Kristen Bell had an experience as a guest on WTF that not many others get to enjoy: Marc made her a meal beforehand. So with a full stomach, Kristen and Marc talk about why Dax Shepard is pushing her to have an ecstasy party, why does she have a hard time remembering things, and why she began singing opera at a young age. There's also some talk about her beloved projects like Veronica Mars, Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Frozen, and The Good Place. This episode is sponsored by YouTube Music, the Aro...
Sep 16, 2018•1 hr 18 min
Comedian, actor and writer Adam Cayton-Holland didn't plan on having a memoir in his 30s. But Adam's life took a stunning turn when his sister took her life six years ago and the grief process ran through the writing. Adam and Marc talk about hereditary mental illness, the urge to romanticize depression and self-destruction in comedy, and navigating the aftermath of a family tragedy. Adam also remembers what it was like to discover alt-comedy while living in Denver and wonders about the future o...
Sep 12, 2018•1 hr 21 min
Billy Eichner was singing before he was yelling. The star of Billy on the Street had an early love of Broadway and musical theater but, as he tells Marc, comedy didn’t come quickly. No stand-up, no improv, no sketches. Then he developed a stage show in New York and the seeds of his comedic persona were planted. Billy also talks about the new season of American Horror Story, his role in the upcoming remake of The Lion King, and the return of Billy on the Street. This episode is sponsored by Sam M...
Sep 09, 2018•1 hr 10 min
Marc talks with Paul McCartney about, well, a lot: The Beatles and Stones rivalry that wasn’t, his current relationship with Ringo, the influence of Little Richard, The Who, The Beach Boys, how he needs to have an out-of-body experience to really examine the Beatles legacy, the reception of his solo work after the Beatles, recording Band on the Run in Nigeria, what messages are in his songs, which songs still make him emotional when he performs them, and what he brought to the table for his late...
Sep 05, 2018•1 hr 9 min
Dan Schlissel died recently. He tells Marc all about it, along with the less harrowing tale of how an isolated Jewish kid from Nebraska got into producing records. Dan turned his production know-how into a vibrant business when he started Stand Up Records and became a Grammy-winning comedy industry mainstay, producing and distributing albums for everyone from Maria Bamford to Doug Stanhope to Hannibal Buress. And yes, even Marc Maron. This episode is sponsored by New Mexico, Podcasts on Spotify,...
Sep 02, 2018•1 hr 12 min
If there was a competition for WTF guest who comes from the most far-flung, middle-of-nowhere place, comedian Ian Bagg would probably win by a lot. Ian tells Marc about growing up in Northern British Columbia, being part of the blast crew in a gold mine, and realizing that the satisfaction he got blowing things up was equaled only by doing stand-up comedy. Also, Bert Kreischer returns to the show on the cusp of a mid-life crisis that is mitigated a bit by his new Netflix special. This episode is...
Aug 29, 2018•1 hr 35 min
Jo Koy is one of the biggest headlining comedians in the world and it might not have turned out that way if he hadn't become a vigorous self-promoter. Jo tells Marc how moving around a lot as part of a military family and dealing with his brother's severe mental illness made him realize that if he was going to do something big, he had to do it himself. Jo and Marc also talk about holding down other jobs while doing comedy, the hazards of burning through material, and why people mistakenly think ...
Aug 26, 2018•1 hr 26 min
A lot has changed in the 30 years since Marc and Tanya Donnelly worked together at a luncheonette in Boston. Tanya saw her emerging music career take off in the early '90s, thanks to her bands Throwing Muses, The Breeders and Belly. Now in the midst of a Belly reunion with tour dates and a new album, Tanya tells Marc how things evolved in the more than two decades since. Also, Jason Bateman returns to talk about the second season of Ozark on the heels of Marc binge-watching season one. This epis...
Aug 22, 2018•1 hr 34 min
Shooter Jennings was born into Nashville royalty, the son of Waylon Jennings and Jessi Colter. But he didn't exactly fit the Outlaw Country archetype. In fact, he was a computer nerd whose real influence was Nine Inch Nails. Shooter talks with Marc about developing his own style, idolizing George Jones, collaborating with Stephen King, and always changing things up. Also, Rob Riggle stops by to explain how a fake idea he told people about to mess with them turned into an actual show, Rob Riggle’...
Aug 19, 2018•1 hr 35 min
There were two times Joe Walsh felt part of a community. The first was as a student at Kent State, but that all went away after the National Guard shooting. The second was when he got to LA and met a bunch of other musicians, including Don Henley and Glenn Frey, and that almost went away in a haze of substance abuse. Joe talks with Marc about his days with The James Gang, opening for The Who, Led Zeppelin, and every band under the sun, joining The Eagles, breaking up with The Eagles, getting sob...
Aug 15, 2018•1 hr 27 min
Jimmy O. Yang felt like an outsider growing up in Hong Kong and then felt like he didn't fit in studying economics in America. It was only once he starting paying five bucks to do an open mic night in Hollywood that he found a community. Jimmy tells Marc how the immigrant story was different for everyone in his family, how he got his first real lessons in American life from watching BET, and how his performances in Silicon Valley and Crazy Rich Asians are so different when it comes to the pressu...
Aug 12, 2018•1 hr 28 min
Chris O'Dowd charmed and amused audiences in things like Bridesmaids, The IT Crowd, and recently the Get Shorty TV series, but things could have gone differently if he had followed through on his political science major. Chris and Marc talk about growing up in the Irish countryside and heading of to university in Dublin, only to find out he enjoyed acting much more than studying politics. They also talk about Bono, the Native Irish vs the Boston Irish, and having cats but not being a "cat person...
Aug 08, 2018•1 hr 17 min
Jay Leno came up as a comic's comic, a performer recognized by other comedians as one of the best in the game. He also became one of the most successful late night television hosts in history, not once but twice. Those two sides always seemed at odds with each other, especially in the minds of many other comics, but Jay never saw it that way. He tells Marc about the early days in the clubs with Pryor, Carlin, Robin and others, how he and Letterman influenced each other as comics, and how things ...
Aug 05, 2018•1 hr 37 min
Luzer Twersky is an actor who has been seen on shows like Transparent and High Maintenance. But prior to 2008, he wasn't seen by anyone outside of his Hasidic Jewish community. Luzer tells Marc about his cloistered upbringing, the details of Hasidic life, his troublemaking as a youngster, his crisis of faith, and ultimately his exile from the only world he ever knew. Luzer also explains what role Marc played in his journey and where things stand now with the people from his past. Sign up here fo...
Aug 01, 2018•1 hr 22 min
Mila Kunis says she's had a most fortunate trajectory in show business. That's because she got to experience it as a hobby and as a career. She explains to Marc what that means, along with telling him what it was like to arrive in LA as a religious refugee, why Ashton Kutcher is turning into an old man, and why she didn't realize she was supposed to be promoting her new movie, The Spy Who Dumped Me. Also, Iliza Shlesinger returns to talk about her wedding and her new special. Sign up here for WT...
Jul 29, 2018•1 hr 43 min
Marc welcomes back to the show two comedian friends from the early years of WTF, both of whom have experienced a lot of changes in their lives since their previous visits. First, Sue Costello talks with Marc about how she persisted in the face of ingrained show business obstacles and is finding herself coming out clean on the other side. Then Jim Gaffigan tells Marc how one day he was out there doing comedy and the next day his family life went topsy-turvy after his wife's visit to the doctor. S...
Jul 25, 2018•1 hr 13 min
It’s a summertime double-header of returning guests. First, David Sedaris takes a break from his months-long 'Calypso' book tour to tell Marc about his visit to Buckingham Palace, how he's navigating life with his elderly conservative father, and why he got a bizarre phone call from Roseanne. Then Bo Burnham returns to explain why he decided to make the movie Eighth Grade after having panic attacks on stage. Bo also tells Marc about the special friendship he struck up with Garry Shandling. Sign ...
Jul 22, 2018•1 hr 24 min
Before he was in Hamilton, Daveed Diggs was an aspiring actor, rapper and spoken word performer creating "a rap curriculum" for Bay Area schools. Marc talks with Daveed about how that was the perfect starting point for his eventual portrayal of Thomas Jefferson. They also talk about Oakland, Daveed's rap group Clipping, and his new movie Blindspotting, which he co-wrote as a kind of love letter to his always-changing hometown. Also, Marc gives Bob Newhart a call to talk about his new Audible ser...
Jul 18, 2018•1 hr 22 min
Filmmaker and kindred guitar noodler Gus Van Sant meets Marc in the garage and jumps in for a deep dive on his movies, including Drugstore Cowboy, My Own Private Idaho, To Die For, Gerry, Elephant, Last Days, Milk and more. Gus tells Marc why doing Good Will Hunting felt like such a personal risk at the time, why the remake of Psycho got green-lit in spite of itself, and why his latest movie Don't Worry, He Won't Get Far On Foot owes its existence to Robin Williams. Sign up here for WTF+ to get ...
Jul 15, 2018•1 hr 28 min
Ray Liotta had no intention of getting into acting but his fearless disposition led him to performing in school musicals, and the rest was history. Ray tells Marc about why being on a soap opera was great training, why he owes his movie career to Melanie Griffith, and why the filming of Goodfellas was emotionally tumultuous for him. Also, comedian Jim Jefferies stops by to talk about parenting, his new Netflix special, and Crocodile Dundee. Sign up here for WTF+ to get the full show archives and...
Jul 11, 2018•1 hr 34 min
Filmmaker and hip hop artist Boots Riley wants his audiences to be radically engaged. He grew up with parents who were organizers and he believes political radicalism prompts cultural change. Boots and Marc talk about social movements, power structures, and how he wanted to take on all of it with his years-in-the-making movie, Sorry To Bother You. Also, Bobcat Goldthwait returns to the garage to talk about grief, getting older, and his new series Misfits and Monsters. Sign up here for WTF+ to ge...
Jul 08, 2018•1 hr 34 min
Peter Fonda is happy to be figuring things out, no matter how long it took. Childhood traumas and an emotionally distant father affected his life and career, and he finally has some missing pieces of the puzzle. Peter also talks with Marc about Easy Rider, the time he talked George Harrison down from a bad trip, and working with Christopher Plummer on the new movie Boundaries. Plus, Andy Kindler and J. Elvis Weinstein stop by to try and explain what their podcast Thought Spiral is all about. Sig...
Jul 04, 2018•1 hr 25 min
One constant for Paul Rudd as he spent a large portion of his childhood moving around the country, chasing an identity, is that he loved watching adults be silly. Even when he was in acting school and performing Shakespeare on stage, he took a lot of cues from influences like Letterman, Carlin and Kaufman. Paul talks with Marc about those early days and the big days that were to come after Wet Hot American Summer, the Judd Apatow movies, and now Marvel's Ant Man and the Wasp. Sign up here for WT...
Jul 01, 2018•1 hr 23 min
Comedian Eleanor Kerrigan knows a lot about The Comedy Store. Not only did she become the club's head waitress, she also became a confidant and sometime-assistant to the owner, Mitzi Shore. After a stint as a professional wrestler and an opener for Andrew Dice Clay, Eleanor finally found herself on stage at The Store and she hasn't left since. She tells Marc what it was like to get to know Mitzi, why she can't escape her South Philly roots, and how she's trying to pass along the history of The S...
Jun 27, 2018•1 hr 16 min
Lil Rel Howery burst into the mainstream as a hero. Playing the character who saves the day in Get Out, Lil Rel can see how that role changed everything for him, as he's now the lead in the new movie Uncle Drew and he's putting his life on TV with his own show. He also talks with Marc about learning empathy and compassion from his mom and how those lessons helped him with his comedy. It also helped him see another side of a person who Lil Rey believes is struggling with grief: Kanye West. Sign u...
Jun 24, 2018•1 hr 24 min
New York Times culture reporter Dave Itzkoff came into Robin Williams's life right around the same time Marc talked to Robin for WTF. Dave and Marc share notes on what they learned about this one-of-a-kind comedic performer, how his death affected the world, and what Dave was able to glean from working with Robin to write his biography. Then, after their conversation, hear the full interview Marc conducted with Robin back in 2010. Sign up here for WTF+ to get the full show archives and weekly bo...
Jun 20, 2018•2 hr 6 min
Billy Bob Thornton sees himself in a certain way and feels as though the world sees him differently. That's why he feels uncomfortable at parties, uneasy about being a celebrity, and most relaxed when he can retreat into a new role. With Marc's help, Billy Bob tracks a lot of his anxiety back to his childhood in Arkansas, his pursuit of a life as a rock musician, and his stumble into a long and prosperous career in Hollywood. They also talk about Robert Duvall, Richie Havens, Sling Blade, and th...
Jun 17, 2018•1 hr 31 min
Holly Hunter left the family farm in Georgia to become an actor. She talks with Marc about her early days in New York, catching the attention of the Coen Brothers as they were on the verge of making their first film, and everything that followed, including her foray into voice acting with The Incredibles and its new sequel. Also, Amber Tamblyn returns to talk about being a new mom, fighting for gender equality, and how it all relates to her new novel Any Man. Sign up here for WTF+ to get the ful...
Jun 13, 2018•1 hr 35 min
Bob Balaban was born into show business and he didn't even know it until he was 10. The ubiquitous actor tells Marc how his immigrant family came to Chicago at the turn of the century and broke into the movie business, eventually winding up in charge of Paramount Studios. Bob also talks with Marc about Charlie Brown, Midnight Cowboy, Altered States, Christopher Guest, Francois Truffaut, and his many roles in film, stage and TV, including his new show Condor. Sign up here for WTF+ to get the full...
Jun 10, 2018•1 hr 22 min
From Episode 233, this is Marc's conversation with Anthony Bourdain, conducted in 2011. Anthony died on June 8, 2018, at age 61. Sign up here for WTF+ to get the full show archives and weekly bonus material! https://plus.acast.com/s/wtf-with-marc-maron-podcast . Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....
Jun 07, 2018•1 hr 11 min
