Tony Hale Talks Playing Against Type in Netflix’s ‘Woman of the Hour:’ “It Was Almost Like a ‘Veep’ Selina Meyer”

Tony Hale is known for playing pushovers. In Arrested Development, the beloved comedy series that satirizes a wealthy, out-of-touch family, he was Buster Bluth, the bumbling, childlike youngest brother. After that, he was Gary Walsh on Veep, the doting assistant to the scathing Vice President Selina Meyer, played Julia Louis-Dreyfus. But his latest role is something a little different: a confident, sleazy ’70s game show host in Anna Kendrick’s new movie, Woman of the Hour, which began streaming on Netflix today.

“Gary and Buster are so on the defense all the time,” Hale told Decider in a recent Zoom interview. His role in Woman of the Hour, however, “was almost like a Veep Selina Meyer—always aggressive, always making snide remarks. Playing that side, as opposed to the defensive side—it was fun to play in that playground.”

Hale’s Woman of the Hour character, Ed Burke, is loosely based on the real-life Jim Lange, who was the host of The Dating Game when, in 1978, serial killer Rodney Alcala (played by Daniel Zovatto in the film) appeared as Bachelor No. 1 amidst his California killing spree. Kendrick, who also directed the film in her directorial debut, stars as Cheryl Bradshaw, as the contestant who, ultimately, chose a serial killer to be her date. Hale, who binged old Dating Game episodes on YouTube in preparation for the role, finds the entire stranger-than-fiction true story to be “baffling.”

“This guy got on in 1978 with no background check,” he said. “How is this possible? There’s seven or eight accounted victims, but maybe 130 victims that were not accounted for. It’s like, what is going on?”

The 54-year-old actor spoke to Decider about the movie, donning that ’70s attire, and his joy at the recent resurgence in Veep‘s popularity.

DECIDER: I read that you watched a lot of The Dating Game in preparation. Can you tell me more about that?

TONY HALE: I went down to YouTube University and did a deep dive. Mainly, watching the host and how he interacted [with the contestants]. It was a rhythm of speech that I became really fascinated with. “Welcome to The Dating Game.” There was this character that he took on. What was so fun about doing the movie is you have this script where you see a bit of behind-the-scenes of this character. To me, he represented the culture at the time— the objectification of women, and snide remarks that were accepted, even on a public platform. It was just bizarre. Also just the detachment that he had, not only with the way he spoke, but with the women around him. 

Now that you’ve done all this research, if you were ever just flipping through the channels and saw The Dating Game on, would you watch an episode for fun?

100 percent. I’d watch an episode. The whole story, even as I’m talking about this, is so baffling to me. This guy got on in 1978 with no background check. I mean, what? How is this possible? There’s seven or eight accounted victims, but maybe 130 victims that were not accounted for. It’s like, what is going on? 

I have to ask about the hair, the makeup, the costume for your character-

How could you not, man? That helmet of hair!

How much input did you have on that look?

I love talking about it. You can’t help it—when you put something like that on, you get that flavor of the guy. I almost wanted that hairpiece to have a strap, because it felt like a hair helmet. The sideburns, and that polyester suit, and the plaid… I remember putting on that costume and then saying, “Hey, how about this? How about this?” It’s always fun to bring that to life, and even funner to think that the host was like, “Yeah, I got this. I like this.” Not aware that that [hair] piece could not have been more obvious. He’s even adjusting in front of the women at the mirror. He was a character, man. 

This character is more confident and aggressive than a lot of your fans are used to seeing you as. Did that change your approach to the character at all? Was it daunting, or was it fun, to play a more sleazy type? 

I really believed in what Anna [Kendrick] was trying to say in this, because it was really the victim’s perspective. It was not putting the serial killer on a platform, or glorifying that. But any time you do a character, you have to find compassion for that character. Looking at this guy, you just go, “Man, what’s he like at home?” To be that aggressive and detached—to think how you get to the end of your life, and that’s what you gave the world? I don’t know him, but to this character—not necessarily to the real [Dating Game] host—but to this character, at the end of his life, he’s like, “Wow, I just treated people like that.” How sad. You always have to find those ins, or you’ll just be doing a cardboard cutout of someone.

I definitely notice a deeper voice, a more detached voice, than Gary Walsh from Veep, or Buster Bluth from Arrested Development.

Gary and Buster are so on the defense all the time. Constantly on the defense. [This character] was definitely on the offense. So you’re playing a different side. The sad thing is that offense was almost a Selina Meyer offense. It was almost like a Veep Selina Meyer—always aggressive, always making snide remarks. Playing that side, as opposed to the defensive side—it was fun to play in that playground a bit. 

Tell me more about working with Anna Kendrick as your costar and as your director. What was her approach? 

As an actor, you always want to know that somebody is captaining the ship. You want your freedom, but you want to know someone’s captaining ship, and to be very clear as to what they want. Anna was very clear, and she came at with such a non-arrogant, non-entitled way. It’s the perfect combination. It’s a leader who is kind and humble, and just wants: “Hey, let’s tell this story the best we can. Let’s be a team.” This is a very fragile story to tell. It’s a very fragile way of telling it. You just felt like everybody had a voice. She just did a bang-up job. You’re spinning so many plates as a director, and that can be communicated very differently. She did it with grace and strength. I really consider myself very thankful to have had that experience. 

Would you ever consider doing something similar, directing something that you’re acting in? 

I don’t know. You really could see the passion in Anna, with this story. I’ve produced. I just produced a movie called Sketch, that I also acted in, by this director, Seth Worley, and I absolutely loved this story and the script. Directing is a different game. So, I don’t know. Maybe I should shadow Anna and just be like, “Okay, how did you do this?” It’s a tough balancing act.

You recently reunited with the Veep cast to raise money for the Harris campaign. What was it like seeing everybody virtually and stepping into Gary’s shoes again? 

Any time I get to do that is just awesome. It’s awesome. I love those guys. We trust each other. We have respect for each other. They make me laugh. They make me laugh so hard. If we can do that again and again and again, I would love it. Next week, I’m actually going to do the Veep podcast with Matt Walsh and Timothy Simons. We love each other. To all get along that well is a real gift. I’m very thankful for that. 

You and Julia got to recreate an iconic Veep scene, when Selina tells Gary she’s going to be president. What was that experience like? Did you try to make different choices or recreate it faithfully? 

I was just getting over a cold. What’s weird is, I remember when we were shooting originally, we were both sick. I was like, “Why are we always sick when we’re doing the scene?” I was nervous because we were not in the same room, and there’s a delay. We have to laugh and cry, and keep laughing. I was like, “How is this going to go?” But then, when you’re with each other, she makes me laugh. I think I started coughing at one point, so maybe my cold was working for me. It was surreal. You walk away, and you’re like, “What a joy.”

I’ve noticed a resurgence in people going back to rewatch Veep. Are you and the cast enjoying the new batch of memes, clips, and reactions on social media?

I’m such a fan of the show, so it’s made me want to see things again. Any time someone comes up to me with, both Arrested and Veep and they’re like, “Remember that time Gary did this and Buster did that?” I’m like, “I don’t, so please tell me.” Then I go back and watch the clip, and I’m like, “My gosh, this is really funny!” I like remembering that stuff. We were in Baltimore for four years shooting the first four seasons. Those were just such great times. It always triggers those memories. I’m like, “Oh, man.” It’s like I get to go back again, which is great.

If someone five years from now wanted to bring Veep back for a new season, as it happened with Arrested Development, would you be interested? 

Oh my gosh, I would jump at the chance. We all would. We are all not just fans of the show, but fans of each other. So it’s like, “Please! We would love that.” Love it, love it, love it.