Exclusive| Bill Hader: Obsession director Curry Barker told me he watched me perform when he was a kid

Bill Hader says voice acting can be exhausting, but seeing children enjoy The Cat in the Hat makes it worthwhile

American actor, director, writer and comedian Bill Hader known for Saturday Night Live, his Emmy winning series Barry and many more projects talks to HTCity about lending his voice to Warner Bros animated film, The Cat in the Hat. The actor says most people don't realise "how exhausting" a job doing voice-overs really is but at the same time it's well worth it because the kids love it.

Bill Hader

Being a father yourself, how excited are your kids for the movie?

I took my youngest daughter and her friends for an advance screening and they love it. They were laughing and even ended up crying at the end, they were so moved by it, so reaction is great.

Was voice-overs for animation movies always part of the plan?

I never planned on being in The Cat in the Hat. You just get a call or an email and I say, "That would be amazing." That's how it happened. I would certainly love to do more of this work.

While we have seen you do the fun stuff on Saturday Night Live and in animation movies, on the other hand there's the award winning Barry where you played a hit man and also served in multiple roles including writer and director. How does one switch between extremes?

I'm not somebody who has a specific process. I know actors like Robert De Niro really work hard on their craft; for me it's more intuitive. I really rely on my director to say- go this way or that, we discuss it and collaborate. Growing up, being an actor was something I never thought about, it was more about being a filmmaker. Being an actor opened doors so I could go on to direct Barry. I just feel very lucky about how things worked out.

What SNL characters do people still talk to you about the most?

There are so many! The Californians is one because I live in Los Angeles, people definitely remember the Californians. Stefon Meyers is another one people still enjoy. It comes and wades. It's interesting that people who are doing stuff now, grew up watching those characters. I met Obsession director Curry Barker at dinner and he told me "I watched you, as a kid" They were just little kids back then (laughs) that generation is now making great stuff. I was lucky I came up at a time where I had people like John Mulaney writing for me, who is now a great comedian himself.

You've also spoken about real and relatable issues like anxiety.

Once every month or two someone comes up to me and says “Thank you for speaking about anxiety; it helped me or helped my kid.” That's very meaningful.

Any plans to visit India?

I'd love to come to India, and I love films from India. I would absolutely come at some point. My friends who've been to the country love it and I want to experience it myself.