Interview: Josh Gad Chats About the Insanity of Playing Himself in ‘Wonder Man’ and Embracing Audience Skepticism About a New ‘Spaceballs’

Josh Gad is having quite the moment, both in terms of his career and also just in terms of his sanity. When we sat down on Zoom last week to chat, he was in the midst of returning to Broadway for the Magical Mormon Mystery Week going on for The Book of Mormon. So, being in that headspace, while also talking about playing himself (well, a variant of himself, as we’ll get into) on Marvel’s Wonder Man…well, that’s a lot. He’s having fun with it, though clearly aware that this is not the normal experience. The conversation was set up to discuss Wonder Man, of course, though we get into both things, as well as a bit about his participation in the upcoming Spaceballs sequel (he loved my shirt, which dominated the discussion, pre recording).

In Wonder Man, Gad plays…Josh Gad, in a one-off, black and white episode called Doorman. The episode is one of the most acclaimed in the already well regarded Marvel limited series, both for how different it is from the rest of the show, as well as how it showcases Gad doing something he’s never done before. He’s a highlight here, to be sure.

Below, you can hear my conversation with Gad. We have a lot of fun here, bouncing from topic to topic. Wonder Man is why we’re here, so that’s the main focus, though this is just a really nice and interesting chat. Plus, we get to end with some interesting tidbits about Spaceballs: The New One, which he co-wrote, including a great little Mel Brooks story. So, whether you want to hear about The Book of Mormon, the Spaceballs sequel, or Wonder Man, there’s something for you here. Plus, Gad is incredibly personable, so I could have spoken to him all day.

Here now is my interview with Wonder Man guest star Josh Gad. Enjoy:

Wonder Man is available to stream on Disney+ right now!