SmartLess - "Pedro Pascal"
Episode Date: June 12, 2023Pull over and turn the car off— it’s “the ultimate Daddy” a.k.a. Pedro Pascal, stuck in an empty interrogation room with us. This week includes a Pinochet quiz, a Xerox industrial com...mercial, numerous lavender helmet wipes, and just a whole lotta’ rizz. Come join our cult; it’s SmartLess.Please support us by supporting our sponsors.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
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Discussion (0)
Okay, we're really, really late. We got to start the show. I want to get right into it, but I really want to tell you something about myself that not a lot of people know.
But I know you're waiting. I know you're waiting. We should probably get to the show. It's like, it's going to start like any second now, and I can't wait to see what the guest is. I don't know if it's mine or there, it's I don't know if it's because I'm shooting it.
I'm looking in the mirror right now, you guys.
And I look amazing.
I look incredible.
I'm wearing a baseball hat.
I'm wearing glass.
I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry.
Okay, we'll get right to it.
Get right to it.
Get right to it.
Get right to it.
Welcome to Smarlis.
Smarlis. Smart. Smart. Smart. Smart. Smart.
Smart.
Smart.
Smart.
Smart.
Smart.
Smart.
Smart.
Smart.
Smart.
Smart.
We'll mention that he was going to try a couple of new characters today.
Oh, yeah, he did.
Just a little bit.
That he talked about some new characters.
Is that what he was saying? Make sure they are an, yeah, yeah. That he talked about some new characters, that what he was saying.
Make sure they are an offensive accents, please.
Okay.
Oh, this guy's a vending.
Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
That's sort of stereotypical, what?
You don't know anything about that guy's story.
You don't know anything about that guy's story.
Talk about him.
Talk about him.
Oh, I, sorry, he.
Sorry, sorry.
So, and I love talking about my work as an actor and how I got
there. And, well, this is a great segue because let me tell you what I want to, I agree. It is
what I want to talk about too. I know. Listen, Will and I are fresh off the boat from New York.
Oh, yes. We, we do travel by water. We don't like to fly. No, Sean, you'll be quiet.
Sean, you will be quiet. You'll be quiet. And, And we're back from New York and we went and saw Sean's play. We had the
ballast go. Sorry, the ballast go. We have the honor of seeing Sean in Good Night Oscar
at the ballast go. And let me tell you about garbage. You can smell it from a mile away,
but when you actually see it. Yeah, trash.
When you look at trash, it'll pile up. It does. And he does.
The flies give it away. Yeah, the flies. I used to date that all the time.
Sean, guys, Sean is such a mega town. If you're anywhere near, if you're anywhere near,
New York City listener, do your eyes and ears a favor and your heart, quite frankly, and your tear ducts and your
laugh machine.
And go see Good Night Oscar.
Sean, I will and I said it immediately after the standing ovation.
No, Sean turned around.
Sean, Jason was sitting directly in front of me and he turned around and Jason looks
at me and he says, Sean's ruined the podcast.
He's ruined the podcast.
We can no longer, well, who are we going to make fun of now?
Who can we just forget?
Oh, get ready.
I have.
And he said, and he said, how is Sean?
He goes and does this every night.
And I said, not every night.
Yeah, not every night.
No, they couldn't make that deal.
No, but honestly, in all seriousness, a most people on Broadway, they take a day, one night
of, no, no, no.
I know Sean was talented. I think we all know Sean is talented. Honestly, in all seriousness. In my days and twos, they most people on Broadway, they take, they, one that I've not known.
I know Sean was talented.
I think we all know Sean is talented, but when you see him play this character that
takes pure acting skill, and then he plays the piano, I knew he was classically trained,
but then to see him play seven minutes of rhapsody and blue, on a company, on a big-ass
Steinway in the middle of a Broadway stage and bring the entire
audience to their feet with with wet faces from the crescendo of this play with him playing
this piano really does play it. I mean, it's just and this character they played, I mean, Sean,
I'm really, really, really knocked out. True. Thank you. Absolutely. The most magical night I've
ever had in the theater and I know what a weird sentence that is, but, but it's true. Truth. Thank you. Absolutely. The most magical night I've ever had in the theater.
And I know what a weird sentence that is, but, but it's true.
Well, you've had a few magical nights behind some theaters, but let's
find the theaters sitting in the chair, but in the theater.
And we, we, that's the theater.
That's the theater that's right off Van Aes.
Anyway, that's a different story.
We'll say that for different podcasts.
But Sean, truly, and Jason, you and I were not alone in that.
Everybody in that theater felt that it was palpable.
It was incredible.
We, all of our friends who are there,
all of whom are actors and everybody
who are like this character that he created,
an unbelievable.
And what about the Starwaddage that Sean can cram
and that not
just our dumbasses that yeah, it's all our friend is sitting there and he's a part investor
in the play. He believes in it so much. And boy, was he feeling smart at the end of it?
It's really. It was unbelievable. And in our buddy Frank Marshall was there. He was just
beside himself, what also one of the producers of the play. And then just saying, I mean, I mean, everybody was, it was unbelievable. Sean, it was incredible.
Marty Short, this is my favorite. So I see Marty and Andrea Martin were sitting in front
of you, Jay. And, and so we go to the after party and we're walking over to the table.
We're up, we were all sitting and I go by Martin, Martin's at the bar, and there are probably 40 people between him and me.
And he looks at me, catches my eye,
and across everybody he shouts,
why don't you have talent like that? Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha came up to me at the party afterwards. And the first thing Will Arnett says to me, he goes, hey, I had to get up during the panel part.
How did it go?
LAUGHTER
Oh, we got it.
And then you wake up to a nomination
from the autocratic circle.
I know.
You guys are so nice.
I really love you.
We love you.
I love you, guys.
It meant, now, let me just say something.
It meant the world that you got. It meant the world that you guys,
it meant the world that you guys took the time and effort
to come out to see me and support me.
I love you guys, you're my brothers.
We always talk about it, but I just,
you just made my night.
So, we'll see you again.
I would have done it every night of the week
if we had to.
That's all the time we have, I think.
Okay, go show a wee little listener.
We have to say, I can't wait. I'm gonna little listener. We have a guest. I can't wait.
Wait, I'm gonna take that bye back.
Okay.
I can't wait.
This is so exciting.
This is so exciting.
Okay.
I'm gonna nerd out, guys.
Okay.
So.
William Shatton.
It's Chubaka.
Well, close.
It's got Chubaka.
Well, close.
Our guest today.
I'm so glad we got him here.
I wasn't sure he's available because as they say, he's hot, hot, hot right now
in the Hollywood.
That's triple high.
He really is all anyone talks about right now.
At age 11, he was a Texas State swimming champion
before throwing in the towel.
Don't worry, he still had a speedo on.
And heading to the Golden State
and then pursuing an acting career.
He's become quite the staple in American culture
in the last few years,
being in the forefront of some major movie
and television franchises.
The internet refers to him as the ultimate daddy,
but probably most importantly,
he did a reading with me,
have a good night Oscar only a few years ago.
Oh my God, I was gonna say that.
Please welcome my pal, Pedro Pascal.
Pedro Pascale.
No way.
Pedro, hello good morning.
Oh, this is a good guy. I'm sliding. Here we go. You can just pull over, turn morning. Oh, this is a good guy.
I like it.
Here we go.
You can just pull over, turn your car off and enjoy this.
No, no, keep it on, Chris.
It keeps going through the speaker's Pedro Pascal.
Oh my gosh.
No, no, no, no, no.
Just on this guy.
Nope, can't do it.
Putting the curtain back on.
Oh, we had to bail.
Oh, no, where'd you go?
No, we had to bail.
Just kidding.
We're all in a Pedro right now. Where am I? I'm in Los Angeles. Oh, you had to be. You had to be. You had to be called. Where are you, Pedro right now?
Where am I?
I'm in Los Angeles.
Oh, you are, okay, good.
City of Angeles.
And in your house, it looks like an empty interrogation room.
It's like an, I'm in an empty interrogation room.
I'm in Los Angeles.
So, what?
Can I move a camera around to even,
I'm looking at you and I'm sure you're in an empty room.
Absolutely, no care.
Wow, you're really in an empty room. I've been
abducted huh, but they let you do a podcast, but they're but they're fans of your podcast. Oh, wow, that's good
Now let me say something. It's true. I'm in the daddies. You've seen Scotty
But I'm not hitting you. I'm just celebrating how cool it is that the internet has
Collectively referred to you as our daddy and that you embrace it. I've seen
you in interviews and stuff like you kind of like that. It's kind of cool. And look, you
got the scruff going on. You wear the glasses. I just want people to like me. Well, just
keep talking. This is just, you know, the kid. This is what the kids call you. You've got
what the kids call Riz. Do we know what Riz is? No, no, what's Riz?
Carasma. My kids would say they call it W. Riz. Got that W. Riz is? No, no, what's Riz? Carasma. Okay, this is called... This is called Carasma.
My kids would say they call it W-Riz.
You got that W-Riz.
Wild Carasma.
It's a real embarrassment.
I want to talk about Craig Mason.
When we get to it.
I'm going to have to go to Craig Mason.
We're not talking about Craig Mason.
The amazing Mason.
I want to continue talking about Goodnight Oscar.
We have to invite him.
You have to invite me.
No, we have to.
Because you got to open him was...
Good Lord.
Recently?
It was... And this is... And the production is directed by Lisa Peterson, right? No, we have, because you got to open was the Lord recently.
Yeah, and this is a, and the production is directed by Lisa Peterson, right?
Correct.
That's correct.
Incredibly well directed.
I did a stage reading for Lisa Peterson 23 years ago at the taper.
That's where I met her.
It was part of the, I can't remember what the label of the theater festival and festival
new works sort of season that it was and I, nothing, I just, I, we're old.
Yeah, I point.
That makes me move on.
At least it's amazing.
Did you like her then?
I loved her.
It was amazing. I was desperate to get, you know,
a job in professional theater,
no matter where I was,
whether it was Los Angeles or New York.
Did that one end up going to stage?
It did not.
If it did, it did not go with me.
Did you, so Pedro, did you,
you're from Texas, which I did not know?
You started, did you start? were you doing theater in Texas?
No.
No.
So I was born in Chile.
Yeah, in Santiago, Chile.
Yeah.
And I have to say this not brag about the research, Sean.
No, no, but I want to say this to you.
In La Escuela, seconded secundaria,
en la clase de español me llaman va Santiago,
porque yo trotigo aléquio Juan. Pero qué bien, Sean. Esto es el diago, perdona. And in the class of Espanyol, may Yamaha Santiago, because I think he's a fan.
Perquete, yenshun.
It's a Diego perdona.
Do you notice me Spanish, Sean?
Quero de Uyó.
I said, see, Boquito.
My, I said, in Spanish class in high school,
my name was Santiago
because it's some other kid picked Juan, which is Sean.
Well, this is a great opportunity for you to
do what you're doing.
Launch the Spanish character you're working on.
Well, I would like to, but my character is from Bolivia, it's Hadley's always not so.
It's very close by, but I'm so sorry.
That's better than the arbitrary Latino accents I have shared with the guy.
By the way, Pedro, I want to, I do want to, Sean, you can go, but I do want,
now that we're in South America, we're talking about this.
Pedro, I am, I got to know you, not personally, but like a lot of people from watching
Narcos, I thought you were so fucking great in Narcos.
I loved, I loved Narcos, and you were so great in Narcos. I loved, I loved Narcos and you were so great in it and it was like,
I'm sure it was one of those things you've been working for years and then everybody's like,
hey, look at this guy and you're like, hey man, I've been around for a long time.
Right. Was that kind of how that happened?
I'm filled with talent for years.
It was, Narcos was a really lucky job and I think it came on the co-tails of the big fight of Oberyn Martell and the
mountain and Game of Thrones and the people over at Netflix realizing that I wasn't living
past that episode. And then spoiler alert.
It's spoiler alert. Sorry, everybody. From 10 years ago.
I see I'm not a Game of Thrones fan. So I didn't, I've never watched.
It's not that you're not a fan. You just haven't seen it. It was a splashy guest
role of the season. Okay. Sort of at the height of the game's popularity.
The game. The games. We're good. God. It's early for me. Not only we're not going to cut that.
We're going to double that one. Keep going. Well, that was really the first thing that
that was the first time I experienced sort of a larger exposure in relation to work in a big way.
And that I would say...
And you met David Benioff in your life, never been the same.
Exactly.
It completely started there for me as far as consistent work.
And so because of Game of Thrones I got Narcos and then
That it's it was amazing. We shot the entire thing in Columbia Yeah, it was six to seven months a season and they would have one it was sort of like
It was so location-based, you know
Which is part of the reason I think the show worked as well as it did because the physical landscape of the show
was kind of its secret weapon
in that where we were shooting was kind of the main character
of the show more than these larger than life real,
dangerous human beings and dangerous circumstances.
What was that like working in Columbia?
You know, I'm a soft guy.
And all I'm thinking about is humidity,
and I'm smelling a little bit of mildew on the wardrobe.
Um, it went through, we in the jungle
and it was tough to get dry.
We were sometimes we were in the jungle.
The base of production was in Bo-Wil-Tah.
And Bo-Wil-Tah is 9,000 feet.
Right.
And so I'm thinking the crispy snacks at crafty were chewy,
right?
And so it was tough to get a good crunch out of the chips.
You could never.
No, no, it was dry.
It wasn't humid up in Bo-Boh-Boh-Thai.
Like four seasons in a day, and humidity isn't part of it.
It gets dry, sunny, rainy, windy, cold.
It's generally like Jason's personality,
like from Monday to Friday.
It's kind of cold, but...
Manic. But man cold, but, uh, but, man, but, but, but sometimes,
sometimes beautiful.
Yeah, hostile, but cool.
And the cocaine is always just around the corner.
Yeah, exactly.
Careful.
Jay, I mean, and Jay, what was, and Jay, really, what he wants to know is nice hotel and how close
is the private airport.
You know, and if he's got that down, then he's happy.
I think it's only prop planes going that down, then he's happy.
It's only prop planes going in and out of those high outlets.
You guys would love Columbia.
And not for the reasons you think.
It is.
Oh, yeah.
It's the best.
It's the best.
I would love it.
I would love it.
I like the Yellow Socker uniforms.
It's all I have to look.
You would like the beaches and the mountains and the people.
We'll be right back.
SmartLess is sponsored by BetterHelp.
I don't know if you've noticed, but this is Sean, not Will, and my voice is very low because
of doing seven shows on Broadway, and then this podcast, and I love both so much, but my
doctor was just like, he's like, you need to take a break from one or the other, and I'm
like, well, I can't.
And so it stresses me out.
I'm still going, I'm still going, I'm still going.
But I do need to figure out how to take time for myself, right?
And shut up for a second.
Which is music to a lot of people's ears.
It's easy to get caught up in what everyone else needs
from you and never take a moment to think about
what you need from yourself.
But when we spend all of our time giving, singing, talking, just all of it,
it can leave us feeling stretched and burnt out.
Therapy can give you the tools to find more balance in your life.
So you can keep supporting others without leaving yourself behind.
You know, and since Scottie's entire to being my therapist,
I actually sought a real one out and they've been helping me tremendously.
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I think it's fascinating. I want these guys to hear this because when I was reading about
your parents, the political asylum that they had to seek when you were a kid and they're
going around the Denmark and then like... By the way, before you get into this, I'm going to ask these
guys, Pedro, you know this, but we're going to expose these guys. Do you guys know who
the dictator was in Chile, who is, you know, ostensibly just a puppet of the American without
looking it up? Paul Dunger. No. Darn is ner. Pinochet. Anyway, keep going. That's
all right. Go ahead, Sean. I'm just exposing them, Pedro.
No, I mean, if you sit enough vows and consonants that you can kind of manipulate in the edit
that he said, Pinochet.
I just give it all in your head, Will.
Will?
But yes.
How do you get it all in your head?
How's he so smart, Sean?
Because I don't think about anything else because my brain, I have very little, I have
no street smarts.
Pinochet.
So your parents fled, so you guys fled is because they were in opposition to Pinochet.
Yes.
Is that true?
Yes.
No, it's a lie.
Uh-oh.
No, but you know, sometimes they build, you sometimes stuff on your Wikipedia gets kind
of blown out of proportion.
What, what, what was the deal there?
Um, then I want to know how much you paid for your name because it's a best name in
Hollywood. Well, he's going to get to that because his last name
was different.
Right, he had to change it.
Here we go.
Yes, I was born Jose Pedro Balmase da Pascal.
And my parents, they were just very young
when they had my sister and myself,
my sister's two and a half years older than me.
And there was a cousin of my sister's two and a half years older than me. And there was a cousin of my mother's
that was very, very involved in the opposition movement
against the military regime.
It's proximity to our family.
I wouldn't say that my parents were revolutionaries
by any stretch of the imagination,
but they were very young.
And they were young, liberal, college students and ties from my mom's side
to close ties to the opposition movement just in terms of family. It was a first cousin
of my mother's and my dad was doing his residency at the University Hospital, La Cato-Lica, it's called. And so there was a gun fight that my parents were not involved in.
But somebody was wounded, and they brought him
to my parents' house so that my father could help
tend the wound, hide them for a while.
The person that brought them to our house,
and I was four months old at the time.
He was taken into custody and tortured and gave names and then they came looking for my parents.
Wow.
And so then my parents had to go into hiding for about six months as it's been told to me, and they, you know,
like some sort of political thriller
from the early 80s, they found a way to, they saw that these, there was a change of guard
at the Venezuelan embassy, where one guy got off the bus,
the same bus that the other guy would get on to
to switch places.
And so there was this window where they could
get in there.
You know, climb over the wall, like physically
physically climb over the wall and then land on
on the other side of the wall and demand asylum. And it worked.
Well, one time, Jason, you told Jason, when you were a kid, one time you went to the
guard and you didn't have the right pass at corners and you had to go to the gate for
and set. One is that true? And I thought about going over the wall, but I was going to
park in the main lot and
you had to end up walking over to the stage instead of going through gate one.
I heard about it.
I jumped on the back of a golf cart.
Jason got his first job.
It was not as similar in the guard.
And then the pass was didn't match.
I dropped my head shot.
I had to double back from my head shot and then a golf golf cart ran over it.
Pedro, I, you know, I remember one of the reasons I know of this stuff.
When I was in 1981, and these guys, no, I'm good on dates, the movie Missing came out.
It was Cissy Spacec, Jack Lemon and John Chayerson and as well, he's the guy who goes missing.
And my mom took me to see it in the theater.
It was probably too young, my mom.
And, but I was probably too young, but, but she took me anyway.
And it had such an impact on me to see how other people were living. I was too young, my mom. But I was probably too young, but she took me anyway.
And it had such an impact on me to see how other people were living in really in a real
way, like a real, so it's always, I've always, I haven't paid attention necessarily, but
I always knew that that was the reality in that part of the world, especially at that
time.
And it accrues to me as you're telling this and you're so good at telling this story and
you're such a, you do have that risk,
you're very charismatic.
Has it ever occurred to you,
have you ever thought about sort of writing a story
based on that or doing no?
No.
Can we write it and would you do it?
It's really fascinating.
I mean, it is fascinating, man.
It's what an unbelievable story.
It's totally unbelievable.
I saw missing myself when I was a kid.
It is such an imprint in my brain when I saw it.
Because of how close I could relate it to my parents' experience.
In this case, don't direct that.
No, it was close to gravas.
Ah. And, and, and you know, experience in this story. All of us don't direct that? No, it was close to gravas.
And my mom was like little and beautiful, like, sissy-spasic, you know?
And I remember, I think about this now in my middle age, that how strange it is to get information in that way through cinema and related to an
kind of immediate experience of my parents that they aren't sharing with me, not that it was
this big secret or anything like that, but they just, we just didn't talk about it.
You've been back there since? Yeah, yeah, yeah. secret or anything like that, but they just, we just didn't talk about it. Really?
Have you been back there since?
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
I've been back my whole life.
They ended up on the list of part and exiles when I was eight years old.
Oh, correct.
And so at that point, my older sister and I, we had already gotten sent back on our own,
you know, the late 70s, early 80s, four-year-olds traveling by themselves, you know, in the custody of like a stewardess.
I did that.
And, but when I was eight, it was like a huge family reunion because there were very large families on both sides that were left behind.
And ever since then, we'd go back my whole life.
My younger siblings, who were born in the states were actually raised in
Chile. So the strange circumstance of having been born there, never living there, going
there my whole life, it never being home, but it being home and it's just been this ever
present.
Do you have a place there now that you go back and like I I don't have I don't have a place there But my siblings and my father do yeah, wow, but a couple other movies you mentioned that were kind of a big like shifting gears here
Peggy Sue got married and raising Arizona you said we're like huge and then also your your mom wouldn't let you see a certain movie
I think my dad my mom didn't care my mom didn't give a shit
My dad was really against me seeing the breakfast club.
Well, really?
Yeah.
I could see, he took me to go see first blood,
the big chill, you know, anything that he was interested
in saying frankly, it didn't matter if it was rated R or not.
And, um,
Sean's in the breakfast club and the lunch club and the snack club and the burger
club and the way we're back.
All the sequels.
But yeah, I wasn't allowed to see the breakfast club because it was because it was what?
Santa Bad message.
It was like, yeah, it was like kids complaining about their parents.
Yeah, I was like, you know, watching that.
That's hysterical.
I have a thousand questions if you would like to hear one. Okay. complaining about their parents. Like, you know, watching that. That's hysterical.
I have a thousand questions if you would like to hear one.
Okay.
By the way, I guarantee you don't have a fucking thousand.
Okay. I do.
So you, when you went to, so you came to California,
your parent, your dad moved to you,
your mom and dad both.
We all came to Orange County in 86, 87.
And then you went to, and then things happened.
You went to New York, University, NYU.
I went to, yeah, and then 18, I went to New York, yeah.
Yeah, and you were terrible at waiting tables.
I was, I really was.
I was a bad waiter.
And what restaurant, do you remember?
I remember.
There's so many.
Are you guys, oh, this is the 90s.
I started so.
I lived in New York in the 90s.
I worked at, where's the first place?
I started it sort of as coffee barista person
in places that definitely don't exist anymore.
And then I got a job at Flamingo East.
Are you remember Flamingo East on second avenue?
Yeah.
There was a place on 17 second called Verage.
I got a job at Time Cafe.
No way.
Got fired from Fez Bar.
Yes.
All of these sound like dancing clubs.
And then I moved up to Flamingo East had a party.
They had different, they had an upstairs space
and they would throw parties up there.
And every once in a while, I got to bartend that.
And then...
I remember Fred, Fred Armiston had his birthday once
at Flamingo East, like 20 years ago.
Really?
Upstairs, yeah.
And then it was almost like a living room,
like there was like a little back room and stuff.
Yeah, yeah.
Yeah, it was this beautiful beautiful space and they fired me.
What did you do that was so bad in each of these spots?
Yeah, because I read that you got fired
over 10 times from different places.
In some instances, well, one, I wasn't very good.
And what about your work was not good?
I didn't have the talent to...
The talent.
I don't know.
Yeah, you know, it does.
I think it really does.
Take talent to know how to deal with any kind of customer.
More so than the customers is to deal with management, to be honest with you.
And to kind of service the system of which you are a part of
in terms of that environment.
And I wasn't smart enough to kind of keep myself safe
and perceived as a reliable,
I was always on time and stuff like that,
but they didn't like me enough to keep me
if I needed to cover my shift again
because I was gonna go to Buffalo
and shoot a Xerox industrial commercial
and get stuck there, you know, because the acting,
I was like somebody who's got,
I had like a major drug problem just covering,
you know what I mean?
I'm just feeling, they didn't have the,
they put up with it.
And then he tried to tell us he was going to do a Xerox.
My inconsistency with the showing up of the thing.
And by the way, all right.
So you're bad at waiting tables.
No, it's really innocent.
I really was.
I was just stupid.
You know, you weren't stupid.
I don't believe that for a second.
But you know, Pedro, you know that Jason's never, because he grew up in showbiz.
This is true story. He's never had one of those kinds of jobs.
And I think that you kind of wish to have had.
You always wanted to.
Yeah.
I've always fantasized about waiting tables and bartending.
And I always offer you, every time I have a catering gig over here at the house, when
I have people over, I was saying Jason, come on over.
You know, we'll be on the earth.
And then I end up doing it.
You know what's scary is that Jason would have been great.
He would have been great.
I do, I do like the idea of each table is like a separate stage and you're trying to
figure out what that audience needs from you so that you get the best possible tip.
Yeah.
Some, some tables want to be left alone.
Other tables want a little bit more show.
Here's a trip.
Here's what we're to trip you out and that your managers want to have liked it because
you would have always demanded a heart out.
And so you would have been like,
I'm gone before dessert.
My one joke I was used to do as a waiter,
I'd come by with the food and I'd put it down
and the customer would say,
oh, that looks wonderful.
And I'd point to my shirt and I'd go,
thanks, I just got it.
And that's a tip.
That's an extra five percent.
This stupid 24 years old killed every time.
So listen, so Pedro.
So Buffett the Vampire, sorry.
This is the thing that Jason was referring to,
which I didn't know.
You were credited as Pedro Balmasela.
See.
And what wide Haskell?
Oh, literally, it is not your name.
I mean, I was just...
No, it is. It's at the Dylan.
No, no, no, but... Yes, guys, sir. South mean, I was just... No, what is? It's at the Dylan. No, no, but...
Yes, guys, sorry.
South Americans, we've got a lot of names.
Like Jose Pedro, I never went by.
My dad is Jose Pedro, and I'm Jose Pedro,
and he's, but he grew up as Bepe,
and I grew up as Bepe,
because Bepe was not a middle name.
So Jose Pedro was like a first name, right?
And I just grew up as Pedro.
And then, and Balmaceda, Pascal is what is on your passport,
your birth certificate, Pascal being the maiden name.
So Balmaceda is my last name, it's my father's name.
And I went by, so I went by Pedro Balmaceda.
And there was a very, very meaningful reason to change
it to Pascal, and there was also a very practical reason, and they really meet in the same
level of importance, because one, by Maseda, was impossible for people to pronounce. And it just wasn't helping me in terms of auditions
and casting.
And Pascal is very easy to read and say out loud.
And it always felt like a part of my identity.
And so when my mother passed away 23 years ago,
my mother passed away 23 years ago.
I made a gradual transition to Pascal.
I will say, it is nice and I will say Pedro Bascale is a star named.
It's that's so funny because I resisted it
for such a long time.
It was something that I wanted that I was talked,
that I wanted to do, you know, before my mother died.
Yeah.
Polarious.
But I always thought it was kind of silly
because of the pee and the pee.
And it sounded like maybe I was trying to create,
I don't know what I thought was silly about it.
I should have gotten to it much sooner than I did, actually.
Yeah.
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for 30 days audible.com slash smartless. All right back to the show. Now can I ask you can I fan out and dork out about Mandalorian for just a little bit?
Go for it.
These guys.
Hang tight.
You're a fucking girl.
Jesus.
So first of all, I want to know, I've seen every episode.
I love it.
Me and Scotty, my husband.
The laser that you had in your ballot, there's been a lot of discussion.
The safety within turn of and then it came from blogboard.
Is that true?
Was it originally from blogboard?
I want Scotty to do a cross in the background
in a full-boundalorian.
Ask him if they went some blogboard
because I'm ready to run.
Ready.
Scotty, do you have any questions about Mandalorian?
Truly asking.
Truly, I hope Scotty.
I have so many peaks. So the Mandalorian? Truly asking. Truly, I hope Scottie. Scottie. I have so many.
So the Mandalorian.
So listen, when you have the mask on,
can you, I wanna know, can you see,
is it really you?
Do you do voiceover after what's it like wearing the suit?
Do the jets really work?
Like what's happening?
Like tell me all about it.
Oh yeah, it's all real.
Yeah, and they're in space too.
Yeah.
To the mask.
Fuck. I'm a huge, and they're in space too. Yeah. Too fast. Fuck.
I'm a huge fan.
We're in space.
We've always been in space.
Sure.
And it's really the only way it's similar to Narcos in that regard where it's location-based.
Sure.
Sure.
Sure.
And there isn't really any other way to achieve it other than traveling to galaxies
far, far away.
From our long past, correct?
And baby Yoda is real. I can't even have this. Like almost sort of this electric shock that
goes through my system if I say that. I don't know why it's totally fine, but Grogu, the child.
Right. You're just a Grogu, not baby. It's real, but it's really you under the helmet.
So I can't see very well, I can't see very well in the helmet.
There was a very extended experimental phase where I was in the suit for so much of it,
and establishing what could be established in terms of a physical language, really drawing
so much from
guys that were better at it than I was and
But how do you do? Do they mic you in the in the helmet? Or do you do voice a mic pack in the there's a mic pack?
You're on the show biz, right? On your person, but there's also it's a good question Sean. There's a there's a
There's a, there's a, there's a mic pack in the helmet and it's, it's, it's really kind of up against the harder surfaces of your skull.
Do they, do they come mic you in your trailer or do you just go over the trolley?
Like what the fuck are you doing?
And is there a back hole or do you have to take the whole helmet off?
Right Sean?
Sean, is it true?
You told me once that just talking the Mandalorian every time you watch it makes you grow goo.
Is that true?
I was wrong.
I was wrong.
I was wrong.
You were wrong.
That's good.
I grow a lot of goo when I watch the show.
Yeah, for sure.
No, that's so interesting.
I'm fascinated by the show.
I love the show.
It's hard to see.
It's, you kind of it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's, it really cool and it takes care of most of the work.
And I have a lot of fun in post
because John Favreau gives me a lot of opportunity
to kind of edit with him and go over things
that they got maybe on the day.
And it's really, really surgical, technical work
that I've never, yeah, it's like exactly.
You don't have a lot of sink issues, right?
No, not a lot of lip flap matches.
Correct.
Yeah, because you can just do it.
Now, you know what I'm thinking about in that helmet is,
it's just, it's odor, you know,
like your own breath, multiple episodes and stuff.
So do you have like a lavender wipe
that you can go in there?
Well, it's more like before you.
Yeah.
I'm older, of course.
Yeah, you put a flower in there or what happens?
I was very aware of like my,
not only that, but sort of the dark plastic of the tea,
you know, because you're like this.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
It's almost like what your breath smells like,
like cakes on, like stays there.
That's a change in the day.
You're not handing that helmet off the second team for lighting, are you?
You don't want them in there.
Or sound, some dream we might get.
They got their own, right?
Different helmet, different flower.
I'm really surprised.
It's so real, Pedro.
It's so real.
This is giving Giza that would keep him up at night.
If he was standing with him.
What do you mean we don't have a second team helmet?
Like that, that should have just come from the shop
Pedro what you need to know is what would happen is the whole thing with the helmet of Jason was doing that
He would go to bloom as assistant and then Amanda his wife
She'd be deep in on the cleaning of that helmet. Jester's no way that Jason can have this
He would hand the problem up to eventually his wife and Zach and Alene and everybody.
There are these emails.
Guys, we got to get Jason's helmet situation sorted out before he shows up on set.
Meanwhile, Pedro is a normal nice guy.
He shows up.
He's like, I'll just roll with it, you know?
Yeah.
No, you can play at three callbacks from Mandalorian.
And I think that was the issue.
I think all of the fat bro is this guy's a problem.
You couldn't come to an agreement on that.
It's understandable.
So there are, so there are some on that show, right?
Amy Cedaris.
No, yes, she is.
Yeah, she's the greatest.
That was, you know, there was an instant
with Amy Cedaris specifically,
and that was where she made me laugh so hard
that I spat into the helmet. Helmet.
Helmet.
And that was a moment where I came into a clear understanding of the close proximity that
I had to my own, to the things that are in my mouth.
You're on my saliva.
Yes.
And it's, you know, or like, launch or breakfast.
Here's the best. I love her.
Yeah, but listen, I want to talk about your new movie too. It's it's what's it
called? Strange way of life. Is that what it is? Strange way of life.
Yeah, it's the Ranya Fordima. They beat that. And it's a 30 minute film. That's it. It's just one film.
It's a 30 minute short written and directed by Bevdital Almodelar
starring Ethan Hawke. And it's it's gay cowboys who travel across the desert to find each other 25 years apart.
Former lovers and one travels across the desert to see him again and
and to see him again and it is shot in the same places that Sergio Leoni was shooting his spaghetti
westerns in that southern region of Spain.
Oh wow, that's cool.
On the same sets.
That's great.
And Sout Laurent does the costumes.
Wow.
And it's me and Ethan.
And I'd never worked with Ethan before.
I actually listened to him on your podcast.
Wasn't he great?
He's awesome, isn't he?
Yeah, that's so cool.
I love him.
It was so great to get to hear you guys get to know him
because I spent the summer with him.
And I saw movies that he was in,
I started with the explorers.
Yeah.
And then Dead Poets Society and Reality Bites,
and then he published a book,
and then he was on Broadway,
and then he was off-prod-way,
and then he directed off-Broadway,
and then he was working with friends.
And then we were doing this thing with Pedro Motivar,
whose movies I saw growing up.
I was kind of a family favorite. And it just meant a lot in all earnestness.
It was this moment of sort of being listened to
and taken seriously by these two influences
was a very surreal experience for me
because he was my scene partner
and this was our director and they wanted to be collaborative
and they wanted to, I don't know,
all get on the same page at the same level
and I felt so influenced by both of them
in my upbringing that, you know, this
corny is at me, so I don't think these guys care what I think. Yeah. And that was, but
you know what, but you know why, Pedro, you know why? And I mean this too, you earn that
seat there because you're really good at what you do. Yeah. And I hope you see what we all
see, which is an incredible, talent,
incredible artist, and you deserve to be there. And that's why that's why you were there
in that scene with those guys. Yeah. I know we get to see where we're, where, where
do we, where's it going to come out? It's going to premiere a can. Oh, gross.
He did a previous short. That was such a nice story. And then you fucking ruined it with
your can bullshit. I've never been. Did you get to keep any of the, are you going to go?
I'm going to, I'm going to try to go. I want to go really badly. He did a previous short
with Till the Swinton. So this is the second of what could be three installments of these
30 minute English language. Got four aays because everything he's ever done before is
in his native language.
Hey Pedro, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm techivel,
just FYI, I'm just pretty good at it.
I'm good at it.
Did you get to keep any of the St. Laurent Cowboy stuff?
I bet it's some pretty cool stuff now.
Then they don't give me nothing.
I asked for the green jacket.
If you wanna look up the trailer right now,
you see me in this kind of like bright green,
Jimmy Stewart.
Yeah.
You know, denim, calcant.
No, they want to hold on to it for possible reshoots?
Jacket.
No, they just, they just gave me a flat no.
Jason wants to know, did it, how was it?
Moldy was the jacket moldy?
Did you smell it?
Did it breathe right out there?
Because I imagine
it was pretty hot. And now it's a little bit of a wick. It didn't have a wicking
quality. And the last thing I want you to do, Paige, if only if you want to on SNL,
you were so fucking funny on a SNL live. Can you just do a little bit of the voice?
One. Can you just do a little bit of the inside of my heart? I don't know what she's talking about. It's so fucking... Stop asking me.
I'm not comfortable with Tom.
It's really funny.
I've been putting in an accent this whole time,
and now I finally got to talk with myself.
I could listen to that.
Well, I found out you guys are like,
I'm gonna go.
Bye.
Pedro, thank you for joining us, my friend.
Pedro, we love you.
I'm very much.
I'm a talent and a friend.
Honestly, you're such a fan, such a huge fan, man.
You're so good at what you keep doing.
I really love talking to you.
By Pedro, we love you.
Have a great rest of your day.
Thank you.
I'm just going to take the headphones off,
because I have no idea what that's fine.
Just take them off and walk around.
slam the iPad.
Yeah.
All right.
Bye, buddy. Bye, bye, and walk around. slam the iPad. Yeah. All right. Bye, buddy.
Bye, bye, bye.
Man, he is great.
Yeah, yeah.
I'm such a massive fan of the last of us.
Did you guys watch it?
I haven't yet.
Did you?
Well, did you ever play the game?
I did not play the game.
No, yeah, it's, it was so good.
I saw, I saw the prequel.
Oh, here.
The first of us.
Did you not see? He was. It's so good. I saw the prequel. Oh, here. The first of us. Did you not see?
He was.
It's so dumb.
Of course, it's dumb.
What is it?
This is a great clean day.
What are you talking about?
You said, you're doing jokes.
Do you need headset to play that game?
Is that one of those where you got a?
You can.
Will's headset.
Don't what do you mean?
Will's millions of people enjoy themselves.
Wait, what?
What is that?
But isn't it amazing that like he he started out? So like he's been doing this forever. So when Game of Thrones hit themselves. Wait, he's such a town that guy. But isn't it amazing that like he started out
so like he's been doing this forever.
So when Game of Thrones hit him,
when he was just like Wonder Woman,
like all these big things that he's done,
he kind of came out of what seemingly always
the same story all the time,
that it seemingly came out of nowhere,
but he's been doing this forever.
That's what I've been doing.
That's my first, yeah.
Yeah, so that's why he's like down to earth and normal because he's like, you guys are making
all the hype.
I'm not making all the hype.
I'm just working, you know?
Yeah.
I saw him in an interview, one of the, they had him strapped to a lie detector and he's
just like so comfortable.
An interview, I guess it was more like an interview.
Anyway, whatever it was, he was at a police station and he was a strapped truck. No, but he was doing it.
And he was just like, and I was marveling
at how comfortable he is in his own skin
and how relaxed and normal he is.
And that's why I asked that question.
It's like, you can tell he's the guy who's paid his dues
and he's been doing it for a long time.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
And he's not like, oh my God, this is so crazy.
Jason, you got to run where you heading to
and are you going to, where you going right now?
I get you some charity thing.
Are you saving some kids?
Yeah, I got to go feed, feed a bunch of folks.
Are you going to, are you going to drive?
Or are you going to ride your...
No, he's going to drive and then he's going to probably...
I suck.
Oh, he was by...
I was going to say bye.
Bye.
I love you, Sean.
How a great show tonight, you strad. I love you, Sean. Have a great show tonight.
You're straight.
I love you too.
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