Rob Riggle: Thriving in a Pass Fail World

Comedic actor and Rob Riggle started out with the Upright Citizen Brigades Theater,and now in addition to his improv talents, he’s become known for his work on “The Daily Show” and a list of great movies.  He made us laugh in “The Hangover”, “The Other Guys”, “Step Brothers” and more, and this week, you can catch him in “The Lorax” and “21 Jump Street”.  He stopped by the SiriusXM studios to talk with Ron Bennington about both movies, and his career so far.  Excerpts of that interview appear below.

Ron Bennington: Two big movies coming out, with Rob Riggle. Congratulations, how you doing? 

Rob Riggle: Good, good. Thank you.

Ron Bennington: This is great times for you, huh? With these films coming out one after another?

Rob Riggle: Yeah, it’s weird how it came that way. You film them separately and at random times and they just kind of landed at the same time. Because I had Big Miracle come out a couple of weeks ago, and now The Lorax coming out today and then 21 Jump Street coming out March 16.

Ron Bennington: Now the funny thing, 21 Jump Street, I remember when it was announced, it was like “oooh what are they doing?” and now the buzz is through the roof. Everybody is saying it’s going to end up funniest film of the year. And again, I don’t know what magic Jonah Hill has in his life but it’s just phenomenal how well this kid does.

Rob Riggle: Well I’ll tell you, it’s talent. You can’t take away what’s there. It can’t be denied. He is a widely talented man. He’s funny, creative, supportive. That’s why he’s a great producer, a great writer and a great star.

Ron Bennington: You really get to make films with a lot of people who’ve got real stroke right now. 

Rob Riggle: I’ve been very fortunate. Well I’m fortunate, one, that I’m working but I’m also very fortunate that I work with great people.

Ron Bennington: When you worked with Jon Stewart and you were on that show– it was going so well for you and then you walked away from it. Is that a crazy thing to do? Does it feel nuts?

Rob Riggle: Well the backstory on that is, it wasn’t just “I’m out! Peace!” What people don’t know is, the entire three years that I was on The Daily Show I was commuting long distance to my family who were still in Los Angeles. Three years of separation was enough and we hit that point where I had to go home. And people were like, “why didn’t you just move your family out here?” Well, the way it works, was, when you start at The Daily Show, you start with a six month probationary period to see if it’s going to work. Then you get another six months. So your first year on the show is all probation. Then after that you get a year contract, but it’s only for a year and Comedy Central doesn’t pay a whole lot. So it was very difficult. After SNL I had moved the whole family out to Los Angeles and we just didn’t have the money to get back here. You never knew for the first year, and then the next year…so by the time we got done with the third year, it was like– I’m coming home.

Ron Bennington: Was it weird to walk away from that though when you know it was working so well?

Rob Riggle: Yes and no. I really loved my time there. The good thing was I left on great terms. When I went to Jon and said, “Jon I’ve got to go home”, he looked at me and said, “I don’t know how you did it this long.” He was very kind, they were very nice. They always say come on back any time. You want to hang out, you want to do a field piece, whatever, we’ll play with you, and I did. When I was back promoting The Other Guys, and Will Ferrell was the guest. And I went with Will just to hang out and say hi to old friends at the show.  And Jon saw I was there, cause we were talking before the show. And he started doing a bit with Will and saying, I’ve got to hand it to you, you always do a good job of working with these young actors who aren’t very good. And they showed a clip of me and Will from The Other Guys and Will, being awesome, jumped in and said yeah yeah, this guy was terrible but we did what we could with him. Then Jon wouldn’t let it go, but what he was doing was, wanting me to walk on. I kind of figured it, but didn’t feel like I had license to walk onto a set…

Ron Bennington: Sure…

Rob Riggle: …Till one of the producers came over and said Go! Go! He wants you to walk on. So I walked on, I came in behind them while they were ripping me apart. And they both saw me and froze up, and I go, “what are you guys talking about?” and they go “nothing, nothing” and I said, “okay, I’ll just be over here if you need me.” So he was up for a bit. It’s a warm welcoming place.

Ron Bennington: How great would that have been if they weren’t? And were just like “what are you doing man?”

Rob Riggle: Well that would have been a whole nother bit.

Ron Bennington: That’s the beauty of your comedy. It’s always right there, on a physical edge, and you have this thing down…it’s like the confidence for almost no reason.

Rob Riggle: That’s what I call it. Arrogant ignorance– where you’re just large and in charge and you’re totally wrong.

Ron Bennington: Now did you see that in other people?

Rob Riggle: Oh yeah. When I was in the Marine Corps, you meet certain people that personify that. That’s not everybody. There’s a lot of real amazing people in the Marine Corps– heros– but there’s also some morons.

Ron Bennington: Well it’s like a corporation, but with weapons.

Rob Riggle: It’s a microcosm of society. You have funny– guys that I think are hilarious– in the Marines; you’ve got really intelligent Harvard grad types– you draw the whole spectrum, including idiots, so I could draw from all of them.

Ron Bennington: How many people do you hear from that knew you from the military, in a very non-comedic way, obviously.

Rob Riggle: Oh everybody I served with. But I loved everybody I served with. I had good people and I always had good working relationships and we were very good about accomplishing our missions and taking care of our business.

Ron Bennington: Now being an alumnus of UCB, your pictures are everywhere over there.

Rob Riggle: Well that’s where I started, the Upright Citizens Brigade theater. I have such a passion and affinity for that place because it’s like a second home for me. I spent seven years there, doing shows for free. Well I say free but I got what I got out of it which is unbelievable stage time and an unbelievable education in sketch comedy and improv and everything comedy related. I mean, I was so lucky. Cause when I started at the UCB was when they first got to NY and they didn’t even have a theater. They were renting space at space at Solo Arts or some place that should have been condemned. And Amy Pohler was one of my teachers. She was one of the original four. So I had Ian Robert, Matt Walsh, Matt Besser and Amy Pohler were my teachers. To have those guys– they’re like the kings and queens of comedy. And to have them as my teachers was such a great gift.

Ron Bennington: It’s just amazing now, because when I was growing up it was Second City, and then it was stand ups, but now I really do feel like UCB is the one pushing so many great people out.

Rob Riggle: It really does. Cause it sets up a great environment. The guys that I did improve with at the UCB, I still do improv with at the UCB in LA every Wednesday night. We do a show called Facebook and we just get up there and play and have fun. It’s a great show. We love to exercise those improv muscles and just get up there and do it. And I wouldn’t trade it for anything. And all those guys that I started with, the ones that stuck it out, they’re all doing very well right now.

Ron Bennington: That’s the type of comedy of how do I help the piece, how do I help the other people. Whereas stand up is, how can I make my friends look like shitheads?

Rob Riggle: I do both now, and I’m newer to the stand up game, cause I came up doing improv and sketch. Improv is much more ensemble, and supportive. You serve the comedy. Your only mission is to serve the piece. If that means I’m the straight guy– I’m the straight guy. I don’t come out and say a joke just for a joke’s sake cause that would ruin the scene. I come out to support the scene or I don’t do it. And when you leave the stage, everybody’s high fiving each other, going that was hilarious…. There’s a lovefest and it’s really supportive and feels good. Stand up, you’re an outlaw. You are a lone gunman out there and it is you, a microphone and the audience. So they have to be a little more edgy or cagey, you might say. I get it, you’ve got to be tougher up there.

Ron Bennington: The Lorax is coming out…had you done voice over stuff before?

Rob Riggle: I’ve never done any voice-over for film. I’ve been on American Dad, Family Guy, The Cleveland Show. I’ve done animated tv but never film. So this is my first feature film animated.

Ron Bennington: Was it a big difference? Was it done quite some time ago?

Rob Riggle: We’ve been doing it for a long time. You do these sessions for a long time– for animated you do it over a year, cause they’re building the animation. And sometimes if you improvise in your vocal performance…then they have to go back and redo the animation for it. So they want you to try to stay tight to the script but sometimes you just come up with something that works, and they’re like, oh that was really good (arrgggghhh)…

Ron Bennington: Shit! (laughing)

Rob Riggle: Yeah, shit! We’ve got to go back and redo it. But I enjoyed the process. Animation is great because you can roll out of bed, throw on a baseball cap, roll down to the studio. You don’t have to do anything other than delivering a vocal performance.

Ron Bennington: Are the other actors there with you?

Rob Riggle: No you work solo. The producers are there and the director is there to give you the context. So they’ll say, alright, “you are really angry about this, but in a nervous way,” and you’re like “ alright angry nervous, how do I verbalize that?” and so you just try to do these things, but they’re great because they give you the context. I’m like “why am I so mad?” and they have to say, “well two scenes before, Taylor Swift’s character does this, this or that.” And you’re like, oh I guess I would react that way. It’s a good team.

Ron Bennington: What’s next for you? Are there goals? Or is it just ride this thing?

Rob Riggle: At the beginning of every year I write down goals. Every year I do that and I’ve been pretty good. Last couple years, knock on wood, I’ve hit all my goals.

Ron Bennington: Are they just yearly goals? Or do you do a five-year plan, a ten-year plan?

Rob Riggle: I have longer range goals, and then I have shorter range goals. But every year, when I do the annual goal making….

Ron Bennington: Would any of your goals just frighten us? World domination?

Rob Riggle: Uh, yeah. Attain a nuclear weapon. Some of these I’ll admit– they’re out there. But I would love to get an opportunity to maybe lead, or co-lead in a film. I would love that. So I write that down from time to time. And I would love to be able to write something for television that I could get on the air.

Ron Bennington: It’s really interesting to see how many times Will Farrell was playing really small parts in movies so many times, and gladly, coming in, just stealing scenes. And it’s really funny now to go back and watch them. It was only like ten years ago and you’re like wait, you guys had Will Farrell and you only used him for like three and a half minutes?

Rob Riggle: Well, that’s the way this game works. You’re given opportunities and you make the most of them. And if you do a good job, you get another opportunity. And if you do a good job, you get another opportunity. It’s a final exam every time I go to work. If I fail, maybe I don’t get another chance. But if I pass, I get another chance. It’s a tough game. It’s not for the faint of heart or thin-skinned, but if it was easy, everybody would do it.

Ron Bennington: Two film coming out. You’ve got The Lorax coming out today, and 21 Jump Street comes out Friday March 16. Thanks so much for being in man.

Rob Riggle: Thanks for having me.

Ron Bennington: I’ll see you next time through.

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You can hear this and other Ron Bennington interviews exclusively on SiriusXM satellite radio.  Not yet a subscriber?  You can get a free trial subscription by clicking here.  Find out more about Ron Bennington Interviews here.

You can follow Rob Riggle on twitter @RobRiggle or on his website RobRiggle.com, and get information about his new films @TheLorax and @21JumpStMovie.

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