"Claire Danes"

There used to be very little visibility and control in Treasury. Today, JPMorgan Payments delivers real-time dashboards and control at your fingertips. That's the power of clarity. That's JPMorgan Payments. Music That was a good drink. Speaking of drinking things up, welcome to SmartLess. Music So, listener, you've missed 10 seconds of this another attempt at us doing a podcast where I mentioned how fresh Will looks. And then Will seemed to imply he knew his way around the verbiage of a facial. And I had a facial scheduled for the other day because my wife is very... What was the dude's name? My wife is very diligent about getting me a facial, making sure I get a facial every like six months. And I got to say, I don't push back a lot. Yeah, because it feels good. Because it's comfy. It's comfy. It feels good. I feel weird with a tiny bit of prepubescent facial hair on my face. And I wonder if it's... I'm just wasting my time in there. I don't know what the effectiveness... They do a lot of guys like that. I forget to shave a lot of times too, but I just got one last week and it was really bad. Yeah, well, that's what I was going to ask. How often am I the only guy here? No, I get them like once or twice a year. But the last one I had, I didn't... This is no offense to anybody. I just didn't understand a lot of what she said. So she was... Why would anybody take any offense to that? Why just didn't understand her? If you want to do an imitation of what she said, we'll decide if that's offensive. I do not want to. I just am stating a fact. I did not understand. It's probably my fault. I was trying to drag you into deep water. Can you just reveal what continent she may have been from? Something Eastern Asia. But not Eastern European, because it'd be a different accent. I feel like I've had a couple of facials in my time as well. I think I've probably had eight total in my life, and I think they've generally been Eastern European bent. That's right. You're under oath now, sir. You need to understand. Only eight facials in your life. Maybe 10. Yeah. God, I don't know about that. Honestly. You don't like them? Yeah, I do like them. It's one of those things. It's kind of like massages. I always forget. I fall asleep. I do it, and then I go, oh, this is great. How many times have you had your fingers and toes done while the facials? No, no, no. No, separate, separate. Are we talking Mani Petty? Yeah, bet. Okay. And I would say less or more than your face. I got my first, my first time I ever had a pedicure. I love you remember the day. No, but I was about 31, probably 32. Yeah. So it's been, what, 30 years since then? So that's over 25 years. So like 25 years. And so I would say I probably have, I don't know, 25? So more on the fingers and the toes. Oh, yeah. Generally not the fingers. Generally just the toes because they get kind of gnarly. Right. And my heel gets gnarly. You like an open-toe shoe. I used to. I used to wear a lot of flips. Well, you don't wear socks ever. And I never wear socks. So my heels get kind of gross. They'd get cracked. Do you wear underwear? Yes. Okay. Why are we focusing on, Jason never wears underwear. No, there was a stretch there through a rest of development where I went command over somewhere. And then he would go to, and then he'd go for a pee and then he'd wrap his unit in toilet paper for the half an hour. So he could soak up all the driplets. And then. I was rushing to get back on camera and I don't want to spot. 20 minutes later, like in between setups, he'd like pull out this disgusting toilet paper and put it in a 35-caland trash can. On set. True story. So wow. So many petties often facial, not so much. Not often. I mean, I probably got one. I got one in the spring, Manny Petty. I like going at like 9 a.m. I go to a spot. I've gotten to a few times. I like going at 9 a.m. This is disgusting. Right when they open. By the way, says you, you live like a pampered prince. If people knew how you lived. Dude, I don't have a target time I like to hit my Manny Petties on. What was at my spot? Is that what you said? I have a spot. I have a spot over here. And it's always fingers and toes at the same time. You ever go in for just the one, one or the other? Because you should rest for time. Feet. It's primarily feet. And also like, because they rub your feet. So it feels nice. You like to soak, don't you? I would say in 25 years, probably 25 times. That's the average of one. So you, what about you? I've gotten a Manny Petty. The last one I got, she scrubbed my calves so hard. I broke out into hives after it was over. Huh. Eastern European. That's not a thing. No, that was on Larchmont. But that's nothing to do with her doing the calves. Yeah, it was terrible. Well, listen, thanks for the weird morning chat. Wait, wait, hold on one second. I forgot. I have something I need to say and announce. Oh no. I'm going to be doing a show called Sorry, we're out of time. Great having you on the show. Sean, best of luck in whatever you're doing. Good luck. We never got to it. Oh, all right. So this is a one act. Where is it? Williamstown. This is a show called the unknown. It's a one man play, which is now, I guess, people are calling them solos. It's written by David Kale, directed by Lee Silverman. It's at Studio Seaview in New York City for 10 weeks only. Tickets are in sale now at theunknownplay.com. When does it start? January 31st. January 31st. May I just say publicly here, I've said to you privately, I just think it's so fricking admirable and badass that you raised your hand and said yes. I know. To doing a one man show is like, I mean, you know, seeing Krasinski do his thing, our buddy Billy Crudup has done it. Yeah, by the way, that's the same writer, director of that show. Yeah. It's like what a monumental thing to take on. You convince me, I'll go see. I just check in my schedule. I can't wait. Unknown. Who knows what will happen? I don't know. I'm so proud of you, Shawnee. Thank you. Thank you. Because it's very easy to just sit back and not do anything and just enjoy, but you're challenging yourself and it's rad. Thank you. Thank you. I'm not going to come, but I do think that it will probably be good. All right. Well, thank you for that. Yeah. Who are your co-stars? Yeah, so it's... That's my friend who listens a lot. The unknownplay.com. That's where you're taking it. The unknownplay.com and it starts the end of January. That's it. I will be there with bells on. Thank you. Thank you. Let's get to our guest. We're going to ask her what her hygiene routine is. Oh, lovely. I'll bet it's significant because you know what? This is called self-care. It's not hygiene itself care, by the way. All right. Self-care. She's been impressing critics and audiences for over 30 years, you guys, achieving incredible success, yet finds herself even more relevant today than ever before. Oh. Okay. She's been awarded multiple Emmys Golden Globes, SAGs, all that crap. And she's been named one of Time's most influential people in the world. Wow. That's something none of us can say. Never will have. She's Yale-educated. Oh, my God. Also, you can't say that. No. She's a proud mother of three. You can't say that. I know. And she's very kind to the women of Afghanistan. Can you guys say that? No. Guys, let's welcome Chris and Clara's girl, the one and only Clare Danes. Come on out. Hi, Clare Danes. Hi, guys. Oh, my gosh. Good morning. I'm such a big fan. Clare. I mean, she's everything. Look at her. It's really nice to meet you. Well, my God. The gang. The gang. You are. Yeah. You have all had more facials than I have, I think, ever. Truly? Is that true? Come on. Yeah. Really? Occasionally, like, I'm gifted a facial by, I don't know. Right. Like a start gift from an agent. Yes. Right. Something like that. And I'll go. A start gift. Yeah. I forget to. But I do, I do get my nails done weekly. Yeah. Okay. Because it's like my office. I get a lot of work done. I never do the fingers. I experimented with the gels for a little while, but that was quite stressful because I don't know. It was also a whole different look, right? I mean, I've got two daughters and I'm starting to get educated on the gels versus let's have the discipline and let it grow out naturally. Yeah. I feel like it is, it is a cultural statement to have gels on. It is. And you can't, you have to go back to get them off. So that is the hard part. That made me feel kind of panicked and claustrophobic. Or you can be on the volleyball team and then they just come off naturally. Right. Well, but I don't play enough volleyball. I like the way JB couches it in. Oh, my daughters helped educate me like, fucking bullshit. How do you live, baby? Nice fucking try. My weekend gel sessions. How many times does he go like, oh, well, my kids really, I'm like, no, you live. I'm like, no, you like it. I like gels. I used to drag my son Cyrus, our eldest son, with me to the salon. And I got, he had about five. He had had enough. But until then, and then I had to bribe him with like an iPad. No, no, but I just really enjoyed that experience of going with him. What about all fancy dancing? Does he get the feet and toes done? Very, very occasionally. You gotta keep your man tight, you know? Yeah. Or are you the kind of gal that likes their guy to have a little bit of, a little bit of dirt under the nails? It depends what kind of dirt. If it's like cute upstate dirt, sure. Right. That's very cute dirt. Because some women, I'm not, some women, they, they, they're kind of turned off by a guy that actually keeps himself very clean. And I'm one of those guys, I would turn a woman off. I respect it. I understand thread count. I understand candles and stuff. Yeah. I'm, I'm for it. But yeah. I'm not like a man's man. No, no, that's a quote. You won't find me on a horse in less than a second. I'm, I'm emailing this, uh, merch people right now. We got a new hoodie coming out. I'm not a man. So where are we finding you? What part of the world? What side of the United States are you on right now? I live in New York city. Yes. Oh, jealous. So, um, and this looks like it could be a brownstone too. It's a brownstone. We've been here not for very long. We've been here about a year because we had this oopsie daisy third baby. Oh, she's going to love hearing that. You got to be careful. Yeah. Yeah. I'm not, yeah. Yeah. That was, I was so old when that happened. I was 44. How old is the baby? Um, she's two now. Oh, you got pregnant at 44. I sure did. Golly. Yeah. Good for you. Good for you. I didn't think it was possible. I really didn't. It's very rare. So no, I, I, I, it was, I was terrified, but it was okay. Can I use the term blessing? What a blessing. It was. Total blessing. I mean, how did you find, how did you find having a surprise? As you said, a surprise blessing at that, at that point? Well, you know, it was, it was actually really interesting because I didn't, I, I did not foresee this at all. And it was weird. Suddenly I felt like a funny shame. Really? Um, like, like, I was, yeah, like I was, I was naughty. Um, like I had been caught like, um, uh, fornicated. I was like, uh, fornicating past the point I was meant to. No, it was weird because I was, and I, and it was, it was like, I found an edge that I didn't, I hadn't been quite conscious of. Yeah. Um, like there's a certain, like I was going outside of the parameters a little bit. And I, and I, and I, that was, that was wild. How, what's the, what's, what's the age spread with the, the kid right before it? Um, so Cyrus is 12. He'll be 13 in December. Rowan, our second boy is seven. And then Shay, yeah. So there's about five years between each. Um, but it's a trip. I mean, I have a teenager and I, a toddler. Yeah. And this last one is a girl? A girl. Yeah. Yeah. I know. I got really, really lucky. My, my, yeah. My OBGYN was like, you know, you're having another boy, but no, turns out. You would have been pissed off. You definitely would have been pissed off. I would have been delighted. Um, but I am more delighted that I, yeah, that she's pretty cool. And, um, and she loves a tutu. Oh yeah. Who doesn't? Who doesn't? Tutu and a tattoo. I am noticing that this, this five year gap is very good. Um, my eldest is just left the house for college. And the fact that I've still got a 13 year olds, I've got another five years of like before, before I get really, really depressed. Yeah. Um, is great. I've got a five year old and an almost 17 year old as of next week. Right. Yeah. It's kind of a trip. It's great. It's amazing. I have a five year old dog. Yeah. But you're going to, you're done. You're going to be moving into a three three pretty soon. Let's be honest. Um, sorry. Do you take him to get pedicures too? Do you have to bribe him with the iPad as well? Uh, no, I don't. I don't go, I don't go off course. I don't go off course. I don't go off course. I don't go off course. I don't go off course. I don't go off course. I don't go off course. I don't go off course. I don't go off to sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc sc Oh, great. You're covering the letters from Peter. Here we fucking go. Where'd he go, Sean? No, because he's out going to us. You have to brush him out every week and all this stuff. He didn't wash him. He gets real dirty. Anyway, who cares? Well, when's the last time you washed your own dog, Sean? When he was a puppy. Yeah. Years ago. Yeah, absolutely years ago. When's the last time you walked your own dog? Almost every day. Liar. I swear to God, I love taking him out of a walk. You actually do live in an area with sidewalks and trees in front yards. I would walk dogs. I'd have a dog walking. Sorry, Claire, they'll be right with you. Did you try to work out? Yeah, what about dogs there in the city? You have a dog there in the city? I had a dog. I had a schnoodle for about 16 years. His name was Ouija, but he passed. Oh, great name. And then we adopted a cat when we were filming a season of Homeland in Morocco, Harold Hamza. And he was a bit of a nightmare. He pissed on everything. Those Moroccan cats. Is he still with us or no? You know what? After a really rough five years of dealing with this like urine soaked sofa furniture, I had to re-home him, which was very stressful. I've done that. And not obvious. But found this saint in Indiana, this woman who has a cat sanctuary. And then three months into that arrangement, which was actually ideal. We got weekly photos and reports and things. He died. Oh, stress. Like there was some clot. I don't know. I think he was fucking. It was a depression. The whole thing was wild. From the rough streets of Casablanca to a pretty cushy situation in Indiana. Yeah. And then, so when Ouija died, we had Harold Hamza and then we adopted another cat, Mary as in like Christmas. Our son, Rowan named her that. When he was like three in the middle of the summer, it was very confusing. And we said, why did you, why Mary? Everybody thinks it's Mary. It's not. Yeah. He said, I just thought it was a good name for a cat. That's a great reason. Anyway. Wait, Claire, how do you and Jay, how do you guys know each other? Did you work together? We don't really. I mean, we've had a conversation maybe, but. Right. It is sort of surprising because we've both been banging around in this thing since we were kids. I know it's a little weird. You guys had a conversation where, where was the location? Jason will be right with you. You're probably in the war field. Jason, I'm not asking you a masking clown because I want to get the truth. I think we like had a conversation on the phone and I don't even really know why, but we did. Were you surprised at how short he was? Sorry, go ahead. You just, you just. No, do you know what? I know how long ago it was because it was a, I remember, I think it was like the same day that my parents delivered my schnoodle to me. They went and picked him up in Kentucky. They live in LA. I live in New York, but that, you know, and I was filming in LA and they delivered this tiny little animal to me in my hotel room in LA. And I just, I had just talked to you for, you know, curious reasons. It was a nice conversation, but. Where did you grow up? I grew up in New York. I grew up in, in Soho. Yeah. In the city. In the city. Ergo, the name of your company, yes. Is that, is that the address of the place you grew up in, Crosby? Crosby, well, actually, okay. Yes, I grew up on Crosby Street. My parents were artists and they moved to Soho, you know, in the late 60s. And when it became, you know, because there were all these factory buildings that were closing down. And you actually had to legally prove that you were an artist to live there. Because there was this concerted effort to, you know, transform. And they're trying to retroactively now charge all these finance bros that have gone in there and bought these artist lofts for. Really? Yeah. Anyway, like you, you now have to prove that you're an artist to maintain this sweet deal on those places. Oh, I didn't know that. Yeah, they're trying to get it through. I don't think at all. Wow, that's fascinating. Wait. But then they went on to do different things. And my dad was a, he had been a photographer. We still had a dark room in our loft. My entire childhood, a vestige of his, you know, from his time as a photographer. But he was a contractor and had a company called Overall Construction. And now my production company name is Overall Production. Oh, that's cool. Yeah. And my mom ran a toddler school in our loft called Crosby Kids. Wow. So that was weird. Yeah. So, and then I like was, then I started acting and got jobs, which was very surprising. Yeah, how'd that start? What was the impetus for that? I always knew I wanted to act and I danced as a kid. And occasionally dance companies would come to my class looking for young talent and I would get hired. And I started, you know, performing every so often in these black box theaters on the Lower East Side to 12 people. Yeah. And loved it. And then started taking acting classes at least Drossberg. Sure. Which is like down the street for me now, which is very funny. And how old were you? Same, same. Oh, really? I was 10. But it was like on a Saturday and most kids were there because there, you know, it was either that or like tennis class, but I was just so invested in the experience, you know, like such an earnest Nellie about it. Yeah. And then there was a performing arts junior high school called PPAS, professional performing arts school. It was its first year of its existence and I went. And then I met kids there who were professional performing people and, you know, discovered what a headshot was and what an agent was and how to, you know, get them. And actually that dark room came in handy because the woman who was renting it out kind of swapped rent money for headshots. So she took my headshots and then I, I had done some student films when I was a kid. And so I had like something to show an agent. And, you know, my first job was law and order. You know, like every New York. Yeah. Yeah, that's cool. And how soon after that did you get, one I'm a huge fan of and I'm sorry, you get asked all the time about it, my so-called life, which I used to watch all the time. Oh, that's so nice to hear. Yeah, I loved it. I loved it. Yeah. I was 13 when I did the pilot. Wow. And then it did not get picked up. And I, yeah, I'd gone to public school my whole life, but then they made a chunk of change and could afford to send myself to private school. So I went to this fancy school called Dalton for, and then halfway through my freshman year, they actually did pick up the show. And I went to make the rest of it in LA and stayed there for four years. My parents followed me. My brother is seven years older. So he was already at college at this point. So we were kind of available to have this adventure. And so were you working in correspondence with Dalton or did you enroll in a different school in LA? Yeah, for that first year. And then eventually I went to L'Élysée Francais in LA. Oh yeah, in Culver City. But was they barely there? Yes. On motor? Yeah. You betcha. Yeah, I tried to get in there. They wouldn't have me. But yeah, I like maybe went five days a year, but I was mostly like two years from that point on sets. We'll be right back. This is a paid ad by BetterHelp. You know, you've heard me talk a lot about my mom and how funny she was and how much we love her. But boy, was she a huge inspiration to me. She gave me the tools I needed for the work ethic I have and the funny bone in my body. She's one of the best human beings, if not the best human being I've ever known. Women deserve to be celebrated. But we should also recognize that many women carry emotional weight at work in relationships and families and in the roles they play for others. Whatever you're navigating, career expectations, parenting, caregiving or more, Therapy with BetterHelp can help you check in with yourself, unpack what's feeling heavy and build healthier pathways forward. 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We didn't make it to the 22 mark. We got canceled at 19 episodes. But then it had a pretty, the people who did watch were devoted and passionate and they made a ruckus. And then it got bought by other, it aired like it was on MTV. It was on MTV. It was on MTV. That's where I saw it. And then it found its audience kind of after the fact. Tom Preston picked it up. Yeah. Now, am I right that your mom was your manager during this period? Yeah, kind of like by default. I mean, she was, you know, I was a kid and she was with me all the time and yeah. When did that I ask only because my parents were my manager as well and it was complicated. Was it, did you disengage from that before it became? Yeah, it was, you know, it made sense for a period of time and then it made more sense to just be mom and daughter. Right. Yeah, it wasn't uncommon. Most kids said their parents, yeah, but then once that they start, you know, you're paying them a percentage and then that's kind of weird and yeah. It changes your relationship with your parents. Yeah. I mean by definition. You're the employer. Yeah. Yeah, that's really complicated. Hey, grab me a coffee real quick. Yeah. Yeah. But I was very, I mean, we were all just so stunned by this. You know, nobody anticipated this at all. We were just like totally naive and you know, then they weirdly, we moved to LA the day after those Northridge, that Northridge earthquake. 1996, 94. 94, 94. 94, 94. Sorry. And it was a wild way to parachute into our new reality there because everybody was just ashen and traumatized. That must have been horrified like two days before you're set to leave, your bags are packed. You see on the news, the place we're going just got shaken. Yeah. Yeah. And then it was a week of aftershocks. So we landed it. It was like, you know. Oh my God. And it was like a, it was a very apt metaphor for what we were feeling already, you know. Yeah. But yeah. So, and, but then my parents really loved it. My mom went to grad school in her fifties. They came back to their, their art. So she went to a school called Otis and she was my dad built like his and her studios in their backyard and they're, you know, full circle. You just jarred my memory because my father was, my dad was also a photographer. And he's She's a tire screech. To take photos of all of us as kids all the time and blow the pictures up and put them. Oh. Put them up on the wall. And put them up on the wall. We had a zoom lens. What's going on? And when you put those photos just above the sunshade and the car so he could just look at them when he's going down the highway. You guys. Oh. Wait, did he process his own photos? Sean, did he have a? Yeah. So he had a dark room in the basement. Sure. And he would develop a, he would develop them there. And then, you know, he would put them on the wall of the house. And I know it was really cool, but weird for them. So did your dad do your photos and your, your headshots and all that? No, no, he didn't. But no, I mean, he didn't really take many photos of people. He likes a landscape. Oh, I see, I see, I see. I mean, he does take photos of us, of course, all the time, but that's not, yeah. People don't tend to populate his images. So with, with, with, was your mom, was your mom was a sculptor? Is it? No. My mom doesn't. Yeah. She was a textile designer initially. And that, and now she does, she has a lot of etchings. She does do a lot of sculpture and she paints. But both being artists, where you just sort of kind of, obviously it's in your blood, but did you kind of think from a very, very early age that arts is going to be your path? Cause I think your brother's a lawyer. Is that right? Yeah. Yeah. So like where, how was it? Was it kind of predetermined or no or no? Well, it was a pretty creative environment. That's for sure. I mean, they had a lot of art materials everywhere. It was fun. We had also, we had, even before the baby school, we had a trapeze and a trampoline and a swing. Wow. These dirty hippies. Yeah. Yeah. It was like that. Wow. And we had, all of our furniture was like found off of the street and my dad collected these old signs. So it was funky. And they had fun tools. They had a light box and a, you know, I was at a very, at a very unfair advantage with my like school projects because, Yeah. Yeah. We had a lot of. And your brother just said, screw it to all of that. I'm going into law. Yeah. I mean, he's creative. He was very athletic. He was, I don't know. Yeah. It was, but then I did that show. I did that show, Finding Your Roots. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Uh-oh. What'd you find out? Well, many things, but, but my, my mom, my dad's mom, Claire, whom I'm named after, she died when he was nine. So there was very, very little information about her. I knew nothing about her. People of course ask, you know, are there any people in the performing arts in your family? No. A lot of visual artists, a lot of academics, but not, you know, but it turns out she, she went to Northwestern. It must have been in like the 40s. So I, I'm, Northwestern in Chicago? Yeah. Cool it. And got her, Easy shot. And like, got, studied theater and wrote her master's, and the role of dance and Shakespearean drama and had directed plays and acted in them. And I had no clue about that. So it was in your DNA a little bit? Yeah. I was very moved by that. Did she like her time in Illinois? Yeah, I have no idea. I don't know anything beyond that. But, but yeah. Anyway, I also had my, my ninth great grandmother was hanged in Salem for being a witch. What are you talking about? It's a big reveal. Is that, is that true? Yes. What, your great grandmother? You found this on the show. Yes. Well, how did they, how did they find that out? What do you do? Through like legal documents. Through other witches. Through other witches. Yeah. You were crystal ball, you idiot. We hung for being a witch. Hanged, hanged, hanged. Hanged. I know. I learned that word. I didn't know it before then. So, wait, so did she practice witchcraft and all that? I mean, is that? No, no. Actually, she was, she was the oldest woman to be hanged. She was 72. She was a widow. And I think she was just like low hanging fruit. Like she was just an easy scapegoat. How about that one, crossing the road? Yeah, yeah. Face, I think maybe. I mean, who knows? But yeah, like we, there are reports cause she was, went to court and everything. But people accused her of, of what it was it, of like cursing their cows and then, and put it like, and then the cows would rear on their hind legs and she would penetrate people's dreams and like, yeah. She didn't do it. What year is this? I wonder. Is it like? A long time ago. I don't, I don't know. Like would it be the 1500, 1600, 1700? Maybe 1700. No, it's a late after 18. 18 probably early. 1800s in Salem. Yeah. Anyway. North Carolina. No. No. The Salem of Massachusetts. There's a few different salams. Okay. All right. Yeah. I'm sure. Between 1692 and May 1693. Oh, you got a Google machine? Yep. Is that right? I have access to Google. That's what it says. Wow. Okay. Well, I was playing off. More than 200 people were accused, it claims. That's it? Oh. The Salem witch trials. 30 people were found guilty. 30 were found guilty, 19 of whom were executed by hanging. Yeah. Wow. Ancestor was one of them. Yeah. For cursing cows. Yeah. And dream penetration. She had it coming. Marching. Hey guys, let's put it around the corner. Everybody, your dream penetration. Go ahead. Correct. That sounds so gross. That's different, sorry. Different, different, I know. Accent on the second word. Yeah. Oh, Jesus. So marching through the canon of your career here. Let's go impressive. Let's go to 96. Let's go to Romeo and Juliet. Oh my gosh. Working with Baz Lerman was like, what was that set like? It was, I remember when that film came out, I was like, oh my God, like the production design and like this big swing on this classic. And really like, was it nerve wracking or exciting to be on something that was taking such a big swing? And it was such a big project. Oh yeah, all of the above. It was a total dream. I loved it. It was intense. We filmed in Mexico City. And I haven't been since, I loved it, but it's like an unruly, vibrating, brilliant place. And yeah, it was, the whole thing felt very charged and alive and scary and fun. And Baz was wonderful. And he was very clear about making this accessible and exciting for everybody the way Shakespeare, you know, also intended his work to be once upon a time. Had you done some Shakespeare prior to that and have you done after? No, I haven't. And I hadn't, there was like a month where I read everything in Iambic Pentameter, you know, like the cereal boxes. Right. But yeah, it was, no, it was amazing. So you did, so then I hear you, you're saying you did some research there for at least a month. I think I read a book on Iambic Pentameter. Right, well, there's my question. How diligent are you? What kind of actor are you? Are you the one that like, does it massive amount of research and you got tons of notes in your script? I'm a little nerdy about it. But not every role asks that of you. I mean, I don't do it for the sake of it. I do it if I, you know, actually need to learn something. Like right now I'm about to play a pediatric neurosurgeon and so I'm like, reading some books on neurosurgery. I sat in on a brain surgery. No way. I want to know all about that. I wouldn't be able to do that. It was wild. Did you pass out? No, but the- I asked that because I heard about somebody recently who sat in on one of those things. I think it happens a lot. Yeah, real sorry. And the surgeon's assistant did say like, you may think you're about us, but if you have the thought, oh, I might faint, you're fainting and we can't have that happen. So please let me know. The second you feel it. Yeah. And I don't know, there was like a half an hour where I was doing some conscious breathing. Wait a minute. So you're standing there while the brain is open and they're working on the brain. Yeah, what was the moment that started to get you a little bit? I might be starting to pass out here. Was it lifting of the scalp? When the residents were prepping the head for the actual surgeon to come and do his work. But yeah, so they cut the scalp and they peel it back and they bore four holes into the skull. Yeah, and then there's like, I think it's called the derma or something. There's a thin layer of skin that they have to suture. They suture the corners and then they hock it up like a tent and then you have the brain ready. But wait, what about the part where they take like a bone saw and they cut the piece of the scalp out like a tile? That's right, so they do the four holes and then they cut with a saw and then they lift it up. And the brain's exposed? Yes. Oh my God. Yes. I really understood in a different way that we are vehicles. Yes. We are cars. Yeah. And we are not our bodies. Like we experience ourselves and the world through our bodies. It's just something carries your brain around. That was a profound thing. Yeah, I bet. That you don't really know that on a different level. So did the person that you watched, was it a success and all that? Yeah, she had a brain tumor and then she didn't. But it was a lot of tumor. It took a long time to suction that out. But isn't it wild? Like the kind of access we have, I, it was very embarrassing because they have something called a timeout where everybody in the room has to announce themselves and say why they're there. What? Really just to make sure everybody's cognizant. I'm clear, I'll be playing. Yeah. Yeah, I'll be playing you in a month. Wait a second. There's in the operating room, there's a let's go around and introduce ourselves. Yeah. Mm-hmm. Just so everybody's accountable. They don't already know each other, this team? They do. I think it's just a, it's a ritualistic thing just to kind of get everybody focused. And then they announce what the procedure's gonna be. And so everybody knows they're in the right room. It's like, you've heard all those stories. It's rapid fire. It's not a big deal. It's just to, you know, So everybody. You've heard all those stories about like they took off out the wrong kidney or they took out the something that went wrong. It's because that's why they announce everything. So this is why we're here. This is what we're doing. This is who I am. This is what we're, yeah. Yeah. I mean, the people that do this, that's urgent. I know. And I have to say like our sets are so much more protected. Look, I was vetted. I had a badge and everything, but I wasn't anybody, but it felt relatively porous. Like, you know, on a set, the feeling is so, can be so serious. Like we are actually saving. It was much more serious than it was in the old. Oh, Claire, I went to an event recently and it was a very sort of Hollywood event. And they had dogs and looking into the cars and stuff. And I'm like, motherfucker, nobody's coming for our stars. Right. Right. It's so true. Everybody's over it. Yeah. I was very humbled by it. But, but yeah. So in those kind of cases, I will do, yeah. Like for Homeland, I had to figure out how to be a spy and go to Langley and meet those guys. And also had to figure out what it was to be bipolar. That was fascinating. When I played temple, I had to learn about autism. You know, so yes, in some cases you have to do some homework. What about a nice little sitcom for you? You know, I did a multi-cam and, you know, it's just. This is JB's dream, by the way. Sorry, Claire. I was walking through the dream. I want to put. JB, what time do you roll into your parking spot on this show? 10 AM, right? Don't you, I mean, you have played, taken on voluntarily a lot of very heavy parts and you do them incredibly well. Does it ever get exhausting to be believably in a space of weightiness, 12 hours a day for years on end? It's hard when you're first figuring it out, you know. And once you are sort of oriented within the character and you've kind of made sense of her, it gets a little easier. It was very cool in Homeland to play somebody for so very long. Yeah. You know, like you had kind of played your backstory. You lived your backstory. So you, and you know the actors that you're working with so very well, you know, like it was just, that was amazing to have that fluency and that juice, you know. Yeah, again, finding the momentum is always the toughest part. And I have to say, like, if the writing is good, it holds you, it carries you. Like doing a kind of technically easy scene, but with bad writing is so much harder than doing an exacting scene that is really well constructed. And with a team that can actually support you. You guys were together for how long on that show? Eight years? It felt like 10, I think it was like, we did eight seasons, but it was about a decade in total. And you and the great Damien Lewis too, right? I love that character. Yeah. I don't know, I'm just a fan. And what about the travel on that? Did that, was that? That was a lot. But nice to visit those corners of the world, the way that I'm imagining you were traveled and looked after. It was, it was nice. But I was also, you know, I'd like just gotten married when we started the show. I had Cyrus in my second season, and then I had Rowan, I guess, you know, a few seasons late. I guess I had Rowan in our penultimate season. So like making a family while globetrotting in that way was challenging. And Cyrus, you know, grew up and all over the place. Like he was a toddler in Cape Town. He went to kindergarten in Berlin. He went to school in Casablanca and can't eat couscous to this day because he had it every day, you know, at lunch. You know, like when he was a little guy in a playground here in the city, you know, come up to people, his leather kids and say, you know, my name is Cyrus, I speak English, you know, it was just not a given that they did. What is, I had a mom who was a flight attendant for Pan Am and so that we did a bunch of traveling. And as a consequence, I don't like to travel because I did it at an age where it was just inconvenient because I was so small and I missed my friends. What is his relationship with travel nowadays? Well, now, well then Homeland ended and it was very like careful what you wish for. Cause of course I was desperate to just be anchored at home and then I never got to leave the home, like immediately wrapped and then we were, you know, in the COVID era. Oh, right. That was a trip. And now, and now we're working really hard to figure out how to remain employed and local. Yeah. It used to be like script director, actor, now it's location, location, location. That's how you decide what you do. Kinda. I mean, I'm sort of making a joke, but basically for the next 10 years, we just have to, you know, find jobs in the neighborhood. What about going back to some of your theater stuff, doing that? I mean, I know it doesn't pay the bills as well, but imagine you guys are all right. Yeah. I mean, I would definitely be open to that. But yeah, lately it's been limited series in Westchester. A little two-hander with the Tony award-winning, Sean Hayes. Yeah, I love this. I love this casting. Jason, keep going. What is it? It's a two-hander, you and Sean Hayes. Yeah. Okay. I do it. This is a new take on the odd couple. Yeah. I love it so much. We're gonna switch roles every four weeks. We'll be right back. JP Morgan payments helps you drive efficiency with automated payments and intelligent algorithms across 200 countries and territories. That's automation-driven finance. That's JP Morgan payments. JP Morgan internal data 2024, copyright 2025, JP Morgan Chase and company, all rights reserved. JP Morgan Chase Bank and a member FDIC deposits held in non-US branches are not FDIC insured. Non-deposite products are not FDIC insured. This is not a legal commitment for credit or services. Availability varies. Eligibility determined by JP Morgan Chase. Visit jpmorgan.com. Slash payments disclosure for details. And now back to the show. But you know what, Jason's right. You would be good at comp. I saw you in Portlandia because I was a huge fan of that show. You played like- Oh, that's right. I forgot I did that. Yeah. You played like an acting coach. I did. I played a terrible acting coach. Yeah, I remember that. A wildly pretentious acting coach. That was really fun. Yeah, it was really funny. Oh, that's so sweet. Thank you. Fred Armisen. He's great. This guy's royalty. All right? And I hear he's just put out an album I hear of Sound Effects. Amazing. That's it. That's about right. Check and check. Yeah. I love it. I didn't know that. I love Fred. All right, so we're leaving Baz Lerman and we're moving under Francis Ford Coppola with the Rainmaker. Let's talk about did we- Can I just say something about Romeo and Julie before we get off of it? So you do that. And it has such a huge impact. And by the way, lasting impact, that film, it must have been a bit of a life change. I mean, you had already sort of made a lot of waves with my so-called life in that area. And then you do this. And Romeo and Juliet just must have changed everything. You're much more visible. You must have felt that like your life. Yeah, I did feel it. And I have to say, I didn't quite know what to do with all of that. I was a little thrown by it. Were you? Yeah, yeah. What was the big jarring thing? Was it the press? Was it people stopping on the street? Yeah, it was kind of the attention. It was a different kind of attention. And I just didn't know how to focus, like how to work with it or where to direct it. Or I was a tiny human still. Right, and then it's like, oh, look who's getting coffee at the coffee bean and tea leaf type stuff, right? Yeah, I just thought, oh God, like, I don't know. I mean, me anxious. You're sharing yourself with a whole world. Yeah. Yeah, and I thought I was supposed to know how to be like a movie star and really didn't. And now I realize, oh, don't worry about it. It's not really a thing. What did you do about that? I think I read that you're a friend of therapy, like all of us. Was that helpful? Yes, yes. I've been in therapy since I was six. I'm a New Yorker. Right, right. And it's a great resource. If you have a great therapist, it can be very... Have you been with the same therapist the whole time? Dangerous, if it's not. Since I was about 18, yeah. No way. Oh wow, that's great. I'm going right after this, actually. I go in and out. Like I take very substantial breaks. I'm back in now and I'm glad of it. Have you ever lied to this therapist? Maybe by omission. I don't think I've ever explicitly lied. Oh, I just forgot to mention that. But yeah, there's sometimes... Claire, I asked Sean once. Remember, I asked you if I ever came up in your therapy. Yeah, everybody does. Everybody in your whole life does. How do I do, Sean? Yeah, well, it's private. It's private confidential. Private, dude? Yeah, what are you doing? I'll call your therapist. I'll just... You're in touch with his therapist. I'll call. Hi, Nikki, Jason. Yeah, did I guess right? Is it a man or a woman? Me, it's a woman. All right. Yeah, yeah. Nikki, huh? Nikki Glaser. Nikki Glaser. Unbelievable. We got it all sorted out. I thought she'd be an amazing therapist. She would be. I bet she would. She would be. All right, let's do Francis Ford Coppola. Then I want to get Steven Daldry. Okay. I do like these directors. I mean, you've been in some great, great movies. You've worked with so many great actors and directors. I mean, golly. What do you think is the most impactful thing you've absorbed, learned from any of these actors? You don't even need to say which one it is. What do you think has been... Yeah, what changed your life and how it applies either to you in life or professionally? Okay, okay, here's the story. So my first audition ever, I was 12. It was again in some theater, not like Lowry Side kind of situation. And I don't know what's happening. And there's a guy in like having his audition. I can only hear him, but he's like, it sounds like an exorcism is happening. It's like he's thrashing about, you know? And he comes in and he's like stripping with sweat and he's just like vibrating this manic energy. And it was Philip Seymour Hoffman. Oh yeah. But I was like, holy shit. What's supposed to happen in there? What am I supposed to do? What am I following? Like what am I walking into? What do they expect of me? I like to leave him for the kid that same day. Yeah, but yeah, so I don't know. I mean, I didn't know how... I mean, I sort of knew how extraordinary these people were when I first started, but not like I do now. I don't know how wildly rare and absurd it is to get to collaborate with people of that genius. Have you noticed that, you know, like from let's say, Meryl Streep to Leonardo DiCaprio, like is there so many different ways to go about doing what it is that we do. Some, as we were talking about earlier, some are very, very specific and surgical about it and very prep-oriented. And others just sort of just kind of wing it and keep it all natural. And the performances are equally great. Is that been a bit of an eye-opener for you? Okay, so the thing I remember about Francis is that he kind of asked a lot of you, but it was all in a playful spirit. So he gave everybody the homework assignment of writing six pages of backstory for their character. You know, okay. And I remember there was a scene where I was meant to be very distressed and crying and the big, and I sat on the chair and it was actually like a block of ice. That was, you know, and that, he thought might help elicit some feeling. He had a teamster scream at me. And I kind of was like, okay, I didn't need it. But I was 17, I guess. And, but actually I was very touched that he just cared that much. Like that he was invested, that he felt present with me, that he was committed to creating something special with me. Like that was the thing that actually got to the feeling was that, I don't know, that I, and I remember on that set, like it was something kind of magical that happened and ineffable, like it was suddenly you landed on that set and you were held by it. Like you knew you were oriented. You felt grounded in whatever reality you were meant to be in, in the place. And that was his doing, but I don't know how he did it exactly. And the same is true of Baz, a totally different approach. He did not have teamsters yell at me. And actually it was almost surgical, the way in which he directed. I mean, he knew exactly, it was very prescriptive. But- Was it result oriented? No, like he just was very, it's so, so detail oriented. And he builds the world and it's really ornate and it's hyper considered and stylized. But he wants a free feeling performance from his actors. And that's why it's often exciting, the word. Because it's that contrast. So it creates a sort of a, yeah. But yeah, I mean, and I have to say, there are a lot of directors too, not these guys, these guys are brilliant, but I think I'm always surprised by the number of directors that are actually really terrified of conflict and visceral feeling. They would rather you not, and they don't even know that they're guiding you away. Like they want you to make choices that's gonna take you further from actual expressive feeling. Oh, it's too real. And you're like, but why are you doing this? I'm like, oh, well, because you want to be at a remove from it. Like you wanna, so there are those directors too. It's too real. Yeah, that's, Sean used to pay a guy to yell at you, right? You put an ad in Craig's list or something. I still do, yeah. I still just keep you real. You just sit yourself on a block of ice too. Yeah, yeah. But I think even, you know what? The privilege of working with people like Merrill and Leigh, like is, yeah, they're insanely gifted and they're, you know, incapable, but they're also, you know, figuring it out. Nobody gets to just like, you never get to a point where you're actually confident. I mean, so you're never phoning it in, like ever. Yeah, no, you're producing a lot of the stuff that you do as well now. And what about, did you ever get behind the camera on Homeland? No, no. Any desire? No, none. Really, I mean, I kind of, if I had the time, I would like to shadow a director just so that I could learn more about the parts of the process that we don't have access to, because I'm curious, but not with the intent of really doing it myself. I am enjoying producing. I like, you know, being part of the conversation, like those consequential conversations about what it's gonna be in its entirety. But yeah, directing seems really hard. Yeah. Yeah. You would have put it. Yeah, yeah, exactly. So Claire, you know, aside from, I love what you said now. It used to be script director, but now it's location, location, location. I love that. That's so interesting and true, and I get it. But how does that, so that factors in with your days consist of moming and parenting and being home with the kids, yeah? And making sure everything's taken care of with your husband. When you're not working, right? When you're not working. It's like one to the other. Yeah, you try to just bank the hours. Yeah, so did you get any time during the day when you're not working to do something for you? Yes. Your side's gonna be any petty. Yeah. I like the yoga. Yeah? I like a little hot yoga. Yeah, I have like lunch with my friends. Good, good, good, good. Sure. Book club. Oh, really? Yeah. Wait, so you go to yoga and then you read a book. I mean, God damn. I wish I was like that. It sounds like doesn't Gia Mani, didn't Paul say that that's how his day is gonna be? Yeah, he said so. Yeah. Do you live with Paul Gia Mani? Yes. Hot yoga, it just sounds so masochistic. No, you can't do it. It's, well, it's, first of all, yoga itself, you're sweating because you're stretching. It's just sort of like being trapped in a hot car, you know, torturous. But then to actually, well, we're gonna go ahead and we're gonna preheat the car. It just seems like, what the fuck, you? Jason, it's your nightmare. It's sweaty and really hot. And the smell of the unwashed and then getting sweatier. Ah. And then guess what? And then you gotta walk across the floor when you're done. Yeah, you do. To get to your shoes outside. Very carefully. And you're splashing through the fucking puddles of these sweaters. So you sound like you really know it. Oh dude. You've done this. I knew it. And I was like, I'm good. That'll do it. It was just one class for you? It was maybe one and a half, something like that. Yeah, I just, if I'm gonna sweat, I wanna be active. I don't wanna be holding a pose and feeling my pores open while I'm still. Oh my God. It really hit hard. I wanna get to, this trailer for The Beast and Me rocked my world, I watched it three times in a row. I cannot wait to see the show, which is out now. November 13th, it launched. I'm assuming it's doing very, very well. But this looks like, you got that pain in the ass, Matthew Reese, but besides that, it seems like. Such a pain. Oh my God. It seems like. The shame of whales. All right, and just talent free. I don't get it. I know. I've never got it with Reese. He's a little wooden, but you know. I'm gonna text him and tell him that. He has a charisma that kind of comes with it. We love him. He looks so, so good. I can't wait to see you two go at it. Is it as good as it seems? It's gotta be. Yeah, I think it's good. I think it's fun. I had a blast making it. Where was I shot? That looks like it's in a tasting area. New Jersey. Who do you play in it? Cause it's about a guy who's a murderer or something. She's a writer. I'm a writer. Yes, a pretty successful writer. And I, you know, one the Pulitzer was kind of cresting in my success. And my wife and I and our small boy moved to a pretty affluent suburb on Long Island. And then tragedy strikes. I'm driving the car with our six year old son in the back and we get hit by a drunk driver and my world is ended. The marriage dissolves, falls apart. And I am kind of creatively paralyzed. I can't produce any work and I'm rattling around in this, you know, gorgeous, but neglected home needs a lot of work. And suddenly I can't afford to pay for it. And suddenly this man moves in next door who's a pretty controversial figure, like a real estate scion and, you know, very famous, very moneyed and, you know, and a little problematic maybe. And he has a wife who had committed suicide and there's a lot of talk about his involvement. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. And he wants to create a jogging path in our little suburb and I'm, you know, the Kent Anchorist writer. I'm the only one who objects and it's dumb, but he can't let it go. And he insists on taking me out to lunch to persuade me to, you know, agree to this thing. And we get to, and then suddenly we were sort of repelled by each other or I certainly am of him, but weirdly like kind of excited by each other also. A little dangerous. And I tell this story about my son and the guy who's responsible was just under the limit when he finally had, you know, the breathalyzer done and, you know, and was never held accountable and still lives in town. And he can see, I've kind of avoided feeling the difficult feelings and just fixated all of my grief on this man and that man has committed suicide. And I don't know what to think of that. And I, and I decided to write a book about him and really as a way to figure out if he did in fact kill this guy on my behalf. Oh, I love this. But also because he just wakes me up creatively. It's dark and troubling. I think the most troubling thing about it is this produced by Conan O'Brien, that to me. Yeah. That he got his grubby little fingers in here. You want to talk about the pain in the ass. You want to talk about a talent for, talk about a job. Big lead comes in. This son of a bitch. Yeah. But it's kind of like a cat and mouse story and it's a little hitchcocky in and, and it's fun. Yeah. It looks great. What a great scene partner you got there with all those scenes of Matthew. Yeah. It's just so great. It's like the snake in the mongoose. Had you guys, did you guys know each other beforehand? You and Matthew? No, no. But just a dream boat. Right. I mean, it's a lovely, it's so charming, kind and talented. So smart and so very good at what he does with the acting business. Easy. No, I like, I like, Nice guy. He's a great guy. Yeah. You're taking well. Okay. Back to you. And you're, and you're back with Howard Gordon there. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. That was fun. Very, very cool. Who's Howard Gordon? He was one of the creators of Homeland. Oh, that's great. Yeah. And he did 24 and X files and. Well, listen, we owe you three minutes and 40 seconds. We're over. It's like, I could, I could, I could violate the time even further. You're, you're fantastic. Thank you for doing this. Oh, my pleasure. This is so fun. Thank you guys. You know, yeah. Everybody watch the beast and me. It's on Netflix. Yep. The great Claire Danes. Claire, we love you. Thank you. Love you guys too. Thank you so much. Thank you so much. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. All right. Bye. I don't know how to do this. I slam it. The thing, right? Yeah. My Claire Danes. Lovely, lovely woman. Been a part of our world for a very long time. That's, that's, that's 30 plus years. I know my so-called life when, when it was on MTV was such a, was such a huge show for, you know, our age. I mean, it was a, it's like a game change. It was like, it was like our Dawson's Creek. You know what I mean? Anybody? 7th Heaven Dawson's Creek. I got to say, I missed it. Oh, I loved it. Which is not too surprising. It came out. Here he comes. No, it came out. Wasn't Jared Leto in that too? Yeah. That was the two of them. Wasn't it? Yeah. That's right. Yeah. Isn't that crazy? What a couple. Yeah. No, she's been, I just, you know, it, it, this is a hard business. It's even harder for women for some stupid, unfair reason. And the fact that she's stayed so relevant at such a high level, doing such great work. Yeah, since she was a kid. And stuff that, that ain't easy. It's really, really admirable. She's had an incredible career thus far and seems not anywhere near done. Yeah, she's a big deal. She's one of the, she's one of the greats. She's just got a big life in general. She's got three kids and she's doing so much. And we didn't even get into her charity work that she and her mom do for the women of Afghanistan too, which is pretty cool. But what a delight. What a delight. You know, I mean, you know, guys, it's not that hard. If you guys just, just, just concentrate a little bit more. You could be charismatic. You could be warm. You could be, you know, people that, that people want to talk to and are charmed by after you're done speaking to them. There's no way. No, I think you could do it. Of course you could do it. Yes, you could. I want you to listen to this interview back and just focus on her and just focus on just her magnetism. Okay. She's just, she's engaging and she listens. How am I ever gonna do it? How am I ever gonna do it? I'm gonna go and say, Sean, I'm gonna go and say, I'm gonna go and say, I'm gonna go and say, I'm gonna say bye. Bye. No. Bye, best. Sean, go to the last. Oh, you know what I'm doing? I'm just, I'm hanging, I'm hanging. Bye, yes, Fred. Bye. Bye. Yes, Fred. I'm trying to, I'm trying to. Coming up with a bye. Coming up with a bye, that'll allow it. Bye. Smart. Nice. Smart. Nice. SmartLess is 100% organic and artisanly handcrafted by Michael Grant Terry, Rob Armjalf and Bennett Barbico. SmartLess. There used to be very little visibility and control in treasury. Today, JPMorgan Payments delivers real-time dashboards and control at your fingertips. That's the power of clarity. That's JPMorgan Payments.