Ben Schwartz is one of the funniest people working in Hollywood today. And after years of guest-starring in various shows and providing more than a decade of voice-over work, the actor is finally getting his due in recent years thanks to the insanely popular “Sonic the Hedgehog” film franchise and a starring role in the recent Apple TV+ series, “The Afterparty.” And in this episode of The Playlist Podcast, Schwartz talks about those projects and much more.
It’s “The Afterparty” that takes up most of our discussion, as we talk about the comedic murder mystery series from Phil Lord and Chris Miller that has Schwartz play the slightly obnoxious aspiring musician Yasper. For those unaware, the hook of “The Afterparty” sees a group of old friends attending a high school reunion and the subsequent afterparty. While at the party, someone dies and the police lock down the situation and ask everyone to give their side of the story. In Yasper’s case, his retelling of the events of the night plays out as a musical and it’s one of the best episodes of TV you’ll see all year. He described the show as “an actor’s dream come true.”
“It’s one of the best things I’ve ever been a part of creatively, and one of my favorite directors I’ve ever worked with ever, in Chris Miller,” said the actor about “The Afterparty.”
We also dive deep into the musical episode that finds Schwartz singing and dancing throughout a high school reunion. And believe it or not, this is not something the actor has been training for all of his life.
“I got so excited and so nervous at the same time,” said Schwartz about the episode. “[Director Chris Miller] didn’t ask if I could sing or dance. He asked after I got the role!”
In the interview, we also talk about his success with the aforementioned “Sonic the Hedgehog” film franchise and what might be coming in the third film.
“It’s very exciting and surreal,” Schwartz about ‘Sonic.’ “I’ve been doing voiceover since 2005, so it feels really exciting that something I did in the VO world is starting to hit with people and people are getting excited by it.”
He also teased the upcoming third film in the franchise and said, “For [‘Sonic 2’], we blew it out so much, and for ‘3,’ it’s going to be bananas, it’s going to be crazy! I can’t wait.”
We also talked a bit about the upcoming “Renfield,” which has Schwartz starring opposite Nicolas Cage who plays Dracula in the film. The film also features Nicholas Hoult as the title character, Renfield, and is directed by Chris McKay, of “Lego Batman” and “Tomorrow War” fame. But really, we discuss what it’s like working with Cage playing Dracula.
“People don’t even know. There’s so much more. There’s so much more Nic Cage that you haven’t seen,” teased Schwartz. “Nic Cage was a dream and lovely to work with. And when I was doing scenes with him, he was great, totally committed, and 100% in it. And you’re just in awe…”
“The Afterparty” is available now on Apple TV+. You can hear the full discussion below:
The Playlist Podcast is part of The Playlist Podcast Network, which includes Bingeworthy, Be Reel, Deep Focus, The Fourth Wall, and The Discourse. We can be heard on iTunes, AnchorFM, Soundcloud, Stitcher, Spotify, and most places where podcasts are found. You can stream the podcast via the Spotify embed within the article or click on the lead image at the top page. Follow us on iTunes, and you’ll get this podcast as well as our other shows regularly. Be sure to subscribe and drop us a comment or a rating, as we greatly appreciate it. Thank you for listening.