Andra Day Says Bradley Cooper “Backed Up His Support” By Casting Her As His Wife In Is This Thing On?

Is This Thing On? may not seem like a movie where you’d find Grammy-award winner and Oscar nominee Andra Day. It’s about a white man doing stand-up comedy after all. But the Bradley Cooper-directed divorce dramedy starring Will Arnett and Laura Dern wouldn’t be complete without Day, who brings some brutal honesty and a delightful groundedness to the film. She plays Christine, the best friend to Dern’s Tess, and the wife of Cooper’s Balls (yes, that’s really his character’s name). Tess is going through a divorce with Arnett’s Alex, who turns to stand-up comedy to cope with their breakup. Day is so good as Christine in every scene, it feels like you’re eavesdropping on old friends who can’t help but tell each other the truth — no matter how uncomfortable. 

Cooper handpicked Day for the role and was sure she’d say no. “I was just crossing my fingers with Andra,” Cooper says in the film’s production notes. “I just knew she would say no, but I had to offer it to her. When I saw The United States vs. Billie Holliday, I was floored. I was like, ‘Look, I apologize that the real estate is going to be small here, but here is the terrain. Would you please come do this with me?’ It was a huge coup to get her.” And with the small real estate Day is given, she builds a brick house. It’s a no-bullshit performance that leaps off the screen, leaving the audience wanting more of Christine. And the dynamic between her and Tess “makes for a delicious, spiky friendship,” Dern says. 

Here, Day talks about Cooper’s support, building rapport with Dern, singing with Sean Hayes, and why she’d never get back together with an ex.

Andra Day: Is this what he's telling people? [laughs] He did not have to convince me of anything! He just popped on the screen and he was Bradley Cooper and I was like, “great idea, let's work together!” He's so funny. I genuinely was very excited to be a part of [this movie]. I'm a huge fan of his work as an actor. I'm a huge fan of his work as a director. I just think he's just shown he's just such a brilliant director. He's just a great filmmaker. So I was excited. I was like, “I'm actually looking forward to being in your hands and seeing what you put together with this cast.” I'm so glad you love the movie. And maybe I'm biased, but I love the movie too.

Tell me more about why you chose to take on this role.

AD: I was really moved by [Bradley Cooper’s] support. I also knew that he was really supportive of two other movies I had done. So for him to back up that support with the offer to play this character, I thought was really, really special. And then he starts describing the movie to me. It’s Will Arnett's baby, and they've been friends for such a long time. So I love that it was he [cast] himself as [the character] Balls, because who else better to play Will’s best friend than his actual best friend? I love the dynamic of the friend group. I love the themes of truth, of rediscovery, of transformation, and communication, and just growth. I think it's so funny. We always talk about growth, but we never allow each other to change. So I love that the movie dealt with all of those themes. And then Bradley mentioned the names Will Arnett, Laura Dern and Sean Hayes. And I was like, this is all just getting too crazy. They are all just so great. It was a dream cast to work with and it was exactly what I thought it would be. And better.

AD: You know, maybe I was a little rapper in my past life [laughs]. Nah, I’m just kidding but I think it’s true! 

AD: It's amazing to feel like you were just dropped in this relationship. I think that's a testament to the great writing, the great direction and how it was shot, but also the truth.  Bradley absolutely requires truth. That's the thing we're looking for. But working with Laura, first of all, I’m just such a huge fan of her work. Laura plays such an array of characters, and so, of course, you walk into her space and you're intimidated at first. You got to make sure you show up and support and you’re present but beyond that, being able to work with Laura and discovering, oh, wow, she is amazing. She's great at what she does, and a huge part of that is how generous she is on set, how generous she is with not just the director and her co stars, but everyone on set, every actor, personnel on set and and how honest and open she is about herself as a human, and how much of that she brings to the character. 

AD: I love that you see that! [laughs] 

AD: No, I have ADHD, so I can't focus on shit. Most of the time I don’t even remember. [laughs] I’m just kidding! No,I think I am a protective friend. [gestures off camera]. Look, I have a friend in the room that's nodding her head “yes” and laughing right now.

I think I am definitely a protective friend, for sure. What I like about Christine, though, is that she is a protective friend, but she will also protect you from yourself. I think that what I love about her character is her brutal honesty. I think what makes it so not just digestible, but actually endearing, is the fact that she is equally as brutally honest with herself. That's really the only way to be honest with someone, that's the only way they can actually trust your advice or your critique, if that they know that you hold yourself to that same standard. I think we're similar in that way. I can be very protective, and not just physically, but also emotionally when it comes to friends and people that I love.

AD: Stand-up comedy is never something I ever thought about doing, and still have never thought about doing because it looks terrifying to me. You know what's funny, I was saying  about the movie that it makes me laugh when we describe John Bishop [who inspired] Will Arnett’s character, Alex Novak, and they're like, “Yeah, he just kind of did this stand-up because he didn't want to pay the cover.” And I'm like, “guys, that's not normal.” [laughs]. Like, if it were me, and someone was like, you can either pay the cover or you can go do stand up. I'm either coming out of my pocket 15 bucks or I'm going to the restaurant down the street. I'm not going to do a set of stand-up for $15!  It's too terrifying. 

I think it takes something inherently in you to do that. But what I learned was about the community of stand-up. I think it's an incredible community. Bradley [Cooper] has always loved stand-up. And I think we all have, right? The Richard Pryors, Eddie Murphys. But the connectedness and the camaraderie were amazing to me. It used to be a lot more competitive. Now, when you dip into the culture, you realize that they're doing, like, 3 to 6, clubs a night, which is insane. The grind is such that I've always admired stand-up comics, I loved to see how connected they are. And I think that Bradley [Cooper] and Will [Arnett] did an incredible job of showing this community, how they support each other, how they joke, and how honest they are as people.

AD: First, I love singing with Sean. I love Sean's voice. Twas an amazing scene to shoot. It was amazing because it wasn't written in the script. The night before, I got a call from Bradley that was like, “What do you think about singing ‘Amazing Grace’?” I was like, “Sure!” That was one of the later scenes we shot and I was, I was used to us being on set and being able to pivot. Who knows if it would be amazing or if it'd be really cringe and weird? I didn’t know. But it worked.

That scene, for me, and a lot of the Oyster Bay scenes, helped me to feel much more a part of this group. It just felt like we just were enjoying each other's presence while we were on set filming that scene. And then I think it translated for the audience — them singing Amazing Grace added like, 10 or 15 years to their friendship. 

AD: Unbothered! I'm an artist in that way. I'm just kind of like, “you're fine. Try it if you love it!”

AD: Super bothered! Super duper bothered! 

AD: Oohh. This is where I differ from my character. I'm a little more bothered about that.

AD: Bothered, bothered, bothered! You an ex for a reason.

AD: Bothered. Not because you got back with your ex — unless he's a toxic ex — I'm like, sis, what are we doing? Bothered, because if he's a decent person, then what am I doing that made you feel uncomfortable to talk to me about that? If we're best friends and I’m a confidant, then I'm bothered a little bit with myself and the situation.

AD: I don't care. Unbothered. I'm like, do you! Who cares?

AD: Unbothered, that's actually art and comedy. I'm bothered when you don't use it at all. You know what I'm saying? That's when I'm bothered.