Obsessed: The Podcast

For the first 10 years of Phoebe Robinson’s comedy career, she “dreaded” getting up to tell jokes every night. It wasn’t until she found a way to genuinely have fun on stage that she has produced her best hour of stand-up yet in the new special ‘I Don’t Wanna Work Anymore’ (now streaming on YouTube). In her return to the show, the former co-host of the popular 2 Dope Queens podcast takes on the rise of the MAGA manosphere podcasters who are suddenly having second thoughts about helping Donald Trump win. She also shares her unfiltered thoughts on the greedy comedians taking millions from the Saudi government to look the other way on human rights abuses at the Riyadh Comedy Festival and weighs in on the “divorce” rumors that have plagued Barack and Michelle Obama.

Follow Phoebe Robinson on Instagram @dopequeenpheebs 

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Will Forte is one of the only comedians to ever turn down an initial offer from Lorne Michaels to join ‘Saturday Night Live.’ But after three years in the cast, he found himself at a crossroads on the show. In his return to the podcast, Forte discusses the second lease on life that Michaels gave him after coming closer than anyone knew to cutting him loose. The star of two Netflix series this year—‘Haunted Hotel’ and ‘The Four Seasons’—also talks about his love of animation and playing the husband of his former ‘SNL’ boss Tina Fey. And Forte shares updates on the unlikely fate of his canceled and then resurrected ‘Coyote vs. Acme’ movie, reveals the potential for a ‘MacGruber’ sequel, and shares behind-the-scenes stories from his wild night at the ‘SNL50’ anniversary special.

Follow Will Forte on Instagram @orviv 

Follow Matt Wilstein on Bluesky @mattwilstein 

Follow The Last Laugh on Instagram @lastlaughpod

Watch full episodes of The Last Laugh podcast on the Daily Beast’s YouTube channel

Highlights from this episode and others at TheDailyBeast.com

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Hannah Einbinder had never really acted before she was cast as Ava Daniels opposite Jean Smart’s Deborah Vance on ‘Hacks.’ Now, she’s a three-time Emmy nominee. In this episode, Einbinder opens up about the overconfidence she brings to that role as well the onstage persona she displays in her excellent debut stand-up special ‘Everything Must Go’ on Max. She also talks about overcoming the intimidation of acting with Jean Smart, compares the generational gap between their characters to her relationship with her own mother (original SNL cast member Laraine Newman), and reveals how Stephen Colbert helped land her the role that changed her career. And later, Einbinder shares her unfiltered thoughts about the “old f*cking guys” in comedy who complain that political correctness is stifling their craft. 

This episode was originally published on August 14, 2024.

Follow Hannah Einbinder on Instagram @hannaheinbinder

Follow Matt Wilstein on Threads @mattwilstein

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Over the course of his long and distinguished career, Rob Reiner has directed some of the most beloved and acclaimed films in Hollywood history. But he had never directed a sequel until ‘Spinal Tap 2: The End Continues.’ In this episode, Reiner breaks down why he decided to reunite with Christopher Guest, Michael McKean, and Harry Shearer for one last mockumentary 41 years after they invented the genre with ‘This Is Spinal Tap.’ He talks about how the comedy of the film has evolved now that they are in their 70s and 80s, and the secret to playing the straight man opposite someone as effortlessly funny as Guest. Reiner also gets into the state of America under Trump 2.0, how Elon Musk drove him away from Twitter, and what he learned about being a politically outspoken celebrity from Norman Lear and Jane Fonda. Finally, he reflects on his relationship with his late father Carl Reiner, recalls the first time he met Mel Brooks, and considers the enduring legacy of classic films like ‘The Princess Bride’ and ‘When Harry Met Sally.’

Follow Matt Wilstein on Bluesky @mattwilstein 

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When they were shooting the pilot episode of ‘The Office,’ Steve Carell told Rainn Wilson that playing Dwight Schrute could change his life forever. And he could not have been more right. In this episode, Wilson breaks down his unique career journey from working character actor to sitcom star all the way through his latest film ‘Code 3’ (in theaters Friday Sept. 12) in which he plays a burnt out paramedic alongside fellow comedian Lil Rel Howery. His role in the new movie, as well as much of what he has done since ‘The Office’ ended in 2013, feels very different from Dwight, and purposefully so. Wilson opens up about the massive blessing and occasional curse of being so closely associated with such a hugely popular character. Addressing the perennial question about whether ‘The Office’ could be made today, he admits that the “clueless, insensitive, racist, sexist” jokes hit differently now. Wilson also reveals the “relief” he felt when NBC killed off a Dwight-centered spinoff and shares whether that character could ever pop up on the new Peacock spinoff ‘The Paper’—or perhaps even a movie version of ‘The Office.’

Follow Rainn Wilson on Instagram @rainnwilson

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Raphael Bob-Waksberg was still in his 20s when he convinced Netflix to produce his audacious Hollywood satire about a washed-up, alcoholic former TV star who also happens to be a horse. Now, as a 41-year-old father of two, the creator of ‘Bojack Horseman’ is back with another animated Netflix series that is just as boldly funny and devastatingly emotional, but without the crutch of constant animal puns. In this episode, Bob-Waksberg opens up about his “vulnerable” new show, ‘Long Story Short,’ which depicts a Jewish family in the Bay Area that is not unlike his own. He breaks down how the show’s unique time-jumping format cleverly tricks viewers into feeling like they have known the characters for years and reflects on how the essential Jewishness of the story has been interpreted—or perhaps, misinterpreted—by critics. Bob-Waksberg also looks back on the legacy of ‘Bojack,’ including what it did or not predict about the state of “Hollywoo” in 2025 and what it would take for him to revive those characters after saying goodbye to them five years ago. 

Follow Matt Wilstein on Bluesky @mattwilstein 

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Over the course of eight years in the cast of ‘Saturday Night Live,’ Beck Bennett performed comedy with more than 150 celebrity hosts. But no one—not even Donald Trump himself—was as difficult to work with as Elon Musk. In the 300th episode of The Last Laugh, Bennett looks back on his SNL audition, discusses what it was like to join the show with one of his oldest friends Kyle Mooney (with whom he just launched his own new podcast), and reveals exactly what made Musk a more “offensive” collaborator than Trump. He explains how he knows Vladimir Putin liked his shirtless impression a lot more than Trump liked Alec Baldwin’s portrayal, how he knew it was finally time to leave the show, and how Lorne Michaels nearly talked him into staying. Finally, Bennett talks about the two very different movies he appears in this summer: voicing a cartoon dog in the raunchy Netflix movie ‘Fixed’ and joining the DC cinematic universe as The Daily Planet’s Steve Lombard in ‘Superman.’

Follow Beck Bennett on Instagram @beckbennett

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Highlights from this episode and others at The Daily Beast

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10 years into her run at ‘The Daily Show,’ Desi Lydic is riding high with three Emmy nominations—including two for her short-form series “Foxsplains” in which she tries to wrap her head around MAGA’s most unhinged conspiracy theories. In this episode, the correspondent-turned-rotating host talks about how the series has granted her more empathy for brainwashed Trump supporters and looks back on processing his second term victory in real-time while hosting ‘The Daily Show.’ She talks about wanting to be the show’s “female Stephen Colbert” and how things changed once she dropped her Megyn Kelly-inspired character and started being herself on screen. Lydic also gets into the precarious state of late-night TV, from the “shocking” Colbert cancellation to the fate of Jon Stewart under the new Paramount leadership. 

Follow Desi Lydic on Instagram @desilydic

Follow Matt Wilstein on Bluesky @mattwilstein 

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The three creators of the Emmy-nominated comedy series ‘Hacks’ had no idea they were predicting the future when they had their central late-night host character defiantly speak out against her network bosses and then lose her dream job. In this episode, Lucia Aniello, Paul W. Downs, and Jen Statsky break down the “surreal” parallels between Deborah Vance’s arc in Season 4 and the real-life tribulations of Stephen Colbert. They talk about the importance of late-night TV, what its future might hold, and reveal how they got Jimmy Kimmel to play a bully version of himself on the show. The trio also goes deep on casting leads Jean Smart and Hannah Einbinder, as well as this year’s Emmy-nominated guest stars Robby Hoffman and Dance Mom herself, Julianne Nicholson. And they tease what might be in store for Season 5—including why fans are so desperate for Deborah and Ava to finally hook up. 

Follow Paul W. Downs on Instagram @paulwdowns

Follow Matt Wilstein on Bluesky @mattwilstein 

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Akiva Schaffer prefers to stay behind the scenes. But that doesn’t mean he’s any less funny than his Lonely Island bandmates Andy Samberg and Jorma Taccone. The three middle school best friends started shooting videos right out of college before landing a plush gig making digital shorts for ‘Saturday Night Live,’ including hits like “Lazy Sunday,” “Dick in a Box,” “Jizz in My Pants” and many others. In this episode, Schaffer talks about their unusual path to SNL and how directing outrageous movies like ‘Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping’ led him to take on a meta ‘Chip ‘n Dale: Rescue Rangers’ reboot for Disney+ starring Samberg and John Mulaney—and now the huge ‘Naked Gun’ reboot starring Liam Neeson and Pamela Anderson. He also explains why he might be single handedly responsible for Netflix deciding to greenlight ‘I Think You Should Leave’ with Tim Robinson. 

This episode was originally published on May 24, 2022.

Follow The Lonely Island on Instagram @thelonelyisland 

Follow Matt Wilstein on Bluesky @mattwilstein 

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Highlights from this episode and others at The Daily Beast

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