Transcript of Regina Hall

Hello, everyone. Welcome to another episode of Good Hang. So excited to talk to Regina Hall today. I love Regina. I love her work. We're going to talk about a lot of fun things today. We're going to talk about her incredible range as an actress. We're going to talk about the difference between phobias and phonias. We're going to break down what it's like hosting award shows, and we're going to discuss her new movie, her great new P. T. Anderson movie, One Battle After Another, which is in theaters this week. But we always do this before we have our guests. We talk to someone who knows our guests, who wants to speak well behind their back. We have a great guest today, the extremely talented Andrew Rannals. Andrew was Regina's co-star on Black Monday. He is the imaginary father of the imaginary twins Dawn and Dawn that they seem to share. A little inside joke on set. You know him from Book of Mormen. You know him from Girls 5 You know him from Too Much, Lena Dunham's new show. He's just a real peach. So let's get him on. Andrew? Andrew? Are you there? This message is brought to you by Apple Card, each Apple product like the iPhone is thoughtfully designed by skilled designers.

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Amy. There you are on your set and everything. There you are.

It's so good to talk to you.

It's great to talk to you. Thank for asking me to do this.

Are you kidding? Thank you so much for doing this. I know you and Regina are good buds.

We really are.

And she has such a great rep.

She really does. I've yet to meet anyone who doesn't say, She's the best. It's always a good idea to hang out with Regina Hall.

Okay, we're going to get to Regina, but first of all, I'm very, very excited to talk to you.

To me? Of course.

I hope I can get you in the stewed one of these days. I would love it. I would love it. I mean, I haven't got a chance. I feel like you and I have probably crossed paths and been in the same room at a fancy event. But I am a very, very big fan of your work.

Well, that's very generous of you to say, because I am a huge fan of your work, and I always get very nervous when I see you.

Oh, tell me why.

Well, I just get nervous that I'm like, should I talk to her? Should I not talk to her? Am I talking to her for too long? It's like, should I get in, get out? It's one of those things. I appreciate it. Because it usually is at some event that there's a bunch of people around, and it's like, I don't know. There's a receiving line of people who want to talk to you. I choose to do the get in, get out.

Well, I will say If you have chosen not to talk to me, I appreciate that because I have a lot of social anxiety, which does not look like I do, but I do in those events, and I get overwhelmed.

Same. One of the first big parties I went to when I first moved to LA, I was very lucky, and I walked in with Jessica Lange. And I know, right?

You floated in with Jessica Lange.

I floated in with Jessica Lange, and Jessica Lange just wanted to hold on to me because I'm tall. And I think she likes that. I think she likes that. So then all night, I got to be the gatekeeper to Jessica Lange. And people I really respected who didn't know me were coming up to me and saying, Could you introduce me to Jessica Lange? And I was like, Absolutely.

You were like, Let me check with Jessica first. 100 %.

Yeah. I guess my advice is if you can go to one of those events with Jessica Lange, do it.

That makes sense. God, you two would make a very nice couple, I have I would say a handsome couple.

I think I've got to be with her a couple of times, and it's always successful. But how's this for a segue? You know who's very good at those events? Regina Hall.

Tell me why.

You go to a party with Regina Hall, and first of all, everybody loves her, so that's great. And she just, I don't know, she just floats above it and just has a very chill attitude about everything. Now, whether or not that's actually what she's feeling, I'm not sure because we all process those things differently. But it is really fun to go to those events with her because she just always is herself. And I will say from like, we got to work together for three years on the show Black Monday and on Showtime. And whether it was like 4: 00 AM in the makeup trailer or 3: 00 AM on a night shoot, she always maintained the same level of cool and happy to be there and calmed everybody down. Because Don Sheetal and I on that show often had to do some really wacky stuff. And She not only could match that, she oftentimes outdid us in that arena, but then also just brought all the heart to it. She really anchored it in a way. It was such a good lesson of how to be... You can be absurdly funny and really broad, but still have a lot of thought and heart behind it, which I learned a lot from working with her, that you can do all of the clowny, silly stuff, but unless there is some heart to it, it just looks like faces.

I think that way about you, too. I feel like sometimes there's the exceptional, eccentric, really out there funny person who's their own island. But for the most part, I find that people that are very good at comedy have a switch or a gear where they can really... They're just very good at being in the moment and being present when asked to do that. It's the theme that I want to talk to Regina about today is her career is really, really diverse and really wide. Her range, she's done a lot of different things, and she can do really dumb, fun, comedy. Totally. And very deep, grounded stuff. And that's not... A lot of people don't have that range.

I don't know. It sounds maybe trite to say that she has a light to her because that usually is reserved for people who get murdered. But she does have a... She really lights up a room. She really lights up a room, and not in a way that she's going to get murdered.

No, not in that way. In a different way, in a very different way.

In a better way.

In a very different way. I absolutely loved you in Book of Mormen. I was lucky enough to see the original cast and you in it with Josh and so many other great people. And But you bring something up that I always wondered about, and I haven't been able to ask anybody who's been on Broadway for as long as you have. Sure. Why is it unprofessional to see who's in the audience?

Well, in theory, you should be, I guess, connected to your co-star and telling the story. But I think over time, you're doing it eight times a week, and you get to a place where you know eyes. I mean, that's the tricky part about... One of the tricky parts about live theater is that of all of the 1,200 people that are in that audience, somebody's looking at you at all times. And I just know that from an audience member. Sometimes you drip to an ensemble person, whatever. You're not watching the action. So you do always have to be on guard. Okay, somebody's watching.

But you never used to do what I used to do, which is literally peak?

Oh, well, I mean, we got to a point where I could look into the audience at certain points and be like, Oh, look who's there. And sometimes the worst is when you make eye contact with that person. Oh, that's rough.

That's rough.

I made direct eye contact with Oprah Winfrey, and I thought, That probably wasn't a great idea. And I reflexed. I smiled at her as if there was no fourth wall.

You went, You went, You went, Oprah.

Just like I'm doing a nightclub act. I was like, Oh, it's Oprah. I remember smiling at her, and she smile back because she's polite.

She's probably had a lot of experience with intense eye contact.

I mean, the reactions to her must be extreme.

You are so incredible in the Book of Mormon. Oh, my gosh. I mean, you've written two books. You have.

I have.

You have. You are constantly in so many good things. We mentioned Girls 5 Ever, the show that you did with Tina. You also are just in Lena's new show, Too Much, where you play her husband, which was so satisfying to see.

I do. We've graduated from being the messy kids to now being the still messy adults.

I ask all of my guests if they have a question for our guest. And like I said, I hope someday to get you in the hot seat. So do you have a question you think I should ask Regina today? A story you think she might want to tell, something you don't know about her, something you think people should know about her?

Her career is so diverse, and she bounces between all of these things. This Paul Thomas Anderson movie that's coming out, that it's wildly different from anything she's done in a lot of ways. And as much as I assume that she's the architect of that, that she's making these choices and doing these things, I wonder. Yeah, I do wonder, did she seek that out? Was she like, I'm going to switch this up? Or is this something that just build... It was built naturally.

You're right. I don't think we know enough about Regina's origin story. When I was learning about Regina, I know she wanted to maybe be a journalist at one point. So I'm very curious when she started acting. And then also, yes, the Her career is really feels like a flow, basically.

And also, obviously, who does she like better? Does she like me better? Or Don Sheedle? I think that's an important... I think a lot of people probably wonder that.

Yeah, and maybe you can stay on the Zoom while I ask her that.

Yeah. I'll take my camera off, and then I'll surprise her and be like, I knew you were going to say Dawn. Regina and I would annoy the cast that she told everybody that we were married at one point. And some people who didn't really know me very well thought that that was true. And then she, who's afraid of Virginia Wolf way, created children for us that we would talk about, Dawn and Dawn. And we would reference Dawn and Dawn, our twins, and who had the twins, and where are the twins, and how are the twins doing?

She's so good. I can't wait to talk to her. I really appreciate your time. I know I'm excited for you to talk to her. How tall are you, Andrew? 6'2. Congratulations.

Thanks.

Thanks so much. That's so great. I like Jessica Lange. A tall man. Jackpot. Sign me up.

I did it.

It is so great to talk to you. Thank you so much for your time.

I thank you very much. And thank you for being so generous and so lovely as always.

I hope I see you at some event sometime soon, and we just totally ghost each other.

Yeah, I'm not going to look at you. I'm just going to be taking care of Jessica.

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You're wearing formal pajamas. I am. I was like, How can I be dressy and comfortable.

And it's so hot out.

Because I was going to be in sweats.

You look great.

But not for you.

You know what I insist on?

I saw her in the car. If she's not beat, I don't want her. That's what I said.

I need two hours. I need you to have two hours of hair and makeup before we hang out. You look gorgeous. This lighting is nice.

This is great lighting.

Isn't it?

You know what I realized? I'm not aging. Lighting is just getting bad because in my bathroom, I have really good lighting in my bathroom. And in my bathroom, I'm something else. In my car, not so much. But in my bathroom, I'm like, I'm Chef's Kiss. But in the car, when the sunlight, so it's the lighting.

I always say this about, I mean, I'm probably saying something very obvious, but when I go in a dressing room, I'm like, I can't believe the dressing rooms aren't better lit. I would buy so many more things. It would just be better for business.

It was a dressing room where I honestly, for the first time, discovered the depth of my cellulite. That's the truth. It was in a dressing room.

Yeah. It's super, super sad.

It's when I started running. I started jogging. I said I was shopping with my boyfriend at the time, and I screamed. I did. I said, Is this what he's looking at? You said something's wrong with my legs. I went and I said, Baby, and he was like, What? They don't notice.

No, they don't care.

They just It's just the legs.

They don't care what's on it.

They don't care.

No. I feel that way, too. One time when I got a mammogram, I turned to the person and I was like, It's shocking how this hasn't gotten better. How has this not gotten better? How have we still have to literally squeeze our boob.

I don't have a lot of boobs. I was like, What are you getting? You're getting this much breast.

It's sometimes worse when you don't. If it's larger. They're both worse, I guess. But sometimes if you don't have a lot to put in the machine, that we're squeezing it between two metal.

No, like a Waffle.

And there's nothing to look at?

No. Then they're like, if you just move your arm a little. It's not like you're... You're contorting your body in a very- I remember doing it very lucky me.

I have a nice place to get my mammogram. I'm very grateful and privileged to have a nice place to get a mammogram. Not a poster on the wall, not a piece of art to look at.

No distraction.

I was like, You guys don't want to put even an inspirational- No.

It takes a few minutes to get the right angle because it's not just getting it in there. It's getting it in there. I need a little bit. I was like, there's got to be a better way.

It's shocking to me how things are done.

My friends gave up. They were like, well, fuck it. If we've got something in it, then we've got something in it. Because after a while, they just couldn't get a photo.

No, they can't get a photo. And then what about when it comes out cloudy?

And they're like, we need another one.

Or we need an ultrasound. Also, they're like, they squeeze you in the tightest vice ever. They say, don't move.

Yeah, don't move.

And then they leave the room because there's too much radiation. Yeah.

That's the truth. They leave the room. Right. So it's just you, your nodes, and your breasts, and the rest of your body exposed and contorted.

You don't even want to play an old episode of Everyone Loves Raymond or whatever during this.

There's no sound. There's no music.

I know. No There's no music.

There's no music. There's nothing.

I remember talking to my great dentist. I love my dentist, but I remember saying- That's good to love your dentist.

I love a dentist, too.

You like your dentist?

I do.

And I get nitrosurry. A lot.

I like my dentist. I do, too. And my dental Hygienist. I love her.

Did you work as a dental hygienist?

A dental assistant. I just handed the instruments over and cleaned them and stuff.

Do you feel like you have healthy teeth?

I do for most part. I grind my teeth. Oh, yeah. I didn't know that when you grind, you can get a little recession from the grinding.

Yeah. Do you wear a thing?

I wear a thing now.

Yeah. We're with Regina Hall, and we just got We're just really into it. We're talking about teeth and boobs. We're right into it. But I feel like the last time we saw each other was on a dance floor at Rachida Jones' birthday party.

That was the last time, but there was a time, I think after, too.

What Where was that? Uh-oh.

It was on a street and you were directing. What was that? And it was on a cul-de-sac. I was like, What's going on down there? I think they're filming something. Oh, yes. Around the corner from I walked down the street and I was like, Who's directing? They said, Amy Poehler. Then I made my way. I made my way. It was very exciting. Do you remember that?

I do remember that. That was pre-COVID?

It was pre-COVID. Okay.

Then everything else has been a blur.

Yeah.

Because I was trying to- Like that breast exam. Everything else has been felt like a man in my brain. Everything was like, This is going to really hurt. It's really weird. It's going to take a long time, and everyone is going to leave the room.

And you're going to be exposed to all things.

Totally. But I feel like we've had a couple of times. So Rachida Jones often had a Pajama Jammy Jam, as she talked about in this podcast, and she had a dance party. And I feel like we've had a couple of good times on the dance floor together, dancing in pajamas. Do you like to dance?

Here's the thing. I do like to dance. I wish I were a better dancer. I'm not a good... I can hold a beat. Sure. But I would love to be able to do, and Rachida does them very well. She can learn choreograph dances, and I wish I had that gift.

Yeah, her and her sister, Kedada, can do old- Yes, Kedada is a great dancer, too. Old routines from the '90s.

They can get a choreographer in front of them, and they're able to to dance and learn that choreography. You can't do that. I can't. No. I was having a conversation with Sheila E, and she was like- Wait, excuse me? I know. You just dropped that. I know. Did you see how I dropped it suddenly? I said nothing. I was like, Yeah, so when Sheila and I were talking E, I did a one-on-one interview, and so she was my subject. She's so amazing. I was asking her, does she understand her impact on girls when she first came out because the drums, we hadn't seen a lot of women playing the drums necessarily. But anyway, she said everything for her moves very separately.

She can feel all the rhythms of everything.

She feels every limb and every portion. Everything is separate for her.

If you feel like you're not maybe the strongest at choreography- I'm a unit. What part feels like you're like, That's a good skill. I can that well. Can you memorize fast? Do you have a good ear? Can you sing?

I think I can, but I'm going to tell you. Because Adi used to tell me that I had a terrible pitch. I disagree with that. Then I went on, I think it was Corden. They started and then I joined in the harmony, and boy was off. So I'm not a harmonizer. Okay. I'm a soloist.

Yeah, no one else sing when Regina is singing.

But I have a good gift for I can remember a face.

Hey. That's good. Yeah.

Not a name. Terrible with names.

But you'd be able to...

You. Remember me?

I want to talk to you about so many things today, Regina, because the theme today for me with you is range. You can do it all. And how to approach you and your career and your work is really interesting because you can come in through a lot of different doors. Well, first of all, let me just say that you have a great rep. Everyone loves working with you.

Oh, I thought you were talking about my agent. I was about to say he's lovely as me. I agree. I'm a great agent. I was like, I've got a good team.

A great reputation. Does it matter to you when you go to work? What matters to you? How you show up and how other people show up?

I think for me, when I'm working, I think of everybody who put so much work into it before I got there. Writers. People who write, once it's written, selling it, sitting with studio notes. There's so much, you know this, you've done it all, directors that goes into it. For me to come and be anything less than excited for what... They're bringing a vision together. In addition to what I get to do and have fun, then I think it's... I won't take it if I don't think I could come and bring something to the environment and to the work. I think that's important for me.

Okay, what kid were you? Because you grew up in DC and went to Fordham, went to NYU to be a journalist. You were not a kid. Were you around actors or anyone who was acting?

No. Because I guess we had. I was like, We didn't have any. But Yeah, I wasn't exposed to it.

You weren't studying it in school?

No, we had our plays. Okay. I went to Catholic school, and so we had the nuns who I loved. I loved my nuns. I loved.

What do you love about nuns? Because my mom went to Catholic school and she was very afraid of her nuns.

I think I had some... You were not. I was respectfully afraid. I mean, I certainly had a reverence where I wouldn't cross a line, but I wasn't afraid of being hurt. I was more afraid of them telling my mom and then getting in trouble. So I didn't have that. I found my nuns to be very... I mean, I wouldn't say they were strict, but they They were loving, I would say. Yeah, they were loving.

And then is it true that you thought about perhaps becoming a nun?

I did. I did several times. When I was in high school, and then again, when I was older and I was too old.

You were too old to- 39.

That was a cutoff. I was 41. They were like, It's not a backup plan, miss. Get on out of here. But for that particular order.

Okay, got it.

Because they're different orders. With some orders, it's a sleeping partner number thing. Yeah. Right. Four. I don't know if anybody- Wait, you can only have slept with four people? Yeah. Amy, can you make it? You don't have to count them.

No, I can't. I don't want to brag, but... Whoa, whoa, whoa. Hold on. There's some orders where there's a number. You can only have had a certain amount of partners.

Some could be an amount of partners. Some might be How many attachments that you have. In the world, it's hard. And some his age. Yeah. Wow.

But what made you, Regina, as a young person, what was attractive about that life for you? What did you think about? What was the fantasy of that life?

I thought, wow, you'd spend your life in prayer, prayer for others, I would imagine, unless you were healing, because you're not really attached to anything material, right? So they wouldn't have an outward striving of the thing of success, whatever that is. And No romantic heartbreak. You don't want to say love because that part is beautiful, but it's the other side when whatever, whatever trauma, whatever reasons, things don't make it. And then you had that singular focus. I'm sure that it's not that easy. I'm just saying that was what I romanticized. It would be if I did it. And then I thought that was lovely.

How is your faith, now, many years later, young Regina, looking out at the world that way, figuring that might be a way in which I can manage my own world, how do you practice your version of love in God now? What does it look like?

I really believe, if you believe in past lives, I believe I had a past life where I was that. I believe I've come from that. So I believe it probably exists within me because it has existed. Yes. It feels familiar. It feels familiar. And so there's a certain piece in that familiarity.

It makes sense to me then that you're for a while thinking about going into journalism because it's the idea of unpacking big questions. Finding out the truth, being curious. All that stuff feels like it's connected. When did you decide, okay, I'm happy that I have my journalism degree, but I want to be an actor? When did that change happen?

Well, my parents were like, you're not going to... My parents were divorced, but they were just like, you're not going to be in New York partying. Because I had also, I'd left the nun life behind.

You were like, before I go in.

I was in New York and I was partying, and I loved partying. I had great friends and from college, and we finished. And then it was like, What am I doing? We were going out.

And you were probably in New York at the same time, like in the '90s, right?

In New York in the '90s. It was great.

It was great.

It was great. And so we used to go out a lot, and then my mom was like, my dad was like, what are you doing? You have to get a job or something. I either had to get a job or go back to school. And so I was like, I'm choosing school because I could arrange my classes to still party. But work, I couldn't do it. I did work for six months.

What was your job?

I was working at a director's office, and their office was in their home, and so they really had to carefully vet who worked there. So I was like an assistant.

Was that your first job in near the industry? After school, yeah. And it was working with a director?

Yeah, he was a commercial director. He did TV commercials. One day I fell asleep with my elbow on a button on the computer, and it was blinking. It was just all Xs. Whenever was at the end and the screen was playing, and I woke up because I had been out too late. And then my roommate and I were like, We are going to raise money. I don't know. And I was like, We have to quit our jobs. Our jobs are holding us back. And then I had to borrow money My parents were like, What are you going to do? I was like, I'll go back to school.

Okay, so you went back to study journalism then?

I went back to study journal, and my dad had a stroke and passed away very suddenly my first few months of school.

First few months. You didn't. You stopped going to school after that? No.

I finished because I knew he'd want me to. But I had a friend who said, Do you want to make extra money doing commercials? And she was like, I'll introduce to my manager. I met her manager, that manager. I couldn't show up for auditions because I was like, I'm doing my thesis. I can't show up to an audition. But I did. And then I took a class in acting, and I think it was very healing for me, after my dad, to be out of my head a little bit. And then I was like, Oh, I love this. So then I finished NYU and then decided to go to Columbia's Bartending School because I was going to need to pay for acting school. Then I went to acting school. I remember my mom was like, Where'd you go to acting school? She was like, So you just don't want a job, huh, baby? I could have been a professional student. I did love school. I studied at at Bill Esper.

I could see you also being a great bartender.

Oh, my gosh. I can see you. I would have been, but I don't know how to make any drinks because you were supposed to spit those drinks out in class. I was really tipsy after every class.

But I like it. But so much of bartending is faking. You're just making the drink, but it's about the chit-chat.

I do like people. I love to converse and meet. I find people to be fascinating.

Okay, so back to commercials. You're auditioning for commercials. Did you get any commercials during that time? I did. What did you get? That was a big deal to get a commercial in the '90s.

It was national. Shit. Mcdonald's. What?

You got a national McDonald's commercial? I did. How much money did you make from that? Because that could change your life. A national commercial.

Yeah. My line, I had to say in some of my McDonald's fries.

You were ordering them?

I was at a movie theater. We were watching a movie about McDonald's and then get my- Were you watching a McDonald's movie? No, we were watching a movie about something, and they were running. I don't even remember, but he said, I could go for a Big Mac. Yeah, I think the movie they were watching. And then I said, It's a McDonald's fries.

What do you remember about being on the set? You know how sometimes you can remember the feeling when you're shooting something? Were you nervous?

I was nervous, yes. I was nervous. I remember I was like, I don't know if I like my hair because they did these rods. But then I look back and I'm like, That hair was just fine. I thought everyone was going to recognize me. I thought that commercial was going to air. I was outside like this.

You were like... Waiting. Waiting for people to be like, The Fries, girl. There she is. Did you just do a McDonald's commercial?

Not one.

Nobody. But that's a big get. It was a big get. That is a big get. And it ran for It did.

It ran for... You remember how they had to pay for your cycles? I think I made over 30, 40,000, 30,000.

Yes. Back then, you could make...

You could live. And there were some people who made... But I think I made 30.

Yeah. If you could get a commercial and it could run and-Yeah, your residuals were nice.

Yes.

It's It's been really interesting to look at your range like we talked about. I mean, you have done all different kinds of work. You've been in big, huge franchise.

Can I interrupt? Yes. I love this woman. No, I want to say that. You know what? No, I have to say it because I have to say how profoundly inspiring you are. That's across all cultures, races, You know that, too. Thank you for saying that. In terms of comedy, yeah. Because it's like, whenever you say Amy Poehler, it doesn't matter. We all know who it is. When I would watch you, and and Tina, I'd be like, They're beautiful. They're funny. And so you're always looking at people who you admire. I think also how much fun they're having, right? And so whether it's conscious or subconscious, and Maya, Rudolf, who's also hilarious, but To see women be so funny and so beautiful and yet not vain because you can't really have that right when you're doing comedy. You got to be like, you can't be like... I don't know, but that was profoundly impactful and inspirational. I don't even think without me knowing it at first. Then it became like, Oh, my goodness, I love them.

Well, thank you for saying that. It does mean a lot because I have followed your career and been so impressed by how genuinely and deeply funny you are. You are really funny. Also, you have played incredibly subtle, grounded, interesting characters, including the film that you're in, the new Paul Thomas Anderson film that you're in that we'll talk about. You are playing deep, complex characters and also getting to swing the other way. That's very inspiring because it's very hard to not be just limited or to come in through the comedy door and never leave that way? Yeah, it is. Have you found that to be... Did that happen in the beginning, when you were doing more comedic stuff?

Did you I think after a scary movie. The interesting thing with scary movie is after a scary movie, then it was like, Oh, she only does broad comedy. So then you have to say, Well, can you get a grounded... And a lot of them, I mean, a lot of stuff you don't get, right? Isn't there tons?

Well, I'd be curious because I was thinking, what is Regina when you were... We all have this thing where we get scripts sent to us or parts sent to us, and we scroll down see what people are thinking about us. Sometimes it's like, okay.

My first job I got was a stripper, and I just was like, I'm going to get inundated. I haven't been asked again. I'm offended. I'm serious. I literally was like, watch. I do remember I had an agent. I love her so much. Her name is Jamie. And she said, We've gotten a foreign film for you. I haven't read it yet, but we just got the offer. This was after Scary Moving. And I was like, oh, gosh, I'm international. And this is before emails. And remember when you had to pick your scripts up?

Oh, yeah. Physically go to someone's house.

I physically went to the agency and it was in the bin because I wasn't at the point where they were messengering them to me. I got the script and I remember it. It was Playa Haters, which she was reading as Playa, the Beach. No. Yes. Playa Haytiz. Playa Haytiz. That's what she said to me on the phone. And I said, It's Playa Haters.

She was like, So it doesn't hit a place on a beach?

No, and it's not a foreign film. It was like, I was nothing foreign about it. And so I didn't end up doing Playa Haitas. Playa Haitas.

Playa Haitas.

It's a foreign film. She was so excited, too. Jamie, no.

Do you feel like after Scary Movies, were you getting a lot of the same stuff offered to you?

Probably more broad. Yeah, definitely.

I was laughing because I was like, I bet Regina and I would be in a movie where we'd be playing the stereotypical version. Because I still, to this day, someone's like, We thought of you. We think it's great. I'm like, okay. I read the part and I'm like, I know. I know. One of those characters that is just usually very like, let me speak to the manager, very nuts, and very like, get her out of here. I know. I feel like we would probably be cast in a movie where we would be- I'd be the one that you wanted to speak to the manager over.

I'd be like, they'd always have it. Like, there's some hood check, and she's always like...

Yeah, and I would be like...

Totally. Because you just can't do that all this. You're like, what else? Versions of that. Okay.

Well, that leads me to my question. So we do this thing on the show where we talk well behind someone's back. We try to find out more about them, see people that know them. And so we talk to Andrew Rannals today.

Hi, baby daddy.

I heard you have twins together. Dawn and Dawn. We have two.

We don't know where are our kids. Dawn and Dawn. I love Andrew. I love Andrew.

I know. What do you love about him?

He makes me smile. He makes me laugh. He's funny, so talented. But he's just such a nice human being. I love Andrew. I knew he was my baby daddy from the first moment I saw him.

Yeah, I know. I can tell you I'm in a special connection with him.

I love Andrew. One day we did a scene and I said decad instead of decade, and it was late. And then every time we had to do it over and it would come to the word, we couldn't say... You know how that happens? You get the giggles and we couldn't stop. I have I have a clip of that. Deckard. Deckard. And I was like, it was just we couldn't stop. And he was like, Don't look at me. And we couldn't do it. We couldn't do it.

We had to break. He loves you, and he loves working with you, loved working with you. And you guys work together on Black Monday Yeah. And he talked about... One of the questions is what we're talking about now, because whether it's girls trip or love and basketball or one battle after another, your new film, you've done big budget, you've done small independence, like support the girls, you've done scary Movies, you've done big and Small, D dramatic and comedic. And he was just saying, I want to ask Regina, does she feel like she's the architect of this? Or does it feel like part of a a bigger flow? Are you feeling like you're adjusting the dials on those all the time, or are you just seeing what's coming up next?

I mean, at a certain point, you have more options, right, in your career. I would love to say I was an architect. I think it was probably accidental because in the beginning, you said yes.

Yeah, totally.

I got a job. When does it start? With this plan. If that would have been my first offer, I would have been there. So it's been like...

I know. It is funny in retrospect when people say, What made you make that choice? And it's like, they just made it ask.

I know. And it went well. But that's how it was. I mean, Scary Movies was a little... I think Best Man in the Love. Scary Movies was different because I was a huge fan of the weigh-ins, and I really wanted to work with Keenan. And then that just ended up having... But I will say for the beginning, it was an accident. Everything was an accident.

When that movie comes out and it's a huge hit, you've been in a couple of films that are just like, giant hits right away, Scary Movies, Girls Trip, where you're just on this train. What does that like to just do something and then suddenly it's like, Oh, we've got a franchise.

I don't know. I'll ask you this. Nothing necessarily feels like that in real-time. Yeah, that's right.

It's like what's discussed later.

Yeah, it's later. I think in real-time, it came out. It did well. I was like, That's great. But I did die in the first one. That's right. I didn't expect to come for the second one. It was like I didn't have a deal.

Remind me how they got you back after you died?

It was a near-death experience. They described it as a near-death experience. Then I became psychic, but I really wasn't psychic at all. Brenda just swore she was psychic. But I think, yeah, that was like... It's like, you don't know who knew. I mean, and that was- Did you feel that way about Girls Trip, too?

Which, I mean, I couldn't remember when came out. Tracy Oliver, who I got the pleasure to work with. We produced a show together called Harlem. Oh, yes. For a couple of years on Amazon. I love that. And Tracy's- Megan. Yes, Megan. And Tracy's so talented. I just remember that feeling very exciting when that was a big hit. What was that experience like?

That was great. I will say this. This is going to sound crazy to many people, but my dog got really sick right before, and my dog passed four days after Gorship came out, and he had been really sick. And I loved my dog, Zuz. So it was a bit of a blur. I was very sad. I was very sad because I had lost my little fat little baby. He was a little Bulldog. And so I was very happy it did well, I remember, because at first I was like, I think I was I think the girls were a lot more optimistic. I was like, Should we be coming out in the summer? That was my thought. I was like, against... I mean, not like he's very talented, but Chris Nolan and Dunkirk. I was like, we're coming out the same day.

But sometimes that counter programming can really work.

Sometimes. And I guess at that time it did. I guess because I'm a Nolan fan, so I was not... So, yeah, it It was great.

But sometimes you've had a day and you're just like, I can't go see Dunkirk today. You're like, I can't do it. My day was Dunkirkian. Yes, right. And I need to laugh.

Yeah. I don't need Dunkirk again.

Yeah. Because I remember Tina and I did a movie called Sisters, and it came out against Star Wars. And so it was like, I have a film I'm coming out in, an animated film.

Spongebob?

Yeah.

Yes. And that's coming out the same day as Avatar. So I was like, that's- But I like that programming.

I like that because- Tell me how, because I don't understand that. Tell me, I like it.

You like an avatar?

I like an avatar, Spongebob. Choice because to me- Because I feel like I would take my kids to see Avatar as well. Dude, how much Avatar are we going to get?

But the thing is, this is the last Avatar. That's what they say. So you got to go see it, but he hasn't filmed anymore, and It takes like- I mean, is it the last avatar?

Yeah. I mean, how many times we get fooled by that?

Right. That's true. The last avatar. I feel safer now.

And I don't know. And that one, it's going to take so long. That's the other thing because movies are so long.

Well, Spongebob is only... It's short. I mean, 96 minutes. You're in and out. Of course it is because it's hilarious. Yeah, it's in and out.

And it's in and out. But I mean, when you see... The other thing is like, what do you... I could only go to that movie starting at four o'clock. There's no way I'm going to go to an 8: 00 movie of Avatar.

But of Spongebob, aren't they sleep by then to the kids? You got to get them in and out of there by 12: 00, 1, 2, 3.

Yeah, Spongebob, you got to do like a 6: 00 PM, probably. A 6: 00 PM.

But I think are you going to get a lot of adults? That's a good idea because...

Going to Spongebob.

But don't you think those adults would see Avatar, too?

Not this adult.

So we got one, everybody.

I'm going to say it right now, and I'm sorry if I'm going to cause problems. I'm not going to see the new Avatar. I'm not. I'm not I don't...

I'm not going to see it. Well, we're not on IMAX, anyway. So the avatar took the IMAX, so we're going to be on- Also, I don't like IMAX. Yeah, those big theaters.

That is so intense. It's too loud.

Well, we're coming out. One battle after another is coming on IMAX.

Okay, except for that.

Right. Yeah, that one.

Okay, but so before I get to that movie, because it looks so great. I mean, Paul Thomas Anderson is just such an incredible director, and your cast is incredible. But I want to talk about award shows because you and I, we've both hosted stuff.

I love, yes.

I love when you host. And I love when you host. You are so good at it.

Well, I mean- What do you like about doing it? I mean, I don't know that I do. I know what you mean.

It's hard. I know what you mean. It's hard, and it's a little bit of diminishing returns. Like, the more you do it, like when you pull it off the first time, you're like, We did it. They want it again. They are like, Come back and do it again. It's like, I don't know if I should do it.

Although you all have managed to do repeat performance and honestly be amazing each time. Thank you.

Right back at you. I feel like you have something that hosts need that you just can't teach, which is you have to be a little ambivalent, a little relaxed. You can't care too much about it.

No, because people can feel that.

I know. They can feel it in the room. They can feel it in the room. What do you do to keep that vibe going or fake that vibe when you're out there doing it?

I don't know. Let me ask you if you feel this. You're nervous, but once the curtain goes up, you're like, Well, here it is. Yes. There's nothing you can do. At that point, it's like that breast exam. It's on. The shirt is off.

We got to do it. Let's get through it.

The machine is open. We got to slap them one in there. I think it just... I mean, you got to feel that what you've got is enough. I think that's what it is. You've got to just feel like, Well, what I have is enough. Because I always feel like the minute you feel like you panic, that's when it's going to be your hardest.

You are a host, whether it be you're having a dinner party, whether you're having a wedding, whether you're hosting the BT Awards, whatever is the thing. If you're having fun, and you set the tone, people relax. But to your point, if you... I mean, you are hosting the Academy Awards during a very year, the year of the slap, very stressful, you and Amy and Wanda. You guys had to handle this crazy live thing. Are you the performer when something like that happens where you How do you adjust? Do you just try to stay in your body? Do you disassociate? What do you do? How do you adjust when those things happen?

It was wonderful to have them and not be doing that alone. And they were great. I think you just start like, the show must go on. I think there's just something about the show must go on mentality that you just are like, it is here we go. Because at that point, you are thinking of your audience. You want your audience to continue to enjoy the show. And that's the thing about a live show. Anything can happen anyway when you're doing anything live. So I think you have to just always be prepared for that. Totally. Whatever that ends up being, you just ride it out.

Yeah. I mean, it's a skill. It's a skill to be able to do that and to not let things throw you. And you're so good at pivoting in real-time, like whether you're accepting for Kevin Gostner in real-time, which was amazing, like a beautiful poem and an incredible- That is my fault because they said, Regina, you should read this backstage.

I was like, No, I got it. I was like, No, I got it. I didn't realize what they had written. I think it was that discovery in real-time.

It was very human and very lovely because you were accepting for Kevin Costner, who wasn't there at the time, because he was dealing with weather in Santa Barbara, which was real. Yes, which was real. Destructive weather that people were... And you were, of course, doing what anyone would do, which is doing this fun, gracious light tease to the person who won until you realized mid-sentence that you're like, I see this is more seriously. And it was a beautiful pivot. Do you remember, I forget what award show it was. Maybe it was the Emmys and Jimmy Fallon's prompter went out. Do you remember that? No.

Yes.

He handled it so well. He just was like, Hey, I can't read the prompter, and he just rifted for a second. And I thought, Oh.

Oh, I do remember that.

He just made a thing about it. And I remember for hours after just lying in my room thinking, That is a living stress stream that you would just walk out to all these people and just the prompter would go out.

And the prompter, I know. And even for two seconds because it's like the beginning. It's right when you are like, I need to engage them. I'm letting them know what this night is going to be like, and then you don't have a prompter.

Back to dentistry. Have you ever had dreams that your teeth fall out?

No. Have you?

You haven't? I've never had that dream. It's a very typical stress stream that you go to talk and your teeth fall out.

Oh, my God. I'm stressed thinking about it.

I know. I'm sorry to bring it up. What would be a typical stress stream for you?

I probably am not sleeping if I'm not stressed. I think that's what Are you a good sleeper?

I love to talk about sleep.

I love sleep. Here's the thing. I love sleep. I want more of it.

Okay, let's talk about how to get you there.

Okay.

What's your bedtime?

Well, there's the answer. Too late? It's too late. There's a lot to do sometimes when I get home.

Okay.

Or it's that last Dateland episode that I've never seen, and I want to get that last one in.

You cannot watch a Dateland. To feel good. At night. What happens? Well, it's just bad for dreams.

Oh, I have great dreams. Okay. A lot of times it's spouses. Have you seen that? Have you noticed that?

That is true. I was talking about this with Zarna Garg a couple of weeks ago on this podcast. Love Zarna. That women who are... I think Zarna is great. That women are married are much more likely to die earlier. To get murdered? And yes, to get murdered.

You mean from stress? Oh, yes. But it shortens your life if you're married.

You know that. Yeah.

Sucks it right out. Because you're caretaking and you're thinking of... And a lot of times women, they're nurturing, so they're giving so much. But the men, they fare better.

They do. A man lives longer.

That's why I don't even know why you all don't want to get married. You all should be begging to run down an altar. Like, literally.

Yeah, right. Men should know that it's going to add. They should do a very... There's all these podcasts and books and classes of maximizing your potential. They should just do it about getting married. They should just say, You get married, you live five more years.

They say, Eighty-six % of the most successful men are married. Just saying. They need that grounding. They need that home base. And women don't. No. No. Because they find it in friendships. You know what I was saying? And tell me this, anyone else in here? Have you noticed that men... Oh, there was a study. If you ask men who their best friend is, most of them say their wives. And if you ask a woman, she's really got her friends. She's like, Lisa, Amy. They really have it. For men, it'll be their wives. I do feel like women have tribes.

We're in our 50s, right? So we're in the middle. I thought we were in the 30s. Were we in our 30s? Wait, let me check.

Yeah, we are. 39.

39? Yeah. We are in the watery middle.

We're in the watery middle.

Water is so important. Water is a sponsor. It is. Water. Please, Don't go. Don't go. Water, don't go. Do you worry about... Are you a...

Totally in the climate change, yes.

Yes. Are you a prepper? Do you think about... No.

Okay. Totally aware, and I'm like, Fuck it at the same time. Yeah, I know. Because I'm like, What can I do? I can't live in the stress of it. But I'm aware enough to be like, If there is something that can be done, I will do it.

If there was a zombie Apocalypse, let's just say.

Oh my gosh, take me out. I can't live in buildings. Just take me out. I'm going to go at some point anyway.

I feel exactly the same. I would just be like, Let me be the first to go.

Don't bite me because I don't want to be alive and dead. But just somebody just run me on over. However, whatever is the quickest way. But I don't want to just survive. I haven't slept. Amy, get up. I hear something. You've got a gun. We've got one candy bar between us that's got to last for 10 days. No.

We should do a zombie movie where the two of us immediately get killed. First act.

We're trying to get killed. The whole movie, no one will kill us. Can't even get bitten by a zombie.

That was a good idea. I know because I feel... But what are you in a crisis? Because I'm I'm not going to be projecting you. I feel like you'd be very level-headed.

I think I'm pretty calm in a crisis. At least most crisis. But I have a metaphobia, so it depends on that crisis I'm not great in.

Let's talk about that. I love a phobia.

Do you have any?

I don't think so. I don't have a real phobia. I think I have intrusive thoughts that maybe is phobia-adjacent, fear of stuff. But I don't have an actual fear of clowns. I don't love clowns. That's just the big one. You don't. I don't mind clowns. I don't love them. I definitely don't want to be around a clown, but I wouldn't scream in any way. Really? And why? It's a lot. I don't like any people that are performing- Clown stuff. Clown stuff. But I respect them, and I wouldn't scream if I saw one. But a metaphobia is...

Well, I have two phobias. Excuse me. Ametaphobia.

Ametaphobia.

Yeah. And then claustrophobia. Ametaphobia is a fear of throwing up. Yeah.

If someone throwing up, are you throwing up? I have some friends who have that. We won't talk about it anymore because it makes people stressed. For people listening, we won't talk about it. But it's real.

It's real. And so it's claustrophobia.

Okay. And so claustrophobia, how does that manifest in your everyday?

You know what? I only am claustrophobic if I can't get out. So I can do a small space if I can get out of it. But if it's a small space and I'm like an MRI, I got to know I can scoot out.

But you can't in an MRI.

Exactly. That's why I can't do those.

So do you take a night-night pill when you do that?

No, I do the open MRI. There's an open one? Yeah, which is wider. Which is wider. Where you can scoot out. You can scoot out. I don't let them leave me alone. Yes. They have to sit in there with me, and then I have to talk to them. They have to talk to me.

And are you feeling... Do you have a sense of where your claustrophobia came from?

I remember it starting when I got a facemat. What do you call those?

Facial? Not a facial. I know exactly what you're talking about. So actors often have to get a plaster cast of their face. And it is terrifying.

I didn't have it before that I remember, but I remember when they were both on me, plastering me. Yeah. Plastering my face.

I know. Neither sounds good. It's a very weird thing.

I keep trying to make it sound better.

It's a very weird thing that people don't know, which is a lot of actors have to get, especially if you're doing any prosthetics. Yes. I'm sure makeup artists have made it better and better and easier. But back when we were doing it, it was like stick two straws in your nose.

Yeah, and they do your mouth and then they're padding you, and your ears are covered, and then they're trying to go fast, and then it has to harden. That's right. Then once it hardens, they can remove it. The thing wasn't that. I just was like, what if a fire comes, they forget about me and run out?

Wait, this is a really interesting thing your brain is doing.

My brain creates scenarios.

It wouldn't be the fire, that would be the problem. It would be that you've been left alone.

I've been left and I can't get the thing out. That's a good anxiety.

That's what happens to me. Okay, so I do want to talk about one battle after another because you've worked with a lot of great directors. Paul Thomas Anderson is- Yeah, amazing. His films are really amazing.

Yeah, he's my favorite.

What was it like to shoot it? It was shot in all in LA. All in LA.

All different parts of California. Not LA, California. It was great. It's wonderful to... I mean, the cast is amazing.

How did you like working with Leonardo DiCaprio?

Well, the thing with Leo is he's not very experienced. He's green. So when you're working with- You were like, Oh, no, sweetie, that's crafty.

That's crafty. That's not set. Exactly. Honey, you went the wrong way.

No. Yeah. I had to do a lot of that. No, that's the lens. Don't look into it because he was doing a lot of that. Once we got past that, though, he was great. He was great. He was great. Now, it was sad, but it was also sweet. It's endearing.

Tender. Yeah.

And he's got a lot riding on this because he's never had a big movie. No.

Yeah. Oh, he He is. Then you're making another scary movie. Making another scary movie. Which is a perfect example of your career. You have this prestigious, very intense, and then you're going to go do that dumb fun because I imagine it's real big dumb fun.

Oh, my gosh. Yes. Yeah. Yes, it is. That's fine. I think for us, it's like, Well, let's see how far we can push humor in 2025. That's a big thing. But the great thing is you get it Yeah, that's right. That's what comedy... That's where it lives, right? Getting at everybody. I think so.

I mean, I asked this of all my guests, but what are you- Why do I have an urge to do this? What is it called? It's called... What's the word when you... Misophonia. So I don't think it's a phobia. I think it's a phonia. I don't know what's the difference. But yeah, misophonia is when you can hear- Wow.

Can you look up the difference between phobia and phonia? Maybe I have I have phonias.

I have a laptop here.

And she is part of that generation like myself of a pre-technology.

That's right. Where I slowly type things in.

Now, if this were years ago, we would be going to the microfeesh.

Remember microfeesh? Yes. Okay. Misophonia is a condition where specific sounds... This is a condition. So it's audit? Where specific sounds trigger intense negative emotional such as anger, annoyance, or anxiety. I don't know if it's intense, but for example, if I'm listening to a podcast and someone needs to take a drink of water and they're really dry mouthful. You can hear it. Not only can I hear it, but I really can't listen to the person.

You must have an incredible ear.

I have a good ear, and I can hear things pretty well.

Now look up phobia and just see what that definition is.

Phobia. Let's see what the Latin word of phobia is. Phobia. Phobia meaning?

What if I was like, phobia?

In an extreme or irrational fear or aversion to something.

So it's fear, and the other one is anger and disgust. Yeah.

But just about sounds. Because like, phonograph and phonia. Yes, that makes sense. But you want to know what causes phobia?

What?

It's genetic predisposition, environmental factors, and traumatic experiences. So there you go.

That experience of that thing, of that face thing. I also was like, they could be doing anything. I can't see. I just heard fingers and then I could have been ass up in 30 seconds. Not that I thought that. I didn't think that. But if I think about it now, anything could have happened. They were very nice, both of them.

Treatment is CBT, exposure therapy, medication.

I How are you going to... I just have to get in small spaces, claustrophobia, and then just be forced to send sitting there, huh?

So you don't like to get smushed?

I love getting smushed. I don't mind getting smushed. I just need to know I can get out. If you put me in a small closet and I know it can't get locked, then I can get in there.

Yeah.

I can get in an elevator just fine unless the elevator gets stuck.

Oh, has that happened?

One day I was panicking. I just hadn't hit the open button. Because you know?

If the doors don't open, it's very stressful. Yeah. Yeah.

And I was like, because it's the can't get out part. It's not the actual. Because I can do... Can you do roller coaster rides where you get strapped in?

Okay. I can do them. I don't feel a phobia from them, but I hate being shook that much. Like the shaking... I don't do roller coasters. I feel it's too much- Where is it shaky for you? Just the... I don't... Like a roller coaster to For me, I get nauseous. I feel all dizzy. It's not worth it for me. The feeling of... I love them. You love them.

I get on them and I want to get off. When it's going, Chick, Chick, Chick, Chick, I'm like, I want to get off. I want to get off. As soon as the first drop happens and I make it, I'm like, now I can't enjoy it because I worry about someone throwing up on it.

But if roller coasters are a way to shake it up, what is—and I asked my guest this, what is something that you're listening to, watching? Where do you go to laugh? Because I know you love to laugh. You have a great sense of humor. You're deeply funny. Who makes you laugh?

I have comfort watches. I've seen Sleepless in Seattle and When Harry Met Sally 5,000 times. Yeah. And Heartburn. I like Laura Hepburn. Isn't it?

I love Heartburn.

Heartburn is not talked about enough.

Meryl in that movie. Oh, my God.

Jack, they're so good together. Jack, stop. You wanted it to work. What about when she had that pregnant belly and then that little baby and she had to sing and she had to leave? I think that movie is not... I don't know if it's underrated, but I say it's underrated because- I think you're right.

It is so good. Check out Heartburn, everybody.

Check out Heartburn.

It's so good.

And it's so honest. When she came back, even You know what I loved? The delivery scene when he was talking to her and he cried and you were like, It's going to be different. And they had the baby. He was right back out there. He was right back out there in 10 minutes just doing him. He couldn't even. Until she couldn't do it anymore.

No. People are complicated.

People are complicated. It's not good or bad, but it is, Can I stand it? There was a little bit of her that was too compromised in that film, in that story, or Efron's story. I love Heartburn. Even in the beginning when it was like, should we get married? Remember behind when she had the cold feet?

Yes, so good. So human. And so funny.

She's funny, too.

Oh, Meryl's so funny.

I mean, Meryl's everything.

Meryl?

Meryl. I mean, there's no words. Meryl rub on us. Meryl rub up on us. Yes, just rub on us. I mean, love Meryl. That was a great one, though.

Well, I have to say, Regina, it's It's been so great talking to you, and I have to say that the Catholic Church's loss has been our gain. I really appreciate you doing this. Thank you so much for coming. It's so great to talk to you. I know.

It's so great to talk to you. I know.

I'll see you on another dance floor, hopefully soon.

Yeah, absolutely. Okay.

Thanks, honey. Thank you so much, Regina Hall. You are awesome, and it was so great to talk to you and so fun. And today's Polar Plunge is presented by BMW Certified. Visit bmwusa. Com/certified-pre-owned to learn more. For this plunge, I want to talk about a film that we mentioned briefly that Regina was in, but it's just great if you get a chance to check it out. It's called Support the Girls, and it was 2018. It was just this slice of life indie film about a bunch of young women working at a sports bar. Regina is just so great in it. I just wanted to take the plunge moment to remind you to check that out wherever it's streaming. Just a fine example of Regina at her best doing big, hilarious moves and deep, grounded dramatic acting. Check that out. But don't forget that today's Polar Plunge was presented by BMW Certified. In a world full of uncertainty, BMW Certified pre-owned vehicles are the real deal. They come with a BMW Certified Warranty, genuine BMW parts, and an additional three years of 24/7 roadside assistance. Learn more at bmwsa. Com/certified-pre-owned. Bye. You've been listening to Good Hang.

The executive producers for this show are Bill Simmons, Jenna Weis-Burman, and me, Amy Poler. The show is produced by The Ringer and Paperkite. For The Ringer, production by Jack Wilson, Kat Spillane, Kaya MacMillan, and Elea Zanaris. For Paperkite, production by Sam Green, Joel Lovelle, and Jenna Weis-Burman. Original music by Amy Miles.

All I ever wanted was a really good hang.