Jerry Seinfeld and Alec Baldwin have an honest conversation about #MeToo
Alec Baldwin aired a preview of his new talk show, Sundays with Alec Baldwin, after the Oscars on ABC Sunday night.
The show, which had an unfiltered dynamic, featured comedians Jerry Seinfeld and Kate McKinnon. Baldwin approached the #MeToo topic with Seinfeld, saying that “the world we live in today is stressful, in terms of many of our colleagues in media and the entertainment world getting knocked down like bowling pins here with this whole sexual misconduct thing.”
Seinfeld admitted that he thinks the number of people affected is amazing, but not in a good way. “What is amazing is the speed and efficiency of the system of justice that has taken shape so quickly. That part is amazing. The number of people, and who they are, and what they’ve been doing, that doesn’t surprise you or me.” Baldwin didn’t agree. He said he was somewhat surprised and feels as if there’s now a “ding dong the witch is dead mentality.” Seinfeld argued, “You’re a guy who has been in show business and knows very, very well the power structure and how hierarchy or, I should say, how position is exploited. You know very well how that’s done. Now, you probably didn’t know, like I didn’t know, that it was being done kind of inappropriately. That’s the part that was surprising. Matt Lauer, OK, let’s say he’s cheating on his wife. He doesn’t have to make life tough for people on the show. That’s the part that is a little odd.”
The two eventually made their way to Harvey Weinstein, both dumbfounded over the ousted film producer’s predatory behavior and agreeing that the thought of inviting a woman to their hotel room to take advantage of her sexually is “completely crazy.”
“It’s always so sad to watch people self-destruct — even though they’re horrible people,” said Baldwin, who then brought up House of Cards star Kevin Spacey. “First of all, very few people in this business were as self-regarding as Kevin. I love Kevin, but Kevin was a big fan of — Kevin was the president of Kevin’s fan club.” Seinfeld said that these men had made their own bed, and Baldwin agreed, saying, “Kevin … loved being recognized. And now it’s the opposite. It’s gonna be a death sentence for him. He’s almost gonna come out of there and go, ‘Please don’t recognize me. Don’t look at me. I don’t want you to remember me.’ This is gonna be very, very ugly for him.”
Seinfeld and Baldwin then asked each other how the workplace will change following #TimesUp. Baldwin said he wonders if people are going to hire fewer women, and if men will be nervous or on edge around them; Seinfeld said his wife believes that the movement is not going to be good for women.
It’s necessary, though, he said. “We got to go through this. Doesn’t this seem like a necessary bowel movement that the culture has to have?” To which Baldwin responded, “It’s a pretty epic bowel movement.”
Sundays with Alec Baldwin airs Sundays at 8:30 p.m. on ABC. Watch clips and full episodes of Sundays with Alec Baldwin for free on Yahoo View.
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