#2507 - Harland Williams

Episode of The Joe Rogan Experience · May 29, 2026 · 3 h 20 min

Joe Rogan and comedian Harland Williams riff through prop gags and debate UFOs, AI, simulation theory, wolves, the death of the sitcom and comedy roasts.

Summary

Comedian Harland Williams returned to The Joe Rogan Experience for a loose, prop-heavy conversation that opened with a fake memorial tattoo for a goat named Billy and later featured Williams wearing rubber muscle-leg pants concealing a gourd. Between the bits, the two touched on dueling politicians in early American history, the UFC event planned for the White House lawn, and the U.S. war with Iran. Rogan said he liked Donald Trump's boldness but questioned the Iran war, citing Scott Horton's view that Iran was far from a weapon, while Williams defended the war as a clearer mission than Afghanistan and joked about U.S. nuclear submarines.

Rogan relayed Congressman Tim Burchett's claims about underwater UFO bases and argued that advanced visitors would observe humans the way people would study early hominins; Williams questioned why aliens would hide. Williams was enthusiastic about artificial intelligence as a democratizing creative tool, describing an animated project he was producing cheaply with AI. Rogan argued that reality is better described as a biological "program" than a simulation, one possibly leading to the creation of artificial life. They also discussed OnlyFans and parenting, Soviet scientist Ilya Ivanov's human-chimpanzee hybrid experiments, and Colossal Biosciences' dire wolves.

A long debate followed about wolves: Williams maintained that wild animals, including wolves and orcas, instinctively avoid humans and said he would rather the animals inherit the Earth, while Rogan insisted wolves are dangerous opportunistic predators, criticized Colorado's wolf reintroduction as "ballot box biology," disputed the documentary How Wolves Changed Rivers, and cited historian Dan Flores on bison and coyotes. Rogan declared himself on "team people."

The later portion covered Williams' revived career after appearing on Kill Tony, his new film Wingman and planned film Rednecks starring Tony Hinchcliffe, and the decline of multi-camera sitcoms, with Rogan recalling NewsRadio and Williams recounting his low-rated WB sitcom Simon. Rogan defended roast comedy against critics after the Tom Brady roast, and the pair closed by discussing Denisovans and the missing link.

Chapters

0:03
Billy the goat and cockfights
Williams presents a fake memorial tattoo for a goat, and Rogan recalls goat tacos and a friend's cockfighting pit.
6:59
Presidency and political duels
Rogan questions who would want to be president, and the group reads about historical duels including Burr and Hamilton.
11:46
White House UFC, Iran and submarines
Rogan discusses the White House UFC event and his doubts about the Iran war while Williams touts U.S. nuclear submarines.
21:29
Underwater UFO bases and alien observers
Rogan cites Tim Burchett on underwater bases and argues aliens would study humans covertly, while Williams pushes back.
39:34
Shirt off and the rubber legs gag
Williams coaxes Rogan into removing his shirt and reveals fake muscular legs concealing a gourd.
1:01:47
OnlyFans and parenting
The two discuss OnlyFans economics and Rogan explains his communicative approach to raising his daughters.
1:09:16
AI, abundance and simulation theory
Williams praises AI as a creative equalizer and Rogan proposes that reality is a biological program leading to artificial life.
1:33:03
Mars, hybrids and dire wolves
They look at Mars anomalies, the Dogon origin myth, Ilya Ivanov's human-ape hybrid experiments and Colossal's dire wolves.
1:52:23
Wolves, predators and team people
A heated debate over whether wolves threaten humans, Colorado reintroduction, bison history and humanity's place in nature.
2:20:17
Kill Tony, acting and the death of the sitcom
Williams describes his Kill Tony revival and new films while both recall NewsRadio, Simon and the loss of multi-cam sitcoms.
2:46:14
Roasts, Kid Rock and wokeness
Rogan defends roast comedy and argues the Tom Brady roast and Kid Rock's Bud Light protest ended woke culture.
2:57:23
Coyotes, orcas, cruelty and the missing link
They discuss coyote attacks, orcas, animal versus human cruelty, and Denisovan discoveries before wrapping up.

Key points

What was said, by whom, with the exact words. Timestamps jump to the moment.

Joe Rogan
Rogan argues that world championship fights should be held in a controlled environment rather than outdoors, though he would still watch the White House event.
“And I think world championship fights should be in a controlled environment because out of respect for the athletes and how difficult it is to compete”
Listen from 11:48
Harland Williams
Williams argues that preventing Iran from getting a bomb is a clearer, more positive mission than the war in Afghanistan.
“So I think that's a much clearer and more positive agenda than wiping out guys living in the hills of Afghanistan, creating opium”
Listen from 13:03 · United States war with Iran
Joe Rogan
Rogan says he understands Israel's motives for war with Iran but doubts it is good for America or that there is an exit.
“I get why they would want it. I just don't know if it's a good thing for America. And I don't know if there's a way out of it”
Listen from 14:15 · United States war with Iran
Joe Rogan
Rogan claims the U.S. has used a large share of its missiles in the Iran conflict, leaving it under-armed.
“two-thirds of our missiles doing it. It leaves us vulnerable if there's any other kind of a conflict. We're like under-armed right now”
Listen from 14:32 · United States war with Iran
Joe Rogan
Rogan reasons that any craft able to travel from another planet could reach the ocean depths and set up a base there.
“If he can do that, for sure something that can come here from another planet can also go down there and most likely set up a base”
Listen from 23:20 · Unidentified flying objects and government disclosure
Joe Rogan
Rogan says treating children as possessions to be obeyed leads them to rebel instead of listen.
“If you treat them like you own them and they have to listen to you, they'll never listen to you, and they're going to rebel”
Listen from 1:06:14
Linked moment · 1:09:37Skip to 1:09:37 using a listen link in the info box.
Harland Williams
Williams says he loves AI because it opens creative expression to everyone, not just a small set of historically recognized artists.
“I love it, Joe, because it's opening a door to creativity for everybody”
Listen from 1:09:37 · Artificial intelligence
Harland Williams
Williams says AI lets him and friends produce a previously rejected animation project for a few thousand dollars instead of millions.
“It would have cost us $3 million. Now we're doing it for a few thousand”
Listen from 1:10:42 · Artificial intelligence
Joe Rogan
Rogan argues reality is better described as a real biological program than a simulation, one that leads to the creation of artificial life.
“So I don't think the simulation term is the best term. I think it's a program”
Listen from 1:29:19 · Simulation hypothesis
Joe Rogan
Rogan says the documentary How Wolves Changed Rivers overstates the ecological effects of wolves.
“So a lot of the stuff they're saying is not accurate in that documentary”
Listen from 2:05:57 · Wolf reintroduction in Colorado
Joe Rogan
Rogan relays Dan Flores' theory that huge bison herds arose after disease wiped out Native American hunters.
“The reason why there were so many bison on the plains was because of all the Native Americans that got wiped out by disease”
Listen from 2:09:38 · American bison population decline
Harland Williams
Williams says that if forced to choose, he would rather animals succeed on Earth than humans.
“I'd rather see the animals succeed than us, if I'm being honest”
Listen from 2:14:32 · Wolf reintroduction in Colorado
Harland Williams
Williams says his Kill Tony success led to a film he will direct starring Tony Hinchcliffe.
“And now I'm about to shoot a movie with Tony as my star. I'm going to direct a movie with him”
Listen from 2:22:13 · Kill Tony
Joe Rogan
Rogan believes abandoning multi-camera sitcoms is a mistake and that a great one could be made today by a streamer.
“Because I think you could make a sitcom right now, whether Paramount Plus does it or one of those organizations that streams”
Listen from 2:29:59 · Multi-camera sitcom
Harland Williams
Williams recounts that while his sitcom Simon ranked last, he stayed with Jennifer Aniston, whose Friends was number one.
“Her best friend was Jennifer Aniston. She lived with Jennifer”
Listen from 2:40:55 · Multi-camera sitcom
Joe Rogan
Rogan calls Williams the most universally liked comedian he knows.
“You are like the most universally loved comedian that I know”
Listen from 2:46:04
Joe Rogan
Rogan condemns comedians who portray roast performers as actual racists and Nazis over roast jokes.
“But this fucking pretending that these people are actual racists and Nazis just because they're telling these jokes that are in a roast”
Listen from 2:48:15 · The Roast of Tom Brady
Joe Rogan
Rogan states the Tom Brady roast was Netflix's most-watched program.
“The Tom Brady roast was the number one watched thing in Netflix history”
Listen from 2:49:12 · The Roast of Tom Brady
Harland Williams
Williams, though not a fan of cruel humor, says the Tom Brady roast pushed back against wokeness.
“I feel like it kicked wokeness over the cliff like those buffalo”
Listen from 2:49:20 · The Roast of Tom Brady
Joe Rogan
Rogan argues Kid Rock's Bud Light protest showed the financial consequences of woke marketing.
“That might have been it because then they got to see the real financial consequences of being fucking completely insane”
Listen from 2:49:49 · 2023 Bud Light boycott
Joe Rogan
Rogan criticizes Colorado's wolf reintroduction as 'ballot box biology' decided by voters who will never live with the wolves.
“I just don't like people doing what I call ballot box biology, where you get people to decide by voting that are never going to experience these wolves”
Listen from 2:52:35 · Wolf reintroduction in Colorado
Joe Rogan
Rogan doubts the missing-link concept, suggesting many undiscovered human types likely existed.
“So this idea of the missing link, I'm not sure if that's accurate”
Listen from 3:10:30 · Denisovans

People

In the conversation

Joe RoganAmerican comedian and host of The Joe Rogan Experience
Harland WilliamsCanadian comedian, actor, filmmaker and host of The Harland Highway podcast

Discussed

Donald TrumpPresident of the United States whose conduct of the Iran war is the episode's main subject
Scott HortonDirector of the Libertarian Institute, editorial director of Antiwar.com, host of The Scott Horton Show and author of Provoked
Tim BurchettU.S. Representative who commented on classified UFO briefings
Terrence HowardAmerican actor whose theory of planet formation Rogan describes
Michelle ThallerAmerican astrophysicist, science communicator and retired NASA executive
Ilya IvanovSoviet biologist who attempted human-chimpanzee hybridization
Dan FloresHistorian and author of Coyote America and work on bison ecology
Tony HinchcliffeComedian and Kill Tony host, set to star in Williams' film Rednecks
Jennifer AnistonAmerican actress cited by Wilson as claiming nerd credentials
Kid RockMusician whose shooting of Bud Light cans Rogan credited with ending woke culture
Kevin HartAmerican comedian and actor cited by Druski as a benchmark of greatness
Phil HartmanLate NewsRadio co-star recalled by Rogan
John LarroquetteActor whose show Williams auditioned for
Chuck LorreProducer of The Big Bang Theory and other sitcoms

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From the publisher

Harland Williams is a comedian, author, actor, musician, filmmaker, and host of “The Harland Highway” podcast. His new movie, “Wingman,” is available now on all streaming services.www.youtube.com/@HarlandHighwayPodcastwww.harlandwilliams.com Perplexity: Download the app or ask Perplexity anything at https://pplx.ai/rogan. Get tickets now at https://MastersoftheUniverse.movie Get a free welcome kit with your first subscription of AG1 at https://drinkag1.com/joerogan 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.

Categories: Comedy Interviews·Nature·Technology