Sunday Sitdown with Willie Geist - Keegan-Michael Key

Episode Date: December 6, 2020

You may know Keegan-Michael Key as one half of the comedy duo “Key and Peele” or as President Obama’s anger translator, Luther. But Key has recently found his way back to the dramatic acting that interested him back in high school, and he is now starring opposite Meryl Streep in the new Netflix movie musical The Prom. In this week’s “Sunday Sitdown,” Willie Geist gets together with the actor over Zoom to talk about his road from drama class to the big screen, and his 16-year detour into comedy. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Hey guys, Willie Geist here with another episode of the Sunday Sit Down podcast. My thanks, as always, for clicking and listening along. Got another good one for you this week with actor Keegan Michael Key. You probably know him best from the groundbreaking comedy show. Key and Peel that he and his buddy Jordan Peel did for several seasons over on Comedy Central. That ended five years ago. Jordan Peel, the name sounds familiar, of course, has gone on to become an incredible filmmaker with movies like Get Out and Us in the horror genre. Kegan Michael Key, the other half of Key and Peel, extraordinarily funny, of course,

he played President Obama's anger translator, Luther. If you've seen that sketch, you know what that is. He said out loud all the things that President Obama wished he could be saying while he was President of the United States. In fact, performed with President Obama one year at the White House Correspondence Dinner. But Keegan goes back to a theater background. He grew up in Detroit, and you'll hear him tell the story of kind of a troubled upbringing, getting pulled in literally by a teacher, into a theater room, onto a stage, and saying, hey, this is a good outlet for you.

So came up as a theater kid, effectively, found his way to Second City in Chicago, and then gets onto Mad TV, a sketch comedy show, and then to Key and Peel. And now he's kind of returning after what he calls a 19-year detour into comedy back to those theater roots. He's got a bunch of musicals right now, including one on Netflix that is called The Prom.

It's based on a Broadway musical. The premise of it is a small town in Indiana. There's a high school having its prom. There's a gay student who's not being allowed to bring her girlfriend to the prom. And a bunch of Broadway theater actors who are sort of aging and looking for relevance again. after their musical is closed on Broadway, they go to Indiana to sort of become these advocates and get, it starts as them getting pressed for themselves and becomes a bigger cause. It's a great story. It was a great musical. I saw it. You'll hear Keegan and I talk about it. So he acts opposite Merrill Streep. Nicole Kidman is in this. James Corden is in this. Andrew Rannells is in this. It's an amazing cast. And he talks about the moment where, you know, he gets pitched the part. It says he's getting the part. And he's, As he reads the lines, he goes, oh, oh, I see. I'm him.

I'm the principal at the high school. That means I am, oh, I am Merrill Streep's love interest. I'm going to be in a movie with Merrill Streep and be her love interest. So there's a lot to talk with him about, including another Netflix musical he's in right now called Jingle Jangle. We got together briefly because he is so busy. He's shooting something for Apple TV in his trailer on his lunch break. He and I sit down. So he's on his laptop.

I'm at home on mine. He's grabbing a bite to eat and we're just talking through his life and his career and everything he's got going on right now. It's a great conversation. Obviously a really funny guy, a really smart guy, a really thoughtful guy, really insightful guy. I think you're going to enjoy a conversation with Kegan Michael Key right now on the Sunday Sit Down podcast. Hey, Kegan, thanks so much for doing this. Great to see you. Thank you, Willie.

Thanks for having me. It's good to see you. It's been a while. It's been a while. I was just saying you are so. busy. When we looked at this, we're like, we've got to get Keegan on the show somehow. And they said, all right, he's doing about 50 different things. We can grab him at lunch in his trailer on the next project he's working on. So where are you right now? I am in Vancouver, British Columbia,

and I am in my trailer, which is, you know, kind of where I spend all of my time during lunch. But other than that, usually I'm on set because it's such a fun place to be. So yeah, I'm in Vancouver right now. And I finish this project in a couple of weeks and then I come back home to New York. Can you talk about the project or not yet? I think I think I can talk about a little. It's a comedy musical. It's a musical comedy series called Schmigadoon. And it's for Apple TV. And I think that might be, well, no, there was an announcement. Yeah, it's Cecily Strong, Kristen Chenery, Anne Harada and Alan Cumming. Amazing. And Fred, Fred Armisen.

It's a really great cast. And it's wonderful because I get to sing and dance. And there's this magical world. It's being directed by Barry Sonnenfeld. And it's, yeah, and it was written by Sinckel Paul and Ken Dario, who did Despicable Me. And it's just a really great group. It's a fantastic group.

That is awesome. So we won't let burn out your voice because you've got to sing and dance and do all that. And maybe you can get something to eat in this window. But you mentioned that it's a song and dance. It's a musical. And that seems to be your thing right now. I mean, you're on a run of three in a row. It's crazy.

It's three in a row within like a year and a half. It was, you know, jingle, jangle, and then the prom. And now this, I don't even know what's coming next, you know. But I've just got to keep drinking my tea. Yeah. My tea and linen. There you go. Do your skills.

Is that by design? Is this a place you wanted to be where, because people don't realize, Kagan, that this goes back to your sort of theater kid. days where this is what you did, dramatic acting, singing, dancing. So is this a place you wanted to go right now? It was actually kind of an unsus, or how shall I say it? It was kind of a surprise, a pleasant surprise. I was, you know, when I was offered this role in jingle jangle, it's like, oh, this music sounds, it would be fun maybe to do a musical. I haven't done a musical in a while. It just struck me that it wasn't something that I had done. And then when I heard the music, it was like,

okay, these songs are terrific. And I wanted to be on board. And then, you know, I spent three months in England shooting this and just got to go to dance rehearsal and work with the vocal coaches. And it just, there was this almost overwhelming nostalgia to being in choir in high school and doing your scales and warming up and going to choir competitions and going to the mall to sing Christmas carols. And I was just, it filled me up. It really filled my heart. And so it was, it's been a pleasant surprise is what it's been. So Jingle Jangle is the Christmas film that as we sit here is about to come out, a Netflix project with Forrest Whitaker, another, again, an amazing cast. Who has a wonderful voice, by the way.

I did not know that. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. It's really great. I mean, he has a lovely, beautiful tenor voice, and I had no idea. And so, yes, Forrest Whitaker, he'll mean to cut you off there, but I just thought it was worth mentioning. Yes, no, it's amazing because like you, it surprises people that go, oh, he can really sing. He can really dance. So what was it about jingle jangle that you loved when you read it?

I think what I really like was the fantasy aspect of the piece. And also that when you're offered the role of the villain, who doesn't want to play a villain? You always want to play the villain. You get to be a little more bombastic, and you get to be a little more exaggerated. And not that I haven't had my share of that in my career. But so I was really driven by that.

And then also it has this lovely kind of family message. It's also Netflix's first musical. So I really was like, that would be a nice thing to be a part of, a first for this wonderful company. So those are a couple of things that really drew me to it. I told you, I just right before we sat down here while you were shooting a scene probably, I watched with my daughter, The Prom, also on Netflix, I've seen the musical. I saw it on Broadway and we were just talking a minute ago about how much we both loved seeing that show. And I honestly didn't know that Ryan Murphy was developing this specifically for Netflix.

So you saw the show on Broadway. Yeah. So when you heard this was out there, was this something you pursued and wanted to be a part of? No, Ryan called me. Again, another amazingly pleasant surprise. Ryan called me and he was like, you know, Keegan, I wanted to know if you wanted to be part of this project.

And I was like, and I'm sitting here looking at my phone. He's like, you'd be playing the principal. And then your brains, like, he had mentioned that Merrill was in it. So I assumed Merrill was playing deep. Right. Then he mentions the principal. And you have these moments in your career willing where this happens where you're like connecting the dots. You went, wait, but the principal.

But then he has all of his scenes with the, but then they're, but then they're, but then they're, but then there's, but then there's, but then how. But that would mean I would be acting with Merrill Street. Like you can't, your brains, your brains putting the pieces together, but can't believe the pieces. Right. It's like if you're winning a race, I'm winning the race. You cross the tape. Like, I think I just won the putting the gold medal. this is a gold medal.

I was in a dream state. It was crazy. I couldn't believe it. I was like, but Ryan, you understand that that would mean that I would be in the scenes

with Merrill. Yeah. Yeah. Yes, Kagan. I mean, it was unbelievable. I mean, well,

the story is so great and for people who haven't seen it. Just a little bit about the background because it's such a wonderful story. I mean, it's fun and it's funny,

but it's just a beautiful story, too. It's a very heartfelt beautiful story about love. and about family as well, and who your family is and who's there and what it means, I think, to be a family. But mostly it's about people being allowed to be who they are and also people empowering themselves to be who they are.

And really what the story is about is there's a fading actress on Broadway who's had a huge flop. And she realizes she has a flop, not because the people hated the show, but because they don't like her. So she wants to redo her image and she looks for a cause-seleb.

So she finds this young girl in Indiana who is not allowed to go to her prom because she's gay. And so her and her friends, they storm Indiana from New York, and all of a sudden there's this enormous culture clash between these liberals from New York and the conservative people that live in this small town in Indiana and what everyone's beliefs are.

And then hilarity ensues, but also hope ensues, and finding your identity ensues. and not hiding ensues and finding understanding between each other ensues. And it really is, it's just a lovely, lovely, lovely piece of work that I just, I was proud of and I'm proud of everybody who was in it. And I just hope I hope everybody watches it. I really do.

It's so good. It's so good because it is fun and it's a Broadway show. But boy, it's so moving. I forgot how moving it was in certain places when I just watched. Yeah, that makes you. Yeah. It was, I remember on Broadway just laughing hard. You know, like rib-hurting laughter and then weeping at certain points of time because it's so heartfelt.

And I really, really, yeah, I'm so blessed that I got to be a part, got to be a part of that production. So let's talk about the Merrill thing for a minute. I know you've been to really cool places. You've acted with a lot of people. But I was saying to you earlier, when you're sitting in the booth, not to give too much away, at the Applebee's in your small Indiana town. and there's Keegan, the guy we've loved from Mad TV and Key and Peel and everything he's done. And there's Merrill Streep. And you're right on that level with her.

What's that like for you? It's really, it's indescribable. I mean, and I, like I go, can I figure out how to describe this without using an analogy? Like, you're brain, and I'm a sports guy. So I'm going, how do I not use a Tom Brady? Like, Merrill Streep's Tom Brady. Right. And you're a receiver that she's throwing the ball to.

And what's so interesting is that you go, okay, so now I'm here. I'm here. So I'm going to make the most of it. And I think one of the ways to make the most of it is by trying to glean as much or learn as much from somebody who's as accomplished as Cheryl Street. And one of the most wonderful things about it was her sense of play is as intact today as it was 40 years ago. I think you discover, or I certainly discovered more than anything else, the delight that she experiences when she works. And that was infectious and also something I really would like to emulate in my career as I move

forward. It's just amazing to watch. She is playing. She is playing. And there's a childlike quality that's so sincere and powerful. And that's what draws, I think, people to do. Merrill Street is that she wants to be there and she's keeping all of the fact that she buys into the make-believe of it.

I know I keep using like childlike terms because that's, I think it's this infusion of wonder and full belief of what she's doing that that makes her so one, that makes her so mesmerizing. It was, it was, it was a learning experience every day, every single day on set. She's also just, she's a card. Man, she loves, she's like this bold, brassy laugh. She likes a dirty joke. You know, she's that kind of graceful woman that we all see.

That grace is just that she lives in herself. She's really just knows herself and lives in herself. And it's, oh, it's magnificent. So how do you get past, Kagan, that moment of being a fan, and you're in the booth, and you can't be a fan? Because you're there, and she's expecting you to act with her and be on her level, and she doesn't have time for you to be a fan the way Tom Brady doesn't have time for his rookie receiver to come over and say, hey, I'm a big fan of here. No, we got to go win

the game. Let's go. So how do you get through those moments? I think it's almost like you're acting on two levels. And one of the levels is that you have to act like I'm a person who's here to execute. And I also, I finally got to a point, you kind of go in your trailer and you go, oh my God, it's my God. It's my whole great. And then you just have to take a couple of breaths and go, remember why you're here. And also, at the end of the day, for thousands and thousands of years, there have been actors. And there have been actors who have been there for their partner. You have to be there for your scene partner. So even above Merrill Street, I have to tell myself, you have to honor this craft. Honor the craft. You happen to be across from one of the greatest

that's ever done. But just take that as an opportunity. Use that opportunity to honor the craft. It's almost like I get to find something above, above her, you know. And why wouldn't you want? It's interesting because then when you receive something from her, you go, oh, oh, this is how it's done. It's a privilege. It's a privilege to be in the scene. But the thing is, I have, you know, you have to, you have to kind of think of that thing above, which is, how do I serve this? What would WWMD?

What would Merrill do? She's serving the story. So I'm going to have to let all the butterflies and everything sit over here because I have to serve this story. What Ryan is put together, what Ryan's created is so important. Think about that and be the best scene partner you can be. That's the only thing you can do is try to think of it in a macro way, if that makes any sense. You're great with her. And the best compliment I can pay you as you watch those scenes, you're like, he deserves to be sitting there with her.

Like you're there, you're great. It's such a great part. And I want to go back because I do think most people don't know about your earliest days of performance. So where did, how did you start out? I'm talking before Second City, before Mad TV, before all that. What were your first memories of performing? I started performing in high school. I started performing in high school.

And I was going through a lot emotionally in my youth. and a wonderful person told the drama teacher at my high school, he was a friend of the drama teacher in my high school. And he said, this kid, I think might have a facility for this, for the arts. I think it would be helpful for him and might be healing for him.

Take him under your wing, please. And she did exactly what he asked. And I was walking down the hall one day past the choir room in my high school. And my drama teacher, she grabbed me. And she goes, are you kicking Michael Keith?

And went, uh, yes, ma'am, yeah. And she was just like, we need you to be involved in the play. like, okay, whatever we want to do, we got to get you involved with the play. I was like, okay.

And then the next thing I knew, I was running the follow spot for the spring show in my freshman year. And then she just kept encouraging me, pretty much telling me what I was going to do. You were definitely going to be auditioning for the play next year. I was like, yes, ma'am, yes, ma'am. And so I auditioned when I was a sophomore, and I was in Joseph and the most amazing technical the dream code. And then as a junior, I played Jesus in God's film. And then that was it.

After that, I just knew this is what I'm going to do. So I didn't know from straight plays. I just knew that I loved the movies, but I just thought, this is what you do on stage, is that you sing and you dance. And I loved it. I loved the camaraderie. I loved the feeling I had of it.

And I felt like I was home was one of the biggest things. And so that's where I started. And so this is a full circle situation for me. 30 years later, however many years later, You know, that I was doing this thing and comedy was this interesting kind of detour. I didn't know I was going to do comedy. When I left graduate school, I'm like,

oh, I'm going to go do Shakespeare festivals for the rest of my life. And I had no idea I was going to go down this path. So where did that path start for you then? How did you make that leap to comedy? Was it the second city jump or was it even before that? I mean, I'd always been a huge fan of comedy, like a huge fan of SNL when I was a young man.

And so I didn't, I didn't, I didn't know how you got that job. I didn't know what improvisation was at the time. I only understood what standups were because it was the 80s, we're in a standup, boom. And so I kind of was like, I don't know how you do this job. And my parents didn't really have a clue about how you do this job. But so I just kind of went, and then since I've done the musicals, I figured, oh, I'll just do that. I'll just do musicals. I'll just do plays.

However, this works. So in college, though, I did audition for an improv troupe. and I got into the troop and I really loved it and felt that I had a facility for it and really enjoyed it. And then once I finished graduate school, I came back home to Detroit, started a theater with a bunch of friends, and I joined the Second City Comedy Troop in Detroit. There was one in Detroit at the time. And I felt deep down really in the privateest parts of myself, that was like, I feel like I could do this. I feel like I would be good at this. And then it just went from there.

Because that ended up being the next 16 years of my life. From pretty much the summer of 1997 until 2015, all I did was sketch comedy for the most part. Right. And then you start getting an itch for these things that from your past, your past calls out to you. Don't you want to do drama? Don't you want to do Shakespeare? Don't you want to do? You've always wanted to be in an action movie.

and you kind of go, I don't know. And then my wife, when she was my, we were friends before we were dating, my wife was the one that said, what do you want to do with your career after you're done with King and Peel? And she said to me, what would you want to do if the sky was, was the limit? If you could do whatever you wanted and you knew it was going to happen and there would be no obstacles in your way, what would you want to do? And I said, I want to do Shakespeare. I want to be Jason Bourne. and she said, you can do that.

You can do that. And within a year, I worked with Doug Lyman, who directed the Born Identity, and did Hamlet with Oscar Isaac at the public theater in New York. It's just, you know what I mean? So you just put that intention out there. You put the intention out there.

Talk about, it's always wonderful in the world. You don't have to talk about what you don't want. Talk about what you do want. Talk about what you do want and manifest it. And my life has taken this little, turn now, surprisingly, into something I didn't realize was going to come back into my life in this wonderful way. But I must have manifested it somehow. We just Springfield's Broadway, too, with Meteor Shower.

Yeah. I mean, you did it all. I got to do Meteor shower with Amy Schumer, which is a comedy. But I was absolutely, I remember being backstage the night before opening night. And, oh, no, I'm sorry, it was opening night. And just kind of looking up at the rafters and going, when did you do you? You just think you're going to be able to do this. So, I'm sorry.

Oh, boy. You got to chill when you said that. I did. Yeah, but it's just, it's been like, it's also been a very emotional day of shooting as well on this thing. But it's, it's, I know, I just, I have a lot of, a lot of it's, it's my wife. My wife, she really has just pushed me, not pushed me, it's not the word. She's encouraged me, that she's inspired me to kind of move forward in my career.

It's been wonderful. It's been wonderful. Boy, have you. That's so beautiful. It's such a beautiful way to say. And I love you say. The roles you want to play are James Bond and King Lear, which I think says it all. Yeah, exactly. I always, for about 20, by the way, Willie, it's interesting. For about 23 years, I wanted to play the role of Horatio, Hamlet's best friend in Hamlet. And I played Horatio at the Public Theater.

It's just, it's amazing if you, it's a daring thing to do. But sometimes you should just say your dreams out loud. Everybody should just say their dreams out loud. It doesn't matter how old you are, where you are, what's stationed in life. Just as an extra thought. Sometimes just say your dreams out loud. And you never know, man. They could just come true.

Hey, guys, thanks for listening to the Sunday Sit Down podcast. Stick around to hear more from Keegan Michael Key right after the break. Welcome back to the Sunday Sit Down podcast. Now more of my conversation with Keegan Michael Key. Back to the comedy days just for a minute because you met Jordan Peel at Second City, Chicago, right? Then you both get onto Mad TV and, of course, go on to create Key and Peel. What was the magic you felt when you first started doing comedy with Jordan? There was, first of it was there was a shared knowledge base.

We both trained at Second City, and we had a common nomenclature with each other. And when we met in Chicago for this brief time that he was there, there was just, I think part of it was not only a shared knowledge of the art form, but also a shared experience as people, both being biracial, both being raised by single parents. We shared so much in common what we liked, the kind of comedy we liked was similar. And then it was serendipitous that we ended up on mad TV together. That was just like the universe just made that happen. but that would be the things that made me feel akin to him. He's like, he is like a brother to me, but it feels different. And we just, sometimes it just works, Willie, sometimes you just meet people and it just

works. And I can't even explain the alchemy. I mean, I know that there are other people who maybe I could have worked with and shared a knowledge base with, and it just wouldn't be the same. we were just yin and yang. I don't know how or why we compliment each other that way, but it is magical. I'm so grateful for it.

I went back. I was watching some Key and Peel today, which is just such a joy. You know, you did those seasons, you won the Emmys and the Peabody Award. It was recognized for more than being funny, but something deeper about our culture.

What did you guys set out to do with that show? First order of business, I know it's to make people laugh, but you also were saying things while you made us laugh. We originally just wanted the show to be some reflection of who we were in the world specifically. And I think it just happened to fall into place that the most powerful man in the world was also of a similar background. And that that conversation started because of Obama being our president opened up that profile. so that people started to understand that this is a thing that exists.

This is a phenomenon that exists in the world. And then for me personally, it was to show that the black experience is not a monolith. And for Jordan, another thing that we explored that was interesting to him is exploration of black masculinity and what that means and how it is to be, you know, the difference between being a super cool athlete and being a computer nerd. And those two things that were interesting to the two of us, they've done. Dovetail, right? They coalesced is that I really wanted to show all different types of the black experience. Jordan wanted to really explore this thing about what if you're not the strongest man in the room or you're really scared of the other person or you're a victim of vanity. It makes us human.

And so I feel like ultimately one of our goals was for people to see that we're human. Black people are human. We have experiences that everybody else has and then through the lens of comedy. And that you're not a monolith based on what people see in pop culture again and again. You mentioned the Luther, the Obama anger translator. It seems to me watching President Obama right now, especially on his book tour, he sort of let it go a little bit and he's maybe channeling Luther going the other way. I do. I think so. I think finally, it's like Luther doesn't know yet, but I think they're just going to give him his pink slip pretty soon. He doesn't need him anymore. He doesn't need him anymore. He's redundant. He's redundant. Yes, he's been made redundant.

That moment at the White House correspondence dinner when President Obama's up there and you're standing next to him doing your bit that you and Jordan sat in a room together and created. What was that like? It was another one of those surreal moments, but not surreal for the reason you think it is. It was, I couldn't stop marveling at what a great straight man he was. I couldn't stop marveling at how he knew exactly what he was doing in that moment. That he has such an, his sense of humor is refined. And he knew, he actually knew his role. He was playing himself and playing the commander in chief and playing the master of ceremonies all at the same time. That's what got to me. That's what I found so overwhelming was that he knew what he was doing. And then upon second and third and 28th watching,

you just, you go, look at him, look at him. Look at his, he's had timing. He knows what he's doing. And that's the thing that surprised me the most. That was the thing that really affected me. I was so nervous, Willie, that I learned his lines and my lines. Because I was just like, there's certainly a chance that this guy might forget his lines. I mean, he's got a couple of things on his mind. So I learned both our lines. So I was real comfortable. the lines. But it was just like, you had to stay there like this. But every now and again, I was like, look at you. You were doing great. Were you shocked when they said yes to that? Did you pitch him that idea? They asked me. They came to you. No, they came to me. Yeah.

So you must have been shocked when they called you then. Yeah. Well, they had called once and Jordan and I couldn't do. We were going to do something for the ACA and we couldn't do it. And we were too busy. Wait a minute. For the President of the United States. For the President of the United States. We're like, wait a minute. We're in the middle of production.

Maybe we should have rethought that. But I think it actually worked out exactly the way it should have. And then they called again and said, would you be willing to do the White House correspondence? And I'm like, yeah, yeah, I'm there. And this wonderful writer by the name of David Litt. He's a great author. He wrote a great book a couple years ago called Thanks, Thanks, Obama.

Yeah, yeah. Yeah, he's wonderful. He just wrote a new book about politics and democracy, or democracy in one book or less. And he wrote all the lines. He's like, I mean, you can change anything you work on. You actually know what's actually going on. Like, you really got your finger on the pulse.

You write the script and it worked out really well. That's amazing. That was amazing. I was thinking about you again, like I guess a month or so ago, Aaron Rogers scores a touchdown. I don't know if you saw this in the Packers game. And does McRingleberry. I know.

I know. Is he doing what I think he's doing? He definitely was. He pulled out the old McCriggil. I know Aaron and I know each other. We're acquaintances. And so he'll do stuff like that every now and again. And then every time I see him, I don't see him off him,

but whatever if I'm in an NFL event or something, I'll see him. And he always says to me, churlish and insubordinate. Or he'll say insubordinate and churlish. It's his favorite thing from the substitute teacher sketch. That's his like favorite thing. I have an 11-year-old son who I'll walk up,

but what are you doing some schoolwork? And he's just watching a loop of your player introduction. Like 12-minute loops. He's just leaning in memorizing them. So he broke him through another generation. There we go. I'll take it. I'll take it.

Do you, Kegan, in those moments, especially the President Obama one, do you stop and go, my gosh, I was in high school theater a minute ago and look where I'd come in my life? I have taken two or three occasions, I think, in my life. I need to take some more. But I definitely can say two or three occasions there's been where I have actually been able to smell roses a little bit. Yeah. And it's I have to, I'm trying to do more of that.

But that is one of them. And just even some days you have to just take a moment to be thankful. Like I'm in this trailer right now. I'm in this trailer, which means I'm working. Yeah. And I'm grateful to be working. So yes, I do take those. I try to take those moments and really just.

be grateful and appreciative of everything that's been that's been given to me. Well, I've left you three minutes to eat a bag of chips before you have to go back on the set. So I apologize for taking up your lunch break, but I really enjoyed it. It's so great to see you, and we root for you. We're so happy for your success. Thank you, Willie. I enjoyed this too. Thanks so much, man.

I really appreciate it. It's great to see it. My big thanks to Keegan Michael Key for a great conversation. The prom premieres on Netflix on December 11th, and you can catch Jingle jangle streaming on Netflix right now. And my thanks to all of you as always for tuning in. If you want to hear more of my full-length conversations with our guests every week, be sure to click subscribe so you never miss an episode. And of course, don't forget to tune into Sunday today every weekend on NBC. I'm Willie Geist. We'll see you right back here next week

on the Sunday Sit Down podcast.