Larry, your character and Bryan Cranston’s have been friends for decades, and we see the comfortable rhythms of that relationship in their first scene together. How do you create that chemistry of a long-term friendship?
LW: Well, it’s great because I already knew Bryan Cranston. When I was doing “The Bernie Mac Show” and he was doing “Malcolm in the Middle,” and they were in a studio and we were in a basement. I used to see him all the time and we became friendly. But he is such a great actor, that relationship just happens. I didn’t know Annette Bening. But here’s somebody who is so fantastic, she creates a relationship like that. You’re the putty in her capable little hands. And you just go, “I feel like I already know these people as characters.” You don’t really have to do that much work when you’re working with such talented cast.
How are your math skills? Did you understand the loophole Jerry discovered?
LW: I was a math guy growing up. I was taking calculus as a sophomore in high school. But I stopped there and said, “Okay math, you’ve done your job, we’ve had enough of it.” I do like puzzles. My brain always likes to figure things out. And maybe the way that I write, too, is like figuring that puzzle out. And producing is like that a lot. When people say, “Larry, do you like performing or producing more?” I would say producing because it’s figuring out the puzzle, putting those pieces together. “That’s the right scene. Let’s put that there.” And that appeals to my mind really a lot.
Have you ever bought a lottery ticket?
LW: Do I live in the United States of America? Of course. A lottery ticket? I think the proper question is, “Larry, how many lottery tickets do you unsuccessfully buy?”
RW: I think I bought maybe a dozen lottery tickets in my life, and maybe a half dozen scratchers. And I’ve never won a penny. So, I’ve given up on that and any kind of gambling.
I was going to ask you how many winning tickets you’ve bought.
LW: I’m very fortunate. I am luckier in what I have chosen to do for a living than I would if I had chosen to place my money in a bet.