Happy Sad Confused - Woody Harrelson, Jack Black, Melanie Lynskey, and Elijah Wood

Episode Date: January 25, 2017

"Happy Sad Confused" (in the person of Josh Horowitz) has hit the road this week to take you to the Sundance Film Festival. So don't worry about scoring a ticket or trekking to Utah we've got you covered with three conversations straight from the historic launching pad of indie films. First up, it's Woody Harrelson, who memorably plays the title character in the Daniel Clowes adaptation, "Wilson". But we couldn't let Woody go without talking a little Star Wars (he was recently cast in the forthcoming Han Solo film). Josh finds out if Woody knows what kessel run is and discovers why the actor stays away from urinals at all costs.  Surprisingly Star Wars was also on the mind of Jack Black in this episode (find out how he ranks all the films here). Black made a triumphant return to Park City, starring in the hilarious fact based comedy, "The Polka King". Finally, we welcome two newcomers to the show but they're veterans of Sundance, Melanie Lynskey and Elijah Wood. Josh chats with the pair about their new black comedy for Netflix, "I Don't Feel at Home in This World Anymore". Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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Hey, guys, I'm Josh Horowitz, and yes, as I promised, I am in lovely park city, Utah, as I record this introduction, a lot of snow. there's this is this is legit snow here in Utah but it's not stopping me from seeing an insane amount of movies I've been having a blast here the last few days I've probably checked out like I don't even know like three average about three movies a day couple interviews and trying to survive the snow but that's what the Sundance Film Festival is all about

and we've got a bunch of cool interviews on this week's show and more to come next week because we're getting so much cool content so obviously unfortunately Sammy is not with me here. She'll be back on future episodes, of course. And I'll keep this brief because there's a lot of content coming straight at you. As I said, a little bit later on, we've got some really cool conversations with Elijah Wood and Melanie Winsky, who have a really cool new film coming on Netflix pretty soon, as well as Jack Black in a film called The Poca King, a hilarious movie that I just saw the other night. And first up is a newcomer to Happy,

said, confused. And I was so thrilled to talk to him. This is Woody Harrelson. Of course, Woody Harrelson, one of the most eclectic careers going in Hollywood. This guy just keeps turning out great films, great film after great film. And his new one, Wilson, is no exception. It is a new film from Fox Searchlight opening in March, and it debuted here at the Sundance Film Festival. A couple things to note about Woody and the context of these interviews. I do want to mention that like the audio is not going to be like the usual pristine happy say confused audio because these are not recorded in our lovely studio in New York rather for instance this Woody Haroldson interview is literally in a restaurant so you're going to hear a little ambient noise

the audio is still great but just so you know that's why you're going to hear like stuff in the background and also these are obviously kind of mini episodes these are mini interviews the good news is um I think uh you know Woody and I had a blast catching up and he seems game to do one of our like full on episodes uh down the line so look for that soon as for this conversation a lot about wilson this um this kind of strange quirky character he plays it's a it's a film based on the graphic novel uh from daniel claus who uh is most probably famous for ghost world that great film years back uh and similarly this is a film about um uh unique characters and and this is uh this is like witty really owns the screen in this in this film opposite uh laura durn um as his ex-wife and it's a really

fun piece of work i really enjoyed it and uh of course i couldn't let would he go without talking a bit about uh hans solo of course he's going to be playing hans solo's mentor in the future film uh to come and uh also a little bit about the war of the planet of the apes in which he plays the villain and that uh and also one last note we talk a little bit at the outset about his uh recent um live london film experience that he just directed and starred in a crazy endeavor that uh was his directing debut. So look for that online if you want to check it out, just like Google Woody Harrelson live London film and you'll be able to check it out.

But anyway, that's all the preamble for now. I'm going to toss to this interview and I'll see you on the other side and talk about the other cool guests on this week's Happy, Sad, Confused. And without further ado, here is me and Woody in a restaurant in Park City, Utah. Hope you guys enjoy. I'm joined by. Woody Harrelson chewing. This is what Sundance is all about, because we do interviews in bizarre places. This is happening live? Not live. You're being podcasted. Have you, have you podcasted before, Woody?

This is Woody Harrelson's podcast debut. This is historic. Congratulations on the film, man. It's a great piece of work. Congrats. Oh, thank you. Thank you. So talk to me a little bit about you. It seems like you're the busiest guy in showbiz right now. You're doing, you just did your, your live event over in London. You got the Star Wars News is burning up the internet. And you're premiering this. Are you maintaining your famous Woody Harrelson chill throughout all of this? You stressed? No, I have definitely... I mean, I got really stressed while I was shooting Lost in London.

You know, we shot it on Thursday morning. Well, really, I guess it was Friday morning. Yeah. And it live streamed here on Thursday. Anytime you're doing something for the first time, it's like, I mean, no one hadn't even done something like that. yeah that was the first time and it was really um it was intense you know for people who don't know what it was it was a thing where it was a script i wrote that we shot and then i

directed it shot it in 99 minutes in you know 14 locations with 30 actors throughout the the london you know london on streets and cabs all kinds of stuff and live streamed it simultaneously into cinemas in the States into over 500 cinemas. So it was a audacious endeavor. I was going to say, you're not making it easy on yourself as a first-time filmmaker.

Usually you start small with something like, I don't know, that has been done for 100 years and you're reinventing the forum the first time out? Woody, why are you hurting yourself? I'll never do that again. The stress level was off the charts. Yeah. I couldn't, I haven't had it.

still don't have a full night sleep, but I still wake up thinking about it. I dreamed last night. I was trying to, in the, I was trying to do the live stream and something wasn't working and the, you know, and it just, it's, it's, I know eventually it'll, it'll stop, but man. Well, maybe this is a good, maybe this is a good palette cleanser to be at Sundance with something like this that was so well received. Honestly, this is like, you know, you've played some great characters in your career and I feel like this automatically gets to, that's, this is top three or five of my favorite performances of you. It's pretty great.

Oh, that's cool. Yeah, I love the character. I love the movie. I thought Craig, you know, Craig Johnson, who directed it, is like, you know, I saw Skeleton Twins, and I thought he was, like, truly great, you know. That balance between comedy and drama. But this one, I just hoped would be, you know, almost as good, and I think it's just phenomenal. Yeah.

I don't know if it was you or Craig last night. I was at the premiere described Wilson as like a gregarious curmudgeon, which is kind of an interesting. And I think an apt description. And clearly, like, you know, the best roles is a stretch for you because you're clearly gregarious. I don't think of you as a curmudgeon necessarily. Yeah, that's true.

I'm not really a curmudgeon. One of the odd quirks of him is sidling up to somebody, like, you know, on a train when there are 80 other seats available. He's that guy that sits next to you and strikes up a conversation. Right. On the reverse, how many conversations have you had at urinals in your time where someone just sidles up next to you and decides this is the best opportunity to be friends with Woody Harrelson? Yeah, that has happened a good bit. That's why I usually try to go in stalls.

Yeah, no, that's something I learned earlier on. If it's possible, get in the stall. It's one of the things that I guess happens. Look, if there are some problems with celebrity, that's not a big one, but it's a small thing. It's not a big one. No, it's not that big a problem, but I do, that is one particular area, even though Wilson will do that. He would. I'm not into that so much. I like to focus while I'm in there. The job at hand. I don't need to be having conversation. You don't have a lot of time for multitasking at the bathroom. No, focus on one thing at a time.

Yeah, I can't talk and pee for sure. He also, it has like seemingly no filter. Like, whatever comes into his brain, he doesn't have that, that social. switch that we all have where we're like this might not be the best time to say this which has to be freeing for you as to play a character like that it's like all id all whatever it's unique right yeah I noticed while I was

doing it that I really started doing that more you know just like saying outrageous stuff because it passed through my brain which I do that anyway I do that a good bit but at least I do have some censorship so for my

censorship level to be kind of diminished because of the, you know, playing Wilson. Maybe a good byproduct. It was dangerous for me, but, oh man, was it, it was a fun experience. I love where we made it. We made it in Minnesota, and it was just the best time, summertime in Minnesota with all these amazing people. Ward Dern's amazing, and I heard you guys have a past play years back. Yeah, we did a play.

together that Jim Brooks directed and yeah I just I love that lady a lot so man what a performance yeah truly it's a great ensemble man and as someone was saying last night it's like a little episodic in a good way where like everybody got against Marga Martindale like suddenly has like a great scene like all these cool actors that pop in so I have to ask you I know you like you already got yourself into trouble maybe talking Star Wars yesterday the internet was like oh my god Woody Aronson has confirmed something I'm not going to go there but I'm just curious, like, were you a big Star Wars fan? This is so exciting for me, just to know that I'm a fan of yours and Star Wars, and to see those two combined. It's so cool. I like it, but I'm

not, like, you know, a rabid fan. Like, I mean, this is obviously, it's a franchise that has major, major fans. So I couldn't equate myself on that level, but I'm, I like it, and I'm glad to be a part of it. Did, like, if I asked you, like, what the Kessel Run is, do you know what I'm talking about. The Kessel Run? I think that's a no. It's not, it's okay. You got the part. They're not going to kick you out. I'm just curious. It might come up in the script. I don't know. I'm not, we'll see.

Sounds familiar. Did it take much convincing from, I mean, I love Phil Ward and Chris Miller are just awesome guys, so enthusiastic and so bright. Those guys were a big part of, because I think they're really talented. Yeah. And I wanted to work with them. and yeah there were people in my life

because I was feeling like I mean I'd just been kind of on the go quite a bit and I was really looking forward to just being home so I wouldn't plan it on another six months shoot Yeah and another three months of press This is a big one yeah So as much as I've enjoyed London I was really wanting to get home to Maui

Which I really enjoy And so it did take some prodding from some of the people who's advice I really know I really revere so but in the end I thought well this could be fun yeah I hope it is I'm sure it will be you didn't convince them to shoot I think those guys Chris and Phil

have the potential to make the best one yet I really do think they're really unique I mean if anyone can make like a great film out of a 21 Jump Street movie and the Lego movie. I mean, it's like, and it's true it's pretty cool. You didn't convince them to shoot part of it in Maui then. Did you try to? Han Solo is raised on a beautiful beach. I'm also really excited.

I saw a bunch of footage from the new Apes movie and that for my money is like Matt Reeves is a genius. I thought Don was amazing. Let me in. It was like an amazing movie. He's truly gifted that guy. You look like you're like a full-on Colonel Kurtz mode. You look like you're hardcore. Yeah, a little bit. I didn't want to, you know,

you know, I didn't want to be too much. I mean, that is kind of the type of character for sure. It's the shadow that that character has to live in, but I'm sure you're making it your own. And from what I gather, it's the kind of character that maybe we won't empathize with, but you'll see his side of the argument, perhaps. You'll see where he's coming from. I hope so. Yeah, good stuff. So you've been to Sundance before, I'm sure, over the years, right? What's that? Sundance. You were saying before we sat down, this is one of your favorites.

You like this festival? Oh, I love it. I think I've been here at least, you know, half a dozen times. Yeah. So what's the Woody Harrelson's secret to surviving Sundance, doing Sundance the right way? Well, I usually stay over in canyons and just, you know, so I'm a little out of the beaten pat.

Right. I don't like, I don't want to stay in the thick of it. Yeah, you need a break from the madness. Otherwise, you can really do some damage. And maybe sing a little bit with a Grateful Dead member from time to time. You did that last night, I heard. Yeah, with three members of the Grateful Dead. Amazing.

They're good friends. I've known those guys since, I don't know, like 1990 or something. So me and Bobby went to Thailand together. I've spent a good deal of time with those guys. But they've never asked me to come up. And then Bobby yesterday, I said, I'm going to come see you. He says, why don't you get up and do Heartbreak Hotel? I'm going to go, well, all right.

You're one of those guys that can't have a bucket list anymore because you're living this insane life, like, the people you've befriended. Does feel that way. Right? Yeah. Have you just given up and, like, see where the life takes you? Don't make, you know, don't make lists for yourself, just see where it takes you? Yeah, I don't need to make the list.

I mean, life just keeps surprising me with great stuff. I feel so blessed. Good stuff, man. Well, I'm really happy to catch up with you. So this is your podcast debut. Usually the podcast is a heart-to-heart, like, 45-minute thing. Next time you're in New York, let's catch up. Let's have a real, I want to make each other cry over 45 minutes.

You're a very good interviewer, man. I love interviewing with you. Thanks, buddy. We've probably at least three times. It's been a lot. I've been at MTV for 10 years, so you haven't been able to avoid me. Yeah, yeah. Stalking you slowly but surely.

I would love to, yeah, let's do that. Let's do it. When you're in town for Wilson, maybe. I'll catch up with you. Okay. Good to see you, buddy. Cool. Yeah, hey, please, man. We appreciate it.

This is Happy Sack Confused. We'll be right back after this. Hey, guys, it's Josh here again. I want to take a second to tell you guys about another podcast from MTV that I truly love called North Maliwood. It's hosted by Alex Papademus and Molly Lambert. And it's a really weird and hilarious look at TV and movies and a bunch of other bizarre stuff like mythical, undersea creatures, obviously. Alex and Molly are both super smart and hilarious,

and they get amazing guests in the studio like Andrew T. From Yosus Racist and Jonathan Gold, who's probably the most famous food critic in America. So seriously, guys, if you love Happy, Say, and Fuse, take a minute to go check out North Maliwood. You can find it right beside all of MTV's podcasts on iTunes, Stitcher, Google Play, or wherever you get your favorite shows.

Check it out. That was the one and only Woody Harrelson. Once again, Wilson, his great new film, opens on March 24th of this year. So you got a little time, but now you're in the know about this cool new flick. Moving on, this is another one of our great actors, another guy that's known for a really eclectic career,

and a returning guest to Happy Sank Confused. Of course, I'm talking about Jack Black, who is always a blast to talk to. His new film that just debuted at Sundance, where I'm at, It's called the Poca King. It's based on a true story. There's a documentary it's based on that I need to check out now because the story is just too bizarre.

Long story short, it's about a guy who kind of ran a Ponzi scheme and was also kind of like this crazy poker character. And so it's a film that's filled with a lot of music, as you would expect from a Jack Black film. A lot of kind of like big performances. Jason Schwartzman's great in it. he's got two films at Sundance himself and I just had a blast it was probably the one of my two favorite comedies I saw

at Sundance at least thus far I'm still seeing films here so yeah this interview is as funny as the movie of course Jack and I talk a bunch about actually this is the second interview today on Happy Second piece where we talk about Star Wars for some bizarre reason Star Wars came up a lot

so get ready for Jack Black's take on Rogue One and the Star Wars universe as well as Green Lantern, yes, way back when Jack was going to star in a Green Lantern film. So we reminisce a little bit about that. And of course, just what it's like to be at Sundance and be Jack Black and his great performance in the Poca King. So all of that coming at you right now with one of my favorite guys, Mr. Jack Black. Enjoy.

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Oh, look, it's Mr. Jack Black. hi it wouldn't be a sundance without the man the myth of the legend jbby jackie blackie what else do we call you um jables okay we can do that jiblinski i have no nicknames jiblinsk i would kill for just one cool nickname i got nothing ma'am you got something for me horor wits no no that's that's that you bring me back to high school oh sorry a lot of mocking that was not as yeah you got worthy of your talents the nicknames really got to come from love yeah if you want to if you want to keep Yeah, there's no love in my life, hence no nicknames. It's good to see you, my friend, though.

Jashay. I'll take it. Like jacke? Literally like Jashay? Jasha Lasha ding-dong. The Poka King was a nice break for me. I'll be honest. Thank you.

Because not only is it a great film on its own merits, but as you well know, Sundance, the percentage of drama and crying and touchy-feely people strolling the streets of New York. York thinking about their existence. There's a lot of that. Yeah, a lot of existential. Yeah. And I have enough of that in my life. I hear you. So the Pocke King, you're going to laugh.

There is, I mean, there's drama. It's a great story. Yeah. A great true story. No, but out of the gate, we got some good, there's some good yucks. Yeah. So this has to check all the boxes for you. It's got music.

It's got a, a charming man, but also a deluded man. Yeah. What do you tell me? What's the selling point? What is it? I mean, it's got all my favorite things. You got this guy singing these songs and he's singing him so passionately. I mean, he's on fire out there just like in the documentary.

This is how I was introduced to the character and the material. Before there was a script, there was this doc that I saw, The Man Who Would Be Polka King. And I saw like 10 minutes of this thing and I was like, oh, crap, I got to play this guy. This is the mother load. This is it. Yeah. And the accent.

You know how I love a good, juicy accent. You know what it is about an accent? It takes you further away from yourself. Right. And it's something you can kind of hide behind. And once you're inside of an accent, it frees you up to be a little crazy. A little crazy than normal. Just a little more relaxed and real because you're not worried about people judging you because you're not you.

You don't worry about judgment. Of course I do. Hey, listen, everybody worries about being judged. And being vulnerable. If you're really just being yourself in a character, then you're a little more vulnerable and you're a little more inhibited. Right.

Is my experience, you know. I first had a little taste of it with Nacho Libre. I got to get in that Hispanic accent. It was like a blast. I loved it. And a little bit of a little in this little indie I did Bernie. Totally. Great movie.

Is there an accent you can't handle that's out of your wheelhouse? what's your favorite what's your go-to accent what's your what's your what's a hardest accent um you know what you're you're known as the daniel de los of accents i don't naturally have any accents no they don't none of them come naturally i really have to go into the into the study workshop yeah and work them up i like to imagine that you actually have a workshop that you go into i have a rad lady actually yeah this is a secret accent guru to the stars i do have an accent guru to the star Nice. Well, it works.

Her name is Elizabeth Himmleston. Right. Does she have an accent? No. But she's got a very groovy way about her. She's a fun hang. But the thing about Elizabeth, you get in there to work on the accent, but by the time you're out of there, you realize you really have been working on the character, the whole thing. She really helps. She's a real good acting coach, turns out. Do you have newfound respect or do you always have respect for the polka? I never really considered polka.

I didn't have any of it on my iTunes library. Really? You don't have like 500 poker? Do you have any? No. No. I mean, you know what you know because of the stereotypical umpapa. Yes.

But, um, uh, I was thinking because it gets the Grammy category and you're always like, wow, they go deep. They go, like, everybody gets something. They don't do that category anymore. There's no more polka category. Yeah, he got nominated for one. As a Grammy winner yourself, do you feel that it's integrated, that it lowered the standard for your own Grammy by having a POCA category, or do you want to see it come back?

You've got to earn that category. I don't think it deserves a category right now. Let's be honest, a heavy metal doesn't really deserve a category anymore. What's the new medal? It's a short list. It's only like seven bands. Right. Yeah, somehow the Grammys get away with doing like...

Two thirds of them are going to get a nomination. It's like, come on, guys. Yeah, if you're starting a band right now, teenagers, go for the hard rock. You can tell what it's like, wait a second. Jethro Tull, winning the metal Grammy. That means the metal's done, right? Right, come on.

First of all, he's not metal. There's just no young, vibrant scene there really. But my secret motivation. up a Rondai, is that we bring polka back. Yes, it's time. Timberlake, let him bring sexy back. I'm bringing polka back. That's more of a challenge.

Of course, sexy's coming back with or without you, limbersnake. But imagine the power you have if you were able to do that. Exactly. This man can do anything. He could bring Trump down. We don't know. You could... This movie could save the world.

I mean, yeah, let's not overstayed it, but it could change the course of human existence. There's a real positive. positive energy that flows from the wellspring of polka music that I think people will respond to. It's a dark time. People thirst for positive music. You know, there's like, that's why happy. Who's saying happy? The guy with the house.

Perrette. There's a huge hit. It's a monster hit. By the way, I'm going to get fired from MTV for calling him the guy with the hat. Because people are like, yes, we love your hat. We love the happiness that you bring us. And that's what Polka can bring, too. You know that feeling you had when you heard that song?

Absolutely. And you saw that hat? We'll get ready for a lot of them all of that. Are you ready to throw your name back in the hopper for a Green Lantern now that they're casting again? We've talked about this in the past. You're sadly never to be seen Green Lantern film. Well, they're looking for a Green Lantern, Jack. Look, I never threw my hat in, okay?

I don't want it to sound like I was begging them to let me be the lantern. I'm just saying. Maybe that is how it went down. You know what? You did your time. You did the research. You know the character. I don't, yeah, no.

It's not really something I wake up every morning thinking, God, if only that was, yeah. Have the Marvel or DC food? It would have been fun back in the day when I read that. Smigel wrote a really funny script. And I was like, I'll do that. It's one of those products for me. And they said, yes. And you know what?

Let's be honest, they probably made the right decision. That was a golden turkey, if ever I smelled one. Have the Marvel or DC folks ever come calling? Have you met with them about a role? Yeah, they're dying to find the right superhero for me. It's like, we haven't found it yet. You could also be the bad guy. You could be there are a lot of roles.

That's true. No, no. What about Star Wars? Can you see yourself in a Star Wars movie? Would you buy yourself in a Star Wars movie? No. That's not a thing that they need. Unless they're thinking, we need a new, like, Jar Jar Binks type of character.

You know I do a great job. J-Jar. Impression. Let me hear it. Missau-J-J-J-J-J-R, Jack. I just lost my five listeners. I mean, maybe they're, you know, if they're looking for a franchise-killing character,

yeah, that's where I could step in. Maybe after, like, another 10 years of, like, billion dollars, they're, like, tired of all the money, and they bring you in as, I don't know what alien. But while we're on the subject, please. I'm just going to say... Yeah. That last one, what was it called?

Orce Awakens? Or no, Rogue One. Rogue One. Yeah? What's your review? Go for it. Best one. It was really good. I don't know if that's one, but it was top tier for me. Okay, you're right. It's not the best if you compare it to how you felt when you first saw Star Wars. I don't know. Empire Strikes Back still... And Empire Strikes Back. And Empire Strikes Back. Both of those are better.

Yes. But other than those two? Yeah, I would put it up there. It's number three. It's not up there. It is absolutely number three. Which one did you see that you were like, ugh. Well, I have controversial, this, I don't even want to go here, but I kind of like some of the prequels a little bit. Well, yes, the answer is yes, because number four in my book?

Yeah, Phantom Mattis, what? Is number three? Oh, Revenge of the Sith. Is that what it was? Is that what you're talking? You're talking prequel? I'm talking about the one where Darth Vader was born when you first got put in and then get...

Revenge of the Sith. Yeah, that's the one. Because it gets dark. You get to see him kill children. That's all you ever want out of Darth Vader. I just like seeing him go toe to toe with Obi-Wan on the lava flow. I didn't think this is we were going to go here. I apologize.

So when I tell people to watch Star Wars, what's your order? You start with that one, the Sith, okay. You start with episode three. Yes. Then you go Rogue One. Okay. You could have confused a lot of people. Then you go Star Wars, episode four, and five.

Did you? And that's it. You don't need to see any other stars. Did you start your children with the prequels or the original? The originals. Or have your children not seen? My children were not really interested in Star Wars But I took them to Rogue 1

And they were down They were into it What's the... Okay, segueing back to where we are, this crazy... You know what I think about the Rogue 1? Yeah It really is like a war It's a fucking war movie

In a way that none of them's... They all die at the end. Dude, I can't believe you did that. That's the ultimate spoiler. Yeah. That's the definition of a spoiler. But yeah, my jaw was fucking on the floor. I was like, did they really kill...

Like after two or three of them you're like Like you're gonna kill the next one too? Really? And it was so awesome. I loved it. The secret to experiencing Sundance in the right way As you sit in front of me, you got the shades, you got the down jacket, that's clearly part of it. You yawn when you get tired, you hydrate. What do you do?

What does Jack Wack do to have the amazing Sundance experience? The amazing Sundance, but it all comes down to your boots. You need some really good. I got some kick-ass. Cerelles. Nice. I hate to do a commercial for Cerell. I'm wearing them too. They've given me nothing. But I like to get some good

warm, but not too hot. A lot of people make the too hot mistake. Right. The triple wear of socks? You'll be fine. I don't need no fucking layers. No. I have one pair of socks on. You put on your fucking comfy-de-close and some beutes because you're gonna

it gets slippery out there. It does. You will break your cocks ex-bone if you wear a fucking Adidas You put on your serrilles Your regular clothes Right And then put a fucking coat on

And a hat, done But do you prefer this client? Sunglasses Yeah, yeah, obviously I'm not doing that But I'm going to warn from the best going forward Stay hydrated Always got it

Even if you're not thirsty You drink the water You prefer this climate Over the Jumanji shoot That seemed like a fun one I enjoyed Hawaii Pretty good Did you train in the Iron Paradise

With Dwayne Did you experience Wayne did not invite me into the iron sphere of exercise routine. I did pick his brain, though. Yeah? I did like his routine. He's got it figured out. You think?

Yeah, yeah. He knows what he's doing, obviously. But I'd check out and see what he was snacking on. It was just like chicken breast? What's he doing? He's just fucking, no. Yeah, he gets to another level. First of all, white rice.

You'd think it would be brown rice. No, no. I've been doing it wrong. Switch over to white, because that's the way. The rock does it. And then what kind of meat? Buffalo, bro. Bison, yes.

Bison with a little bit of like, it looks like a little gravy sauce. Does he, how many, does he get to have a cinnabond every once in a while? It looks like a delicious. Zero cinnabonds. See, I can't do it. That's where...

You and I were just not going to do that. That's what separates the rocks from the Horowitz's. Did he try and convince you to get on social media? He's the king of social media. Yeah, he did not try to do that, But I did feel very competitive with him. You got Kevin there, too.

And I also, like, a media. They had me coming from both sides, just kicking my ass. And I was like, fuck this. I will beat you at your own game. And I step my game up considerably. Right. I might want to check out my Instagram. That's not true.

You don't have an Instagram. My Instagram is fucking on fire right now. Oh, you do? Okay. Next stop, Snapchat and Twitter. It's a lot. I'm not tweeting. Okay.

That seems like, a lot of pressure to do something every day. Yeah. I don't need that. Yeah. What can we expect out of Jumanji? I'm excited about this one. Does it feel sequel-ish, reboot-ish?

Chubange! Is not sequelish. It really is, I mean, it's classic reboot, you know. But it's the same universe in that we make reference to Robin Williams' character. You know his name. It goes without saying that character's name

Alan Of course it's Alan Anyway moving on Alan Parrish Of course it's Alan Parrish Nobody all might just whispered that to me I'd remember that We have a lot going on between two of us

Come on It's altitude sickness But it's gonna be Rebootish Here's the main difference And you can look forward to Where Jumanji the original takes place in the real world

and you see the game creeping out of the edges of the book I mean of the game box thing and you know that Robin Williams Keller Alan Parrish gets sucked into the game and he's like in there for 40 years or something

20 years right whatever they said big beard the only hands know but you never get to see what his experiences was like in the jungle of Jumanja well this whole movie takes place in the jungles of Jumanja I'm sorry. And it's very exciting in a way that I don't think they could have pulled off back in the days of the original.

So I think people will be stoked. And also the conceit that it's actually these kids, these high school kids. So it starts off kind of like the breakfast club. Right. Where these kids are all thrown together in detention for different reasons. And they are not friends. They don't fit together. Right. But then, from the catacombs of the attic at the school, they find this old dusty game, Jumanji.

And they get sucked in to the jungles of Jumanji. And their avatars are us. Yeah. It's very clever. It was a well-crafted script. I'm excited to... I was stoked to inhabit the character of a 16-year-old girl. I think that's what I'm playing. Oh, that's amazing. It's pretty rad. Well, if nothing else, I'm excited to catch up with that group.

You and Jwayne and Kevin and Karen, they're all awesome. So looking forward to that one, man. As always, great to catch up. Great to catch up with you. What's my new nickname again? You're at Josh Alasha Ding Dong. Okay, this is Josh Alash Ding Dong signing off with Jack Black from Sundance. Good to see you, buddy.

Take care. There's more happy, sad, confused coming up after this break. That was the great Jack Black. The film is the Poca King. You can't see it yet, sadly. It just premiered here at Sundance, but as I record this intro, I don't think it's sold yet, but I guarantee it will sell, and it will be available to see hopefully very soon because as I said, it's one of my favorites I've seen at the festival thus far.

As is the next film we're going to talk about. So the last interview on this week's edition of Happy Sack Confused is surprisingly two people I've never had on the show. That's kind of bizarre because I love them both so much and I have talked to them a bunch over the years just not for the podcast um elijah wood uh and melanie linsky uh are both kind of sundance staples regulars they're always there with cool products um and uh and this this new film is is was actually an opening night film and uh i loved it it's directed by this guy named macken blair who you may know from uh germy solnier's films like blue roon and green room and now he's directing a film all

on his own and it's very much in that vein um maybe a little bit more comedic than Jeremy Solnay's films it's really dark twisted a lot of violence but very funny really like black comedy really good stuff and it's called I don't feel at home in this world anymore yeah a long title but worth remembering it comes out on Netflix February 24th and it's great Melanie Linsky basically stars in it as a woman that's just kind of fed up with the world and how just rude everybody is it starts out with this great montage of just for being like annoyed by like all the small things all the small rude things that everybody in this world does uh i think very relatable in 2017 and she kind

of teams up with elijah wood who uh i can guarantee plays a role you've never seen him do before he's got a weird rat tail for a hairstyle throws ninja stars uh and they kind of team up to kind of get um some righteous revenge right some wrongs um and as i said super entertaining so uh this is a conversation with the two of them in Park City, Utah. As I say in the in the conversation to come, these guys will hopefully come back for a longer chat. Each of them deserves an episode all on their own. But in the meantime, I hope you guys enjoy this chat with two of my favorite actors. Melanie Linsky, the great Melanie Linsky, who we finally did a happy, said, confused photo for. She wanted it, and it's on there. It's on the Instagram. It's on the Twitter. Check it out.

Immortalized forever. And Elijah would. Enjoy this. And we'll see you guys with another Sundance special next week on Happy Sack Confused. First of all, neither of you have been on my podcast yet, and this is absurd because one of these days we're doing kind of like mini episodes for Sundance. So this is just a amuse-boosh before you both come back in New York when you have some time, and then we'll get the true heart to heart. The invitation stands for both of you. That sounds great.

Yeah. Okay. That being said... I didn't realize you had a podcast. So insulting, so hurtful. Is it? No, it's all good. It's all good, buddy.

Is it your... What's the name of the podcast? It's called Happy Set Confused. You know the photos I do with you, right? So you've really created something. I've branched out. Yeah, I love it. It's my own little Mark Maron nerdist kind of thing in the jiggy.

And as a result, do you end up having conversations, given that it's called HappySad Confused? Is it more than just people sort of promoting their thing? And you get into sort of a discourse, that delves into human emotion? No, there's no human emotion in this body, as you should know by now. No, you know me. Obviously, I come from a geeky standpoint

and I just want to like nerd out, basically. So it's somewhere in between, I feel like Maron's kind of touchy-feely where he can make you break down and cry. You both have done Maron, I think, right? She's one of my favorite episodes. Yeah, yeah. It was intense. Very, but it was like a therapy session for both of you.

I know. We really connected. Luckily, we only have. have like 10, 15 minutes, so we can't possibly connect in that deep away right now. No, no, I talked him for like two and a half hours. Was it really? Wow.

Amazing. So, congrats on the film guys. You saw on social media. I really, really dug it. Oh, dude, thanks. Thank you for being so nice about it. Of course. Directing debut of a Macon Blair,

who people might know from Jeremy Solnier's great films. Talk to me a little bit about how you guys got involved. What's the selling point? What's the big thing about this one? I got involved. I was a huge fan of Makins. Pretty traditionally, I got the script. I read it.

I loved it. I had a Skype meeting with him. I crossed my fingers and prayed that it would work out. And miraculously, it did. I think they offered it to so many people before me. It went down a really different track. Oh, is that right? They were just trying to get financing.

Yeah. So, you know, people were like, you need a name, you need this person, that person. So I think they went in a lot of different directions. And then a year ago, Macon had a meeting with Netflix. And he was, I think at that point, he was a little burnt out. And he just was like, this is how I want to do it. Here are my dream actors. And Netflix is awesome.

And they were like, great. You both have some really fun material to chew on in this one. I mean, to say the least. I mean, Elijah, just like from the look of your character from the get-go, we know we're in for someone a little unique, a little interesting. Yeah. Whose idea was kind of the rat tail in the, that was making nice very early on it was an idea he's like i think he has a rat tail um yeah he

had a lot of specific it was my first rat tail he had a lot of what's that it's a right of passage kind of yeah i really loved it a lot it kind of you know it's those things that make you sort of feel even more like somewhere that you're not which is great right tony kind of came alive with those elements and the ninja star also you're probably your first time on screen throwing one of those first time that was a that was kind of a childhood dream come true because I used to love, I was obsessed with ninjas when I was a kid, and I'd get, like, you know, fake throwing stars and stuff, so I got to live out that fantasy. It was awesome. So, I mean, Melanie, you talk about, like, you know, having them gone down different paths. Like, so what's, I mean, I can see what's appealing about this character and what's appealing about this story in a, you know, in a shorthand. I feel like it had kind of that, it has that kind of extreme violence and absurdity to it at times, has kind of a Cohen brother's kind of a vibe to me. Does this be like new material for you in terms of this character?

Yeah, it really, it felt very new for me. It just felt like a new type of character. I hadn't seen anyone like her before. And I love that she was like out for vengeance, but for such a great reason. I just, I loved everything about it. I love that she just wants people to stop being assholes. And just, I love that. Yeah, and there was something just so beautiful to me

the kind of awkwardness and, you know, the way she goes about it is so kind of clumsy and beautiful. Right. I just really, I loved it so much. I love the, I mean, it kind of, the opening kind of montage, which sets up that kind of premise that, like, I feel like we all feel at various times, if not every day, which is, why the fuck is everybody around me like a jerk and asshole? Why can't people just act like human beings?

Yeah. Why does it have to be so difficult? Can't we just get along and just be human beings to each other? Yeah, I'm still. astonished when I hold a door open for a stranger and they just walk on through. Me too. I'm still like wow. Every time someone lets

me in traffic I always put my hand up for thanks. Yeah me too. Yeah it's a serious lack of awareness that people have of other people. It's a selfishness and it's just inconsiderate. I can't. That's the stuff like when people

ask about pet peeves or things that make you angry it all is under the same umbrella. Lack of consideration. Lack of consideration for others. Like, it's the worst. In that way, sadly, it feels like a very timely film. I mean, in that, I feel like the world we're living in in the political realm, et cetera, like it's embracing these kind of baser values, these more selfish kind of values. So when's the last time you, you guys both don't strike me as people that explode generally at people, at yourselves. Do you have your exclusive moments? I can imagine. Are you doing that?

Oh, really? Melanie, you have your moments? Well, I don't really have my moments, but sometimes I can be, like, pushed. Because I don't say things for a long time. I put up with a lot. Right. And then I really, like,

there have been a few times, not very often, but I really lose it. And does it come with people you love or people that strangers? People that I love. Yeah. People that I love. You know they'll come back to you. Yeah.

And it's usually after a long time of just being like, that's okay. All right, okay. I don't need to say any. Okay. And then I'm like, this is impossible, you know. And you were saying before, you're pretty easygoing. You don't, it doesn't really.

I don't explode. I don't have it in me, I don't think. But I'm similar in the sense that I'll put up with things for a bit without saying anything. I've gotten a lot better at that, the older I've gotten. Right. But yeah, I don't get angry. It's not a thing I have in me, I don't think. Have you ever told off?

I get very emotional. Yeah. I get angry, like it's almost crying at the same time. Like it's too much for my body to handle. Right, which ruins the moment. You're trying to be powerful and tell somebody off and you're like a tear is streaming down. And like lips quivering because it's just too much. I can't handle it. Have you ever had to tell off an interviewer, someone that overstepped their bounds that asked an inappropriate question? Do you leave that to Team Wood, team Elijah Wood to kind of drop the hammer? God, there is no such thing. Certainly I would never call them that.

I've heard what you say. It's just Brianna in there. No, I don't know if I've ever, or I would just say I don't want to answer that. Yeah, I don't know if I've ever had that thing, really. So talk to me a little bit about, I think I've talked to you both multiple times. It was very inappropriate. Sorry, I'll see, you're so good. Yeah, I'm going to leave now. I don't feel good anymore.

So Sundance passed. I talked to you both multiple times at Sundance, I feel like over the years. But I've never done Happy Side Confused. I know. You haven't? No. I know. That is going to change today.

Nope. Oh, is it? Have you felt left out? Yeah. Oh, Melanie. Because I see her Instagram and I see all the stars. I understand that I'm not very famous. That's, come on.

Oh, my God. This pity party has to stop right now because we revere you, both Elijah and I. Right? And I just haven't had a, we haven't talked in a few years, to be fair. It has been a while. Yeah. It has been a while. And I've only been doing the photo series in a while.

So I hope you've been prepping because I want to see you bring your A game today after the interview. Okay, I'm going to do it. Do you have a, has Sundance changed? I mean, this is kind of the question I feel like we ask every year, kind of the evolution of Sundance over the years. I've been coming for, it's my 11th.

So I've definitely seen some trends come and go. Does it feel familiar to you at this point or different or what? Are you speaking to the films that are the programming? Whatever way you want. I mean, like whether it's like the flag or the films or the, it's certainly gotten bigger and there are kind of more swag houses,

although that seems to have diminished a little bit. I feel like it hit peak like five or six years ago, right? Yeah, it reached a crazy peak and now it seems kind of a lot smaller, which is great because I can't stand that stuff. And it just takes away from the reason we're all here. We're here to celebrate other artists and films. The thing that I think has changed in regards to the programming, though, is there's

a, I don't know, there's more diversity in the sections, you know, things that I'm noticing this definitely was genre films. Yes. Genre films used to typically be relegated to midnight only. And now they're bleeding into the other categories, which I think is wonderful. There's just, you kind of can't peg things as much as you used to. And I love that. I love that things are kind of, it's a little bit more equal opportunity

and people are being exposed to films that they may not have otherwise. And I think that's really exciting. It also feels like, this is going to debut on Netflix, right, in February, which is very cool. I'm glad I got to see it on the big screen. So are we. Right? And I mean, what are you, I mean, how do you feel about this kind of like evolving question for actors and filmmakers and film lovers alike where like, you know, most people, you're going to, look, you're going to get way more people seeing this, frankly, thanks to a platform like Netflix.

Is there any kind of sentiment towards the big screen experience and that this film won't necessarily probably get as much, if any, at all, exposure that way? Or are you kind of cool with kind of making that bargain in exchange where you'll see the work that you're proud of? well I do love that we got to have this festival experience and the experience of seeing it on a big screen but the reality is with a small movie it doesn't show in very many places and it doesn't show for very long so the majority of people who are going to see it are going to see it on some kind of streaming platform anyway and so I think to have it positioned as best as possible and put out by Netflix and just released you know at the same time to millions and millions of people it's really giving

the film the best chance to succeed. I'm so excited. Yeah. I would say also that this and I mean this as a compliment this kind of fits into my category of at least slightly or mostly fucked up filmmaking. Like it's a little fucked up in a great way. It is. Right? And I know you have an

appetite for that. That's like your jam. Absolutely love it, yeah. I don't know about whether like is this necessarily fit into, are you a fan of the fucked up film genre? Will you love Green Room? I did love Green Room. I love Blue Row and. Yeah, I love a lot of different kinds of movies. Yeah. Good stuff, good stuff.

Well, as I said, this is just a tease of what's to come. An important thing to note, too, about the Netflix thing. You know, there's obviously our perspective on it. But for Macon, like that, the movie that we made with him that he wanted to make would not have happened had it not been for Netflix. Totally. That's... The creative control was incredible.

I mean, I've been on tiny budget movies where the financiers have tried to come, you know. And how do we feel about the title? The title is a bit to mouthful. I love the title. I love it. It was always this title from the get-go? Well, it initially was. Yeah, it was the first thing that was discussed.

I love it. I'm super into it. There were titles, while we were making the film, it was called the Untitled Make and Blair film. He had written the title and had thought of the title while he was writing the script, because it's based on the song. But he thought, oh, no one's ever going to let me.

have this super long title and so there was a long, long discussion back and forth between all the producers and there's a huge grab bag of different options that never really resonated and it kind of came back to, I had not heard, I don't feel at home in this world anymore

until we were like midway through production and I heard that and I was like, wait, that's it. That's it it's how she feels. It's about Ruth and her existential emotional experience. Totally. That's how the movie begins and how it ends and it's how we see the movie through her eyes.

It has to be that. And it also says so many other things. And I love that it's fucking long. It's unique, like everything about the film. Absolutely. Everybody should check it out in February on Netflix. I don't feel at home in this world anymore. Dot, dot, dot, dot, anymore.

Congratulations on the film, guys. It's a great piece of work. It's good to see both. You ready for happy second fuse? Are you ready for this? Yes. Okay, we're doing it. 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 pressured to do this by Josh. This episode of Happy Sad Confused was produced by Michael Catano, James T. Green, Mukda Mohan, and Kashamahailovich for the MTV Podcast Network, with additional engineering by Little Everywhere. You can subscribe to this and all of our other shows

on iTunes, Stitcher, Google Play, Spotify, or wherever else you find your favorite podcasts. Now is the chance to use reliable energy to grow your money with the Dominion Energy Reliability Investment. Our new investment product offers competitive returns, no maintenance fees, and flexible online access to your money. Make the reliable investment in reliable energy, the Dominion Energy Reliability Investment. To find out more, go online to ReliabilityInvestment.com. That's reliabilityinvestment.com. 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, Timothy Shalame, playing power ping pong in Marty Supreme. Let's not forget Emma Stone and Jorgos' Borgonia. Dwayne Johnson, he's coming for that Oscar. In The Smashing Machine, Spike Lee and Denzel teaming up again, plus Daniel DeLuis's return from retirement. There will be plenty of blockbusters to chat about, too. Tron Aries looks exceptional, plus Mortal Kombat too, and Edgar writes the running man starring Glenn Powell. Search for Raiders of the Lost podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube.