Original Cin Q&A: Gail Daughtry and the Celebrity Sex Pass Lynchpins on Hamming with Jon Hamm

By Bonnie Laufer

Interviewing comedy veterans Ken Marino and David Wain is always a chaotic, delightful experience.

While their latest film, Gail Daughtry and the Celebrity Sex Pass, tackles the complexities of celebrity culture, getting the pair to stay on script during an interview proved almost impossible. Between their insistence that the movie is a "serious drama" and the secret to their success, these two longtime friends clearly love to have a good time.

Ken Marino (left) and David Wain (centre) on the set of their latest film.

Bonnie Laufer spoke with Marino and Wain, who co-wrote the script with Wain also directing and Marino performing. Gail Daughtry and the Celebrity Sex Pass opens July 10 across Canada.

ORIGINAL-CIN: Thank you gentlemen for yet another laugh fest. Writing the film, did you always have Jon Hamm in mind as a lead, and if he had said no, did you have a backup?

DAVID WAIN: Well, first, I'm sorry to say that you thought it was a laugh fest. We did not intend there to be any laughs in the film. It was sort of a dramatic piece, an exploration of the intersection between celebrity culture and society. Anyway, we wrote this hoping that Jon Hamm would say yes, because it was literally all about him. But if he had said no, I was going to end my career. I would have been ready to go out to pasture.

O-C: Who would have been your second choice?

KEN MARINO: I don't know who our second choice was. We knew Jon, we've been friends with him, he has a great sense of humour and so we wanted to just take a swing and send it to him. He responded, and then he was like, 'You want me to send it to Slattery?’ And we're like, 'Yeah, of course.’ So, you know, but we did talk about if we did have to go to somebody else, we would have to find, you know, a pairing, because it's all about the pairing, and so that makes it a little bit more complicated. But I'm sure we had a list.

DW: One idea we had was to put John Slattery in the Hamm roll and then get Rich Sommer from Mad Men to play the less famous celebrity.

KM: We were also considering making it with Paul Rudd, and then I would be the lesser one. That was a little too meta.

O-C: Ken, in the film you play a paparazzo who ultimately helps Gail on her mission. Did you have to do a deep dive into the paparazzi world or were you always just bombarded by them your whole career?

KM: No, there was a guy named Norm Felsen who was a paparazzi guy, and I followed him for the last three-and-a-half years, and you know, I stayed, I slept on his couch, and we did all the red carpet stuff and I really got into character. It was a journey, but I feel like you've seen him on the screen. Shout out to Norm!

DW: Wait what (laughs)? For a second, I thought he was serious. How did I not hear about this?

KM: No, I never do any research. I'm too lazy.

O-C: You two go way back, roommates in college at NYU. Why did you connect so well?

KM: When I came to college, I was looking for people who were like-minded, that I could feel connected to. I desperately wanted that. I walked in my first day of college and almost immediately met David and Craig Wedren, who scored our movie. You just feel it when you meet people that you want to try to become friends with, you feel something. There's something that you're drawn to, and so I felt that with David, I felt that with Craig, and honestly, we've been good friends ever since.

O-C: Let's talk about your lead, the wonderful Zoey Deutch. Did you guys always have her in mind, and did she surprise you or impress you in any way?

DW: We wrote the script without any actors in mind, except maybe Jon Hamm. Then, when it came time to find who can handle this very important role — who could ground this and be the leader of this ensemble — we realized that there were very few people that could do this. We approached Zoey and meeting her in person was even more of a confirmation that she's not only this incredibly versatile actress with charisma, but she's just so cool and smart and really got the material immediately. She asked incredible questions and truly got where we were going with this material. It was such a joy to work with her.

O-C: You have so many celebrity cameos, most longtime friends. I can’t imagine anyone saying no to you guys. Did you have a list, or did you just pick up the phone and tell them when and where to show up?

KM: That's pretty much how it works. We have a list and we'll write stuff and then we kind of go who would be good for this. We've been around long enough and have made enough connections and are lucky enough to have very talented and funny friends. So, we just call them up and see if they're available, and then if they said no, they're dead to us.

O-C: The funniest pairing was 'Weird Al' Yankovic and Penn Jillette who ironically didn't say a word, which is what we're used to with his partner, Teller.

DW: Those were both great ‘gets’ and it was amazing how quick and easy some of those asks were! I wrote ‘Weird Al’ an email, saying, ‘You want to come do this thing?’ He's like, ‘Sure, what is it and when?’ With Penn Jillette, I said, ‘Do you want to fly into L.A. from Vegas to sit in a golf cart and do literally nothing?’ He's like, ‘Perfect.’

KM: It's amazing. We were giggling when we came up with that idea. We thought that it was funny that he didn’t say one word. I hope other people enjoy it and get that irony.

O-C: I think the key to your massive success over the years is that you deliver very funny material but you also keep the heart and soul in your projects. David, what's the secret?

DW: It's luck and it's just us wanting to do the best we can. It’s natural to who we are that there are very silly things that we like, but we ultimately also have heart and soul, as all humans do, I guess, and we're just making work that feels right and meaningful to us. We've been very lucky to have many chances to do things without a ton of interference, except for our incredible collaborators and people who contribute. Part of the idea of filmmaking is monitoring that tone and trying to gather all these elements and make it happen.

O-C: This year marks the 25th anniversary of your classic, Wet Hot American Summer. You are going to have an anniversary re-release, but you two as the Middle Aged Dad Jam Band going back on tour. Will you be making a stop in Toronto?

KM: My passport has been taken away from me, so I'm not allowed to leave the country. Sorry about that, Toronto! We would love to come, but we're not. We're doing an East Coast tour right now, so we're not going to make it up to Toronto just yet.

O-C: Ken, Party Down is one of my all-time favourite shows. Do you ever wear that pink bowtie around the house?

KM: Only when my wife and I are alone.

DW: Don’t you wear it with a Speedo bathing suit?

KM: I don't wear the Speedo, just the tie.

DW: Oh. Last time I was over, you were wearing the Speedo.

KM: I did that only for you.