[ cheers and applause ] ♪ >> announcer: from 30 rockefeller plaza in new york, it's "late night with seth meyers." tonight -- john cena, star of "the marvelous mrs. maisel", actress rachel brosnahan, comedian and author brian posehn, featuring the 8g band with richard danielson. ♪ [ cheers and applause ] ladies and gentlemen, seth meyers. >> seth: good evening. i'm seth meyers. this is "late night." how's everybody doing tonight? [ cheers and applause ] that is great to hear. in that case, let's get to the news. christmas is less than one week away. and then it's right back to the attic for michael buble.

[ laughter ] according to cnn, president trump is leading the push for a full and rapid withdrawal of u.s. troops from syria. apparently he just found out that syria does not share a border with mexico. [ laughter ] cnn has obtained new documents showing that president trump signed a letter of intent to move forward with negotiations to build a trump tower in russia, despite his attorney rudy giuliani claiming that the document was never signed. said giuliani, "that's not trump's signature. the document was clearly signed by someone named aye yai yai aye yai yai yai!" [ laughter ] [ cheers and applause ] [ light laughter ] senate majority leader mitch mcconnell, today, introduced a bill to fund the

government through february 8th. apparently there was a lot of concern about government employees being left in a lurch over the holidays. and what happened then? well, in whoville they say mcconnell's neck grew three sizes that day. [ slide whistle ] [ laughter and applause ] google has unveiled its list of the most searched celebrities of 2018, with demi lovato topping the list, narrowly beating out the second most searched for celebrity, someone to host the oscars. [ laughter and applause ] that's right. google has unveiled its list of the most searched for celebrities in 2018. and for the 81st year in a row, it's amelia earhart. [ light laughter ] eh. that's about what i expected. [ laughter ] the new york state attorney general's office has issued a report claiming that over one

quarter of all seafood in grocery stores is mislabeled. don't believe me? check out this sushi. [ laughter ] police in iowa were called on a gym teacher this week after she showed up to work so drunk that she had red, watery eyes and smelled of alcohol. sounds like alcoholism was the one ball she couldn't dodge. [ audience ohs ] [ laughter ] you guys, it's christmas. [ laughter and applause ] oh, i'm worried about these next few. [ laughter ] i'm excited and worried. a restaurant in japan has started selling a new line of girls' hair flavored fried chicken. [ audience ohs ] and now, we wait. [ laughter ] i --

we see you ordered the chicken. take a seat. [ laughter ] that's right. a restaurant in japan has started a new line of girls' hair flavored fried chicken. that story again. a restaurant in japan stopped using hair nets. [ audience ohs ] [ laughter ] okay. can't figure you guys out. [ laughter ] finally, scottish parliament yesterday officially changed the name of gingerbread men to gingerbread people. and if you like that, you'll love person fingers. [ laughter and applause ] ladies and gentlemen, we have a great show for you tonight. [ cheers and applause ] you can see him in the new transformers film "bumblebee." our friend john cena is back on the show. [ cheers and applause ] she's starring in amazon prime's "the marvelous mrs. maisel." rachel brosnahan is back, everybody. [ cheers and applause ] she's fantastic. we're so excited she's here.

and he is a hilarious comedian. his new book, "forever nerdy", is available now. brian posehn joins us tonight. [ cheers and applause ] so, you're here on a good one. before we get to any of that, all of president trump's biggest scams are crumbling on him, whether it's his fake charity or his nonexistent border wall. for more on this, it's time for "a closer look." [ cheers and applause ] ♪ >> seth: trump is currently dealing with a truly stunning number of criminal probes. just to name a few, his white house is being investigated by the special counsel, his inaugural committee is being invested for allegedly misspending donations, and his business is being investigated for hiding hush payments to cover up affairs. not even trump's doctor has ever examined him this closely. [ light laughter ] then again, this is trump's doctor. [ laughter ] pretty sure the only thing he ever examined closely is a magic eye poster. [ laughter ] oh, sweet, man. aw, man. oh, it's a sailboat, man. [ light laughter ]

then yesterday, the president was dealt another blow when his personal charity, the trump foundation, was forced to shut down after prosecutors effectively said it acted as a slush fund for trump's personal spending. >> president trump's charitable foundation has agreed to shut down amid an ongoing investigation into its finances. in a statement, the attorney general barbara underwood said, quote, "our petition detailed a shocking pattern of illegality involving the trump foundation, including unlawful coordination with the trump presidential campaign, repeated and willful self-dealing and much more. this amounted to the trump foundation functioning as little more than a checkbook to serve mr. trump's business and political interests." >> the attorney general also alleging trump used charity money to settle personal lawsuits. >> seth: so, trump used his charity to pay for lawsuits which then prompted a lawsuit that ended the charity. at this point he's going to have to start new charity to pay for the lawsuit over the old charity.

they could call it, i don't know, march of crimes. [ laughter ] [ cheers and applause ] he's going to do a 5k walk, but it's just going to be him asking for $5,000 so he can walk. "these lawyer fees are piling up. could you do 6k?" [ laughter ] and of course, as you might remember, it was reported that trump used his charity to buy two portraits of himself. these are real. that is true. he used a charity to buy these. although when it comes to trump portraits, this one is still my favorite. [ laughter ] now, he didn't use a charity to buy this one. which makes sense. because the only person doing any charity here was the artist. [ laughter ] when did donald trump ever look that good? was that right after he got "queer eye'd"? [ laughter ] seriously, though, trump used his charity to treat himself like a make-a-wish kid. "i got a portrait of myself. i got to ride in a helicopter. and i got to meet grimace." [ laughter ]

and then, of course, trump's campaign and his administration are dealing with the russia investigation. yesterday his ex-national security adviser, michael flynn, appeared in court after pleading guilty to lying to the fbi about his contacts with russians. flynn's lawyers initially tried to argue that the fbi tricked him, then they tried to take that argument back. in response, the judge got super pissed. >> the judge then laid into michael flynn, noting that making false statements to the fbi while he was national security adviser sitting there in the white house was a, quote, "very serious offense." he then continued, quote, "i'm not hiding my disgust, my disdain for this criminal offense. arguably, you sold your country out." >> seth: well, i'm no legal expert, but it's not good when a judge says you sold your country out at the sentencing hearing. [ light laughter ] it would be weird if flynn didn't get a harsh sentence after that. "you debased the white house and betrayed your country. and you're going free! merry christmas." [ laughter ] flynn was obviously worried as well and agreed with the judge's

suggestion to delay sentencing until next year. now, flynn might, might at this point be hoping for a pardon from trump. but considering how charitable trump is, he'll probably just end up with this hanging in his jail cell. [ laughter and applause ] "so you can remember me the way i never was." [ laughter ] flynn's botched court appearance -- [ cheers and applause ] flynn's botched court appearance is a reminder that this administration is full of people who are nefarious creeps, but also bumbling doofuses at the same time. [ light laughter ] just take trump's threat to shut down the government. trump wanted $5 billion for a pointless border wall to enforce his racist immigration policies. but he was too incompetent to figure out how to get it. last week, for example, he started out his oval office meeting with democrats by saying it would be their fault if there was a government shutdown. and by the end of it, by the end of the same meeting, he did a complete 180 and said it would be his fault if there was a government shutdown. >> you should not have a trump shutdown. or you'll have -- >> what did -- did you say trump? oh. >> you have a white house.

you have the senate. >> we shouldn't shut down the government over a dispute, and you want to shut it down. you keep talking about it. >> no, no, no, no. the last time, chuck, you shut it down. >> no, no, no. twenty times. >> and then you opened it up very quickly. >> twenty times. >> i don't want to do what you did. >> you said it. >> okay. you want to put that on my -- >> you said it. >> i'll take it. >> okay, good. >> you know what i'll say? yes, if we don't get what we want, i will shut down the government. >> okay, fair enough. >> absolutely. >> we disagree. >> and i am proud. and i'll tell you what -- >> we disagree. >> i am proud to shut down the government for border security, chuck. >> seth: amazing. he started the meeting by calling it a pelosi shutdown and ended it by saying it's my shutdown. can you imagine if he ever does get arrested? "i'm not guilty." "yes, you are." "okay. great, i want to go to jail. [ laughter ] that was my plan. handcuffs? my wrists are freezing." [ cheers and applause ] and then when that didn't work, trump turned to the most sinister member of his white house staff, senior adviser stephen miller. [ thunder ] [ evil laughter ] [ laughter ]

miller is the aide trump turns to when he's desperate. he's like the creepy dude who's always hanging around cersei lannister doing weird experiments on dead bodies. "stephen, build me a wall." "i can't do that my lord, but what if i told you i brought rudy giuliani back to life?" [ laughter ] "but i never died." "quiet, rudy!" [ light laughter ] after trump was outwitted in his meeting with democrats, miller tried to fix things by taking a much more aggressive tack. he went on cbs's "face the nation" and said democrats were endangering national security by not supporting the wall. and he immediately dialed up to 11. >> will he shut it down to get this $5 billion in border wall funding? >> we're going to do whatever is necessary to build the border wall to stop this ongoing crisis of illegal immigration. >> when it comes to a shutdown -- >> the largest increase -- the largest increases -- >> are we going to have a shutdown over christmas? >> as you yourself acknowledged, the largest increases in illegal immigration are categories that are incentivized by loopholes in our laws. and loopholes created by activists, leftwing judges, including the district court.

>> i didn't say that. i said there were a record number happening right now. >> in the categories that correspond with these loopholes, and the interventions, reckless lawless interventions of district court judges. it's time that both parties -- this is what the american people want. to create a lawful system of immigration, not the lawless chaos -- >> stephen. >> that has been perpetuated for too many decades. >> it's good to have you in studio. >> seth: was it? [ laughter ] was it good to have him in the studio? [ laughter ] i mean don't get me wrong, i guess there are worse places to have stephen than the studio. like, say, outside on your balcony during a thunderstorm. [ laughter ] so, after stephen miller's charm offensive didn't work, the white house turned to sarah sanders on tuesday to try yet another tactic. she went on fox news and said both that the white house was negotiating with congress over funding for they border wall and also they already have the money, so they don't need it. >> has the white house communicated to the senate what you're willing to accept -- >> absolutely. >> in terms of the dollar amount for a continuing resolution? what would that number be? >> we have.

we've been in continuous and will continue to have these conversations. >> the president wants $5 billion. would he take two and a half billion? would that be an acceptable number? >> we would take -- we have other ways that we can get to that $5 billion. >> seth: wait, you do? then why are you asking congress for it? and why are you threatening a government shutdown? you're like a loan shark who doesn't need the money back. [ light laughter ] "pay up, or i have to take it out of my own bank account, which i'm more than happy to do." [ laughter and applause ] and now trump and his aides are trying to claim -- trying to claim that the administration already has the money for the wall, thanks to trump's renegotiated nafta deal called the u.s. mexico canada agreement, or usmca. and if you don't know what the usmca is, trump has been going around lately suggesting a way to remember it. >> we're replacing the nafta disaster with a brand-new u.s. mexico canada agreement. it's called the usmca, like the song, "ymca", right?

the u.s. mexico canada agreement, or usmca. like ymca. >> the usmca like "ymca", the song. ymca. ♪ ymc [ laughter ] >> seth: oh, boy. don't let mike pence hear you singing a village people song. [ laughter and applause ] no. [ cheers and applause ] he will attach a car battery to your nads and read to you from leviticus. [ laughter ] seriously dude, you're not the village people, you're the village idiot. [ light laughter ] now, the argument that trump can pay for the wall through a trade deal makes no sense. savings from a trade deal, if there are any, wouldn't go to the government. they would go to businesses. a reporter tried to clarify that with sanders in her press briefing yesterday, but sanders just kept repeating the lie. >> where are the additional monies for this wall going to

come from? and why is he asking the american taxpayer for them when he promised mexico was going to pay? >> look, we're not asking american taxpayers for that. the money that would be saved through the usmca deal, we could pay for the wall four times over. and by doing that new trade deal we have the opportunity to pay for the wall. >> but trade benefits go to private citizens. they don't go to the united states treasury. >> he's talking about the general revenue that comes from that. >> so you're going to tax -- >> no, we're not taxing. we're talking about additional revenue that wouldn't have existed without the president getting a new deal. >> have you done the math on that? >> seth: let me answer that. [ laughter ] no, she hasn't. no one in this administration does the math. if you ask trump, "what's two plus two?" this is what would go through his head. ♪ it's fun to stay at the ymca ♪ >> seth: also, of course the math doesn't make any sense. the only way trump's ever going to get that wall is if he builds it with the portraits he bought with his charity money. [ laughter ] the wall was just like trump's charity, a scam that is now falling apart.

one trump associate after another is pleading guilty to federal crimes. if all these lawsuits work out, trump might have to go live in the -- >> ymca. >> seth: this has been "a closer look." ♪ [ cheers and applause ] we'll be right back with john cena, everyone. [ cheers and applause ] ♪ >> announcer: for more of seth's "closer looks," be sure to subscribe to "late night" on youtube. well the kids wanted a puppy, but they can be really expensive. so to save money i just found them a possum. dad, i think he's dead. probably just playin' possum. there he is. there's an easier way to save. geico. fifteen minutes could save you

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♪ [ cheers and applause ] >> seth: welcome back, everybody. give it up for the 8g band right over there. [ cheers and applause ] also, sitting in with us tonight, he's the drummer from the fantastic rock 'n' roll band vintage trouble, whose latest release "chapter ii - ep1" is available now. for more information, head over to vintagetrouble.com. richard danielson is here everybody. [ cheers and applause ] thank you for being here. our first guest tonight is a wwe superstar and a 16-time world champion. he's also a talented actor you know from such films as "trainwreck," "daddy's home 2" and "blockers." he stars in the new "transformers" spinoff, "bumblebee", which opens in theaters friday. let's take a look. ♪ >> there! get down there now and flush that thing out. [ gunshots ]

>> light it up! ♪ >> damn it. >> seth: please welcome back to the show john cena, everyone! [ cheers and applause ] ♪ >> all right. >> seth: welcome back. >> thank you very much. >> seth: it is always a delight to have you here. the first thing i have to ask you about -- and backstage, it was a little jarring for me as well. this is the first time a lot of people have seen you with hair like this. >> yeah. [ laughter ] yeah, so about that, right? >> seth: yeah. >> for all the machismo and bravado that oozes out of the

wwe and its audience, they're so shaken by a damn haircut. >> seth: yeah. >> guys, i've been rocking an $8 fade for 20 years and i finally decided to grow it out. [ light laughter ] >> seth: yeah. >> i'm sorry to make you uncomfortable. i am. >> seth: yeah. >> i'm sorry. i apologize. >> well, i think they're probably uncomfortable -- it's such a corporate haircut. [ laughter ] like they knew who -- none of us could have guessed what it would look like. >> i'm in a damn three-piece suit, man. >> seth: yeah! [ light laughter ] >> it kind of -- it's the whole clark kent. >> seth: yeah. >> i mean, this is the thing. >> seth: your new wrestling name should be "the cfo." [ laughter ] [ cheers and applause ] >> the finishing maneuver to be "think outside of the box"? >> seth: yeah, think outside of the box. and then, you just toss them out of the ring. >> yeah, man. well, that's 2019 for me. >> seth: there you go. [ cheers ] >> right on. >> seth: so this is a lot of fun. this is sort of an origin story for the transformers. takes place in 1987. >> yeah. >> seth: where were you in 1987? >> so i was -- man, i was 10. >> seth: okay. >> and '87 was a tough year --

>> seth: yeah. >> growing up in new england. >> seth: yeah. >> patriots just got their ass kicked in the super bowl. >> seth: that's right. >> by the chicago bears. >> seth: not even close. >> yeah, i don't know if anyone remembers the 1986 world series. >> seth: yeah, that was -- >> but that was a tough time for the boston red sox. [ scattered applause ] don't, don't -- >> seth: why are you -- what are you doing? >> what, a mets fan? [ laughter ] let a mets fan sneak in here? >> seth: sorry, we have -- >> tore my heart out! [ laughter ] >> seth: that was the worst for me ever, the '86 world series. >> because you're a red sox fan. >> seth: yeah, i'm a red sox fan. >> i have since denounced my fandom. i am a gypsy -- i'm a gypsy fan. >> seth: you are a gypsy fan. >> yes, i go with the winning teams. i like the winning teams. >> seth: see, i hung on until 2004 and that was my sweet release. now i just care less, because it let -- it let me free. >> yes. yes, but '86 was tough. '86 was tough. >> seth: '86 was tough. >> yes. >> seth: and you -- the nice thing about this film is hailee steinfeld, who's a fantastic actress. >> she is. >> seth: she is the hero of this film. >> which i love, because if this film, which takes place in 1987 were to be filmed in 1987, i would be the hero and she would be like the love interest. >> seth: yeah. >> but damn it, we're in a culture nowadays where she could actually be the hero and kick some ass and i can be the bad

guy. >> seth: yeah. [ cheers and applause ] and you -- >> yeah, take that mets fan. i see you over there. >> seth: take that. >> take that! >> seth: yeah. >> i'm even wearing the mets colors. this is a shame. >> seth: yeah, this is -- you did not play this well. >> i'm covered in shame syrup. >> seth: you relish playing the bad guy, which i think are the fun bad guys to watch. >> i don't relish -- >> seth: no, i think you find the fun in it. >> yeah. >> seth: and you come from a world, wrestling, where there's the hero and the heel, and people take that very seriously in wrestling. i think, you know, it's not just you have the wrestlers you root for, you have wrestlers you actively root against. >> yeah. and it's weird with me, because i am supposed to be the hero, but i'm actually the heel. >> seth: yeah. >> yeah, and everybody is like, "man, why don't you just turn bad so you can be cool again?" wait, wouldn't that make me good? [ laughter ] i don't even know! and it's fun to, like, go into the wwe warp zone with those folks. they think i'm supposed to be a bad guy to be a good guy. but aren't i already being a bad guy? just wait, just wait until the debut of the cfo.

[ cheers and applause ] give me those tps supports! >> seth: wow. this really -- this has legs. >> i think it does not. >> seth: it does. you just to wear that into the ring. >> okay, fair enough. >> seth: that's going to be very uncomfortable. >> yes it will. >> seth: you have four brothers? >> i do. >> seth: okay, so -- and you're all pretty close in age? >> yeah, yeah. so oldest is 45, and then i'm 41. and it goes 41, 40, 38, 36. >> seth: okay, and now, is that close enough that you guys were all wailing on each other? >> oh, yeah. and not one person was definitively winning. >> seth: oh, gotcha. >> yes, so, like, any given day, it was a coinflip. because anything was game. i've been chased with a chain saw, with kitchen knives. [ light laughter ] set on fire. there was an incident with a hive of bees. we tend not to talk about that. >> seth: wow! >> mustard was involved. it was weird. [ laughter ] yeah, so that's life growing up in west newbury, massachusetts. >> seth: you had an actual -- you guys built a wrestling ring in your basement? >> yes, so to like corral us from actually not murdering each other. >> seth: yeah.

>> we ended up getting locking ourselves in the basement and creating our own sports entertainment federation. >> seth: and so you're young obviously, but you're doing the thing that you ended up doing professionally. at one point did you think, oh, this might be a career? because i think a lot of people wrestle in their basement don't think this is what i'm going to do. >> i still can't believe they pay me to do this. [ laughter ] jokes on you guys, this is awesome. [ applause ] thank you, thank you. the lesson to be learned out there is love what you do, because if you love what you do, it's never a day at work. so thank you, guys. thank you. [ cheers and applause ] >> seth: i feel lucky in the exact same way. you obviously, this is a -- you know it's a half robot-based film. it's a half car-based film. >> yeah. >> seth: because you're a car guy. >> yeah. >> seth: and your actual -- your first wrestling name was kind of in the realm -- >> oh, boy. i thought we sunk the ship at cfo. >> seth: this was -- somebody gave you this name, yes? >> yes. >> seth: and you were called the prototype? >> i was. >> seth: and was the idea that you were a half-robot? >> the idea was -- i think the slogan was "50% man,

50% machine, 100% mayhem!" [ laughter ] >> seth: the prototype! [ cheers and applause ] >> don't clap for that. you definitely have never seen this if you were putting your hands together. it's like, "man, you owe me 20 bucks." awful. it was awful. >> seth: what was your first car? >> so my first car was an '84 coupe deville which i got at 14 and a half. >> seth: how were you allowed to get a car at 14 and a half? >> oh, you know, i kind of coerced my dad into putting up half the money. and i worked at a very young age. i got my first job at 13 as a youth league umpire. >> seth: oh, wow. i did that as well. >> yes, yes. >> seth: it was really good money. >> yeah, it was. it was a fun time. >> seth: it was great. >> yeah. i was a bit eccentric, but that's another story. totally another story. >> seth: i liked being -- but didn't you -- my favorite thing about it was when you were doing it at 13 and it was like the kids were like 10 or 11. >> yeah. >> seth: and i loved just that authority. >> me too. >> seth: yeah. >> yes. i thoroughly abused it and i owe a lot of people an apology. >> reporter: did you have -- as an umpire, did you have like -- were you happy with your strike three? did you have a good one?

>> i believe you're familiar with the movie called "the naked gun." >> seth: yes. you would use those? >> so when i say i was a bit eccentric -- >> seth: oh, yeah. >> i mean for a little league game, with about 25 parents there. full splits. >> seth: yeah, full splits, yeah. >> and moonwalks. poor 11-year-old kid who's trying to go back to the dugout, i'm so sorry. [ laughter ] so sorry. >> seth: so coupe de ville? >> yeah, but i smoked the transmission before i was 15. so i got rid of the car before i could even drive. >> seth: uh-huh. >> first car i ever bought with my own money, i still have to this day. >> seth: really? >> a 1989 jeep wrangler. it's got 185,000 miles on it. it's an inline-four. it is a dog, but it's beautiful and i'll never sell it. it is not for sale. >> seth: that's fantastic. [ cheers and applause ] hey man, congratulations on everything as always. i know you're about to get back in the ring as well. that's really exciting. >> yes, december 26th! the cfo is back, damnit! >> seth: john cena, everybody. [ cheers and applause ] "bumblebee" opens in theaters friday. we'll be right back with rachel brosnahan. [ cheers and applause ] ♪ sweat.

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♪ [ cheers and applause ] >> seth: our next guest is an emmy and golden globe award-winning actress you know for her work in the critically acclaimed show, "the marvelous mrs. maisel." the second season is currently

streaming on amazon prime. let's take a look. >> so this year, should i go classy? >> the doris day. >> or risque? >> you're mamie van doren. will any other girl bother to compete? >> i wouldn't. >> bring them both, just to be sure. >> you can't bring everything. >> next is clam diggers. >> it's the catskills, you can't have too many clam diggers. >> yes, you can. >> what about picnic dresses? we each have four. should i bring them all? >> there may be four picnics. >> or you can wear the same picnic dress to more than one picnic. >> oh, eddy. >> seth: please welcome back to the show rachel brosnahan, everyone. [ cheers and applause ] ♪ >> seth: welcome back. >> thank you. it's great to be back. >> seth: how's -- it's been such a -- a great year for you since the last time you were here. you won the emmy, you won the golden globe, but on saturday you had one of the biggest things happen. you were impersonated on

"saturday night live." >> yeah. >> seth: and cecily strong did you. and here is aidy bryant as -- as amy sherman-palladino. and -- [ laughter ] you -- you tweeted about it. you seemed very -- were you very excited? >> i still feel that way. >> seth: yeah. >> i'm still making that face. just -- >> seth: and so, did you -- you did not see it live, correct? someone else -- >> no. i was -- >> seth: okay. >> i was abroad and so i was six hours ahead. and everyone i have ever met had sent me a text message by the time i woke up the next morning. >> seth: and then, do you go into it with nerves. because obviously people get impersonated on it. this was done with love. sometimes they're not. >> yeah. >> seth: yeah. >> yeah, absolutely. >> seth: other people were tweeting about "snl" this week and they were less happy. >> they were not so thrilled about that. yeah. [ light laughter ] no. i mean, even if it had been terrible, i feel like i still would have been thrilled. [ light laughter ] >> seth: that's great. that is right way to go into it. one of the coolest things about season two is it opens in paris. and this is not sound stage paris. you guys actually got to go to paris. >> we did. >> seth: i mean was that just so exciting to shoot there? >> it was amazing and so strange

to start the season that way. >> seth: yeah. >> new york is a character in the show. and so to begin season two in paris, we were very confused. but it was amazing. we ate all the baguettes. we drank all the wine. >> seth: yeah. >> and we had a great time. it was like maisel camp in paris. >> seth: you -- you got to shoot a scene where you were doing standup and you had a french translator. what -- how -- that was also fantastic. >> wasn't she amazing? >> seth: she was great, yeah. >> honestly, she's so talented. she came in for this -- it was -- she was actually, she got the job because she did such a beautiful job just reading the part at the table read. and she jumped in. and i didn't think there were very many people out there who can speak as fast as i can, but leslie gave me a run for my money. >> seth: that's good. [ light laughter ] >> in french. >> seth: in another language no less. >> yeah, exactly. >> seth: yeah, that's really -- you also shot in the catskills. >> yeah. >> seth: and there -- i've heard tell that the set in the catskills was haunted. is -- is there truth to this? >> well we heard there was a ghost. it was a very, very old resort. we heard there was a ghost.

thankfully we didn't shoot in the building where the ghost haunted or however that works. [ light laughter ] but we heard some weird -- >> seth: and it's nice, by the way, that the ghost stays to one building. >> that's right. >> seth: and let's you work around. [ light laughter ] >> that's exactly right. we're very grateful to the ghost. we just had some weird stuff happen while we were there. >> seth: so you buy into it? >> well -- okay, so here's the thing. i did not buy into the whole ghost thing until -- a couple of years ago, we shot my final episode of "house of cards" in santa fe. no we shot it in las vegas, new mexico which was about an hour outside of santa fe. >> seth: and it's very disappointing. it could not be more different than las vegas, nevada. [ light laughter ] >> couldn't be -- the first time i saw the sign i really thought we were going to las vegas. >> seth: yeah! >> i was very confused by las vegas. >> seth: my wife's family is from near albuquerque, and the first time i visited you see a sign that says "las vegas, 100 miles." and i thought, here we go. >> so close. >> seth: and then -- [ laughter ] >> it's not the same, no. >> seth: it's not. no. >> las vegas, new mexico, is kind of a ghost town. >> seth: it's this -- they say they call it the city that

always sleeps. >> yes, exactly. [ laughter ] exactly. that's really good. but we stayed in this hotel called the plaza, a little bit different from the plaza here. and -- and you know, basically i walked into my room there and was overcome with this really weird feeling, which is so unlike me. i just walked in and it felt so strange. and i've never done this in my life, but i went downstairs and i said to the front desk girl, i was really embarrassed about it. i said, "would you -- i'm sorry, do you have another room available? do you mind if i swap rooms?" and she looked at me in what was i now feel like was a really knowing way and kind of went, "yes. i'll give you a room in the new wing." >> seth: oh. >> gave me another room, and i walked into the room in the new wing and was twice as creeped out. like really was like -- and -- i'm having all these weird feelings. and i went back down, i was like, "i'm so so sorry, but i'm actually going to take the first room. do you mind?" [ laughter ] spent the night in the first room. was like, "i'm being a freak." and the next morning woke up and

flying around set were these rumors that one of our transpo guys -- big, masculine, kind of scary dude, had woken up in the middle of the night because he heard this big crash. and he kind of went, "who's there?" and someone said, "oh don't mind me. i'm just looking for my jewelry." and he marches downstairs and goes, "what the heck? you can't send someone into my room in the middle of the night. this is completely inappropriate." and the woman at the desk went, "oh, don't mind her. that's just cassandra. she's looking for her jewelry." [ light laughter ] and we're all freaking out and running around the set, going "we can't stay here. we have to leave." and i believe in ghosts literally because one of our new mexican crew members went, "oh, don't worry about it. completely harmless. if you want them to leave you alone, just leave an offering and thank them for sharing the space with you and ask them to just leave you alone tonight." so i went back to the hotel. i'm on the phone with a friend of mine, who i'm expecting to go, you know, you're being a freak. stop. and instead my friend goes,

"run, get out, get another hotel. [ laughter ] leave immediately." so i'm on the phone with my friend, who's going, "run." and i'm -- i've got these banana chips and i'm laying them out on the table going -- [ laughter ] >> seth: banana chips? >> banana chips. that's all i had with me. i hope they like organic food. thank you so much for sharing. >> seth: they're like, i died 100 years ago. you can't give me potato chips? >> that's -- [ laughter ] i'm like, "thank you so much for sharing the space with me. please leave me alone." >> seth: and how did it go? did you feel that -- did you get a better night's sleep? >> i did. >> seth: okay. >> it's the truth so i'm -- >> seth: there you go. >> i'm a convert. i believe in ghosts. but thankfully the catskills ghost left us to our -- >> seth: yeah. and now i'm assuming you always travel with banana chips just in case. >> always. [ light laughter ] always, always, always. >> seth: this is -- a lot of -- i would imagine a lot of people, even though you've had an accomplished career, this is the favorite role you've played. your parents love "maisel." >> they love "maisel." i am alive. i have my clothes on most of the time. [ light laughter ] i'm not crying and depressed. they are thrilled. >> seth: that's wonderful. >> very sweetly my dad calls me all the time and says that he's

re-watched certain episodes. and he quotes them. this is absolutely my parents' favorite. it's really sweet. [ audience aws ] >> seth: it is great. and it's real -- i mean, again, as an actor, you never know if you're going to do anything -- >> yeah. >> seth: that your parents like. they might be proud of you and also watch other shows. so it's really wonderful that both -- [ light laughter ] no -- >> i mean my dad may or may not have ever seen "house of cards." he's thrilled. i think it wasn't real until this show. >> seth: and by the way, if i were your dad, i would have trouble watching "house of cards." >> sure. >> seth: it was a -- not a great road for you. >> no. i mean, you know, i got zip tied and thrown in the back of a van. it didn't end well. >> seth: spoiler alert. >> spoiler alert! [ laughter ] you still have to say that? it's been six years! >> seth: maybe you were the ghost. oh. [ laughter ] >> wow. >> seth: wow. this got really deep. >> this is really -- [ light laughter ] >> seth: hey, thank you so much for being back and congratulations. [ cheers and applause ] rachel brosnahan, everybody. "the marvelous mrs. maisel" is currently streaming on amazon. we'll be right back with brian posehn.

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♪ [ cheers and applause ] >> seth: our next guest is an emmy-nominated writer and comedian you know from shows like "the big bang theory," "new girl," and "the sarah silverman program." his book, "forever nerdy: living my dorky dreams and staying metal" is out now. please welcome to the show, brian posehn everybody. [ cheers and applause ] ♪ >> seth: welcome to the show, brian. >> nice. they metaled it up for me. that was really nice. >> seth: they did. >> i'll take it. >> seth: yeah. they know -- they know who you are, man. this is about how you grew up a nerd. is this an actual photo of you as a kid, too? >> that is, sadly. >> seth: that's fantastic. >> you like that '70s bowl haircut? >> seth: i like the '70s bowl haircut. i like that you could match the t-shirt. you have a nine-year-old now. >> yes i do. >> seth: is he -- how's he growing up?

is he -- is he living that nerd life? >> he has no choice, man. >> seth: yeah. [ light laughter ] >> it's gonna happen. with half of me in him. >> seth: yeah. >> he's going to be at least half a nerd. >> seth: but are you hopeful for that? do you feel like that is a path you embrace? >> yeah. well people love nerds now. >> seth: yeah. >> it's not the '70s anymore. but i haven't pushed anything on him. i've been, like, kind of passive. i just -- you know, i just introduce him to these things. and i don't say you have to like this. the big one for me was the band rush. >> seth: yeah. >> 'cause -- [ cheers ] i love heavy metal, and i love other stuff. but i love rush more than anything. rush is my -- one of my all-time favorite bands. so one day we were in the car listening to "tom sawyer." and he heard -- he's heard rush his whole life. but he goes, "hey, dad, you know. i think rush is my favorite band." and i like start to tear up. [ light laughter ] and my wife was like, "you dork." [ laughter ] but i'm just afraid that it's gonna -- you know, i don't -- i want him to still think i'm cool and i'm worried about when he's going to rebel against me. >> seth: yeah. >> 'cause he's just gonna go,

you know, "rush sucks. stephen king is terrible. you're not funny. and i'm going to start, you know, a sublime tribute band. [ laughter ] and become a conservative. i hope you're cool with it." >> seth: do you -- >> i'll still love you, my little right-wing sublime tribute band boy. [ laughter ] i'll still love -- >> seth: it'll be hard. it'll be hard. >> yeah, yeah. >> seth: but you'll still love him. you obviously -- you're tall. >> yeah. >> seth: was that -- did that not help as a kid? >> i was always a little tall, but i got really tall after high school. i grew eight inches in one year from 18 to 19. >> seth: wow. >> yeah. i didn't even know that could happen. [ light laughter ] i had literal growing pains, like "american werewolf in london" [ bleep ]. where i'm just -- [ growl ] [ laughter ] my arms extending while i'm sleeping. it was terrible. and then i turned into hodor. [ laughter ] >> seth: you hodor'd. >> but if i would have been hodor size in high school, i would of definitely used it to my advantage.

you know i would have been putting bullies through walls, like, "who did you call a queerbate? hodor." [ laughter ] >> seth: did you ever -- >> i would of saved other nerds just running through the school. hodor, hodor. [ laughter ] >> seth: did you -- did you ever, like, tussle with other nerds? were there ever nerd fights? >> sadly, yes. [ laughter ] i got beaten up by everybody. i was the lowest at the school. i got beaten up by a girl. i got beaten up by a special ed kid. and then i got in a nerd fight in my neighborhood with -- i was the heavy metal nerd in my neighborhood. and my friend ian was the punk rock nerd. and one day we decided we were going to fight. we were both sophomores and he's mad at me. i think maybe, 'cause i wanted to bang his step sister. i'm not sure. but anyway -- [ light laughter ] it's a long time ago. >> seth: yeah, yeah, yeah. >> blurry. but he decides we're going to fight. we both decide we're gonna fight. i don't want to do this. i can't fight. i've never thrown a punch, still haven't. and so we're fighting and everybody wants to see the nerd fight. so they're all around us in a circle at my bus stop.

in the gravel. and we take our glasses off. [ laughter ] both nerds. >> seth: yeah, yeah. >> it happens. and then we go at it. but there's, like, no real punches thrown. like a lot of half hugging and shoving. [ laughter ] like, stop, and don't. [ light laughter ] it's all me making the weird noises. and i'm humiliated. like, i hate school every day, but this is like the lowest. i want this to end so badly. so his glasses fall off out of his jacket. and i'm like, "oh, man, this is a dick move, but this is how i end this thing." and i just stomped on his glasses. [ audience ohs ] >> seth: yeah. >> they were my glasses! [ laughter and applause ] i didn't even look. i was so confident, i just went stomp. and you know, you guys as an audience got to experience that the way these kids in my neighborhood did. they all went from, "what an ass [ bleep ]." to, "oh my god what the [ bleep ]."

[ laughter ] now i have to go on the ground. and i can't see anything. so i have to find my glasses and they're in six pieces. and now i have to walk all the way home two or three blocks not able to see anything and tell my mom that ian stomped on my glasses. [ laughter ] but that's only going to be in that book. like john cena does not have a similar story. [ light laughter ] >> seth: yeah, that's true. if you want that story, you got to read this book. >> yes. for -- >> seth: congrats on the book. it's fantastic. thanks so much for being here. >> thanks, dude! >> seth: brian posehn, everybody! [ cheers and applause ] "forever nerdy" is available now. we'll be right back. [ cheers and applause ] ♪ -we're doing karaoke later, and you're gonna sing. -jamie, this is your house? -i know, it's not much, but it's home. right, kids? -kids? -papa, papa! -[ laughs ] -you didn't tell me your friends were coming. -oh, yeah. -this one is tiny like a child.

-yeah, she is. oh, but seriously, it's good to be surrounded by what matters most -- a home and auto bundle from progressive. -oh, sweetie, please, play for us. -oh, no, i couldn't. -please. -okay. [ singing in spanish ] -please. -okay. "good thing we didn't eat these unde"hahaha"iling fan" ♪

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♪ >> announcer: for more "late night," go to latenightseth.com. follow us on instagram and twitter @latenightseth. and be sure to check us out on youtube and facebook. head over to itunes to subscribe to the "late night with seth meyers" podcast. you'll get "a closer look" and more downloaded right to your phone. ♪ you work hard for every dollar.

so we don't want you to pay one cent more than you need to for health care. at covered california, you can get health insurance at a lower cost. in fact, enrollees pay an average of $5 per day. see how little it costs to get covered. visit coveredca.com today. okay, so you've been to the it's great right? earth. but i bet you haven't done this. or that.

or been here. i bet you haven't met her, or him, or them. ooo, dance-off! this is... incredible. you, see what i did right there. and when is the last time you felt like this, or that or (sighs deeply) i mean, come on- that's basically a perfect moment. it's time to make some magic for as low as $70 per person, per day. [ cheers and applause ] >> seth: my thanks to john cena, rachel brosnahan, and brian posehn, everybody! [ cheers and applause ] richard danielson and of course the 8g band. stay tuned for carson daly. we'll see you tomorrow. [ cheers and applause ] ♪

♪ ♪ ♪