Interview: Brian Posehn (Don’t Pester Him in the Men’s Room)
By Alex Langley - April 27, 2009
Brian Posehn
Television: Just Shoot Me!, Mr. Show, The Sarah Silverman Program
Live Action Films: Dumb and Dumberer: When Harry Met Lloyd, The Devil’s Rejects, Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer
Voice Work: Surf’s Up, Metalocalypse, The Haunted World of El Superbeasto, Halo 2
Documentaries: The Comedians of Comedy, Super High Me
During WonderCon, Alex spoke with Brian Posehn – 6′ 6.6″ tall actor (“the height of the Beast,” he told us), stand-up comic, and co-author of the graphic novel The Last Chrismas (Image Comics) about zombies vs. Santa Claus. After Brian greeted some fans who stopped by, we veered into the interview.
Brian Posehn: All right. That was normal fan behavior, and not weird. Like the eye contact and no sweatiness. Unlike the ones where after we’re done and then they’re still hanging around like I’m going to do something else or perform for them and I don’t know what to do. That’s the weird fan behavior.
We had a guy hanging out here and I swear, I was with his kid for an hour. And it seemed at first that he was a fan and then he just started saying negative things. It was just weird. And he was just like never leaving. And you’re like, “All right.” Eventually he wandered off. It’s because I wasn’t giving him enough, when he would say negative things. I would be like well I could kill you, but why don’t I just sit here and ignore you instead, see if you would leave.
Q. How has fan behavior surprised you?
Brian Posehn: You don’t know what to expect. That’s exactly what you should expect.
Q. Just don’t try to expect it?
Brian Posehn: Yes.
Q. All right, how has fan behavior changed over time?
Brian Posehn: I just get more of it now. And for me now, they can put the name with the face and I’m not always “that guy” anymore. I still get that occasionally, and they’re like, “You’re that one guy. But now, they kind of know what I’ve done, that’s how it’s changed for me. They know my name and they try to pronounce it when they come up and introduce themselves.
Q. You’ve already covered this some, but sometimes fans can be rude. What all do you do to deal with that?
Brian Posehn: Run, punch them in the face, scream, I don’t know. No, I just try never to be rude, unless they are really pushing it. But people are usually very nice so it’s very rare that somebody crosses the line. But it has happened, and where it happens the most is in a place like Vegas, where people are full of booze. I’ve had guys come up and try to talk to me at the urinal, and I don’t care if they are my biggest fan…I really don’t want to be talking to anybody in there. And it’s happened. I’ve had a guy leave his kid to try to talk to me about Just Shoot Me. He didn’t even know who I was; it was his brother-in-law that said that I was famous. So I’m in Vegas and he’s got his kid, and I’ve got my thing out and I’m at a urinal, because that’s what you do there; and he doesn’t even know what show I was on. And his kid’s standing there, and his kid is at wiener level, and it was just awful. And I wanted to run screaming.
Q. At this point in your career, when do you find yourself acting or feeling like a fan still?
Brian Posehn: Oh, all the time. I just went to this concert and got to meet the band. And I just had a nerd out. I thought my legs were going to fail and I couldn’t believe it was happening. I’m more impressed by band people, and I’ve met a lot of actors and comedians. But if I meet band people, artists, or writers, that’s what I’m more impressed by. I know comedy, that’s why I’m not impressed by meeting comedians.
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