Colman Domingo
Episode of Good Hang with Amy Poehler · June 9, 2026 · 1 h 14 min
Amy Poehler talks with Colman Domingo about his mother, dancing, early acting, Rustin and Sing Sing, and Disclosure Day, after Steven Spielberg praises him.
Summary
The episode opened with a pre-recorded conversation between Amy Poehler and director Steven Spielberg, who recalled attending the first Saturday Night Live broadcast in 1975, described auditioning actors while cooking in a kitchen starting with Raiders of the Lost Ark, and explained that he first met Colman Domingo while casting an abandoned film about the Gershwins and Porgy and Bess before casting him in Lincoln. Spielberg praised Domingo's empathy and collaborative spirit, likening working with him to riding in a self-driving car, and supplied a question about roles Domingo failed to get.
In the main interview, Domingo recounted growing up in a row home in West Philadelphia with a dance-loving family, attending high school a year behind Will Smith, and reinventing his shy, bookish self partly through self-help books he shelved at Barnes & Noble. He credited his late mother Edith with instilling confidence and a college teacher, Chris Wolfe, with suggesting acting as a profession. He described living in a San Francisco Tenderloin studio with three friends, writing his first play Up Jump Springtime, meeting his husband Raul via a Craigslist missed-connection ad in 2005, and early screen work on Law & Order and Nash Bridges.
Domingo discussed approaching even villainous characters with love, the resonance of playing Bayard Rustin, making Sing Sing for about $150 a day, and recent honorary doctorates and a Temple University commencement address centered on love. He told how his mother repeatedly wrote to Oprah Winfrey and how Winfrey later said she knew she "got the message." He and Poehler joked about peptides at Tina Fey's request, and Domingo described Spielberg as kind and collaborative and Disclosure Day as a film meant to connect people.
Answering Spielberg's question, Domingo said he learned to detach from the outcome of auditions, citing advice to "hope for everything, but want for nothing." The two discussed aging into their fifties, Generation X toughness, their aversion to horror films, and Domingo's comfort viewing of Melissa McCarthy in Spy.
Chapters
- 1:58
Steven Spielberg on SNL and auditions
Spielberg recalls attending the first SNL broadcast and explains his kitchen-cooking audition method.
- 5:05
Spielberg on working with Domingo
Spielberg describes meeting Domingo for an abandoned Gershwin film, casting him in Lincoln, and praising his empathy on Disclosure Day.
- 13:09
Gifts, style and the dance floor
Domingo brings a fake egg keychain, the pair discuss his style, and they recall meeting while dancing at an Emmys party.
- 18:14
Philadelphia childhood and dancing
Domingo describes family basement dance parties, his mother, and being a shy nerd in high school with Will Smith.
- 21:17
Self-invention and his mother Edith
Domingo explains learning from self-help books, his mother's encouragement, and the teacher who suggested acting.
- 28:34
San Francisco, playwriting and meeting Raul
Domingo recalls the Tenderloin studio, his first play, writing a Donna Summer musical, and meeting his husband via Craigslist.
- 36:23
Early screen roles and stage fears
Domingo recounts Law & Order and Nash Bridges roles and answers Poehler's questions about mishaps on stage.
- 43:22
Doctorates and a message of love
Domingo discusses his honorary doctorates and his Temple commencement speech focused on love and service.
- 44:48
Rustin, Sing Sing and leadership
Domingo reflects on loving his characters, playing Bayard Rustin, and making Sing Sing with formerly incarcerated men.
- 50:37
Letters to Oprah and Tina Fey
Domingo tells how his mother wrote to Oprah Winfrey, talks about friendship with Tina Fey, and jokes about peptides.
- 57:23
Spielberg and Disclosure Day
Domingo describes Spielberg's directing style and the film's message, then answers Spielberg's question about rejection.
- 1:04:38
Aging, Gen X and comfort comedy
The pair discuss their fifties, Generation X, avoiding horror films, and Domingo's love of Spy.
Key points
What was said, by whom, with the exact words. Timestamps jump to the moment.
- Steven Spielberg
Spielberg says he attended the very first Saturday Night Live broadcast in 1975 as an audience member.
“I mean, you know, I was there the first show in 1975. I was in the audience”
- Steven Spielberg
Spielberg says he first met Domingo while casting a planned film about the Gershwins and Porgy and Bess, which he later abandoned.
“I was going to make a movie about the process of writing and staging Porgy and Bess”
- Steven Spielberg
Spielberg says that starting with Raiders of the Lost Ark he met auditioning actors in a kitchen and cooked with them to help them relax.
“I decided that all the actors that I auditioned in person, I'm gonna meet them in a kitchen and we're gonna cook”
- Steven Spielberg
Spielberg praises Domingo as an ensemble-minded actor more interested in his scene partners than his own role.
“He's as interested in the actors he's playing opposite, even more so than he is about his own role in the whole”
- Steven Spielberg
Spielberg says Disclosure Day deals heavily with empathy, making Domingo an easy casting choice.
“because my movie deals, Disclosure Day, deals a lot with the importance of empathy”
- Amy Poehler
Poehler says dancing helps her release social anxiety and that she prefers dancing to talking.
“And in fact, you know, I get, it actually helps me expel a lot of my social anxiety”
- Colman Domingo
Domingo says he consciously reinvented his shy personality by reading self-help books while working at Barnes & Noble.
“I went to self-help books and I was like, oh, to become a different person, you have to do certain things or adopt certain traits”
- Colman Domingo
Domingo credits his mother with making him feel special and giving him an expansive imagination.
“She would make me believe that I was very special and that the world was set up to do me more good than harm constantly”
- Colman Domingo
Domingo says a college acting teacher was the first person to suggest he pursue acting professionally.
“I'd never heard until I got to college that someone said, I would be curious if you follow this path as an actor”
- Colman Domingo
Domingo argues Donna Summer was among the greatest singers ever because of her vocal versatility.
“And she was one of the greatest singers, I think, that has ever walked this planet”
- Colman Domingo
Domingo says his commencement speech at Temple University was organized around love and service.
“what I want to inspire people to do is to love more and whatever that means”
- Colman Domingo
Domingo says he must love every character he plays, including villains, and researches them rather than accepting others' judgments.
“I think I have to love every character that I play”
- Colman Domingo
Domingo says he identified with Bayard Rustin being on the sidelines of history because his own career felt similarly marginalized.
“I felt that my career was very similar in that way. I would show up, I would do the work”
- Colman Domingo
Domingo says he was paid about $150 a day on Sing Sing, a tightly scheduled film made with formerly incarcerated men.
“But I knew it was something that like, you know, I think I got paid like $150 a day”
- Colman Domingo
Domingo recounts that when he told Oprah Winfrey his mother had written her repeatedly, she replied she knew she had received the message.
“oh, I don't know if I got the letters, but I know I got the message”
- Colman Domingo
Domingo describes Spielberg as a director who instills confidence in actors even during complex, demanding scenes.
“Even if he's giving you the wildest task of saying these lines while going through an explosion and the camera work is all intensive”
- Colman Domingo
Domingo says he cried both times he watched Disclosure Day and sees it as a film meant to reconnect people.
“it really did feel like it's a movie that's trying to connect us again, all of us,”
- Colman Domingo
Domingo says he coped with rejection by detaching himself from the outcome of auditions.
“at some point you had to divorce yourself from the idea of getting the role”
- Colman Domingo
Domingo shares advice from a 70-year-old driver in Toronto that he says guides how he enters rooms and sets.
“it's important to, you want to hope for everything, but want for nothing”
Linked moment · 1:05:43Skip to 1:05:43 using a listen link in the info box.
Amy PoehlerPoehler argues that the cultural obsession with youth is changing and that Generation X is helping drive that change.
“I feel like our obsession with youth is like, I think it's changing. I think our generation is helping”
People
In the conversation
- Amy PoehlerAmerican actress, comedian and podcast host, formerly of Saturday Night Live
- Steven SpielbergAmerican filmmaker whose upcoming film about disclosure was discussed
- Colman DomingoAmerican actor, playwright and producer
Discussed
- Oprah WinfreyAmerican broadcaster whom Nguyen said he met while traveling with his Zen teacher
- Tina FeyAmerican comedian who toured with Poehler
- John BelushiComedian attached to both cursed projects
- Robin WilliamsAmerican comedian and actor; co-starred in Randolph's first film
- Will SmithAmerican actor and rapper who attended high school with Domingo
- Donna SummerAmerican singer, subject of a musical co-written by Domingo
- Bayard RustinAmerican civil rights organizer played by Domingo in Rustin
- Don JohnsonAmerican actor, star of Nash Bridges
- Melissa McCarthyAmerican comedian and actress, star of Spy
- Diane KeatonAmerican actress; Padilla's former employer and mentor
- Kelly RipaAmerican TV host who appeared on Dance Party USA
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From the publisher
Colman Domingo has Oprah in his corner. Amy hangs with the 'Disclosure Day' star and talks about Gen X's favorite dance moves, fighting Don Johnson on 'Nash Bridges,' and which peptides he's on. Host: Amy PoehlerGuests: Steven Spielberg and Colman DomingoExecutive producers: Bill Simmons, Amy Poehler, and Jenna Weiss-BermanFor Paper Kite Productions: Executive producer Jenna Weiss-Berman, coordinator Sam Green, and supervising producer Joel LovellFor The Ringer: Supervising producers Juliet Litman, Sean Fennessey, and Mallory Rubin; video producers Jack Wilson and Aleya Zenieris; audio producer Kaya McMullen; social producer Bridget Geerlings; video editor Drew van Steenbergen; and booker Kat SpillaneOriginal music: Amy Miles Palmolive Ultra removes up to 99.9% of grease leaving your dishes sparkling clean. Switch today at www.Visible.com for just 25/mo. Or get premium Visible+ pro plan and save $10 on your first month with code HANG. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Summary, chapters and key points were generated from the episode transcript on September 29, 2026. Quotes are checked word for word against the transcript.