John Malkovich | Club Random with Bill Maher

Dec 1, 2025

John Malkovich, an acclaimed actor and director, shares insights from his remarkable career and recent work in Bad Monkey. He reflects on his Leave-It-to-Beaver upbringing and the influence of his WWII-veteran father. Malkovich discusses the challenges in theater and the art of storytelling, blending classical music with spoken word. They delve into quirky hotel experiences, the impact of technology like AI and driverless cars, and his unexpected journey with Con Air. Humorous and candid, Malkovich highlights the importance of resilience in both life and art.

01:17:49

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INSIGHT

Classical Crossovers Revive Audience Reach

Malkovich discovered classical music collaborations later in life and found them powerfully transformative for his work.
He uses spoken-word and musical fusion to expose new audiences to classical music's emotional force.

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ADVICE

Work The Craft As You Age

Apply yourself to acting as memory and age require more intentional preparation.
Treat work as a craft to refine rather than rely solely on youthful spontaneity.

insights

INSIGHT

AI And Automation Threaten Work

Both guests fear AI and automation will disrupt jobs and child-rearing futures.
They treat the advance of driverless tech and AI as a real threat to livelihoods and safety.

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First Reunion and Early Memories

02:31 • 3min

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Parenthood, Grandchildren and Life Focus

05:16 • 1min

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John's Upbringing and Leave-It-to-Beaver Childhood

06:27 • 5min

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Celebrity Encounters and Hotel Oddities

11:09 • 4min

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Current Projects: Bad Monkey and Touring

15:04 • 2min

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Classical Collaborations and Spoken-Word Work

Talking vs. Singing on Stage

22:18 • 1min

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Influences: Tom Waits and Early Music Tastes

23:37 • 29sec

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Death of a Salesman and Dustin Hoffman's Impact

24:07 • 1min

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Acting Approach: Work Ethic Over Ego

25:09 • 2min

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Luck, Career and Cultural Advantage

26:50 • 1min

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AI, Driverless Cars and Generational Fears

27:58 • 2min

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Friends, Fame and Touring Realities

Classical Projects: Nazi Literature Adaptation

Form and Risk in Art: Willingness to Fail

41:46 • 5min

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Touring Pieces: The Infamous Ramirez Hoffman

46:55 • 6min

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Introducing Audiences to New Music

53:00 • 2min

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Theater Mishaps and Why Plays Become Miseries

54:58 • 4min

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Directing Disasters and Closing Bad Productions

58:41 • 4min

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Art's Duty: How Do We Live?

01:03:01 • 4min

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Being Lucky to Be Born When They Were

01:06:51 • 5min

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Family, Fathers, and Tough Upbringings

01:11:40 • 7min

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Generational Parenting and Praise

• Mentioned in 19 episodes

Death of a Salesman

Arthur Miller

Written by Arthur Miller, 'Death of a Salesman' is a two-act tragedy set in late 1940s Brooklyn. The play revolves around Willy Loman, an aging salesman who grapples with the reality that his American Dream of success and wealth is unattainable. Through a montage of memories, dreams, and arguments, the play explores Willy's consciousness and his inner conflict. Willy's life is marked by poor choices, delusions, and a desperate attempt to secure a better future for his sons through his life insurance policy. The play critiques the American Dream and the superficial values that Willy has adopted, leading to his tragic downfall. The final scene depicts Willy's funeral, attended by only a few people, highlighting the contrast between Willy's illusions and the harsh reality of his life.

Nazi Literature in the Americas

Roberto Bolaño

#40853

The Savage Detectives

Roberto Bolaño Ávalos

La novela narra la historia de Arturo Belano y Ulises Lima, dos poetas que se autodenominan 'realistas viscerales', mientras buscan a la enigmática Cesárea Tinajero. La obra está estructurada en tres partes, con narradores múltiples que ofrecen perspectivas diversas sobre los personajes principales. Ganó el premio Herralde en 1998 y el Rómulo Gallegos en 1999.

#8798

• Mentioned in 5 episodes

2666

Roberto Bolaño

2666 is a sprawling novel composed in the last years of Roberto Bolaño's life. It revolves around the unsolved murders of hundreds of young women in Santa Teresa, a fictional city based on Ciudad Juárez. The novel is divided into five sections, each focusing on different characters and locations, including academics, convicts, an American sportswriter, and an elusive German novelist. The book delves into themes of violence, death, mental illness, journalism, and the breakdown of relationships and careers. Bolaño's writing style shifts and weaves through various voices, evoking a range of emotions and confronting the reader with the harsh realities of life.

Bill Maher kicks back with John Malkovich for a candid conversation that jumps from Death of a Salesman and his new series Bad Monkey to his unexpected love of classical-music collaborations—and why so much theater ends up “a misery.” Malkovich opens up about his Leave-It-to-Beaver childhood, his 82nd Airborne environmentalist father, getting beaten as a kid, and the lingering feeling he’ll never quite measure up. Along the way, he and Bill veer into AI, driverless cars, nightmare hotels, and that golden window of being born after antibiotics but before the robots take over, with a detour to a great story about how Con Air came to be, as well as Bill’s unabashed love for In the Line of Fire.

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ABOUT CLUB RANDOM

Bill Maher rewrites the rules of podcasting the way he did in television in this series of one on one, hour long conversations with a wide variety of unexpected guests in the undisclosed location called Club Random. There’s a whole big world out there that isn’t about politics and Bill and his guests—from Bill Burr and Jerry Seinfeld to Jordan Peterson, Quentin Tarantino and Neil DeGrasse Tyson—talk about all of it.

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ABOUT BILL MAHER

Bill Maher was the host of “Politically Incorrect” (Comedy Central, ABC) from 1993-2002, and for the last fourteen years on HBO’s “Real Time,” Maher’s combination of unflinching honesty and big laughs have garnered him 40 Emmy nominations. Maher won his first Emmy in 2014 as executive producer for the HBO series, “VICE.” In October of 2008, this same combination was on display in Maher’s uproarious and unprecedented swipe at organized religion, “Religulous.”

Maher has written five bestsellers: “True Story,” “Does Anybody Have a Problem with That? Politically Incorrect’s Greatest Hits,” “When You Ride Alone, You Ride with Bin Laden,” “New Rules: Polite Musings from a Timid Observer,” and most recently, “The New New Rules: A Funny Look at How Everybody But Me Has Their Head Up Their Ass.”

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