S2E8: Sweet Vitriol (with Patricia Arquette and Jimmy Kimmel)
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You don't wake up dreaming of McDonald's fries. You wake up dreaming of McDonald's hash browns. McDonald's breakfast comes first. Hey, Adam. Yeah? Is your experience at work a bit dysfunctional lately? I don't know. I think it's... it's... Okay, I'll take that as a yes. Your team could undergo a highly controversial surgical procedure that would mercifully sever any and all memories of that work experience from your home lives.

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Action!

Hey, I'm Ben Stiller. I'm Adam Scott. And I'm Patricia Arquette. And this is the Severance Podcast with Ben and Adam and... Patricia Arquette. Yes, where we break down every episode of Severance. And today, we're talking about the eighth episode of season two, Sweet Vitriol, written by Adam County and K.C. Perry and directed by Ben Stiller. And Patricia Arquette. He's kidding. He's kidding.

Not really, though. And this is an exciting episode of our podcast because you're here, Patricia. Have you been on a podcast before? I probably have, but I don't want to. Wait a second. Do you remember? I'm trying to block it out.

All right. This is what we deal with, folks. Are you going to block this out eventually? Like five minutes after I leave. And also, our other guest on the podcast after Patricia is the great Jimmy Kimmel. Yeah. He's going to help us answer some of your hotline questions. And he'll remember being here. Okay.

And enjoy it. Good. He's going to enjoy it whether he enjoys it or not. And also, we have Zach Cherry. Of course. Oh, I love him. Yes, to predict what's going to happen in next week's episode. But before we dive in, here's your spoiler warning and ours that we are talking about everything from episode eight of season two. So go watch that before you listen to the podcast.

Now, interestingly enough, Patricia, you probably can't give any spoilers because you... Have you seen Severance? I've seen episode one of season two. You're up to episode one of season two. Yeah. What did you think? I loved it. I loved it. Do you like to wait until it's going out into the world before you see anything? I do. And in general, I don't like seeing anything. I mean, so it's kind of a little bit like...

dragging a mouse who has its nails out digging into wood. Towards the television to watch themselves? Yeah. A little mouse? Yeah, that's me. Mice hate seeing themselves on TV shows. I know. It's so big. You're so big up there and daunting. Did you ever see Escape at Dannemora? I did, yeah. Okay, good. I saw it once.

I mean, I'll run into myself on TV sometimes. Like, I'll be changing channels and I'll see like, oh my God, that's me in True Romance. And I might watch a bit. That's cool. And be like, wow, I'm so young. Or I'll see us in Flirting with Disaster. Wow, we're so young. Look at, we're babies.

Ben, don't you wish you could say that you run across yourself in true romance? I do. I do. I was never that cool. Flirting with disaster is pretty damn cool. I never got into the Tarantino verse. And I know that was a Tony Scott movie, but it's a Tarantino verse. As you guys both know, flirting with disaster is one of my very, very favorite movies.

I've told you so many times. We had so much fun. We had a great time. And then like weirdly didn't really see each other for a while until Escape at Dannemora. Like 25 years went by or something. Yeah, that's crazy. And then, but it was like we never stopped being like a brother and sister is what I feel like. Yeah, yeah. As soon as we like were back together, the gang was back together. Yeah. You know, it was like the Beatles getting back together. No, I'm just kidding. It is. I wish. So Dannemora is like...

- Who are you? - Escape at Dannemora's like Sergeant Pepper. - We're all Ringo. - I'm sorry, can I just say Ringo is the best. - Ringo rules. - Yeah, and- - Listen, I don't think Ringo's a joke. Don't get me wrong. - No, no. - I love Ringo. Ringo's great. - No, literally one of the, and also talking about eternally youthful, him and Paul McCartney, it's crazy. I mean, I've never really met Ringo Starr. I wonder if he watches Severance. - Have you met Ringo?

- I don't know, I vaguely feel like maybe I did for one second. - Oh my God, wow. So how come you don't remember anything that ever happened to you? - Just too much trauma. - Severance? - Too much trauma, yeah, and severed. Maybe I'm severed. - What about Paul McCartney? Did you guys meet Paul McCartney? - I did, and also I have an NGO, Paul McCartney was one of the first people to donate to it.

Wow. Which was really cool. My sister actually dated him for a while. Whoa. Yes, exactly. Whoa. Okay. My sister dated a Beatle. That's amazing. Oh, my God. Wow. That's pretty incredible. Who did you date back in the day? Come on. Give us some. I'm not a kiss and tell sweetheart. I need a clip from this podcast. We need to get something out there. We got to push something out on social. Push it out on our socials. All right.

I have to find a dead person to talk about. But you were around show business as a child. Like you grew up in this crazy showbiz hippie world with brothers and sisters who were all in it. And your dad, Louis Arquette, was...

really just a very accomplished character actor, really funny. He's in Waiting for Goffman. Waiting for Goffman, yeah. Oh my God. He's the old man in Waiting for Goffman. Yeah. The Waltons he was on. Maybe that's why we feel like brother and sister a little because we have similar showbiz families. Showbiz background. Yeah. And also that kind of sense of humor and there's something about the time we grew up. It was a very strange time in the world. Like,

It was a really inappropriate time and funny. You mean the 70s generally? Yeah, like there was a lot of satire on television, political satire and public. For sure. People talked about stuff on TV in talk show situations that they would

- Now never talk about it. - Right. - Never. - Real stuff. People just talk about real things. It's fascinating. You ever watch any of those old Dick Cavett shows? - Oh, I love those. - Mike Douglas or David Suskind. - They would have actual conversations that unfolded. Not worrying about laughs or whatever. - Yeah, and everybody's smoking and just being real. - Yeah, I think 200 was on acid.

on one of them oh really yeah sure yeah you're not on acid now are you i don't know okay patricia you you're so great as a person first of all i love you and you're a great actor amazing actor and just in regards to severance what was it when you read the script and you saw harmony cobell what went through your head well ben you know damn well you only gave me the pilot

pilot and you know damn well I'm barely in the pilot so I was like what the hell is he giving me this for I'm like Ben who is this lady what is this company doing what is going on here wait where's this going what's my art and so you'd give me a few little cryptic answers you what am I getting paid was the first thing yeah let's pay me yesterday why don't you Patricia's first question in the bank

Put the money in the bank before I even pick up the phone. So you guys just gave me all these cryptic answers. And finally, I just thought, okay, this is a really interesting genre. I haven't really done sci-fi, which I like. And this lady is inscrutable and interesting. And this is weird. And I totally trust Ben. So I'm going to go to this blind date and just jump in. Ah.

I love that you were willing to do that, too, because I got excited when I read it because I could see you in it. And I didn't know exactly what you do with it, but I just knew that you could you could create something really interesting with this person. And that's been the whole thing on the show has been like, you know, kind of the actors kind of jumped in. And we've talked a lot about this, about having this room to kind of experiment and figure it out, which we kind of did over the course of the first season. Right. Yeah. And even just finding the look and the character and everything. Yeah.

I don't know why early on I was like, you know, I kind of see her with gray or white hair. And you were like, what? What do you mean? And I was like, let's just try it. You know, let's just do a camera test, a makeup test, and we'll just have one of those wigs and look at it. And I think we were all like, oh, yeah, there's something about that.

It's cool. It's like silver hair. There was a lot of strict structure in the lumen world. And for a long time, I didn't really understand what the tone was. And then you cut it together and showed me. What about her voice? Well, that to me was like something she had picked up from other people, like subconsciously had decided like, oh, this is what upper management sounds like.

And that's the sound of like success in the workplace. Like this is what I'm supposed to be and this is what I'm supposed to sound like. And how do I get up this ladder? I have to look like this, sound like this, be like this. Right. So she kind of had that.

In season one, you had Mrs. Selvig as well. Was Mrs. Selvig like a place to kind of put everything she's not allowed to do in her regular life? Like, it's just interesting. Yeah, it was sort of like trying on what is it like to be a normal person, you know, like experimenting with the freedom of that. Yeah.

What is it like to make friends in a kind of normal way? I mean, there was a part of it first. It was this affectation of, I'm going to disarm you with your mommy issues by being the fumbling, bumbling auntie, whatever, next door. Next door neighbor. Yeah, next door neighbor who's a little nosy, but you...

Our nice boy. So you're going to be nice to the mommy lady. And, you know, I'll insinuate myself into your life so I can sneak around more and find out. But then it also became like, are we chums? We are having fun. And, oh, is this what it's like to have fun with somebody in the world, you know, and go do things outside of work? And, wow, what does this feel like? I love Mrs. Selvig.

And your relationship with her in the first season, it makes me laugh so much every time you have an interaction where you're sort of perplexed by her or just not wanting to deal with her. Yeah. Or when you come outside. First of all, when you make the bad cookies, the awful cookies. Yeah. And then we sort of reveal in your house all the cookie tray and the mess. Oh, it's –

- There's a real close circle with the cookie thing, which we will get to later. - Okay, okay, yeah. The scene outside in the snow when you're taking the garbage out and you're like, "Ooh, looks like Jack Frost's dandruff sheets run out of dandruff shampoo." - So ridiculous.

That was an improv. You also improv open or closed both. That's right, yeah. But then your thing of like you say, let's go have some lavender tea or something later. And you're like, I just want to kind of see how the day develops. It's like such a lame out. But a lame out that should work with your nosy neighbor. Like you don't need to come up with something better than that. Right, right. Also, we shot a scene in season one where we were driving together.

You hit your ride with me on the way back from the funeral. We shot a scene where we're driving and you try holding hands with me. Remember shooting that? Oh, yeah. It was interesting. It probably just ended up being like too much or something. Right, right. Yeah. We have this whole scene in the car. Yep. Which was really interesting. Which maybe we could use as a flashback or a fantasy of Mark's. Yeah.

Oh, my. I would buy it. Okay. You know what? It's time for us to take a drive down to Salt's Neck. So when we come back, we're going to keep talking to Patricia Arquette about Episode 8. Is that cool, Patricia? So cool, Ben. So cool. Okay. And you'll remember that you were here. Where am I? Who are you? That's very appropriate for the show. Exactly. All right. We'll be right back.

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Okay, so Sweet Vitriol, episode eight. This is a very different episode for Severance. It's the Harmony Cobell show, essentially. We get to follow her as she returns to her old home in Salt's Neck. Patricia, what was your first reaction when you read this particular script? I liked it. I mean, we had been talking for quite a while, quite a long while, about her origin story, sort of, and...

school that she'd grown up in and how Lumen had impacted her and her relationship with her mom. And so to kind of see it more fleshed out and see the space and the coldness. And we went up to Newfoundland and it was very, it's such a special, unique place. It's so difficult to get to and so difficult to live there that it's very locked in its own time. And it had this sort of

difficult terrain to survive in. And then you can really see how harmony is an extension of that. Yeah, how it like hardens people. How did you find that Newfoundland would be the perfect salt neck? Yeah, we were knowing that we needed to have some sort of a vibe of, you know, the Northeast,

ish look that Keir sort of has because we shoot in upstate New York and we wanted to feel like it was a drivable location from Keir. And then Ryan Smith, our location manager, went out. But really, Jessica Lee Gagné, our cinematographer and director of Episode 7,

Thanks, Ben. I appreciate it. It was crazy. I mean, first of all, it's a beautiful place. We shot in a town called Bonavista. Mm-hmm.

And yeah, you land in Gander and then you have to drive about three hours to get there. And the thing about the terrain in Newfoundland is it's rugged and beautiful, but it's not the scale of it is not like somewhere like Iceland.

or Greenland or something like that where it's gigantic mountains. Right. You know, it's a little bit smaller, but it's still as beautiful in its own way. It has a vastness to it. It's just, it's not a lot of things are filmed there. Yeah. And it's tough. The people who were living there having to deal with long, cold winters. They have a certain way that they sound. Yep. Like with the ice froze in this whole time from the late 1700s, early 1800s, this,

This broke from Ireland. They'll eat things like

a bowl of fried codfish tongues. I had that for breakfast every morning. And was the town essentially in the episode, is it as you found it? Or like the coffee shop, for instance, was that an existing structure? It's an existing structure, yeah. It's actually a coffee shop that we redid and painted. And we shot in, I think, two different little villages and Bonavista too for different locations and locations.

You know, we were all living in Airbnbs. And it was, I loved it. It was awesome. We had an amazing time. It was amazing. We were there for about, I don't know, five weeks. And Jessica put together a crew from Montreal of people she had worked with. So it was a much smaller unit. And we found these great places to shoot. And James LeGrow, who plays Hampton, came up. Yeah.

So great. Oh, my God. Had you known James from before? So, I mean, growing up in L.A., I was a big fan like everybody of Drugstore Cowboy. Yeah. And he was amazing in that movie. And then I was dating this guy at the time. John Philbin was his name. He was an actor. And I had to move. I was living in my mom's garage at the time. And I was moving out. And so he had a friend come over to help me move all these boxes.

So I made him and his friend for helping me like some cookies, right? And I put in the cookies these walnuts. So I gave them some cookies when they were done. And his friend was James LeGrow who was helping move all these boxes. And I was like, oh, thank you so much. And here's some cookies and things. And he was like, these are the best cookies I've ever had in my life. And then I was like, oh, thank you very much.

Very different from Mrs. Selvig, I have to say. Exactly. We're back to the cookies. But I tasted the cookies when he left and I was like, these are salty because I didn't realize the walnuts were salted.

Now, smash forward 30 years, everyone's adding salts, like caramel salts, like chocolates. So he meant it when he said they were good. But I was like, these are the worst salty cookies ever unmade. So Mark was lying when he said they were good in the show. Yeah. But James LeGrow- But in 30 years, Mark will be wrong. James LeGrow was telling the truth. I think they sound delicious. They were delicious and-

When we talked and we were working, he's like, oh, I remember those cookies. Wow, that's great. Those were the greatest cookies. Wow. Let's listen to a little scene when you guys first see each other. Harmony Cobell will flip my tabacca. You want coffee? No. Tables are for paying customers. Fine, then buy me a coffee.

Harmony is hardcore. She wakes up in her car, brushes her teeth in the parking lot, and then doesn't even want coffee. I want coffee, but I want him to buy it for me. I mean, there's a lot of history between you two. Yeah. A lot of history that's just unspoken. And that was, I think, the reason that we thought James would be great. Even if it was just this cookie moment you guys had 30 years ago, I felt like...

I knew you guys were in LA in the 90s when we all were starting out. And it just felt like there would be a history there with you guys in some way that you could share. And he's such a great actor. And I just love that you kind of played off of that. Look, James LeGros is a heavy hitter. So sometimes you have those people and you're like, you don't have a lot of scenes to establish this depth between people. But there's something there and you could see them together. And they're of this time together. And

We could communicate in this way. And, you know, he's so good. So great. It's amazing watching you guys when you're talking in the parking lot. The dialogue is so minimal, but there is so much there and you completely get you two. You completely get it just watching your faces. Yeah. Between your eyes and James's eyes, you know, you just...

treating the camera on them and let you guys interact. By the way, also in the drippy pot, going back to history, there's a guy sitting who's kind of giving you the stink eye who's my old friend Jerry Stahl, who I knew from Permanent Midnight. Yeah, you played him. That's right, yes. And he wrote the book Permanent Midnight. We met in

L.A., you know, in 19-whatever, 97. So there was, you know, I felt like we were kind of dipping into our histories there together. And who was that woman in the trippy pot? She was a local actress. Really? I think she came from St. John's and who's amazing. Great. And her name is Claire Coulter. And she just had a lovely quality about her and was just... I rewound her stuff today. I was just... Yeah. You didn't top me off anytime.

I like the new dude. Trey Chic.

You see that Hampton has a bit of a drug issue. He's huffing ether. But he also seems to be the supplier or the dealer of ether at the coffee shop. Am I right? He is. Yeah, he's dealing. That's interesting because that— He's dealing to Jerry Stahl early. Yeah, he sure is. This town seems to have been kind of hollowed out by Lumen, certainly, but also by ether. It was an ether factory that everybody was working at. Yeah.

We were once chums. All colleagues lift each other up. Colleagues? Child fucking labor. Keir and Imogen met at the ether mill. You know that? Was she hacking up a lung at the time?

I love that we were able sort of to dig into its own vibe for the episode that felt, you know, it just was its own thing. And you and James have this connection that then gets to play out later when you're in your mom's room. And we'll talk about that in a second. But that moment between the two of you where we realized you both worked at the factory, at the Ether factory, and were basically child labor and were huffing Ether as children. Right.

And working long hours as children too. And I loved in that scene, it wasn't really specified that the two of you would kiss, but it's the first time we see Harmony Cobell. I mean, we've seen you when you go into your mother's room and you lay on the bed and you hold the breathing tube and you put it in your mouth and you have this, I think, incredibly beautiful moment where you're just feeling and connecting with something. I feel like crying right now just...

Connecting with you. I remember on its face, it was a little bit of a weird scene. It's like, okay, she's going to go into the room, find the breathing tube, and then she's going to put the breathing tube in her mouth and break down crying. Yeah, yeah. But what I love about you is that you didn't really question that. You were like, okay, yeah, no, I get that. And I watch that and I'm really moved by it. And there's a sound you make that is...

Kind of like heart shattering. Yeah, you're making this sort of moaning, crying sound, which sounded to me like weirdly like a whale. Yeah. Yeah, well, I mean... Like a whale in the ocean sound. It was a whale and a whale, the animal. Yeah, there's a whole conversation about the sound of keening, the crying, that weeping that women do, that kind of like...

loss, where you're losing a baby or you're losing a loved one. What is that kind of sound? And there is a spiritual kind of a power in that sound, I think, and an otherworldly power in that sound. And it is the mix of the adult and the baby within you. And I think she had that for her mom. And I took care of my mom when she was sick and dying. I took care of my sister. I've taken care of a lot of dying people in my own life. And

While I'm very different than Harmony, there's also that crossover where you can take that human element within your own experience and understand this strange lady, you know, who will never get what she needed from her mom. Yeah. And we meet your aunt when you come up to the house who's sissy. Oh.

Jane Alexander. Amazing. Incredible. Wonderful Jane Alexander. Had you worked with her before or known her before? I had never. And I'd grown up like in the 70s watching her on TV. Like, you know, everybody. And she's just this huge presence, incredibly generous, warm lady. And we're shooting in this old house up there. It didn't have any insulation. It was really the real deal. This old wallpaper kind of crumbling off and we're freezing. And boy, she was up for it.

it oh yeah and the moment you see her you know that she is related to Harmony Cobell yeah because of that hair it was her idea speaking of hair on the show and we've talked to other actors on the show about their ideas for the look she had the idea of seeing your hair on the show where she said I my hair is white like that I want to do a cut like a Cobell cut which was just like kind of created the character in that moment because subconsciously as much as I hate my aunt I

I am also structuring myself in my success to be like my aunt, to be like somebody that she would approve of. And again, this is somebody that I'm always going to for approval and who will never, ever give it to me. Oh, yeah. You see Harmony kind of seek that from her a few different ways throughout the episode. Yeah. And she doesn't give it up. I didn't even get to say goodbye. Your studies were more important. Mr. Egan saw fear in you.

He really did. And the Wintertide Fellowship. Even at the factory. No apprentice was more industrious than you. Such a disappointment you've proven to be.

And the resentment you have because you feel like she's responsible really for your mother's death when she kind of flips that on you at the end of the episode. Yeah. And calls her a coward. And, you know, you see this breach. And in that moment, we learn what the purpose is of why you come out here is to get this notebook that has the, you know, the drawings and the first ideas of how to do severance. Mm-hmm.

And we learned that you were the person who created it and was able to figure out how to do it. Yeah. Not Jay Meegan, who we, you know, we believe created it. But no, it was you. Mine! My designs! Circuit blueprint, base code, overtime contingency, Glasgow block, all of it! Jay Meegan was the inventor. So I've heard. And that's kind of the history of the world, right? Well, that...

People are inventing things and other people are usurping them and taking credit for it. And I mean, I think she's been so indoctrinated to this organization slash religion slash corporation for so long that even that through her aunt's view would be like that in itself would be amazing. Part of the mindfuck of the whole thing is that you want to be humble, right?

And so she needs to give it to Lumen and to the Eagans and not take it as her own. And yet it is from her. Yeah. I mean, she's taken advantage of, I think we get a sense of that over the course of the season with how Milchik has been looked on as less than and how as a woman, I get the sense that, you

That was part of why you didn't get the credit and whatever glass ceiling at Lumen is there. Well, a lot of times these organizations too, whether they're religions or military or corporations, they do set up this thing where it's like –

unseemly for you to question things where it's tacky or it's bad or it's not a group think or it's not of the corporation or you're not somehow you know behaving the way that you're supposed to if you question these things like there is not supposed to be an individual yeah and you even see you present this to sissy it was almost

Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.

abandoned yet again. Yeah, well, it's like whatever that archetypal, even Greek, kind of sad situation of these family relationships where people just cannot ever be seen by that person. Yeah, it is sad. But I do feel another aspect of the episode is...

that's somewhat redemptive is that a connection that has come back between you and Hampton, you know, that was left, that at the end he does help you. And basically we see him standing in the road as you leave with these headlights of whatever this car is coming that Sissy has apparently called from Lumen. And we don't know what's going to happen to him. And he has this great reading of, "'Come and tame these tempers.'"

It's great. It's great. Was that an ad-lib? No, that was in the script, but read to perfection by James, who I just love working with. I'd never gotten a chance to work with him also. And Patricia, I know you won't remember this conversation, but it's been so great having you on the show.

Thank you. You're the best. Thank you. I admire you so much. Yeah. So great to have you. And I know the fans of the show just love you so much and the work you do on the show. Yeah. Like every day. I'm so appreciative that we get to work together. Me too, guys. I love working with you. And also, I really love these fans. They're super smart.

Isn't it great? Cool and fun. So engaged, yeah. Yeah, and also they make really cute arts and crafts. And, you know, we're all into the arts and crafts too, like our wardrobe department and our props and our set dressing. So I feel like we're all making this thing all together. Yeah, totally. I am so into all the clips that fans make, the music cuts. Yeah, absolutely.

They're incredible. And the drawings and the paintings are amazing. Everything. And the Halloween costumes. I mean, it's just so fun. Every time I see one on Instagram, I take a screenshot of it. Just so I have a collection of all of these. Oh, that's so cool. There's so much creativity just kind of being spurred. What's Instagram? It's an app. Do you want to explain it, Patricia? I don't know. Who am I? Where are you? Who are you? All right.

All right. Bye, boys. Thanks, Patricia. Until we meet again. All right. Let's take a break. And when we come back, Jimmy Kimmel will be here to answer some of your hotline questions. I'm going to... Sorry, guys. We're going to take a quick break and we'll be back. That's so much better than either of ours. We do that, Patricia. I'm doing it too. No, she's doing it from now on. I can do it like the boys. No, now she's going to do a thing where everything we do... Everyone, we're taking a break. Taking a break. We'll be right back.

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All right, we're back and we're very happy to welcome to our Severance podcast one of Severance's biggest fans, Jimmy Kimmel, the man. Very true. Yeah. Thank you, Jimmy. Thanks for joining us. Hey, I'm very glad to be here and honored to be part of this, but I just want to start with, I guess I could call an excuse. I don't know how to put this, but I love the show so much.

That I refused to just gorge it so I could catch up with where you guys are in the podcast. And you sent me all the episodes and that was exciting. And at first I was like, oh, this is good, but...

I do like watching them one week at a time. I like the conversations I have with other people during the week. I don't love binging. I like... It's like I'm a glutton. I can't be trusted with a pile of stuff. Especially if you're like seven weeks ahead of everyone else. It kind of sucks. Yeah, and you have to be careful. You can't have discussions. And I know it makes me a bad podcast guest, but you just done such a good job with the show that I refuse to jump ahead. So...

I didn't, and I'm going to be behind on the facts, but I do have a lot of questions for you guys. I know that this is your show, but I also am aware that the audience does not care about me at all. They're listening to hear about the show, right? Do you have any experience asking people questions in this kind of atmosphere? To a fault. To a fault, yes. I want to hear your questions for sure. Yeah, me too. And by the way, let me just say, I totally agree with you about watching things. About people not caring about you.

Yeah, that was it. Yes. No, but the idea of watching something, you know, once a week and it's changed for everybody, but that's the generation I grew up in. You watch stuff once a week. But something like this, I feel when we send the whole link to everybody and like, hey, here are all the episodes, something in my stomach sort of like tightens up because I don't know, there's just something different about it.

I get excited when we've done all this work over the last few years to like click on Apple TV and like watch it for real just to see it like, oh, it's actually a real thing out there. And it just feels different to me somehow. But I'm definitely interested. Like, do you want to like start hitting us with any questions? Yeah, please do. Please. I do. I do.

I'm going to tell you some of the things I love about the show. The attention to detail is just absolutely insane. I sometimes just look, I look at it and I go like, there must be something wrong with these guys. Like, I mean, how much time? I know it took a lot of time to put the show, but it seems like you layered like six different shows into one show. Yes, definitely something wrong. You're right. You hit a nail on the head. I mean. That is Ben Stiller.

No, you know, yes. Not something wrong, but, you know, definitely something wrong. Yeah. No, it's definitely like when it's there in front of you, you go, OK, you know, what can we do here? How can we be specific? And it's sort of evolved that way. I have to say a second season now watching how the audience watches the show. I feel like it's good that we're paying attention to detail because people are scouring it to the point where I get stressed out about it because they're thinking about it.

a lot. Yeah, I think with Lost, which is, I think probably a lot of people compare this show to Lost. I haven't been this absorbed in a show since Lost. Adam, I think I told you, I started like rearranging the letters in Keir Egan to see what the anagram might be. And there's a Scrabble word, Regine, which means of the queen. And I was like, oh,

the queen. That could be something. And then there's like a, there's Ike Reagan, you know, it was like Reagan and Ike is that, does that mean anything? Are you into the aspect of the show that is like, because I, I've said this before and

embarrassingly, I did not watch Lost. So when all of these comparisons come up, I'm incredibly flattered that the show gets compared to this show that people have such a huge connection with and opinions about how it played out and all that. But it was like a cultural phenomenon.

but I never watched it. So for me, that mystery box term, I guess is a term for a show. Like it was not one that I was that familiar with before we started working on the show. Are you, is that the thing that you're interested in in the show? Or are you interested in other aspects of it? Like,

Like the tone of the humor or the, you know, the weirdness of situations. I'm interested in every aspect of the show. I love the characters. I'm, you know, rooting for Mark, rooting for all the innies that we see regularly and we know. But one thing that I really love about the show and about the company, Lumen, it's this big, like kind of scary, somewhat menacing, mysterious organization, but they're also kind of dumb.

Like they do things wrong. It's exactly right. That's one of the things that we think about all the time is that when it's a big corporation is things that are just clunky and just don't quite work right. You know, like we really from the beginning wanted to make sure that we showed the outlets in the walls all the time, you know, that there's stuff like places where you got to plug stuff in. Milchick has to wheel in the AV cart and there's probably like only one AV cart. There's just a DVD player like in seventh grade.

Yeah. I think, you know, also part of the show is that sort of like the idea of corporate culture. For me, my experience of that is from movies and TV, you know, like Office Space and The Office and Parks and Rec. And so, but what's fascinating to me is I felt like Dan Erickson, he'd like hit on both that idea of like a show like The Office, that kind of humor, but then this other weird overarching ideology thing that was like taking a corporate culture or

or religion, you know, and like infusing that. And then with this other Twilight Zone-y kind of aspect to it. So it was like all of these things to me were like, oh, there's just something about this that is sort of like crystallizing something that we all are so familiar with now. Yeah, yeah. It's so interesting. I think, I wonder if it makes people...

take another look around their own workplaces in some ways. It's fascinating, right? Because like what I like about how the show's developed is that the innies have found a life for themselves down there and have figured out how to cope. And I feel like that's sort of a, in my mind, a little bit of a metaphor for life, how you just like you deal, human beings adapt, right?

Right. And you adapt to whatever reality you're in and you then figure how to get the things that you need as a human being in whatever environment you're in. Right. It's a matter of accepting your circumstances and then going from there and how you choose to do that. Yeah. Here's a really big question for you guys. And it's possible that Adam doesn't know the answer and that Ben does, but I don't know.

I saw the pilot for Lost two months before it came out, and I was just crazed for it in the next episode. I mean, I was absolutely crazed. And it was funny because I think ABC didn't really like the show, and I went nuts over it. And they were like, huh, maybe this is something. And so I was very involved on a week-to-week basis in the show. We had all the cast members on. I became friends with these guys to the point where they said to me,

And this was really, when I look back on it, it is a really sick thing they did to me. Because I said, do you know what the ending is? And they said, yeah, we know what the ending is. And I was like, really? You know, you're not just figuring it out as you go along. And they said, you know what we're going to do? We're going to write the ending down on a piece of paper.

and we will give you a manila envelope with the ending in it. And you can choose whether you want to open it or not, which is a very losty thing to do, you know? Yes. Yes, it is. And I thought about it for a while, and I'm like, fuck you guys, I don't want it. Because I know I'll open it. I know, you know, I know I'll smoke a joint or something like that. Yeah. And,

And then I'll have this secret I have to keep for who knows how long. And I declined their offer, but it was a real offer. Wow. Wow. That's incredible. I wonder if that changed. I wonder if it was the same ending that they ended up. It was. And they told me exactly what they would have been in the envelope. You know, Jack's eyes open, you know, as it ended. But spoiler for me. 15 years later. Do you know the ending?

Yes. You do. Okay. But here's what I'll say. Exactly how we're getting there is not always completely set. And I think that's important. It's like, we know we're going, but like every little beat to me, that's the creative process that we're figuring out as we go along. And we want that to be flexible as we're going forward. And I think that's important too. So people know, right. I can say that. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.

Okay, Jimmy, so in the spirit of your days as a DJ, let's go to callers from the hotline. Yeah, sure. Shall we play the first one?

Hi, this is Eric and I have a question about the egg episode and how it relates to other foods you may have eaten on set. Curious to know what maybe disgusting, revolting foods you've eaten on a set and if there are any plans to force actors to eat disgusting things in future episodes of Severance. Love the show. Thanks.

What kind of atmosphere does Eric think we're making the show in?

I don't like eggs. When I was on the radio, I felt that my television career was heating up. And so I announced to the guys I worked with, one of the guys was a vegetarian, but he didn't mind a little bacon on his food. He got an Egg McMuffin and he, you know, those McDonald's like circular pieces of bacon. They're like prefabricated bacon. He pulled it off and I picked it up and I said, if I'm still working here and I'm

I nailed it to the wall. And I said, if I'm still working here in one year, I'm going to eat this bacon. And so it hung on the wall for a year. And of course I was still there at the end of the year. Oh no. And I felt I had to eat it because I said I would. And I did. I ate the bacon. It did have the consistency of like a giant fingernail.

Did it make you sick? It did not make me sick. I started feeling sick just because people were calling in and telling me about trichinosis and various pork-related parasites. Yeah. It turns out you can do that. It's one of the great things about McDonald's food. You can put it on a shelf for a year. You can nail it to things. I feel like you were probably in your 20s or early 30s, right? I was in my mid-30s, yeah. Jesus. All right, let's listen to another one.

Hi, this is Steve from Dallas, Texas. Would you rather be a shambolic rube or a fetid moppet?

Okay, so that's a reference to episode one and two. And do you want me to define shambolic rube and fetid moppet or shall we just let ourselves use it? I'd like to know. Okay. A shambolic rube literally means disorganized country bumpkin. A disorganized country bumpkin. A fetid moppet is a smelly child.

So those are your choices. Well, all children are at least kind of smelly, right? I mean, I know mine are. If you don't bathe them, yes. I think I'd rather be a shambolic rube. I'm not far off from that in the first place. I kind of gravitate towards shambolic rube myself. Okay, then I'll go for fetid Muppet because I would get to be a child. Yeah, well, then we could do the episodes remotely. So I don't smell up the place. All right, let's listen to another.

Hi and praise Kier. This is Leah H. I was just playing some Sudoku and thinking about my impending move to the town of Kier, but there's a problem. I own a 2019 Honda Accord and I've noticed that all the cars in Kier seem to have been manufactured prior to like 1986. So I just have two questions. Why? And when?

Where can I trade in my Honda for a Kier approved vehicle? Thank you so much. Praise Kier and love you guys. Thank you, Leah H. You've got people calling you and saying praise Kier now. Actually started a religion. Yeah, yeah. It's a good question. I don't know. I mean, that's what the cars are like in the show. Yeah.

It's not like when you go to a national renter car and they're all kind of the same. Those were the only cars we could get for the show. That's right. We couldn't. I did have a Rabbit. Cobel drives a Rabbit. My first car was a 1983 slate gray metallic Volkswagen Rabbit with a moonroof. I love that.

It's a hot car, man. When I was in high school, only girls drove Rabbits. Also, my parents weren't going to buy me one, so that was the other reason they didn't have one. But it was considered to be a girl's car, but I loved them. I have a Volkswagen thing that I converted to electric. Yeah. Oh, wow. Those are great. Yeah. Should we do one last one? Yeah. One last one. Okay, let's do it. Bro, what is going on? Ha ha ha.

That's a very good question. Oh, man. Well put. I wish we knew. I wish we knew. Bro, sorry. You

You do know. I think I take a lot of comfort in the fact that you know. Yeah. It's great to be at this point with a show where we've had these two seasons that we've made. And every time we've gone off and made a season, we've lived in this bubble with it for years. Yeah. And now it's out in the world and people are interacting with it. And like that is like it's such a good feeling to have people responding in any way to it because it's like becomes a thing that's actually like.

alive. So those questions are all- But pressure, I bet, right? I mean, because then you have to think of the next one. I guess so, but of course, but I am really enjoying now that we're just like in it and yeah, okay, the next one will be the next one, but that's- I think what's happening there is, I think what you're saying maybe is that it is impossible for the audience to put more pressure on Ben Stiller than Ben Stiller puts on himself.

Yeah, I think that's perfectly put. Oh, yeah. You know me, Jimmy. Well, you're the best, man. Thanks for joining us. Yeah, thanks, man. Thank you for doing this. Thank you guys for making such a great show and for working so, I don't know how hard you work on it. And I think one of the great things about the podcast is you can hear how much people appreciate it. And we definitely do. Thanks, man. Thanks, man. All right. See you soon.

Okay, Ben, we can't end our episode without hearing from Zach Cherry. Last week, he told us that everyone was going to go see the dentist. That didn't happen. Sorry, Zach. Better luck next time, I guess. I'm very excited to see what his clairvoyant, preternatural sense is going to tell him for next week. Yeah, me too. Okay. Hi, everyone. Here we are, all back together again. Ben?

I'll leave some space for you. Hey. Adam, anything you want to say to me? What's up, Zach? Amazing. Thanks so much, guys. Thanks for that feedback. So anyway, let's get started on this week's prediction for the next episode of Severance. Next time on Severance.

Cobell returned home to her childhood home, and I have a feeling she's gonna want to stick around. I know, I know, she's on the run and someone is following her, but her high school reunion is coming up, and she wants to have that one last dance with the boy who got away.

Some guy who we haven't met yet. That's right. Who was your person who got away? Make sure to call in and let Ben and Adam know in detail about someone you had a crush on in high school. My first crush, of course, was the main character of the 2003 film Nobody Knows Anything, in which your friend and mine, Ben Stiller, appeared as the uncredited role of Peach Expert. Ouch.

I saw that movie on my first birthday in 2019. What? Wait, his first birthday in 2019? That's what he said. I don't even understand what's going on with him. What's Nobody Knows Anything from 2003? It was a movie that I was in. As the peach expert. Yeah. Apparently, Zach has IMDB. He has access to that website. Yeah.

Yeah. All right. Thanks, Zach. Just look, take it a little more seriously here. Okay. Truly. Yeah. Come on. All right. And that's it for this episode. The Severance Podcast with Ben and Adam will be back next week to talk about season two, episode nine, otherwise known as the penultimate episode. That's right. And you can stream every episode of Severance on Apple TV Plus with new episodes coming out every Friday for two more weeks. Two more weeks.

And then make sure you're listening to our podcast, which drops right after the episode airs. The Severance Podcast with Ben Stiller and Adam Scott is a presentation of Odyssey, Pineapple Street Studios, Red Hour Productions, and Great Scott Productions. If you like the show, be sure to rate and review this podcast on Apple Podcasts, the Odyssey app, or your other podcast platform of choice.

Our executive producers are Barry Finkel, Henry Malofsky, Gabrielle Lewis, Jenner Weiss-Berman, and Leah Reese-Dennis. This show is produced by Zandra Ellen, Ben Goldberg, and Naomi Scott. This episode was mixed and mastered by Chris Basil.

We had additional engineering from Javi Cruzas and Davey Sumner. Show clips are courtesy of Fifth Season. Music by Theodore Shapiro. Special thanks to the team at Odyssey, Maura Curran, Eric Donnelly, Michael LeVay, Melissa Wester, Matt Casey, Kate Rose, Kurt Courtney, and Hilary Shuff.

And the team at Red Hour, John Lesher, Carolina Pesikov, John Pablo Antonetti, Martin Valderutten, Ashwin Ramesh, Maria Noto, John Baker, and Oliver Acker. And at Great Scott, Kevin Cotter, Josh Martin, and Christy Smith at Rise Management. We had additional production help from Kristen Torres and Melissa Slaughter. I'm Ben Stiller. And I'm Adam Scott. Thank you for listening. See you next time.