Happy Sad Confused - Matthew Goode

Episode Date: June 26, 2025

Yes, Matthew Goode is as charming as you'd expect. Matthew joins Josh to chat about his re-teaming with Scott Frank in the critically acclaimed DEPT. Q, a disastrous James Bond meeting, his early experiences on CHASING LIBERTY, WATCHMEN, and much more! Check out the ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Happy Sad Confused patreon here⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠! We've got discount codes to live events, merch, early access, exclusive episodes, video versions of the podcast, and more! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When you're with Amex Platinum, you get access to exclusive dining experiences and an annual travel credit. So the best tapas in town might be in a new town altogether. That's the powerful backing of Amex. Terms and conditions apply. Learn more at Amex.ca. The twisted tale of Amanda Knox is an eight-episode episode Hulu original limited series that blends gripping pacing with emotional complexity, offering a dramatized look as it revisits the wrongful conviction of Amanda Knox for the tragic murder of Meredith Kircher and the relentless media storm that followed. The twisted tale of Amanda Knox is now streaming only on Disney Plus.

Chasing Liberty comes on or Leapier comes on. Which do you watch first? Wowsers. What a double bell. I've watched Chasing Liberty first. I really would. Yeah. Yeah.

Leapier is even the more extreme version of that, I know. I mean something to some people. Leapier, I turn off. That's no question about that. That's just there's a lot of bad memories. So that's why. Prepare your ears, humans. Happy, sad, confused begins now.

Hey, guys, it's Josh. Welcome to another edition of Happy Seg Confused. Today's main event will be Mr. Matthew Good, first-time guest on the pod, talking to Department Q and all aspects of his amazing career. Before we get to that, thank you guys, first of all, for checking out the show. If you are new to Happy Say Confused, where have you been the last 11 years, but better late than never, I love you nonetheless. If you do like what I do, if you enjoy my conversations with filmmakers and actors, check out Patreon.com slash Happy Seg and confused. All these episodes go up early over there. Plus, you have merch, autographed posters, early access, announcements of live events. We do a ton of live events. Yeah, that's your home.

Patreon.com slash happy, say I confuse. Check it out over there. If you support us over there, honestly, just helps us make more stuff over here. No events to mention right now, except I will say we're about a month and counting from San Diego Comic-Con. I'm very excited. I will be back doing a lot of things for both MTV, but also moderating. a couple very high-profile panels. So if you're in San Diego, look out for me. Say hi. And yeah, it's going to be a good time.

And if you can't be there, don't worry. All my stuff will be available online. So just wanted to tease you on that front. All right, let's talk Matthew Good. Matthew Good has been on my wish list for the pod for some time. It just has never lined up for the right project, the right timing. Finally, it has happened for a good cause. Department Q is this new Netflix series that you've probably heard about or probably seen.

it is based on a series of very popular novels, Danish novels, that have been relocated to Edinburgh for the purposes of this series that comes from Scott Frank. Scott Frank is the showrunner, writer, director of the series. If you know his work at all, you know this guy has quite the resume. In recent years, godless Queen's Gambit way back in the day was a very, made his bones as a very notable screenwriter when he was quite young. And early on in his directing career, actually, his first directing effort was a movie called The Lookout, which starred Joseph Gordon-Levitt, and yes, Matthew good. So this is kind of a reunion of sorts. Anyway, this conversation is fantastic. Matthew is one of those charming, self-effacing, witty Brits that I love that I've collected over the years.

I love me some Hiddlestons and Cumberbatches at Red Mains and Dornans and Ad. this gentleman to the mix, he is fantastic. He's a great actor, great conversation. I know you guys are going to dig this as much as I did. So without any further ado, please enjoy this, by the way. You'll hear him talk about it. He was very apologetic. It's on an iPhone. It's fine. It's totally fine. But the quality is like a little jittery at times. It also let him give me a little bit of a tour of the house and meet his dog. So that's a win for me. Anyway, enjoy this conversation and check out Department Q. Here is me and Matthew Good. Matthew Good is on the podcast. He's stressed to start, though, guys, just so you know, he's in a, he's in a dark, self-loathing place. Are you feeling

okay now, Matthew? Are you settled? I'm having to do this on my iPhone. We have to explain. I'm not very good with computers. The kids have played with it. They're not even here. Something's happened. So, yes, I'm very stressed. But I'm fine now. I didn't know I can do it on the iPhone, so it's great. It's good. You can roam around. You can walk around the neighborhood. You can walk the dog. You can multitask if you want. I do need to go and walk the dog in a minute, but it's so hot outside. I don't think she'd appreciate it. Anyway, very nice to meet you, Josh. Same, same, Matthew. I'm a long time admirer. We've never had this kind of conversation. I've probably passed you in passing at little

junkets here and there, but finally the deep dive that you deserve today for a good cause. Congratulations on Department Q. You feel the, you must be feeling this is a nice. This is a win. You're feeling the world? You're feeling? I mean, I know that, I mean, I've, a couple of people in the supermarket have come up to me because I don't have the beard anymore. It's one of those things. I mean, I'm pretty, I can slide through life without many people coming up and saying hello to me anyway. But some, but a couple of people have been very nice, which shows that it's, I guess, a part of the zeitgeist at the moment. I have no, I don't really know, you know. My wife's away. She's taken our eldest daughter. She's finished her exams over to Portugal. So I'm saying daddy's got to keep the other kids

alive. It's the main tasks. That and podcasts. Those are the two tasks. Yeah. She makes it look so easy. Anyway, I'm partly joking. But yeah, no, it's, yeah, but we're very happy. And me and the rest of the cast are, you know, hoping we get to come back and do a season two, you know. As I understand it, you, this was the last job you did. You've had some time off, as I understand it, right? Are you going a little sort of crazy? I needed a little bit. I needed a little bit of time off after this because it was it was a real kick me in the solar plexus

this one. And then I just haven't found the right kind of thing I wanted to get involved in and a couple of projects have gone down and so yeah, I'm going mental. I'm really, you know, if you're made to do you a certain thing, which I believe is making films

and television, and you don't do it for an entire year. You know, my wife wants me out of the house. I mean, you know, are you just walking around doing monologues? Are you, are you practicing accents? Like, how are you getting the artistic part of you out of your system? Nothing. You know, I should be writing scripts, but I'm just, you know, when you work with Scott Frank, you just go, well, what's the point of me writing a script? I'm not going to be that good. I don't understand that kind of

structure. You know, it's not, it's not just, oh, let's just write a script and write a little story. It's really difficult. He's ruined you. Yeah, yeah, yeah. So I'm just drinking and, not too much. And I'm walking the dog incessantly. the uh before we get deep into department queue what one thing you could be filling your time with and maybe he's busy why are we not in season 10 of the wine show by now this seems like the greatest boondoggle in the history of mankind what what what happened well risi's quite he's quite busy anyway and he's over in new york and i think he's doing like something with john krakowski right now and god bless them both fine gentlemen they are um i don't know what happened to the wine show i should really ask my brother-in-law who's the producer but it kind of it sort of floated around first of all it was going to be on Amazon and then it and then it was I have no idea but it should come back. I believe

there's people asking for it to come back and I but maybe we'll go and do specials like Matthew and I go to Argentina and drink Argentinian wine and find some Argentinian Welsh speakers or something I don't know but I'd love it because he's hilarious Matthew Reese is pound one of my favorite human being

I'm a New Yorker I've gone to know Matthew in recent years I love our Matthew Reese Oh my God, the man is hilarious. And also his missus is just world-class as well. They are, there's some couple. The best of the best. Yeah, I like that. Sheth kiss.

Just kiss. Do you get newfound respect in recent years post-wine show? Like, do you get wine sent over to you? Do you feel like there's a little bit of, no, nothing? I wish. No. I think the older I get, the more I'm just like, you know, we found, I mean, yeah, in an ideal world, if you're a billionaire, you know,

you could go and buy an extraordinary expensive wine, but we just find, we found, I found a very nice bottle of Waitrose Claret that's seven quid a bottle. And you know what that does me? I don't need expensive wine. I just need volume. Right.

It's not like working because I don't want to, I don't want to affect the craft. Yeah, everything in moderation. Yeah, everything in moderation. All right, so back to this. So we were talking about how, yes, yes, the barometer of any success of a show is how much they notice you

in the supermarket with or without the beard. But truly... I do think it's a good... It really is a good indicator if people come up and go, hey, I like that. I thought you were right in that. Some people obviously come up also and go,

why did you do... Why, this show is terrible? No, they don't. They've done that too. Yeah, I've heard that before. Yeah, because they really like the book that something was based on. So they were like,

why is there no blood in Discovery of Witches? And I was like, it's above my pay grade, but that was a call by... by someone. I know, it's strange for a vampire show, I know. But there we go. Okay, so let's gush about Mr. Scott Frank, who is an important gentleman in your life in particular.

One of your favorite topics, I know. He is one of the greats, truly. And I mean, I remember we're about the same age. So, like, when I grew up, I remember, like, when I was starting to become a film nerd, even clocking him as a young screenwriter, I remember being obsessed with, like, dead again. Like, one of my favorite also.

time thrillers, you guys clicked at a really interesting point in your career and his career at first. It was The Lookout, which was his directing debut. So he was obviously a very successful screenwriter, but that was his directing debut. You were probably pretty hot off of Matchpoint, et cetera. Can you talk to me a little bit? I wouldn't say hot, but I was I was in LA doing press for Matchpoint. And I got this script sent around along with a couple of other ones. And I was like, I started reading. I was like, this is really, really good. Yeah.

Who, who says Scott Frank? Because it was in an, I, it was before I had a phone you could look anything up on. So I didn't really know anything about this guy. But I knew enough by looking in the mirror to know that there's no way that they're going to cast me looking like this. I look far too English, blah, blah, blah. So there was a really big speech that they wanted to use as the audition. And so I was, I nipped out and I went to a barber shop. and I just got them to take it down to a grade one.

So basically nothing, which is a look. I operated at university quite a lot because that way you didn't have to worry about your hair. Anyway, so yeah, then I went and met this, you know, Scott Frank. And I've seen, what was that glorious film that he did with Jodie Foster? Little Man Tate. Yeah, I saw that.

And I was like, so I was already a fan, you know. I didn't know all of his work. Anyway, went and met him. and he was such a nice, brilliant, he made it kind of fun. And, I mean, he brought me back another six times, if I'm honest. It wasn't one and done.

But, and then we got to work together. We went up to Winnipeg and we shot this film. And I remember my first day, he was like, I'm really sorry because we're having to shoot this. We had to shoot a scene from right at the end of the movie. Well, I'm, and it's on an ice rink. But the ice rink was melting.

So that's why we had to shoot it. I shoots it up first. I had Jeff Daniels playing a blind guy I had a gut shot wound and I'm bleeding out and nearly dead and then you've got Joseph Gordon I mean and I've got a magnum 45 it's quite you know

it's quite amazing that I that Scott gave me that job I've found out some of the other people on that list you would not believe that I beat them to that job I wouldn't have cast me I wouldn't tell you know they are very famous people there

You're kind of alluding to the fact that, like, I mean, like, you, it was kind of casting you against type at the time. Like, I mean, and, and the fact that, like, you're coming off of, like, you know, I grew up on Woody Allen films, but I also know how he directs actors. It's very famous, like, you know, he does not really say much. It's not like maybe that rewarding a artistic exchange. And then you're quite like it. Did you? Okay. I said, working with Woody, I was quite, you know, he rehearsed with the standards, which is so funny.

And so it's quite annoying when your standing comes and goes. I said, you know, Woody really liked it when I, when I moved over to the thing. And you're like, surely I'm supposed to be doing that part. Is it the one thing I get to do to make decisions about my character? Like, literally the one thing I get to do? Yeah, I don't even do the blocking. Wow. But actually, it was quite, I found it quite liberating.

I think Emily Morton and I were like, after we made it through two weeks, but I don't think we're going to get fired, love. I think we're okay. Well, that's the absolute thing I was going to say is, like, that's the thing I would think if I was an actor, I would have in the back of my mind. He's like reshot portions, like entire films. I mean, you know, Michael Keaton was fired from Purple Rose famously.

I mean, like, this is not unusual. So that would always be creeping in my mind. He was really nice. He didn't speak to us that much. We just got on with it. And the day was quick. We were home by 3.30. Can't quarrel about.

Who doesn't like shooting quickly? Yeah. One or two takes, moving on. You got to get a Clint Eastwood movie before he packs it up, too. That's the other one. I love the fact he never says action in your own time. He doesn't want to get the horses upset. That's apparently where that came from.

That's what makes, yeah, exactly. Or the lens monkeys. Wait, I didn't get charged for my donut. It was free with this Tim's rewards points. I think I just stole it. I'm a donut stealer. Ooh. Earn points.

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Goodbye, summer movies, hello fall. I'm Anthony Devaney. And I'm his twin brother, James. We host Raiders of the Lost Podcast, the ultimate movie podcast, and we are ecstatic to break down late summer and early fall releases. We have Leonardo DiCaprio leading a revolution in one battle after another.

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Okay, so wait, we're all over the place. Your mind works like I do, but it's all good. Okay. So Scott Frank, so in the intermittent years, it's been nearly two decades, in each other's lives? Yeah, a little bit. Yeah, I mean, I remember this is when he was still living in Pasadena. I went out and visited him out once there, I think. my mind is a sieve.

And then, you know, I don't go, I never, I know, I hardly go to Los Angeles. And not many things filming Los Angeles, but, you know, I would often have a conversation with my agent, Joel Lupin and be like, Matthew, man, you have to come out to L.A. And I was like, no, I really don't, Joel. And he's like, you do, man, because people think you're dead. And I was like, oh, shit. Okay, well, I suppose I better then. So every sort of five or six years, I'd scrape my ass into a, into a, into a, into a, into a,

and make it out there. And on those occasions, I would, I'd look Scott up. So we had a few dinners. And I've just been so, I'm just ever so, I was weird to say proud, but impressed by how, you know, he got to make his Western, which he always wanted to make with Godless, which I just loved. And the cinematography was amazing. And he got to work with Jeff again.

He's very loyal to some of his actors. He's asked me to work for him again on a couple of jobs. In fact, I did shoot the final scene in Godless. Yeah, yeah. in godless. I was doing a film up in Canada and I flew down and I just made it, I literally got in, I'd been postponed because of a thunderstorm and I got into makeup and then literally hadn't slept, got into costume, put a cowboy out on some boots, but got taken to set, got on a horse, given a rifle and then just went and shot this scene

with Jack O'Connell, but I end up bursting into tears and giving him a hub because I'm his brother. I played a brother and then Steven Soderberg saw it who's a great friend of Scots and he was like he loved it he loved the whole love the show

but he's like you've got to trim some of the stuff from the ending because it's like this has more endings than Return of the King so it was the first time that I hit the cutting room floor but I had a lovely time

working with Scott again and maybe that wet our whistles to try to do something together again. But once again, I could never have expected that he would have passed me against Typer, I suppose. I mean, certainly he knew that I could do this, because he has an end.

He knows me, and he knows just how dark I am. But I suspect that, you know, many other English directors, you know, American directors, would not have come to me. So that's the joy of working with people who know, yes, what you... You know, your ranges.

There's a lot of actors out there. You've got loads of range, I'm sure, but they should never get to show it. Yeah, it's the curse of success in one realm as they obviously type cast to it. Yeah, yeah, yeah. And no, I mean, this one, I mean, beyond just the Scott Frank of it all,

which is a huge part of it, has so many wins for you, I would think as an actor. The character itself, the ensemble, the amazing ensemble, the very palpable setting. Yes. This is a joyous special.

this is like top-tier experiences for you? Is that for all the reasons I mentioned? It's definitely one of my favorite experiences on set. And that's, I mean, let's talk about how you transpose this novel, first of all, because it's meant to be set in Copenhagen, but bringing it to Edinburgh, which is a kind of similar-sized city, probably a bit smaller than Copenhagen,

but again, a port city. And it has this incredible beauty to it, which is, you know, akin to Copenhagen. But it also has this medieval, history. It becomes a real part of our show. So, and I'd never, I'd never been to Edinburgh before, even though I was 47 years old. I'd always gone to the airport and then gone up to other places. But, so that was wonderful, that part of it, being in this, being in new surroundings,

but also this character that he'd given me, by making him English, that's very different to the novel, making me this outsider, which I think works spectacularly well. And then what he's also, because Scott's a brilliant writer, he's given me not just tropes left, right and center around me, you know, he's given me strong female characters, left, right and center. He's given me, you know, and some of the great, some of the really great Scottish actors of our time at the moment. They're just permeating it through our piece, like you wouldn't believe.

So, you know, it was a, I wanted to work, you know, it was like a Scottish actor bingo card. Like, Shaddle Henderson, you know, Kelly McDonald, Tick, Mark Bonner, Tick, Jack Sivers, who I sat on a biffa, the British Independent Film Awards. We were judging it one year. And I haven't seen him in 18 years, but I loved him. And I've seen bits of his work. And so to have him play my partner with Shangri-Laugh. It's also, I've heard Scott talk a little bit, like, you know, it's kind of his homage to, like, the police procedural.

I mean, this is like a tried and true, wonderful format that we all love. He's been heavily involved in crime in one way or another, either Elmore Leonard or, you know, can get shorty, Mr. Spade most recently. Right, right. You know, I think Scott's, I don't know who I would compare him to him to him. He has sort of Sydney Lumet tendencies, as I would say, which is probably the best. I think he's a sort of second coming of him. That's a good company to be in.

How many focus groups had to decide on the beard? You mentioned the beard. Was this a big conversation? Yeah, that's what Scott wanted. Yeah. That's what he wanted. And I was like, I don't know. I don't really operate a beard in life in general.

I did. I'll have to let it. So I started growing on it. I don't even know if I can. but it worked and it came off after a month I was like I think I've got this

got the hang of this it takes a lot of skill to grow a good beard and doesn't adjust does it does it change your I don't know does it change your demeanor I mean if you gain 30 pounds for a role that changes your walk

does growing that beer and seeing in the mirror every day change how you carry yourself I wouldn't say it was just the beard I was kind of just because that was one of the reasons and Scott was like, there's no point really reading the book

because I'm changing so much and your character sort of doesn't really exist anymore in the sense of you know, you're not, you're not from Denmark, none of the book will make sense. So let's come up with our own ideas about where he may have come from, the sort of socioeconomic, political background of him.

Which actually, he's taken a lot of that out which I find very interesting because Mork still is a bit of a mystery. They've all that like acgrams and total mystery. I mean, there's my favorite. and the whole thing probably. And that's great because I think it's, I think he's taking some of that stuff out in the final edit

because fingers crossed, we get to come back and do it again, you know. So we don't, we want, we want to drop that in a later date. But so, but because I was on the inside of it and knowing some of the background are good and bad, you know, I try, we don't really rehearse anymore. and I kind of like that you know

I mean I mean a fraction we did a read through which was quite sort of fun in its own way because you get to see sort of what people are going to do with it but not really

and it's a great pressure but so I do a lot of homework at home I'm not all day as the character but I'm in my house doing certain things as Mork or I'm going out into the wild as mork and trying him on for size

and partly of that is look and partly it's you know what would I if you know you're in a supermarket what would he buy? He's a policeman, you know he's probably going to get back late so it's just in my own mind

just like and then you build a soundscape so I build like I don't know what Scott's going to do with the music in the future and I love what he did do but um so I build like 30 or 40 songs that create mood and then I find a scent that I think works for Mork

which was Davidoff Coolwater because he's just he'll throw something on but it's just that you know but it's not going to be super expensive but it'll smell him make him smell all right he cares enough about himself

to do at least that and all these sorts of things and then you know you find passages of where he speaks and I work you know you like he has speeches where he just takes people apart and you use those and I and I send some stuff back and forth to Scott before in pre-production just like I think I'm going to do it like this and blah blah blah blah and he's like okay yeah seems all right um and then you get then you turn up when you you're kind of ready to go but through doing it for a month or so my walk changes and yeah you know my posture's changed things that

I only sort of really notice, you know, when you're kind of forced to watch the final product. You mentioned the remarkable ensemble. By my account, you have not one. Oh, my God, I love them. Not one. Here's a curious fact. Not one, but two Harry Potter ghosts are in this. Kelly McDonald and Shirley Henderson are in your cast.

Henderson. Yes. Does this win you, I don't know, ages of your kids, if they grew up on Harry Potter, any cred by dad working with two Harry Potter actors? in this one? They could care less. Honestly, if I don't know, if I was some sort of weird influencer

who plays computer games, my son might like me. But he's, he doesn't like it. You're going to be an influencer. I can't even get him to watch Star Wars. What's happening to kids? I'm like, what is wrong?

I know. No, my daughters would be, but they haven't watched it. So I can tell, I'll tell them tonight. I'm sure, I'm sure, I can tell one of them tonight because the other one's in Portugal. But I'm sure I'll get this.

But I quite like that, you know. The other way is unhealthy. You don't want too much. The other way is so unhealthy. Daddy, Daddy, Daddy, I loved you in this, Teddy. It's so good, Daddy. Shut up. Yeah, no, it's great.

They could care less. For me, it was amazing to get that. It was honestly one of my favorite company. It felt very theatrical. like a company as opposed to, you know what I mean? We were very, I mean, I'd like to say we were really tight. Certainly we were tight on work days, but all of the other actors were living in Glasgow.

So they'd go home at night. It was only Alexei and I, Alexei, who plays Akron, who are actually staying in Edinburgh. So it was quite, and it was great, I suppose, in some senses, for me, it was a very lonely job. I mean, I was crunching lines. I mean, I started off, you know, you're sort of two months. I got the first two scripts off by heart.

That was fine. And then it's just, and you get rewrites and blah, blah, blah. And so you're just in a days of... Yeah, but you're in it. You're doing one episode thinking to the next, so it's... Yeah, yeah, yeah. And then you make the mistake of going home on the sleeper train, on, you know, on the Caledonian sleeper, which was great.

But then you come home and you're like, why have I come all the way home? Because I'm stressed and I've got so many lines to learn, and I can't be present. So I think if there is a season two, I'm going to make sure that some weekends I go, honey, I love you. But as you said, there's no point coming home

if I can't be present. And I can, you can just do, it's one of those jobs where you have to be in it. Yeah. Unless, of course, he gives, Scott decides that he's going to give my character a hiatus and he's going to make Akram the central of the story. Never.

Season two. Which could happen. Let me ask. I did say to Scott, we should have him trained up in Craftman. God. Let me ask you. Okay, so God willing, we're going to get more of this and the reviews are very good. Fingers crossed, it sounds very, very promising. But since we've never had the deep dive, I'm going to go back a little bit with you, if that's okay, man. Okay. I've talked to a lot to a lot

of your contemporaries over the years. I don't know if like you intersected with them. I'm curious. Like, were you, you know, were you part of kind of like that Cumberbatch, Hittleston, Redmayne, Dornan, like, there's like a big kind of smaller expanding group in your age group. Is that your crew? Like, who was your crew coming? I don't really have a crew. I mean, I, I, I mean, I saw, I saw Eddie and Charlie Cox a little tiny bit when I was out in L.A.

But they were out there, they'd be out there for a whole season, pilot season. And so I just sort of cross paths with them. And I knew Eddie, and I love Eddie. he's such a sweet boy and so I occasionally saw Eddie at functions and my wife likes Eddie because he actually listens

and talks to her as opposed to just banging on about himself which is what some other actors did so he's world-class Jamie I know a little bit and I really because he's hilarious

Dawnen I mean he really is he's one of the funniest people you meet and I think someone should make him a comedy star someone should get him into more of that stuff because his timing And Starr, did you see him in Barb and Starr go to Vista Del Mar? He was amazing in that.

Oh, I didn't see that. Oh, yeah. I didn't see that. Yeah, yeah. I'll save that up for a rainy day. Yeah. So I don't, and I thought, so I sort of knew them. I was never part of a group, though, you know.

Okay. I don't know why that is. He's a loner. He's a loner. People didn't want me to be part of it. No, no, no, no. No, I just sort of like, I would think it's quite healthy not to be, to be, I was just a bit out of it. You know, I had, I had, I have, I have, I have.

I have friends who work for the government and other stuff, you know. Real people. People of substance. Yeah. I'm Amy Nicholson, the film critic for the L.A. Times. And I'm Paul Shear, an actor, writer, and director. You might know me from the league, VEP, or my non-eligible for Academy Award role in Twisters. We come together to host Unsecretely to host.

Unspool, a podcast where we talk about good movies, critical hits. Fan favorites, musts season, and in case you missed them. We're talking Parasite the Home Alone. From Greece to the Dark Night. So if you love movies like we do, come along on our cinematic adventure. Listen to Unspooled wherever you get your podcast. And don't forget to hit the follow button. Hey, Michael.

Hey, Tom. Well, big news to share it, right? Yes, huge, monumental, earth shaking. Heartbeat sound effect, big. Mink is back. That's right. After a brief snack nap. We're coming back.

We're picking snacks. We're eating snacks. We're raiding snacks. Like the snackologist we were born to be. Mates is back. Mike and Tom, eat snacks. Wherever you get your podcast. Unless you get them from a snack machine, in which case, call us.

Call us. Do you remember the first time you kind of started to go up for like the evil big American films. Obviously, Chasing Liberty was the first kind of, like, Hollywood movie you did. But, like, were you going? And it would be very easy to poo that. You know what I mean? Because, like, you don't really get to choose what your first job is.

So, I mean, my first job was actually doing something with, I did this Gavin Miller directed it. Very nice man. And it was called, I can't know what it was called, but it was with Stockard Channing and Jonathan Price and Azura Sky. And it was like a postmodern reworking of Cinderella. it was amazing and truly styler who's still a chum god lover um yeah anyway so but yeah my first big big inverted commerce first sort of hollywood style film was working with mandy more and she was amazing

and you know and we got to go to venice and prague and like so it was kind of a dream job because you probably at that said i'm like well it's probably the only one i'm ever going to get to do you know so um how aware were you guys of the competing first daughter it wasn't a cool it wasn't a cool movie it wasn't like you know some people get to work with you know scorsese on their first spike jones on my first movie it wasn't that but it's okay people love it some people love it it's all good exactly yeah so were you aware very much like it was the competing first daughter films at the time was katie holmes first daughter versus mandy moors chasing liberty were you aware of that at the time? No, I wasn't aware of it at the time. I was made aware of it, I think,

when they came out. I didn't know if they came out at exactly the same time. One of them did better. I don't know if it was ours. But actually, I don't know. I don't think it was, thank God I didn't know. Although it wouldn't have made any difference. But that is something that you kind of like have to, I don't know if that comes with age and experience, it kind of like that acceptance of like, I made of movie, is it going to be like one of the AFI top 100? Do I love it as a great film? Maybe, maybe not, but it means something to other people. Like, you know, that, like, oh, no, absolutely.

Yeah, I mean, that tape ones, but also, I had the most wonderful experience on that job. I really had great fun. Also, at the same time, you had Matt Damon and Heath Ledger there, and my friend, was another friend of mine was out. What was the big? Oh, God. It's age. The Grimm's fairy tales was what he's led to a man. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, brother Grimm, the Terry Gillian movie, yeah, yeah, yeah.

Yeah, Terry Gillian one. And then there was another, there was another thing with a, I used to hang out with him in the pub. Oh, Ron, he's dressed as like the devil with a big hand or whatever. In the same movie? No, it's not the same movie. He's got his own movie. It was like a, like he plays like a little devil who smokes a cigar, red. He's also in Sons of Anarchy.

Ron Perlman. Oh, Ron Perlman. Oh, he's a character. Oh, my God. Yeah. So whatever his comic book thing, that was... Oh, Hellboy. Hellboy.

Yeah. Hellboy. Yeah. And my mate was in that. So we finished work, and we'd all go for supper, and we'd all go, you know, very married together. And so it was joyous. And then, you know, Mandy was... And I got to work, Jamie Piven and Annabella Sciora.

So, you're like, that's a pretty good, pretty good first experience. So if... If... If Chasing Liberty comes on or... leap year comes on. Which do you watch first? What a double bill? I've watched Chasing Liberty first. I really would. Yeah, yeah. Yeah, yeah. Let's go for that.

Leapier is even the more extreme version of that, I know. Like, it means something to some people. Leapier I turn off. That's no question about that. That's just, there's a lot of bad memories. So that's why. Is it just one of those productions? It just didn't, it wasn't your thing. You weren't feeling it. It was just not. No, it wasn't. There wasn't that. No, lovely people involved.

Ireland's incredible. Stuff that's, you know, it just lost in the sounds of time, really. But, you know, actually, remarkably similar plot chasing liberty. Right. I don't know. So let's talk about happier times. Watchmen still stands the test of time. What an accomplishment that Zach did.

And, I mean, I know. Bless Zach, yeah. I mean, my gosh, what a leap. What a, what a challenge. And he was really able to execute it. and it was so well cast, including you obviously in this iconic part. Did you, I thought so.

You were going to disagree. Come on. I mean, I was a bit young. Well, here's what I'll say. Were you aware at the time? Like, that part was like, it's Tom Cruise, it's Jude Law. It's like, it's perfection. You're playing perfection.

I was aware, my friend. I walked in, I walked into my costume fitting and Jude Law's face was on all the things. So, but I didn't mind. I was like, I honestly couldn't believe that they'd given me this job. I don't know what... I think he'd seen the lookout or something.

Goodness knows why he made the jump. But, yeah, I mean, Tom Cruise would have been amazing in that film, but it would have cost them an arm and a leg. So I guess... You know what Zach told me? I talked to Zach a year or two ago. He told me he did talk to Tom, but Tom wanted to play Roershack.

Of course he did. He might have been great at Roershack. I don't know. Totally. He could have done that. I mean, that's the thing. You know, I mean, speaking of which, I mean, you know, he did a brilliant job on Rorschach. Oh, Jackie, yeah, amazing.

Jackie, Jackie, just, you know, knocked it out of the park, as they say, in America. So, I wish I hadn't overthought it, you know. I mean, if you really want, I mean, I wish I hadn't tried to give him a kind of German accent when he's, you know, full American in public and then a kind of softish German-American accent. You know, I could have just made it easier on myself. because then people just go, he couldn't hold his accent. You're like, okay, that's, like, I understand why he might think that. But it was a wonderful experience, again, really great actors.

Paddy Wilson, Billy Crudebbs, still a great friend of mine. I mean, I love, I mean, the laughter I had working with Billy Crudov, he's a, quintessentially, one of the finest actors around. I mean, seriously. Yeah. And if I ever get back on stage, it's going to be with him for sure. His stage work especially is really amazing. Yeah, man.

Yeah, but he's just also such a sweetheart, and he's, and we had a lot of giggling. But it's very difficult when he's, when he's also wearing, he's wearing pajamas, and he's got a thousand dots all over his face and some ping pong balls. When he's standing on a chair and you're like, you know, it's difficult. It's difficult to keep a straight pulse. That's why they pay you the big money. Yeah. Yeah, he forgave me.

Yeah, it did, I think, I think it stands the test of time. I don't think it... I mean, I don't really know. You know, if something goes out in the world, I don't spend a huge amount of time checking up on it. Does that... You know what I mean?

It's just sort of out there. And I haven't seen it since we went to the premiere. I revisit it every year or two. I thought he's visually, it was very terribly faithful to the comic. Well, to the graphic novel, I should say. Yeah, I don't want to go into trouble. And it varies apart from obviously the giant squid, which I think might have been a leap too far.

Right. So, yeah. Is that, is that the, that's around the time that you did go up for Bond at some point? Was that around the time you got your shot at a Bond audition? I didn't audition. I went in and met Barbara, so I didn't get to the audition. But it was quite a funny one because, and she's gorgeous, just lovely, lovely person. And you're invited into this blooming great offices

that's very close to the sort of hard rock cafe on Piccadilly right in the centre. It's like quite a grand place to have your office. They can afford it. And I remember she'd given up smoking recently, but she allowed, and that was back when I was still properly smoking. It's marble reds. God, God, what was I thinking?

And so she let me smoke in the room. And she was like, so what's your idea for Bond? And I was like, my idea for Bond. we've got to take it back to the books. You know, really, we absolutely have to make this guy an alcoholic, a drug addict. He hates himself. He hates women. He hates a lot of people.

He's, and all, like, he's in deep pain. He's brilliant to killing people. You know, like, really like that. Like, I think by the end of the interview, she was like, mm-hmm. Next. Because I wanted to make it really dark. yeah um but what i should have said was but also incredibly charming yeah but also so accessible to children of all ages yeah i mean but i think i mean ultimately you know what they did get

was was daniel craig which is which is and daniel just i mean i'm the only i've never met daniel i just that's not quite true the golden globes once i got a tap on the shoulder in the smoking corner where you meet the finest people yeah and um i've got to the tap on the shoulder and I turned around and I just got zapped from a foot away by Daniel Craig's like just incredible blue eyes and I was like a fly being drawn into

in a butcher's shop into one of those machines like that and he said only chance I can have a light and I was like... Yes, close. Because I'd just seen him as well in one of... A really great in San Mendes' film... Oh, Road to Tradition. Yeah, and I just

I said, I have a real soft spot for that film. I really look, well, partly, it's mostly because of Conrad Hall and the beauty. It's just insanely shot that film. Yeah. He deserved that posthum as Oscar. A part of me died the day that Conrad Hall died. I know. It really did because I was like, God damn it, I really wanted to work with him.

Were you, but back when you were auditioning a lot, I assume you don't have to do that much of at all nowadays, but were you, did you relish that opportunity? or were you a nervous? I'm very happy to you. Yeah. Always nervous. I mean, the classic thing is, the more you want something, the more nervous are going to be.

Right. You know, and so some of the jobs that you've gotten, it's not that I would, some people say, I went in, I didn't give a shit about it and I've got the job.

And you went, God, I've never gone into something, never given a shit about it. I've just said, I don't want to go an audition for something. If I don't, I don't want to waste anyone's time.

Right. At least of all, mine, but certainly not the casting director and whatever. If you don't connect something, don't go. Because actually, you're going to give a crap audition. I mean, these days people don't know, I mean, I think it's going to come back to bite the industry

in the ass a little bit, because you can't consistently tape people, who's particularly the younger ones, you have no experience of being on a set. I'm sure people do have a second audition and then they must go into rooms and meet them. Because if you can't do it in a room in front of three people, good luck on a set. Because on the day,

You're going to, your nerves are going to be up. Your hackles are going to be up. Yeah. It's a different skill set to, like, tape yourself on a camera in your home. I mean, you can do it. Everyone's comfortable in their own home, you know, to a point. Because you can just go again, go again, go again. You can finch you the hell out of yourself if you want, you know.

I did 180 auditions. And by the end, I stopped acting. But, yeah. So, but I'm, do you know what, if there's, there's always going to be stuff that's competitive. And it's like, I'm. very happy to sense like if i know there's 20 people like they're going to see or taping for you know tape a bit extra tape something else take you know go to a level where you think oh that's interesting or sometimes they're thinking about you um they'd like to have a chat online i might

just go ahead and look at the script and find a monologue or whatever or cobbled together a scene and just and just send it across just because like well at least you look like you look like you give a shit. Yeah. You know? Is it true that they thought they, that the tall drink of water that is Matthew Good would be perfect for Bilbo Baggins at a certain point? Is that a good?

Okay, and that is funny. I don't think perfect. I think there was a change of director. It was Guillermo, I think, right? It was Guillermo, I think, right? It was Guillermo when you were going on for us. Yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah. And yes, it was, it was Guillermo.

But I can't remember if I was the Gemma or the Peter. I think it was the, I was the Gemma. Yeah, yeah, I was Guillermo, and I, even I was like, I was, I said to Simon, I said, Simon Beresford, this is my agent, in my English agent, I've been with him ever since, ever since drama school. He's a wonderful man. And I said, Simon, I'm six foot too, love. I mean, what are we talking about here? I can't play Bilba. And he's like, camera trickery, darling camera trickle, it's all going to be fine. It could be absolutely fine. They like your face for him. And it's like, okay. Again, they got their man. But what I was really interested in, I remember talking to the casting director and going, when I grew up as, when I was a kid, there was a wonder, like, it's amazing to me this podcast thing that's come along. As a child of the 80s,

we were, all we had was podcasts because it was always these tapes that we would listen to in our Walkmans on long journeys. There were books that had been read. So Audubles way late on what we were doing in the 80s. And my favorite one was The Hobbit. That would get me all the way from Devon to Heathrow Airport. and back again probably

and it was read by Nicole Williamson who's a very famous actor nutter tried to kill himself on a couple of occasions and a huge drinker but a classically trained brilliant actor from the RSC and it's amazing

the way he reads that and does all the parts and it's truncated it's an abridged version of it but it's still like four tapes or whatever it was and the music on it was great I recommend any, and I actually got that for Theresa Palmer's kids. I got hold of it on record, and I gave it to them at some point.

I can't remember why. Did they stare at the record and say, what do I do with this? What the hell do I do with it? No, I get, no, the parents were like, we've got a record player at home, so we'll put it on for them. But they were probably a bit young for it. I probably thought I was nuts, I don't know. But I send it back, Teresa, if you never use things.

Because I'll get myself record player and just, I'll nostalgia the hell out of that. Yeah. That was exciting for that reason to go up for it, just for that reason. So exciting for that reason, and I also loved, you know, I loved, I loved, I loved the whole lot. I loved the books when I was kid, you know. Yeah. I loved Lord of the Rings. So, but I was saying, we've got to get Nicole Williams into this show.

Like, and they were, they were fully on board, but they couldn't get hold of him. They didn't know where he was. No one knew he'd sort of given up. There was a real shame because it would have been a nice nod. Talk to me a little bit of. about you referenced besides somebody in the supermarket criticizing a take on the discovery of witches you must feel a lot of you must feel a lot of like there's that that fandom is a fandom that's a legit strong well i'm i'm listening i'm with them i was like listen i i found it

curious too but it's not it's above my pay grade i think it was a decision made by sky and you know you get on with it i and maybe it's because they wanted to be multi-generational you know which which would make sense there's not a lot of swearing in it so maybe they wanted the young kids not to be put off and who knows who knows listen we had a lovely time filming it the great jane tranter the producer the english english producer working down in cardiff here's to you jane you're amazing um i need need to let you go in a few minutes i'll mention uh the your role as robert evans in the offer was amazing man what you did in that is really if people haven't checked it out people should check it out it's a it's a that's a big swing to i mean he was a big personality and

that voice everything about it to go for it and to like commit as you did and really nail it as an accomplishment. So well done on that. Thank you so much. That was quite scary, that one. Yeah. But also, I think, liberating once I had it, you know, once I, we were quite, I was quite lucky because I was only, I think,

I know someone dropped out now. I know who it was, quite a big person. And so I only had, like, a couple of weeks before we started filming. And so that was quite terrifying. But luckily, I had that big speech to work on. I had lots of YouTube and stuff. And then when we got there, what was really lucky was I got an extra two weeks because someone in the cast got COVID.

Oh, COVID, yeah. And so we suddenly went into shutdown, so that gave me another two weeks. And boy, did I use that time to really find, well, not necessarily. You know, I certainly helped with my Bob. So by the time I actually went back to set, I was sort of quite confident. And, you know, and we had to keep, you know, couldn't see anyone else. We had to keep, you know, work and then straight back to your hotel room. So that, there's something about, which I think I had a lot in common with, with Carl

Mork. You know, I was just on my own a lot. And right. And it seems to be something, something, good things working for you. Yeah. It's kind of working for me. I'm going to end with this. The happy say I can't use profoundly random questions for you. This is a little bit more rapid fire for you, Matthew. Oh, okay. I didn't know anything about this. Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah. Are you dogs or cat person, dog or cats? Dog, stay there. Okay, I can ask me a next question. Yeah, I can go find it.

I think she's on Ralph's bed. Cameo from Matthew Good's dog. What's the dog's name? Well, now that I'm on an iPhone, I can move. I love it. Let's use it. The dog's name is Suki. Suki.

My mind is out for a long. She's gone and she's moved. Suki is able. We'll find her. No, I'm not. This podcast is not going. anywhere. This is like your version of taken, but trying to find a dog. She's gone in a basket. There she is. Oh, Suki. Darling. Yeah.

There's a superstar. She wasn't ready for her close up, Mr. DeMille. Okay. No, no. No, she's a star. We're going to walk in a minute. What do you? Shoot, what's the next question. What do you collect, Matthew? Do you collect anything? Women. No. I don't really collect much. God, my wife would say, golf clubs. She's like, why do we have so many golf clubs and why do we have so many fishing rods? And I'm like, I've just sort of gathered them over the years. She's like, could you gather some of them and throw them out? That works. We've gathered a few children. Yep. Got three kids. That's that's, that's, that's,

that's, that's, that's, that's, that's, that's probably my finest collection. Do you, do you, do you have a favorite video game of all time? I thought you were going to say, do you have a favorite child? Yeah, we can get to that. do you if you want. I was going to say, what, Josh? Do I have a favorite video game? Yeah. I don't play video games anymore. But I mean, I would go with, God, that's a really good question. Back in the day, there was a video game called Chucky Egg that I used to play on the Acorn Electron. Wow. These words mean nothing to me, but I'll trust you. Chucky Egg was quite a good game. But to bring it up today, I mean, I spent a lot of time

when I first became an actor playing Tiger Woods, Tiger Woods golf. Arcade game day, but remember the big old ones? Yeah. Double dragon. Good one. Yeah.

We got it. There we go. This is the Dakota Johnson Memorial question. She asked me this once. I asked every guest to this. Would you rather have a mouthful of bees or one B in your butt, Matthew? Jesus. That's a weird question, isn't it?

Yeah. Talk to the Dakota. Take it up with her. Dakota came up with that one, did she? Yeah. Yeah. all right baby um i'm gonna go i mean i'll go with a mouth full of bees love as a man who seems to be losing some of his top lip i mean i seem to be losing the color in a top lip which is not uncommon for a for a gentleman of my age right maybe it'll bring that fucker back i rather miss it i don't like not having full lips anymore i'm degrading day by day no you're not last actor you were mistaken for who's the last actor you were mistaken for who's the last

actor you were mistaken for the last actor i'd ever be mistaken for no the last actor you were mistaken for does do you ever get mistaken for somebody no i don't know then everyone everyone can see me coming um have i been mistaken for anybody there's only one matthew good it's okay you're singular it's really right it's really sad i don't know it's not sad what's the what's the wallpaper on your phone uh i've got a shot of of my dog on the beach well i've got several i've got several they get there's so when i'm into the phone it's this it's honestly it looks like a painting i took it in cornwall on the beach and i was with a dog like it's just perfect like the composition the bit the water looks blue and it was it's just amazing

um total accident obviously um so that's that one and then and then the kids and my wife uh it changes every time that comes up yeah pictures of your golf clubs your favorite golf clubs that you just Of course, yeah, all of the Mizzuno blades that I love. Your true pride, enjoy it. And what's the worst note a director has ever given you, Matthew? That's a brilliant question. What's the worst note? Oh, okay.

Okay. Now, I've got to be very careful, yeah. Very careful. Okay. Because I once worked with a director who was having, he couldn't be asked to go to set because he was having his lunch and he just said

as he was, he berated that, can't you see I'm fucking eating was what he said to the first AD when he came and said we're ready to go and I was like, okay, so you do it so I went out and as I was going to set he said, just make it look fucking cool

yeah? Right. Frankly, I didn't need a lot of direction from him um oh my god that's i mean good good advice for life generally just make it look fucking cool matthew just come on yeah okay i mean yes i mean in real life i mean i suppose that is one way to go oh god that's amazing anyway anyway it worked out it worked out it's all fine you're here you're standing tall department queue ruling the roost you're all good yeah it's well i don't it's it's i think it's a number one in the uk which is pretty cool congratulations well

You and Scott Frank, we need to keep the magic going, hopefully more seasons to come. Oh, yeah, love it. Truly. I'd like to work with Scott and something else eventually as well, you know. Yeah, don't let him cut you out. Don't let Stephen Soderberg see any cuts of his stuff from the future. Because you're going to get those jealousies where like,

because I was playing golf with, I was playing golf with Jack O'Connell in Dallas for reasons why I can't remember. And I was, I literally like, so what are you up to the moment? He's like, I'm just about to play, I'm playing a cowboy, basically. And in Scott Frank's Western, I was like, excuse me? me was a lead in the That's my world

What are you talking about? The film He's like It was a film It was like I know this script He told me you wanted to make it And he's made it into a Into a television series

And you're going to do it for six months And you need to learn how to be on a horse And do all this stuff That's so fucking cool And your character name is Jack Good And it's spelled the same as me Mm-hmm Why would I be jealous?

You got what you deserved in the end You got your department here I'm only kidding. I'm only kidding. I literally phoned him up immediately and he said, I'm so pleased you're making a Western. Also, Jack is a phenomenal. Jack O'Connell's amazing.

Yeah. He's someone I'm always like, oh, we're going to work together at some point. Yeah, he popped up. I just saw 28 years later. He pops up in that and he's big in the sequel. I'm very excited. That's what I heard.

He's going to be in the next one. But he also pops up in recent. Yeah, which I haven't seen you. But everyone keeps saying is great. Highly recommend. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I'm going to go and do that. But he brings a bit of danger with him, which I love.

Yeah, he's a really sweet guy. As to you. A little danger from Matthew Good always. Everybody check out, if they haven't already, check out Department Q. You kill it in this man. Congratulations. Thanks. And this was such a blast.

Thank you so much for the time today. I've been told that you could get a good interview with you, and it's absolutely true. We did it. We nailed it. I'm sorry it was on the iPhone. It's okay. Next time in person, perhaps. Yeah, that would be great.

Yeah, I'd love that. And so ends another edition of happy, sad, confused. Remember to review, rate, and subscribe to this show on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts. I'm a big podcast person. I'm Daisy Ridley, and I definitely wasn't pushing to do this by Josh. The Old West is an iconic period of American history and full of legendary figures whose names still resonate today.

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