Why Bill Hader isn’t afraid to go too dark in ‘Barry’

Hello! It’s Mark Olsen, film writer for The Times and “The Envelope” podcast co-host.

This week, we’re back for the rest of our Emmys season, and we’re kicking off our nominee interviews with Bill Hader.

“Barry,” which Hader co-created, has once again earned a bunch of Emmy nominations in the comedy series category — an interesting classification considering the darkness of this most recent season. Hader himself has been nominated for lead actor, writing and directing, and those are just a few of his contributions to the show.

During our conversation, we talked about the delicate balancing act of wearing so many hats on set. (To get into the mindset of Barry in a particularly intense scene, he recalls, “I kind of induced a panic attack — which I do not recommend if you’re also directing.”) We also talked about shutting down a freeway for the motorcycle chase in the “710N” episode, how he transitioned from performing on “Saturday Night Live” to what he calls “real acting,” and why he sometimes disappoints journalists when they meet.

(HBO / Robert Trachtenberg)

Listen now wherever you get your podcasts or on latimes.com, where you can also read the full transcript.

Thanks, and happy listening!