-Ladies and gentlemen,
my guest today started this career
by blowing up the Internet with some
of the funniest music videos of all time.
And I do mean funniest. You know them.
Guys, I'm talking about "Lazy Sunday".
I'm talking about "Dick in a Box".
I'm talking about "I'm on a Boat" and many others.
And besides this amazing work on "Saturday Night Live",
you also known from his hugely popular series,
"Brooklyn Nine-Nine".
Please show some love to Andy Samberg.
Come on, Andy. Huh?
-Yes. -My introductions, man.
--Smooth. They're really getting good.
-Really good.
I liked how it said stuff I had done.
-Well, yeah. Well, but it's not just that.
Like, I see what you did there.
-[ Laughs ]
-It's the way that I'm talking about the stuff
that you've done.
-Like, so, if someone's watching, they're like,
"I wasn't sure I cared about this,
but now I'm fucking amped."
-No. No, it's like this.
It's like, every time I say something,
I feel like the stakes get higher.
I'm like, "You know him. You love him.
You've seen him here."
And each time, a person gets closer and closer to the TV,
and by the time I'm on the last thing...
-Yes.
-...I bring it back down and I put on the hosting voice.
"Ladies and gentlemen, Andy Samberg."
-So it's like a roller coaster.
-You see what I'm saying? It starts off with the "Hey.
Come on now." -Mm-hmm.
-"I need y'all to get focused and get locked in."
-Right.
-And now that I got you locked in,
you got to really dumb it down.
-Mm-hmm.
-'Cause this next guy -- You see what I'm saying?
I can do stuff like this. You get it.
-It's hosting. It's the roller coaster.
-Well, it's more than hosting.
I would like if you didn't, like, put me in a box.
-I would never do that.
And you know that about me.
-Okay.
-One time -- Straight into an anecdote.
Unprompted. -Yes, unprompted.
-The one time I met Matthew McConaughey,
I had just hosted an award show that he was at.
-Okay. Okay.
-And I was like, "Hey, nice to meet you."
He was like, "Hey, nice to meet you."
He was like, "I saw you host that thing.
You were good."
He's like, "Because you came out and you were like, 'Ah!'
And then you kind of went, 'Ah-hah-hah-hah-hah.'
And at the end, you were like, 'Ah.'"
And I was like, "That's actually, like,
a very accurate representation of the monologue."
-I was going to say, like, as he's doing it,
are you following the "Ahs"? -I was.
I was like, "And then that was the section
where I did those jokes."
-Yeah.
-"And then it got crazy at the end, and it was one big bit
that sort of built and, like, tied back in stuff from before."
-"Ah." -Yeah.
And I was like, "I'm, like, in 'The Wolf of Wall Street'."
It was great. -Andy,
first of all, thank you for coming on the show, man.
I believe in great conversations being attached
with great glasses of wine.
So I'm going to ask my somm come out here.
Come on out here, D. Mm-hmm. That's my guy.
How are you doing, man? -Mr. Hart. Mr. Samberg.
-What are we drinking today?
Oh, man. -2019
Oakville Cabernet Sauvignon.
-Come on, man.
-I'd love to top you off first, if I may?
-Yeah. I support it.
-Vodka.
-Well, it's not. It's clearly -- It's not vodka.
It's water. It's fine. -Tequila.
-It's not tequila, actually.
It's just -- -It's water.
I have physical therapy after this, yeah.
Tore the ol' ACL.
-How? -Soccer.
-Still playing soccer?
-Well, I was.
-Actively, like, a Sunday friends type thing?
-Please enjoy. -I appreciate you, man.
-Thank you so much.
-Cheers. So, what?
You just getting out there on weekends?
-Mm-hmm.
-Friends? -Friends. Yeah.
I would curate a game.
So, you know, it didn't get too agro.
But fun and friendly. -How big is the group?
-Anywhere from eight to 16.
-Eight to 16? -Yeah.
-Eight to 16 people?
Years old. -No.
-Yeah, people.
-Eight to 16 people. -Yeah.
-And it was a freak accident or just like --
-I was up north playing a different game, actually.
And yeah, my cleat stuck and my knee exploded.
And I haven't played since. It's been a year.
-How long has the recovery been?
-A year already. -Okay.
That's not actually as bad.
You know, it's a long recovery.
If you're trying to get active again...
-Well, also, it's like, you know, I have two kids.
-Yeah.
-So then, I'm like -- basically,
when you have kids, you can say, like,
"Okay, I'm gonna do knee physical therapy and my kids,
or I'm gonna do work and be with my kids."
-Yes. -And so I've done work.
-You said, "I'm gonna do work
and then I'm gonna be with my kids."
How old are the kids? -Almost seven and almost two.
-Good for you, man.
-Yeah. -Good for you. Boy, girl?
-Girl and a boy. -Okay. Nice.
-Oldest is what? -Oldest is 25. What?
-Oldest is what?
Your oldest child is a girl or boy?
-Oh, girl. -Okay. I like the discovery.
"Uh..."
-I didn't understand the question.
-They were, like, pop quizzes.
-I thought it was, like, you know, like,
"Ass-wee-pay says what?"
-No, no, no, no, no. I got, you know, four.
I did girl, boy, then boy, girl.
So... -Are they all happy with that?
-Well, yeah, I think so.
You know, I'm trying to figure it out.
They're trying to figure it out. -How old?
-My oldest is 18.
My oldest son is 16, then it's six and three.
-Okay. -Six and three.
-You've got nice space in between.
-Well, I'm on a second marriage.
-But so that the olders can help take care of the youngers.
-Yes. Absolutely. That's their job.
That's the meaning of having older kids.
-And they're stoked on that, right?
-They don't have a choice. -Yeah, yeah.
-That's what happen in a household.
-Yes. -But I actually --
You know what?
They're so close in age
that they occupy themselves.
Like, I don't have to do much.
Like, you can sit them down and,
you know, give them some boxes or some creative...
-Yes.
-...crayons, markers, or whatever,
they're with each other for hours.
-Yes. That is a huge shift,
when your child can just do things by themselves.
-Yeah.
-And like, it went from, like, you know,
you're helicoptering all the time
and "Don't fall off that, don't run into that."
And then there's that moment where you're just like,
"[Gasps]"
And the world comes back into focus.
-It all changes extremely fast.
-Yes.
-Let's talk about your world,
and let's talk about how your world has changed
throughout the years.
You know, I expressed in the beginning,
like, I love this show because it's about giving flowers.
Anytime I get to talk to anybody that comes from the space
and/or place of comedy, man,
it's exciting because the journey
to get to is so different for so many.
And yours, you know, we start with the concept of,
you know -- I don't want to say -- it's not just sketch
because it was more than that.
You know, Lonely Island and what you guys did in the beginning,
it was like --
it was so crazy because of the bandwidth
that you guys got off of the things that hit hard.
Right? But was this at the time --
Like, were you guys considered, like,
a sketch group or like --
What was Lonely Island in your mind at the time?
-Like, before we got "SNL"?
-Yes. Before.
-I mean, we were friends from junior high and high school,
first off.
And then, you know, we started a website
and we were doing videos on our own and just trying to get on.
So, we had already started making songs and videos
and stuff, but it wasn't, like, "SNL".
It was like -- Having videos on the Internet was new,
where you'd be like, "You can stream a video,"
you know?
So we were, like -- We had had, like, two pilots, like,
for, you know, attempts at TV shows that were sketch shows.
-Okay.
-That didn't go,
but basically were what we ended up doing on "SNL".
-Okay. -So...
Probably should have let us make them.
-But here's my question, though --
How do you get the idea?
Like, for you guys early on,
where did the concept of, you know,
filming the videos to put the videos on the Internet
and hopefully get some bandwidth come from?
-I mean, we were -- There was, like, you know, "Stella",
like, those dudes from "The State".
You know, Showalter and Wain and Michael Ian Black.
They had been doing their videos,
and we were inspired by those, where it was,
like, completely unhinged, buck wild, like, filthy.
So when we first started doing our videos,
we were like, "Oh, let's do stuff like them."
And then, kind of, by accident, we started making the songs.
And, like, we'd go out at night
and get drunk and come home and, like,
record songs sort of just for fun.
-Okay.
-And then, at one point, we were like,
"Let's shoot a video for one of those dumb songs we did."
And as soon as we did, everyone we knew was like, "Oh, that.
We like that." -That's the thing.
-Yeah, so we're like, "Oh, shit, okay, let's keep doing them."
And then, even when we got hired on "SNL", it was not to do that.
-Yeah.
-You know, we had been writing on the movie awards for Fallon
when he hosted, and we met a lot of the people
that worked at the show there,
and they were like, "You should audition,"
and even after we got hired, they were still like,
"Let's figure out how to do your live stuff,
Andy. Like, let's find ways to introduce you to the audience."
And then we kind of were like,
"Oh, let's do one of those songs."
And then the first one we did was "Lazy Sunday".
And then they were just like, "Make more of those.
Make more of the songs. Do the songs."
-So in the best possible world,
what did you guys see the next thing being?
-I mean, for me,
specifically, my dream was "SNL" from when I was, like,
eight years old. That's what I wanted.
-That's so dope.
-But I had no faith that that was going to happen.
-Why was it your dream from eight?
Like...
-I just loved it. I don't know why.
I mean, I loved sketch in general.
-Okay.
-I would say, like,
when I was in elementary school and then junior high,
I watched "SNL" and "In Living Color".
Like, that was what I dined on,
and I would, like, watch it once and memorize it
and regurgitate it for everyone at school
and, like, do all the sketches for people from memory.
And I don't know.
It was like -- I've always really loved comedy
where the world can be almost like a cartoon.
-Mm-hmm.
-And so that's why I loved, like,
Mel Brooks and "Naked Gun" and, you know,
Monty Python type stuff, too.
-Yeah, you're talking about
the cream of the crop.
-But surrealistic too,
where it's like, "Oh, wouldn't that be nice if the world, like,
wasn't so fucking intense
and you could just, like, do whatever?"
-Yeah. -You know what I mean?
There's a moment in "Billy Madison"
where Sandler's, like, acting like a moron and, like,
grabs the dude's hand
and just starts biting it at the table.
You're just like, "What is happening in this movie?"
Like, there's those moments
where when you're a kid and you watch that or,
like, the opening of "Ace Ventura", the first time
I saw it, where he's, like, kicking the box.
He's like, the delivery guy kicking the box over place
and, like, stepping on and shit.
You're like, "Why was this made?
Who let this happen?"
But for me as a kid and as a teenager, I was like, "Oh, fuck.
It's possible.
You can do the thing that I like,
and actually have people really see it."
-What I'm most impressed about
is you talking about knowing what you wanted to do
from the age eight.
-Right. -You having mindset to say,
like, "That's the thing that I'm going to chase
and stick with it" is extremely impressive.
-It's definitely, I think, a little rare.
I mean, a lot of kids are like, "I want to be on 'SNL',"
but at that time, my parents would be like, "Yeah, okay."
-Yeah. -Like,
"I want to be an astronaut", you know?
There's not that many people that get to do that.
-Amazing conversation,
Andy, but look, we got to stop for a second,
'cause we got to pay bills, guys.
We'll be right back with more "Hart to Heart" after this.
-* Stork patrol, he's rolling *
* Stork patrol with my storkies *
* Stork patrol *
-* Yo, what up, my feathered stork? *
* Peace, you're lovely *
* Hollow legs, long beak, feathers so cuddly *
* Yo, I want to step to ya, stork, but I don't know how *
* Your style's mad intimidating, makes me go wild *
-* Get you open like those webbed toes *
* You know I spread those *
* Scrawny bird legs past the head when I bed those *
* Stanky seed stork steady salty in your seed sack *
* How about this barnacle, bird? You know I need that *
-* Your feathers shiny, nasty plumage *
* Let me probe your inner sanctum, I love you doin' *
-How was it? -Serious.
It's like "Inside the Actors Studio".
But, you know, posi vibes. Everyone, take care.
-Alright, guys, welcome back.
This is still "Hart to Heart",
and we're still talking to Andy Samberg.
I want to go now and fast forward, you know?
The awards have presented themselves, Fallon is there.
As a host,
the host takes a relationship with the writers room
at some point, because the host is going over bits.
The host is going over monologues.
-Yes.
-When do you feel like that relationship
kind of started to present itself?
-With Jimmy? -Yeah.
-Well, they did --
The year he hosted, we wrote two of the three,
like, pre-taped pieces.
You know, I think you have done it now, too,
and I did it eventually, which was the greatest,
where you put yourself in clips from the movies
that came out that year.
It's like the Billy Crystal.
-And just to say, just to highlight, we're talking about,
like, MTV Movie Awards, which was the biggest --
-It was a smash at that time. -Like, it was the biggest --
When the offer came,
I thought that this was -- I was the "Oh, my God.
Like, I've made it." It's a real staple or stamp.
-Yes.
And also, at that time,
it was before it switched to being in, like, a massive arena.
-Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
-So, it's now more become like the VMAs,
where it's just kind of like a crazy raucous party.
-It's a huge production.
-But before that, it was a good room for comedy.
Like, Stiller did that pre-tape where he was,
like, Tom Cruise's stunt double on "Mission: Impossible".
And people still remember that
as, like, a great comedy piece that aired on that show.
-How can I describe it? I think it is or it was...
-Yeah.
-It was one of the best award shows
because it centered itself around the concept of sketch
and, like, satire, like, that the audience wanted to see.
The audience came into that award show, like,
looking forward to seeing what comedian,
what comedians, what comedic actors,
like, what personalities were going to involve themselves in,
you know, making fun of
the business, and it was accepted.
-It was.
It was more about the comedy
and the entertainment factor than the award.
-Absolutely. Absolutely. -Yes.
And so it was a very coveted job in comedy, I think.
And then we got two of those pieces written.
We did a "Batman" one and a "Star Wars" one,
and they both got picked by Jimmy.
-Wow.
-And so they did, like, these animatics,
which is, you know,
they do storyboards and they cut it together to show him like,
"This is basically what it'll be."
And then he goes, "Okay, let's shoot it,"
or "Let's change these things."
And I did the temp voice for him.
-Okay. An impression?
-But I didn't realize I even had it.
They were just like, "Andy, can you do it?"
And I was like, "Oh, sure."
And I was like, "Hey, I'm in 'Star Wars'," you know?
And so they showed it to him.
He was like, "Hey, who's that guy doing my voice?"
You know what I mean?
And they're like, "Oh, this is this kid, Andy.
He's one of the new writers."
He was like, "Buddy, that's so funny. He sounds just like me."
He was so fucking nice.
And I was like, "Oh, my God, this is, like,
your dream reaction."
I mean, we watched "SNL" every week.
We were like, "We know who the fuck Jimmy Fallon is."
-Yeah.
-And so, from that point on, he was like, "This is so great.
This is so funny.
Maybe more jokes here, more jokes here,"
and we were like, "On it," and we just started grinding on it.
And then we shot with him and a bunch of the "SNL" people,
and we shot really late into the night,
which we didn't realize was basically, like, auditioning
for how "SNL" works.
-Yeah. Yeah.
-And we were there 'til, like,
3:00 or 4:00 in the morning just pitching joke
after joke after joke.
And he later -- years later told us,
like, "I remember that night being like,
'These guys want it.'"
And us being like, "Is it an option to not do that?"
-Wow.
-Like, do people check out and go like,
"Anyways, I'm going to leave."
Like, I'm not going to try and get in good
with everyone that I want to work with and, like, work hard.
So, we had a great time,
and I had just done, like a little tiny Comedy Central,
had this show called "Premium Blend".
And I had been on that. -Yeah.
-So they were like, "Oh, Andy does stand up,"
and they could look at that and go, like, "There he is."
And then we had had our pilot and we put it online
and you could watch some of that.
They're like, "Oh, these guys write sketches."
-You had a bunch of receipts.
-Exactly, exactly.
And I think we were all kind of, like -- I mean,
we were just gassed that they chose our pieces.
-Okay. -That's the other thing.
Like, after we got on "SNL", people would be like,
"Could you believe it blew up the way it did?" or whatever,
and we were like, "We just were so grateful it aired."
Like, when you first get there, you can't believe you're there.
So like, when people first get on "SNL" and just kill it,
I'm always like, "God damn."
-Yeah.
-Because for most people, you get there and you're like,
"I can't believe I'm here."
You know, it's like when, like, a rookie quarterback goes in,
you know what I mean?
Like, "This is the NFL!"
-You also get thrown into the process.
You know, I had Rock on here,
and we talked about "SNL".
We just talked about, like, the process.
We talked about the commitment.
And what happens is you get thrown in that,
and that blender is real.
And if you're not ready, you will get eaten up...
-Yes. -...by the blender.
-Also, it's -- I mean, we know now from a million examples,
some of the funniest people in all of comedy history
didn't quite translate on "SNL" specifically.
And you're like -- So, even going in, you're like,
"I think we're funny,
but it doesn't mean it's going to work."
-Yeah. -You know?
And, frankly, I don't know how it would have gone
if we hadn't started doing the songs.
But because we did the songs,
and it just worked out that it clicked with the moment
where it was like, "There's this thing called YouTube."
You know what I mean?
So all of a sudden, it was like,
"'The New York Times' just wrote this article about YouTube,
and it's your face with Chris Parnell."
-Yeah.
-And then all of a sudden, everyone's like,
"I guess, these guys are this cool new thing."
And we're like,
"I kind of feel like we're not that different
from everyone else, but we're just having great timing."
-Alright, wait, don't go.
Don't go into it yet.
We're talking "SNL",
and all of the bells and whistles attached to it.
Guys, stick around,
'cause we got more Andy Samberg and great "SNL" stories
when we come back with "Hart to Heart".
**
-Alright, you two gonna...
Good. Perfect.
Good. Big smiles. Nice. Perfect.
Good. I love it. Done.
-This is the main bumper in between shows.
Yes. Yes. And it's all worth it.
[ Both laugh ]
-Welcome back to "Hart to Heart".
I'm sitting with Andy Samberg and the conversation is amazing.
We're talking everything comedy,
so I can't slow you down.
Let's get back to the "SNL".
I think you look at "SNL" in classes.
-Yeah. -Right?
So, it's like, within the classes,
I look at it in two ways, right?
You know, I look at it as life in "SNL"
and then life after SNL.
Because life in "SNL" with exposure is great.
-Mm-hmm.
-Like, if you are constantly hitting the base hit on "SNL",
the way that I now know that that machine is from, you know,
being a part of the pitches with the writers.
After the pitches with the writers, pitches with Lorne.
After the pitches with Lorne, what's getting picked,
what's not, what gets tossed to the side?
You got to come back every week.
If you are in the mix
and you're gaining popularity in that machine...
-Mm-hmm. -...that's not to be overlooked.
Like, there's a lot of work that goes into that.
-And there's so much exposure. -Yes.
Like, if you have a pretty good sketch on a week
where the show's not good,
that sketch will be fucking everywhere.
You know what I mean? For better or for worse.
-Yeah.
-But, like, that's why you see so many people coming out of
"SNL" working because everyone knows them.
-Yeah.
-Like, the media machine loves "SNL".
It's constantly helping to promote it,
and the show is feeding that machine at the same time.
Like, it's an institution.
So all the groundwork has already been laid.
-Did you ever get to a point
where you felt like "SNL" was breaking you?
Where you felt like, "Okay, this is too much"?
Because the schedule -- I just want to make this very clear.
-Yeah.
-It is necessary to a certain degree
because the system -- it's proven to work.
-Yes.
-It is an incubator for the stars of today and tomorrow,
and those stars are behind the camera.
Those stars have a pin to the pad.
And some of those stars are in front of the camera.
So whatever this thing is, it works.
It shows that. -Yes.
-But not a lot of people can get through that.
So, what were some of your breaking points?
-I mean,
before we sort of started getting going on
making the digital shorts, there weren't as many pre-tape pieces.
-Okay.
-And part of that was because they used to shoot film.
And part of it was just, they were like,
"It's 'Saturday Night Live'.
It's live. It's like, that's the show."
And then, they started asking us to do ours every week,
whether we had an idea we liked or not,
and which we were grateful for most weeks.
But then after, like, five years of that,
Kiv and Jorm both started being like --
their contract as writers were up,
and they started sort of -- they both sort of left,
but would come back to help me out.
-Okay. -But once they left --
-Was that a discussion?
-Oh, yeah. Yes.
I mean, Akiva left to do a movie.
You know, he did that movie "The Watch".
And Jorm is doing other stuff, too.
He did the "MacGruber" movie,
which, you know, is one of the funniest --
-One of the funniest fucking movies.
One of the funniest movies.
And people who have not seen that movie,
do yourself a favor. Do yourself a favor.
Like, one of the funniest movies.
-Yes.
The first time I watched it,
I was, like, actually, like, took a knee laughing.
No, it's -- Like, "MacGruber" --
So "Die Hart"
stems from the word "MacGruber",
like me trying to do,
like, the action and the crazy thing
and having the fun with it.
-It stems from that. -Yeah.
-When I say "MacGruber's", pound for pound,
one of the funniest --
-I'm with you.
-...one of the funniest fucking movies...
-Yes.
And it looks good and they shot it for cheap, too.
-Yes. Yes.
I got to get back to the moment of, like, break, though.
So, you know, your team, your partners,
they're making decisions to do other things.
Like you said, they're coming back,
but it's not just all "SNL" all the time for all.
-No, no.
And I was basically left, like in charge of making the shorts,
which I never pretended, like, I could do without them.
So, when they left, I was like, "Okay."
And, by the way, incredible people came in,
you know, Jonathan Crysal, Jake Szymanski,
my friend John Solomon.
All three of those guys would help me,
and they would direct, and they're all insanely talented.
And we made stuff I'm really proud of
in those -- my last two years.
But there's something about the songs
that I can only do with Akiva and Jorma.
-Mm. Mm.
-It's just like -- It's just how it is.
We're just a band in that way, right?
-Yeah.
-Physically, it was taking, like, a heavy toll on me,
and I got to a place where I was like --
I hadn't slept in seven years, basically.
-Okay.
-Because we were writing stuff for the live show
Tuesday night all night,
then table read Wednesday,
then being told, "Now come up with a digital short."
So write all Thursday, all Thursday night, don't sleep.
Get up, shoot Friday,
edit all night, Friday night, and into Saturday.
So it's basically like, you know, four days a week,
you're not sleeping for seven years.
-You're grounded. -Yeah.
So I just kind of, like, fell apart physically.
-Talk to me about your confidence in the thing
that you wanted to develop outside of "SNL"
and the decision to walk away from "SNL" to pursue that.
Like, what made you feel comfortable with it
and why did you feel like it was time?
-It was a big choice.
For me, it was like,
"I can't actually endure it anymore."
-Okay.
When you say "endure",
you're talking about... -Physically and emotionally.
-Okay.
-Like, I was falling apart in my life.
-Okay.
-And, you know, the idea of, like -- I was like,
I knew 'cause I had talked to Poehler and other people
that had already gone. I was like, "Once I go,
when I have an idea, I can't just do it."
You know, the craziest thing about working there is
once you get going, if you're just in the shower
and you have an idea,
that shit can be on television in three days.
-Mm-hmm.
-Which is the most, like, intoxicating feeling.
I can't even tell you.
And I got really addicted to that.
I loved it.
It was so just crackly and exciting.
So, I knew what I was giving up.
And, you know, they told me straight up,
like, "We'd prefer you would stay," you know?
And I was like, "Oh, that makes it harder."
But I was like, "I think, to get back to a feeling of, like,
mental and physical health,
I have to do it."
So I did it, and, you know, it was a very difficult choice.
I did have things lined up,
you know? I knew that me and Kiv and Jorm
were going to make another album,
you know, like, right after I left.
I had shot a movie with Sandler, which hadn't come out yet.
And I was just kind of like, "Even if it doesn't go as well,
like, I got to do the thing I wanted to do."
So everything past this point is icing.
-Okay.
-But, yeah, it was hard. I didn't like leaving.
-Did you outsource anyone just for the advice?
Like, you know, "Is this too early?
Is this the right time?" -Yeah.
-And, you know, doing that, confide?
Like, "Yo,
I'm only thinking about this
because I'm being honest with you.
I'm really losing myself in this shit."
-Yes. Yes.
-"And I don't know what the worst side of that can be."
-The craziest thing about that was
when I would talk to people about it,
how everyone was like, "Oh, same."
-Wow.
-Like, no one was like, "What?"
-Yeah.
-Everyone was like, "Oh, yes, yes.
This is just what happens.
Like, you hit a wall.
We're not built to operate that way."
I've always sort of likened in being on "SNL"
to being a professional athlete
because it's this high pressure thing.
You adrenaline goes through the roof.
You know, there's parallels.
You have to perform under pressure in front of people,
blah, blah, blah.
But, you know, I did talk to people.
I mean, Amy really was helpful to me.
I had done a guest spot on "Parks and Rec",
and I had seen that life.
And she was like, "It's pretty comfortable, Samberg.
Like, I love everyone I work with.
The hours are pretty chill. It's funny.
Everyone's nice, you know?"
I was like, "Yeah, I could see it."
And then that was a huge deal
that I did that guest spot on the show
because when Mike Schur and Dan Goor came to me
with "Brooklyn Nine-Nine," I was like,
"Yeah, that sounds good. That sounds good."
-And you got a taste of it? -Yes.
-But do you think that you get the success
that you got off of "Brooklyn Nine-Nine"
without going through the hardship and wear and tear?
Exactly. -Yes.
-So it's a weird thing of, like,
balance and gift and curse.
-Absolutely.
I mean, you have to earn it, right?
-Yeah.
-There's so many examples, both for myself
and other people I know, where when it happens too soon
and you're not ready, it doesn't work.
Like, you have to have the 10,000 hours or whatever
to be like, "Okay, I know who I am,
and I know this is how I need to play this
or else it's going to be wrong,
and it's going to put people off."
-Now, we're in the success of the pilot,
and you shoot the pilot.
So now you've got another problem.
Now the next problem is, "I shot this thing.
I walked away from this thing.
I hope that this thing goes."
-Right.
-"I hope that this gives me the opportunity to do."
You're not doing stand up anymore at the time, right?
-Nope.
-You stopped doing stand up
because you couldn't do stand up.
-'Cause I was on "SNL".
-So "SNL" took the stand up schedule way?
-Yep.
-Because so many years passed by,
you said, "Fuck that. I'm not going back to that."
-Well, also, we had a record deal, which I was like, "Fuck,
we get to make albums," which to me, was just more dope.
-Insane.
-I just liked it more than stand up.
-Insane. Alright, Andy, got to put a pin in it.
Got to put a pin in it.
I got to pay bills.
Guys we'll be right back with more "Hart to Heart" after this.
Andy Samberg. Stick around.
-Here we go. Here we go. Thank you, sir.
Good.
-Wink again.
Good.
-Nice.
-Welcome back to "Hart to Heart" .
We're still talking to Andy Samberg.
You're supposed to record an album.
You do the pilot, you're waiting.
Does the stress present itself again
all over again at that point?
Or are you comfortable with, "Whether it goes or not,
I'm going to be okay"?
-I truly mean this.
After I left "SNL", and to this day, like -- I get stressed out.
I'll be over scheduled
or I'll think something's going to happen, and it doesn't,
or, you know, strikes occur. -Mm-hmm.
-But in terms of, like, my creative fulfillment,
I'm not really worried about it now.
-Wow. -'Cause I did "SNL".
-Yeah.
-I didn't I didn't say at eight years old,
like, "I want to be the biggest movie star on Earth."
I was like, "Man, movies, that'd be cool."
But I was like, "Movies like 'Wet Hot American Summer'
and 'Billy Madison'." You know what I mean?
-"I want to do that thing." -Yeah, exactly.
And so, anytime something goes great, I'm like, "Whoo!"
And every time something goes bad, I'm like, "Okay."
-Yeah. -You know?
And it sounds very corny and, like, rehearsed,
but I'm just always just like,
"I still can't believe I get to do comedy for a living."
It's all I wanted to do. I got to be on "SNL".
It went way better than expected.
And, like, I go out and, like, teenagers that were like me
who like comedy say what's up to me.
And they go, like, "We quote your shit."
And I go, "That's all I wanted."
-Yeah. -We did it.
-But that doesn't sound corny.
-Well, good.
-That doesn't sound corny at all,
because you're comfort with knowing that
"I achieved my goal,
but the ultimate goal is happiness
and a choice of what I said I want to do."
-Yeah.
-"And, like, in doing that, I still love that.
Even through my darkest times
where I was supposed to check out,
I didn't, I stayed with it.
And shit got funny again." -Yes.
-"It got better again."
-Dude, by the way, I was just talking to a friend about this.
The craziest moment when you're a comedian,
and it happens to every comedian who has a career, is
when something horrible happens in your personal life
and they're like, "Action." [ Laughs ]
And you're like, "Oh, right.
This is a job."
-"Oh, shit." -Yes.
And, like, people are like, "And the thing we love about you
is that you're so happy."
And you're like, "I don't feel happy at all."
-"Like, see, today, I'm not, actually."
-Like, "This person I love just died."
-Yeah. -You know?
And now I'm about to be like, "[Speaking gibberish]",
you know?
But you do it and you get through it
and you come out on the other side of it,
and you go like, "Okay, I can do that.
I know now I can do it if I have to."
And then you go back home and cry then.
-Well, it's the job. You know,
you get lost in the fun, you get lost in the idea,
but there are moments where the job tugs on your shirt,
and it goes, "Hey, this is work."
-Yes. -Right?
There are times where you don't want to go.
There are times where you don't want to get out the bed.
You don't want to perform.
You don't want to write.
You don't want to hand in notes and make sure
that everybody is on the same page.
You don't want to do it.
-No. -There are times.
-And you have to just be, like,
"Remember how you felt before you had it.
And how many fucking really funny people are
out there right now that feel exactly like that."
-1,000%.
-"And if you don't show up, they will.
And they're good." -Yeah.
-And they're soon going to be better than you
and more relevant and doing newer, crazier shit."
So, like, get it while you got it.
-What was the most impressive thing about the space
of TV and sitcom versus the space in live television?
Live television, to your point, of what I know.
-Mm-hmm.
-Not answering for you, but there's pressure.
It's live. Everybody's got to be on.
We got to do it. We got to go. Rush, rush, rush.
-Yes. -"One to the clock, guys.
We only got this amount of time."
They're pulling your hands.
"Take this off. Put that shirt on."
It's a shit show back there.
-Yes.
-But then you get to sitcom,
and, you know, the amount of people drop down.
-Mm-hmm. -The sets are different.
The cameras are different. -It's super chill.
-It's super, super chill. -Yes.
-So, what was the biggest,
like -- I guess you could say,
what were your big takeaways of this
versus that and why "I'm just more appreciative
of my opportunity of now"?
-Mm-hmm.
-If you could compare the things,
what were your big, like, this versus that,
"This ain't worth that"?
-Yes. -"I'm gonna go with this."
-I mean, as someone who loves editing,
shooting a single camera sitcom was a dream.
-Okay.
-Because we could you like -- "Try
six different jokes on that line."
-Okay.
-"And then let's look at them all later.
Now tighten it up here,
and, like, make everything feel kind of, like, unjudgable."
-Okay. -Right?
"We can throw jokes away that don't hit enough,
and they seem smarter," you know, stuff like that.
That felt really, like, comforting to me to be like,
"We can really control the tone and the pace
and make sure no one's exposed."
And if there's a shot
where me or one of the cast members is like, running,
and we look kind of wack, you can just cut it out.
-Yeah.
-As opposed to "SNL", where it's like,
you're getting what you're getting. It's happening.
You know, if they cut to the camera too soon
and the cue card guy's in there and the boom's in, it's
fucking on the show. -And it's funny.
-Yes, exactly, exactly. -We'll make it work.
-That said, it's seven years of "SNL",
eight years of "Brooklyn".
-Mm-hmm. -"SNL" is like adrenaline hit.
It's like, you're the hottest shit.
Everyone's coming through.
It's like the dopest thing to do in New York on a Saturday.
I mean, I've told this story before.
You'll be doing the dumbest sketch you've ever thought of
and look up, and Paul McCartney is just, like,
standing there laughing.
And you're like, "Okay, that's Paul McCartney."
You know, like, it's just "SNL" and it's Lorne
and it's the legacy of it, and you get to be a part of that,
and you're touching this, like, turbocharged legacy thing.
-Yes.
-But as discussed, that can take its toll physically.
And then I would say the flip side on shooting a sitcom
for eight years is you -- especially
once you're lucky enough to get a fan base
like we had where they love the show
and they love the characters,
you do, you know, 20 takes or ten takes of every scene.
So, like, for you,
every one time they've seen you do a certain kind of joke,
you've done it, like, 50 times.
So when you're in season 6, 7, 8, you're like,
"I feel like I've kind of done this, guys.
Like, I'm feeling like I could use a little bit
of a new challenge, you know?"
-You're tapping into the same bits.
You're tapping into the same the same things.
The character is starting to present itself
to be the character.
And that's not in a bad way.
-And ours was better than most.
Like, the characters grew on our show,
which I think was part of a sort of,
like -- it was a different wave of sitcom.
And it happened, you know,
on "Parks" and a lot of other shows
that I think we were similar to, which helps.
-I think the thing that should be highlighted here,
though, eight years for a TV show.
That's unheard of.
-Yeah. -That's an anomaly.
Like, when you tap into this conversation of five plus...
-Yes.
-...and you get to the seven and above...
-Yes. T -...the eight to ten,
those that are on 20, like, the "Law & Orders" --
20, 25. Like, it's unheard of.
-Yeah. -It's unheard of.
You're in a different space of success on television.
But the same challenges
you start to find in entertainment are recurring.
-Yes.
-Although different, they're the same.
-Yeah, yeah.
And we don't know if there's gonna be shows like that
anymore now with streaming and everything.
Like, most places,
it's cost effective to do, like, what,
two to four seasons? -Two, three?
-And they know they have a certain number of fans
that love it, too.
That's what's so painful.
I mean, we got canceled and then re-picked up.
We were on Fox, and then we went to NBC,
which was the studio, anyway.
-Yeah.
-And that was a big story because like --
-In, like, what period of time?
-We did five seasons,
I think, and then they were like -- Fox was like,
"We're pulling the plug".
And NBC was like, "Scoop", and we did three more.
And a big part of the story was,
and it was real, was that the fan base for the show
was so vocal on social media, being like,
"No, we love this show. Like, you can't."
And then also, you know, like,
my buddy Seth and, like, Mark Hamill and Lin-Manuel
and all these people went to bat for it publicly.
And so, then all of a sudden --
It was the same thing as the "Lazy Sunday" thing,
where I was like,
"Oh, this is interesting. It's becoming a news story."
And, like, I remember I was traveling that week.
It got picked up right before upfronts,
and I was flying to upfronts, and they were like,
people at the airport being like,
"Hey, congrats on NBC picking up the show."
And I was like, "What is happening?"
Like, when did the world get this involved in,
like, entertainment news?
But it became that,
and I think became part of the story of the show,
and it was like a feel good story.
-Wow.
Alright, let's take a quick break, Andy.
We're going to go pay some bills.
Guys, you already know what it is.
It's great conversation. Great wine. Great people.
We'll be back with more "Hart to Heart" after this.
-Oldest is 25. What?
And it is mind blowing to think about because
everybody -- like, you know,
they've seen you do a certain kind of joke.
You've done it, like, 50 times.
So when you're in season 6, 7, 8, you're like,
"I feel like I've kind of done this, guys.
Like, I'm feeling like I could use a little bit
of a new challenge, you know?"
-Yeah.
-Welcome back, guys. We are still "Hart to Heart",
and I'm still talking to Andy Samberg.
You know what I want to ask now?
And I should have asked it earlier, right?
Because you mentioned it, and you said it in passing.
You said, you know, "At the time when I was going through this,
like, the worst times,
my girlfriend was with me who now is my wife."
-Mm-hmm. Right?
"And my girlfriend was there
and helped me kind of just get back to a space of good."
When you got to "Brooklyn Nine-Nine"
and you felt like you were in a better place,
did the relationship get better?
Did you guys, like, find some new, like,
flooring where it was like, "Wow.
You're different, honey" or "You're vibrant."
Like, did you see a difference in yourself,
and did she during that time?
-I mean, the word better is slightly loaded, maybe,
because it was always really great.
-Okay. -However, me leaving "SNL"
undoubtedly made me a better partner.
-I was going to say, let me rephrase that.
When I'm saying better,
we're not talking in terms of you to her, right, her to you.
I'm talking there's a change
in anyone when there's a change in mind.
-I was way more present.
-That's what I'm saying. -I had free time.
-Okay.
-We could go on, like, normal dates.
Like, the schedule was normalized, you know, et cetera.
So it was good.
I mean, she's a musician, so, when I was on "SNL",
when we first started dating,
she'd be, like, touring all over the world
and I'd be on the "SNL" schedule.
And it was like, "Who knows what real life feels like?"
You know?
And then when that sort of calm down, it was like,
"Oh, I see, we're great.
Let's get married."
And then we did. -So now,
okay, we're talking successful TV show.
We're talking dream job, "SNL".
We're talking --
-Oh, yeah, that sounds nice, the way you're saying that.
-Well, dude, we got to go,
and we got to check the boxes.
And I'm going to check the boxes in a way that people should,
because we're talking about an individual
who's put his mind of things
and you've actually done the things
that you said you wanted to do.
Right? The albums that you have made the choice to do.
All these things, they've all worked.
Although hard in some spaces and places,
they have proven themselves to work.
They are all success stories.
What do you feel is next?
Like, after coming through this and you look up
and you look at the Hall of Fame of "SNL" --
By the way, does that exist? Is there an "SNL" Hall of Fame?
-Like an actual, like, organization?
-Well, they don't have the people
that are -- Because,
look, you know all of the cast members that were on "SNL".
-Yeah.
-But there should be an "SNL" Hall of Fame.
And what I mean by that is the people
that did the show and that were able to do multiple things
after.
Like, the careers that were built after the show.
And then after that,
you have another one with the careers that have existed
that are still on the show.
Like, Kenan is one of my favorite people in life.
-Same. -Kenan
is, pound for pound, one of the funniest,
one of the funniest.
-And has been forever.
Yes. -He understands funny.
He is so given with the space of funny.
And his success story attached to "SNL" is a story
that's just for him.
Like, no one else is going to duplicate.
-The wildest shit about Kenan is he was there
before I got there. Obviously, now still is.
And he still gets me.
I'll still be watching the show, and, like, I've seen his moves.
Like, I know what he's gonna do. -Mm-hmm.
-But it just kills me still.
And then also, he'll do some new shit.
And I'm like, "How is this fool still killing it so hard?"
-And he still loves it. -Yeah, he does.
-He still loves it.
He still has an energy attached to comedy.
He still has an energy attached to the creativity.
-And I would challenge anyone to go back through every episode
he's been on,
which is many, and find a moment where he missed a laugh,
where he didn't get his laugh.
-Mm-hmm.
-Like, if you give him a laugh, he hits it every time.
And it is mind blowing to think about
'cause everybody -- like, you know, the greats,
you can watch and they'll be like,
"Ooh, they missed their cue card" or "Ooh,
they broke," or, you know, whatever it is.
I literally can't think of a single time that Kenan didn't,
like, stick it exactly.
-This is what this is what I'm saying. Like,
the Hall of Fame for "SNL" has to -- It has to happen.
-Yeah.
-I mean, when you look at the NBA
and they go over the 75 greats in the NBA...
-Right.
-...there's a lot more than 75 people that played in the NBA.
-Mm-hmm. -Right?
There's a lot more than 50 people that have been on "SNL".
But when you just talk about the concept attached
to the Hall of Fame or
the comedy Hall of Fame that has come from that environment...
-Yeah.
-...if there was an opportunity to give jackets,
if there was an opportunity to, like, have your greats...
-Yeah.
-...and have all of that comedy history in one room...
-I mean, the 50th is coming up.
-I just think that it has to happen.
-Yeah. Did you go to the 40th special?
-I went -- No.
Eddie -- That's when Eddie did the -- When everybody was hype,
because we all thought that Eddie was gonna,
like, do something.
Edie came out and I was like, "Hey, man.
Thank you, man. This is great."
-Yes. He was like, "I'm here. Bye."
-We were like, "Oh, man. You here?"
I remember we were talking about it.
Me, Chris, and Dave.
He was like, "Yo, you know,
Eddie's coming. Kev, you got to go."
And I was like, "Eddie going?
Y'all think he's gonna do something?"
"Listen, Kev, you got to get there. Eddie's coming."
I was like, "Is he gonna touch the stage?
Y'all think we all can touch the stage together?"
"Kev, everybody's coming. You got to be here.
Eddie's gonna be here. It's gonna be the biggest thing."
And I couldn't get out of my schedule.
And I remember tuning in,
and I watched the whole thing, and they were like,
"Ladies and gentlemen, Eddie Murphy."
And I'm in front of the TV.
I'm like, "Oh, my God.
Eddie's about to do some stand up, man."
Eddie said...
[ Both laugh ]
"40 years.
Deserved."
-[ Laughing ]
-He left. Eddie! He fucking Eddie!
-But he came back and hosted.
-He didn't come back. He came back and hosted it.
And by the way, when he hosted,
fucking shawty was Eddie.
-He came back.
Sandler finally came back and hosted, and that was incredible.
-Effortless.
-We watched that one just like,
"God damn, this fool just cannot miss."
-Wow.
Andy, give me 2 seconds, not because the conversation's bad,
because it's great,
but it's just because we got to pay bills.
We'll be back with more "Hart to Heart" after this.
-Go ahead and roll.
-What made you fall in love with comedy?
-Oh, man. So many things.
I just loved it from the very beginning.
When I was a little kid,
I just watch "SNL", "In Loving Color", "Monty Python",
"Kids in the Hall", you know "Pee-wee Herman",
all of it. I just immediately loved it.
Mel Brooks. The list is insanely long.
-Okay, welcome back, guys. We are still "Hart to Heart",
and I'm still talking to Andy Samberg.
All right. Andy, who is your comedy hero?
-I don't have just one. -Okay.
If you had a Mount Rushmore to choose from?
-Fuck. Four?
-If you had a Mount Rushmore to choose from?
-But is it like a different Mount Rushmore with,
like, 20 people on it?
-No.
You got to go four.
-When I was younger,
my Mount Rushmore would've looked different
than what it looks like now. -Okay.
-I'll say this.
In my formative years,
like, high school, college, it was Ferrell.
-Okay.
-Before that, was definitely Sandler and Jim Carrey.
-Okay.
-But when I was younger, I mean, it's like, Pee-wee.
You know what I mean? -Okay.
By the way, that's not a bad choice.
-Yeah.
Mel Brooks and honestly, Eddie, at a certain point.
Like, I watched "Delirious" 100 times and memorized it.
-When you go, like -- See, I feel like it's sectioned off.
Like, if we get to talk about comedy, I can do this all day.
When you talk about Pee-wee, I go Pee-wee,
I go Leslie..."Naked Gun". -Nielsen.
I go our guy, Mr. Bean.
-Yeah. -Okay? I go --
Although not in this for the history of the franchise
they created, Mike Myers. Right?
So when you're talking about -- -Dana Carvey and Mike Myers,
there's a moment where that was it.
-Well, you're talking about --
Alright. So that's, like, one space, right?
-Yes.
-And then you go, like, a Jim Carrey,
who, with "Ace Ventura", can easily fit in the conversation
of that type of comedy,
the crazy far fetched version of the thing,
but those that do that thing at the highest level,
well, it's a monumental. -Oh, my God.
I mean, yes, I mean, like I said,
in junior high, I would've been like,
"It's just the cast of 'In Living Color'.
It's David Alan Grier, you know, it's Jim Carrey,
it's Wayans."
It's like -- And then when I was in college,
I was like, "It's 'Strangers with Candy'."
You know what I mean? "It's Tenacious D.
It's 'Mr. Show'." -Tenacious D.
-Like, Tenacious D was big for us.
To be like, "Whoa, Jack is crushing this.
"Like, he sounds incredible, and I'm laughing.
-Yeah. -And that was a turning point.
Like, I loved "Spinal Tap" and still love "Spinal Tap".
In "Spinal Tap", I'm like, "They did it.
They set the template for, like, everything."
Weird Al, I loved as a kid.
I had "Eat It" on 45.
Let's put it that way.
-You're talking about comedy history.
And the reason why I asked you that question is just, like,
you know, I can't let you leave just without
just saying who you look up to,
who you love, who you appreciate.
And I'm gonna tell you what I appreciate, man.
I don't only appreciate you coming by.
I appreciate the honesty, the transparency.
I appreciate you just being open about the world of "SNL"
and the want, the urge to be in it and being in it,
the work that it took to get to a place of success in it,
but then realizing what it did
and having the hard decision to make for life after,
but then figuring that out and having success in life
after and sitting here, sitting here, as one of the greats.
Like, when you talk about the Hall of Fame,
I said it to say,
like, it's not just about the success in the show,
on the show.
It's the success in writing.
It's the success in collaborating.
It's the success in the sketch is hitting and hitting again.
And then after that, the success in saying,
"I want to do something else,
and I'm going to be confident with making
that decision for me." -Yeah.
And then doing something else
and it's actually working and winning.
You are a testament of that, man.
And I hope after this, people really look at you
and just understand that there's a lot of motherfucking, like,
real effort that went into you getting
where you are today, man.
-Well, that is true.
-The writing rooms, the award shows, the groups,
the music, the comedy, the stand up comedy. As a fan of it,
I appreciate you and I appreciate all
that you've done for the craft.
And the world is better because of the laughs you gave it.
So don't doubt that at any point in time, man.
-Yeah, yeah. -Ladies and gentlemen,
Andy Samberg.
Thank you.
[ Applause ]
That's fucking great, man.
I might have a career.
-It's the most serious thing I've ever done.
-It's fucking great.
When you get people, the funny people to talk,
like, serious, it's great.
-The whole, I'm like, "What's the snippet?
What's the snippet for YouTube?"
-No. No snippet. No snippet.
Come on, take this picture I need you out of here.