Yeah, I get it. It’s an issue. I do think that [acting] is an art form, so I don’t think there’s any hard and fast rules. A lot of it’s just vibe and context as well as the overall project’s mission statement, and who else is playing what in that movie.
Let’s talk Daily Show—you joined well before Jon Stewart returned to the program. What was your first meeting with him like?
I had met him years ago at the Comedy Cellar when I first took the job, and he had just left. I remember telling him, “I’m such a big fan of yours and I’m a new correspondent on The Daily Show.” And he said, “Oh yeah, I’ve heard good things about that show.” [Laughs]
He was always very friendly to me outside of The Daily Show, but I didn’t know he was going to come back this year. The day you found out is the same day I found out! But it’s been great. He’s such an approachable sounding board for ideas, and he created the format for modern American satire. So it’s cool to learn from him and see how he does it. When I have creative questions, structural questions, or just very technical questions, he’s always available. He also trusts us to make our own stuff and say what we want to say.
It’s funny to me that he’s never covered a Trump campaign—or a Trump administration—until this year. Since you covered Trump’s first term, did you have any pointers for him?
Oh no, not at all. He doesn’t need pointers from me, for sure! But honestly, it’s not that hard to figure out how to cover Trump, unfortunately. That news dominates the headlines, which I don’t think is a good thing. He’ll say something that’s relevant to the American people in the news, and then you’re kind of forced to talk about it or you’re forced to make fun of the coverage of him. So you don’t really need to study too hard to figure out how to cover Trump.
In an interview with Fresh Air recently, you indicated you weren’t concerned about making fun of Trump since The Daily Show was unaffected during his first administration. This week, we’ve seen ABC News settle a defamation suit and Trump has also sued a pollster affiliated with The Des Moines Register. Do those developments have you feeling differently?