Eliza Coupe: Only Happy Endings
Eliza Coupe has played some pretty brainy characters on television, from Dr. Denise on Scrubs to her current role as an attorney on the USA sitcom Benched. As she explained to host Ophira Eisenberg on the Ask Me Another stage, Coupe had to overcome one thing before she could play these roles: a New Hampshire accent.
"It's not great," she said of her home state's dialect. "It doesn't make you sound smart at all."
Coupe made a name for herself as a comedic actress with featured roles on Scrubs, Flight of the Conchords, and the cult classic sitcom Happy Endings. She currently stars on Benched as Nina, a corporate lawyer who, after a very public nervous breakdown, finds herself working as a public defender. The transition to lead role had Coupe nervous at first. "There was a lot of throwing up in my mouth for a little bit when I found out," she joked.
Adjusting to the grueling production schedule was also a challenge. "I would just keep looking like, 'oh, there's my name, and there's my name again, and that's it, and okay, so I'm in all day. And by all day I mean until the wee hours of the next day."
Of course, Eliza Coupe is all about Happy Endings. That's why we asked her to lend her comedic talents to a game that takes depressing, dark movies and reimagines them with sunnier, happier finales. Can you guess the movie based on its rewritten ending? And later in the show, we test her legal prowess in a game all about courtroom jargon.
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Transcript
OPHIRA EISENBERG, HOST:
Now let's welcome our VIP from the cult classic "Happy Endings" and star of the new sitcom "Benched," actress Eliza Coupe.
(APPLAUSE)
EISENBERG: Thanks for joining us. I know you don't live - you live out West now?
ELIZA COUPE: I do. I do.
EISENBERG: But you're originally from New Hampshire?
COUPE: Yes.
EISENBERG: What is the deal? I was trying to think what's the New Hampshire accent? Is there...?
COUPE: It's not great. It's not great. It doesn't make you sound smart at all. We sound wicked freaking stupid. You do because it's like Massachusetts but it's got, like, way more stupidness, so...
EISENBERG: Now you are starring in your own show. Of course, everyone loved you as Dr. Denise in "Scrubs."
COUPE: Yup.
EISENBERG: And as...
(APPLAUSE)
COUPE: Thank you. Thank you.
EISENBERG: And "Happy Endings" had, like, such a huge loyal fan base.
(APPLAUSE)
COUPE: Wow, OK.
EISENBERG: But this time you are front, center lead. And how does that feel? Is that a lot of pressure, or are you like, yeah?
COUPE: Yeah, it was a lot of like throwing up in my mouth for a little bit when I found out. No, when that - I mean, it's amazing. But you don't realize that being, like, the lead of a show, you have to be there all the time and you have to be in like every scene, every single day. And it's not like you shoot, like, you know, a nice eight hour day. It's like 15 to 17 hours a day. And we were shooting two episodes at a time, so it was like just every - I would just keep looking. I'm like oh, there's my name and there's my name again. And that's it? OK - oh, so I'm in all day. I'm in all day, OK. And by all day, I mean like until the wee hours of the next day.
EISENBERG: But this is it. All of the focus is on you...
COUPE: This is it. I'm the only child - sort of not really - there's a lot of great people in the cast. Let's not...
EISENBERG: Right no.
COUPE: ...Make it all about me. I mean, right now we'll make it all about me. Just know when you watch the show, there are really great people in it.
EISENBERG: OK, so we're going to give you your own ASK ME ANOTHER challenge a little later in the show. But right now, you're going to help us out with a game that is all about "Happy Endings."
COUPE: Yes.
EISENBERG: Let's hear it for Eliza Coupe everybody.
(APPLAUSE)
EISENBERG: Let's meet our contestants, Jay Epelman and Sam Kampa.
(APPLAUSE)
COUPE: Hi guys.
SAM KAMPA: Hello.
EISENBERG: If you had to give a story from your life a happy ending, how would you have it end, Sam?
KAMPA: "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go."
(LAUGHTER)
EISENBERG: OK.
KAMPA: If it's a biopic or something...
EISENBERG: Yeah, yeah...
KAMPA: ...I want it to end on a really serious note, where I'm passing away. It's my last breath, credits - "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go."
COUPE: OK.
EISENBERG: A little Wham. I love a little Wham.
COUPE: That's a choice.
KAMPA: Now tell me you wouldn't enjoy that.
EISENBERG: I would totally enjoy that.
KAMPA: A little Wham. It's a good idea.
EISENBERG: I like that your happy ending ends with your death.
COUPE: Yeah.
EISENBERG: That's an interesting way to go...
COUPE: Yeah, it's a way to go.
EISENBERG: Jay?
JAY EPELMAN: I'm going to say a surprise, something I didn't even see coming.
EISENBERG: Oh, all right, so you're a lazy writer is what you're saying.
EPELMAN: Yup. Yup.
EISENBERG: No, that's good. I like that - something that would be yet to happen that's happy. OK, so this game is called "Only Happy Endings because the world is a depressing, dark place, so we are going to give you the happy ending version to some famous bummer movies, OK? And you just have to guess what movie we're talking about. Eliza and I are going to alternate clues, so ring in when you know the answer and the winner will move on to our Ask Me One More final round at the end of the show. Cornered by the authorities mere yards from the edge of the Grand Canyon, two friends take each other's hands and make out. Then they zoom off to Vegas because same-sex marriage is legal in Nevada - take that Harvey Keitel - and Brad Pitt.
(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)
EISENBERG: Sam.
KAMPA: "Milk?"
(LAUGHTER AND APPLAUSE)
KAMPA: I should say I haven't seen it.
COUPE: Wait - wait, that's funny.
EISENBERG: "Milk" is amazing...
KAMPA: I think I've made a terrible mistake.
EISENBERG: No...
KAMPA: This is what I'm getting.
EISENBERG: You didn't make a terrible mistake. You made a very funny error.
KAMPA: I'll take it. I'll take it.
EISENBERG: Jay?
EPELMAN: I was going to say "Milk" too.
(LAUGHTER)
EISENBERG: "Milk 2" the sequel, or "Milk" too?
EPELMAN: Yeah, "Milk 2...
KAMPA: Great minds think alike.
EPELMAN: "Revenge Of...?
EISENBERG: I like "Milk 2."
EPELMAN: Is it "Se7en?"
COUPE: Wow.
EISENBERG: Anybody out there?
AUDIENCE: "Thelma and Louise."
COUPE: Thank you.
EISENBERG: "Thelma and Louise?"
COUPE: Good.
EPELMAN: Nope.
COUPE: What? Have you seen movies?
EPELMAN: It's in my queue.
COUPE: Just a general question.
EPELMAN: It's in my queue.
COUPE: OK.
EISENBERG: It's in my queue.
EPELMAN: Queue, queue.
COUPE: Got it.
EISENBERG: All right, take it up.
COUPE: Oh, it's my turn.
EISENBERG: Yeah, go for it.
COUPE: After escaping the hedge maze, Jack Torrance's agent calls to say his novel is getting published after all. He uses his advance to buy the Overlook Hotel and fix that door with all of those hatchet marks in it.
(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)
EISENBERG: Sam.
KAMPA: "The Shining"
(APPLAUSE)
EISENBERG: Yes.
COUPE: That's it.
EISENBERG: Right, and then the hotel has those two evil twins and they sell, like, redrum and Coke. And it's...
(LAUGHTER)
KAMPA: Yeah.
EISENBERG: It's fun, right?
KAMPA: Yeah - yeah, that's right.
EISENBERG: It's fun. "Shining 2: Even Shiner."
(LAUGHTER)
COUPE: It's good. No, I like that.
EISENBERG: The alien enters his space ship, but returns shortly after with his suitcase and says Elliott, I will stay. I will lead planet Earth as a benevolent despot. Reese's pieces for everyone.
(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)
EISENBERG: Sam.
KAMPA: "E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial.
EISENBERG: Yep.
COUPE: Nice, you said the whole thing.
(APPLAUSE)
KAMPA: I wanted to be thorough.
EISENBERG: He could - it was from my amazing "E.T." voice work, right? Didn't I sound...
JONATHAN COULTON: It was a remarkable impression I tell you.
COUPE: You did. I got confused.
EISENBERG: I know, like, is E.T. here?
COUPE: OK. Detective Mills frantically demands to know what's in the box that was just delivered to him in the desert and his partner finally confirms it's a dozen delicious crullers. The handcuffed suspect explains, didn't I tell you to call me Joe Doughnuts? Sorry.
(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)
COUPE: John Doughnuts - I'm sorry, John Doughnuts - I said that wrong.
EISENBERG: Jay still knows it.
COUPE: Still not correct.
EPELMAN: It is "Se7en?
EISENBERG: Yes.
COUPE: Yep. Yep.
(APPLAUSE)
EISENBERG: You just knew that was going to come up.
EPELMAN: Yeah, I was ready...
COULTON: Did somebody give you advice beforehand, just say "Se7en" every time?
COUPE: Just say "Se7en" for everything.
EISENBERG: After Chino shoots Tony, the Jets and the Sharks band together to heal his bullet wound with the power of finger snapping, high kicks and jazz hands?
(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)
EISENBERG: Sam.
KAMPA: "West Side Story."
EISENBERG: Yes.
(APPLAUSE)
COUPE: Good job. Good job.
EISENBERG: This is your last clue. After Jack and Rose plunge into the Atlantic, Rose moves over a few inches on her wooden panel and makes room for Jack. Back on land, they get married supported by Jack's burgeoning nude portrait business.
(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)
EISENBERG: Jay.
EPELMAN: "Titanic."
EISENBERG: I'm sorry, that is incorrect. Yes, of course that is right. All right, Mary Tobler puzzle guru, how did our contestants do?
MARY TOBLER: That was a close game. Congratulations Sam, you're the winner. And we'll see you in our final round.
EISENBERG: Thank you so much, Eliza. And we'll see you coming up for your own challenge. How about a hand for Eliza Coupe?
(APPLAUSE)
EISENBERG: Coming up, we'll see if Eliza has learned anything about playing a lawyer on TV, so stay tuned. This is ASK ME ANOTHER from NPR.
(APPLAUSE) Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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