Happy Sad Confused - Miles Teller

Episode Date: October 6, 2014

Miles Teller is one to watch thanks to an amazing array of performances in "Rabbit Hole", "Divergent", "The Spectacular Now", and his latest unusual thriller, "Whiplash". Miles pulls no punches when he visits Josh, talking about "The Fantastic Four", why he thought Nicole Kidman hated him, and how "Divergent" fans almost turned on him. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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Get after him or have you shot You mean blow up the building From this moment on None of you are safe New episodes every Wednesday Wherever you get your podcasts Hey guys, it's time for another edition of Happy Sad Confused. I'm Josh Horowitz. Welcome to the latest and greatest edition of my podcast. I am talking to you. It's Sunday evening, which means I have to be slightly quiet because my wife is in the next room watching the good wife. And this is a sacred time for her. So I can't disturb her. So I'm going to keep it relatively quiet. So between you and me, here's what you need to know. This week's episode is one of the best working young actors today and also one of the most candid.

Miles Teller is awesome in his new film, Whiplash, which we talk about a bit in this. You're going to be hearing a lot about this. It opens October 10th. I would presume it's going to spread around the country and get into the awards hunt because it is a terrific piece of art that debuted in Sundance. last January, that's where I first saw it, and it's basically this crazy mono-a-mono psychological thriller between Miles' character and J.K. Simmons. It's a great piece of work, a great showpiece for both of them. It takes place in kind of the world of jazz drumming, which sounds bizarre, but trust me,

it's riveting, great performances, a great young filmmaker behind it. I can't endorse it enough. Go see Whiplash. But in the meantime, listen to this great conversation with Miles. Miles, as you probably know by now, is he kind of came to the four first in a movie called Rabbit Hole. You might have seen him in opposite Nicole Kidman. But then, in the last couple of years, has really come to the floor with roles in Spectacular Now and Divergent. And he is the lead in the new Fantastic Four film, which is a big, big comic book movie, obviously coming out next summer.

and Miles and I always have a good time. He is one of the most candid actors working today and always makes for a fun conversation and this one is no different. So without any further ado, as always, guys, before I launch into the podcast, hit me up on Twitter, rate and review the show on iTunes. You know the drill.

Spread the word. And in the meantime, enjoy this conversation with Miles Teller. I can go into the other room now. I'm going to see if she's still watching. apparently the cops are coming for me too okay here's miles back after I finished spectacular now they give me a list of like coming at the age films sure where it's like the graduate say anything yeah yeah it's risky business sure risky business I didn't know it's about like it's pretty

risque yeah it's crazy um did you said do you watch the others do you watch say anything I watch say anything that does not hold up no no the dad is like laying in the bathtub with this weird synthesizing mood music because he's contemplating suicide because all the bills and he can't pay him and he's like hovering and it's this weird push-in that's just like but no but Q's X acting style I mean that

that holds up of course he's just you know super natural and stuff yeah but the movie I was like I think even at the time honestly I remember the subplot of the dad and the embezzling everything felt a little weird okay we didn't need that in there yeah we're off and running miles it's happening do you feel it do you feel the energy in the air

no I'm just looking into your eyes there's no energy in there the whole room disappears after that really Yeah. That's what that's saying a while, because there's a lot in this room to suck in. I know. I was not aware of all of it. It's always good to see, my friend. It's good to see you.

Thanks for seeing me on Rosh Hashanah. I know that's like... Well, you know, this is the only way to celebrate a Jewish holiday. Right. Is to talk about a great thriller set in the world of jazz drumming. Yeah. Right? Yeah, yeah.

That's a tradition. That's a Jewish. You know, I'm only a quarter Jewish, so I missed out on a lot of the proper, proper. So no bar mitzvah, no. No bar mitzvah. How were you raised? My great grandfather was,

or no, my grandfather, is that Jennifer Lawrence with, that is super weird. Is that Bradley and? Yeah, that's a combo, for the reference of those just listening to this, she looks.

That is a combo of Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence morphed together. That is bizarre. Horrifying, right? Do you have a pretty flashy room here, Josh? Really? Thank you. I appreciate that.

It's New York chic. It's amazing. Yeah. it's very modern yeah like the white very white it's great it's a beautiful painting you did there that's a good artist did he paint it with his own penis yeah exactly penis with literal shit oh my god wait stay on party we have to talk about judaism right so my grandfather my last name was originally tilitsky oh wow okay we were Russian Jews that came in yeah and so but my grandmother converted my grandfather to

consult the Catholicism okay and then I was just raised you know from just Christian. Got it. Like, Seventh-day Adventist. Got it, got it. But yeah. Since religion is

maybe the smallest part of my life, I'm like the least Jewish Horowitz you'll ever meet. Right. Like no Bermitza, no Hebrew school, nothing. It's probably more fruitful

to talk about movies with you. Yeah. Shouldn't we? We could talk about whatever you want, man. Really? I don't know the, I don't know the... You're not a big fan

of Happy Sack and Fused the podcast? That's the thing about podcasts. You can go off the walls, right? You can talk about anything. I'll just talk to you about my abusive father. and alcoholic mother and I was I had four grandparents

like too much too too too many just too many really how would you rank your grandparents because I couldn't love all of them enough you know and so I beat myself up about that but yeah so whiplash

is uh how are you feeling man it's a big day it's cool yeah it's cool day after New York film festival big premiere last night yeah and first time of the New York Film Festival too oh really yeah so I talked to you first about this I saw this first at Sundance And honestly, it's such an awesome piece of work.

You and J.K. Kill it. As this Damien, as a director, who, you know, a lot of people will not be familiar with this work until this, obviously. But he's clearly... That's why I signed on to his next movie. I heard that. By the time people figure out this one, I've already locked him in. Yeah, no, totally. Because often you see, like, you'll see something that's just like an acting piece where it's like, okay, it's a good vehicle for actors, and this is that.

Right. This is a filmmaker. Yeah, you can tell. Especially I think once people are finding out, you know, that we filmed it in 19 days. And then he had to edit and everything in 10 weeks, I think, after that. And you just, you see his, he's just so confident. And there is, you know, for me it's that shot. Right in the beginning when Andrew's sitting there

and the other drummer, played by Austin Stolls, as at the doorway with his girlfriend, and he rubs her hand behind this hair, and Damien goes for this very cool artsy, like close up it, and the sound of it. And then you feel like, okay, that's a pretty confident hand, you know, behind that camera. So it's a 19-day shoot, which is insane.

So when you approach something like that, versus, you know, you've done obviously Fantastic Four, I'm sure it was a much longer thing, a diversion or longer shoots. Is it a different mindset where it's like, okay, from, I have to hit the ground running, like the first morning, like there's not, there's no wiggle room here.

I mean, I enjoy it because you're, you're going the whole time, you know I mean, and you do, you do legitimately like two or three scenes a day. It's not, you know, you'll do like a, I think on Whiplash we probably average, yeah, like six and a half pages a day, so you'll do a, you know, a four page scene, you know,

and then, you know, eight-page scenes, eight-page scene, you know, two pages and then something else. You're really doing all these parts and they're all over the map. And, yeah, it's nice. It's a different muscle, whereas, you know, Fantastic Four, you get a lot more coverage. And that's nice because you get a lot more opportunity to kind of, you know, fill in a performance. You can do from a lot of different angles or you can really do, you just get more time with it. Right. Which is nice, but a lot of the time I think it's better.

when you're just pure instinct and you don't have time to sit there and do you just wink at me? Maybe. Did you guys catch that? No, no, no. We're going to cut that out. That was a slow wink.

No, no, no. It was... I got you. No, it was a nod with like a blink. Right. It was a blink nod. A blink nod. A blonde. Yeah, because people do that.

Right? I feel like at this stage of my relationship, I should feel comfortable winking at you without you taking it to a weird place. Look, I just, it was for me to you didn't have to project for the cameras and I was just acknowledging that you winked at me. Usually I'm the one that makes things weird.

You're the one that, okay, thank you for turning it. You've got to do the weird smile afterwards. Where were we? But yeah, so it's just a different thing. And at the end of the day, man, like, I have an appetite for both. If you want to literally live out of your car, then you can do independent films your whole life. Because you just don't, you know, make any money. And that's not even something, you know, hopefully that you're thinking about.

Everybody shows up for, you know, for the love of that. project right I just think you go into every movie wanting to make you know the best possible version of it so hopefully you pick something that in the case of whiplash just had had really you know high aspirations like that script there's plenty of places in the movie where you can watch and just be like obvious what do you give me I'm not I clock out because this teacher is just so insane he's throwing chairs it's like come all man but because you know J.K. is so good and you know Damien writes a script that I think pushes

as far as you can go while still, you know, maintaining its integrity and remaining grounded. Yeah. But yeah, it's a pretty, you know, it just has really high stakes. Do you feel, are you self-analytical to a point where, like, when you see this film, do you say this is the best work I've done? No. No. I think it, no, but I do, you know, after I saw a whiplash, it kind of, what it did for me, I was like, I liked, you know, seeing kind of that grit and, you know, little bit of that, you know, I guess that drive and stuff, but it did, after that, I was like,

I want to do some more, you know, kind of like more masculine stuff and more, you know, kind of leading, you know, man stuff. And so, yeah, so from whiplash, I mean, I signed on for this, you know, this, you know, bleed for this. That's, you know, that's, you know, it's like a whiplash kind of a way. It's, it's just really, you know, incredible true story, this underdog and this guy coming back from, you know, an incredible injury that broke. your vertebra in his neck and he comes back a year later and is you know fighting for a world title right and it's just insane so I like yeah I kind of saw myself with that and I was like okay that's cool but yeah I don't want to play like a young kid you know anymore and sometimes

you don't need to ask for permission sometimes you just need to say these are the kind of roles that right want to do well because yeah you kind of like it seems like you put in your time with some of the 20-something kind of like comedies and now thanks to absolutely I think so yeah right you know maybe you know but that was just growing up I saw when I was in a hundred school was like the girl next door was a big movie for me my buddies and super bad and so you want to make at least for me I wanted to make a radar comedy that hopefully would you know kind of have that same same appeal and and that's another thing I realize is they're oh you know it's just some movies don't do as well as you think they're going to do but also I've

realized as like as an actor you have such little to do with the final product or such a little control over the final product right you know really needs to be in not that it just there's such a little of it is in your hands that so many people mess with it especially when you're doing a studio film yeah even so many people have an opinion on you know the the character and even down to the clothes you're wearing and all this stuff and and so yeah you mentioned the studio stuff can we can we talk about what happened the other day did you get a call from the studio after no no i didn't get a call from the studio i got a call from you know my agent so that I, and I read it when it first kind of surfaced a long time ago.

Yeah. I was like, oh, that doesn't sound. Like what you meant, it's a sound. Like what I said, yeah, really what I said even, and so then, you know. So just for context, kind of just like, so basically there was this article where you talk a little bit about taking whiplash at a time when maybe, and I can't remember this precise wording in the article, but it says it says that I was, you know, I did divergent for business reasons.

And that divergent, or whiplash came at a time that I was dead inside. Right. And that's not it at all. I mean, you're always dead inside. Yeah, exactly. That's the thing I'm always dead inside. It really is only through the good grace of Bud Light and cigarettes that I get going. A little life comes bubbling out.

No, I mean, you know, for the, what Lynn said, she was like, so she was interested in why did diverge in a smaller part after, you know, taking on some of these bigger parts. And I said, well, you know, it was a combination of reasons. You know, they sold down kind of playing this villain, working with Shailene Woodley again, working with Neil Burger again, great casting producers, and, yeah, it would give me an opportunity to play for an international audience. Those were the business reasons that every actor, you have to take into account because not, you know, it's not like you're getting every script that's going to be, you know,

playing at festivals and getting, you know, standing ovations. It's like everything's, you know, different. And so those were the business. reasons. But at the end of the day, if Shailene wasn't in it, if the script wasn't like good, if I didn't see it as, you know, a worthy, you know, venture in my career, it also gave me an opportunity. The reason why I did it really, besides all that stuff, was like, give me a chance to get in shit. Right. Because I had never played a character with any kind of physical, really any kind of physical, you know, momentum or any kind of physical activity.

Yeah. And so that was, that was really why. And then, but the way she framed it made, it sound like I did for money, which I've never, I'm very proud of my resume. I can honestly say I've steered my resume in a way that most young actors don't get a chance to do. Most of the time you're just working to work. Like I got buddies doing, you know, whatever venture they're doing. It's made for TV movie or all these different things where they wanted, everybody wants to do Shakespeare. You want to do these, you know, check off. You want to do just the great pieces and it's hard to find. Yeah. So yes, you should kind of framed it in a way. And then the dead inside, I was like, Oh, shit, man.

I was like, I was not dead inside. I was just burned out. The year before, I did four movies. And then Diverging, I did, you know, I did get a job, spectacular now. Two-night stand, awkward moment. Awkward moment ended, ended January. I was in Chicago at boot camp for Divergent in March, and that was a four-month shoot. And I was just burned out, man.

And that's the, and so that's, you know, really what it was. But, yeah, the way she framed was like, you know, I did a move for money, and then I was ungrateful. and that was, or at least that's the kind of some of the response I was getting from divergent fans where they're like, I got this one tweet, it was so funny. It's like, divergent. They're like, fuck your face, divergence better than your life. And I was like,

extreme. Maybe true, we don't know. It's hard to. Favorite. Fuck my face. Another fan born. Okay. Yeah, so you know, and then other people like, oh, I love your candidness. I'm like, it's really, it's neither.

Like, it's just, it was, you know, framed poorly and do you learn something from that because I mean in our many conversations you are when one of the things I always enjoy talking to is that you're you're super candid you just it's not there's no artifice well and even honestly like my you know right after that my publicist released a statement because I was out of town I was in like Hawaii for my dad's birthday and just the way it stops she tried to plug it and basically just said you know I'm very sorry for my words and stuff and I got so upset I was like don't like I own my

words I I I'm confident with the person that I am I know that I'm a good person I never, you know, tried to censor myself and I know the reasons why I did the movie. I don't need to apologize for my words because I feel like those are not my words. So, you know, but it's, no, and I do think that's something that people appreciate, you know, about me, at least in interviews, is that they feel like it's a real person. Right. I am very candid and I don't, you know, I'm not, I don't have any, like, ulterior motives or anything, and, you know. Well, that takes work to have ulterior motives all the time to always be thinking on that level.

It's like, why not just be in the moment and, like, trust that you are a smart enough guy that you're saying intelligent things and whatever. But at the end of the day, when someone's transcribing it, it's really in the journalist's hands to kind of maintain, at least if it's, maybe you did say something, but at least kind of, I think, maintain the tone of it or that.

That's why this is going out raw. This is just unedited miles. Right out there. I like that. Vombed it all out. Right. We've talked so many times about Fantastic Four before it was happening, all the rumors that were going in.

yeah um talk to me about like what the process was like before i told you the whole movie no you're not at the bar you're wine you're i told you the whole thing josh you were so drunk you don't remember it but that's not my fault it's your viewer's fault i have a problem they were so drunk they cannot remember the entire plot all i remember is yeah you're look i play the human tours uh you know michael b's in it and that's all you remember the yeah that's all remember what was the audition process they all blur together the audition process i you know I had met when I was filming that awkward moment with Mike

like he knew that he was playing the human torch at that point him and Josh really bonded Old Chronicle and they you know came up with it yeah I think it's great and it's a big it is a big thing you're you're changing the race of a character and and it's like yeah why wouldn't he

why couldn't the Human Torch be black right it's all these characters were kind of spawned in this time that you know you know the racism and the social awareness and everything was just so like one you know and very kind of tunnel vision but but uh yeah for this i you know i ended up meeting josh you know like a year before and you know script kind of going through some stuff and and just trying to figure it out and then i yeah i just you know i tested for for the role of reed

richards i think i'm the only person that that did but absolutely it took a lot of convincing i mean for me with reed richards i know josh really had to and josh did for all the characters man for Jamie he really vouched for it for Mike he was like this is my guy from the bat and he was very specific on who he wanted to play these characters yeah so yeah he kind of I was his guy for it did you test with Kate I guess I did yeah and were you I mean did he ask you for your input after those auditions or was it no I mean well no I you know and I wouldn't want that on you no exactly I yeah sometimes I'll mess with Kate me like I watch your audition tape too and it was like very good subtle

but big you know it's like no that makes actors feel uncomfortable if other people are kind of watching and Josh actually was very he would he has this thing where he doesn't want the actors to he doesn't want another actor to be at the monitor if you're watching like another actor's scene

he doesn't allow that make himself confident conscious which is fine but you know for me I love I just love I love watching other people act you know that's yeah that's what's nice about kind of being on set too a lot of times just seeing sure scenes that you're not in Was it, I'm just curious because I'm, obviously we can't talk details, but just like was it tough to keep that a grounded take?

Like when you're playing someone known as Mr. Fantastic or someone's playing someone named Dr. Doom. Yeah, well, I guess, you know, what we tried to, what we're trying to do with this movie is to really show, you know, these as, as people. You know, there's, obviously everybody knows them, the stretchy guy and this and that, and they throw the suits on. But, you know, hopefully you can kind of show the person, you know, behind that. And so, to me, there was really no difference of playing, and I'm talking in terms of like the prep or how I felt shooting it between playing, you know, Andrew Neiman and Whiplash and playing Reed Richards. Because it all feels like, you know, a scene is a scene, and hopefully when you're playing this character, you're in your head, you're not like. I'm Mr. Fantastic. Because if I was like that,

I'd be, I'd just be talking like it is. Is that the voice you're using? That's amazing. I mean, I'm Mr. Fantastic. Like, what are you kidding me? You know, Sue Stormo, where are you? Check out my arms here. The stretching.

I'm like stretching like a crazy. I look like a spaghetti. Come on. You know, so it's, no, but as soon as I got the role, yeah, I did get a Mr. Fantastic, you know, chain that I throw on and I drive a red

Corvette. As you should. And I make everybody call me Mr. Hopefully Toby doesn't make everybody call him Dr. Doom. I bet Toby would be into that. Toby's a very, I think people are really going to dig what he did with that. He's just a, he's a good actor. He's amazing in that.

Do you have you seen it on the pint of the apes yet? I did see that, yeah. He's amazing. I mean, the apes are where it's at. Right? Yeah, the apes are, it's very interesting. You need to get in on that ape action, man. Well, him and Jamie Bell have the motion capture thing kind of locked up.

Them and he circus, the trio, yeah. Yeah, so I'm just not even... Don't bother. Yeah, that party's already full. That only me. Let's go down Memory Land for a second, Wiles, because I did exhaustive research. I was hoping we were.

You love Memory Lane. That's your favorite lane to go down. It's my favorite. Memory and Worcesterion. The first IMDB thing I could find of you, and I found it on YouTube, is speaking, we spoke that Jeremy Renner when you walked in. Last week's podcast guest.

The Unusuals. The Unusuals. You're a perp. He's bringing you in. Was that the first gig? First Samber did, yeah. And I almost didn't do it because it was on spring break of my senior year of college. And I literally had already booked a house in Key West with my buddies.

It was like a tradition for us. And I was talking to my manager being like, yeah, you know, but I already put a deposit down. And like, you know, it's my senior year, man. It's my senior year. And then after just a little convincing, actually a lot of convincing on his part, I guess I was just like, yeah, you're right. I have to do this. But that was awesome. I was Jeremy and Amber Tamblin.

Harold Perrinue, Adam Goldberg. That show had a crazy cast. Crazy cast. Too many characters, too many good actors, honestly, because for a 30-minute show, there's just not enough. Yeah. Not enough real estate there,

but for, yeah, but Jeremy, I will say, you know, just super cool guy. I used to ride the van home with him, and he, I remember Assem on sets. It's like, hey, you know, because I knew who he was from SWAT. Yeah, sure.

You know, different things. And I was just like, do you have anything else coming up or what he got? And he said, yeah, I did this film. The Hurt Locker. It's doing the festival. circuit we'll see what happens. Crazy. So even Jeremy Renner was on a canceled TV show in 2009. I know right before. That fall, Hurt Locker picks up all that steam wins, you know,

best picture. And then Jeremy Renner's, you know, back-to-back Oscar nominations and born and Mission Impossible. It's like, see you later. I love actors like that. Like I spoke to him and I spoke to like Fastbender recently. The guys that like come like seemingly out of nowhere in like their earlier mid-30s and it's like where the hell they've been. But that's the best time for an actor is your 30s and really your 40s. I mean, I don't think Penn like won an Oscar whatever until he was like 42s right just you know the young guys there you don't really they're pretty disposable and people don't take them seriously right you have to really kind of hang around for a while right and grow before they're gonna you know

do you have to have a beard which I'm already screwed because I don't grow beards would you never grow a beard no I can't grow a beard I'm trying to grow up mustache there's a little something for because for Vinnie Pazienza that's like his I mean that's one of his trademarks was his stash right so I have to so the director Ben Younger's like grow it out for the wall and then we'll see right this is six months growth yeah this is i started this on rabbit hole actually so it's like it's about to kick into another gear yeah i feel like it's really coming in strong people say something about no shave november so i'm thinking that's

going to be a catalyst for this thing nice yeah you mentioned uh so rabbit hole obviously is the first film and the one that really propelled you yeah what do you remember i mean Nicole Aaron Eckhart who's who's also a very like intense actor i'm looking with him on uh on on for this. Oh, no kidding. He's playing my, he's playing this guy Kevin Rudy, who was Tyson's like old trainers, yeah, yeah, yeah. You know, Aaron's got to gain some weight for this part, which he's not too happy about.

After he got ripped for that Frankenstein movie, he must be resentful about that. No comment. Yeah, I don't know. All the sudden they're happening that too. But he's an intense performer. Don't bite the hand that feeds you. I've learned that in the last few days. I was kidding.

The new models. But no, what I remember about that movie is just so, First of all, we didn't rehearse any of it. I was not allowed on set if I was not filming because of just the nature of it. And Nicole and Aaron and everybody was pretty much in character the whole time, more or less. And they were like, you know, the dressing rooms

were the bedrooms in the house. And John Cameron Mitchell was like sleeping in the house overnight and had to be coddled at the end of the day because he was just couldn't release all the emotion from the day. John's such a sense of, you know, awesome guy. But what I remember about that movie is, you know, I do the first day film. and Nicole, you know, looks at me, and she says, hey, you know, great first day filming Miles,

and I was like, oh, you know, thanks, bye, Nicole. And, you know, that was so cool. And then the next day I show up, and it's in the morning. And I think they had already shot a scene. And I see Nicole, and I'm just like, hey, Nicole, good morning. And she just looks at me and, like, walked away. I was like, oh, my God, did that. I was like, I don't, I was talking to producers.

I was like, I don't know the etiquette. Can I not? Do not talk to the actors when they're, you know, kind of preparing? I'm so sorry. He's like, no, she's just kind of in character. You know, it's fine. But I thought that I had kind of messed up. And then other than that, the first day of filming, I remember, you know,

I met Aaron Eckhart on action, and it's the scene where I come to give her the comic book. And Aaron sees me in the house, and he's like, you know, you need to show some goddamn respect. What is that? It's a comic book. Why are you coming to my house? Come here a fucking comic book. And the director just told Aaron that it was my first film, and that was very nervous and to, like, scare me. but I just remember literally I can still see I'm standing there and I'm looking at internet

guard and I'm looking at Nicole Kim in this scene and I'm just like out of body experience and I'm just and I'm like that's Harvey Dan and then Nicole says something to me so I look at her and I was just looking and then I hear cut and I was like oh my God I'm so sorry I was not so you know you didn't say your liner or did you no I don't even know if there was a line but it was just I was so not in it it's very hard I think it's impossible not to and that still happens man I'm gonna you know I just worked with Kate Winsley And yeah, I feel like I have, you know, I feel like I can at least be in the same room. You have a seat at the table, like way in the back, you know, and people are wondering while I'm there sometimes.

But, you know, it's impossible to do movies with people that you've seen your whole life. And to not have that, to not see that, to not just be able to see this, you know, this kind of celebrity, really. So, yeah, that was tough. And I thought I was blowing it. And I went upstairs and I literally gave myself like a peptych. talk, I was able to kind of remove myself from the anxiety and just be able to say, you know, like, you're here for a reason and, you know, you're a trained actor and they all have to memorize their lines and do the scene work. So just, like, go down there and kind of trust

you. Yeah, but yeah, I felt like I was thrown at the wolves because there was no rehearsal and no the actors were talking to me. That's an exceptionally unusual circumstance, right? Yeah, it was not like, you know, it was not like, you know, project. Yeah, because, you know, it's like, you show up on that is a party and sometimes they film right what type of actors do you tend to admire or look up to you the most I mean in terms of like the way they approach work or the kind of careers that they craft yeah I mean I like I like actors that kind of bounce around between comedy and drama whether it's Philip Sumer Hoffman or or Tom Hanks or you know Dustin Hoffman yeah

Kate Winslet. Do you feel like the celebrity aspect of it? Because this is something like, even in the couple years where I've been talking to you. Fastenaders killing it. Man, I thought Prometheus, he was so good. Awesome. Yeah, Penn.

Yeah. Leo is a guy who, you know, when I was first kind of coming up, I was like, that's a career that I've, not a career, but his choices, is stuff that I like, because he really challenged himself from an early. and when I was doing you know and I did so he did catch me if you can at age

I think like 27 and right and that's right around you know where I'm at but are you setting kind of like markers for yourself like and you are you go away into a little bit you know it's not like at this day you know I need to do this but I I did make a conscious effort to say yeah I kind of want more leading man more masculine you know stuff Gosling you know it seemed like he kind of made that clear clear choice to you know because he was kind of coming up with the smiley guy and all this stuff and then well yeah because you can get into like the wise ass friend if you're not if you're not too careful right and that's you know

that's kind of for a while that's you know when I first started you know an opera moment played a supporting thing and but yeah with footloor so I'd you know played the part of willard which I played that part in high school that was like my first right my first play every day was fullest I played Willard but yeah you start to think am I always only going to get the sides for the supporting character right as I'm not If I had a dollar for every time I read, you know, not traditionally good looking, not conventionally good looking. Like, screw you, I have a hot girlfriend who disagrees with you, so. I'm Mr. Fantastic, and I have a hot girlfriend.

It's fantastic. My girlfriend's smoking hot. I can do 100 push-ups. It's like. Where do you see the boxing movie? Yeah. What do you see me in his spandex outfit? Right.

So, you know, but it's, you know, also I just want to surprise me. Like, I don't think, you know, even when the director offered me, you know, to play Vinnie Pazienza, I, you know, I said yes. obviously because I just knew how powerful a script it was and what a tremendous opportunity it is to play a boxer with especially with Scorsese like produce and it's just you know kind of a no-brainer but at the time I was like has you seen me without my shirt on like it's not pretty man and but yeah you know that's it's what it is that's why like doing you as people are commenting on this project it's like I've already yeah done you know this they're like smiles going to be this fast talking smart at whatever and then when do you see what

I already yeah it's like I've already you know done this stuff and and at the end of the day you do do it for yourself if you try and please you know people with all your stuff it's just not you're always going to be frustrated because I don't know what other people want

I just know what I want haven't met Scorsese yet and that's a burger I haven't had a car in six months the door is locked here yeah I did meet him I met him at Wolfram Wall Street was kind of doing some rounds in L.A

and I met him at a it was like an Armani party that was you know for for Martin Scorsese and when I talked to him he was literally talking to me like I was whatever, the lead in a film that he was producing, man, he was like, yeah, you know, I'm kind of doing some stuff in the summer, but he's like, but

yeah, what can we get together in August? Yeah, so we'll get together in August. And he was just, I was like, this is so awesome. This guy was like an incredible, whatever, it's Mark Scorsese, and we're just having a very present work conversation. That, you know, was great. But that's the people, I guess, that make it, people that are very,

you know, humble and don't have any kind of ego. Yeah. Well, he's the anomaly, too. Like, because, you know, filmmakers don't tend to be that both prolific and just still accomplished. I mean, Wolf of Wall Street, everybody, a lot of people said this, but it felt like a 30-year-old was something to prove made that movie, not the guy in the 70s. It's crazy. How are you negotiating the whole celebrity aspect? I mean, I would think after, to Divergent feel like it changed things?

Divergent changed things because teenage girls are terrifying in large numbers. So, I mean, that was really, I guess, where my popularity reached anything. other than, you know, I've done a couple of movies where it's like, yeah, if I'm at a bar, people want to buy me shots, you know, and that's cool. That's a good level to be on. You know what I mean? And I don't like to buy my shots, so that's cool. Win-win.

Yeah, because I have like a pretty girl for once, and that was nice. No, but it, you know, it did just kind of, you know, give this more, a bigger kind of awareness. And I absolutely can't go to shopping malls anymore because of, like I said, teenage girls are terrifying. Can't go to Hot Topic anymore. That's off the list. I know which where am I going to get my band t-shirts it's literally the only place I can go that stuff gives me kind of anxiety now but you know it's uh for the for the most part though I haven't had a movie that's because even that movie it's like I'm glad I'm not Theo I'm glad I didn't have Theo's part in that movie right because that's a different you know that's a different kind of reaction but I'm you know at first when I was starting out I wanted to have you know because I was watching Shia come up you know when I was in when I was in college and so I was like I I just need to get, like, a coming-of-age film, like, Disturbia,

and then some big director will see me want to make me, like, a friggin' movie star, and then that's it. And I'm so glad that it didn't happen that way. I'm so glad I had that every movie I've done, you know, hasn't done, like, extremely well to where each movie has kind of given me, you know, or has introduced me to, like, you know, a slightly different demographic audience. And so, yeah, I mean, I can walk down the street.

I'm not, you know, I haven't gone to that level yet, maybe Fantastic Four kind of changes if that movie does some serious box office and and yeah but I still want to be I don't know I don't feel I don't feel different and I always want to

I mean having a film in a film festival that's my favorite part of this music I love doing something that you just care so much about and then you know you did it for no budget and then just seeing it that kind of take off you want to see something get traction that's exciting yeah every time I'm nodding at you now self-conscious about trying not to wink.

Well, it is possible to nod without winking, Josh. I've been doing that most... You're just the kind of guy who throws it in there, like it was an accident. It seemed like you deserve it. It is a bonus? Yeah. It is a bonus, right? After Fantastic Four, you're going to get a lot of special winks.

Oh, I'm sure I will. Have you been to Comic-Com? Those dudes are excited. I see some... Once in a while I see some with a Fantastic Four shirt on, and I, you know, I want to say, like, oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. just to kind of, but then they'll start just blowing my mind with questions

and should be in. I don't know. I don't know. I did it for money, woo. We're not going to take that out of context. What's the next one with Damien that you're going to do? Damien, I'm doing this film called Lala Land and it's a musical set in Lala. And it's with Emma Watson

and it's a very cool, you know, it's a love story, but it just deals with I don't know, I play a musician, I'm a pianist and she's an actress and it's one of these things where it's like you meet somebody and you're in L.A. and you're surrounded you think you're in the entertainment cap of the world and you're so close to making it and you meet somebody

and you share that passion and you think you're in love and your life and you're going to make it together and then maybe that doesn't happen as it does with 99% of people that move out to L.A. to try and make it and but it's a song, it's a proper musical and they'll be singing and dancing and cool you know numbers. It'll be some classic jazz stuff but very, you know, modern, and I'm sure because Damien's making it,

it'll have, like, a baby Fincher aspect to you. Right, right, right. So, yeah, I mean, honestly, I tell people this, but it's true, if Damien were to tell me that he was doing a movie in March and, you know, he didn't have a script yet, he was still working on it. But, you know, would I do it, and I would say yes, because I just feel very, I feel very confident in Damien's talent, man. The guy's just really...

It's somebody to bet on in the future, yeah. And that's what you always look for that. I look at, you know, actors that kind of, you know, find a director that really works well for him, whether it's, you know, Michael B with Coogler or, you know, Gosling with Derek. See in France? Yeah, see in France. It's just, I think it's nice. And why wouldn't you want to work with somebody that you have a, you know, familiarity with it?

Totally. Like, why would I, why do I just keep coming back to you, Josh? Because I'm home. I'm a comfort food. You are. I don't want to put the words in your mouth, but that's, I feel like that. You're like my matzabal soup. is not very tasty

is this a dream or is Ellen Page the tiny little detain that thing was so funny wasn't that great you can check the fingerprints on top of the shelf my kids can you see

my arms could only reach yeah Kate who knew she's an undiscovered comedy star yeah she's fun Kate's just she's just a very cool girl she actually just did a little

comedy bit for me and I was in LA I know she's game for insanity oh yeah So talk to me. Okay, so Emma in that too, that's crazy. Yeah.

Have you met with her? You started singing some ballads with her. I was like hungover. I think I'd just come back from Vegas or something and she's, you know, so proper. Right. She's never had a drink in a wrong probably. No, she went to college. No, she was great and I think we're both excited.

I think we're both nervous because, you know, despite singing and doing it in the shower and, you know, I've not done a musical since high school. Doing what in the shower? Oh, oh, singing in the shower. doing singing in this. I'm not... A certain wink there. Yeah, I haven't, you know, I haven't done a musical since high school.

Yeah. Even though I, in part of my college training, I did have to take jazz ballet tap, and I did have to sing. It's, that's a, that is a muscle, absolutely, that you have to, you know, practice and work on. But I'm excited to get back into piano because I've always felt pretty comfortable at a piano. Yeah. But, yeah.

It does seem like each of these roles, I mean, you're, I don't know if it's conscious they're unconscious like it's like there's a skill set that you're like trying like whether it's changing your body we're acquiring a skill for a time like that's part of the yeah yeah I've always been pretty diverse in that I you know I played sports but I was also in drama and I also you know as my dad describes it as you know because you know we're we're tellers like we're the tellers you know so obviously so but he said a trademark of the tellers that you're pretty good at every bar game but you're not great at any of but you can you can you can hand handle yourself in all darts, ping pong, pool.

And yeah, I've always had an interest for a lot of stuff and you want to feel like you're good at, you kind of want to be good at everything and then you realize, oh, I'm never gonna be as good at guitar as that guy or this and that. You kind of find the stuff that keeps you occupied and that you enjoy doing. You just need to look good for 30 seconds in a take.

And then that's it. It's permanent. Exactly. I mean, that really is like a great, great thing because you can do one thing and then it's there. It's there forever. So is there a bar game that I should... Except for VHSs, those are done.

If you made a movie that's on VHS, sorry, guys. Nobody will ever see it. Fantastic Four's coming directed to VHS, I think. Which is a strange move by Fox. It's coming direct. It really just downloads right to your brain as soon as we, as soon as it comes out.

Video on demand and brain. What's the bar game I should not then challenge you to you? Ping pong. Oh, yeah. You're a ringer? You know, I don't know, but then I meet some people that are like, Oh, no, I'm really good at ping pong, and then you play them, and they are, so I'm... You go with ping pong, you don't call table tennis.

Pool, my buddy always used to beat me, and we used to play for... I was to go to this place called Manatee Lanes, obviously, because I'm from Florida, and I was from, lived in the Manatee Capital World, and we used to always play for, like, Taco Bell, and maybe like a beard. I say this, I'm in high school, but it was like, you know, and he, yeah, he always beat me in that. But ping pong, I'm pretty good in... Okay. I'm actually really good in.

beer pong. I've heard of this game. Yeah. Yeah. It combines your two great loves, ping pong and beer. Right, except there's no, it really has nothing to do ping pong, not real. Except for, maybe you play on some old warped table that's like. Have you created a whole game center in the Poetial Teller estate that's, I'm sure, building up from the ground that they're erecting? My estate is with two buddies from high school.

You're living with a couple friends? At any given time, there's probably a Pizza Hut box on the counter and Saracha in somewhere it shouldn't be like your bathroom you know what I mean so I'm not moving out I'm going to say they might find out about this now but I'm moving out in February oh no yeah no it's the end of an era for you yeah it's a good thing it's like you just need it's time it's time

man I left that's a sideways what uh New York versus L.A you've spent time in both where do you come down you know I love when I first moved LA I hated it because I was looking for the things in New York I was looking for life and you know tenacity and and art and culture and all the stuff and not that LA doesn't have that but you have to really kind of find it and it's a big city and and you don't see people walking around you don't have that kind of instant right just human interaction energy and all that and but what I love about LA now is that I do find it to be just so relaxing such a place

for like neutral and a great place to kind of recharge totally because it is you know Everybody talks about the weather, but yeah, when it's 72 degrees outside and sunny every day, it's like, you know, that's nice. And I'm traveling so much that I don't want to, you know, I don't know if I could come back to New York after, you know, just being somewhere traveling for so much and really unwind. Although I do, you know, ideally I would like to have a place on both coast. So we'll see if I can, you know. Figure it all out. But, yeah, they're both. Every time I come back to New York, I'm like,

it's the best. It's the best city in the world. It really is. And I've only been to three other cities, but New York is my favorite. Tampa, Toronto, and New York. Or in the top three? No. I just went to Europe for the first time. I've never even been to Europe.

Paris for this Doville Film Festival. We went to Paris first. And I love Paris, but I mean, I just need. York you can't you can't beat it except for in the winter then you can there's it's very easy to beat it there's not like there's a caveat somebody like oh it's so pretty around Christmas time that's what tourists say like no once you're it depends on your walk like I used to have to walk 20 you know it's like a 20 minute walk to school every day and it's just the wind once the wind starts swimming down the extremes here are

not good the August and the harshest days of winter so do you want to take a dip into the hat random question or two they're random questions one or two and then I'll let you work out for six hours, whatever you're doing today. Yeah, were you ever grounded him for what? My whole life. I was always getting trouble, man. I, um, shit. What's the longest? What was the worst infraction? There was a cut. I mean, one,

I would just always get caught for stuff. Like I was always, I'd go drinking in high school and I'd just keep beer cans in my, or keep beer tabs in my pockets. So, like, obviously you were drinking. I'm like, uh, yeah, but one year for Christmas they were putting like a speaker system in my trunk of my car and so they had to take my car to Best Buy to do it and they opened the trunk and there's just

like a ton of natural light boxes so there was that also stupidly me and my buddies went because somebody told us like you can just dress up in a little league uniform and go around asking for donations and people pay you so I typed up this letter

saying you know we're from Lakanto whatever and we're accepting donations for this tournament this like weightlifting tournament and typed it up and sign it we me and my two boys went door to door and made like 150 bucks and then I went to one door and the guy recognized me from baseball knew it wasn't whatever season we were saying we were doing and got in trouble for that because that's like and then we had to go our parents made us go door to door and return them and tell us and tell people we're sorry for stealing for that's the worst the walk of shame I was wondering why

you were just like a little league baseball player right now and have your handout right well dude A lot of people work here. There's some serious coin to be made, okay? And I just look good at small search right now because I'm working on... You're accentuating every curve. Right, yeah, exactly. Relaxed her up because I've had to... Since April, I've lost 20 pounds.

Crazy, man. Yeah. What's the workout like? It's just a lot. I mean, so much of its diet, like, it really is. But, yeah, I'm down to, I think I'm at, like, 10% body fat and 168 pounds. And by the time the movie starts, I'll be down to, like, 160. five and, you know, like six percent

five of. Boxers. When you're in that, there's probably nothing else you're thinking of. Oh, I'm thinking about a ton of stuff. I'm thinking about Taco Bell and like a beach and all kinds and stuff, man. Like, but it is. I mean, for an actor to even fake like a boxer, you have to be in such a regimen.

It's like these guys, the work ethic of a professional fighter is unlike anything you've ever seen. And it's if I had that, if I wanted to do that, I would do that for, like, I don't I'm an actor. So I like to do it for a little bit and then check out. But this has been kind of since April that I've been

slowly starting to transform. Transform to pour our eyes, buddy. Congratulations, honestly, on What Flash. It's one of my favorites of the year and you and JK are just fucking awesome in it. Thank you. Good luck of the rest of the way and I'll see you see you, buddy. Cool. Thanks, ma'am. Awesome. Hey, Michael.

Hey, Tom. You want to tell him? Or you want me to tell him? Or you want me to tell him? No, no, no. I got this. People out there. People lean in. Get close. Get close. Listen, here's the deal. We have big news. We got monumental news. We got snack-tacular news. After a brief hiatus, my good friend, Michael Ian Black, and I are coming back. My good friend, Tom Kavanaugh and I are coming back to do what we do best. What we were put on this earth to do. To pick a snack. To eat a snack. And to rate a snack.

scientifically, emotionally, spiritually. Mates is back. Mike and Tommy snacks is back. A podcast for anyone with a mouth. With a mouth. Available wherever you get your podcasts.