Da'Vine Joy Randolph
Episode of Good Hang with Amy Poehler · May 12, 2026 · 1 h 14 min
Amy Poehler talks with Da'Vine Joy Randolph about kitchenware, her opera training, The Holdovers, working with comedy legends, and Al Pacino's ladder advice.
Summary
Amy Poehler opened the episode with director David Freyne, who discussed his comedic influences, a brain tumor diagnosed after making the afterlife comedy Eternity, and his admiration for Da'Vine Joy Randolph, whom he called possibly the most naturally gifted comedian he had worked with. He asked where her calm came from and when she discovered she was funny.
Randolph and Poehler bonded over sparkling water and kitchenware, including a Williams Sonoma KitchenAid mixer and a Ruffoni copper cookware set. Randolph then recounted her path from classical voice training at Interlochen to Temple University, where she said the music department flunked her after she sought help from theater faculty, prompting her mother to steer her toward acting. She described Yale School of Drama, Shakespeare study, nannying, and being cast unexpectedly in Whoopi Goldberg's role in Ghost in the West End.
Randolph recalled mentorship from Robin Williams and Eddie Murphy, and detailed her preparation for The Holdovers, including insisting her character be a chef, learning to smoke convincingly, and working on a Boston dialect. She discussed Eternity co-star John Early, rom-coms, and said her on-set calm partly reflects a deliberate supportive role, though she still feels impostor syndrome in interviews.
In a speed round she shared stories about Zoë Kravitz, Al Pacino's ladder metaphor and a later Netflix photo shoot, and Stephen Sondheim, sang a snippet of "Send in the Clowns," and expressed a wish to play Leontyne Price in a biopic. Poehler closed by recommending Shakespearean actor Michelle Terry.
Chapters
- 1:50
David Freyne on Eternity
Director David Freyne discusses comedic influences, his brain tumor, and working with Randolph.
- 11:03
Sparkling water and kitchenware
Poehler and Randolph bond over seltzer, KitchenAid mixers, and Ruffoni copper cookware.
- 18:26
Singing and Interlochen
Randolph describes discovering her voice and attending Interlochen for classical training.
- 24:43
Muppets, opera, and Temple
Randolph talks about Miss Piggy's influence, her soprano voice, and being flunked out of Temple's music program into theater.
- 31:00
Yale, Shakespeare, and Ghost
Randolph recounts Yale, studying Shakespeare in Oxford, nannying, and being cast in Ghost in the West End.
- 38:26
Robin Williams and Eddie Murphy
Randolph reflects on mentorship from Williams and Murphy's rhythm and press tour lessons.
- 42:30
The Holdovers
Randolph explains her choices as Mary Lamb, including chef status, smoking, and Boston dialect.
- 52:39
Eternity, John Early, and rom-coms
Randolph praises John Early and discusses her favorite romantic comedies.
- 55:49
Freyne's questions on calm
Randolph explains her on-set calm, supportive role, and impostor syndrome.
- 1:00:19
Speed round
Stories about Zoë Kravitz, Al Pacino's ladder advice, Stephen Sondheim, and a Leontyne Price biopic hope.
- 1:05:43
Comfort comedy and wrap-up
Randolph recommends Rush Hour and Brittany Broski's podcast; Poehler recommends Michelle Terry.
Key points
What was said, by whom, with the exact words. Timestamps jump to the moment.
- David Freyne
Freyne said he wanted Eternity packed with jokes because he misses hard comedy.
“I think with Eternity, we wanted to make sure it was, um, like laden down with jokes, just like joke after joke after joke”
Linked moment · 5:14Skip to 5:14 using a listen link in the info box.
David FreyneFreyne recounted that after brain tumor surgery, having made an afterlife film left him approaching death with curiosity rather than fear.
“I felt I was looking at that with a lot more curiosity than fear”
- David Freyne
Freyne described Randolph as perhaps the most naturally gifted comedian he has worked with.
“we knew she'd be really funny, but like she might be the most naturally gifted comedian I've ever worked with”
- Da'Vine Joy Randolph
Randolph recommended Interlochen to any parent whose child has interest in the arts.
“I would recommend any parent who has a child that has remote interest in any form of the arts”
- Da'Vine Joy Randolph
Randolph credited Miss Piggy with teaching her not to take mistreatment from men and to stay fabulous.
“I am who I am today because of her”
- Da'Vine Joy Randolph
Randolph said Temple's music department flunked her out after she sought help from the theater department to act in Aida.
“I guess because it had happened so many times, they were very like territorial over it. And they flunked me out”
- Da'Vine Joy Randolph
Randolph said she believed she was auditioning as a rarely used understudy but was actually cast in Whoopi Goldberg's role in Ghost.
“they were like, yeah, we lied. Um, you are playing Whoopi Goldberg's part”
- Da'Vine Joy Randolph
Randolph described Robin Williams as generous and talkative with her, the first to tell her she had career potential.
“Robin was the complete opposite. And he actually talked to me more than anybody else”
- Da'Vine Joy Randolph
Randolph said Eddie Murphy's inclusion of her on the Dolemite press tour prepared her for The Holdovers campaign.
“And he was like, whatever I'm going to, she's coming to all of it. And so 100% it prepared me for holdovers”
- Amy Poehler
Poehler called Randolph's Holdovers performance one of her favorite cinematic performances and said the film captures holiday melancholy.
“the way you depicted that mother and that movie is one of my favorite cinematic performances”
- Da'Vine Joy Randolph
Randolph said she insisted to Alexander Payne that her character be called a chef rather than a cook and shown commanding the kitchen.
“We're going to say chef. If you're saying she has an education in it, she's a chef”
- Da'Vine Joy Randolph
Randolph said she asked for white extras in her kitchen and ad-libbed a line to show her character was in charge.
“So I ad-libbed this line in the movie where I'm like, to the white lady, too much paprika”
- Da'Vine Joy Randolph
Randolph said the Boston dialect, which Payne initially considered unnecessary, was what allowed her to separate the character from herself.
“But the dialect was the thing that really allowed me to lock in”
- Da'Vine Joy Randolph
Randolph said she experiences impostor syndrome when discussing her work but not while performing.
“I do still suffer with imposter syndrome in this format. Like when we have to talk about it, but I don't when we're doing it”
- Da'Vine Joy Randolph
Randolph recounted Al Pacino advising her that climbing a ladder of success requires letting go of more weight.
“he used this metaphor of a ladder and said, like, as you continue to go up a ladder, you have to let go of more and more weight”
- Da'Vine Joy Randolph
Randolph said she wants to make a biopic about soprano Leontyne Price to return to classical singing.
“I think I want to do a biopic on Leontyne Price”
People
In the conversation
- Amy PoehlerAmerican actress, comedian and podcast host, formerly of Saturday Night Live
- Da'Vine Joy RandolphAmerican actress and singer, Academy Award winner for The Holdovers
- David FreyneIrish film director of Eternity
Discussed
- Al PacinoAmerican actor who gave Randolph career advice
- Robin WilliamsAmerican comedian and actor; co-starred in Randolph's first film
- Eddie MurphyAmerican comedian and actor Druski names as having set the bar for comedy careers
- Paul GiamattiAmerican actor, co-star of The Holdovers
- Alexander PayneAmerican director of The Holdovers
- John EarlyAmerican comedian, Randolph's Eternity co-star
- Steve MartinAmerican comedian, Randolph's Only Murders in the Building co-star
- Zoë KravitzAmerican actress and director
- Stephen SondheimAmerican musical theater composer
- Leontyne PriceAmerican soprano Randolph hopes to portray
- Michelle TerryBritish actress and Shakespeare's Globe artistic director
- Gwyneth PaltrowAmerican actress and previous Good Hang guest
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From the publisher
Da'Vine Joy Randolph has some copper cookware she wants to recommend. Amy hangs with the Oscar-winning actress and talks about what kitchenware is currently on her wish list, how Miss Piggy shaped her, and being up on a ladder with Al Pacino. Host: Amy Poehler Guests: David Freyne and Da'Vine Joy Randolph Executive producers: Bill Simmons, Amy Poehler, and Jenna Weiss-Berman For Paper Kite Productions: Executive producer Jenna Weiss-Berman, coordinator Sam Green, and supervising producer Joel Lovell For 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 Spillane Original music: Amy Miles Use coupon code ‘EATCESAR10’ at Cesar.com for 10% off This episode is brought to you by Subaru. Love goes the extra mile in a long-range Subaru Hybrid…with up to 597 miles per tank in the Crosstrek Hybrid and up to 581 in the Forester Hybrid. Visit subaru.com/hybrid to learn more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Summary, chapters and key points were generated from the episode transcript on September 28, 2026. Quotes are checked word for word against the transcript.