- My favorite line of all time,
"Release the world engine," classic line.
- I say that every morning
when I'm going to the bathroom.
All right, release the world engine.
(upbeat jazz music)
- Hey guys, welcome to the show.
I've forsaken Zoom today
because my guest insisted on being in the same room as me.
This is gonna either be awesome
or I'm gonna be dead in about 10 minutes.
Say hello to Michael Shannon.
- Hey Josh, how are you?
- Oh, I see, you're afraid of, no, I've been,
we're all vaxxed, we're good, buddy.
- Okay. - Does this feel different?
This feels different to me.
This feels exciting. - It does feel different.
Yeah, the last time it was on the internet.
- It was on the Zoom box.
- Felt kinda creepy.
- Yeah, this feels totally not creepy at all.
- No, not at all. - Yeah. This was meant to be.
This was something I've been dreaming about for a long time.
- You're strange.
- So you've been working. - Mm hmm.
- You've done stuff in person,
are you feeling like things are back to normal for you?
You're a big hugger. Everybody knows you as a big hugger.
Are you hugging people?
- The only person I hugged on a regular basis
since COVID started shooting was Brad Pitt.
I would hug him first thing when I got
to work on "Bullet Train."
When I saw him, I would just run up
and grab him basically. - Yeah.
You would jump into his arms
as I understand it. - Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
- Thank you for clarifying
that you worked on a film together.
'Cause I thought that you were just tracking down Brad Pitt
for. - No, it was a job.
I worked with Brad Pitt.
- No, that's great. - And you heard it here first
on whatever this is.
- Now wait, are you shirtless with Brad?
Do you have the physique of Brad Pitt?
- Yeah, I take my shirt off, yeah.
- Do you? - Yeah.
- That's an exclusive, wow.
Was it in the script
or did it just feel natural in the moment?
- It was improved. - Yeah.
Yeah, you're known for that. - Yeah.
- Congratulations on your new series.
I very much enjoy "Nine Perfect Strangers."
- Thank you. - Does this show
have continuity with the classic '80s sitcom,
"Perfect Strangers?"
Is there any overlap?
- I'm so glad you asked me that question.
Nobody's ever thought of that, to ask me that before.
The question is if there's nine perfect strangers
and four of them are Balki and four of them are Larry,
who's the ninth one? - That's the twist at the end.
We have to find out. - Yeah.
- Have you decided when to show the Shannon family,
the children, your oeuvre?
Like when do they get to see "Bug"?
- They came to visit me in Australia
when I was shooting this and they were in quarantine
with their mom, and mom said,
"Hey, let's watch some of daddy's,
these movies he made with Jeff Nichols."
So they watched like "Take Shelter" and "Mud"
and I believe "Midnight Special."
- That's intense, that's some intense stuff.
- It is. - They're okay?
- My kids? - Yeah.
- Yeah. They're fine, Josh.
- I'm just concerned. - What kind of question
is that? - I just wanna make sure
the next generation is better off than you.
- The buck stops here.
- All the problems. - I'm saying it right now
on whatever this is, the buck stops here.
- That's your catch phrase. - Happiness is next.
- Oh, wow. Very appropriate for the wellness show.
- Yeah.
- You play a character named Napoleon.
- Not dynamite though.
- I was gonna say, no, this is not inspired by
that classic character, no. - No.
- Who do you think was a better leader, Napoleon or Zod?
- Well they both failed.
- I think Zod got a bad rap.
- Yes. I think Zod did the best he could.
- Here's my only thing on the Zod thing,
and then we'll leave it alone forever, okay?
- Go ahead.
- Why just so much screaming?
Like maybe that's why he has the bad reputation.
He was just always screaming.
- I mean maybe if David Harbour had played Zod
there wouldn't have been so much screaming.
I know he's your favorite,
seeing as how he was the first interview you did
person to person.
- I didn't know you would be amenable to this, frankly,
given all our past experiences.
- Anyway, what was your question?
- Nine perfect- - Oh yeah, David Harbour.
He would have been a much better Zod.
He wouldn't have screamed.
- I wanna talk about your relationship with the internet.
The internet loves Michael Shannon.
Can I grab this? I want to show you some memes.
Okay, so these are some of my favorite memes
of Michael Shannon, that's you.
Tell me if you approve of them, if you like them,
just give me your gut reaction.
- This better not be embarrassing.
- What do you think?
- When you get to McDonald's
right as they stop serving breakfast
That's just stupid. - It's stupid? Okay.
I didn't make it. So I'm not offended, it's totally fine.
- This is what every antivaxer at a . . .
Stupid. - Still stupid.
Okay, we're 0-2.
Okay, it's a high bar.
- How I be watching when Michael Shannon shows up.
Oh, cool. All right. - Oh, this is cool?
- It's flattering to me. I have proof.
- These all are flattering. The internet is celebrating you.
- I don't like that hair.
- Are you upset? - Of course.
I've been upset,
how long has this interview been going on now?
Yeah, ha ha ha ha ha. (Josh laughs)
It is unbelievable to me how much free time
human beings have. - So that's a yes.
That's a thumbs up.
No? Okay, fair enough.
Oh, that's kind of fun.
- That's the long,
I didn't realize my tongue was that long.
I'm proud. - Yeah.
- Proud of myself. - Yeah. Okay.
Oh, you remember when that was taken?
- No. Who is it?
- That's hurtful. That was us.
- I have no memory of that. - You do know.
I have the tape.
We've talked about it. - No.
- Okay. I think there's one more.
Oh, that's fun. - Favorite Seinfeld character?
It's got to be Kramer. - That's funny.
It's saying you're kind
of Kramer-ish there. - That I look like Kramer?
How long did this take, this segment?
I don't get that time back, you know?
- No. Neither do I. Oh.
- What? You said that was the last one?
- I'm bad with math. - You know what the phrase
"the last one" means? - I haven't done one
of these in a while in person, you know that.
- I'm so glad this is over. Thank you.
- Well, there's one more.
(Josh laughs)
Okay, we're almost done. Not with that, this we're done.
- Wait a second. Why does that say Comedy Central on it?
- That's what you're on.
I told you. - Oh.
- Alrighty. - Okay.
- This show is set at a wellness retreat.
- Yes sir. - I want to know what
the Michael Shannon ideal for a wellness retreat would be?
Is Ayahuasca or the like of the-
- You know I've heard a lot of people talk about Ayahuasca,
but I don't think, no.
- Maybe we should do Ayahuasca together.
I was joking, but.
- No? All right.
- Career word association with Michael Shannon.
Give me the first thing that comes to your head.
"Eight Mile," the first thing that comes to mind.
- Greek town.
- Greek town? - Yeah, in Detroit.
- Okay. "Bad Boys II."
- Henry Rollins telling me story about touring
with The Cure and Iggy Pop.
- Oh, that is cool.
"Revolutionary Road." - Kate Winslet.
She's so amazing.
- "Take Shelter."
- My favorite movie I've ever made.
- That's a good one.
- I don't give a F what you think about it.
(Josh laughs)
- "Boardwalk Empire." - I am relaxed.
I am calm, that's the line.
I am calm. - Close enough.
- When the guy says, "Hey, calm down."
And I say, "I am calm."
Then I blow his head off.
- Your favorite to talk about at least, "Man of Steel."
- What?
- My favorite line- - Huh?
- My favorite line of all time, "Release the world engine."
Classic line. - I say that every morning
when I'm going to the bathroom.
(Josh laughing) - All right.
Release the world engine.
- And "Knives Out."
- Man, they're making a sequel.
I don't get to be in it.
- That's a really happy place to end this, I think.
I'd like to thank you- - How unfair life is?
- Yeah, I think that really sums up our
relationship generally. - What's my score?
- Six.
Isn't it great to, look, we're in the same shot!
Look, look, I can touch you.
Did I overstep my bounds?
- No, that's all right. - You okay?
Did I hurt you? - Yeah.
- Well I'd like to thank you, Michael Shannon.
I'd like to thank the Moderna of the vaccine
for making this possible.
- Did you do Moderna too? - I did it. I did two of them.
- Are you gonna get the booster?
- Yeah, oh yeah.
Whenever it's available, right?
- Yeah. - Should we do it together?
The Ayahuasca and the booster? - Oh, that'd be trippy.
- It's a date. This has been great.
- Was it as great as when you did it with David Harbour
or did you prefer that?
- That was different.
All right. I think we can go now.
(Michael burps)