Terry Gross

What was the Coen brothers' approach to directing you?

From your point of view as an actor, what was it like to work with them?

Absolutely.

You had a skill.

Let me reintroduce you.

If you're just joining us, my guest is Richard Kind.

We'll talk more after a break.

This is Fresh Air.

The movie A Serious Man is also about, you know, like struggling with your faith.

Yes.

Because the Michael Stuhlbar character has conversations with rabbis, and he's kind of losing his faith because everything's going wrong in his life.

Right.

I know you were on Finding Your Roots, and you found out that some of your ancestors were religious leaders in the Pale of Settlement.

Right, right.

And the Pale of Settlement was, during the Russian Empire, it was a large area of what we now call Eastern Europe that was basically the ghetto for Jews.

Jews had to live within this expanse of land.

And so, so many American Jews, their grandparents or ancestors lived in the Pale of Settlement.

What did it do to your own faith or religious practice, if you had any?

I know you're born Jewish.

I have no idea how observant you are.