Hey Joe. So you get turned on to Kevin Hart’s new Netflix drama True Story. What did you think of the movie?
[Laughs] To be honest with you, I haven’t seen the film yet. I need to do that as soon as possible.
Do you think Hollywood’s co-opting of this movie is part of a bigger problem in Hollywood?
That is a real important question to me. Hollywood has always been this melting pot and people come from all different places, and come from different cultures, and different backgrounds. We’re used to multiculturalism in Hollywood but here’s my issue with it: I feel like for the most part, Hollywood is great at introducing minorities to Hollywood — even if it’s just for a short period of time — and it’s bad at educating them so that they can educate other people. Once it gets into the industry, they learn there are no jobs for minorities in this town.
The problem is that Hollywood doesn’t have enough people with perspectives to educate those who want to learn. So if we’re just going to continue to do that, they’re gonna be here for 10 minutes and then they’re going to move on to something else. I think we need to really take a look at this.
You first broke through in stand-up, and Hollywood gave you a chance to make an impact off of that with The Wedding Ringer. Do you feel it’s your turn?
I think we’re all ready. Everybody’s ready. Just remember: Some of us started in stand-up and some of us started as producers. Some of us started as writers. Some of us started with television. So if we all come together and we’re all successful, I believe this country will be a better place for it.
When you started out, did you ever imagine you’d be working with Arielle Kebbel in True Story?
I wouldn’t let you down, I promise. I wouldn’t let you down. Arielle is a great actress. That is not my biggest issue with this movie. I like Arielle Kebbel, and I would have the same problems with Nicole Kidman. Nicole Kidman is a great actress; I’m comfortable with her. I don’t care what it is, I think we’re all great actors. But this movie has more to do with having an idea. Coming from a family of educators, we all saw where education was going, and in this country, I’ve always said education is the best weapon for changing the world. And education is the closest thing you have to a Jedi mind trick that you can use to change the world. That’s what Arielle and I were working on.