00:00Tell the joke.
00:04I think I'm getting a divorce.
00:06The inspiration for me for the film was Will Arnett,
00:08who was my dear friend for almost 30 years.
00:11He was talking about a project that he was developing
00:14based on the life of a comedian in the UK, John Bishop.
00:17A mutual friend said, hey, do you know John Bishop?
00:20And he told this story of a guy who is going through a divorce
00:23and stumbles upon stand-up, actually went to a bar
00:28and didn't want to pay the cover,
00:30and found out that he could put his name down
00:32and get in for free.
00:33Alex Novak, downstairs in two minutes.
00:36That's me.
00:37Well, you better head down there, then.
00:39I play Alex Novak.
00:40He's at a crossroads, and his marriage is falling apart.
00:43His marriage to Tess, played by my friend Laura Dern.
00:46Alex and Tess have been married for 20 years.
00:50They're both stuck in lives they didn't bargain for.
00:56And she knows something's gotta change.
00:59Are you guys fighting?
01:00No.
01:01No, no, no, no.
01:02I love that there's the mutual respect for each other,
01:04and it's really just about rediscovering yourself.
01:07It's a very honest depiction of what it's like to be lost,
01:12to be in love, to be broken in love, all these things.
01:17You okay?
01:18Are you gonna be okay?
01:20This movie is about people trying to come to terms
01:24with who they are in life, what their goals are,
01:27their curiosities, their relationships
01:29in the new communities they build.
01:31I've been doing stand-up.
01:32Is it like a hobby?
01:33Well, I'm not about to quit my job and go on tour.
01:37Man, it's just, it's something I look forward to.
01:39I had never done stand-up before we did this.
01:41I remember the first time going down the stairs
01:43at the cellar and being very intimidated.
01:45There's something really magical about the cellar
01:47where we shot in downtown Manhattan, and it's a culture.
01:51It's a whole ecosystem of people,
01:53and it's been that way for decades.
01:55What I like about you is you're so innocent.
01:57You're not naive, you're innocent.
01:58You are good.
01:59I mean, you're bad at stand-up, but you're good.
02:01You have a good heart.
02:03You guys have all been friends for 20-plus years,
02:05and I was really inspired by that when I was on set,
02:08and you guys also embraced me.
02:10I had the privilege of watching Bradley
02:14be the most committed, bold, diligent filmmaker,
02:19being your friend alongside you as you went through that journey.
02:23It's the greatest gift an actor could ever ask for.
02:27Will, watching you do what you do in this movie inspired me.
02:33Like, look what one can accomplish
02:34when they really put it all on the line.
02:36Yeah.
02:37I hope that, like, the audience can relate to Alex
02:40so that when you go up on that stage that first time...
02:42The air is kind of sucked out.
02:44Like, oh, shit.
02:45Mm-hmm.
02:46What would I say if I went up there?
02:47Yeah.
02:48Oh, my gosh.
02:49Yeah.
02:50Even if you've never thought about doing a stand-up,
02:52it's not really about that.
02:53It's just about being able to be free
02:55and talk about what's going on.
02:57Chemistry, connection, love, friendship, trust,
03:00it's all there, and that was really important.
03:12We can talk about having a strong response,
03:14including you,
03:15on his side and looking from my back at the right side or the left side,
03:16all the way down and looking back on your practice fantastic,
03:17How long what would I say?
03:20That's Anna.
03:21I don't totally agree with you.
03:22It sounds very natural.
03:23It feels happy.
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