KUMAIL NANJIANI: Career Changing Anxiety, Wrong Priorities & Marvel Disappointment

There's a point where Kumail mentions a comedy bit about the origins of Darth Vader and he attributes it to Brian Posehn. In case anyone's interested, he was misremembering a bit called "At Midnight I Will Kill George Lucas With a Shovel" and it was actually by Patton Oswalt off of his album 'Werewolves and Lollipops." Other than that, fantastic interview.

Didn’t expect Kumail! Super excited!! Thanks as always Rosey and Ryan!!

What a beautiful interview!!! ❤ Thank you 🙏 for sharing this with us Michael and Ryan!!

Great interview! I was hooked within the first couple of minutes. ❤

These are the most insightful interviews. Wonderful!

Loved it! Stuff about acting and being present, dealing with stress of things not going well, anxiety, being real. Great episode!! Big fan!

Every time you get a great guest and have a great interview, I think to myself, how can it get better? and then it does. Thank you so much Michael. I have been a fan since the SmallVille days when I had to wait all year for the DVD boxed set to be released and then binge them in just a couple of days and I'm glad you started this great Podcast and give us all something to look forward to every week.

I love seeing Kumail here with you especially since he was one of your first guests

BLADE RUNNER 2049 = one of THE MOST underrated movies EVER.

What a great interview!

Another in depth and enjoyable interview that I got a little out of. Thank you ❤🙏.

Loved this thanks Michael ❤

I have those same dreams of toxic people (I was friends with/not anymore) I don't like and have the same negative feelings come back I had from the not so long ago past. I'm glad those rotten feelings only last less than a minute when I wake up. Thank you for this interview, I love it. Hugs to you all! ❤

When Kumail said they had dinner with an actor from Eternals that got a Oscar nomination after, I thought he gave enough away to figure out who that is. Turns out there's two! male actors that got nominated after their work in Eternals: Brian Tyree Henry (for Causeway) and Barry Keoghan (for Banshee of Inisherin). I think it was Brian, but it could be Barry...

Loved it! Love how Kumail loves his wife. No one could ever replace Robin Williams. He was one of a kind. Miss him. Thanks, Michael, for this podcast!

Pretty new sub, I absolutely love this show! This episode was soooo damn good. Thanks guys!

I don’t know Kumail but he seems so genuine and easy to talk to and I will definitely be checking out all his work. The conversation between the two of you was interesting and heartfelt, thank you for having him on the podcast🤩

Hey Michael!! This is John Matlock and I wanted to say thank you for the last couple of years with this podcast and the talkville podcast, I've struggled with my mental health the last couple of years and you've been a big help. Huge fan and bought some merch from yah today, cannot wait for my Smallville lunch box and Lexmas script. You have inspired me to make my own podcast and your amazing, keep up the great work!!

Phenomenal interview, one of my favorite roles he's done is Adventure Time's Prismo, and it'd be great to hear him talk a bit about that situation if and when he comes back

Loved when you had him on the podcast the first time. Looking forward to what you guys talk about this time. Thank you Michael ❤ Happy Tuesday 💙

Awesome Rosey!!! Good to know u got throught the surgery.

I think Michael would LOVE playing the Alan Wake series. Thry captured the essence of horror but its so much more immersive with a game.

Just seen frozen empire this weekend.. and kumail stole the movie I thought! He was the best part and I wish he had more scenes! Also, I can we appreciate how good he looks now!

YES! So psyched that he's doing standup again! I've been commenting online literally for years that I wish he kept doing standup but felt like he abandoned his loyal standup fans. I thought for sure I had missed my chance to see him perform live forever.

An exciting discussion with Kamail who is a very humble person about his career and his life, like you Michael !👌❤ I love all these horrors films andthese actors you were talking about and anxiety ! ❤❤ Wonderful Inside, how i loved it !! 💙💖🙌🙌

just finished listening to the episode I find it interesting that you were interested in things from the past it's not everyone you're strong Michael ❤️❤️

Wish I could like this more than the one time it lets you, The podcast is always fantastic and I really enjoyed Kumail Nanjiana.

I have been a fan of Kumail and Emily for a very long time. Since his standup and the Indoor Kids. So glad they both achieved all their success.

Just wanted to say I’m thankful for this conversation. As any artist myself, I often feel like my identity is tied to do what I do as a vocation. I’m struggling with this at the moment as I look to transition my career. My freelance is where I feel healthy validation. My “real job” is where I’m conflicted.

Sometimes we forget that these actors are people. Glad that Kumail opened up about Eternals. Frankly, I thought it was a great movie. They needed to tie it back into the universe to make those characters work. Not sure if Disney just gave up on it in subsequent movies.

the best is yet to come

loved him on Silicon Valley. I think his roles post-SV have been hit or miss.

I also tear up when talking about my favourite performances, I feel Kumail! ❤

Great get! I've been following Kumail since the gaming podcast he and his wife Emily used to host on Nerdist eons ago.

loved this, two men liberating themselves in a healthy way

I appreciate Kumail giving the Blade Runner films especially the second one some love. By the way I also enjoyed Eternals and thought it got way too much hate.

F'ing love this guy and his honesty. More than a fresh breathe of air. I love it. I absolutely love him to bits.

My Favorite part of Tuesday 💙🤘

Kumail’s scenes with Martin Starr in Silicon Valley are some of the funniest in the history of tv. I really wish him and Martin had got a spin off show with just the two of them. The finale kinda set it up but man, what a hilarious duo. Seriously Matthau/Lemon level of funny alla the Odd Couple 💯

I watch every movie Kumail does after I saw him in Sillicon Valley and I didn't know he was a comedian! Regarding Eternals, he is the only one that I WANT to see again.
If Druig and Makkari pops up will be nice though.

It was patton Oswalts bit but Brian Posehn was in the devils rejects a rob zombie film

Love Kumail, he was fantastic in Eternals. I love the weirder side of Marvel.
Also love him as Director Tann in Mass Effect Andromeda. I know all the Salarian voices are modulated, but Kumail sounds almost the same as in the game.

Charlie and Blanche could've felt you guys get a little weepy and came in to support and love you. Dogs do that a lot. What a great interview, even tho I don't know the guest. I feel the love! ❤💜🌹

HE PLAYS TEARS OF THE KINGDOM😮‍💨🔥

Fantastic chat. I don't really know him from much but the Eternals (which was not as 'bad' as it seemed, i think it was just a case of Marvel-fatigue) but he seems like a great guy and i'll be watching out for him in future. I loved that he's a cat dad and i would just have spent the whole hour chatting about Blade Runner (either/both) and Dune (either/both). Haha.

This guy rocks!

Thank you for raising awareness for mental health. It's something I have lived with for over 15 years. I suffer with CPTSD, Panic attacks, anxiety, Clinical Depression and other issues. Sadly over here in the UK the mental health system isn't the greatest. Appreciate that you talk about it often and fantastic to show that celebrities are human. Hopefully the more we talk about it, the less and less stigmatized it becomes, even more so than it is currently. Thank you for everything you do Mr Rosenbaum, great interview.

This was a great interview with Kumail. I used to just think of him as a comedic actor, but I've seen his range. He puts in the work n is getting better at disappearing in his roles.
Jamie Costa is also 1 of those actors who can disappear--anyone who's seen his portrayal as Robin Williams would agree. Josh Robert Thompson is another great actor who in this realm (and is even more obsessed with horror movies than you, Mr Rosenbaum. ❤❤
Great episode!!!

The big sick is such an underrated rom com gem.

Hehehe loved him in Ghostbusters 🤣

Michael as soon as you described your dream I was like "he wants to act, be directed." You know it too, you confirmed it later in your conversation with Kumail. Definitely get it in there, make sure its well written, and flesh out your character, then bring it to life.

Many thanks to Rosey, Ryan and Kumail! 🌟 I hope to see more of him in STAR WARS.

Just to add to the other comments, I saw Eternals in theatres and I enjoyed it. I haven't read a ton of the comics, but I did look into the lore a great deal beforehand because I knew it was extensive. It was a lot at once so I didn't retain a ton before I saw it, but I think the fact that it was standalone was a good thing. Maybe there could be some little tie ins but I don't think it should have been anything major like the other big super hero crossovers.
I think Covid was probably the biggest factor.
I think it was also a movie made for fans of comic books, but I think it was accessible to everyone. I absolutely would go watch sequels. I think if a new one was released now or if it had been released now instead, it'd do a ot better.

My weekly dose of entertainment. I love it very much

More geek talk to Kumail PLEASE ♥

Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil is one of my favorite movies, along with the original Dune and original Blade Runner. 😅

Michael RosenBAUUM… chicka boom boom 😂. Did I say that right? Gosh darn it. What do I know? So good for the soul. Love ya!

Honestly, I think a lot of the issues with Eternals getting bad reviews was a combination of super hero fatigue, and the fact that the move had waaaaaay too many characters to focus on.

Kumail is the best

Michael was in an action/horror game, "Dark Sector". wonder how much he remembers it.

Kumail’s a really cool dude.

You were my fave in the Eternals movie, Kumail 😊

I auditioned for Stuber. I got so Close being in that movie I had a callback. It was a cool experience.

I really appreciate how open people are about their mental health and anxieties. I really struggle sometimes, and just like hearing a song that mirrors your emotions, sometimes it's just nice to know someone else feels the same thing.

That's the best KRplus podcast, it's a shame that only 292k people knows this!!!

Eternals wasn't good, but i would definitely watch Kumail's character from that movie. He was fantastic!
He and his helper dude were the best!

He should stream!!!

Kumal was easily the best part of that movie and I thought they were fools for excluding him from the climax. But no, it wasn’t “something in the air”. Eternals was reviewed poorly because it’s a poor movie with characters you didn’t really care about.

@10:09 Kumail is so lucky he married his best friend, he's having the time of his life watching horror movies and playing video games, happy for him and Emily

"Eternals" had some narrative issues that I attribute mostly to the source material, but for me it was the best *looking* Marvel movie so far, by a long shot. Chloe Zhao's directing was just beautiful to me. The same goes for her film "Nomadland", which was my favorite film of that year. Some people really did not like her style in either movie, which is totally fine, but personally I love it.

David Lynch did not invent the Navigators i.e "Brain Fish" they are in the book and the description matches what is seen, I assume the'll be in Dune 2 or 3

Honestly forgot that movie ever came out. It literally came and went. Never watched it but may give it a spin because of this. You can tell he cares about his work and I appreciate his candor

Remember the condemned series? Killer horror survival games and were a blast to play.

One actor I think y’all should do one of the episodes of this podcast is Andrew Lincoln from The Walking Dead, that be so awesome

6:07 it was a Patton Oswalt bit, from his 2nd or 3rd album I thjnk

Somehow I didn't realize he was a gamer, awesome to hear Dead Space get some unexpected love

I’d listen to Kemail talk about video games for hours

Great conversation as always! Destroy All Neighbors 🤘🎸

I relate a lot with Kamail now, I'm a big wife guy. My wife is my favorite person tied only by our son.

I loved Stubber !!!!

who else has seen "stuber"? love that movie

Midnight in the Garden of Good & Evil was GREAT! How did it bomb? I don’t remember that then. I thought it was intriguing.

I'm a big Kumail fan now

Get Cavill and Momoa on

Cant wait to see the Smallville gang back together again in DC Elseworlds!

33:26 Barry Keoghan???

Eternals is my personal favorite MCU film, and I’m never going to quite recover from Kevin Feige spewing that it’d be a Best Picture front runner at the Academy Awards. He set way way too high of an expectation for this film and played a crucial role in the film’s reception. Kumail if you see this, thank you for your work and openness about it. I loved Kingo and hope you can find it within you to return to a sequel…. And if marvel never green lights an Eternals sequel, then they’ve forever lost a fan in me

Odd question But Hey Michael have you ever gone back to CM Cancun :D Wasz going to stop by at Phoenix comic con back in I think 2020 and say Hi been a HOT decade since I saw you lol

I heard him say he went out for some part that was the villain or one of the villains and the casting people told him they do NOT cast minorities as bad guys. Only WHITE GUYS CAN BE VILLAINS IS WHAT WE NOW TEACH OUR CHILDREN.

i enjoy Eternals for the same reasons i enjoy Blade Runner 2049. Very heady sci fi movies that make you think a lot about the human condition. It seems Kumail thinks similarly. My favorite character of his is Prismo from Adventure Time!

I am glad that you had Kumail back on the podcast. I am listening to this episode now. He has an interesting take on back stories. Best podcast ever!

It's weird to see pictures of Kumail pre Eternals. Caught the fitness. Good for him.

also kumail's right, the original blade runner is amazing and so unique. a modern sci-fi film that depicts a dystopian future america, a dark destroyed world ... and the year is 2019 xD

Kumail either has the healthiest or the unhealthiest relationship with his wife… I can’t quite tell

Love mcu eternal just definitive i him actor

Let's be real here and accept responsibility for ones failures. You can learn from them. Forcing DEI on people when most want to enjoy themselves is a bad idea.

Kumail is not alone, my friend Gundam got PTSD from watching The Eternals. That movie really hurt so many people.

Love Kumail and Emily. Still miss the Indoor Kids.

'Stuber' is a fantastic comedy

Barry Keoghan is the guy Kumail had dinner with about Eternals FYI