HATE TO BREAK IT TO YA with Jamie Kennedy

Episódios

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  Fauci's Secret Diary Is Finally Public — Here's What It Reveals | Ep 269 HTBITY 06.08.2026 1h 3min

  This week on Hate To Break It To Ya, I dive into the release of Anthony Fauci's personal diary and why I think it's one of the most overlooked stories of the year. I walk through the entries that caught my attention, the Congressional testimony that followed, the debate surrounding his pardon, and why so many people still have no interest in revisiting what happened during the pandemic. From there I revisit some of the moments that changed the way I looked at everything—from the Pineapple Hill protests to restaurants enforcing different rules for different people—and why I think those years permanently reshaped public trust. Then things take an unexpected turn. We get into a California robotics company unveiling a goat-headed chainsaw centaur, Meta's newest smart glasses campaign that looks like it came straight out of They Live, and why I think we're moving into a future that deserves a lot more skepticism than it's getting. Whether you agree with me or not, this episode is really about one question: what happens when people stop questioning the people they're told to trust? ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ Timestamps: 00:00:00 – Intro: Best Golf Round of My Life00:01:19 – The Pandemic Was a Three-and-a-Half-Year War00:03:28 – Two Types of People: Telephone vs. Banana00:06:06 – The Cult of Closed-Mindedness00:07:06 – Fauci Takes the Fifth — 111 Times00:20:00 – Reading Fauci's Diary00:25:03 – Fame, Money, and Public Perception00:27:44 – Looking Back at Pandemic Policies00:28:52 – Gain of Function and the Lab Leak Debate00:35:52 – RFK Jr. and Questioning the Experts00:44:46 – Why I Almost Quit: My SNL Audition Story00:51:09 – The Fauci Diary Finally Goes Public00:55:15 – The Goat-Head Chainsaw Robot00:58:45 – Meta Glasses, They Live, and the Future01:01:04 – Patreon, Tour Dates & Final Thoughts ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ Support the Pod: 💥 Patreon: patreon.com/thejamiekennedy 🎟️ Tour Dates: jamiekennedy.com 👕 Merch: jamiekennedy.com/merch 📺 Subscribe: youtube.com/@jamiekennedycomedy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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  Los Angeles Is Actually Falling Apart... And Why I'm Talking About It | Ep 268 HTBITY 30.07.2026 46min

  This week on Hate To Break It To Ya, I just got back from Galaxy Con, and I'm feeling the effects. I talk about what it's really like working conventions, the fans who make it all worthwhile, the emotional drain that comes with being "on" all weekend, and why I'm starting to rethink how often I do them. Then I get into something that's been happening right outside my front door in West Hollywood. In just a couple of weeks, multiple major water main breaks have hit the Los Angeles area, flooding streets, shutting down neighborhoods, and even causing water pressure issues miles away. I walk through what I've been seeing, give credit where it's due when repairs happen quickly, and ask the question that's been on my mind: are we simply watching decades-old infrastructure reach its breaking point, or is something bigger going on? I also revisit the golf cart story and why taking responsibility still matters, even when it's uncomfortable. Somewhere along the way, I accidentally became the guy talking about local news—and honestly, I'm just reporting what I'm seeing. 00:00:00 – Intro: Just Back From Galaxy Con00:01:23 – The Emotional Reality of Working Conventions00:03:35 – Fan Types: The Good, the Sweet, and the Drive-Bys00:06:03 – No Break, No Hiding, No Time to Recharge00:09:28 – My Ideal Convention Schedule00:15:25 – Upcoming Shows and Maybe Slowing Down00:16:22 – The Hole in My Driveway and Where This Started00:17:53 – Water Main Break #1: Sunset Blvd Floods at 5 A.M.00:21:07 – Giving LADWP Credit for a Fast Repair00:25:03 – More Water Main Breaks Across Los Angeles00:30:02 – Anaheim Water Problems and Disneyland Disruptions00:33:37 – Old Infrastructure or Something More?00:34:05 – How Did I Become a Local News Podcast?00:42:30 – The Golf Cart Story and Taking Accountability 💥 Patreon: patreon.com/thejamiekennedy🎟️ Tour Dates: jamiekennedy.com👕 Merch: jamiekennedy.com/merch📺 Subscribe: youtube.com/@jamiekennedycomedy Timestamps:Support the Pod Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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  Shannon Beador Gets Real: 12 Years of RHOC, the DUI, and Why She's Happy Alone Ep 267 HTBITY 23.07.2026 1h 27min

  This week on Hate To Break It To Ya I sat down with Shannon Beador — twelve-year veteran of The Real Housewives of Orange County, one of Bravo's most recognizable faces, and a woman who has lived more on camera than most people do in a lifetime — and she did not hold back. We met through our mutual friend Jeff Lewis, and from the first time I saw her handle a room full of big personalities I knew she was the real deal. This conversation confirmed it. We go deep on how Shannon ended up on RHOC in the first place — a casting number she found in a drawer, a closet with no windows, and an iPhone camera — and what twelve seasons of reality television actually does to a person. She walks me through the affair that unfolded the day after her very first day of filming, why she and her then-husband made the decision to talk about it openly on camera, and what it felt like to watch it all back six months later while the internet weighed in. We also get into the DUI — the real story, what was going on in her life that night, how she broke her nose and her arm, what she did the next morning, and why she chose a mental health facility over a traditional rehab. Then there's the $300,000 defamation lawsuit she won but still lost, the Quiet Woman restaurant drama that Kelly Dodd turned into a press cycle, the Heather McDonald video that got under Shannon's skin more than she wants to admit, and the full story of the golf cart incident at Kelly's Fourth of July party — including what Jamie thinks actually happened and why nobody is saying the obvious thing out loud. Shannon is one of those people who is much funnier and much more self-aware than the villain edit would have you believe. She's been through a divorce, a DUI, a lawsuit, public humiliation, and a company that cost her everything — and she's sitting in a duplex in Corona Del Mar, single, happy, and genuinely at peace with herself for the first time. That's not nothing. That's actually the whole story. ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ About Shannon Beador: Shannon Storms Beador is a main cast member of The Real Housewives of Orange County, which she joined in Season 9 in 2014 and has appeared on for twelve consecutive seasons, currently airing Season 20 on Bravo. She also starred in Bravo's spin-off series Love Hotel. A Southern California native, Shannon attended USC and raised three daughters — Sophie, Stella, and Adeline — in Orange County. She previously founded and ran a supplements company and is known for her candid, unfiltered approach to filming her real life, including her divorce, her 2023 DUI, and her ongoing journey as a single woman navigating life after a long marriage. Follow Shannon Beador Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shannonbeador/ X: https://x.com/ShannonBeador TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@shannonbeador ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ Timestamps: 00:00:00 – Cold Open: Reality TV and Appearances 00:01:39 – RHOC Season 20 and 12 Years on the Show 00:05:46 – How Bravo Gatekeeps (and Why It's Outdated) 00:06:46 – How Shannon Got Cast: The Drawer, the Closet, the iPhone 00:08:13 – The Affair: What Happened and Why She Talked About It 00:14:04 – Live Shows with Vicki and How the Show Has Changed 00:20:29 – The DUI: The Real Story, the Crash, and the Aftermath 00:23:41 – Accountability, Mental Health, and Learning to Be Alone 00:29:31 – The Quiet Woman Restaurant Controversy 00:41:26 – The Golf Cart Incident at Kelly's Fourth of July Party 00:56:49 – The Johnny Carson Rule and Jeff Lewis Loyalty 01:00:26 – Kelly Dodd: The Hot-and-Cold Friendship 01:03:15 – The Heather McDonald Video and the $300K Defamation Suit 01:09:49 – Shannon's Storyline This Season and Life in Corona Del Mar 01:14:09 – Dating at 62, Being a Sapiosexual, and the Kissing Bandit 01:19:13 – The Mercedes Fight and Jamie's Apology 01:24:30 – Where to Watch RHOC Season 20 ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ Support the Pod: 💥 Patreon: patreon.com/thejamiekennedy 🎟️ Tour Dates: jamiekennedy.com 👕 Merch: jamiekennedy.com/merch 📺 Subscribe: youtube.com/@jamiekennedycomedy ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ Shannon Beador, Real Housewives of Orange County, RHOC Season 20, Hate To Break It To Ya, Jamie Kennedy podcast, Shannon Beador DUI, Shannon Beador interview 2026, Bravo podcast, Jeff Lewis, Kelly Dodd, Heather McDonald, RHOC cast interview Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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  AI Will Kill Your Job, Hollywood Pays to Play, and Celebrity Meltdown Over Autograph | Ep 266 HTBITY 17.07.2026 1h 1min

  In this solo episode of Hate To Break It To Ya, I get into the AI and automation wave that is coming for your job whether you're ready or not. By 2030, half the positions that exist today are gone — middle management, drivers, all of it — and if you're still going to baseball games and barbecues like it's 2015, you are going to get hit in the face by reality. I lay out exactly what I think you should be doing right now: investing, building a personal brand, and seriously looking at owning a self-driving vehicle that earns money while you sleep. I also talk about where I'm at personally — the hospital stay, getting my health and finances dialed in, the upcoming cons, and why I'm done waiting on Hollywood to hand me anything. From there I get into the state of the pod itself. I'm honest about the views, the clips that pop off, the guests who rock with me immediately versus the ones who give me the Hollywood runaround. I've reached out to big liberal voices in comedy and media and the silence is deafening — which tells you everything about how "inclusive" that side of the aisle actually is. I also react to the disgusting social media behavior I saw after Lindsey Graham's passing, and I make the case that you cannot call yourself open-minded and loving while wishing harm on people you disagree with politically. Then I react to a viral clip of a young actor — six episodes into his career — grabbing a fan's autograph and trying to light it on fire. I tell a Courtney Cox story from the Scream set in 1996 that changed how I think about fame, I break down what Russell Crowe, Al Pacino, and even the wrestlers get right about dealing with the public, and I explain exactly where this kid crossed the line from "setting a boundary" into something genuinely psychotic. I close out reacting to the Messi and Lamine Yamal prophecy photo, a manifesting breakdown that I think is real science, and a wild GTA-level scene I witnessed outside a coffee shop in LA that you have to hear to believe. ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ Timestamps: 00:00:00 – Cold Open: State of the Pod 00:01:42 – Why I Started HTBITY and the Guest Booking Reality 00:04:38 – Fox News, CNN, and Who Actually Returns Calls 00:07:47 – Upcoming Cons and What's Next for Jamie 00:09:02 – The 2030 Warning: AI Is Coming for Your Job 00:12:50 – The Left's Inclusivity Problem and Lindsey Graham Tweets 00:19:27 – Hollywood Pays to Play: How Bad Movies Get Made 00:26:19 – LA Is GTA: Coffee Shop Story 00:31:37 – Robocar and the Self-Driving Taxi Opportunity 00:37:50 – Reacting to the Hudson Williams Autograph Meltdown 00:38:13 – Courtney Cox at the Mall: A Scream Set Story 00:44:22 – What Al Pacino, Russell Crowe, and Wrestlers Get Right 00:49:37 – Six Apps Deep: Where the Line Was Crossed 00:52:34 – Manifesting, The Simulation, and The Secret Is Real 00:56:47 – The Messi and Lamine Yamal Prophecy ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ Support the Pod: 💥 Patreon: patreon.com/thejamiekennedy 🎟️ Tour Dates: jamiekennedy.com 👕 Merch: jamiekennedy.com/merch 📺 Subscribe: youtube.com/@jamiekennedycomedy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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  Stu Stone on the New Hollywood Hustle and the Rolling with Saget Years| Ep 265 HTBITY 10.07.2026 1h 32min

  This week on Hate To Break It To Ya I sat down with Stu Stone — actor, filmmaker, rapper, podcast pioneer, and one of my oldest friends in this business — for a conversation that was 25 years in the making. Stu has been on this couch more than anyone else, which tells you everything you need to know about the quality of what he brings. We went deep on the era that defined both of our careers, the hustle that got us there, and the economy that's keeping us alive today. We covered a lot of ground. We got into how the convention circuit has quietly become one of the most reliable income streams in Hollywood — Eli Roth called it "the new residuals" and he is not wrong. We talked about Tremors 5 selling 863,000 DVDs, residual checks from Enemy of the State, and why getting on Netflix might actually be the worst financial move you can make. Then we went back to the origin story of "Rolling with Saget" — the song that started as a demo recorded in a porn warehouse in the Valley for $40 an hour, almost starred Jeff Goldblum, got passed on by every rapper in the game (including Akon, which we will always regret), and then went to number one on MySpace overnight. We watched footage from the MTV show Blowing Up, including a clip of Bob Saget rapping in the Hummer on Sunset, and we talked about the meeting at Warner Brothers where we had to explain the concept to the chairman of the label by singing "Boogie in Your Butt." We also got into how I created a fake manager named Marty Power — a cross between Robbie Benson and James Woods — to get my first auditions, and how selling sandwiches to Barry from Barry's Boot Camp was the beginning of learning how to sell myself. Stu is one of the few people who has been there for every version of me — Lexus Jamie, Hummer Jamie, Bentley Jamie, pandemic Jamie — and watching these old clips together reminded me how much we actually built from nothing. This one goes long and it earns every minute. ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ About Stu Stone: Stu Stone (born Stuart Eisenstein) is a Canadian actor, filmmaker, rapper, and producer who has been working in the entertainment industry since age two. He is best known for playing Ronald Fisher in Donnie Darko, voicing Ralphie Tennelli on The Magic School Bus, and co-starring with Jamie Kennedy in the 2006 MTV reality series Blowin' Up. He is a director and co-founder of 5'7 Films, whose horror feature The Haunted House on Kirby Road won Best Horror Feature at the Toronto Independent Film Festival. His current projects include the film Don't Mess with Ghosts, a re-release of Faking a Murderer, and Dark Side of the Ring Season 7. Follow Stu Stone Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/stustone/ X: https://x.com/stustone ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ Timestamps: 00:00:00 – Welcome Back, Hall of Famer 00:05:12 – Tom Green, Podcasting and the Early Internet 00:13:03 – Fame Then vs. Fame Now 00:19:07 – The Convention Circuit and Hollywood's New Residuals 00:29:02 – Convention Horror Stories 00:34:18 – Why Hollywood Doesn't Work Like It Used To 00:44:34 – The Death of the Movie Star 00:50:05 – Jamie's Early Hustle 00:56:57 – The SNL Audition 01:00:51 – Chasing a Record Deal 01:02:15 – How Rolling with Saget Was Born 01:09:01 – Going Number One on MySpace 01:10:37 – Convincing Warner Bros. to Make It 01:15:04 – Blowin' Up Turns 20 01:25:18 – T-Pain, Bow Wow and MTV Memories 01:29:03 – Wrapping Up ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ Support the Pod: 💥 Patreon: patreon.com/thejamiekennedy 🎟️ Tour Dates: jamiekennedy.com 👕 Merch: jamiekennedy.com/merch 📺 Subscribe: youtube.com/@jamiekennedycomedy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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  Michael Rapaport Has Thoughts on Israel, Trump, and the White Boy Hall of Fame | Ep 264 HTBITY 03.07.2026 1h 50min

  This week on Hate To Break It To Ya I sat down with Michael Rapaport — New York City legend, actor, comedian, podcaster, and one of the most outspoken pro-Jewish voices in the country right now — and we went everywhere. I mean everywhere. We started where any two white boys from our era have to start: the White Boy Hall of Fame. Who’s in, who’s got a wing, who owns the whole compound. And it escalated from there in the best possible way. We got deep into Jewish identity, Zionism, and antisemitism — and Michael broke it all the way down. He explained what Zionism actually means at its most basic level, why he refuses to separate anti-Zionism from anti-Jewishness, and why he has zero patience for people who want to debate him on it. He talked about the rise of what he calls “reimagined, remixed” antisemitism, what happened at UCLA, why he’s deeply critical of NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani, and why he’s seriously considering running for mayor himself. He also explained the one reason — and it’s a big one — why he retired his longtime nickname for Donald Trump. Nine trips to Israel in two and a half years, conversations with hostage families, and a clarity about what actually mattered to him in the last election. That’s a real answer from a real person, and I respect it. We also got into the Kevin Hart roast fallout, why Michael thinks the comics complaining about it are out of pocket, his memories of the Improv in the early 90s when he and I were both coming up, his arc on Only Murders in the Building, and his Tribe Called Quest documentary — which he started filming at Rock the Bells with a camera in his own hands. Michael Rapaport is one of those guys who has always been exactly this — loud, funny, passionate, and completely unfiltered. Social media simply gave everyone else a window into the guy people in comedy and Hollywood have known for decades. ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ About Michael Rapaport: Michael Rapaport is a New York-born actor, comedian, director, and podcast host who has been a fixture in film and television since the early 1990s. His film credits include Zebrahead, True Romance, Higher Learning, Cop Land, Dr. Dolittle 2, and Big Fan, and on television he has appeared in Boston Public, Prison Break, Atypical, Justified, and Only Murders in the Building. He directed the acclaimed hip-hop documentary Beats, Rhymes & Life: The Travels of A Tribe Called Quest (2011) and the ESPN 30 for 30 film When the Garden Was Eden. Since October 7, 2023, Rapaport has become one of the most prominent pro-Jewish, pro-Israel voices in American entertainment, using his I Am Rapaport: Stereo Podcast and his massive social media following to speak out against antisemitism — and he has recently announced he is considering a run for Mayor of New York City. Follow Michael Rapaport Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/michaelrapaport/ X: https://x.com/michaelrapaport Website: https://www.michaelrapaportcomedy.com/ ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ Timestamps: 00:00:00 – Cold Open: Hidden Cameras & Old Friends 00:01:00 – The White Boy Hall of Fame: Who's In, Who's Got a Wing 00:07:00 – Mark Wahlberg Owns the Compound 00:09:00 – Larry Bird, Elvis, and the Hall of Fame Debate 00:12:00 – Robin Thicke, Gary Owen & Scott Caan 00:16:00 – Jews, Hollywood, and the "Run" Conversation 00:19:00 – Antisemitism Is Back With a New Publicist 00:21:00 – What Zionism Actually Means 00:27:00 – The Jewish Tunnels of Los Angeles 00:33:00 – Free Palestine, Hamas, and Iran 00:43:00 – Kanye West, Redemption, and the Music Question 00:47:00 – Michael's Early Career & the Improv in the 90s 00:53:00 – Brooklyn Is Cotton Candy Now 00:58:00 – Zohran Mamdani: "Zoran the Moron" 01:03:00 – Spencer Pratt, the LA Mayor Race & Michael Running for NYC Mayor 01:08:00 – Trump, October 7th, and Why He Retired "Dick Stained" 01:21:00 – The Movie Business Is Broken 01:31:00 – The Kevin Hart Roast Fallout 01:43:00 – The Tribe Called Quest Documentary & Rock the Bells 01:47:00 – Wrap-Up ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ Support the Pod: 💥 Patreon: patreon.com/thejamiekennedy 🎟️ Tour Dates: jamiekennedy.com 👕 Merch: jamiekennedy.com/merch 📺 Subscribe: youtube.com/@jamiekennedycomedy ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ Michael Rapaport, Hate To Break It To Ya, Jamie Kennedy podcast, White Boy Hall of Fame, antisemitism 2026, Zionism explained, NYC mayor race Zohran Mamdani, Kevin Hart roast controversy, Tribe Called Quest documentary, Beats Rhymes and Life, pro-Israel Hollywood, Michael Rapaport interview 2026 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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  Corey Feldman's Last Appearance on My Podcast (And His New Music) | Ep 263 HTBITY 26.06.2026 1h 8min

  This week on Hate To Break It To Ya I sat back down with Corey Feldman — actor, musician, and we went deep. The last episode we recorded together had to be pulled for legal reasons tied to an ongoing fakumentary lawsuit, so this one picks up where that left off.  We got into why Corey has never once been booked on a major late-night show — not Kimmel, not Colbert, not Fallon, not Letterman, not Carson — and why he believes his speaking out is the direct reason. He walked me through the exact moment everything changed: watching the 2010 Academy Awards and seeing Corey Haim's name left out of the In Memoriam segment. That was the night he went to ABC Nightline and said out loud what nobody in Hollywood wanted said. He also shared something I'd never heard before — the promise Corey Haim made him take a year before his death. That conversation hit different. We also got into the smear campaign that's been running against him for fifteen years, the people he believes are paid to keep it going, and what happened the night his documentary screened at the DGA — with Rosanne Arquette, Matthew Modine, and a plug that mysteriously got kicked out of the wall. From there we went into the Epstein files, why Corey thinks the current geopolitical noise is a distraction from accountability, the difference between real corroborated evidence and whitewash lists, and where he draws the line on what he'll say publicly versus what could get him "suicided." We also talked about what's actually going on in his career right now — a new rock collaboration with Fred Durst, a song he's writing to raise money for Epstein survivors, a Steven Soderbergh-presented film called Sour Party screening at SAG on July 7th, and the Stand By Me Live and Goonies tours drawing thousands every night. Corey's busy, he's clear-eyed, and he's not done. ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ About Corey Feldman: Corey Feldman is an actor and musician who has worked in Hollywood since childhood, with iconic roles in The Goonies, Stand By Me, The Lost Boys, and the original Scream. He is widely recognized as the first public figure to openly discuss the prevalence of abuse in the entertainment industry, a stance he has maintained for over three decades despite significant personal and professional consequences. He is the author of the memoir Coreyography and the creator of the documentary (My) Truth: The R*** of 2 Coreys. He currently fronts his own band, runs an independent music label, and is actively touring with Stand By Me Live and Goonies Live events across the country. Follow Corey Feldman: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cdogg22/ X: https://x.com/Corey_Feldman Website: https://coreyfeldman.net Corey’s New Single:https://youtu.be/JnRWBAlOGcE Corey’s Birthday Party Shows: 7/25: The Arrow Room [Rancho Cucamonga, CA] 7/26: Garden Amphitheatre [Garden Grove, CA] ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ Timestamps: 00:00:00 – Corey's Back: Why the Last Episode Got Pulled 00:02:23 – Legacy vs. Viral Fame: Art Is Forever 00:05:20 – Jimmy Kimmel, Loyalty, and the Pilot That Never Paid Off 00:09:58 – Exiled from Late Night: The Price of Speaking Out 00:13:39 – The 2010 Academy Awards and Corey Haim's In Memoriam Snub 00:19:03 – Corey Haim's Final Promise 00:21:26 – Judy Haim, Gaslighting, and Where Was the Mother 00:24:27 – Paid Opposition: The 15-Year Smear Campaign 00:25:44 – The DGA Screening, the Pulled Plug, and Two Years Blacklisted 00:30:13 – Out of the Shadows, QAnon Whitewashing, and the Real Epstein Flight Log 00:45:38 – Epstein, the War, and What's Being Covered Up 00:49:27 – Satanism, the Illuminati, and Hollywood's Dark Side 00:55:37 – Faith, Prayer, and How Corey Stays Centered 00:58:09 – New Music: Fred Durst Collab and a Song for Survivors 01:01:00 – Sour Party, the Goonies Tour, and What's Coming Next ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ Support the Pod: 💥 Patreon: patreon.com/thejamiekennedy 🎟️ Tour Dates: jamiekennedy.com 👕 Merch: jamiekennedy.com/merch 📺 Subscribe: youtube.com/@jamiekennedycomedy ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ Corey Feldman, Hate To Break It To Ya, Jamie Kennedy podcast, The Goonies cast, Stand By Me cast, The Lost Boys, Hollywood pedophilia, Corey Haim, Epstein files Hollywood, child actors abuse, Corey Feldman interview 2026, celebrity blacklist Hollywood Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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  The Manager Behind Chappelle, Burr, and Dane Cook on What It Actually Takes with Barry Katz | Ep 262 18.06.2026 2h 10min

  This week on Hate To Break It To Ya I sat down with Barry Katz — legendary talent manager, producer, and founder of the Boston Comedy Club — and what started as an interview turned into one of the most honest, wide-open conversations I've had on this show. Barry has managed or launched the careers of Dave Chappelle, Bill Burr, Dane Cook, Wanda Sykes, Jay Mohr, Bert Kreischer, Whitney Cummings, Jim Gaffigan, and more than a dozen other names you know by heart. He is, as I told him to his face, the last of a breed — a manager who actually goes to the club, watches the set, and builds the hour alongside the artist. Nobody does that anymore. We got into all of it: what Barry saw in me thirty-two years ago at a Stand-Up New York SNL audition and why he says the Jamie Kennedy on stage today is almost unrecognizable from that kid; the three things that actually make a great stand-up comedian; and why he believes I've been leaving something on the table. That part stung — and I had to sit with it — but he's not wrong. We talked about the 90-10 reality of the manager-artist relationship and why it's structurally set up to end in a firing, how Barry got fired by fax, by FedEx, and in person, and why he'd sign every one of those clients again without hesitation. We went deep on Dane Cook's social media revolution, the Brad Williams YouTube story that changed a comedian's business overnight, and why Barry thinks doubt is the single greatest dream killer working against comedians today. We also got into the Malibu's Most Wanted origin story — Nick Swardson, a spiral notebook, and a fax machine — which is one of the best stories I've heard in years. Barry is one of those rare people who makes you want to go out and destroy. By the end of this conversation I was fired up in a way I wasn't expecting. He's built more careers than anyone I know, he's taken more hits than anyone I know, and he's still smiling. That's the lesson. ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ About Barry Katz: Barry Katz is an American talent manager, television and film producer, and the founder of the Boston Comedy Club in New York City, which he ran for seventeen years and which served as the launching pad for some of the most significant careers in modern comedy. Over four decades he has managed or developed Dave Chappelle, Bill Burr, Dane Cook, Wanda Sykes, Jay Mohr, Bert Kreischer, Whitney Cummings, Jim Gaffigan, Darrell Hammond, and many others — selling forty-five out of forty-six comedy specials he has taken to market. He was the executive producer of the Emmy-nominated NBC series Last Comic Standing and has produced Grammy-nominated comedy albums, including Jay Mohr's Happy. And A Lot. He currently hosts the Industry Standard podcast, runs the Blueprint for Success mentorship program for emerging comedians, and continues to manage, produce, and consult across the entertainment industry. Follow Barry Katz Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/barrykatz/ X: https://x.com/BarryKatz Website: https://www.barrykatz.com ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ Timestamps: 00:00:00 – Cold Open & Barry Roasts Jamie's House 00:03:20 – What Barry Saw at the SNL Audition 32 Years Ago 00:09:00 – The Three Things That Make a Great Stand-Up Comedian 00:16:00 – Barry's Honest Take on Jamie's Stage Persona 00:23:00 – Jamie's SNL Audition Story & Life After the Rejection 00:26:00 – Jamie's Career: Auteurs, Roles, and the Town That Changed 00:36:55 – The Gene Simmons Story 00:39:20 – The Dog vs. the Wolf: Barry's Philosophy on Creative Freedom 00:51:20 – The Boston Comedy Club & How Barry Got to New York 00:53:40 – The Client List: 20 Legends and Counting 00:55:50 – Jay Mohr, Addiction, and 30 Years of Partnership 00:58:45 – The 90-10 Truth About the Manager-Artist Relationship 01:03:40 – Barry's Strength Is His Weakness: Doing Everything 01:13:00 – Dane Cook, Social Media, and Changing the Business Forever 01:16:00 – The Brad Williams YouTube Story 01:29:00 – The State of Stand-Up: Too Much Noise or More Opportunity? 01:39:00 – Legacy, Lyrics, and What It Actually Takes to Leave a Mark 01:44:00 – Bombing, Thick Skin, and the Trump Blinders Metaphor 01:53:50 – Kill or Be Killed: The Comedy Store Mentality 02:00:00 – Stock Rising, Stock Falling, and Talent That Never Dies 02:05:50 – The Malibu's Most Wanted Origin Story: Nick Swardson & the Fax Machine 02:10:30 – Closing: Barry Gives Jamie His Flowers ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ Support the Pod: 💥 Patreon: patreon.com/thejamiekennedy 🎟️ Tour Dates: jamiekennedy.com 👕 Merch: jamiekennedy.com/merch 📺 Subscribe: youtube.com/@jamiekennedycomedy ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ Barry Katz, Barry Katz podcast, Hate To Break It To Ya, Jamie Kennedy podcast, comedy manager Hollywood, Dave Chappelle manager, Bill Burr manager, Dane Cook social media, Boston Comedy Club, Last Comic Standing producer, Industry Standard podcast, comedy business 2026 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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  The Church Is a Business — Nathan Apffel Exposes the $1 Trillion Religion Racket | Ep 261 HTBITY 10.06.2026 2h 27min

  This week on Hate To Break It To Ya I sat down with Nathan Apffel — Emmy-nominated filmmaker, Christ follower, and the creator of the docuseries The Religion Business — and what started as a conversation about his documentary turned into one of the most wide-open, genuinely surprising talks I've had on this show. Nathan drove down from San Diego to be here, and I'm glad he did, because this one went places I didn't expect. Nathan's whole thing is the money. Not whether churches should exist — he's a believer, he's clear about that — but the legal architecture that lets a pastor collect $500,000 a week from a congregation, pay himself a tax-free housing allowance on an $18 million real estate portfolio, fold an investment fund and a TV network under the church's umbrella, and never show a dollar of it to anyone. Not the government, not the congregation, not the IRS. We got into how you can literally start a church today with nothing more than a state filing and an EIN number, how the LDS Church has $300 billion in investments and is the second-largest private landowner in the United States, and how Kenneth Copeland built a $750 million empire by mailing letters to elderly women. Nathan also told me about the time he showed up at Fellowship Church in Grapevine, Texas, with a sign asking the pastor one simple question about his housing allowance — and got surrounded by 15 security guards with expired licenses, had his phone grabbed out of his hand, and ended up in handcuffs. It's all in the show. We also went deep on the stuff I didn't plan for — the Big Bang versus creation, the Nephilim, 666 translating to Nero Caesar in the Hebrew numerical alphabet, why the King James Bible got rewritten, soaking, the celestial kingdom, entropy as a spiritual concept, and whether Jesus came to make bad people good or dead people alive. Nathan's a surfer from Burbank who got into editing after a traumatic brain injury at 16, directed one of the worst-reviewed films in IMDB history, and spent 15 years researching a documentary that Tucker Carlson and Sean Ryan both called essential viewing. He's the real deal, and this conversation earned every minute of its runtime. ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ About Nathan Apffel: Nathan Apffel is an Emmy Award-winning filmmaker and entrepreneur based in Utah, best known as the director and creator of The Religion Business, a multi-part investigative docuseries exposing financial fraud, abuse, and lack of accountability inside American religious institutions. He began his career editing action sports content for brands like Oakley after a traumatic brain injury ended his surfing and skating at age 16, later directing travel TV for Fuel TV and operating on shows including Temptation Island. The Religion Business — co-produced with decorated combat veteran and entrepreneur Chris Ayoub — is available on Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV, and YouTube Movies, with Season 2 currently in production. Nathan has appeared on Tucker Carlson's show and the Shawn Ryan Show to discuss the series, and his Instagram platform @religionbusiness grew to over 100,000 followers within five months of launch. Follow Nathan Apffel Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nathan_apffel/ X: https://x.com/devouringmarrow The Religion Business Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/religionbusiness/ The Religion Business website: https://www.thereligionbusiness.com ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ Timestamps: 00:00:00 – Welcome to Burbank: Nathan's Origin Story 00:01:49 – Traumatic Brain Injury, Final Cut One & Editing His Way In 00:03:24 – Chicks Dig Gay Guys: The Worst Directorial Debut Ever 00:07:06 – The Apffel Coffee Empire & LA History 00:10:54 – What Is The Religion Business? 00:16:01 – The $1 Trillion Unregulated Industry 00:26:39 – How to Start a Tax-Free Church in One Afternoon 00:30:01 – The LDS Church: $300 Billion, Defense Stocks & Soaking 00:43:45 – Kenneth Copeland, Prosperity Gospel & Mailing Lists 00:57:37 – Nathan Gets Arrested at Fellowship Church in Texas 01:10:57 – Joel Osteen, TBN & Buying Airtime With Donations 01:21:37 – Is Jesus Real? Creation vs. Chance 01:41:42 – The Nephilim, 666 & the Hebrew Numerical Alphabet 01:44:50 – King James, the Geneva Bible & Rewriting Scripture 01:56:52 – The Trinity, Interstellar & God Outside of Time 02:09:30 – Satanism, Epstein & the Architecture of Darkness 02:19:22 – Christ Came to Make Dead People Alive 02:29:00 – Season 2 & What Happens If Christians Actually Live Like Jesus 02:33:51 – Where to Watch The Religion Business ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ Support the Pod: 💥 Patreon: patreon.com/thejamiekennedy 🎟️ Tour Dates: jamiekennedy.com 👕 Merch: jamiekennedy.com/merch 📺 Subscribe: youtube.com/@jamiekennedycomedy ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ Nathan Apffel, The Religion Business, Jamie Kennedy podcast, megachurch corruption exposed, church tax exemption scandal, Kenneth Copeland prosperity gospel, LDS Church investments, organized religion money, Hate To Break It To Ya, religion documentary 2025, church financial abuse, Nathan Apffel interview 2026 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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  Kelly Dodd Gets Real: Getting Fired from TV, Cancel Culture, and Why She Has Zero Regrets | Ep 260 03.06.2026 1h 35min

  This week on Hate To Break It To Ya I sat down with Kelly Dodd — former Real Housewives of Orange County cast member, co-host of The Daily Smash, and one of the most polarizing personalities to ever appear on Bravo — and she came in with absolutely zero filter. Kelly is the kind of guest who makes you realize within the first five minutes that the reputation is real, the energy is real, and the laughs are very, very real. She's been through the Bravo machine, got chewed up and spat out, and she's still standing — louder than ever. We got into all of it. Kelly walked me through her five seasons on RHOC, the hostile first year where Heather Dubrow, Shannon Beador, and Tamra Judge came after her hard, and how she became the first person to drop a C-bomb on national reality TV. She talked about the "Drunk Wives Matter" hat that set Bravo executives screaming, the $16,000 fine they hit her with, and how the COVID anti-mask, anti-vax stance she took ultimately cost her the show. She opened up about her complicated history with Andy Cohen, the falling out over politics, and why she thinks she'll never be welcomed back on Bravo — and why she genuinely doesn't care. We also got into her daughter Jolie going off to college in Paris and coming home a completely different person politically, the Reddit rats who dox her and record every live she does, and the intra-group drama that erupted inside the Jeff Lewis Chump circle when a mutual friend publicly sided against her. Kelly is one of those people you either love completely or can't stand — and she owns that. She's been called a racist, a bully, a troublemaker, and a MAGA maggot, and she'll look you dead in the eye and tell you she's a registered libertarian who loves gay people, hates big government, and lived in mainland China long enough to know exactly what creeping socialism looks like. Whether you agree with her or not, this conversation is ninety minutes of pure uncut Kelly Dodd, and I had a blast. ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ About Kelly Dodd: Kelly Dodd is best known as a cast member on The Real Housewives of Orange County, where she appeared from Season 11 through Season 15 before being fired by Bravo in 2021. Born Kelly Meza in Scottsdale, Arizona, she is of Mexican and Native American heritage and lived in San Francisco and mainland China before settling in Orange County. She is currently the co-host of The Daily Smash, a daily news and commentary show she produces with her husband, veteran journalist and former Fox News senior correspondent Rick Leventhal, who now anchors The Leventhal Report on Newsmax2. Kelly is also active on Patreon and runs her own product line, Wise Beauty. Follow Kelly Dodd Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kellyddodd/ ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ Timestamps: 00:00:00 – Cold Open: Whose Shoes Are These? 00:01:46 – Introducing Kelly Dodd 00:03:23 – Rick Leventhal: How They Met 00:08:11 – Kelly's Path to RHOC 00:12:44 – Daughter Jolie Goes Woke in Paris 00:17:00 – Fighting With Family Over Politics 00:20:16 – Jamie's Mexican Heritage & the Race Conversation 00:23:10 – Kelly's Personality: Super Stans vs. Super Haters 00:26:15 – The Reddit Rats and Dodd Derangement Syndrome 00:28:31 – RHOC: The Traumatic First Year 00:32:47 – Dropping the C-Bomb on National TV 00:35:00 – The "Drunk Wives Matter" Hat and Getting Fired 00:40:59 – COVID, the Vaccine, and Living in Communist China 00:45:09 – Libertarian Politics: What Kelly Actually Believes 00:48:11 – Andy Cohen, John Hill, and the Political Fallout 00:53:19 – Will Kelly Ever Return to Bravo? 00:58:01 – LA vs. Orange County vs. Scottsdale 01:01:00 – Jill Zarin, the Golden Years Show, and Getting Canceled 01:05:00 – The Doctor Feud: Cloud Chasing and Baiting 01:13:32 – The Jeff Lewis Chump Family and the Crystal Drama 01:21:00 – Wrapping Up: Chumps, Beefs, and Keeping It Private 01:32:21 – Where to Find Kelly Dodd ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ Support the Pod: 💥 Patreon: patreon.com/thejamiekennedy 🎟️ Tour Dates: jamiekennedy.com 👕 Merch: jamiekennedy.com/merch 📺 Subscribe: youtube.com/@jamiekennedycomedy ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ Kelly Dodd, Kelly Dodd interview 2026, Real Housewives of Orange County, RHOC fired, Hate To Break It To Ya, Jamie Kennedy podcast, cancel culture reality TV, Bravo Andy Cohen, Daily Smash podcast, Jeff Lewis Chumps, libertarian politics podcast, Real Housewives drama Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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  Sheriff Chad Bianco Exposes California's Corruption, & Shares His Plan to Fix It All | Ep 259 HTBITY 27.05.2026 2h 10min

  This week on Hate To Break It To Ya I sat down with Sheriff Chad Bianco — the 14th Sheriff of Riverside County and Republican candidate for Governor of California — and I have to say, this one genuinely blew my mind. I've had a lot of guests on this couch, but when a sitting sheriff starts breaking down the machinery of corruption in plain English, you stop cracking jokes and you start taking notes. We went deep on everything. COVID, the lockdowns, the hypocrisy of who got to stay open and who got shut down, and how Riverside County's March Air Force Base was actually the first recognized point of COVID entry into the United States — with Chad's deputies quarantining passengers from Wuhan before most of us even knew what was happening. From there we got into the new outbreak fears, why Chad says he's not locking anything down again, and what he thinks is really behind these lab-created viruses. Then we moved into the five biggest problems destroying California — overregulation, oil suppression, the housing crisis, the fires, and the homeless industrial complex — and I promise you, the way he connects these dots is something you will not hear anywhere else. We talked about the lithium mine sitting dormant in California that could make us the world's supplier and end our  reliance on China. We talked about Newsom's wife's $20 million diaper deal. We talked about Prop 47 making all drugs a misdemeanor, the body broker pipeline flooding Skid Row, and the insane truth behind SB 54 — the sanctuary state law that literally forces ICE out of jails and into neighborhoods, then lets politicians blame the feds for the fallout. Chad Bianco is the real deal. He's not a career politician — he's a career public servant who pushed back on vaccine mandates, hired fired officers from other departments, and used overwhelming force to stop the 2020 riots in Riverside before they could burn the county down. He's running for governor because he believes California can be saved, and after two hours with this guy, I believe it too. ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ About Chad Bianco: Chad Bianco has served as the 14th Sheriff of Riverside County, California since January 2019, having first been elected in November 2018 and re-elected in 2022 with approximately 60 percent of the vote. A 30-plus-year veteran of the Riverside County Sheriff's Department, he graduated at the top of his class from the San Bernardino Sheriff's Academy and rose through the ranks over three decades. He gained national attention during the COVID-19 pandemic for refusing to enforce mask mandates and hiring law enforcement officers who were terminated elsewhere for declining the vaccine. He is currently a Republican candidate for Governor of California, with the primary election on June 2, 2026, running on a platform of ending the state income tax, achieving energy and oil independence, repealing California's sanctuary state law, and dismantling what he calls the homeless industrial complex. He and his wife Denise live in Woodcrest, California, and have four adult children. Follow Chad Bianco Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sheriffbianco/ X: https://x.com/ChadBianco Website: https://biancoforgovernor.com ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ Timestamps: 00:00:00 – Welcome: Sheriff Chad Bianco of Riverside County  00:12:30 – Lockdowns, Lab Leaks & Are We Headed for Round Two?  00:26:43 – The 5 Biggest Problems Destroying California  00:43:10 – The Lithium Mine That Could Replace China  00:57:06 – The Homeless Industrial Complex  01:07:55 – Newsom's $20 Million Diaper Deal  01:24:33 – Guns, Self-Defense & An Armed Society  01:33:59 – ICE, SB 54 & the Sanctuary State Setup  01:51:07 – The 2020 Riots & How Riverside Stopped Them  02:02:49 – Vote June 2nd: Why Chad Bianco Is Running for Governor ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ Support the Pod: 💥 Patreon: patreon.com/thejamiekennedy 🎟️ Tour Dates: jamiekennedy.com 👕 Merch: jamiekennedy.com/merch 📺 Subscribe: youtube.com/@jamiekennedycomedy ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ Chad Bianco, Sheriff Chad Bianco interview, Bianco for Governor 2026, California governor race, Hate To Break It To Ya, Jamie Kennedy podcast, California corruption exposed, homeless industrial complex, California COVID lockdowns, Prop 47 California, SB 54 sanctuary state, California oil independence, Riverside County Sheriff, California 2026 election Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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  The Hole Under My Driveway, Spencer Pratt for Mayor, and the Hantavirus Cruise Ship | Ep 258 HTBITY 26.05.2026 1h 40min

  In this solo episode of Hate To Break It To Ya, I get into the literal hole that opened up under my driveway — 35 feet deep, undisclosed by the previous owner, and possibly connected to LA's underground tunnel system. Or it's a leech pit. Either way, I'm thinking merch. We're also seeing angel numbers everywhere and the pod is growing, so the universe is clearly on board. From there I get into the LA mayor's race, and I'm all in on Spencer Pratt. I break down why a guy who lost his house in the Palisades fires and decided to run for mayor makes more sense than the career politicians who've been running this city into the ground. I react to clips of the debate — Lydia making the common-sense case, the other side rolling their eyes at constituents — and I get into the Lee Zeldin EPA hearing where he absolutely dismantles a blue-haired congresswoman who doesn't know what Loper Bright is. Then I go deep on the MacArthur Park needle program: why creating a drug utopia in the middle of the city attracts people from Barstow to Pahrump, why the Coffee Bean on Sunset has to lock up its stirring sticks, and why all of it is the same slippery slope playing out in slow motion. The back half gets into the stuff that's keeping me up at night. A teacher wishing death on the sitting president. Mark Hamill promoting harm and calling it activism. My prediction that by July 1st they're going to try to shut things down — and why I've already spent $900 on food prep. Then we go deep on the Hantavirus cruise ship situation: the Andes strain, the MV Hondius, 29 passengers from 12 countries disembarking at St. Helena, one woman collapsing in the Johannesburg airport, and why Jo'burg as a transit hub is the perfect super-spreader petri dish. We close out with ancient structures as circuit boards, predictive programming in a 1978 Superman movie, and the theory that the entire earth is a giant motherboard. Stack your supplies. Much love. ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ Timestamps: 00:00:00 – The Hole Under Jamie Kennedy’s Driveway 00:03:15 – Angel Numbers and Pod Growth 00:08:09 – Spencer Pratt for LA Mayor 00:15:50 – Lee Zeldin vs. the Blue-Hair Congresswoman 00:25:10 – Career Politicians and the Homeless Crisis 00:40:28 – The MacArthur Park Needle Program 00:54:29 – Coffee Bean Condiment Lockdown 01:00:30 – Enabling Bad Behavior and the Slippery Slope 01:03:01 – Teacher Wishing Death on the President 01:10:08 – Mark Hamill and the Lunatic Left 01:11:44 – July 1st Prediction and $900 Food Prep 01:13:34 – The Hantavirus Cruise Ship Breakdown 01:27:35 – Pentagon UFO Drops and Predictive Programming 01:31:14 – Ancient Structures as Circuit Boards 01:34:02 – Subscribe, Come to Shows, Peace Out ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ Support the Pod: 💥 Patreon: patreon.com/thejamiekennedy 🎟️ Tour Dates: jamiekennedy.com 👕 Merch: jamiekennedy.com/merch 📺 Subscribe: youtube.com/@jamiekennedycomedy ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ Hate To Break It To Ya, Jamie Kennedy podcast, Spencer Pratt mayor Los Angeles, MacArthur Park needle program, Lee Zeldin EPA hearing, Hantavirus cruise ship 2026, Andes virus outbreak, LA homelessness crisis, Coffee Bean Sunset Strip, predictive programming, ancient structures circuit boards, 2026 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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  Harland Williams Wrote, Directed & Starred in a Movie — And Ryan Gosling House Sat for Him | Ep 257 20.05.2026 1h 29min

  This week on Hate To Break It To Ya I sat down with Harland Williams — Canadian-born comedian, cult movie icon, and one of the most genuinely original minds I've encountered in 30 years of this business — and I have to tell you, this one got weird fast and I loved every second of it. We've known each other for three decades, and somehow this is the first time we've really gone deep on camera. Buckle up. We covered a lot of ground. Harland just wrote, directed, and starred in his new comedy film Wingman — out now on streaming — and the backstory of how it got made is almost as funny as the movie itself. He sent the script to Will Ferrell, Jim Carrey, Jason Bateman, and Ryan Gosling — yes, that Ryan Gosling, who used to house-sit for Harland and sleep in his guest room before he broke. None of them said yes, so Harland looked in the mirror and cast himself. He also fought hard to bring Kayla Wallace in from British Columbia at extra cost, insisted on Russell Peters doing an East Indian accent on screen for the first time ever, and cast me as the villain — a rival wingman named Eddie with a long wig and a Clint Eastwood stare-down energy. We even watched a scene from the film right here on the pod. The movie has set pieces, heart, and a dark secret between our two characters that you won't see coming. But that's only half the conversation. Harland also went on record — publicly, for the first time — saying Richard Pryor and George Carlin never made him laugh. He'd take the Purple Rice guy from the Laugh Factory over either of them any day. We got into why so many comedians give the exact same answer when asked about their influences, whether that's conditioning or something weirder, and why Harland refuses to punch down at any comedian no matter how they got here. We also talked California — the taxes, the homeless crisis, the empty fire reservoirs, the delta smelt — and why this state is still a jewel that somebody needs to polish. Harland Williams is one of a kind. This conversation reminded me exactly why. ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ About Harland Williams: Harland Williams is a Canadian-American comedian and actor best known for his scene-stealing roles in Dumb and Dumber, There's Something About Mary, Half Baked, RocketMan, and Sorority Boys. He is the creator of the Disney Junior animated series Puppy Dog Pals, an author and illustrator of children's books, and the host of The Harland Highway podcast. His new film Wingman — which he wrote, directed, and stars in alongside Russell Peters, Jamie Kennedy, and Kayla Wallace — is now streaming. He is currently on his 2026 Comzilla Comedy Tour across the United States. Follow Harland Williams Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/harlandwilliams/ X: https://x.com/HARLANDHIGHWAY Website: https://www.harlandwilliams.com ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ Timestamps: 00:00:00 – Hot Cocoa Suspicion & Mic Arm Intro 00:05:09 – Harland's New House & Loving California 00:09:51 – California's Problems: Taxes, Homelessness & Mismanagement 00:17:01 – The LA Fires, Empty Reservoirs & the Delta Smelt 00:22:10 – Stupidity vs. Conspiracy: Wrong Directors in the Wrong Seats 00:27:28 – The Comedy Pipeline Then vs. Now 00:30:13 – Purple Rice: The Unknown Comic Who Lived Rent-Free for 40 Years 00:36:28 – Art Directs Us — Not the Other Way Around 00:39:56 – Harland Quits His Busboy Job & Goes to See Purple Rain 00:43:00 – George Carlin, Richard Pryor & Comedy Conditioning 00:53:03 – Is Comedy Just About the Laugh? 01:00:25 – Wingman: The Movie — Origin Story & 16 Years in the Making 01:02:00 – Ryan Gosling House-Sat for Harland (And His Sisters Know It) 01:05:44 – Casting Wingman: Kayla Wallace, Russell Peters & Michael Rosenbaum 01:13:47 – The Koala, the Set Pieces & What Makes Wingman Different 01:21:28 – The Toothpick Showdown & Jamie's Character Eddie 01:24:10 – Wingman Is Out Now — Where to Watch & Tour Info ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ Support the Pod: 💥 Patreon: patreon.com/thejamiekennedy 🎟️ Tour Dates: jamiekennedy.com 👕 Merch: jamiekennedy.com/merch 📺 Subscribe: youtube.com/@jamiekennedycomedy ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ Harland Williams, Harland Williams interview 2026, Wingman movie 2026, Jamie Kennedy podcast, Hate To Break It To Ya, Harland Williams Wingman, Russell Peters Wingman, Ryan Gosling house sitter, Dumb and Dumber cast, Half Baked cast, Harland Highway podcast, comedy cannibalism stand-up Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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  Immigration, the Comedy Store Golden Age, and Sam Kinison Drama with Paul Rodriguez | Ep 256 HTBITY 13.05.2026 1h 33min

  This week on Hate To Break It To Ya I sat down with Paul Rodriguez — comedian, actor, Air Force veteran, and one of the original Latin Kings of Comedy — and I have to tell you, this one hit different. Paul is someone I've known for years, seen work rooms that would humble most people, and watched stay out there grinding long after most guys his age would have cashed out. We got into everything: his family's immigration story, his unfiltered take on ICE and the border, the Comedy Store golden age, and what it was actually like living in the same building as Sam Kinison. We went deep on Paul's father — a man who stood in a physical line outside the American Embassy in Tijuana for four months straight to get a lottery number for citizenship in 1958. That story alone will stop you cold. From there we traced the whole arc: growing up in Compton during the '68 riots, getting drafted into the Air Force, nearly becoming a personal injury lawyer, landing DC Cab on his third audition for sixty thousand dollars, and then Norman Lear writing him a check for three million. We talked about driving Richard Pryor around for six months, what Rodney Dangerfield was like in a hospital bed still asking for party favors, Jim Carrey getting standing ovations the first time anyone ever saw him, and why Paul and Sam Kinison genuinely could not stand each other. He also broke news on me — he's currently suing the Burbank Police Department for fourteen million dollars, and the story behind it is something else. Paul Rodriguez is the real thing. He came from nothing, built something that mattered, raised a son who became a global superstar on his own terms, and he's still out there performing because he can't not do it. The laughs that come out of this man are earned. Every single one of them. ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ About Paul Rodriguez: Paul Rodriguez is a Mexican-American stand-up comedian and actor born in Culiacán, Sinaloa, and raised in Compton, California. He broke through as the star of the Norman Lear-produced ABC sitcom a.k.a. Pablo — the first television show about a Mexican-American family on mainstream American television — and went on to appear in films including D.C. Cab, Born in East L.A., Rat Race, Blood Work, and Ali. He is a part-owner of the Laugh Factory comedy club in Hollywood, chairman of the California Latino Water Coalition, and a U.S. Air Force veteran. His son, professional skateboarder Paul Rodriguez Jr. ("P-Rod"), is one of the most decorated street skaters in X Games history and the founder of Primitive Skateboards. Follow Paul Rodriguez Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thepaulrodriguez/ Website: https://www.paulrodriguez.com ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ Timestamps: 00:00:00 – Wild Donkeys, Moreno Valley, and Paul's New Life 00:05:00 – Quadruple Bypass, COVID, and Getting a New Lease on Life 00:08:15 – How Paul Sees Jamie's Comedy Style 00:09:46 – The Ranch in Fresno, Brother George the Ginger, and Family Chaos 00:13:37 – Youngest of 12: Born in Sinaloa, Raised in America 00:16:26 – Paul's Father and the Bracero Program 00:17:27 – The El Chapo Connection 00:19:04 – Immigration, ICE, and Paul's Unpopular Opinion 00:26:51 – The Comedian's Dark Side and What Drives the Laughs 00:31:35 – Rodriguez Lemons and the Family Farm 00:35:43 – Getting Drafted, the Air Force, and Almost Re-Enlisting 00:37:40 – DC Cab, Joel Schumacher, and the $60,000 Audition 00:44:49 – The Comedy Store Golden Age: The Lineup Nobody Could Believe 00:56:47 – Driving Richard Pryor and What Paul Learned Watching Him Work 01:00:19 – Rodney Dangerfield: Partying to the End 01:01:18 – Sam Kinison: Brilliant Comic, Piece of Shit Human Being 01:07:55 – Norman Lear, Three Million Dollars, and Going Flat Broke 01:11:23 – The Burbank Police, the Bentley, and a $14 Million Lawsuit 01:26:55 – Paul Rodriguez Jr.: The Skateboarder Who Made It on His Own 01:34:03 – Current Projects: Roxy and the Man, Our Lady of the Barrio, and the Dos Pablos Tour ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ Support the Pod: 💥 Patreon: patreon.com/thejamiekennedy 🎟️ Tour Dates: jamiekennedy.com 👕 Merch: jamiekennedy.com/merch 📺 Subscribe: youtube.com/@jamiekennedycomedy ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ Paul Rodriguez, Paul Rodriguez comedian, Jamie Kennedy podcast, Hate To Break It To Ya, Comedy Store golden age, Sam Kinison, Richard Pryor, DC Cab cast, a.k.a. Pablo, Mexican American immigration story, Latin Kings of Comedy, Paul Rodriguez interview 2026 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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  Spencer Charnas Breaks Down Horror, Metal & the Ice Nine Kills Cinematic Universe | Ep. 255 HTBITY 06.05.2026 1h 39min

  Spencer Charnas joins me for a conversation about horror movies, heavy music, fandom culture, and how Ice Nine Kills evolved from a metal band into a full cinematic universe. We talk about the band’s obsession with horror films, creating music inspired by iconic slashers, building collectible merch fans actually care about, and why horror audiences are some of the most loyal fans in entertainment. Spencer also breaks down the storytelling behind Ice Nine Kills, balancing theatrics with music, and how the band turned niche concepts into a massive brand. We also get into what it’s actually like performing this kind of music live night after night, the physical side of screaming on stage, and why horror and heavy music seem to attract such passionate fans. The conversation drifts into horror nostalgia, growing up on classic movies, and how comedy, film, and metal all tap into the same instinct to shock people, entertain them, and give them an escape from reality. ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ About Spencer: Spencer Charnas is the lead vocalist and creative force behind Ice Nine Kills, the horror-inspired metal band known for blending heavy music with cinematic storytelling. Over the last several years, Ice Nine Kills has built a massive cult following through concept albums inspired by classic horror films, including The Silver Scream and Welcome to Horrorwood. Known for elaborate live shows, theatrical music videos, and collectible merch culture, Spencer has helped turn Ice Nine Kills into more than just a band — creating a full horror-themed universe that connects music, film, comedy, and fandom culture. The group has toured internationally, collaborated with major names in horror, and become one of the most recognizable modern acts in heavy music. Follow Spencer Charnas / Ice Nine Kills: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/@spencerink Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/@iceninekills Website: https://iceninekills.com ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ Timestamps:  00:00 – Spencer Charnas brings horror-themed gifts and explains the Ice Nine Kills universe 08:15 – Growing up obsessed with horror movies and discovering heavy music 17:40 – The origins of Ice Nine Kills and where the band name came from 27:10 – Turning horror films into songs and building a cinematic identity 36:45 – Why horror fans and metal fans are so loyal to their fandoms 46:20 – Stage performance, screaming techniques, and surviving long tours 56:35 – Collectible merch culture and creating items fans actually want to keep 01:05:10 – Scream, slashers, and the influence of classic horror franchises 01:14:40 – The crossover between comedy, horror, and shocking an audience 01:24:05 – Music videos, storytelling, and creating the Ice Nine Kills cinematic universe 01:33:30 – Touring stories, fan reactions, and balancing theatrics with music 01:42:15 – Horror nostalgia, cult movies, and the future of the genre ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ Support the Pod: 💥Patreon: patreon.com/thejamiekennedy  🎟️ Tour Dates: jamiekennedy.com  👕 Merch: jamiekennedy.com/merch  📺 Subscribe: youtube.com/@jamiekennedycomedy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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  Scream Years, Hollywood Friendships, and Never Leaving L.A. with Jerry O'Connell | Ep 254 HTBITY 29.04.2026 1h 55min

  This week on Hate To Break It To Ya I sat down with Jerry O'Connell — actor, TV host, husband, dad, and one of my genuinely old friends from the Hollywood trenches — and we went for almost two hours without coming up for air. That's always a good sign. Jerry and I go way back to the Scream 2 days, and we've never really told this story in public before. So we did. All of it. Growing up as a child actor after Stand By Me, what it actually felt like to step into the Scream universe, how that cast became a real family, and why Hollywood friendships drift even when they shouldn't. We talk marriage, kids, L.A. loyalty, gender, social media, getting older, and what it means to still be working and still be standing after decades in this industry. Jerry's one of the most naturally funny, disarmingly honest guys I know. He's also not afraid to go there. This one's got some real moments. About Jerry O'Connell Jerry O'Connell is an actor, producer, and television host whose career spans four decades. He broke out as a child actor in Rob Reiner's Stand By Me alongside River Phoenix, went on to star in Scream 2, Sliders, and Kangaroo Jack, and has remained a working force in Hollywood ever since. He currently co-hosts The Talk on CBS and is married to model and actress Rebecca Romijn, with whom he has twin daughters. Follow Jerry O'Connell  Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mrjerryoc X:https://x.com/MrJerryOC Timestamps: 00:00:00 – Reuniting after the Scream 2 years and how they bonded on set 00:10:00 – Growing up as a child actor, Stand By Me, and River Phoenix 00:20:00 – Stepping into the Scream franchise and trying to fit in with an established cast 00:35:00 – Scream 3, the sequels, and what the cast thinks of them now 00:45:00 – The Scream 7 premiere invite situation and Paramount years 00:55:00 – Hollywood friendships, dating in L.A., and the single years 01:05:00 – Rebecca Romijn, marriage, and life in the Valley 01:20:00 – Getting older, social media, and why Jerry doesn't post 01:32:00 – Stand By Me memories and being recognized by sanitation workers 01:37:00 – A debate on gender, speech, and saying what you think 01:45:00 – Never leaving Los Angeles and the state of the city 01:52:00 – Jerry's new movie Last Resort and the wrap-up Support the Pod 💥 Patreon: patreon.com/thejamiekennedy  🎟️ Tour Dates: jamiekennedy.com  👕 Merch: jamiekennedy.com/merch  📺 Subscribe: youtube.com/@jamiekennedycomedy Jerry O'Connell, Hate To Break It To Ya, Jamie Kennedy podcast, Scream 2 cast, Stand By Me, Hollywood friendships, The Talk CBS, child actors Hollywood, Rebecca Romijn, Los Angeles podcast, 90s actors, Jerry O'Connell interview 2025 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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  From San Fernando to Sold Out: How Concrete Built a Comedy Career 22.04.2026 1h 34min

  This week on Hate To Break It To Ya I sat down with Concrete, comedian, content creator, and Power 106 morning show host, and we didn't stop talking for almost two hours. That's usually a good sign. This one covers a lot of ground: growing up first-generation Mexican-American in San Fernando, rapping alongside Nipsey Hussle as teenagers, losing his best friend at the peak of everything, walking away from music, picking up a camera, getting every piece of gear stolen on Miracle Mile, and then sitting in a Jack in the Box drive-thru at 33 years old deciding to bet it all on comedy. Two and a half years later, he's selling out theaters. We also get into what's actually happening in Latin comedy right now. Why the audiences are there, why the industry is finally catching up, and what it means to build something real without the machine behind you. Concrete is one of the most honest guys I've talked to on this show. You'll hear it. ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ About Concrete Concrete is a comedian, content creator, and morning show host on Power 106 in Los Angeles. A San Fernando Valley native and first-generation Mexican-American, he spent over a decade directing music videos and building a following through character-driven sketch comedy before transitioning to live stand-up. In under three years, he went from bombing his first set to headlining sold-out theaters and casino rooms across the country. He stars in Clicker, released through Sony/Columbia Pictures and currently streaming on Netflix, and his next self-produced project Match Included is heading to Amazon Prime. ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ Follow Concrete Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/concreteliveYoutube: https://www.youtube.com/@concretecomedyPower 106 – Morning Show, Mon–Fri, 6–10AM PT ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ Discussed in this episode: 00:00:00 – Growing up in San Fernando and the Vegas Horseshoe billboard moment 00:11:20 – Rapping with Nipsey Hussle, getting signed, and losing his best friend 00:24:00 – Walking away from music, faking an accounting job, and picking up a camera 00:34:45 – Directing music videos, learning film at the New York Film Academy 00:43:00 – How social media replaced the club circuit as the new audition tape 00:53:30 – Bombing his first comedy set, then selling out eight shows in two hours 01:04:00 – The difference between being funny online and being funny on stage 01:13:30 – The Clicka movie, Hollywood agents, and why he's still unsigned 01:23:00 – The Latin comedy explosion, arena dreams, and a possible collab ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ Support the Pod 💥 Patreon: patreon.com/thejamiekennedy 🎟️ Tour Dates: jamiekennedy.com 👕 Merch: jamiekennedy.com/merch 📺 Subscribe: youtube.com/@jamiekennedycomedy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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  UFOs Nobody's Talking About, Coachella Narcissism, and Who Owns the Green Room | Ep 252 HTBITY 15.04.2026 1h 11min

  In this solo episode of Hate To Break It To Ya, I get into the fireball and UFO footage that keeps showing up on TikTok and disappearing just as fast. Orbs, plasma, fireballs over Indonesia — and nobody's following up. Not CNN, not Fox. I'm starting to think we're right on the edge of the biggest disclosure in human history and everyone's just watching the national championship. From there I react to Trump's Easter Sunday press conference — delivered with a giant Easter Bunny standing right next to him. The speech itself was fine. The visual is something else entirely. Then we get into Coachella, which I think has become the Olympics of narcissism. People aren't going to experience things anymore — they're going to prove they were there. I tell a story about Leonardo DiCaprio that I think explains the whole thing better than anything else I could say. Sabrina Carpenter gets canceled for her reaction to an Arabic vocal trill during her Coachella set. The internet goes after her hard. I break down why that reaction is overblown, what actually happened, and why we've handed microphones to people who have nothing useful to say. Then Ali Siddiq drops some green room truth that shouldn't even need to be said — and I back him up completely. The green room belongs to the headliner. Full stop. And the fact that young comics are arguing about this tells you everything about where we're at as a society. We don't live in a meritocracy anymore. We live in an inclusive autocracy where everybody gets a trophy. The problem is, if everybody's special, nobody is. ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ Timestamps: 00:02 UFOs, fireballs, and why nobody's following up 05:42 Waymos, delivery bots, and GTA in LA 08:48 Trump's Easter Sunday speech with the Easter Bunny 12:01 Unhinged political freakout clip 14:53 Sunflowers turning away from the sun 15:20 Cows avoiding sunlight after the eclipse 17:47 The pool pee debate 19:42 People losing it at fast food restaurants 20:01 Phil's Coffee pulls pride flags 26:08 Jaden Ivey fired by the Bulls over NBA Pride comments 32:42 Coachella is a narcissism competition 35:10 What actually makes something cool 39:38 The Leonardo DiCaprio story 46:52 Sabrina Carpenter gets canceled at Coachella 53:43 Green room rules every comic should know 55:24 Meritocracy is dead — we live in an inclusive autocracy 57:08 Popularity vs. greatness in the social media era ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ Support the Pod 💥 Patreon: patreon.com/thejamiekennedy 🎟 Tour Dates: jamiekennedy.com 👕 Merch: https://jamiekennedy.com 📺 Subscribe: https://www.youtube.com/@jamiekennedycomedy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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  From Conspiracies to Faith… What Happens When You Go Too Deep with Jamie Hanshaw Dyer | Ep 251 HTBITY 08.04.2026 1h 52min

  In this episode, I sit down with Jamie Hanshaw Dyer for a conversation that goes way beyond surface-level takes on Hollywood and culture. We get into her personal journey from falling deep into conspiracy research to exploring spirituality, religion, and how she now sees the world. We talk about what it’s actually like to go down the rabbit hole, how media and symbolism shape the way people think, and why so many people feel like something isn’t quite right with modern culture. This one isn’t just about theories—it’s about what happens when your entire perspective on reality starts to shift. ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ About Jamie: Jamie Hanshaw Dyer is a writer, researcher, and content creator known for her work analyzing Hollywood symbolism, media influence, and cultural narratives. She has spent years studying conspiracy theories, religion, and philosophy, and now focuses on discussing spirituality and Orthodox Christianity alongside her husband, Jay Dyer. Follow Jamie: X: https://www.x.com/@JamieLHanshaw ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ Timestamps: 00:00 Introduction, Oscars & Hollywood Symbolism 09:10 Conspiracy Curiosity, Self-Education & Early Research 18:45 MKUltra, Trauma & Personality Fragmentation 28:30 Celebrity Alter Egos, Media Programming & Disney Influence 39:15 Magic, Occult Practices & Writing Her First Book 52:00 War, Mysticism & Hidden Motives Behind Conflict 01:06:30 Religion, Orthodoxy & Finding Meaning 01:20:45 Gender Roles, Feminism & Cultural Shifts 01:36:40 Work, Family Structure & Industrial-Era Changes 01:46:00 Hollywood Symbolism Revisited & Closing Thoughts ⸻⸻⸻⸻⸻ Support the Pod 💥 Patreon: patreon.com/thejamiekennedy 🎟 Tour Dates: jamiekennedy.com 👕 Merch: https://jamiekennedy.com 📺 Subscribe: https://www.youtube.com/@jamiekennedycomedy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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  The Druski Controversy… Is This Acting or Something Else | Ep 250 HTBITY with Jamie Kennedy 02.04.2026 1h 19min

  In this solo episode, I react to the Druski controversy and get into a bigger question that comedy keeps running into: what counts as acting, what counts as parody, and where people draw the line. I talk about transformation, hidden camera, why I’ve always seen character work as real acting, and why comedy still doesn’t get the same respect as drama. From there I get into some of my old JKX characters, the Virginia Ham clip, social media backlash, internet comedy culture, Hollywood’s obsession with safety, and why so much of the entertainment world feels arrogant and out of touch right now. Then it turns into one of those classic Worlds on Fire rides through media, scandals, airports, culture, and relationships. _____________________________ Timestamps: 00:00 Druski controversy, dark parody and where comedy crosses the line 04:42 Why transformation, disguise and comedy still count as acting 14:52 Virginia Ham, JKX and the blackface vs character argument 24:24 Tropic Thunder, hidden camera logic and responding to critics 28:24 Kimberly, New Orleans and the new internet comedy culture 46:40 Mormons, reality TV scandal and why ABC dropped the ball 55:58 Hollywood, originality, Oscars politics and safe entertainment 59:24 Australia shelves, airport chaos and what the news is missing 1:13:11 Provider culture, Burger King hypotheticals and dating standards _____________________________ Support the Pod 💥 Patreon: patreon.com/thejamiekennedy 🎟 Tour Dates: jamiekennedy.com 👕 Merch: https://jamiekennedy.com/merch/ 📺 Subscribe: YouTube.com/JamieKennedyComedy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices