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I giggled so hard during this episode that I nearly lost it, but it’s no surprise considering our guest, Natalie Morales, is an incredibly delightful person. You may know her from performances as Lucy on “Parks and Recreation,” in the dark comedy-drama “Dead to Me,” and her recent appearance on Mel Brooks’ “History of the World”. We discussed her greatest sources of inspiration and the moment she realized performing would be her calling. On top of that, Natalie shares the most incredible high school story involving Britney Spears, 100 kids in an auditorium and a single projectile button.

Please note, Funny Cuz It’s True contains mature themes and may not be appropriate for all listeners.

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Transcript

SPEAKERS

Elyse Myers, Natalie Morales

Elyse Myers  01:02

Okay, actually, can you just pretend that you’re listening to a fully complete theme song here, I got really in my head. And I tried to make it perfect. And I couldn’t. So this is going to be the theme song right here. Hello, and welcome to another episode of Funny Cuz It’s True. I’m Elyse Myers and our guest today is the hilarious Natalie Morales who you may know from Parks and Recreation dead to me or her movie language lessons which she wrote and directed herself. And I do have to warn you. What you’re about to hear this week is two people basically losing their minds for 45 minutes. We have a blast discussing her new movie, no hard feelings, the letters she wrote to Mel Brooks and also listen in for an incredible story about Natalie’s first ever high school performance. So two things that are funny because they’re true. Number one, I learned that there is a personality type where if you fail the first time you do something, it doesn’t actually make you want to quit. I can’t relate to this at all. But I did learn it exists and it is Natalie and I love that for her. And number two, the last 15 minutes of this episode really is just straight giggles like 100% is just laughing. Okay, let’s get into it. Hi, Natalie. How are you? I’m good. I was so good. Okay, I read an article and I thought it was really interesting. I saw that you would write letters as a kid to people you loved and even like people like Mel Brooks, and I really wanted to know. Do you still do that? Are you still a letter writer? What did that come? Where’d that come from?

Natalie Morales  05:15

I will say it wasn’t as a kid. It was as a full blown adult that I wrote like. I wrote him when I first moved to LA. I never got a response back. I don’t think he read them. But I wrote him very pithy letters, in hopes that he would mentor me because I was like, Listen, if I’m gonna have a mentor bios will have the best one, of course that they’re going to ask, right? Yeah. And I did ask several times. I don’t know that.

Elyse Myers  05:46

You sent him many letters?

Natalie Morales  05:48

Many letters, to the point where I was like, Stop bothering this old man. He clearly doesn’t either. He’s not getting this or he doesn’t want to. But then I got to be on on history of the world, which was like a lifelong dream come true.

Elyse Myers  06:01

That was cool. From the letters that you wrote.

Natalie Morales  06:04

No, absolutely not.

Elyse Myers  06:08

The best story ever.

Natalie Morales  06:10

No, absolutely not. Maybe despite the letters that I wrote, I don’t know. But I got to be honest, last year, mostly because I begged everyone I knew and anything to do with it. It was like, I knew Nick Kroll who was doing it. And I knew some people at Hulu, because I had just done Plan B at Hulu. And they were making history the world and I was like anybody get me in it. I won’t just walk in the macro, please. It just needs to be a part of this.

Elyse Myers  06:32

What was the first thing that you said to him? Like, did you bring it up that you wrote all these letters? Or were you like, I’m just gonna let it live.

Natalie Morales  06:38

Not met him. I’m not […] person, because he is very old. And he was. But he was at the wrap party. And he he did say hello to everybody from a distance. Like he was like, he gave a little speech. And it was I was in the same room as him. But he he said hello to you. He does not know who I am. I guess he’s no, that’s not true. That’s not true. His producer said he thought I was very funny in the episode. He told me that so that’s good. Mel Brooks said I was funny. I did take a screenshot of that.

Elyse Myers  07:08

Yeah. Oh my god. Okay, I’m going really far back just because I have to. I’m going to come and do this entire interview and just ask really quick, I’m a huge parks and rec fan. I’m a huge mature fan. And I would love to just ask you what that was like and how that happened. And what do you feel about it? Just all of it.

Natalie Morales  07:30

Okay, so I also am a huge parks and rec fan, great, huge mindshare fan. And it was my favorite show before I was on it. Which I still can’t believe that I was on it. So I got this audition to play. At the time. It was just like, you know, maybe one or two episodes love interest for right as he’s this character for Tom Haverford. And I was like, What am I gonna do with this? And I did the thing that I do most of my auditions, which is I think about how everybody else is going to do it. What’s the natural way to do it is and then I’m like, How do I not do that? How do I do it differently? And so what I did was I did an impression of Aziz basically, like, I read all these lines. And I was like, Oh, my God. Like, did this character kind of like that? And, and then I got the job. And like, I mean, that first episode that I did, was also the first episode for, for Rob Lowe. And for for Adam Scott. Wow. And it was like all three of us were on this episode on this show for the first time. Obviously, they did way more episodes than I did. But it was really exciting to be like, part of that with them. And yeah, I just remember like standing in this field at this festival, watching this character that I was obsessed with Ron Swanson, eat a turkey leg, and I was just like, this is the best day of my life.

Elyse Myers  09:00

I could watch Ron Swanson do pretty much anything and it would be the best day of my life, but especially eat a turkey leg.

Natalie Morales  09:06

Like I can’t believe I get to do this and be like, cool on this set. Like it was just amazing. can’t believe I get to do this and be like, cool on this set. Like it was just amazing.

Elyse Myers  09:13

Did you feel like starstruck watching that happen?

Natalie Morales  09:16

Completely with all of them? It was I mean, I was in a makeup trailer with Amy Poehler like blasting the hardest, nastiest rap you could possibly imagine. She every every day she would have. She would have parties after lunch like a 10 minute dance party in the makeup trailer that was just like the nastiest wrap you could imagine.

Elyse Myers  09:40

You lying or is this real?

Natalie Morales  09:42

I’m not lying. I’m telling you the truth. It was the best thing ever. And I just would like basically sit in the corner and watch and she’d be like, Get up and dance and everything. And I was like, it was like for me it was like being held at the friendliest guy. Want to dance because it was like Amy Poehler and like, I, like I didn’t know what to do, but She’s the nicest human being like, do you know there’s I’m sure you’ve met people where you’re like, you don’t have to be nice. You’re already beloved. You could just be normal. But she’s so nice. Yeah. And I guess I don’t mean nice, I guess. I mean, kind. She’s just very kind. And so yeah, I was starstruck every time I was on that show. It was just, it was the best.  God,

Elyse Myers  10:27

Oh, my, what was it like working with Mike? Did you have a lot of interaction with him on set?

Natalie Morales  10:33

Yes. So I did. And then we did a show together called Abby’s after that, that he right which, which was a dream of mine. I mean, I think I honestly think that there is no one who’s working today who like and this is a big thing to say, because there’s a lot of people I really respect writers and creators of shows. But no one to me does it better than Mike Sure. Both in the environment, he creates it in the shows he creates, and in the characters he creates, like, there’s a reason that the good place, and Parks and Rec have this feeling where you feel like all of these characters are your friends. And that’s not easy to do. And he does it almost effortlessly, but it’s not effortless. It’s with so much consideration and thought.

Elyse Myers  11:18

Did he inform the way that you direct and produce like later?

Natalie Morales  11:22

Totally, completely, especially the way that I write. He so Josh Melmoth, created Abby’s and then he executive produced it and so he was involved in like the bigger creation aspects of it. But But Josh was like the person who created the show, and the two of them. I mean, it was a character named Abby and I like I don’t know if I don’t know, any Cubans named Abby and not many Latinos. It definitely was not written for me. And so they, I auditioned for it, because I was like, I need this. This is the new mic show show. It’s like I being on an NBC Thursday night show comedy show. That’s a mic show show. And it was a in front of a live audience, which was like, Oh, wow, wild and amazing. But like, I was, like, there’s only been a few jobs that I’ve been like, I need this, and I’m gonna get it. And that was one of them. Like, I there was nothing in my mind, that would take me away from my job, like, I like had to have it. So with that, they then were really just so collaborative in a way that I hadn’t ever really experienced before. And that like, this character is not really like me, but um, but they wanted to have my input on how I saw her and also like, my left me that around it and like how you how to make this character authentic. It was the first bisexual lead character of a TV show of a network TV show. And that was important to me. And she’s a veteran, which I am not, but it was important to me to play that authentically. And it was the first Cuban leader of a network show since Desi Arnaz. was on I Love Lucy. So like it was those things were important and to get right. And they were really, they really listened to me. And like we all discussed it. It was awesome.

Elyse Myers  13:15

Did you feel pressure in that role to present yourself in a way that was authentic to you, but also represented your culture? Like did you feel pressure?

Natalie Morales  13:24

I think you know, I don’t know, I think that, like, it’s a mistake to think that anybody, any one person represents an entire like, like, I don’t represent all of queer them or all of women are all anything, any thing that I am. And I know some people will take that on. And some people, some people are unfortunately, like, have all of that pinned on them when they when they don’t need that. And they aren’t that. But like, No, I think I think what I felt pressured to do was like, it was this opportunity that I had been given to, like, leave this show and it was the you know, as everybody was telling me, the firsts, all these firsts of things that I was like, okay, can’t screw this up. And I don’t think which I’m happy about but I did. I did feel like it was so important to me to like, get these little I don’t know these little things in it that I that I knew that people like me would be like, Oh my God, I’ve never seen anyone talk about this on TV. Like for example, her name being Abby was like, in Spanish that would be like IV which some people have that name, but it’s not common. And I was like, this is an opportunity to like make a joke. There’s an episode down the line where someone from the bar finds her male and so it has her real name on it which she has kept hidden from everybody. Which one of my uncle’s His name is Avi louder though, which is arguably I’m sorry to anybody names are louder though hideous, ugly.

Elyse Myers  14:59

So It’s very common, isn’t it?

Natalie Morales  15:01

Yes, it’s a very common name. But yeah, even even uglier is if this man was so narcissistic that he named his daughter, Abby Lada. That’s why she hid this her whole life. And I just was like, That’s a joke that like, I mean, I guess everybody will get but like, no one has ever seen the name of a lot of though on network TV like, and no Latin person that doesn’t like you know what I mean? Like, that’s not a thing. And yet, like you said, it’s really common. And they were so down to like, let me do that and pitch that idea. So it was it was great. It was stuff like that, that I was like, oh, I want to do stuff that I haven’t seen before. You know?

Elyse Myers  15:39

Yeah, it’s wild that you got to lead that because like, it’s a really interesting balance to hold between, like, I don’t want to let you down. I want to be authentic to myself. But I also want to do this character that you’ve put, you’ve put on me justice, because this is your creative vision. And I want it all to work. And so I feel like Mike, would be just the perfect person for that.

Natalie Morales  16:00

Yes. Yeah. You trust him?

Elyse Myers  16:01

Oh, totally. And like everything I’ve seen behind the scenes of the office and of Parks and Rec like it people have just said it’s the most collaborative experience I’ve ever had on a set where it’s like people that had no business like I had, like, I had no business giving my opinion in this moment, but they wanted it from me because they thought it would be like play authentically on camera. It’s just really cool. Yeah. Okay, we have to take a quick break. But when we come back, Natalie and I talk about her newest movie that she’s in, No Hard Feelings.

Elyse Myers  16:40

What was the experience like on no hard feelings acting in such a huge cast being next to Jennifer Lawrence?

Natalie Morales  18:39

Yeah, it was wild. It was very wild. The guy who wrote it a co wrote it and directed it. His name is Gene Stupnitsky. He was one of the writers on the office. Yeah. And after the office, he and his writing partner Lee Eisenberg, who was also on the office, they produce the show that I was on called trophy wife. And it was so fun. So I knew him from that which was like think like 2014 ish. And so we’ve known each other I guess, almost 10 years now. And like, he wanted me to be in this part, which was kind of wild. That was like very thankful that he saw me in this part. And then yeah, it’s a big giant like studio movie. It was cool to get to do it and see how it gets made from that angle. It was awesome.

Elyse Myers  19:23

I watched the trailer and I loved how much physical comedy was in it.

Natalie Morales  19:27

Oh, I vmean, I think I can say this, but I’m like, very pregnant in this movie. I have, like a, like a gigantic belly the whole time. Not actually pregnant. It was a fake pregnancy, though. Which, which? I hate to say this to a pregnant person, but like, I was like, Oh, it’s so hard to get up and like I can’t get down in regular chairs. And this is awful.

Elyse Myers  19:51

No, I’ve heard that the pregnant the fake pregnant belly is actually worse than being pregnant. I’ve heard that from a lot of people that have been partially also played pregnancy. Yeah, okay. I’ve heard that it’s because they wearing like a wetsuit underneath your clothes. So anytime you have to pee Don’t you have to take off like all your clothes to go to the bathroom? All of it?

Natalie Morales  20:06

Yes. And it’s like it’s like a latex, a very heavy latex belly that is like strapped on you like overalls? Yeah, clothes. And so then the top of the belly cuts into your like ribs and your lungs when you sit down. So you have to sit like all the way. It does make you move authentically. I think most of the time, that’s amazing. It is like rock hard. And you have you do have an instinct to punch your own belly, which I don’t think pregnant people have. Well, but not usually. So I didn’t get to do as much physical comedy as I would have liked other than, you know, walk around with this big wall and being pregnant big belly, but I do like physical comedy has always been a really big. So I’m a huge, huge Buster Keaton fan.

Elyse Myers  20:57

So for those that don’t know who Buster Keaton is Buster Keaton is a silent film actor who was like in a lot of black and white movies. And he was known for his physical comedy and his like, super deadpan, like stoic expression that actually earned him the nickname The Great Stone Face. And so like for Natalie to just be like, yeah, one of my greatest inspirations was Buster Keaton. It was a little thrown. But it’s really fascinating. This isn’t an inspiration I expected you to pull out in this conversation. Was he someone that you were inspired by, like when you were a child?

Natalie Morales  21:31

I wish it would have started when I was a child, because I think it would have given me a clear path earlier on. But when I first moved to LA there was there used to be a place here called the silent movie theater. And they played actual silent movies. And I went once and I saw a Buster Keaton movie. And I am like, my mind was blown. I have never, ever connected with anyone or anything more than I did with this thing that had been made like 100 years before. And like, I saw him on screen and I was like, That’s it. That’s exactly what I want to do. That’s exactly what I think is good. That’s everything and it has inspired so much of my work so much of my acting, so much of everything that I do has, it has inspired you I think, you know, there’s a lot of deadpan there. And I think, ironically, I’ve been become to be known for that. And that wasn’t necessarily like on purpose. It wasn’t like oh, you know what I’m gonna do like a good deadpan because I love Buster Keane. I think I just like, really got into how he did things and like learned a lot from it. And then it ended up happening that way. So yeah, that’s cool.

Elyse Myers  22:39

How old were you? When when you kind of like found that love for sight, that silent film and just him in general?

Natalie Morales  22:46

It was like 22 or 20. Yeah, like around 22. And I just blew my mind. Yeah.

Elyse Myers  22:53

What you know, it’s funny. I’m just realizing this. Now, I’ve asked you two questions where I assumed you have just wanted to be an actor and a comedian and a personality like since childhood, where I’m like, you wrote letters to you know, Mel Gibson, you’ve you’ve loved what is it? Like? Yeah. I’m Robert, my books notebook. Sorry. I’m so pregnant. My brain is mashed potatoes. I can’t remember anything. Five minutes go. Anyways, I 100% thought we were talking about Mel Gibson this entire time. I was like, Mel Gibson is not that old. I don’t understand why you keep referring to how old he is. Did you imagine that? This is kind of what you would be when you were younger? Did you have other dreams? What did that look like?

Natalie Morales  23:31

No, I really like when I was a kid. I wanted to be an astronaut. Of course, of course. I loved movies, and TV and performance. I just never thought it was something I could do. I mean, truly, representation is important because of that, because I really, I never saw anybody like me on anything. And I just, I didn’t even consider it as an option. And that as a career option, right? Like, it just didn’t make any sense to me, people that I knew didn’t do that. And I came from a fairly poor family. I grew up in a one car garage with my mom that was converted into a little studio and we slept on a day bed together. And she was a single mom who worked a lot to like, you know, be able to give me anything, anything that I needed. And I remember there was like some, it was like a sign when I was a kid and it was like, I think I was like seven or eight. There was a sign outside of the grocery store that said like kids talent show or like play or whatever. And I was like Mom, because I did like do like magic shows for my family. Like, I would force my family to watch me perform. And so I remember seeing some signs somewhere and be like Mom, I really had to go. And she was like, okay, okay, I’ll take you it’s like on a Saturday, but she’s not a stage mom. She didn’t know what it required, you know, and like, I got there and they were like, What song do you have prepared to sing? And I didn’t know that you had to prepare anything. And I was like, I’m done. I don’t I don’t have anything in there. Like, I will never forget this one. The woman was like in Spanish. She was like, Okay, fine, why don’t you just sing? I Will Always Love You by Whitney Houston. And I was like, okay.

Elyse Myers  25:10

At seven?

Natalie Morales  25:14

Butchered the song that I barely remembered the lyrics to write. And then they were like, No, thank you. And I was like, Oh, no. And then I wanted to be a lawyer. Again, I guess for the performance element of it. What?

Elyse Myers  25:28

Yeah, you’re just like, this is it? If I can’t act, then I will help people in the legal system. And I will get my performance time then.

Natalie Morales  25:35

Yes, I will be like, ladies and gentlemen.

Elyse Myers  25:42

Natalie.

Natalie Morales  25:45

Everyone said good morning. Yeah, so I had to go to like my local high school. And I didn’t know anybody there. Because I had gone to this really small parochial Catholic school my whole life from kindergarten to eighth grade, where I only went to school with the same 30 kids. I had never worn anything that wasn’t a uniform, like the school had 1000s of kids and it was like a public high school and it was very scary and intimidating. And and I was like this, like, dorky Hanson fan. It was like about to go into this like, big school. And, and I was like, maybe I’ll go to summer school before just to like, meet some people. So once the like big school starts, I won’t be totally alone. And I went and I signed up for it. And I was like, I know how to play guitar. So like, I’ll take a guitar class. And then I’ve always wanted to learn photography. So I’ll sign up for that. And the woman was like, Ooh, someone just took the last part in photography. Why don’t you try drama here? That’s fun. And I was like, Okay, sure. And then that changed my life. Like completely changed my life.

Elyse Myers  26:50

Okay, time for one more break. When we come back. Natalie tells us about her first time performing on stage in high school. Did you feel immediately when you were there? Like this is right or did it take some convincing for you?

Natalie Morales  28:13

100%, oh, yeah. I was like, oh, I can. I can like control when people laugh at me. That’s cool. Oh, great. I can make people laugh on purpose. That’s a superpower.

Elyse Myers  28:29

that is both so profound. And so sad. I love it so much.

Natalie Morales  28:35

Yes. Because I I had come like I was like a total class clown dork. You know, that was like my only.

Elyse Myers  28:41

Alright really quick when she said that she could control when people laughed at her and like, you know, make people laugh on purpose. I definitely thought she meant like people teased her and laughed at her. So then her doing comedy and performing was a way to control when people laughed at her. But then as she started talking, I realized I misinterpreted that so when I said it’s so profound and so sad. It’s not sad at all, like not even a little bit.

Natalie Morales  29:06

Social currency. It was being this like class clown. And, and I didn’t have there was no art department and the little school that I went to there was no arts department like no, there was no like drama or anything like that. I was I mean, I was like Mary and several school plays, but you know, nothing beyond that. And you know what, I don’t know if I’ve ever told this story before but the first time I ever went on stage, okay, so that summer we made a movie right? And because I was like really good friends with everybody in that class. A lot of them were juniors that were about to be seniors. And I was about to be a freshman. I got like special permission to be in the senior acting class and the class was in the auditorium. And we’re taking this acting class and I’ve never taken anything so seriously in my whole life. And I it was like, I it was a dream. And our first assignment we were learning the phonetics alphabet, and we were doing we had to do commercials in these accents, like so. selling things. Oh, no, the first commercial was like a Southern accent. And I did this thing where I was Britney Spears at the time because she, she used to have like a real southern accent like that’s kind of how she talked. And I had the little because I already had it had the Catholic schoolgirl uniform for this commercial. And this particular day, one of the wings of the school the air conditioning had broken and so like 100 More people were in the auditorium and they were all seniors also, I was 14 and all these people were like an AP science, AP history, AP whatever, in the back of the auditorium sitting quietly watching these theater kids do this stuff right and so it was extra nerve racking because I was in this senior class and there was all these other kids in the background. And so I get up there and I go Hi, my name is Britney Spears and my the button to my skirt pops out. Also another first for me my sister got me my very first thong.

Elyse Myers  31:15

No.

Natalie Morales  31:27

For anybody listening, Elyse is covering her eyes right now.

Natalie Morales  31:35

So all I said was h my name is Britney Spears and my skirt popped up literally. The button broke complete balls off and it was standing there in a white mesh long. And there was a split second of silence and then uproarious laughter, like the most laughter I ever heard in my life, and I couldn’t bend over because thong to pick up my skirt. So and so I just stood there with my hands over my crotch, kind of smiling, and not knowing what to do. And until my friend came up with his jacket and like, escorted me off stage, and the laughter lasted at least 1520 minutes like it did not stop. Because I was on the side of stage didn’t the teacher tried to control everybody, but then he himself would also start laughing and then it would start everybody laughing again. And so the first time I ever went on stage, the worst thing happened, right? Like the nightmare it happened.

Elyse Myers  32:36

I was like people picture happening so that they don’t get nervous. Your brain was like, we’re gonna go straight from the bottom and you can can only get better.

Natalie Morales  32:45

Yeah, that’s what happened. I was like, well, nothing can be worse than this. Great. And so it actually helped my stage right?

Elyse Myers  32:53

So you really like okay, so hold on. This has nothing to do with anything that we’re actually.

Natalie Morales  33:03

I feel like you would have enjoy it.

Elyse Myers  33:05

This is the whole conversation. I don’t care about anything else anymore. Okay, number one. I love that you were like I have to do a southern accent. I’m going to be Britney Spears not in my mind I think like to dress up with like flannel you know and like, like, hat in like and you’re like Britney Spears? Yeah. Also Catholic school girl Britney Spears?

Natalie Morales  33:27

I had the uniform I got to use it.

Elyse Myers  33:37

You said you were Britney Spears?

Natalie Morales  33:46

Yeah, I didn’t know again. This story now like like one of your tech talks where you use the emojis to tell the whole story.

Elyse Myers  33:59

Oh my god, Natalie. That is got to be like the best thing I’ve ever heard as a first performance. And you need to tell that a million more times you need to like get on a stage until that recreate it. Like everything. Yeah. Oh my god. Okay, so So then how? My question though is like that didn’t dissuade you from wanting to do performance. You were like this is it?

Natalie Morales  34:21

I mean, it was my very first one. So I had and the crazy part is that it became like this running joke because the second.

Elyse Myers  34:31

Thank you. What is happening?

Natalie Morales  34:35

I don’t know what accident was. I can’t remember what it was anymore. But I was wearing these big, like, parachute pants these big like cargo pants and whoever was walking behind me up the stairs, stepped on them and pull them down and then everyone was like, I know I know. It became a running joke. So that your pants fell off a second. Yeah, yes, my pants this time but someone pulled them down. their shoe. Thankfully, not too much like not all the way.

Elyse Myers  35:03

No white mesh thong this time

Natalie Morales  35:05

Yeah. Not this time. Maybe I blocked it out. I don’t know. But I remember it happening and everybody being like, like people were like it was it was like a huge joke. So much so that the third time I went on stage, I was like, strapped in like, the joke was that like, nothing could fall off me because I was like, I have like a zipper on the top like the tightest possible, just like duct industry jacket on the stage.

Elyse Myers  35:33

You either you’d either have to do that, or you’d have to go up completely naked. Yeah, there’s like, you know, in between, you can’t just act like it didn’t happen performance like

Natalie Morales  35:43

I really did, like, take it as like, okay, that is my nightmare. And it happened. And I loved it. And I survived it. What else can go and you know, I’ve applied it to others in my life. I’m like, think of the worst thing that can happen. deal with that. And then you’re fine.

Elyse Myers  35:59

That is so impressive. I think that genuinely that would scar me for my life. And I think I’d be like, it’s a sign. It’s a sign that wasn’t meant for me. And I receive it. And I’m just going to go be a lawyer. I don’t think I don’t think it’s for me. And you’re like, I loved it so much. I want to do it a second time. And I’m like, and I do it again. Like, I feel like you’re getting that out of the way so early genuinely was like this huge, like, well, what’s the worst that can happen? We’re just gonna go for it. And now look at you now. That’s crazy.

Natalie Morales  36:36

Thanks. I think it did. I think a part of me honestly was like, I don’t want to be known for that. And so like, I didn’t get to do what I had practiced. And what I really wanted to do, which was clearly this amazing monologue is Britney Spears. Yeah. But like, I, I didn’t get to do that. So I didn’t want it to be all that it was. And that pushed me more. It wasn’t that I was like, Oh, I this was a great experience. Let me do this again. It was like, I don’t, that wasn’t what I wanted to do. And I’m going to keep going until I can do what I wanted to do. Because yeah, I don’t want my pants falling up at all I’m known for.

Elyse Myers  37:15

I don’t want to be the white mesh thong girl. All right.

Natalie Morales  37:17

Yes, it can be adjacent to what I’m known for. But I want at least the opportunity to have the duality of something instead of that be the only thing you know?

Elyse Myers  37:27

Do you carry this attitude with you into like everything you do, like do you care about critics or reviews?

Natalie Morales  37:32

Completely. I think I was just doing this interview right before this where she was like, What’s your relationship to critics and like reviews? And like, how do you how do you feel about that? And I was like, Well, I think that because I’m like a Latina and a woman. And I’m queer. And like all of those other things, we don’t get that many opportunities. So when we are given an opportunity, they don’t give us another one unless that one is successful. And so it does feel like everything is riding on it. And I don’t come from a really rich family. And I’m not a nipple baby. So I’m not guaranteed another opportunity. And so, that aspect of it, I do want my things to do well, because I want to work again. Beyond that. I know that a lot of my favorite things that I’ve loved and that have spoken to me and the people that I relate to have been things that haven’t been critically acclaimed or well received or well reviewed. I also am I think I can be really impartial about my own work. I know when something is good or bad. Even if I’ve done it, I’m not super biased. And that way I might be biased in the other direction where I have like really high standards for something and it’s really good. And I’m like, it’s not as good as it could be. But I do know when I’ve done something that I really like, and especially with my best friend Serena really likes it. And if like my core group of people really like it. I’m like, they don’t lie. To me, this is good. And I don’t really care what anybody else says.

Elyse Myers  39:02

I saw this quote you said in an interview with Mark Duplass, where you say, in your job, there’s a lot of room for I don’t know, and can you help me but there’s no room for doubt. Do you remember saying that I like because personally, it’s like one of the most powerful things I’ve ever heard. You should like put it on a plaque and hang it in your room. But because of the way that I was brought into this job, there’s just I there’s so many moments where I just second guess everything that I do. And so I just think it’s really powerful to kind of hear you talk about what you do. Because you made this happen by yourself. And it’s just it’s a really beautiful thing to kind of hear your story a little bit like, and now. I don’t know, it’s just you’re a very, very special person and I just like not gonna cry. I’m so pretty emotional. And I’m like, You’re so amazing. I’m going to literally cry. But yeah, your story is just very, very powerful. I just I it’s I want you to share it all the time to everybody because it’s really cool to hear kind of how you’ve made this happen for yourself.

Natalie Morales  39:57

Thank you Elyse. Yeah. So is yours and honestly look as as an outsider, and if someone who is a fan of yours and this is unsolicited advice, I’m sorry, but I’m giving you this, the these people that have given you these opportunities and are like you said, you don’t want to disappoint because they’ve, they’ve like, given you these chances to do things. It’s because they see you and go, I like her instincts. And I like, and this is a sure bet for me like, and that means that your instincts are good. And so just trust them. Also, the other very important thing to remember is that no one knows what the fuck they’re doing. No one, people have experience and things and those people are, might have a little better idea of how to do something. But that doesn’t mean that their experience is the right way to do something. And it doesn’t mean that it’s always the right way to do something like that is why people with experience sometimes get eclipsed by new people because someone finds a better way to do it. Nothing ever changes. Nothing ever progresses, the world doesn’t move forward if people don’t do things in a different way. And so do you like you’re doing great, you’re doing so great. You’re doing I’m doing a million things like you like don’t, whenever that anxiety creeps up, like just listen to. You’re here for a reason. Clearly. Yeah.

Elyse Myers  41:20

Thank you. Wow. Thank you. All right, everybody be cool. It’s a normal day. I know that we’re at time, so I will let you go. But seriously, Natalie, it was so good to meet you. You too. I can talk to you forever. This is so fun. I know. Thank you, Natalie. All right. Thank you so much for listening to my conversation with Natalie Morales. Definitely check her out in the movie no hard feelings, which is in theaters June 23. And if you liked this show, give us a rating and a review. It helps other people find us. All right. We’ll be back next week with more Funny Cuz It’s True. There’s more Funny Cuz It’s True with Lemonada Premium get access to all of limonada is premium content, including my five questions with Sam Bee, which aired last Friday. Subscribe now in Apple podcasts. Funny Cuz It’s True is a Lemonada Media and Powderkeg production. The show is produced by Claire Jones, Zoe Dennis and […], our associate producer is Tiffany Buoy. Rachel Neil is our senior director of new content and our VP of weekly production is Steve Nelson. Executive Producers are Stephanie Wittels Wachs, Jessica Cordova Kramer, Paul Feig, Laura Fisher, […] and me Elyse Myers. The show is mixed by Brian Castillo and Johnny Evans. Our theme song music was written by me and scored by Xander Singh.