Director, actor, and all-around legend Taika Waititi takes a hilarious trip down memory lane, sharing favorite moments from his most iconic projects! From turning 'Thor: Ragnarok' into a fan frenzy (and owning the clapbacks) to directing 75 stormtroopers on 'The Mandalorian' set, to winning an Oscar with 'Jojo Rabbit' as “the best Hitler since Hitler,” Taika spills the tea on what makes each project unforgettable.
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00:00Bam! Hey everybody I'm Taika Waititi and welcome to my memories. Oh my god, okay, The Simpsons.
00:12What's up I'm Taika Waititi and welcome to Flashbacks. I'm going to give you one memory
00:17from everything I've ever worked on. Almost everything. Let's get started. What we do
00:25in the shadows. This movie was rejected by every studio that Jermaine and I pitched it
00:30to because they, we said it's going to cost one million dollars and every studio said
00:36we don't even know how to make a movie for that low. They said who's in the movie? Who's
00:40going to be in it? And we said well, there's going to be, oh we want to get Johnny. And
00:45they went oh Johnny, yeah, okay Johnny, you mean Johnny, Johnny, Johnny. And we went no,
00:51our friend Johnny, he's a landscape artist, he does landscaping in Auckland. I'm glad
00:58to hear that I'm cool. No, that's not the point. Coming right up. Okay. Thor Ragnarok.
01:08That really propelled me into the nerdosphere, if you will. I was living a really lovely
01:15peaceful life and as soon as I did this, well boy did the nerds come for me. They said this
01:20guy's going to ruin this, he's going to ruin Thor. I was like what, you mean again? And
01:24they were like he's going to ruin this for everyone, Thor's so cool. And I said to them
01:30on Twitter, before I left Twitter, I said you don't know what you want until I give
01:35it to you. This doesn't make any sense. No, nothing makes sense here, man. Best Hitler
01:43since Hitler. So I've been described. It's one of the best compliments I've ever had.
01:48Adolf, I don't think I can do this. Ross, of course you can. Hitler 2.0. More fun. Slightly
01:59more fun Hitler than the original Hitler. It's the movie that won me an Oscar. I've
02:03got an Oscar and a Grammy by the way, guys. Guess what I got my Grammy for? Making a playlist
02:09for Jojo Rabbit. Oh boy. Speaking of angry nerds, Star Wars, Mandalorian. This is what
02:23brought the nerds back. They were like okay, you get a pass on this one. My favourite memory
02:28of this is turning up to set and then getting to direct 75 stormtroopers and the little
02:37boy inside me, who I've kept locked away, he just let me try to leap out and be, yay,
02:44that's my dream come true. I went shut up, kid. And I locked him back, I pushed him back
02:48down. If you go near this child, I will have no choice but to kill you. Jesus Christ, you
02:55guys. Okay. Rardy, rardy, rah. You're really digging deep. I mean, I've done so many more
03:04things and that's me. So my favourite memory about the show, this was a sketch show, okay?
03:08So lots of ridiculous little skits, sketches. And my resounding, everlasting memory of this
03:16show was playing this character. It was like Captain Cook from the future. And all I remember
03:24is that I'd shaved and they put glue all over my face and they got someone else's hair shavings
03:31and they stuck them onto my face to make a beard.
03:39Space sucks.
03:44Our flag means death. Wonderful show about pirates in which I became a gay icon overnight.
03:50And the, this is, I mean, if you love pirates and you hate heterosexuals, this is the show
03:58for you. And I had the best time of my life. I played Blackbeard and me and Rhys had a
04:06lot of romantic times on that set off camera as well. And we, yeah, it was just like a
04:13fantastic couple of seasons of that show. And I was just very, very proud to do this.
04:20I think my most memorable memory is that beard, which drove me insane. And so the character's
04:29very grumpy and that was not acting. I hated wearing that beard and that wig with a passion.
04:36It was definitely someone else's hair as well. So this is the second time I've worn, actually
04:41a few times now I've worn other people's hair on my head. But listen, you know, that's our
04:47craft, isn't it? You know, you want to reach the pinnacle of acting success. You have to
04:54wear other humans on your face. Oh my God. Okay. The Simpsons. I'm in The Simpsons. And
05:01now that really, I mean, what else is there to say about it? I play myself in The Simpsons,
05:06no acting required. And where's the character? Cut to the character. There it is. Well, there
05:11it is. Oh my God. Is that Taika Waititi? I love everything you do. Your Thor movies,
05:20what we do in the shadows. Oh, and you're by far my favorite onscreen Hitler. Take that
05:26the late Bruno Gantz. You know, I'd always dreamed of being on The Simpsons. I've loved
05:30The Simpsons ever since I was a kid. And I got to play The Simpsons and I'm not on this
05:33poster. But I remember being excited. And then someone sent me just last week, they
05:38sent me the, where's my phone? They sent me a picture of it from the TV. And I was like,
05:43what's that? And they went, you're on The Simpsons. I was like, oh damn, I was on The
05:47Simpsons. That's right. What we do in the shadows is a TV show. Now it feels like we're
05:51in just like a vortex. It's just going to go round and around and around, isn't it?
05:55What we do in the shadows, the TV series. This went on for far too long, but, um, you
06:02know, I'm proud of it. And I thought that the movie, or when we were making the movie,
06:05I said, Jermaine, it feels like this is like a sort of five minute idea that we're stretching
06:10out into a movie. Next thing we made six seasons of the same idea. Um, and my favorite memory
06:17was not having to put vampire teeth in and making other people do it. That was probably
06:22my favorite thing. Um, and also just these guys were possibly funnier than us.
06:27Okay, now. So why are we gathered on Stutty Island? Because one of our brothers has passed
06:32from this world, Baron Afonas, also known as the Undying One. Well, he died. That's
06:39why we're here. Next one. Okay. My first feature film, Eagle vs. Shark. Um, Jermaine Clement,
06:47Lauren Taylor. And, um, this was my first foray into the feature filmmaking world. And
06:54it still holds a very dear place in my heart.
06:57Hey fool! Sucker. You foolish, foolish sucker.
07:02What's my favorite memory or any memory from this? Um, it was super cheap. And, um, I think
07:08I did most of the jobs on set. I think I was also, I think I maybe have even done catering.
07:13You want to be a star? You gotta start at the bottom. Flight of the Concords. Okay.
07:20The show and the duo who put New Zealand on the map and New Zealand comedy on the map
07:25and, um, Jermaine and Brett, Brett and Jermaine, um, two of my best friends. We've known each
07:31other for a very long time. And, um, what I remember from this show, and this was shot
07:35here in New York. And, um, all I remember is shooting on the streets and lots of police
07:40not doing much.
07:41Too many motherfuckers. Fuckin' with my shit.
07:45I mean, they're great, good cops, but I mean, they're retired cops, I guess is what you'd say.
07:54The Jackie Brown Diaries. Now, Jackie is a good friend of mine and, uh, this is yet another
07:59show where I did probably about 30 seconds of work. And, um, I played bongo drums on
08:06this. That's my memory. I played bongo drums and I couldn't wait to get out of there. But,
08:10uh, she's still a friend of mine. We're working on something coming up in the next year or
08:14two. Mm-hmm. Yeah. Jackie Brown.
08:19Boy. Okay. Look at all the little laurels, the wreaths. Look at them all. Look at that.
08:25Winner. Audience award. I can't even read where that was. I think we maybe made most
08:29of these up. Um, I wrote that font. So, uh, good memory of this. This was shot in my hometown
08:35in New Zealand, in the house that I grew up in. And a lot of my family was in the film.
08:41And, um, fun fact, my dad did bury a bag of money in a field and tried to dig it up. Never
08:47found it again. And that's in the movie.
08:52The in-betweener. You guys. Okay, so the in-betweeners. My favourite thing that I've made that's
08:58been cancelled. My memory of this, I wrote Jojo Rabbit while I was, uh, working on this.
09:03So lots of good things come from things that you don't want to do.
09:07Okay. Hunt for the Will of People. Honestly, maybe almost my favourite of my films. Shh,
09:13don't tell anyone. Controversial, I know. But, um, this film, um, was just an absolute
09:18joy to make. Every memory is just wonderful.
09:22Sam Neill. So this is Sam Neill. This is one of the greatest actors known to humanity.
09:28And you know why he's great? Because he played Damien in Omen 3.
09:33You remember Omen 1 and 2? Well, there's a third one. And he plays grown-up, evil Damien.
09:43Sam Neill.
09:47Wellington Paranormal. This is a spin-off from What We Do in the Shadows. The two police
09:51officers in What We Do in the Shadows, um, Karen and Mike. Um, and that was before Karen
09:58was like a dirty word. But, um, these two are fantastic actors and, um, we've got to
10:06show some more love for the Karens, man. Karens were wonderful. Um, anyway, this is a spin-off
10:11and this, um, I would say we would describe as a, um, mundane X-Files. An X-Files where
10:18nothing really happens.
10:21Year of the Rabbit.
10:23What do I do on this?
10:29I mean, Matt, it's Matt. Oh, no, I remember. I remember. I distinctly remember.
10:35It's a big funny moustache and I think, yeah, maybe you can cut to a photo of it.
10:39Because I think it was like a top hat and an accordion. And that's the only memory I have.
10:44But, um, Matt Barry is, I mean, an icon. He's one of my favourite people and favourite actors.
10:51He's, um, one of the funniest people I've ever met and, um, that's all I'm going to say about that.
10:56Anything with a rabbit in the title, I'm there.
11:00Free guy.
11:03I've seen this film and, speaking from the heart, yeah, I would say I am the best thing in the movie.
11:08There I am there, but not quite as big. Small, I'm sort of stuck all the way down the bottom.
11:13Why? Why?
11:16Where's Jodie Kimer? Where's she looking? Who's she looking at?
11:19I should be next. I should be behind him. Big up here. Just like that.
11:23Give me some scissors and some glue. I'm going to rearrange this poster.
11:26I had such a good time on this because I just got to have fun and act with these great guys.
11:33What else can I say about it? Acting is way easier than directing.
11:37And I encourage everyone to do that instead of directing.
11:40What I loved about this character is I didn't have to do an accent.
11:42And I just got to be very playful.
11:45Original? Why would I do that when I can make a sequel?
11:48So we can make it better?
11:50IPs and sequels. That is the thing that people want.
11:53Sean and Ryan were very supportive and they just let me do what I wanted.
11:58They kept me in my lane. But yeah, they're extremely fun people to work with.
12:07Oh my god, you guys.
12:10There's actually this. This is The Strip.
12:14And it's a TV show I was in.
12:16Am I on there?
12:18Oh, I actually made it to the poster.
12:20So that's me. Young. I was probably...
12:22How old was I? Does anyone know how old I was?
12:24Twenty-something. Twenty-five, I'd say.
12:28Look at how dashing I was.
12:30So this was a TV show in New Zealand called The Strip.
12:32And guess what it was about? A strip club.
12:34And I played a stripper.
12:36And guess what it was about? A strip club.
12:38And I played a stripper.
12:40And why this is very meaningful is because
12:42I really hated this job.
12:44And I thought to myself,
12:46is this all there is for me?
12:48Is this my life?
12:50Is this all there is?
12:52I'm destined to play a stripper
12:54on a TV show about a strip club.
12:56Great friends though. All of these guys are my friends.
12:58But I was in the green room
13:00in a G-string
13:02and I was thinking
13:04there's got to be more out there for me
13:06and that's where I wrote my first short film
13:08Two Cars One Night
13:10and that went on and got nominated for an Oscar
13:12and I never looked back.
13:16Oh my god, what is with the
13:18rabbit themes in all of my stuff?
13:20Okay, save Ralph.
13:22I play a rabbit.
13:24This was made by a dear friend of mine, Spencer Sousa
13:26and it's an incredible
13:28film
13:30about vivisection
13:32and animal cruelty.
13:34This film really touched a lot of people
13:36and it's a really sweet character
13:38and I voiced this in lockdown.
13:40I did a month of lockdown.
13:42Okay, that's basically
13:44ask anyone in jail is the exact same thing.
13:46And anyway, so in that
13:48period I voiced this
13:50character.
13:52My name's Ralph.
13:54I'm a rabbit
13:56as you can see.
13:58Reservation dogs.
14:00This is something I'm so extremely
14:02proud of. Sterling Harjo
14:04who created the show with me
14:06it's his show.
14:08My memory is we were at
14:10my house one night, late at night
14:12and we said, how come there's no shows
14:14about native people
14:16that are funny?
14:24This popped out of our heads
14:26and we sold it the next week
14:29and it won zero Emmys.
14:33Thor, Love
14:35and Thunder
14:37the best Thor
14:39of the bunch.
14:41Look how jacked Chris got.
14:43One of my favourite things about this is
14:45I so love Natalie
14:47also Christian Bale
14:49I mean it's Christian Bale
14:51also Guns and Roses
14:53a lot of the songs. I did meet Axl Rose once
14:55actually.
14:57I have a lot of stories to tell
14:59which I will not share.
15:05I play a character called
15:07Moe in this film
15:09and again it's voice work
15:11voice work
15:13and this film is fantastic
15:15what a great adventure
15:17also I love the twist
15:19towards the end
15:21do you guys want to know what the twist is?
15:23He's the bad guy.
15:25That's my memory of watching that movie.
15:27What?
15:29Time Bandits
15:31Lisa Kudrow the greatest
15:33living comedian
15:35finally I'm on the poster for something
15:37and there's Jermaine
15:39this is a show that
15:41lasted one glorious season
15:43why didn't it have another season
15:45Taika tell us
15:47alright I'll tell you
15:49too expensive
15:51my favourite thing about this show
15:53if you ever get a chance
15:55to come to New Zealand
15:57don't we don't want you
15:59but I will say
16:01if I can report
16:03it's a great place
16:05and if you ever get a chance to shoot down there
16:07you won't get a chance because we don't want you
16:09but that's my favourite memory
16:11being at home with my countrymen
16:13shooting Time Bandits
16:19so this is a film
16:21based on a true story
16:23based on the worst football team in the world
16:25soccer team in the world
16:27and it was
16:29American Samoa
16:31and this is the
16:33what do you call it
16:35depiction
16:37adaptation
16:39whatever you call it
16:41I've been making films for
16:4322 years and I still don't know any of the terminology
16:45ok so
16:47we took a real story
16:50and we ripped it off
16:52and what was great about this
16:54my favourite thing we got to shoot in Hawaii
16:56and a lot of my friends
16:58it was like a Polynesian community
17:00brought all these beautiful brown
17:02faces together and we shot this movie
17:04and it's a celebration
17:06of the Pacific
17:08and of course
17:10it wouldn't be a Taika movie
17:12unless he crowbars himself
17:14into the movie somehow
17:16I played a priest
17:18second time I'd played a priest
17:20the first time if you watch Hunt for the Wilderpeople
17:22which is down there somewhere I play a priest in that
17:24and exact same accent and basically
17:26the same character because I've got a very
17:28limited range
17:30last but not
17:32oh this is
17:34it's not even the last thing I've done
17:36but you guys have run out of
17:38this broad stuff
17:40this is Interior Chinatown and this is
17:42on Hulu so depending on when you
17:44watch this it's either come and gone
17:46or it's about to happen imminently
17:48but this is a really
17:50great show
17:52based on Charlie Yu's novel
17:54Interior Chinatown
17:56and it's about someone who
17:58Jimmy O. Yang
18:00a guy called
18:02Willis Wu who basically lives
18:04in the background of a TV show
18:06he discovers he's living
18:08as a background
18:10character
18:12in Law and Order
18:14SVU and then it's about him
18:16trying to get into the foreground
18:18and stepping into the light
18:20and it speaks to me because
18:22I think a lot of us
18:24we're all the main characters
18:26of our own stories aren't we
18:28we're all the main characters in our lives
18:30but even so
18:32we still sometimes feel like we're still
18:34in the background and it's about stepping forward
18:36finding your potential
18:38finding your true worth and your true meaning
18:40is it?
18:42maybe not I don't know
18:44anyway I'm very proud
18:46of this and I hope you all get to watch it
18:48thank you so much for joining me
18:50in this trip down memory lane
18:52and
18:54I'm sure there will be many more memories
18:56to come