David Marchese

But has any of that reality in any way filtered into your working life? Um...

I have no smooth segue to get out of the anti-Semitism portion of this conversation. So I'm just going to take a hard left there. You know, in my reading of your career, around 2010, there's a real change happens. Starting 2010, you really did a lot fewer of kind of like the big, broad comedies. And you started to do films like you did, I think, three Noah Baumbach movies.

I have no smooth segue to get out of the anti-Semitism portion of this conversation. So I'm just going to take a hard left there. You know, in my reading of your career, around 2010, there's a real change happens. Starting 2010, you really did a lot fewer of kind of like the big, broad comedies. And you started to do films like you did, I think, three Noah Baumbach movies.

You did Secret Life of Walter Mitty, Brad Status. And these are all movies that are really about middle-aged guys working through the big questions. Was doing those films the result of a conscious decision that you wanted to start doing a different kind of film and stop doing what you had been doing before?

You did Secret Life of Walter Mitty, Brad Status. And these are all movies that are really about middle-aged guys working through the big questions. Was doing those films the result of a conscious decision that you wanted to start doing a different kind of film and stop doing what you had been doing before?

Yeah. You mentioned your marriage was in a bad place and you and your wife, Christine Taylor, separated for a while and reconciled. And I saw her talking on Drew Barrymore's talk show, and she brought up the idea of sort of the separation and reconciliation being the result of what she called adult growth spurts, which I thought was a nice way of putting it.

Yeah. You mentioned your marriage was in a bad place and you and your wife, Christine Taylor, separated for a while and reconciled. And I saw her talking on Drew Barrymore's talk show, and she brought up the idea of sort of the separation and reconciliation being the result of what she called adult growth spurts, which I thought was a nice way of putting it.

What was your growth spurt during that time?

What was your growth spurt during that time?

It was an act of God. Yeah.

It was an act of God. Yeah.

Yeah. My understanding is you're working on a documentary about your parents, Ann Mira and Jerry Stiller, the comedy team. People don't know the comedy team, they certainly know that your dad played George Costanza's dad on Seinfeld. And I was thinking about the fact you're working on a documentary about them.

Yeah. My understanding is you're working on a documentary about your parents, Ann Mira and Jerry Stiller, the comedy team. People don't know the comedy team, they certainly know that your dad played George Costanza's dad on Seinfeld. And I was thinking about the fact you're working on a documentary about them.

And it sort of occurred to me that kind of outside of like a therapeutic setting, there aren't a lot of opportunities for people to sort of in a structured way sit and think about their parents. So what has working on the documentary revealed to you about your understanding of your parents?

And it sort of occurred to me that kind of outside of like a therapeutic setting, there aren't a lot of opportunities for people to sort of in a structured way sit and think about their parents. So what has working on the documentary revealed to you about your understanding of your parents?

Just talking into a tape machine?

Just talking into a tape machine?

Really, the conflict between understanding that people had affection for your father and also your not wanting to be your father, but wanting people's affection?

Really, the conflict between understanding that people had affection for your father and also your not wanting to be your father, but wanting people's affection?

So you're sitting on a couch. So this is all appropriate for this. I'm going to lie down now. But that was your dad. Your mom was a tougher critic?