SmartLess - "Oscar Isaac"

Episode Date: October 27, 2025

Get your claws out: it’s Oscar Isaac. Memory, dance belts, Travis picking, and the buddy system. The river doesn’t dam itself… on an all-new SmartLess. Subscribe to SiriusXM Podcasts+ to listen to new episodes of SmartLess ad-free and a whole week early. Start a free trial now on Apple Podcasts or by visiting siriusxm.com/podcastsplus. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Can I just be shameless and say what I'm actually really excited for? Can I just say it? Yeah. I'm really excited for our live show. Oh. I'm nervous. I'm nervous. I always get nervous about it.

Are you guys nervous about it? You're talking about the one that's coming up November 15th out there at the Hollywood Bowl? I'm very nervous about it. That's the one where people can go to smartlist.com slash live to get tickets. That's the one I'm talking about. Wait, what's the what's? It's smartless. It's where I would go if I wanted to buy a ticket to it.

That's where you'd go if you want it. But anyway, I'm nervous about it. Because it's going to be the Hollywood Bowl, and we've got a couple of good guests. I had a bowl of honeynut shirios for... Okay, great. All right. Let's get to an all-new smart list. What do you guys?

You know, when you're scheduling something. I've got a, I'm doing a pod, I'm doing a record. How do you refer to what we're doing right now when you talk to other people? I just record, I say record. I say record, I say record, or sometimes, or I'll say I have to record a smart list. Yeah, I got a smartless.

It's a long version. I've said, I've said pod a couple of times, and it feels terrible. Yeah, of course it does. Well, sounds terrible. Yeah. Hey, what about the three of us get to put our chest and faces on each other on Sunday? for the first time in forever.

What do you mean? We're all going to have dinner on Sunday? Yeah. All right, good. I don't think Amanda's going on. Amanda's not. So I actually have an out. But I was thinking since you guys are going to be there.

Well, you better be there. I'm going to be solo too this Sunday. So it's going to be. Really? So we're going to have, yeah. Jason, will you be? Yeah. Do you want me to wear something special?

Yeah. I want you to pick me up. I want you to pick and open my door. And I'm going to wear that thing that you. Yeah, that I was asked for. No, I got it. Hey, we saw, we missed you last night. I was over there, Willie, last night with Jay.

Are you worried? Yeah, just for a quick bite. Quick bite. How was that? Yeah. It was good. Oh, good. Okay.

Okay. Okay. Okay, good. So you guys had dinner? Well, we're having dinner tonight. That's right. Me and Willie are having dinner. You guys going to go to JAR?

It doesn't matter. Yes. How did you know that? Truly? Yeah. Yeah. You want to go or no? Well.

Nah, we're going to see each other Sunday. You can come. Come. Thank you. It's going to be fun. Yeah, because I haven't hung out with Carolyn yet, really. Oh, sorry, can I say that? Oh, boy. Oh, well, the Internet's saying it, so I think we can.

I don't know. Wait, what did we talk about last night, say? Oh, yeah. We talked about, hey, well, have you seen this alter ego thing? I was talking about at the table where it's a new device, it's like an AI device and you put it in the back of your ear. Yeah, listen to this. This sounds like a nightmare.

And all, whenever you, whatever you think of, it translates into audio. Audio. Yeah, audio text. You imagine that? Like basically having a microphone on in your brain? That's a nightmare. Yeah. But, I mean, only if you turn it on.

Like, you don't, it's not like you do. You know, I would, I would venture to say people would pay thousands and thousands of dollars to have that eliminated if that was something that was stuck on. Most people. Imagine. But it's, but it's, but it's. When things' thoughts were vocalized, the jails would be full. And they'd empty their accounts to get rid of it. Yeah.

But, I mean, it's volunteer. It's not like stuck to your head. No, I understand that. I'm just saying they're going to have a tough time saying, kill J.B, kill J.B, kill J.B, kill J.B. For this new device. That just sounds like a... I hope Jason misses this pot. I hope Jason misses this pot.

Hey, did I leave too abruptly last night? No, you actually triggered a mass exodus. which was fantastic. We all left right after that. It was, you know. Wait, wait, what do we mean we all? What are we talking about? 15, 20, 25 people?

No, it's like eight, six people, eight people. What? Hang on a second. Pump the brakes. What was I left out of? This was a specific little bite. It's a bite and smile. It was a bite and smile. And I don't know these people.

Exactly. Not very well at all. Oh, okay. Yeah, that's right. But we also did. Yeah. You have a guest today. I do, I know.

We're going to get right to it. I was going to share one more thing, but that... I'd love to hear it today. I'd love to... You worked on material. Go ahead. No, it's not. It's...

Okay, here we go. No, no, no. Wait. I want to hear... No, no. It was just that... It was that topic, that whole thing about, you know,

men and women and, like, sexual opportunities. So, like, I asked all the women at the table. Like, if a guy came to the door, and there was the best-looking guy in the world, would you... And he... you whether you know politely or impolately whatever was just based on looks would you go for it and of course unanimously every girl around the table was like no i would never i would never do that

you can be much more specific than that you can you can you can say what the actual well it was it was like if a guy if a like dropped that gorgeous unbelievable guy was at your door and he just like exposed himself but not really like but like in a or answered in a robe or something and of course every girl was like no that's disgusting that's weird and bizarre And then, but conversely, all the gay guys and the straight guys were like, yeah, I would totally go for that. You know what I mean? Meaning if it was the opposite. If the door opened and a woman had her robe open, the guy would say, oh, yeah, cool if I come in.

Yeah. You know, as opposed to the, and I guess Sean was making a statement about the difference in sexes. It reminds me of this old joke to my grandfather. father had. And this is almost a dad joke, but it's worse. It's a grandfather joke, which is a guy's on a desert island. And he's there by himself for years and years and years. And this beautiful woman comes out of the surf, and she's wearing a wetsuit. And she says, when was the last time you had a nice cold beer? And he's like, oh, my God, it's been forever. And she reaches in their wetsuit, pulls out a beer. And he chugs it down. And she goes, when was the last

time that you had a smoke? And he was like, oh, years. And she's like, pulls out of cigarette lights. And he's like, oh, my God, it's incredible. And then she looks at him and she goes, when was the last time you played around and he goes you got golf clubs in there that's a good one it's a grandfather joke what but shani told me a great grandfather joke a granddad joke they're really dad joke was it the cat yeah how do uh maybe sean should tell it i kind of punched up the reading a little bit better go ahead go ahead good uh what yeah so what uh No, it's what is it? How does a cat like its steak?

Rare. Oh, my God. I can't even. It's so not even funny. All right. You got to have the little tiny claws up when you do it too. Oh, that'll help it. Yeah, that'll love it.

Guys, we're so silly. We're over. We're over time already. All right, look, look, we got a guy here waiting. We just thank our guest now. We'll apologize first. He's a big deal, guys. I might geek out a little bit.

I'm a huge fan. He was born in Guatemala, and then he kind of ping ponged around the United States. As a kid, while his dad finished his medical residencies, he almost joined the Marines before making a sharp pivot to Juilliard. He spent most of his teens in Florida playing bass and singing in a ska punk band, including one that opened for Green Day. but now he's one of Hollywood's most versatile actors playing everything from a folk singer,

mad genius tech guy, a rebel pilot, a superhero, a Shakespearean royalty. He's ridiculously talented, absolute joy to watch. One of my favorite actors of all time, Oscar Isaac. Whoa! Oscar!

He had an absolutely stumped. Oscar. See the closet out. I'm so telling my six-year-old this joke when I was told these cool things. You know what? Okay, rolling speed and action.

Let's see your reading on rare. He's like I can't. It's going to be hard to beat, man. It's going to be hard to beat. I think the claws are definitely necessary. You need the little kitten claws. Yeah, Sean's got great dad jokes. You got any dad jokes, Oscar?

No, my heart's pounding. You guys are so fast and so funny. No, boring. It's so intimidating with your speed. need of wit. Oh, no, no, no. You should read what people say about me on this thing. They're so sick of me at some time.

No, I'm sick of me. I'm really happy. You know, because there was a moment there. I remember during the pandemic where I think there was a moment where it's like, oh, can I come and do the show way back then? Oh, really? I was stuck down there. Yeah.

You've been on my list to be on the show since day one. Yeah, you've been on my list. But you have not stopped working on the greatest things that this business has to offer. since then and before. Yeah. Well done. I'm so, so happy every time I see you in something,

I get more of you. And I just watched Frankenstein last night. You did? You did? What a second? You got home from the dinner and watched Frankenstein? No, I'm sorry, during the day yesterday,

not last night. Oh, thanks for the phone call. But wait, and we're going to get to that. But Oscar, holy moly, man. Your performance was incredible. I'm so excited to see that. I know. I mean, just incredible.

I don't know how you do it. But anyway, listen, thanks for being here. I'm guessing when we met a couple years ago, you could probably feel what a big fan I was. Oh, no. Oh, no. Oscar, you described it from your side. What happened?

No, it was at the awards dinner. Yeah, or no, it was, I think before that, it was the Lynn Manuel Miranda kind of things that he does in the street. Right. Right. And then we all had to, like, go out. If you're in a show,

he's erased that. Turns out he's erased that from his memory. I have a notoriously terrible memory with all things. I just feel like an over-stimulated moment like that, which was insane. Yeah, I know, me too. I'm like, so insane. But I remember at the, what was the award? I don't even remember what the...

Tony Awards? No, no, no, it was before that where everybody kind of has a dinner on a stage. Oh, yeah. How awkward was that? Yeah, yeah, there's a crowd, and then we're all on stage eating. Like we're on display? Yeah, and then you came over and said, I. Wait, wait, wait, sorry, I just want to put it.

So you're all on stage eating and there's a crowd in the theater? It's watching you. Well, they're eating too, right? Okay. Yeah. Right? I think so. I don't remember.

Meals on the last. I couldn't see them. I couldn't see them because there's lots of lights on. I mean, this is a new kind of dinner theater where everybody's eating, including the cast. And then let's get to Sean coming over and doing the offensive whatever it was. I'm sure it was. Was it about Dune? What was it about Star Wars?

Maybe it was a Star Wars thing. But we were on, you know, we were across the street from each other. You know, you were doing Oscar. You were the triumphant, the much celebrated play. I was doing the marginally tolerated play across the way, Sydney Brewsteen. And it was cool to be up there. That was my first time doing Broadway. And it was kind of by happenstance.

Really? Yeah, yeah, because we were doing this. What about Hamlet? That was at the public. Oh, I didn't know that. Which is what, technically off-Broadway? Yeah, that's off-Broadway. Yeah, but anyway, I just, you know, a huge fan.

But I want to talk about, I had no idea you played instruments and, like, inside, oh, my God. Lewin. Yeah, Lewand. Incredible. Is that you really playing in the movie, too? Yeah. And was that a requirement that Cohn Brothers wanted?

They did. They actually were mostly, at first, they were just auditioned. I have no idea you were a musician. That's so crazy. Yeah, so I played, you know, I mean, I didn't play folk music necessarily, or like that kind of style. And so when I knew, when I heard that they were going to be auditioning for, I just really went in hardcore on learning like Travis Picking and doing all that. And it was, yeah, what's Travis Picking? Travis Picking is kind of like, it's almost like a ragtime on piano where, you know,

the left hand is doing the baseline and the right hand is doing. doing the melody. Shani, can you do it? Yeah, it's called stride piano. Yeah, stride piano, yeah. So you're kind of doing that with a guitar where the thumb is doing the baseline. Oh, really?

These guys are just playing the melody. Oh, my God. Difficult? Man. Yeah, yeah, it's kind of like a, yeah, it's almost like the drumming where you have to kind of get some separation between the things. I saw you drumming in a music video yesterday.

Is that, do you want to comment on that? What is that? Wait, was it the, was it the, it must have been a black rabbit adjacent music radio. Oh, right. Oh, that, yes. Yeah, it just popped up yesterday, and I just saw you hammering away on the skins. On your Instagram? On your Instagram. I see that. Yeah, it's a crazy thing.

I saw that from the first episode of that. You're so great. Oh, thank you. So you're so kind of, so effortless. Can I tell you last night, I haven't started it yet because I want to have a, I want to binge it all in a row. I think I'm going to watch it this weekend. And I had, but Bradley texted me last night. he watched until the final text was at 3.30 this morning. He sent me a nice test. I just finished Black Rabbit. It's incredible.

It's unbelievable. And then he called me this morning. He's like, Bateman, literally, I'm not, this is not exactly. Bateman is an incredible actor. I can, yeah, I know. He did. That scene in the car with the coins and the reaction to the gun, be like, get it out of my face.

It was so funny and real. It was so great. I love that. He's so good. Oscar, back to you. I want to talk about your memory because I'm wondering if I have Alzheimer's or is it just us actors that, well, although Will is an anomaly, you can remember everything. He's Mary Lou Henner's brother. But do you think that our brains have morphed into a one trick pony where we can just remember lines and everything else it decides, I can't have this?

And it self-edits things that are not going to our bottom line. Like, I still, I still know all these Shakespeare monologues, but I can't. I think it's a, I think it's like, maybe it's like this anxiety. The moment there's even a slight doubt about a memory, it just erases or a person's name or anything. Like the second there's a hesitation, it goes. Do you have face blindness and all? I have a little bit of that where you're just like, I do, where I'm just like, Scotty, my husband, Scotty's like, you've met that person like 20 times. I'm like, really?

And it's horrible. It's a horrible thing. I think it is that thing. It's like a hiccup that happens. And then you're like, ah, it's like a paralysis. Yeah, I have a good memory, but I do have that too, Sean. It's not face-pliness, but I can't remember. People say we met or we know each other or we did the thing.

It's awful. That part of my brain is completely cut off. But I can remember. But like, you know, like February of 2003, you can remember. Yeah, that's crazy. February 2003, I auditioned for, for, um, arrested development and that was in February

how would you Jesus like but like November 2018 you probably know what was going on yeah I do November 2018 I went to England for six days that's fucking crazy nuts yeah that is crazy I don't get that

the brain is amazing but then there are certain parts of it that I can't remember and I can also remember dialogue as well Oscar and I can remember also through I guess from like voiceover stuff over the years I can remember copy from voiceover campaigns that I did 30 years ago. Here comes the GMC tie-in guys.

Well, no, no, no, I mean, he needs this morning. I did it this morning. Was anything professional grade this morning? Well, no, but you can get 0% in all, 2025 GMC terrain, 18 years. Good Lord. That river doesn't damn itself.

Okay, Oscar, I want to talk about your, so not only did I not know that you played in a band and sang in a band in a band called the Worms, right? Nice. And then. One of the names of the bands. The Worms? What kind of,

music was it? Ska. Yeah, it was like Ska punk, right. Oh, boy, I can smell the weed from here. There we go. This was before, I wasn't drinking or, like, I didn't drink alcohol until, like, 24 years old. So I was, like, I was straight edge. Really?

I was, yeah, like, I didn't, so I was always the odd one out. But how did you go, how did you do that thing where you, because Sean said it in the intro, in eloquently, that you were in a band, and you were in Ska bands, and then you all of a sudden go to Juilliard. Was that one day, like, you're like, hey, guys, I'm out of the band, I'm going to Juilliard. Like, I'm not kind of. Really?

For real? Well, a little bit. But you got it straight from Marines to Juilliard, which was, it was, yeah, yeah, I mean, a little bit. Wait, were you driving a moped with a raccoon tail on it when you play in the band? And suspenders, yeah. Yeah.

Really, I'll bet you were. I love, I remember those. How many times have you seen Quadrophina? No, sorry, keep going. Yeah, no, I had graduated high school. I was in this different band called The Blinking Underdogs. And we... Surprised that cleared.

No one had that, huh? Nobody had it. They had the blinkers. They had the underdogs, but they didn't have the blinking. And just so you know, Oscar, I was in a band called Sounds from the Stairs. So it's all... All the names are... So keep going.

Yeah. Blinking underdogs. So many different band names. But, yeah, and so I came up. to New York to do this off, off, off, Broadway play. While you were in the band? Yeah, yeah. And we were touring, but Florida.

We didn't really get out of Florida. And this was kind of as the third wave was cresting and kind of coming down of Scott, right? And when did you start closet heterosexuals? That was the third band. That was before Scott. That was hardcore. That was a hardcore band. Okay. That was hardcore.

Okay, got it. That's good. Is that what you call it? And now you... Do you still collect guitars? Because I know you collect... Well, wait, Sean. Sean, he's telling you the story

about how he went to New York to do the play. What are we doing over here? Well, no, no, I went to do the play. And then I was up there, and I passed by Juilliard. And I was like, oh, Juilliard. Let me go in there and see what's up. And I asked... Come on.

Yeah, yeah. And I asked for an application. And they said that the deadline was due already. This was like a Tuesday, and it had been due Friday. And I kind of like schmooze a lady. And I was like, can I... I'd just take it back. And she's like, well, take it.

Maybe you turn it in next year. And I went home that night, and I filled it all out. And I came back the next day. And she took it and, like, you know, post-a- What else did you have to do to get it? Was there an audition process? Yeah, then there was a whole audition process. Well, I had to come back and...

Do like a monologue? Do a couple monologues and do, like, a movement class and a dance belt. Wow. Wear a dance belt or while you have anybody here. the afternoon. Did you ever You had that rare dance belt collection?

Did you I don't have guitars but I have a great dance belt collection? Were you able to confirm that the other applicants had to wear the dance belt?

The funny thing no, the dance belt thing actually was not about the audition but the first day of when you got in they were like

this is what you have to do and I remember I went in with my dance belt and nobody else had put on a dance belt except for me we got another one got him

why would you put a dance belt on just for a monologue because that's my craft okay i got it okay i got it don't question we'll be right back and now back to the show um all right so what so will's point okay so but how did you where did you so you were in this band but you always had this kind of inkling to yeah i was doing plays i was doing plays in miami as well so i was doing both at the same time and where did the marines come in that was the guy the sax player of the worms

he and I just got really got his dad was a Navy SEAL and so we started talking about going in being getting like buff and you know and just like going in on the buddy system because you could do the buddy system at that time which is what what's the buddy system the buddy system is that you go in with a buddy and then you get to do all of basic training with your pal

no way you get to do the whole thing so like that sounds great it just sounds rad I mean it sounds so fun right you gotta do pull-ups and push-ups and all this stuff like it's gonna be great and the thought that you even thought

that you could like I would never occur to me I wouldn't even look it up because I'm like I'm not getting anywhere close to that right you're gonna get kicked out when you enter the barracks but then they're like

and then I said you know oh and I'll go in for combat photography I had watched you know full metal jacket and I'm like yeah like be a combat photographer and and so So we started doing the training, like you would meet up every weekend

and start like doing the training with some of the Marines, like an early training. So you did that? Yeah, yeah. And I even went and I did the, you go to like a hotel and they do all like your examinations and health stuff and you take your first oath. And there's like a second oath that you have to do. And then I, and when I first signed up, I remember they gave me a pamphlet that had all like the famous Marines, like the artsy Marines, like Brian Dennehy and

I forget who else. And I was like, great. And then I went to sign up, like when I actually really had to sign up, and I was going to go in as a reservist. And I was like, I'm here for combat photography. They're like, oh, no, that's just full time. And I said, well, what can I do instead? And they said, anti-tank?

And I was like, so against the tank? How do I get in the tank? All right, I'm going to think about that. Let me just think about it. And then the sax player quit the band and said he and I weren't really close anymore. so I lost my buddy and then we got enough money and then we got enough money

to record an album that summer to record our own like CD and so I was like I think I'm not going to do it right oh wow so you did not go through the basic training no I didn't go through any of that wait so but then you

so I want to go back to the thing because I didn't know you collected guitars so how many guitars do you have I don't really collect guitars I mean I have some guitars but you told the Cohen brothers you did I'll bet seven seven's pretty good

seven seven guitar That's a lot of guitars. That's a collection. Yeah. Was that the last audition? The last audition I ever did was for Hudducker Proxy. Whoa.

Yeah. So it was for the Coen Brothers. I mean, I'd read today for the Coen Brothers. Yeah. Was that the last audition you've ever done? No. My last audition was for Mike Nichols. Really?

Wow. For betrayal on Broadway. Wow. Oh, wow. Yeah. Wow. When was that? Terribly.

It was a 20, 14. I remember I came in and I had like listened to a lot of Harold Pinter to kind of do his accent and I was going through a divorce at the time so I was like man I'm feeling this thing I'm aware of the play but it's very much about

that and fidelity and all that. And so I got there and Juliet Rylance was the reader. She's a great great actress Mark Vance's daughter and I did the first scene and

And Mike Nichols was quiet, and he goes, where'd you get that accent? I was like, where'd I get it? He was like, where'd I get it? And I was like, oh, I was listening to Pinter. I was listening to some recordings and kind of trying to do that. He's like, oh, yeah, well, I guess different English people sound differently. And then when we do the next scene, so I did the next scene.

And then he goes, would it make you sad to do this play every night? What is that mean? I was like, trick question. How do you answer that? I was like, I'm just going to be honest. Like, you know what? I was reading it on the subway ride over here. And yeah, you know, I'm kind of going through something right now.

And I feel really connected to like the grief of that and the pain of that. And I feel like, yeah, it would definitely be, you know, delving into that night by night. And then Juliet Rylentz, God bless her. She's like, but also fun too, right? I was like, oh, yeah, no, but also so fun. I mean, come on. Doing this, I'm probably with you. It'd be so fun.

Yeah. And then they're like, thank you. Thank you very much. Thank you. And then I, yeah, and then I walked out. Who got it? Do you remember who got it? Rave Spall. Okay.

Yeah, Rief Spall. And they did the play, they did the play as a comedy. Oh. As well. So the right answer would have been the opposite of... Yeah, the right answer was the opposite. But the trick question is, just tell me, like, I want to do this at a comedy. So, yeah, okay, then it'd be fun.

Yeah, I know. You know, okay, so born in Guatemala, which I didn't. not know either. And then Baltimore, New Orleans, Miami. Sean, is this question going to make you sad? Yes. But also fun. I'm going to have a blast asking it. Keep going, keep going.

Wait, all that moving around before you were six years old. And why? Because your dad is, that's what I read, that he was doing his medical something. Is it all because of your dad? Yeah, I mean, also just like that, yeah, the immigrant story of like, you know, come into America for a better life. And so he grew up in D.C. He's Cuban.

He was born in Cuba, but grew up in D.C. And then went to medical school in Guatemala, him and his two brothers. And that's where he met my mom. And then they had my sister. And then, yeah, then I was born in like a week as I was six months old. And then we moved to D.C. first, like Virginia, Baltimore area. I did kindergarten there, then Louisiana because he went to LSU for his, residency and then Florida where we had family and his mom was there and we live with my

grandma for a bit and then and eventually it became a doctor yeah yeah was there was there any pressure on you to to follow in his footsteps or do you fully embrace the the actor thing no he kind he was also a bit of frustrated uh artist no well like he would make movies with his brothers on a okay you know eight millimeter camera and that's what the initial spark was for you too yeah yeah he would like bring home every friday was like a movie night and he would bring home these like mystery movies that we'd watch and then he bought a camcorder and we'd make like home movies so he must have been kind of thrilled when you kind of got into this a little bit yeah he was into it he was into it until i became competition ah yeah is he still with us he's still with us

and so yeah i brought him to the frankestine premiere and oh no way oh that's so cool Which was good. Do you remember who the first actor was that he showed you that you kind of latched on to? I was like, oh, I'd like to have those chops when I'm older. Tim Curry. Yeah. Oh, really? That's cool.

Because I remember I saw, he showed, we watched Clue. Uh-huh. And then we watched Legend. Uh-huh. And when I realized it was the same fucking guy. What about Rocky Horror? Yeah, well, then, yeah, Rocky Horror after that. Although Dad didn't bring that one home for a movie night.

Yeah. Yeah. but uh but man like i just i couldn't believe that that was the same guy and i noticed it because the way that his lip curled at one point as like the devil and you went like oh my god yeah oh you can whoa yeah yeah um what about i don't have to jump around sorry but what about how about cuba i've always been fascinated with cuba have you have you been able to go to go there since your dad has roots i haven't been i haven't been you know like i grew up in miami cuban world which is like everyone's so traumatized and afraid and so complicated, but I've wanted to go.

We almost went, when Lewin Davis came out, actually, we were going to go to the film festival, and then at the last minute it didn't happen, but it's definitely a place I want to go. What is the current? I feel so dumb, as usual. You can't, you can't go there freely? He's opened up for a moment. Yeah. Really? And then closed up and now.

It's closed again. Well, like, as an American, like Canadians go, I know that a lot of Canadians go there on holiday all the time. There are lots of flights, and I know. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, that's right. To Cuba? Yeah. I mean, why would you want to go? Like, because it's beautiful?

Oh, there's our quote for the day. There's, Sean. I mean, fuck you. Enjoy your vacation. I mean, it's an incredible play. How many demographics are you trying to get rid of it one, man? You don't. I just didn't know what the draw was.

Like, I know what the draw is. Put the shovel down. It's got an incredible culture. It's got. Okay, okay, okay. I just didn't know what the draw is. Hey, I can't wait to go to Cuba. All right.

They feel the same way about you and the mall. What does he go to the ball all the time? Okay, so anyway, Oscar. So I grew up super, super Catholic. You grew up very, is it safe to say, evangelical or Christian? Evangelical, yeah. Evangelical. Now, let's get into religion.

No, I think it's fascinating because, you know, because you were like devout, right? We're talking to spiritual abuse. Yeah, totally. Totally. I love talking about it. We don't have to talk about it, but I love talking about it. Do, do. Because I don't, I know zero about religion. Please. Yeah, I, I mean, you know, it's, there's some wonderful Catholics, there's some wonderful Christians, and then there's the ones that are beyond hypocritical. But do you guys know, like, what is the difference between Catholic, Christian, evangelical, Episcopalian, Protestant, Methodist, Lutheran? They're all Christian. They're all under this big umbrella of Christianity, right? But how, what is the, is there a singular difference that, that separates each one of them, like, as far as interpretation of the Bible goes, or yes? Yes. Yes.

Yeah, I guess that's a short answer. It's kind of complicated. But is it like an identify, like, could it be a jeopardy question? Like, what is the single difference between Lutheran and Episcopalian? Is there one teacher? Well, like, the Episcopal Church came from, is Church of England, right? And it was established as a sort of an offshoot of Catholicism. because Henry the 8th wanted to be able to divorce his wife.

Jesus Christ. So he established the Church of England. And Martin Luther comes along. And then, so of course it's a little bit different. It's kind of like a lot of people describe Church of England as sort of Catholic light without all the pageantry. That's sort of a simplistic view. And then there are all these different, yeah. Yeah, and Catholicism, there's a lot more intercessors, I guess, as a word.

You know, like the saints and people that you pray to and like you said, the pageantry, which, to go to. Frankenstein is a very Catholic Mexican... Look at this pro. But he talks about it very much in that way, you know? A lot of Christ figure, like the forensic nature of the crucifixion. How about in the movie, when the monster was up on the thing, it was just shy of being a cross. I mean, definitely, no, we called it the crucifixion.

There's even a thorn, you know, the metal thorns on the head. No, totally. I thought it was cool. But was that a conscious choice of Guillermo or whoever to not make it a specific cross, but just at an angle. Have it a little bit. Yeah, you know what I mean? Yeah. I caught that.

It wasn't an accident. Now, is working with Guillermo del Toro everything that you would hope and think that it is? He just strikes me as just such an infectiously enthusiastic and kind leader, not to mention his creative abilities are just unmatched. Yeah. Yeah, it was, it was, I had. I was like a kid. There was just so much joy.

It was so much, so much fun. It was this particular approach to it too. Well, he was writing it. He's like, I'm Cabrona, I'm making you a banquet. And he really did. It was just like a feast of stuff to do every day. We only spoke in Spanish to each other. Oh, that's cool.

He would direct in jokes mostly, like dirty Mexican jokes. But also, like, and he was just. a ebullent, really funny. There was no whispering behind monitors. You know, it's like if there was a problem, everybody knew it. If something was great, everybody knew it. Oh, that's amazing. It was just really, really fun. He would, and

it's like, zero pretension whatsoever. You know, he'd be like, uh, gavron, I need a lot of hamon on this one. He's like, just chamon with mustard and mayonnaise to make it go down easy. I just need you to look up and look right past the camera and

hold it. Or there you or he'd be like, I I need you to do the Maria Cristina, which is like a telenovela thing. You know, he's like, I need you to be in profile and then walk across a counter to him and then stop and turn around and look. Right, super dramatic. You know, he's like, just give it to me,

give this, make this one Mexican happy, you know? Wow. I love that. The scope of the movie is so massive. Like, how long was the shoot? I mean, it spanned nearly eight months. with where was it there was a two-month break

where he shot miniatures in London we shot it in Toronto and in the UK Scotland and do you when you do something like that with a director like that who has such a vision

right and he has a such a but from what I understand from you also a very collaborative spirit do you not to get sort of to but do you when you are in that

your ability what are the sort of the parameters or are there any of of sort of bringing stuff in your thoughts and feeling like you can just go out on a limb with a guy like him is it just pretty wide open in that way? It is

like that was the one thought when I was going into it like I know he's an animator I know like the visual language is so precise and so I you know I went in expecting like all right the constraints are going to be tight but that's that that's the job but uh he actually was in in a very different i he he talks about like making

the movie with bradley really shifted him like it really opened him up in like an amazing way and you credit nightmare alley yeah nightmare alley he credits him a lot with like just him learning how to listen to the movie he would talk a lot about that while we were shooting it just like the movie kind of tells you what it needs in fact at one point i was saying like i don't you know i'm i find myself like am i not shaking it up enough am i not like being kind of dangerous enough and going out on a limb enough and he's like no that's that's an idea it's like the movie kind of tells you what it needs and however you're responding is what it's needing and if it's needing you to be this way then then don't second guess that so much yeah he gave a lot of feeling to all of us of like you

can't fail i wrote this stuff for you it's there's nothing to like reach for right which was great. And also, but also it was a very, it's a very specific kind of performance. He said you know, it's not naturalistic, it's heightened, I want speed of language, speed of thought, there's not a lot of pausing

for you guys. It's kind of high camp and high melodrama and just all heart. Like that's what he wants it to be in a while. So he was really specific about the tone before you guys got started. Yeah, that's helpful. God, that's really helpful.

bet for sure um did he did he did the attempt to sort of give you a taste for that collectively by doing any sort of like table reads ahead of time or rehearsals in a group on like around a table no he didn't want to do that so much we had we did have one big table read uh with like the execs and all that uh and that was it i mean he you know because he was quite protective of the script as he was writing it um you know i think partly out of just like a little little insecurity as well. Like, I'm not sure it's quite there yet. And so he kept adjusting.

I mean, every day he was working. Like, even behind the monitor, he was drawing his storyboards. He would be quilting the movie as we went along. Like, sometimes you would do a take, and he would, like, put it right into the flow of the edit, so he would just show you. Like, we did the last scene of the movie, and the next day he came in with, you know, Johann Johansson music on it and showed the edited scene to me. How did you like that, or how did it affect what you were doing?

Well, I mean, that example in particular was interesting because, you know, it was the last scene of the movie. And so I want to try to talk about it without giving too much a way of it. It's like a highly emotional crescendo of the whole thing. And, you know, I spent the day, like, in the zone, like listening to all my sad sack music and, you know, like, looking at pictures of sad times, you know, doing like the full anti-mic Nichols,

moment and right this is in the arctic this is yeah in the ship yeah and you know and like did you know and i went in and like didn't talk to anybody and lay down we did this scene and there was tears and everybody was really happy and gearma was you know high five and all right we got it and then the next day he showed it to me and i was like i don't i don't really buy it

like me i was like was that take five i thought take five was the good take he's like let's take five covered on i was like i don't take us take five and then we looked and it wasn't take five but then take five wasn't that much better either was it because you think that you came in with too much of that too much of this and not listen to this check out check out what happened so then then then then uh i said i was sitting there and then game oh comes over he's like what's wrong i was supposed to just do like a little insert of my hand right grabbing his hand and he's like what's wrong i'm i don't know man i'm feeling a little insecure and he's like well you are an actor i was like i know i know but but i just feel like should

I looked up maybe when I said sorry? Should I have, I just don't. And he's like, no, no, no, no. Those are all ideas. You know, you were honest and you thought about your mom and you thought about all these things and that was there. I was like, all right, okay. And then I went away for like 30 minutes and I was like, oh, I just have to be a dead body for the rest of the day. And I came back and he had set up a whole different thing.

And I was like, what are we doing? He's like, we're going to do it again. We're going to do your close up again. And he's like, you know what? From yesterday. And he's like, you know what? It's okay. Like, we're going to see if, you know, we definitely have something.

if you don't have anything, that's okay. I'll just make fun of you for the rest of your life. You know, win, win. And so, like, really quickly, I'm, like, throwing on my ear pods to try to, like, find a song to get me sad again. You know, like, I'm trying to do all the shit. And I just, I didn't have any time. I, like, lay down, and we did it.

And we did, like, four takes, and it was way better. Just, like, I wasn't. I didn't have time to try to, like, evoke anything. Yes. Or, like, it was, like, more sober. It was more severe. It just was, like, it was. You didn't have to bring a.

preconceived idea of what it should be as opposed to just letting it be. Yeah, and that's what's what's in the film, you know. I love that. We'll be right back. And now, back to the show. So, but that adjustment in your performance came as a result of you watching what you were doing. And are you good about that? Because I'm sure you've worked as many actors as we have.

But some actors, they just, they don't watch. themselves they can't watch themselves i learned so much from seeing how bad i am sometimes it's like oh don't do that anymore or you think it's coming across this way but it actually comes across that's funny because i asked christoph waltz who's on it right it's like a fucking legend i asked him specifically about that and he's like he doesn't watch he's like because it's okay if you watch and you think it's not good but the bad thing is when you watch and you think it's good yeah and like that can be way worse why because then it's cut together and you're like oh maybe it wasn't that great.

Or there's just like a self-consciousness or you think, you know, it's just for him. But this was, but there's many times when I've watched something and I'm like, I can do it better and I just, and I can't, you know, it's in, so I don't know, man, I don't know. But that was, there was a moment there after that happened and I was like, well, this is I mean I have to watch every fucking take or every scene. Right, right, right.

You know, it, I think, yeah, it's, for me, it's not like a definitive thought of like one or the other. I've also asked a bunch of people this question as well, but with all the... Are you single? Yeah. And what is your sign? And you're rising.

With the incredible directors that you've worked with, do you ever fantasize about cherry picking from each one of them and becoming a smoking director yourself? Yeah, sometimes, yeah. I mean, I thought originally that's what I kind of was more into like I came into acting from like making movies with friends

and doing that and yeah yeah I think about that sometimes yeah you'd be incredible please too you'd be great when you say thing about sometimes do you have an idea in your mind of something that's kind of back there I don't that's why I'm like until that thing happens where it's like I you know I think until

that happens what scares me a little bit is just I'm incredibly indecisive as just a human being like even with a menu or with anything I get just crippled like I don't know so like someone being like

red shirt or blue shirt I'd be like ah I don't know but but I guess it's also a conversation it's like I don't know what's the difference you know so kind of looking at it

maybe it's more of a conversation than a decision is right right right how do you do that Jason I mean when somebody told me once it's okay to say you don't know

it freed me up lot like that that's actually a great a great answer when they come to you with all the thousands of questions you just say I'm going to come back to you on that give me a second to think about that yeah it's okay to do that yeah it's it's a lot of the you mean in life shown you're saying yeah I know I mean it I'm being serious yeah yeah I think it's a really important life I do it too also when people go they want an answer I'm like well somebody told me like I don't have to answer them on their timeline that's right yeah I only learned it in like last 10 years where I don't know I don't know a year ago

I don't know what that word means. I don't know what you're talking about. Can you repeat what you just said? I don't care anymore. But I want to get back to, well, I don't care about being perceived as like this. Yeah, no, I understand what you're saying. Well, you know, that's actually helped me with the not remembering people.

Like, I just go out on a limb and I'll think, I think your name is this. Oh, no. If I'm wrong, it's okay. They say, no, it's not Kathy. It's Melissa. And I'm like, sorry. I go step forward.

I go a step further, Oster, I go, I think your name should be this. Sign a name. Wait, so a little more of your personal stuff, Oscar, if you don't mind, like your wife is this Elvierlin. She's beautiful, talented, incredible documentary filmmaker.

Really? Yeah, she's incredible. Incredible. And she, I just saw the trailer, and I did not know this until I was researching you for King Hamlet, which I can't wait to watch. It's you playing.

What is it? Is it the making of the play Hamlet and it's following you around about the process from rehearsal to... No way. Is that what it is? Yeah, so in 2017, it was this crazy confluence of things that happened

where my mother passed away in February. We got married in March. In April, our first child was born. And in April, I started rehearsals for Hamlet, like this four-hour version of Hamlet. this thing that I was working on for like 12 years. And so her being a documentary filmmaker and having a new baby and like just kind of not knowing how to process this, you know, she's from Denmark too and she's kind of thrust

into this whole other world of stuff. She just started picking up a camera and started filming. You know, around that time before, before that we were also filming. Like I would play music and she would like film little music videos and we would put them on video and stuff. And so it was kind of a natural extension of that. And so she just started filming because the idea was she. She was going to film some of the making of this project.

And when all this stuff started happening, she just kept filming. So, like, when I went down to my mom for hospice, she was kind of there. And I told her, you know, the only way we can do this is if it's okay if this never sees the light of day as well. And she said, yeah, of course, of course. I don't even know what I'm doing. I'm just filming because I don't know what the fuck else to do. And so that's what we did. And she filmed this whole process and then put it away.

And then about a year ago took out the hard drives and started looking through it and sort of piecing it together with her great editor that she's worked with. That's really cool. And then she kind of came up with this kind of beautiful movie about what kind of what we do, right? Which is like how you deal with your life

and how those things intertwine. Yeah. Did she say to you, hey, remember that thing we said we'd never show the light of day? I'm working on it. Did she tell you that she's thinking about... Or does she show you something first? She showed me something first.

She's like, hey, I've been putting this thing. thing together what do you think of this and yeah and i watched it i was like i don't know what i think of that but keep going you know keep keep going oh that's really cool and with a newborn on her hip the entire time yeah she sounds incredible my yeah she's incredible yeah and she shot it as well and it's very it's very funny too because it's just it's the absurdity of everything that's happening and must have been very vulnerable to watch that yeah yeah to watch it again i mean i hadn't seen any of that footage especially with my mom and our family and, you know, it was, yeah, it was really, really intense, but really proud of her for doing it.

How did you guys meet? Was it a Juilliard? No, no, no. She happened to be in New York working on something. Right. And it was like a movie she had finished and it was like some after party for it. And my manager at the time was like, you got to come to this party. And I was like, I'm not.

I am preparing for my Coen brothers' men. movie. I am not going to go to this thing. He's like, dude, there's this chick. You got it. You just got to come. And I was like, all right, but I'm going to go dressed as Lou and Davis. With my cat and my guitar. Yeah, well, this is before I had started, right? But I dressed in the outfit, and I was like, and I'm going to go, and I'm

going to try to do this thing where I can project warmth without smiling. I want to see if I can do it, you know? Or, like, tell a joke, but not laugh to let anybody know it's a joke, and let's see what happens. Wow. And so I went in, and And I was, like, sitting there with my fingerless gloves and eating and nobody else was eating. And her being, like, you know, a documentary and was like, who's this little brown weirdo, you know, in the corner?

And, like, comes over and starts talking to me. And then I told her I was a musician. No way. No way. Yeah, perhaps you've heard of the closet heterosexuals. At one point, she's like, I can't tell her you flirting with me. And I was like, yeah, yeah. I am.

Oh, that's good. I love that. So I started. Are you a cat guy? I'm sure you ask you. I bet they, but that was the question at the junket. That was the question.

Do you play guitar and are you a cat guy? It's so funny. Like a lot of these things I'm saying too, like I do realize there are anecdotes that I have said before and so. But they're new to us. It's funny like after you say, I don't know if you guys get this,

but like saying anecdotes after a while, you feel like, I think I'm lying. Right. I've said this so much. I don't think this is true. Yeah, yeah, yeah. For sure. John, hang on Star Wars.

We'll get to it. I know that you can feel it. I know. I can't feel it. I know. I used to think that I could speak to cats, so I would, like, go to the backyard and, like, meow a lot, and cats would come. Hang on a second. Let's just pause in here for a second, Oscar.

Go ahead and elaborate. That was it. It was just like. And they would come. That's why you liked the joke. That's why he liked that joke so much. I don't have a lot of time. Hit it with the sci-fi.

I don't have a lot of time. I got to get through this stuff because I want to know about ex machina. X. Machina incredible. Listen to me, I've seen it like 10 times. I know every line. Scotty and I quote it all the time. You know, we still go,

Kiyoko, go, right? That made me laugh. So it came out in 2014. Yeah. Can you believe the relevance it has today? yeah yeah i mean Alex garland he's just wild isn't it yeah yeah he keyed into this thing and

even the way that we gather information you know he talked Nathan the character I play um talks about like well yeah you know I'm gonna I gather all the signals from all the cell phones and I get it all that's how I mean everything you talked about in the movie is happening right now yeah it's crazy yeah yeah I just

yeah I wonder does that occur to you when you see stuff or you're reading stuff that's going on in the world and you go yeah yeah I was there yeah Yeah, but it felt like that when I read the script And then Alex Garland and I kept like talking about it working on And we would look at it from every angle And look at like the current You know, literature and everything that was going on at the time

And it just, it felt like completely locked in And yeah, it's amazing how it holds up Alex Garland is, I mean, this guy, I mean, right? Well, let's hope not all your films are Harbingers Dune is a pretty bleak look into our future but incredible film my god amazing and you're amazing in it and i did need to you get to all the you get all the great ones that you get to work with i read this i want you to tell the guys if you want to i can tell it which is one of the best pranks i've ever heard of on any film shoot on dune when you

after the nude scene speaking of dance belts speaking of dance belts go ahead you tell it well it's called what is it really called you call it a cock sock right well um um um Or a modesty sock? Modesty stock. Modesty stock. Not everybody calls of that, but yeah. I'm going to get it wrong, but you left your, so you did the scene and you had a, quote, modesty sock on, and you put it in Denise's jacket pocket.

It's bright. His chest pocket. And he later pulled it out. Yeah, well, I left, and then I got a picture of him holding it like, what the fuck. At the dinner table. After the take, that's hilarious. And then he says this is true that MoMA asked for it. Oh, my God.

Oh, really? Really? Well, they'd be smart to get it. Hopefully they got a wall big enough. Yeah, right? Good for you. Go for you. Go for you. Shoney, anything on Star Wars?

I mean, yeah, just the dumb question, the obvious question. Is it real a fan? Were you a fan? Wait, look at this. What's Darth Vader like in the morning? No, the basic questions. Were you a fan? Were you freaked out that you got the part?

Like, was it, were you a huge fan as a kid? No, but my family were huge, huge fans, like collectors and, you know, my uncle in particular, it was massive, massive. Oh, wow. He loved making that phone call. Oh, man, that phone call was, oh, it was great. And he came, he was an extra a couple times,

I remember I brought him and he died a couple years ago which was so rest in peace but it was the most amazing thing like I brought him and I couldn't find him and he was like in Carrie Fisher's trailer just like hanging out

yeah that's crazy to me that's crazy I mean Scottie and I just visited the set of the new Star Wars movie with Sean Levy directing when I was in London and we got to go to the creature shop I mean we that's like everything we're for

I don't know if you're into that but I was just like It's so cool that you were part of the reboot of this franchise. You were the first part of the reboot. I mean, it's wild. And look at where it's at now. It's like last night at the dinner table, Jason and we're all sitting around.

And out of nowhere, I go, has anybody seen the trailer from Mandalorian and Grogo? Just silence. Except I said, I've seen it, and it's fantastic. Yes, I can't wait to see that movie. And didn't you say, yeah, that you have not seen the trailer or you refuse to see the trailer? Me? No, God, I saw it like 10 times.

No, no, no, no, I saw it. I love it. Oh, no, no, there was a guy I was with yesterday said that he will not see it yet because it'll get his, he won't see it until it's closer to release because he's just going to get too excited. You can't sustain the excitement level. Yeah. All right, rapid fire before we let you go, ready?

Yeah. If we were roommates for a week, what would be the one Oscar Isaac Cork that would drive me insane and what's the one that I would love? Do you cook? Sean, look at you. I don't really cook. I mean, I can cook, but I don't cook a lot. So Sean's not happy with that.

What would he love? Oh, God. You wouldn't love that I don't cook very much. What would you love? Theater stories. Theater stories, hugs. I'm very affectionate. Oh, he loves a hug.

There you go. Appropriate, unnecessary. Yeah. Impromptu hugs. Cots, hug, hugs. Cots, hugs. Who's most likely to win in a board game? You, Jessica Chastain, or Ethan Hawke?

Oh, I guess it depends on the board game. But, you know, it's Scrabble. Oh, it's Scrabble. Sure. I'm going to go with Ethan, because, you know, he's like a poet and a writer, and he's just, you know, that's a seasoned, individual, man. I know, me too. He's so incredible that thing.

Yeah, love him. And I love that you, I read that you improvised for your two sons. No, why? You just sit there with a guitar and you just, make up song for them? I did. Well, now, it's funny because I did that for a while,

and then they were like, please stop. They got old enough to say stop. Yeah, they just didn't like whenever I would play guitar or sing, and that went away for a bit, but recently in the last year, I just bought this looper pedal.

So, like, we've got this, you know, just kind of show you a little bit. We've got, like, old drums here. Oh, look at this. And like guitars, there's the looper pedal down there. Oh, yeah, that's a lot of piano over there. Yeah. And so we've got this.

We've just been making a lot of music together. How old are they? He's going to turn six. Mads is going to turn six on Sunday, and Eugene is eight. Oh, my God. Yeah. Prime time. I know.

That's so good to get them into that young. Sean, how old are we doing you start playing piano? Five. Really? There you go. What do they, do they, have they seen Dad's movies or anything? Yeah. Yeah, they've seen some of them.

They've seen Star Wars. Eugene's actually asked me about Star Wars yesterday. How were they with the notes? Are they kind with the notes? They're a little tough with the notes, I've got to say. Kids are tough. I can't say enough about you and Frankenstein. I just think it's an incredible performance.

It just blew me away. I can't say enough about you and everything. I know. It's true, awesome. You were fantastic and you were very nice to join us. Yeah, you're really, really cool. Thanks, guys. And Will, I can't wait to see what you did in that movie, man.

Yeah. He's so good. Wait, do you see that? He and Bradley just rocked it. Thanks, man. No, you're one of the great. You're one of our greats, man, for real. Yeah, Oscar, and you're a great dude.

We hung out a couple times. You're such a great dude. It's so good to see you, man. Yeah, great to see you. Thank you for being here, man. Enjoy the rest of your day. Good luck with Frankenstein. We're all going to go see it.

All right. Thank you, Oscar. Thanks, buddy. Thanks, guys. Thanks, Oscar. Bye, pal. Bye Well, that was tough saying

Good Night to Oscar there I could talk to him forever Oh my God He's in so many of my favorite movies I mean that X Machina is just incredible But wait do you see Frankenstein I can't wait Everything that guy does

Is so incredible I know how is somebody so good I know he's so good it's all I have to say I'm like blown away I'm literally we're all thinking here about all these different performances you're like oh yeah he's so good at that

oh he's so good in that yeah do you think it's something in the water at Juilliard or do you think they come in I think they do a pretty good job of vetting and you know but what we should do is we should do an episode where we have the people from Juilliard who never did shit

we are bright right to have them on or the people that didn't make it in or the people who didn't make it was us so there's a there's a first three there's the first three doesn't get shittier than us and then yeah do you think they do like do you think they teach people musicals and and uh jilliard like what like can you think of any of the top of your your head like maybe like bye bye birdie yeah why do you commit to it oh bye bye bye birdie that was a really short outro Smartless.

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