Summary
Overview
Billy Crudup joins Armchair Expert to discuss his unconventional upbringing, moving nine times before finishing high school, and how his father's unreliability shaped his approach to acting. He reflects on turning down fame in the 90s, his legendary MasterCard voiceover work, navigating a career prioritizing craft over celebrity, and his roles in Almost Famous, The Morning Show, and the new Noah Baumbach film J. Kelly starring George Clooney.
Early Life and Family Dynamics in Manhasset
Billy grew up in Manhasset, New York, where his father sold textiles and his grandfather was a cantankerous vice president of marketing. His grandfather took him to weekly lunches at the same restaurant where he'd grill Billy about what he was screwing up, a dynamic that mirrored how he'd treated Billy's father. Billy's dad was charming but financially unreliable, constantly chasing the jackpot with various business ventures while never quite making ends meet.
- Billy's father sold textiles in Manhattan, working for Burlington after leaving his own father's company
- Grandfather's way of showing love was to toughen people up, starting every lunch with 'what are you screwing up now?'
- Billy's father paid the tuition bill, but it was a lie - Billy ended up with all 8am classes his first semester
- Billy got a people GPA his first semester because he didn't know you should drop classes you're not attending
" all right, what are you screwing up now? "
" My dad was a hustler, so he knew how to survive enough because he was a salesman of fabric, but also he was a bookie. "
Reflections on His Father and J. Kelly
Billy's relationship with his father was complex - he loved his optimism and charm but struggled with his lack of self-reflection and financial irresponsibility. His father filed for bankruptcy and listed Billy as a creditor after Billy had loaned him money. Billy's show Hello Tomorrow was essentially about playing his father as a salesman. The new Noah Baumbach film J. Kelly explores similar themes about looking back on life and whether success was worth it.
- Billy's father was always chasing the jackpot, from coffee additives to Spanish Bibles endorsed by the Vatican
- His father declared bankruptcy and listed Billy as one of the creditors after Billy loaned him money
- Even in hospice, withered and barely able to whisper, his father said he was going to beat cancer
- Billy played a character very similar to his father in Hello Tomorrow
" I made 10 grand this year. I'll put it on red. Why not turn it into 20 or lose it all? "
" I'm going to beat it. And you're like, oh, buddy. "
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