Red Carpet Report reporters, Rachel Greninger and Jennifer Ortega, recently attended a live taping of the Kings of Con’s after show, Kings of CONversation. The show is hosted by Rob Benedict and Richard Speight, JR.
CW’s Supernatural fan favorites, Rob Benedict and Richard Speight Jr. along with special guest stars Michael Cudlitz and Ron Livingston at the King of CON after show…
RCRs Rachel and Jennifer got the chance to chat with Rob and Rich after the show, scroll down for their interview
JO: How did Kings of Con get started?
RB: Well, we got the attention from Lionsgate because of our Indiegogo campaign. We raised money with Indiegogo to film the pilot. We raised $300,00 in 7 days. It was crazy.
JO: That’s amazing.
RB: Lionsgate heard about that and they wanted to be a part of it. So the pilot was funded by our fans and the next nine episodes were funded by Lionsgate. It was a great way to get fans involved and vested and it was a great way to attract attention. But we did not plan on it getting that big. We thought we would just make the pilot and then send that out. We got press from the funding.
JO: Was the after show always a part of Kings Of Con?
RB: When we first started talking to Comic-ConHQ they like the idea of Rich and I doing a late night type of show. Which eventually might happen in the future because I think this has gone really well. But they also started talking about this after show so we combined both ideas.
RG: So for the folks that don’t know the difference between filming a live show and filming a staged show, how do you have to adapt for that?
RS: Sorry, I was saying goodbye to Ron Livingston. He’s the sweetest man. The element of the live show always adds a lot for us.
RB:The guest stars that we have on….it’s a different thing. It adds a different element. It’s almost like drinking an energy soda.
RS: It also feeds the beast of the live con experience and we wanted the live show to feel like what he and I do, town to town , stage to stage. So we brought Rob’s band in (Louden Swain). We utilize them heavily. We pulled in friends to the show, people that we’ve known for a long time. Jay Lund, the announcer, we’ve known each other for 20 years. We went back to our roots in terms of pulling in great people.
RB: And the element of mistake is more prevalent live and that’s what we feed on. I fumble on something or I say the wrong thing.
RG: Well, it’s very organic.
RS: We don’t write anything. We have an outline. It’s the same thing for the cons. Rob and I do 45 minute openers for every city we go to and never discuss what will happen. We hit the stage and just go. But it’s exercising that muscle and everybody on our show has that skill set.
RG: It’s an improve skill. Some people really have it and some people just can’t. Do you think being a duo makes it easier because you are always there backing each other up?
RB: The first couple of episodes, Rich was directing Supernatural, so he wasn’t here and it was a different thing. I sweat a lot more when he’s not here.
RG: Join the club! I sweat too and awkwardly.
Laughter
RS: There’s some deep bonding gone on right now.
JO: It’s true. Rachel and I used to live together so I know.
Laughter
RB: In one episode, I was wearing a sports coat and I had a line of sweat going down it. I thought no one would be able to notice it. But you could see the line of sweat.
Laughter
RB: So having Rich back…absolutely…it’s definitely a two man show. We’re business partners.
RS: And the whole thing was built on our back and forth. When we were on stage at conventions is where we realized…oh we can play baseball really well together. It just happened by luck. I already knew he was a funny guy, he probably thought I was funny-ish. But then we got on stage and the banter was very natural and the inflated characterizations grew from that. The Rob and Rich on stage at conventions and the Rob and Rich here are not who we really are. They are inflated versions of us. We snap into those personas really well. I’m never worried no matter what I say that Rob is going to say….what are you doing? I know that he is going to swing at all the pitches and vice versa. The beach ball is never going to touch the ground.
RB: It’s a good feeling. My brother is a basketball player and he always likes playing with someone who knows where you’re going to throw the shot.
RG: It’s that instinctive, intuitive kind of thing.
RB: Yes.
RG: Thank you so much for talking with us. The show was so funny.
JO: You guys are amazing. The show is amazing.
RB: Thank you so much.
RS: Thank you!
ABOUT KINGS OF CON
A Single Camera Comedy Series Created by and Starring Rob Benedict & Richard Speight, Jr.
Thanks to their pivotal roles on the hit CW show Supernatural, Richard Speight, Jr. (Band of Brothers, Justified, etc.) and Rob Benedict (Felicity, Waiting, etc.) have become regulars on the fan convention circuit. Now, after years of appearing at airport hotels across the country and abroad, they’ve created Kings of Con, a single camera comedy inspired by their real experiences that goes beyond the autograph lines and photo ops to what really makes the cons crazy and unpredictable – the actors paid to be there.
It’s Broad City meets Curb Your Enthusiasm with the comedic honesty of Louie as Richard and Rob play caricatures of themselves cavorting through the con world: Rich, thrice divorced former actor whose love of the game is fueled by the faux fame he experiences at the hands of a gaggle fans who still think he matters, and Rob, a divorcee-to-be who is back on the circuit to cover the costs of his failed marriage and stalled career. Scripted content mixed with improv, and Rich and Rob’s razor sharp interplay all fuel the spirit of the show, backed by supporting / guest cast of other actors from across the Hollywood spectrum Rob and Richard have come to know over the course of their 20 year careers.
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