Ed Helms
The Office oaf and Hangover hooligan talks amorous monkeys, burst capillaries, and ladyboy accountants.
The Office oaf and Hangover hooligan talks amorous monkeys, burst capillaries, and ladyboy accountants.
Todd Phillips told us he was treating the sequel to The Hangover “like the fucking Godfather II.” How much insanity can we expect?
This movie takes everything you loved about the first one and pushes it over a cliff. The result is a burning wreckage of hilarity.
The Wolfpack is heading to Thailand for your character Stu’s wedding?
Yeah, he’s marrying a girl whose family is Thai. It didn’t pan out with the stripper, and as much as I loved working, and making out, with Heather Graham, I think it was a cool decision on the
part of Todd and the writers.
At least your fiancée is played by the gorgeous Jamie Chung!
Who has appeared in the pages of your magazine, so her attractiveness is not in question. Stu’s done very well for himself.
We couldn’t help but notice Stu’s face tattoo in the trailer. Kind of Mike Tyson–esque, no?
Exactly, which I don’t think is lost on anybody. We saw in the first movie that Stu has the ability to go off the rails. I mean, the guy literally pulled out his own tooth, which is just magically insane. That insanity manifests itself in a few ways in Hangover II, and that’s pretty much all I can say.
What about the monkey we see rolling with you guys?
Crystal? She was the coolest. We all just fell in love with her.
So there was some competition for her affections?
Crystal was the belle of the ball, and if she was giving Zach more attention than me or Bradley
or vice versa, we’d get jealous.
And it was probably a little safer than working with a tiger.
Yeah, none of us wanted to cuddle with the tiger.
You shot on location in Thailand for nine weeks. Anyone have a run-in with a ladyboy?
You know, people think of ladyboys as just being part of the sex industry, but they’re actually a totally accepted cultural phenomenon over there. I mean, your accountant or bus driver could be a ladyboy.
And Bill Clinton visited the set?
Yeah, that was pretty cool. He told Bradley The A-Team is one of his favorite movies.
Did you know that besides being the highest-grossing R-rated comedy of all time, The Hangover beat out My Big Fat Greek Wedding as the best-selling comedy DVD ever?
I have had a single-minded mission to outgross My Big Fat Greek Wedding since before that movie even existed.
Who do you get recognized more for, Stu or your Office character, Andy Bernard?
At this point I think it’s about 50-50, but I have a feeling after this summer it’ll be mostly Stu.
Can you tell the difference between Stu and Andy fans?
Office fans are a little nerdier, so any random bar might have a Stu fan, but you’re more likely to find Andy fans at the library.
Andy is very proud of the fact that he went to Cornell. Do you hear from students and alums?
Yes, Cornell loves Andy Bernard. I’ve been told that there’s a picture of him in their football locker room. I hope that it’s because Andy inspires them to kick ass on the field,
but there may also be some homoerotic undertones happening. I don’t know.
Why Cornell?
A lot of the show’s writers went to Harvard, and I guess they think of Cornell as the Ivy League that, like, snuck in. So the other schools kind of shit on it, but to me that’s like watching nerds fight. It’s not that exciting.
What’s your favorite of Andy’s many nicknames?
Nard Dog. That’s the one that’s stuck. The three things people shout at me are “Nard Dog,” “Big Tuna,” which, ironically, is not my character’s nickname, and, of course, “Dr. Faggot.”
Of course! So how is Michael Scott’s departure going to affect the show?
There will be a Michael Scott void, but that’s also what’s exciting. The show is going to have to redefine itself. And I do know that Andy’s going to be competing for his job.
Think he’d be able to handle it?
No, but it’ll be fun seeing him try.
Do you miss The Daily Show?
I miss being part of the political cycle. There was something really exciting about being right there in the trenches during the campaigns. And as Daily Show correspondents, we were granted a lot of access…undeservedly, I might add.
As you look back on your life, what’s the best advice you ever received?
I believe it was Mark Twain who said, “Eschew obfuscation.”
Hold on, where’s that thesaurus…
It means, “Don’t be overly complicated.”
Finally, what’s the worst hangover you’ve ever had?
There was one time in college when I kept throwing up, and then after I stopped throwing up I kept dry-heaving. I wound up bursting capillaries in my face and thought I’d come down with some crazy skin disease. I have no recollection of how it began, but it was a disaster.
Be sure to check out Ed Helms as the host of Saturday Night Liveon May 14 at 11:30/10:30c.
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