Earwolf. Themesong by the White Stripes. Incidental music by Jimmy Vivino. Take it away, Jimmy.

Our supervising producer is Aaron Blair and our Associate Talent Producer is Jennifer Samples, engineering by Eduardo Perez, additional production support by Mars Melnick, talent booking by Paula Davis, Gina Batista, and Brick Khan. You can rate and review this show on Apple Podcasts and you might find your review read on a future episode. Got a question for Conan? Call the team Coco Hotline at 669-587-2847

and leave a message. It too could be featured on a future episode. And if you haven't already, please subscribe to Conan O'Brien, Needs A Friend, where ever fine podcasts are downloaded.