- 2 months ago
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00:00It could so easily become cartoon-like, and the beauty of having those feet step out that everyone knows and
00:06loves,
00:07but it is still firmly rooted in truth, that is a superpower of this lot.
00:41What did you hear? What were you thinking? What did you hope?
00:43A couple of years when I was going, we're obviously going to be back.
00:46Even when I hear, Jason didn't even think we were coming back, but I could have told him we were
00:51coming back.
00:53Ultimately, because I don't know whether I was just in denial that it had finished,
00:57or in some kind of weird headspace that it was going to continue.
01:00I just thought, there's no way, with the quality of our, you know, Jedi writing team,
01:08and the fact that, you know, even in Jason, he is such a huge supporter of women's sports universally.
01:16I just thought, come on, Keeley's given Rebecca this dossier of blooming women's football.
01:23Come on, for God's sake.
01:25It's just an obvious thing that it's going to be fucking magic, so get on with it.
01:32Like, what took them so long?
01:33Hi, what took you so long? I knew we were coming back anyway.
01:37So were you texting each other during this hiatus, and sort of like, what do you hear? What do you
01:42know?
01:42What was that like?
01:43I think, for me, it was initially, I've heard it's coming back.
01:47I don't know yet if they want me back.
01:51Can you just listen to her?
01:53No, but that was the thing, and then it was like, but I think I'm hearing they do, so hopefully.
01:58But, you know, I think just the joy of it being the kind of, the continuation of the incredible story
02:06we've gotten to tell so far,
02:07and then this kind of absolute fresh take on it, and it being something about a women's team,
02:12and this incredible new cast that we get to watch flourish and grow was something that just, like,
02:18what an honor to get to do that again, because we experienced that with the first team, you know?
02:22And I think it was such a profound thing to be a part of, and to watch these incredible actors
02:28become a family together,
02:29and I'm really excited to see that happen again with the new incredible actors that we have.
02:34So, yeah, I think, you know, we were texting, and we were really excited, and we were like,
02:37it's going to be about the women's team.
02:44Yeah, Brendan, obviously you all left sort of these breadcrumbs, sort of, that was the natural progression of the show,
02:52and what was going to happen next.
02:53What were you, in your conversations with Jason, what were those like as you,
02:59he sort of got closer to deciding, okay, it's time?
03:03Well, like, I definitely wanted to come back, and Jason and I live like a ten-minute walk away from
03:09each other.
03:11I mean, uphill for me, downhill for him, so faster, faster for him.
03:17But I kind of took it as my job to never discuss it with him,
03:21because I knew a million people would be discussing it with him and pressing about it all the time,
03:27and, you know, including some who, like, have every right to do so, and should be,
03:31but also, like, you know, people in corner suites, and, you know, who are behind desks and stuff,
03:37who have, like, monetary and business reasons to ask.
03:39Grown-ups, they're called. Yes, thank you. That's the term.
03:43And so, yeah, I just really decided, like, I'm never going to bring it up.
03:48I'm never, ever going to bring it up, because he's also particularly resistant to anything like a sales pitch,
03:54but including about, like, really good things, you know, like, if someone was like,
03:58hey, man, there's a guy named Jonas Salk, and he wants you to put a little money on this polio
04:01vaccine,
04:02he'd be like, what's he after, though, really, you know?
04:08So I didn't want to trigger that reflex in him, ever, so yeah, I just never brought it up,
04:13and then finally one day I got a text, like, I think we should do it.
04:16Oh, great! And I think we should be the women's team. Great!
04:19And, like, that was it, and then we're off.
04:21And then off to the races.
04:24At what point did the two of you hear that this was really going to happen,
04:28and what was your reaction, other than Hannah's, like, finally?
04:32I had a meeting where I sat down with Jason, and what was really lovely about that for me
04:36was that we met in the same place that we had met to start the whole thing off for season
04:40one,
04:41and just because I wanted to hear, kind of, I did want to ask him questions,
04:47and ask if I, like, what he might want for Keeley this year, which I didn't get a lot of
04:53answers,
04:54but I got a few, which was very much about the women's team.
04:58And then it was just exciting, the idea of actually getting to be around the people
05:02that we'd spent all this time with, because they're people that become, like, an unusual family,
05:06you know, and a family that you love, and you quite often have to love from afar,
05:11because you go off, and people go and do exciting things in different places,
05:14but the idea of bringing everybody back into a space and getting to play again was really exciting,
05:19because also it's a job that I've learned a lot from,
05:21and I think I'm somebody that loves learning as much as possible.
05:24Whether I can retain all the information sometimes is questionable, but I do love to try.
05:28So I was excited, just the idea of it brimming, that we were coming back, right?
05:32And I remember us talking about that.
05:33I was just dreading getting back into my quite tight pencil skirts.
05:39And I was thinking, how much time have I got to, you know, stop eating things?
05:46But what's your back end to that character?
05:48I mean, hers was about, you know, what's the character arc of Keeley?
05:53Mine was, I do still, I love, we both love wearing our characters' wardrobes rather than it feeling like costumes.
06:01So I was thinking, right, you've put this on yourself, girl.
06:04You've got to get back into some of the old gear.
06:07I mean, there's that moment in the first episode back where you get out of the SUV,
06:12and it's your high heels, you're sort of the go-go boots,
06:17and it's like, oh, they're back.
06:19I know, but do you know, that's the charm of this, I think.
06:23You know, it could so easily become cartoon-like,
06:26and the beauty of having those feet step out that everyone knows and loves,
06:31but it is still firmly rooted in truth, that is a superpower of this lot.
06:35Yeah, no, absolutely.
06:41Well, Annette, for you, there's a moment in that first episode
06:45where we see Ted back at his desk in Kansas City,
06:48and he's got photos, tchotchkes, from his time.
06:51And there it is.
06:54Now, have you been doing that so often that you broke it?
06:57What happened?
06:59I'd like to say it's a sport injury, but it wasn't.
07:03It was taking a tight sock off.
07:05And you can laugh as much as you like.
07:07Are you joking?
07:08No, I'm not.
07:09Finger down the back of my heel.
07:13What is your socks made of?
07:14I'm now doing exercises, and that is to take the splint off
07:20and stretch my finger, and then I have to put it very gently
07:24and not squeeze my wrist.
07:26That's the sort of exercise I like.
07:29That's funny on your middle finger.
07:31That's funny.
07:32I blame it on Ted.
07:35You need to get that middle finger back in shape,
07:37because you're going to be using it a lot.
07:38Yes.
07:43From what I've seen so far,
07:45we see a little more of your character this season.
07:49And the pub is such an important part of this show,
07:53an important part of Richmond.
07:54I'm glad you think so.
07:55I believe that very strongly.
07:57And what did you think about returning?
08:01It's a place that people love to see on this show.
08:04Yeah.
08:04It's fantastic.
08:06I mean, I get stopped all the time.
08:08I believe in the actual pub in Richmond,
08:11they have a whole room dedicated to Ted now,
08:15and there is on the wall a painting of May with a heart.
08:18So I'm thinking of having a tattoo.
08:21I think it's obligatory.
08:25Anyone that goes to the pub needs to have that tattoo on their backside.
08:29Okay.
08:30Oh, I thought you were going to get the tattoo.
08:32Oh, yeah.
08:33I'll start the trend.
08:34Okay.
08:35We can all compare.
08:38Brendan, why don't you embarrass our three newbies here?
08:43Yes.
08:49So, obviously, you had to get the right person for Alice Chilton,
08:53since it's such a pivotal role.
08:55You know, someone who's, you know, going to be a little toe-to-toe with Ted
08:59and bring a new sort of interesting mix to the coach's corner.
09:05Talk a little bit about Tanya and sort of what she brought to the show.
09:09We knew early on that this character was going to be really important,
09:12and we were excited about casting this character,
09:14and we saw a bunch of auditions that didn't quite get it.
09:19It's like they were playing the comedy of it a little too hard
09:22and not, like, the truth of it.
09:23And they're playing the, like, you know,
09:25this fucking guy, you know, sort of vibe,
09:28which, like, we sort of had that.
09:30And then, yeah, Tanya's video was one of the ones
09:35that we get in the writer's room once in a while
09:36that just stops the room in its tracks.
09:39And, like, we called, like, we yelled on the hall
09:40to anyone else who was in their offices,
09:42like, hey, you gotta come see this!
09:43You gotta come see this!
09:44We got Alice! We got Alice!
09:46What was it like to, you know, create something new,
09:49and what do you make of Alice Chilton?
09:52She's so delicious for an actor
09:55because she's kind of everything.
09:59She's a lot. She's a human being,
10:00which is what I think is so great about this show,
10:03is that the characters feel real
10:05because everyone is everything,
10:09and everyone is so much more
10:11than what they seem at the beginning.
10:13And Alice, yeah, she kind of starts off
10:18as this spiky, cold shrew.
10:24And, but I, there's a lovely kind of journey
10:27of her just, you know, softening and peeling back.
10:31And, yeah, she's lovely.
10:34And she's definitely becoming part of the beard
10:37and Ted sort of trifecta now,
10:40which is kind of fun to see her
10:41slowly understand what these two crazy Americans
10:44are talking about.
10:45Yeah.
10:46So there'll be more fun to be had there.
10:48Yeah.
10:49All right.
10:50Talk about Jude and Boots.
10:52So we came up with the character of Boots
10:55for a couple of reasons.
10:56One is, you know, looking back at the team we had before,
10:59just like, you know, going down the positions,
11:00like we had stories built around, you know,
11:03a center back and a wide midfielder
11:07and a fullback who became a winger
11:09and, you know, central midfielders and strikers.
11:12But we didn't really have stories, per se,
11:14about our goalkeeper, Zerou.
11:16And historically, it is widely known in football
11:19that goalkeepers, as we say in episode two,
11:21as you've seen, are fucking nuts.
11:23So we thought it was high time
11:26that we got some of that.
11:29And yeah, and Jude's was another audition
11:32that was, you know, just different from everyone else's.
11:35Like, a lot of people were just playing the comedy
11:36and Jude was just playing it pretty straight.
11:40And as kind of happened with Phil for Jamie Tartt,
11:45you know, I will, and I confess to my mistake here,
11:48like, Jude was not top of the list
11:50of most people in the writer's room.
11:53Like, everyone liked her for something.
11:54We weren't sure what.
11:55But Jason was like, no, that's Boots.
11:57That's Boots.
11:58That's Boots right there.
11:59Let's go.
11:59We're done.
12:00And as you will see, as the season progresses,
12:03that has turned out to be very, very true.
12:05We are done.
12:06Jude McAlees now.
12:07Yeah!
12:12So, Jude, talk a little bit about Boots
12:14and on the level of sort of a little eccentric as a goalie,
12:19where does Boots fit?
12:20I think she's at a 10 on that scale, yeah.
12:24I think, I mean, she's, it's like a gift to play a character
12:27who's just a bit unhinged.
12:29It means every new script, you're like,
12:31that's what we're doing today, okay.
12:33Which is just so much fun.
12:34And I think, you know, as you were saying,
12:36it's like, but she's rooted in truth.
12:38So there's all this arrogance and there's all this bluff,
12:41but she's grounded in truth
12:43and there's loads of vulnerability there
12:45and she is desperate for connection and community
12:48and that's what she gets from this lot, yeah.
12:51I forgot one thing about the naming of the character, Boots.
12:55When we first did the first commercial in 2013,
12:56it was me and Jason and Joe Kelly
12:58and Jason's manager, Jeff Chetty,
12:59who is a great guy and a great character.
13:03And in London, in the UK, they have a chain,
13:06you know, their Dwayne Reed is called Boots.
13:08There's a Boots, like on every corner,
13:09you get everything you need at Boots.
13:11And we'd be shooting or, you know, done for the day,
13:13like, hey, Jeff, we're gonna play Catan.
13:16You wanna play?
13:17No, I gotta go to Boots.
13:18Like, what?
13:19Yeah, they got, they got,
13:20you can get over the counter, aspirin with codeine.
13:23The Boots is amazing.
13:25And, you know, next morning, like, how was your night?
13:27I went to three different Boots.
13:29Boots, so we now just call him Boots.
13:32And so Boots Quinn is a nod to Jason's manager,
13:35Jeff Boots Chetty.
13:36I thought it was, I thought it's because
13:38she doesn't wear gloves, but she does wear boots.
13:41Well, yeah, and the story of the show,
13:42but before that, there was a historical precedent.
13:45Oh, do Boots the chemist know that?
13:48He also introduced himself to me like that,
13:50and I was like, okay, crazy man.
13:53I'm Boots.
13:53I was like, we're all Boots, it's fine.
13:56So, I always love those, the origin stories.
13:59Well, let's get to Abby, and finally, some Gemma,
14:04which I don't think they had a chance to see Gemma
14:06in episode two, right?
14:07So, we'll get to.
14:09You'll get plenty in the remaining episodes.
14:12Abby, and also Faye Marseille, who appears in three,
14:16who you might recognize from Andor and Game of Thrones,
14:18but not with this one.
14:19This is a whole different world.
14:22But they kind of complete the set of what, you know,
14:25the team is going to be for the rest of the season.
14:28And, yeah, building the character of Gemma was, yeah,
14:32we just knew that we had to have, you know,
14:34some kind of, like, really dynamic offensive player
14:36just for practical narrative reasons.
14:38But also, like, we didn't want to do too much
14:40of, like, just meeting new people all the time.
14:42And so that seemed like an opportunity where, okay,
14:44what does Gemma and, as you'll see, Alice have a history
14:48with each other, and perhaps that history
14:50is not entirely smooth.
14:53So, that will be something that we're following
14:56for them all the way through.
14:57And then, yeah, auditions-wise,
14:59I think it was the last big part that got cast.
15:04It had just taken a while.
15:05I couldn't quite get it.
15:06Like, the scenes we were putting out,
15:07we weren't quite happy with either for the audition reads.
15:11And then, yeah, and then finally, towards the end,
15:13the whole room was like, what are we thinking?
15:15It's Abby.
15:15It's clearly Abby.
15:17And we all got around, like, looking at each other,
15:19like, Abby, Abby, Abby, Abby, Abby, Abby.
15:22And so you'll meet her properly going forward,
15:25but remember her now.
15:26It's Abby Hearn.
15:27There we go.
15:31So, Abby, tell us a little bit about Gemma.
15:33And, you know, what do you make of your character?
15:35And what sort of, you know, it's been like joining this team?
15:40Yeah, I mean, it's been phenomenal joining the team.
15:43If you guys love the team half as much as we love each other,
15:49even a fraction as much as we love each other,
15:50then we are in for a treat.
15:53And like you said, like, coming into something with, like,
15:57a history at help that me and Tanya hated each other before, too.
16:00We didn't.
16:01We were in love straight away.
16:02We would literally discuss before every scene,
16:04just like, okay, we're in love.
16:05And now we have to hate each other.
16:06Great, let's go.
16:07Yeah, it was really fun.
16:09What was it like for the two of you to be out there on the pitch?
16:12And, you know, how much soccer or football experience
16:15did the two of you have in coming into this?
16:17And what's it like to film that?
16:20We did a boot camp before we did any scenes.
16:24And we really thought we were the shit.
16:29It was just the actors, and we had amazing trainers.
16:32We thought, yeah, we thought we were absolute dogs bollocks.
16:34And then they brought in the footballers,
16:36and we were humbled so hard, so quickly.
16:39It was a really embarrassing, really embarrassing day
16:42when they all came to play with us.
16:43Yeah, they all came to play, and we were terrified.
16:46Because they're all super competitive, too.
16:48So we were all just like, oh, this is real.
16:50We have to play football now.
16:51So they weren't being nice to us.
16:53They were footballers.
16:54They were like, catch!
16:56Especially you.
16:57They're like hurling balls.
16:59Oh, give me some gloves, would you?
17:02You guys actually had it slightly better than the dudes did,
17:05because when the dudes had their actor boot camp
17:08and then met the real players,
17:11that was before the show was a thing,
17:13and no one knew this would ever be anything.
17:15So the real footballers basically beat the shit
17:18out of all the actors you've come to love so much,
17:22because they had no stature whatsoever.
17:26I remember Brett getting kicked with a ball
17:28straight in the face, totally unnecessarily.
17:30Like, that guy did that on purpose.
17:31There's no way.
17:32So this time we knew to tell the footballers,
17:35like, hey, hey, these actors are...
17:37We need their faces.
17:39We need their faces.
17:40Be nice to them.
17:41Always protect the face.
17:42Help them along.
17:43Not the face.
17:43You're not trying to beat them.
17:44They are on your team, please.
17:47And I wish we'd thought of that seven years ago.
17:50Well, it's a different world now,
17:51and you guys are coming into a show
17:53that is so well-established, so well-known,
17:55and so what was that anticipation?
17:57What were your nerves like
17:59in realizing that you're joining this show
18:02that's won multiple Emmys,
18:03that is beloved by everyone in this room?
18:07You know, was there a little bit of intimidation factor?
18:10What was that like getting on set for the first time?
18:13Imagine if we were like, no.
18:15Obviously, yeah, it was absolutely terrifying.
18:17I was shitting myself.
18:18A lot of pressure.
18:18My uncle said, don't ruin my favorite show.
18:21Um, so, like...
18:23Yes, uncle!
18:24And, yeah.
18:25But, like, that, like, in a real way,
18:27it was like, wow, don't, don't fuck it up.
18:30Because people love it.
18:31Like, it was a threat.
18:31Like, your uncle threatened you.
18:33Yeah, yeah, truly.
18:33I still feel like a fan.
18:35I feel like I'm one of you guys.
18:36I just have a really good seat.
18:38And then they're like, anyway,
18:39let's talk about the character.
18:40And I'm like, oh, yeah, I have to be in it now.
18:42Great, great, great.
18:43Well, let's talk about the real love story
18:45at the heart of Ted Lasso.
18:47And, of course, that's Rebecca and Keeley.
18:55The relationship, the friendship is strong,
18:57but there is some tension, right?
19:00I mean, because Rebecca still has a business to run.
19:03Keeley is so excited about this.
19:05But at the end of the day,
19:08you've got to make it work.
19:09So what is that going to be like
19:11for these two characters?
19:13And how do you describe where this friendship is
19:15and where it's going?
19:16I think it's going to go to the next level of friendship
19:19where it becomes something even deeper,
19:21even bigger, even more important,
19:23and an even greater example of what it is
19:24to actually explore female friendships
19:27that are real life,
19:28which is sometimes you have to guide your friends
19:31in a direction so that they are learning things
19:33and they are allowed to also get things wrong
19:35so they learn things more.
19:36But then the key to it all is communicating.
19:39Yeah, and the friendship is never,
19:41even though it is tried,
19:42it is never truly tested to the point of it breaking.
19:46We, as a couple, in real life,
19:50and them, as a couple,
19:54there is an unspoken,
19:57you know, we're not ultimately going anywhere,
19:59but we will always call each other out on things.
20:01And it's really lovely that
20:03as much as Keely needs Rebecca
20:07to further that which she doesn't realize
20:10she doesn't know,
20:11so does Rebecca.
20:13She has to be called out,
20:14and the main person she listens to is Keely.
20:17None more so,
20:18she has learned to listen
20:20and needs to when Alice comes along.
20:23And I don't believe that Rebecca
20:24would have been able to listen and react
20:27had she not had this relationship with Keely first.
20:30So this is pivotal, this friendship.
20:33Yeah.
20:33When we think about Rebecca
20:34in that first season,
20:36those first couple of episodes
20:37of Ted Lasso to now,
20:39I mean, talk about sort of a character growth.
20:42Talk about just sort of
20:43what these relationships have meant to that character.
20:47What's that been like,
20:48and how have you seen
20:50the progression of your character over the years?
20:52I mean, I've been fiercely protective of her
20:54from the word go.
20:55When people used to say she was like the Darth,
20:58do you ever hear anyone call her
20:59the Darth Vader of Ted Lasso?
21:00I was like,
21:01you can shut the fuck up.
21:04She was a woman,
21:06scorned, wronged,
21:07usurped,
21:07all of it.
21:08And just amazing.
21:11The joy every single minute
21:14that I've had this girl
21:15rippling through my bloodstream.
21:19You know,
21:20as someone who's six foot two in heels,
21:22I had never had a role come to me like this.
21:26The joy then of playing it over many seasons
21:29that you can finesse quietly in some ways
21:32has been really incredible.
21:35It's an arc that I will always be so grateful for
21:38and long may it continue.
21:39True that.
21:43So Juno,
21:45how would you describe
21:47where Keely and Roy Kent are now?
21:50Next question.
21:51Really, really good friends.
21:54Just maybe an extra really in that.
21:56I mean, I think there is,
21:58obviously there's chemistry there, right?
21:59And it's a beautiful thing to do
22:03on camera with Brett Goldstein.
22:05He is such a brilliant human,
22:07brilliant actor.
22:09And kind soul and nurturing person.
22:11And I'm so proud of all the things that he's doing.
22:15Partly, I think he can't be here tonight
22:16because one of them too.
22:18And I think getting to explore that relationship
22:20in a way where there's a dynamic
22:21that they haven't really been spending
22:22a lot of time together speaks volumes
22:24because it means if they're around each other,
22:26probably it would slip into something
22:27very easily again
22:29that isn't necessarily the right timing.
22:31and as we know with their relationship,
22:34timing is key.
22:35And I don't know if it's going to be the right time now.
22:37I'm just going to default to Brendan saying,
22:41you know, maybe we're going to get another season, right?
22:43So we can explore loads of things.
22:45Why don't I say that?
22:46What?
22:46No, I'm just going to say,
22:47I'm just adding that out there to you.
22:49We're going to explore all sorts of things
22:51in many ways, hopefully at some point.
22:53Okay, just don't tell Jason.
22:55I did want to just say too,
22:56also the thing that's cool about the relationship
22:58with the two of us this year
22:59is I think, for me,
23:01it was another way to explore
23:03how women's sports are not at the same place,
23:07even closely,
23:08to how men are seen.
23:09And I think that was a really, really smart way
23:13of being able to educate us as actors,
23:15but also as the world and characters
23:17that are exploring this new journey together
23:19of being able to pepper in an education for Keely
23:22that she's learning things in real time,
23:24but so were we,
23:25about the struggles of women's sport in today's world.
23:28And so that was really,
23:31actually really important for me
23:33because I learned a lot
23:33through our relationship this year
23:35and the stats and the difficulties
23:37that Keely was also learning.
23:38So that was actually kind of
23:39a really profound part
23:41of the relationship
23:42that Rebecca and Keely go through as well.
23:45Yeah, I think this has an opportunity
23:47to really get people discussing
23:49some of these issues
23:49that are brought up
23:51and sort of seeing firsthand what's going on.
23:53I love, by the way,
23:54that May becomes such a supporter of this team.
23:57Why not?
23:58We're talking about sportswomen
24:01and how tricky it is for them,
24:03but actresses.
24:05And here you have a show
24:07that now incorporates an entire team of them.
24:11And it was...
24:18It's a huge gift to all of us, I think.
24:21You know, it just is enormous.
24:23And they're effervescent.
24:24I mean, the pub scenes,
24:26when they come in,
24:27it's kind of this huge wave goes over here.
24:30Yeah, the team...
24:31One minor spoiler.
24:32The team is in the pub
24:34far more than the men's team ever was.
24:38And yes, coincidentally,
24:39my mother was a bartender,
24:41but that has nothing to do with it.
24:44Anything that,
24:45in terms of guest stars,
24:47or we see a lot of returning faces,
24:49I don't know how much you can say,
24:50or tease?
24:51I cannot say anything.
24:52But just to manage expectations,
24:56what's...
24:57Oh, well, one thing is,
24:59yes, we have the great Tracy Ullman
25:00is guest starring in, I believe,
25:03seven episodes.
25:03Tracy Ullman.
25:04Yeah.
25:06I felt like I'd won a competition
25:08to work with her.
25:10Yeah.
25:11I've loved her all my life.
25:14And the both of you
25:15get to do a lot with Tracy,
25:17which is incredible.
25:17That must have been, like,
25:18a career moment.
25:20So fantastic.
25:21Big time.
25:21But in terms of, like,
25:23you know, like, cameos and stuff,
25:24like, we have so many new people
25:25we're trying to introduce
25:26and get people to get used to.
25:28You know, even the smallest cameo,
25:30if it's a big enough name,
25:31can, like, kind of suck the energy
25:33away from what else is happening
25:34in an episode.
25:35So we've been very, very cautious
25:37with our cameos for now
25:39until people are used to the new folks.
25:41Yeah.
25:42But nonetheless,
25:43there's a lot of familiar faces
25:44on our TV screens,
25:45and we're so happy
25:46to have Ted Lasso back.
25:48So...
25:50Every week,
25:52for the next 10 weeks,
25:54right?
25:55Hit your Apple TV.
25:57Thank you so much.
25:59It is the return of Ted Lasso, everybody!
26:01Thanks, everybody.