On the troubled women that his character dates in the show
It sort of became a trend after a couple of seasons. What’s fun to do with this guy on the show is just put stuff in front of him that he can’t resist: Here’s a beautiful woman and she doesn’t seem like a good choice for you, but there you go. I think I’m trying to beat something into his head. …
I like showing a guy deal with bad choices. To me the show wouldn’t be very interesting if I was confronted with all very well balanced women, and then we go and have coffee and everything works out well and maybe we kiss and that’s the end of the episode. That’s not that funny to me. I’ve been playing that game over and over again for a while because it’s still fun for me; that’s why I’m still telling that story of the messed-up woman. It certainly doesn’t represent to me that that’s what women are like. To me it’s funny when people want a show to be an ideal of this-is-what-we-all-feel-is-the-best-version-of-a-woman and –a-man. I’m looking for weaknesses on both sides — it’s fun. But this season, I sort of try to fall in love for real and have a more real relationship.
On the uncomfortable topics of his standup routine
The areas I’m going into are touchy. Maybe there’s a God; maybe there isn’t. Is God divorced? Did God kill his wife? You feel a little sweat on the back of your neck when you get there, but if you stay there for a second, you can find something joyful and funny in it. And it’s such a great thing to go to a scary place and laugh. I mean, what’s better than that? …
I just couldn’t help straying into these areas. It’s a little [mischievous]. I just want to go over there and see if there’s anything there. That’s just always been my nature. … I’m also not afraid of it. I’m not afraid if I go somewhere and I upset everybody. I’ve been there. I guess I was in trouble a lot when I was a kid, so I got used to it. When you’re never in trouble, you can never go to places like that. … I know I can survive everybody being pissed off at me. So when I started going onstage, I realized if I talk about this stuff I might upset people in the room, but it’s worth it because maybe there’s something there.
On building his onstage confidence
There really isn’t a situation onstage that I feel like I won’t know how to handle. There’s some that I know that I can’t overcome. There are things where I’m like, “This crowd is just not gonna like me,” but I also have a plan for that. You have to stay cool. You can’t let them change your plan. … I have that confidence onstage. I know even if I don’t open well, it’ll be OK; even if I lose them, I’ll get them back.
When I was first starting in New York, they had prom shows where they’d fill the audience with kids that were just at their prom and they’re all drunk on limousine booze and as soon as you get onstage, they start yelling at you, before they decide if they like you or not. They boo you when you hit the stage. I used to eat prom shows for dinner. I used to book as many prom shows as I could. First of all, they paid twice as much money — it’s the only time comedy clubs are compassionate to comedians. … But I’ve been onstage with people yelling and booing and throwing stuff at me and I’ve hung in there. I know how to handle that, so nothing scares me now onstage.
On being divorced with two children