I've done lots of improv things but not a whole movie.
If you're gonna tell a story from beginning to end, I always think you have to have a great structure in a script. If it gets you excited and it's something you've never read before that's another plus. I think also with improv and that whole world of stand-up, that's a whole other organism of comedy that still needs a story, but it's more free-form. On the set, it is the combination of both those worlds coming together: a great script and an allowance to play with it.
For 'Iron Man' I had to improv with Robert Downey Jr. , which is like going up against LeBron in basketball. At one point he stopped and said, 'Can we give a round of applause to Olivia, because she's rocking it right now. '
I don't have to do much. What I was surprised at and the challenge was that dealing with an ensemble cast who are in scenes together everyday all day, that is a challenge. It's a challenge to make sure everyone get as much coverage and attention, it got just kind of competitive. I loved it because it made it funnier, but the improv went nuts. People were like, "Oh wait. I have something better to say. " "Now, I'm going to say. . . "
Improv is mostly what I've studied.
The current Babe Ruth of improv? Sacha Baron Cohen. He's pretty amazing.
I always loved acting and improv and sketch comedy and theater, which I did at a local youth theater.
I did improv at Yale, with the Exit Players. It was great, but they played a little rough.
Life is unfair and improv is a great metaphor of that.
The first rule of improv is 'Never say no. ' Use it when co-writing. To co-write, you need to be willing to be vulnerable with each other. You need to be stupid with each other.
Is this a generation of orphans who are going to the improv to do stand-up?
I like doing live things and plays. You can perfect the laugh or extend the laugh, you can get them on a roll. Versus improv, which I hate. Put it all together. They're more vignettes. Improv makes me slightly anxious because I feel for them.
I joined an improv group in college, which was a lot of fun. After I graduated, I moved to Chicago to try to get into the Second City.
eah, you don't get a lot of meatheads doing improvised theater to begin with, and that's always been my thing. I talk about the nerdmeathead dichotomy on my podcast a lot, but there was a time when I was doing UCB full-time and playing men's league rugby in New York City, and I was like the funniest, artsiest rugby player, and the bro-iest improv comedian. I've always managed to sort of be in both sides.
I started doing improv my sophomore year.
Very rarely do I talk off the top of my head on stage. I'm not an improv guy. I'm a writer-guy who presents what he's written.
We spent a lot of time together and had a great time with Mary Tyler Moore. And just working with her was like improv.
The only difference in reality TV and the other TV is that the scriptwriters for reality TV are not union. I have been on reality TV shows. Believe me, my friends: It's not just improv and whatever happens when the cameras are rolling.
When I started stand-up, the first thing I did was to take an improv class.
Sometimes you read a script and it's like, "You'll improv and this is just a blueprint of what the scene could be," and that's never a good sign. And it's never encouraging as an actor to take that on, really.