Parade features The Daily Show host Jon Stewart, the king of “fake” news, as he takes on the true story of crusading journalist Maziar Bahari, in his first film, Rosewater.
He also addresses recent reports that he had been offered one of the most prestigious jobs in television—replacing David Gregory as host of Meet the Press.
Here’s some:
On recent press reports that NBC News had contacted him to replace David Gregory on Meet the Press:
“I don’t think I turned it down. There was a small conversation where they were trying to figure out what the hell to do and they talked to me for a minute. It isn’t like they offered it to me or anything…I think just being able to have a few minutes to say why it’s a terrible idea disabused them of any notion of it.”
On directing Rosewater, his first movie:
“I really enjoyed it. It isn’t an alien process to what I do normally. I think that in general, I really like the challenge of trying to tell stories in different ways…It is the same language I am more accustomed to speaking…It would be different if I had written a song.”
On the moments of humor in Rosewater:
“One of the things that really appealed to me about Maziar’s memoir was his ability as a journalist and individual to retain his sense of humor and his sense of absurdity of what was happening. You will be surprised if you watch the movie, because there are big laughs in it in some very tough moments.”
On brushing off the notion that he’s done something special in making Rosewater:
“It doesn’t take any courage to make a movie. There are those in parts of the world where that type of expression you can’t take for granted—there are a lot of countries where making a film like this would take courage. It just so happens that we’re fortunate enough to be in a place where that isn’t an issue. I try to keep that in perspective.”
On “the greatest decision” he ever made: deciding to pursue a career in comedy in 1986 even though he had never performed a standup routine:
“In general, it is that sense of believing that you can actively change your standing, believing that by taking what some would consider a risk by doing something that may seem out of line with people’s expectations for you, you can change your unhappiness into something more positive.”
Jon Stewart shares his personal list of his most “courageous” interviews: http://parade.com/
Pictured: Jon Stewart at the NYC premiere of Rosewater on Nov 12