Armchair Expert With Dax Shepard

Amanda Peet (The Chair, Saving Silverman, Brockmire) is an actress, producer, and screenwriter. Amanda joins the Armchair Expert to discuss her early dating life, growing up in New York and London, and showing her kids inappropriate movies. Amanda and Dax talk about being Capricorns, how Amanda thinks Dax sounds like Bill Gates, and how difficult is it to be a showrunner. Amanda explains her parenting strategies, that she created her own show because she wasn't happy with the roles she was being offered, and what she thinks about people who named their kids after Game of Thrones. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Kate Bowler is a New York Times best-selling author, podcast host, and professor at Duke University. Kate joins the Armchair Expert to discuss growing up around Mennonites, the debate over religious authority, and the Christian crisis of conscious. Kate and Dax talk about the many different American religious denominations, going through cancer treatment while still writing a book, and how some people confuse faith with certainty. Kate explains that she strived for a dream job in academia because of her father, that she used to treat life like a problem to be solved, and how the middle class is raised to be optimistic about the future. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Awkwafina (Shang-Chi, Nora from Queens, Crazy Rich Asians) is a Golden Globe award-winning actor, comedian, and rapper. Awkwafina joins the Armchair Expert to discuss being self-conscious about her raspy voice, playing the trumpet because everyone wants to play percussions, and traveling to China to learn Mandarin. Awkwafina and Dax talk about hosting SNL, being rejected from college, and recognizing their parent's regional accents. Awkwafina discusses the pressures of being a first-generation Asian American, her role in an upcoming Marvel movie, and being in a depressive state starting out her rap career. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Carmelo Anthony (Where Tomorrows Aren't Promised) is a 10x NBA All-Star, entrepreneur and philanthropist. Carmelo joins the Armchair Expert to discuss dealing with depression as a child, his relationship with his blue-collar stepdad, and being recruited to play basketball for a Catholic high school. Carmelo and Dax talk about the similarities in growing up in Baltimore versus Detroit, learning how to survive in tough neighborhoods, and how he tried to go by another name when he started a new school. Carmelo explains that he never sought out approval from his older brothers, that he always wanted to see his friends succeed more than they did, and his experience dealing with depression. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Brie Larson (Room, Captain Marvel, Learning Lots) is an Academy Award-winning actor, producer, and director. Brie joins the Armchair Expert to discuss being home schooled as a child, how she knows her way around set from being an actor for over 20 years, and how she used to be a touring pop singer. Brie and Dax talk about trying to be people pleasers, learning how to accept success and failures, and whether you should comment on how attractive someone is.Brie explains how indie films rely heavily on strong performances from the actors, how she's trained really hard to be in Marvel movies, and that she sometimes benefits from being mistaken as Alison Brie. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Samantha Bee (Daily Show, Full Frontal, Detour) is an Emmy-nominated writer, comedian and television host.Samantha joins the Armchair Expert to discuss how she never thought her career would pan out, that she used to be very uncomfortable during auditions, and how doing an all-female sketch comedy group helped her confidence.Samantha and Dax talk about her combative interview style, what she learned from her time on The Daily Show, and her objections to ill-informed people trying to bend the world to their will. Samantha explains how she has always had a hard time respecting authority figures and that one of her mom's boyfriends lived in a haunted house. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Matthew Rhys (The Americans, Perry Mason) is an Emmy Award-winning actor. Matthew joins the Armchair Expert to discuss his fascination with Ernest Hemingway's overt masculinity, the process of buying and restoring an old boat and wanting to pass on Welsh culture to his kids who are growing up in Brooklyn. Matthew and Dax talk about their newfound love of Formula 1 racing, growing up with a chip on your shoulder, and being drawn to characters who thrive around chaos. Matthew explains why he was overwhelmed by his role on Perry Mason, that the most awkward conversations on The Americans always happened when their characters were in their undercover costumes, and how he perfected his American accent by imitating George Clooney. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Padma Lakshmi is a food expert, author, and television personality. Padma joins the Armchair Expert to discuss moving to America from India at a young age, how she feels people from India have been misrepresented in American pop culture, and that people need to start having more complex nuanced conversations that might be uncomfortable. Padma and Dax talk about how American culture is really a mixture of many cultures, how learning recipes from your ancestors brings you closer to them, and why Americans love monster trucks so much. Padma explains the importance of teaching your kids about seasonal foods, how she came to write multiple cookbooks, and how Indian food is a good baseline for eating healthy. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Cecily Strong (SNL, This Will All Be Over Soon, Schmigadoon!) is an Emmy-nominated actress and comedian. Cecily joins the Armchair Expert to discuss the loyalty of Chicagoans, being expelled from high school for having pot, and doing improv comedy on a cruise ship. Dax and Cecily discuss how much they love the midwest outdoors and how they both want Puerto Rican funerals. Cecily explains why she likes to view coincidences as gifts, how important levity and laughter are for grief, and her realization that her thoughts aren't facts. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Maya Shankar is a Behavioral Scientist and former Senior Advisor in the Obama White House.Maya joins the Armchair Expert to discuss the concept of identity foreclosure, how people craft a narrative about themselves in order to connect to other people, and that there is a danger in tying our identities to our opinions and values. Maya and Dax discuss how they each define manifestation, the difference between bragging and self-promoting, and that admitting you are wrong about something actually gives you more credibility. Maya explains that changing minds is the most coveted form of change, that we are terrible cognitive forecasters, and how people can shift their reality based on their belief systems. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Kristen Bell is an actress, singer, and podcaster Dax Shepard's wife. Kristen rejoins the Armchair Expert to discuss her experience shooting Family Game Fight, which animal she thinks is the cutest on the planet, and how she feels we can solve the collective male rage that exists in the world. Kristen, Dax, and Monica reveal what they love most about each other, how women are expected to self-regulate, and what you should do if you are ever buried in an avalanche. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Daryl Hall is a singer, songwriter and the lead vocalist of Hall & Oates. Daryl joins the Armchair Expert to discuss his relationship over the years with John Oates, learning how to sing from his mother, and being immersed in the R&B music scene in Philadelphia. Daryl and Dax talk about what having perfect pitch means, the amount of #1 hits Daryl has had, and how musicians today have more avenues for success than he had. Daryl explains how the music business can be compared to organized crime, what it's like to have Lyme disease, and how he met John after leaving a show because a fight broke out. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Matt Damon (Good Will Hunting, Ocean's Eleven, Stillwater) is an Oscar Award-Winning and Golden Globe Award-Winning actor, producer, and screenwriter. Matt joins the Armchair Expert to talk about his experience writing Good Will Hunting with Ben Affleck, what it was like attending the Monaco Grand Prix with Brad Pitt, and how your subjective experience changes when you become famous.Matt explains how easy it is to be generous when things are going your way, how he picked his movies based on the directors rather than the roles, and what he learned after surrounding himself with oil roughnecks for his new movie. Dax explains the role Matt has had in Monica's life and Dax and Matt bond over their love of Lisa Bonet. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Mark Ronson is a 7x Grammy Award-winning, Oscar Award-winning, record producer and DJ. Mark joins the Armchair Expert to discuss how he was obsessed with music from a very early age and his experience producing artists like Lady Gaga, Bruno Mars, and Amy Winehouse. Mark and Dax talk about getting hyped up to perform on stage, growing up around strong women, and what it was like to see Quincy Jones' wall of Grammy's. Mark explains that he is not an expert at one specific instrument, how he was blown away by Bradley Cooper's talent, and that it doesn't bother him when other musicians don't recognize him. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Leon Bridges (Gold-Diggers Sound, Coming Home) is a Grammy Award-winning R&B recording artist and songwriter. Leon joins the Armchair Expert to discuss the Fort Worth music scene, developing his aesthetic, and his desire to keep evolving his sound. Leon talks about being bashful and quiet as a kid, tasting fame at his senior year talent show, and how he likes to recharge in solitude. Leon discusses how pressured he felt during the process of his second album, how he had to learn to embrace discomfort, and Dax asks Leon about his dating life. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Tim Grover is a mental and physical performance coach. Tim joins the Armchair Expert to talk about training athletes like Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant, how his parents really wanted him to be a doctor, and what he's learned over the years about defining what winning means. Tim and Dax discuss the difference between the physical and mental aspects of being a great athlete, his perspective on The Last Dance documentary, and that waking up at 4 am to work out isn't for everybody. Tim explains that being selfish to work on yourself is not a negative trait, how people can achieve greatness by taking it step-by-step, and what Dennis Rodman would eat before every basketball game. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Mila Kunis & Ashton Kutcher rejoin the Armchair Expert to explain how they got into cryptocurrency, how a decentralized currency can exist at the same time as a national currency system, and how El Salvador has recently adopted Bitcoin as their national currency. Mila tells us about her new NFT animation show stoner cats, how people can purchase a token to view it, and how it differs from current production models. Ashton explains that the cost of crypto is linked to the amount of energy used to produce it and what fail-safes you can implement to avoid losing large amount of cryptocurrency to hackers. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Esther Perel is a psychotherapist and New York Times best seller. Esther joins the Armchair Expert to talk about how social boundaries were affected during the Covid-19 pandemic, how helping people during this time helped her feel less anxious herself, and her thoughts on how people re-entered society after the lockdown ended. Esther explains the difference between fidelity, exclusivity, and loyalty when it comes to romantic relationships, how confirmation bias plays a role in how you deal with people you live with, and that you should be thankful more often to loved ones for things they do for you. Esther, Dax, and Monica play Esther's new card game, Where Should We Begin - A Game of Stories. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Kate Beckinsale (Jolt, Underworld, Pearl Harbor) is an English actress. Kate joins the Armchair Expert to discuss the impact of her father dying at a young age, how she's never been drunk, and how people often troll her for her height. Kate discusses her time at Oxford studying Russian literature, how it almost ruined reading for her, and the experience of being cast in Pearl Harbor. Dax and Kate discuss their love for Brad Pitt and how often women come up to her and tell her that she's their husbands' hall pass. In the fact check, we check in on Dax's road trip and Monica's camping trip. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Michael Pollan (This is Your Mind on Plants, The Omnivore's Dilemma) is an author, journalist, and professor at UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism. Michael joins the Armchair Expert to discuss changing your consciousness through plant-based drugs, how drugs are nature's tools for coping with the ego, and the stigmas associated with psilocybin mushrooms. Michael and Dax talk about addictions to drugs like alcohol and caffeine, the social norms that were created for everyday drugs like nicotine, and getting into hot water for growing opium in his garden. Michael explains that there are evolutionary reasons for plants to produce psychedelic effects on humans and animals, how the war on drugs affected the public perception of controlled substances, and that psychedelics need to be regulated if they are ever made legal. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.