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Ramy Youssef, Kenan Thompson, Ricky Gervais, Kumail Nanjiani and Dan Levy come together from their homes for the TV Comedy Actor roundtable.
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00:00we're living through a unique time both with the global pandemic and the social unrest what have
00:08you all learned about yourselves during this period I prefer it and I want it to go on forever
00:13not the social unrest the lockdown I'm enjoying the lockdown I mean it suits me I found that I
00:21had a lot of things I didn't realize that were very important to me that were like I would do
00:27for sanity over the you know many decades of my life and when they're taken away ah it's challenging
00:34to figure out like new stuff that makes you feel like a person I mean technologically speaking I've
00:40realized that if the apocalypse were coming and technology was all that I had I would be
00:44not good so I'm shocked I'm here today I'm shocked that my computer worked and you know that's that
00:57Rami what about you have you learned about anything about yourself in the in this period I agree I
01:03mean definitely I know Dan said was great I really haven't learned what it's like you think you learn
01:08something and then you don't and then you're like no that wasn't that was just I was just losing my
01:13mind I was just losing my damn mind Keenan I'm curious in this moment in time are you sort of
01:18thinking thank God we don't have to do an episode of SNL right now or are you thinking conversely too
01:24bad we're dark as we can really lift people up in this moment yeah I mean I think a lot of the
01:29responsibility of doing comedy is to make people try to feel good through bad times but it is
01:34definitely very tiptoe is at the moment so it might be a little harder than you know it would be funny
01:41so I don't even know if the point of doing it would be worth it you know if it's not gonna be funny
01:46because everybody's so sensitive about everything right now that's the best time when everyone's on edge
01:52you know everyone's sensitive that's the best time to be right insensitive my show was packed
01:57with jokes about AIDS cancer famine the Holocaust this is just gonna top it up I'm glad this helps
02:04Ricky's brand exactly it's helping this is Ricky's prime time right now do you ever get nervous Ricky
02:13um I don't know I have I have some anxiety dreams what are your anxiety dreams well I'm on a I'm on a
02:22train and I'm going in and out of a tunnel and my dad spills milk all over my face you sure that's
02:28milk that's not true that's not true I just made that up you just lied to us about a dream you had
02:36I'm anxious right now if I'm being honest are you what are you anxious about
02:40Robbie one of the things you've talked about with with your show is that you hoped it would
02:46sort of start conversations what kinds of conversations has it started for for you and
02:51and and your family I think so much of what we've looked at in the show is kind of a conversation of
02:57a millennial who has faith which which just feels like a thing that's super contradictory I think in
03:04general religions basically just like a punchline in comedy and I think for us to kind of find what's
03:09funny within it while it's still being a genuine thing as it is to a lot of people who are trying
03:14to figure out the nooks and crannies of like well how do I hold on to what I believe in and also react
03:20to what I'm feeling and seeing in the present moment and so I think on a community level it's really
03:25interesting just for the various Muslim communities to not only look at this story and feel relatability but
03:31also be challenged on certain things I mean one of the things we looked at in season two we were
03:36really lucky we got Mahershala Ali to play my shape and it was an exciting thing for the show because
03:42you have this Arab Muslim family and then suddenly as a show we get to look at anti-blackness within
03:48the Arab community we get to look at what I think is a type of racism that we don't really talk about
03:54which is there's this umbrella of people of color but underneath it there's still a lot of anti-blackness
04:00and so to be able to break that down on a show like ours while also looking at things that people
04:05care about and then seeing LGBT characters and they're also still people who are still called
04:11Muslim and that's something that people have a hard time reckoning with as well and so to be able to do
04:16that as a show I make my show for people who resonate with it to watch sometimes people think like
04:22oh man you put a Muslim family on TV and now the south are gonna understand Muslims and I'm like I
04:28don't they don't the south isn't watching Hulu like I don't think they care this isn't about that
04:33this isn't about swing voters it's not about bringing people over this is about people who
04:37are invested in these themes also need to be challenged on what they think they think they
04:42know and so that's what's interesting to me it's not about bringing in other people it's really about
04:47we're all in the same room but we can't just be echoing the same conversations we need to dig into them
04:52in a more meaningful way what are the sort of responses that that come at you with the shows
04:57that you guys are making that you perhaps don't expect at all mine was the emotional response I
05:03was surprised people would come up to me and they'd say they'd tell me their story of grief nearly
05:09everyone that came up to me said I lost my sister three weeks before I watched the show or I lost my
05:15wife last year and it was amazing they would say that to a stranger because they they sort of used the
05:20show as an in and they said oh and I was I was Tony that was me for a year so that was that was
05:25quite a shock it made me want to treat that responsibly in series two so I didn't make him
05:31get better because you don't you don't snap out of depression it does sort of affect you and the
05:37things that affect you is when a real person comes up to you and tells you it affected their actual
05:42life do you know what I mean it's sort of scary to have a responsibility as a comedian because it's
05:47it's not good it's not good to have a responsibility as a comedian as a person you do you know you do
05:55you do worry but uh you can't detach yourself from the world as much as I'd like to um so you just try
06:02and make you try and make bad things funny that's all I think any any time you tell stories that are
06:08not part of the mainstream narrative you're going to affect people in my case to to really make an active
06:15choice to tell a gay love story that felt authentic to my own experience in a way that I hadn't seen
06:21depicted in television before I think as anybody whose stories are kind of not at the forefront
06:28you end up as an actor or you know as a viewer you end up watching yourself in a way kind of distilled
06:35into a version of what people want you to be or what network executives consider to be kind of a
06:42palatable version of who you are and so for me I think you know I was given an opportunity
06:49and I was given the freedom by the by both our networks in Canada and the US to tell whatever
06:55stories I wanted to tell and as a result it was a conscious effort on my part to make sure that
07:02all the intricacies of the relationship that I was writing felt real and that you know when I
07:08walked into the store that I owned with my boyfriend that we kissed as straight couples would kiss and
07:14you realize in those moments that that isn't represented a lot on TV you don't see casual
07:20intimacy between two men on television and you know at first it obviously kind of strikes you as like I
07:27wonder how people are going to take this I wonder how kind of middle America is going to perceive this
07:31but the the surprising thing was that I can probably count and maybe I'm not I mean I'm not
07:38scouring the internet for for negativity um but I do feel like you know the positive outcome of this is
07:44that I could probably count on two hands the negative things that have been written but the the volume of
07:50letters and notes from people be it kids who have seen themselves reflected
07:55in in in our story or kids who have come out of the closet by using you know certain dialogue from
08:02our show or parents who have accepted their children in ways because they had been able to learn through
08:07the show I think television is an incredibly powerful medium and I think you know in in in comedy in
08:13particular people don't expect to necessarily be caught off guard by sentimentality or or love and I think
08:21this new wave of of television and I think the the freedom that a lot of you know new creators in
08:28tv are have been allowed is is the capacity to be funny and to also be emotional and to also tell
08:35stories that we don't get to see so it's very exciting and I you know I have to say that it's quite
08:41thrilling to be in the company of everyone here because I do feel like the work that everyone has done
08:45has helped you know moved the dial for for voices and for stories that we don't get to see all the time
08:51damn that was very well said Dan my goodness must be a writer I think it's true I think people
08:58second-guess the the the public too often I think as you say networks they do say can the can the
09:05public take this when it's a taboo subject for someone and the answer is yes real life's much
09:09scarier than anything in fiction I deal purposely in taboo subjects for that reason that I do want
09:14people to feel slightly uncomfortable when I start talking about it there's no harm can come from
09:19discussing taboo subjects that you know that's what stops them being taboo and it takes the
09:24audience to a place it hasn't been before and that's exciting in fiction and create we create
09:29our own heroes and villains a sort of role play for the soul yeah I will say though with taboo subjects
09:35you know it's it's obviously some of you guys talk about that stuff more than I do but I think it's
09:40also important what the point of view or perspective on the taboo subject is I think sometimes people
09:46just do shock to do shock and I do think that that stuff can cause actual harm in the world I really
09:53do I think there are jokes against certain marginalized groups that can actually hurt um so I think talking
10:02about taboo subjects it's extremely extremely uh beneficial but I do think that the point of view
10:09you take on them is also important of course of course I that's what I always say is there anything
10:14you wouldn't joke about I say no it depends on the joke and offense often comes when people mistake
10:20the subject of a joke with the actual target and that's really important and that's a really important
10:24distinction to make a big part of my comedy is saying things I do not mean I I I say the wrong
10:30thing because I know the audience knows the right thing and that's why they laugh how do you feel
10:35about audiences that might watch it and think oh that's how that is how Ricky feels that is his
10:41true point of view to a certain extent you've got to aim at people who get it if I play to 15 000 people
10:48there are going to be rapists pedophiles murderers I'm not gonna you know who's coming to see your
10:55show Ricky what is your demo but do you know what I mean to think that someone might not get that joke
11:06I think that's that's a worrying state of mind because there comes to a point where you go listen
11:11the joke's there the joke's gettable most people get it if there's one person that doesn't get it
11:17I I can live with that and I think that's the that's the exciting bit that they feel clever when they
11:23get it that someone might take you at face value doing an ironic joke or satirical joke well yeah
11:30some people some people try to inject themselves with bleach you know I don't know I don't know what
11:35to say really there are stupid people in the world as as the longest tenured uh cast member on snl
11:43when did you get comfortable with the idea that you would decide when you're you know ready to move on
11:49versus Lauren Michaels deciding for you so put another way when in your tenure did you stop being
11:55nervous about getting fired yeah I mean I guess I wasn't worried about being fired after a couple
12:00of seasons just because you have to let that go and just kind of do the job you know what I mean and
12:07you know if you're so focused on getting fired every single show you can't focus on entertaining
12:11people just you've got to try and get fired that's that's my advice try and get fired right
12:17well Ricky that is terrible advice go the other way yeah exactly that's not good advice Ricky
12:23yeah try and get fired you can do that if you're Ricky Gervais but somebody else gets their first job
12:30they take your advice they try and get fired guess what they get fired they got fired yeah next five
12:35those they get over it they get over it they thank me later
12:39I mean I I just also have to say Keenan you are so good on that on snl and you are so it's just
12:47watching you is so you're just so effortless and there is so much stress that goes into that job I
12:54mean it was I I've been to a couple tapings and just as an audience member I'm stressed out you just
13:00make it look so easy and the work the character work that you do is so joyful and fun to watch it's it
13:08kind of speaks for itself in terms of of why you have not been fired it is uh it is a skill set that
13:14just is magnificent to watch thank you man I you know I don't take praise well but I really appreciate
13:21that you know I've been very blessed is all I could say just try to stay focused and and really try to
13:28figure out the formula of comedy that's why I was telling Ricky earlier that I loved his special so much
13:32because he spent so much time talking about how to talk about like going back to taboo subjects but
13:39just showing the fact that anything can be talked about if you do it smartly you know what I mean and
13:45that's how I approach you know sketches or trying to push forward how you know black comedy I guess is
13:53is perceived or progressing or whatever and just trying to move away from just playing traditional
13:59roles and stuff like that so always just being very serious about the approach basically Dinesh your
14:04character from Silicon Valley what was the sort of thought process in in taking that role all those
14:09years ago and and did you worry about the sort of typecasting that could come with it not really
14:14for that specific show because even though I'm a nerd everybody's a nerd that's a show about nerds
14:19right if I was the only brown guy on the show and I was the only nerd that would be one thing but that
14:24is a show about nerds and I was just such a fan of Mike Judge I mean everything he does is so so good
14:30that for me I knew that that that that character was going to be specific enough that it wasn't going
14:36to fall into the stereotypical roles that I'd been that I've been talking about so no for me
14:42easiest job I've ever said yes to Silicon Valley over the course of of the run of of Silicon Valley your
14:49career I think it's fair to say has has exploded but I want to talk about sort of this this moment
14:55in time the pressures that come with the the choices that you make one of those things was being
15:01a superhero being a part of the Marvel superhero family and there's a first in in that how significant
15:07was that for you and and what kind of sort of weight comes with it well it was very significant for
15:12me because it was something I really really personally wanted to do I'm a big like fan of sci-fi big fan of
15:16superheroes big form fan of Marvel movies so I really really wanted to do that now on top of that
15:22there's this other pressure that comes in that I'm the first South Asian superhero in a major Hollywood
15:29movie in a Marvel movie I'm the first Pakistani superhero but then that stuff it's a little harder
15:34to negotiate because I can only represent myself I can't represent the millions and millions of people
15:40so so I do feel that pressure but I think the only way to to relieve that pressure is just to have
15:48more people have these opportunities for me when I got that part I was like I want to look like someone
15:55who could take on sort of the traditional Hollywood looking superheroes I wanted to look like someone who
16:01could take on Thor who could take on Captain America to me that was an important part and for me it was
16:06important because I was the first Pakistani superhero like so you had to get jacked for your culture
16:14yeah I'm doing reps for Pakistan you have to get ripped for that's the newest ice bucket challenge
16:19rip for all of Pakistan can now eat cake and sit on a couch because I'm out here doing pull-ups
16:27we're going to touch very quickly on the photo that broke the internet I guess the first place to start
16:33is what surprised you most about the sort of response to it just that my aunts saying they
16:38were really proud of me did not expect that that was a weird one having like aunts send me a shirtless
16:47picture of myself it's not something I'd expect listen it got so much bigger than I thought it was
16:51going to get I had no idea that it was gonna that it was gonna be like that if I'd known it was gonna
16:55be like that I probably wouldn't have done it because I still I'll tell you I've come to hate that picture
17:02you have why I just you know it's weird you sort of get a weird body dysmorphia when when the whole
17:09world is concentrating on how you look and listen I'm very very grateful and I put those pictures
17:14out for a reason right I did that because I wanted that reaction obviously but then when you get that
17:19reaction it's a little weird where you're like people are really judging little bits of your physical
17:25being and I know a lot of people have it a lot worse than me but it sort of makes you feel kind
17:31of naked I became shallow I got obsessed with how I look and then all I would see are sort of what
17:37I perceive as flaws that happened to me people judge me because of my body a lot and I'm trying to turn
17:43that around by being more cerebral I probably haven't been to the gym in 35 years just to try and
17:49you got in shape didn't you Ricky yeah you did yeah you did did I did I I've had uh I've had liposuction
17:59but only only on I've had a lot of liposuction but only in my testicles because that it's where I put
18:06all my fat so I just had enormous balls and I've had them I've had them that picture would break the
18:13internet for sure that's not where I anticipated that going I I did you did oh good shame on me
18:22yeah I was like when is Ricky going to talk about his fat balls again
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