A note from Wild Card host Rachel Martin: I appreciate Jesse Eisenberg not just because he's really good at acting, but because he helps me raise my kids. That may sound unnecessarily provocative, but here's what I mean: Eisenberg tends to play male characters with deep interior lives. Characters who spend a lot of time feeling things like anxiety, fear, insecurity.
They are also big hearted and kind. And on screen, we see Eisenberg's characters trying to find their place in a world where men are expected to flatten their vulnerabilities and all of their emotions to fit into some antiquated definition of masculinity. What does this have to do with my kids? Well, I've got two boys, they're 10 and 12, and I very much want for them to turn into young men who are comfortable living through every one of their emotions.
And maybe I'm giving Hollywood too much power in my life, but it feels affirming as a parent to see these kinds of male characters on screen. And of course the movie that's getting a ton of accolades right now β including a best original screenplay and supporting actor nomination at the Oscars β A Real Pain , which Eisenberg wrote and directed.
He also co-stars in the film alongside Kieran Culkin. This Wild Card interview has been edited for length and clarity. Host Rachel Martin asks guests randomly-selected questions from a deck of cards. Tap play above to listen to the full podcast, or read an excerpt below.
Jesse Eisenberg: Well, so in my senior year of high school, I kind of came into my own a little bit. I grew up in New Jersey, and in my senior year of high school, I transferred to a performing arts high school in New York City.
