“A Real Person Who Has Real Thoughts and Feelings.”

An Interview with Review Actor and Writer, Andy Daly

Andy Daly is an actor, comedian, and writer. He wrote and starred in two seasons of the Comedy Central series Review and has appeared in lots of movies and TV shows (Semi-Pro, Eastbound and Down, Silicon Valley, The Office, and Reno 911, to name a few). He’s also a stand-up comedian who has created a host of absurdly unhinged characters, like Dalton Wilcox, the Poet Laureate of the West who hunts vampires and mummies, and Don DiMello, the former director of the Radio City Christmas Spectacular who produces live, depraved interpretations of Disney films. Daly hosted his own podcast, the Andy Daly Podcast Pilot Project, released a collection of his character work on the album Nine Sweaters, and frequently appears on podcasts like Comedy Bang Bang.

While all of Daly’s work is hilarious, full of depth, and worthy of your time, Review is a thing of genius. Its main character, Forrest MacNeil, hosts a TV show (also called Review), where he reviews life experiences and reports back on their merits or dangers to the public at large. Unlike other sketch comedy shows, a narrative builds within each episode and stretches across the series, since MacNeil’s actions naturally impact the course of his life and the lives of the people he loves. Review ultimately deconstructs the antihero archetype from within the structure of a dark and absurdist comedy. It’s silly and it’s sad, and it will undoubtedly influence a generation of writers to come. Recently it was announced that Review will return for a third and final season, with a limited number of episodes, and Daly has announced his next project, an ABC pilot called Chunk & Bean.

I spoke with Daly about Review, what he learned from working with Amy Poehler, and the time his hero Hunter S. Thompson kicked him out of a party.

—Stephanie Palumbo

I. DON’T OPEN THE DOOR

THE BELIEVER: Review is about so many different things, but how would you describe the core, the heart of the show?

ANDY DALY: I think Forrest MacNeil is a guy who has come up with a way that he can matter in the world. He truly believes that he’s making an important contribution to society, and society will change for the better, forever, because of his efforts. If that’s what you believe, then no obstacle, punishment, or hardship that you inflict on yourself or anyone else is too great to achieve it.

What’s fun...