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You filmed this special in 2017.
In fact, one place was like, We feel like hes making fun of stand-up comedy.
What, is that the sacred cow that youre not allowed to make fun of?
Another comedian said this: Everything I do, nobody is asking for.
Originally, it was all about me not cracking myself up and staying in character.
That made it really easy and really fun.
Thats pretty consistent across your work.
What appeals to you about playing these self-destructive people?Its a fundamentally funny thing for me.
Im glad you picked up on that.
In my personal life, I find that very obnoxious.
Were there any stand-up-special notes that you definitely wanted to hit or subvert?
Or did it develop more organically out of the character?It was pretty organic.
The trailer has an energy to it thats very masculine, with that Black Keysstyle soundalike music.
We thought that the straighter we played it, the more reflective it would be of that scene.
I think the cadence of stand-up is key without there actually being the content to back it up.
The strutting, the mic work.
Its fun for me to find that rhythm to simulate one of those leather-jacket comedians.
I had not pursued comedy in college, really.
I didnt know how anybody did it, and I gave up after five or six attempts.
I didnt realize that you could actually do your act and get better by doing it!
Youve also mentioned eerie similarities toThe Trip, which came out after you filmed the first one.
And they did it better, in a way.
That was always where my guy was coming from.
One day, maybe.
The nice thing about those guys is that they might get funnier the older we get.
So its always out there for us to play with.
How do you feel about theNetflix stand-up special scenein general?I dont really watch them.
I respect the craft, to some degree, and there are people who are really good at it.
Theres something different about being in a club and having that close interaction.
Theres something a little antiquated about it for me, that Ive heard everybodys point of view.
There is this strange, trope-y side of the persona sometimes.
Theres not really a point of view.
Its less about his personal experience.
I was curious if there were specific specials on your mind as you were making this.
Between me and Ben, this stuff is so ingrained in our brains from growing up.
The special that I grew up on and probably watched 100 times isBill Cosby: Himself.
I mean, I spend the first five minutes here dealing with the microphone stand.
But there are only so many hours in my day, so who knows.
Its become a nice, somewhat beloved little curio in my career.
I like that song.
Maybe there are more, who knows?
