Latest news with #Helberg
Yahoo
18 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
‘Poker Face': Simon Helberg on Singing Sondheim With John Mulaney and ‘Getting Into the S—‘ During Big Shootout Scene
SPOILER ALERT: This interview contains spoilers from 'Poker Face' Season 2, Episode 3, now streaming on Peacock. FBI agent Luca Clark (Simon Helberg) returned for more action in Episode 3 of 'Poker Face,' which is in the midst of a second season boasting more murders, more Charlie (Natasha Lyonne) investigations and more guest stars — including stand-up comedian John Mulaney. More from Variety 'Poker Face': How Old Hollywood Camera Tricks Were Used to Create Cynthia Erivo's Quintuplets Rian Johnson and Natasha Lyonne's 'Poker Face' Is Still Quite the Card Trick in Season 2: TV Review Natasha Lyonne to Direct Feature 'Uncanny Valley' Combining 'Ethical' AI and Traditional Filmmaking Techniques Rian Johnson's charming murder-of-the-week show features different marquee guest stars in every episode. But since Helberg plays one of the show's few recurring characters, he's had a chance to grow the trajectory of Luca since Season 1. 'It's exciting to see how he fumbles up the ladder, starting from driving around geriatric retired ex-cons in witness protection, all the way to cracking these really significant cases for the FBI and getting into the shit,' Helberg tells Variety. 'As an actor, it's a real dream because I haven't gotten to play a lot of heroic figures. It's really cool to play these moments where there's a damsel in distress, you're pulling out your gun and sticking your head out of a sunroof. It's probably stuff that Luca's seen in movies.' This episode sees Helberg back in action when Beatrix Hasp (Rhea Perlman) tries to find who in her crew is a mole — with the unexpected help of Charlie. Helberg recalls his first day on set — a car scene with Richard Kind, who plays Beatrix's murdered husband. 'It was showing up with this huge chunk of dialogue, a lot of, 'Hello, nice to meet you' on set, then jumping right into the scene,' Helberg says. 'It's unique because it's a TV show in its second season, but because you've got this rotating cast and rotating crew and directors, it always feels a bit like the first day of school on each episode.' Below, Helberg breaks down singing Stephen Sondheim tunes with Mulaney, why he thinks Luca would try to emulate 'Twin Peaks'' Dale Cooper and the 'fever dream' of returning to the Warner Bros lot to film the Season 3 finale of 'Night Court,' which was recently canceled at NBC. I was very excited that the 'John Mulaney type' referenced in the script actually became John Mulaney. That was a treat, because that's how he was described. Even if it ended up just being a 'John Mulaney type,' I'd be excited, but I had the real thing. He couldn't have been kinder and sweeter. We had to jump right in and wrestle each other and squeeze each other's cheeks with strange, clumsy fighting. And we were supposed to be best friends, too. So all of that breaks the ice pretty quickly when you're groping another guy on set. I had become, like most people, kind of obsessed with him. He's a very curious follow who's interested in everything that's happening and everybody that's around him. His observations are what sets him apart from everybody else. In terms of any kind of cliché about stand-ups being awkward or hostile, which there are some, John couldn't be farther from that. It's pretty verbatim on my part. I know John and Natasha improvised a bit in their scene when he's under arrest. But the writing is just so sharp. The team is so keen to good storytelling — always a beat ahead and shocking in a way that still feels authentic. We didn't meet with any musical coaches or work too intensely on those beats. I know Sondheim and some musicals, but I actually wasn't super familiar with 'Merrily We Roll Along' for some reason. And I don't know if John was. We didn't really talk much about it. Best left unspoken, I think. I listened to those songs and those phrases like a psychopath on repeat. There's these moments where he'll say something quippy and put on sunglasses and like, he's seen 'The Fugitive.' He's seen 'Point Break.' He knows that there's something to the suaveness that detectives can have and there's probably an awareness of that. I don't know if I should be embarrassed, or it's just a fortuitous thing, but I hadn't seen 'Twin Peaks' until after shooting the second season. I'm actually in the middle of watching it, but Kyle MacLachlan's Dale Cooper is completely someone who I think Luca would probably have seen and maybe even tried to emulate. After watching it, I was like, 'Wow, it's the same hairstyle!' There's that sort of earnestness and good-doer quality, trying to be the best FBI agent you can be. When I opened the script for this episode, I saw in the third page or something that I got shot in the head. I did get scared, but I guess that was the point. It was really technical and, in many ways, plays on things that I don't feel particularly skilled at doing. You're supposed to have a real second-nature quality to all that stuff, obviously, and it's not like I got to really spend a ton of time with the gun and doing those kinds of stunts with the time you have on set. There was some of that where, mechanically, you just want it to feel lived in. It's very piecemeal, shooting those kinds of action sequences. Sometimes you'll just film a moment of ducking out of frame, or it's the stunt person who falls in the shot but you're on the ground in the next. It's like hearing an album out of the order and trying to remember where each song goes on the playlist because you're like, 'Where are we in this?' And then you see it all put together and it might be 30 seconds on screen, but it's got 50 shots. It was a little like a fever dream getting to drive back on the Warner Bros. lot and going back on the sound stage. Seeing Melissa and some of the same crew was really a joy. I love Melissa so much. It was great to kind of hint at our former relationship and dynamic that we had on 'The Big Bang Theory' but still stray so far from it. The whole scene was really kind of a hint — letting the audience into a secret past that they didn't know she had. It was fun to pop in there and play a different version of husband and wife. My goal is to always be doing something different. I just hope not to repeat too many beats and too many of the same characters, which is funny coming from somebody who played the same character for 12 years. And maybe that's part of it. But when I started 'The Big Bang Theory,' it was, 'Hey, maybe we'll do a pilot and then get picked up.' I auditioned just like every other job, every other character I've ever played and it happened to last for an incredibly long time. So I'm just really hungry to have opportunities where I can challenge myself. It does tend to be in opposition to 'Big Bang' just because I did that for so long. This interview has been edited and condensed. Best of Variety New Movies Out Now in Theaters: What to See This Week Emmy Predictions: Talk/Scripted Variety Series - The Variety Categories Are Still a Mess; Netflix, Dropout, and 'Hot Ones' Stir Up Buzz Oscars Predictions 2026: 'Sinners' Becomes Early Contender Ahead of Cannes Film Festival
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
443-foot ship pulled free after nearly hitting home as owner slept
Salvagers on Tuesday pulled a massive cargo ship, which made world headlines for running aground just meters away from a house in Norway, back into the water, the head of the company managing the operation said. A Ukrainian sailor in his 30s was on watch at the time and said he had fallen asleep, according to Norwegian police, who have charged him with "negligent navigation." The 443-foot NCL Salten sailed up onto shore just a stone's throw from a wooden house around dawn on Thursday. "It's good to have said hello, but now it's time to say goodbye" the occupant of the house, Johan Helberg, told broadcaster NRK on Tuesday. The containers on the ship, except for those removed to lighten the bow, are still on board and will be unloaded this evening, Ole T. Bjornevik, the managing director of BOA Offshore told AFP, adding that the operation only lasted 30 minutes and an inspection is underway "This went better than expected," he told NRK. "This went beyond all expectations." The Ukrainian seaman has said none of the cargo ship's collision alarms had worked, prosecutor Kjetil Bruland Sorensen told news agency NTB. The investigation will also look into whether the rules on working hours and rest periods were adhered to on ship, according to police. Helberg, also slept through the incident and only discovered the unexpected visitor when a panicked neighbor rang his doorbell and called him on the phone. "The doorbell rang at a time of day when I don't like to open," Helberg told television channel TV2. The ship reportedly caused damage to a heating pipe in Helberg's cabin, TV2 reported, but the homeowner said he considered himself lucky. "If the ship had hit the rocky cliff right next to it, it would have lifted up and hit the house hard," he told TV2. "It wasn't many meters off." None of the 16 crew members were injured. Bente Hetland, the CEO of the shipping company that owns NCL Salten, told TV2 that the same ship ran aground twice before — once in 2023 in Hadsel and again in 2024, in Ålesund. Delta Air Lines' 100th year takes flight Trump delivers Memorial Day remarks at Arlington National Cemetery Full interview: Jack McCain on "Face the Nation"
South Wales Guardian
2 days ago
- South Wales Guardian
Crew member charged over ship that ran aground in Norway
The ship, the NCL Salten, ran aground shortly before 6am on Thursday morning. No oil spills were reported, and none of the 16 people aboard were injured. Resident Johan Helberg told Norwegian broadcaster NRK that he had slept through the whole thing and only woke up when a neighbour started ringing his doorbell. Images show the ship's red and green bow a matter of feet away from Mr Helberg's house along the Trondheim Fjord's coast. The second officer, whose name was not made public, was the navigator on duty at the time of the grounding, prosecutor Kjetil Bruland Sorensen said in a statement. Crews on Monday continued to take containers off the ship so it could be more easily removed from the area. NCL, the shipping company, said it was cooperating with investigators.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Yahoo
Cargo ship operator allegedly fell asleep and ran aground, nearly hitting a home in Norway
A cargo ship operator has been charged after he was accused of falling asleep on duty, resulting in the vessel running aground and nearly hitting a home in Norway. Local perspective The ship, the NCL Salten, ran aground just before 6 a.m. on May 22. The Associated Press reported that there were no spills reported and none of the 16 individuals on the ship were injured. According to the AP, images show the ship's red and green bow only yards from Johan Helberg's home near the Trondheim Fjord's coast. Helberg told a local news outlet that he slept through the whole incident and only awakened when a neighbor was ringing his doorbell. The AP reported, citing a statement from prosecutor Kjetil Bruland Sørensen, that the on-duty navigator, whose identity was not revealed, was the ship's second officer, and he was charged with negligent navigation. On Monday, ship crews continued to remove containers from the ship so they could be easily removed from the area. The AP reported that NCL, the shipping company, said it's cooperating with investigators. The Source Information for this story was provided by the Associated Press, which cited a statement from a prosecutor in the case. This story was reported from Washington, D.C.
Vancouver Sun
3 days ago
- Vancouver Sun
On-duty navigator was allegedly asleep when cargo ship ran aground in Norway and nearly hit a house
OSLO, Norway — Norwegian prosecutors have charged a cargo ship's on-duty navigator after he allegedly fell asleep on duty and the vessel ran aground, narrowly missing crashing into a home . The ship, the NCL Salten, ran aground shortly before 6 a.m. Thursday. No oil spills were reported, and none of the 16 people aboard was injured. Johan Helberg told Norwegian broadcaster NRK that he'd slept through the whole thing and only woke up when a neighbor started ringing his doorbell. Images show the ship's red and green bow just metres (yards) from Helberg's house along the Trondheim Fjord's coast. The on-duty navigator was the ship's second officer, prosecutor Kjetil Bruland Sørensen said in a statement. He was charged with negligent navigation; his name was not made public. Crews on Monday continued to take containers off the ship so it could be more easily removed from the area. NCL, the shipping company, said it was cooperating with investigators.
