Steven Prusakowski
When the Peacock documentary series Paul T. Goldman was announced, people had questions – lots of questions. Weeks later, the series premiered on the streaming network to strong reviews and, you guessed it, even more questions. Directed by Jason Woliner (Borat Subsequent Moviefilm), Paul T. Goldman is unlike just about anything out there before it. So much so that even during my interview with Woliner, the series director/producer had a tough time keeping his elevator pitch for the series under a thousand words.
One thing not in question is just how Woliner is passionate about the project and the man who it revolves around. He set out to tell Paul’s story in a way that captured the uniqueness of the man and his situation. The end result has people talking and debating even weeks after the final episode aired. During my interview with Jason we covered everything from how he met Paul, his read on the man, if he ever felt like he was being duped, and much more. The answer that surprised me most when I asked was what Woliner hoped viewers would take away. His response was not only revealing, but also tapped into how important this strange little show, that Woliner committed over a decade of his life to bringing to the screen, was to him.
“I never wanted this to be a prank or just to be about laughing at a weird person. I don’t think he’s crazy. I don’t think he’s wrong about everything he talks about. I think it’s very complex,” said Woliner. “It’s much easier to say, I love this person, I hate this person, I stan this person, this person is problematic or whatever. But, it’s less easy to kind of exist with a complex feeling about someone and about a story – and that’s certainly where I landed with this.”
Check out Woliner’s full answer and the interview in its entirety below. You can also find out where you stand on Paul by watching Paul T. Goldman on Peacock – all six episodes are currently streaming. We’d be interested to hear with what questions you leave.
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