Comedian Adam Ray isn’t feeling too well himself these days. That’s fine with him. He’s never really felt better since becoming the doppelgänger of daytime talk show therapist Dr. Phil McGraw. Who knew that his first Netflix special would require him to change his smooth radio announcer’s voice to a North Texas drawl, trade his thick hair for a somewhat distinct yet distinct bald spot, and trade in his sharp, comedic wit? , he still has it. As a result, he is now making more people laugh than ever before.
On Tuesday, Netflix releases Ray’s latest special. “Adam Ray is Dr. It’s Phil Unleashed.” The veteran stand-up and character actor took on the role of Dr. Phil for a twist in the taped version of his popular live show at the Comedy Store. You’re sitting with none other than the real Dr. Phil.
Ray also features a star-studded line-up of funny friends, including Patton Oswalt, Jay Pharoah, Joe Gatto, Fahim Anwar, and Jeremiah Watkins, and promises to be one of the best comedy shows of the year.
Ray’s smash hit comedy show “Dr. Phil Live!” inspired Netflix to approach him about producing a special, and it’s clear that Ray (and Dr. Phil) are ready to take the show to the next level. Recently, Ray spoke to The Times about how his signature live show started out as a gag about maximizing the use of masterful makeup and transformed Ray into a viral sensation doling out “advice.”
Why did you decide to do a special on Netflix as Dr. Phil instead of doing your own stand-up special?
Adam Ray: Yes, (Netflix) came to us once (the show) was as big as it is now. The Comedy Store shows sold out months in advance, and we added theater shows, which all seat 2,500 to 5,000 people, and started selling out much earlier. So I think that’s just one of those things that people who are on comedies (on Netflix) have known about and been tracking about. There were big names in the comedy game, but once we booked the real Phil, the Netflix people said, ‘Yeah, this is something special.’ It’s really cool to have Phil and Phil together. Let’s do it! It all came together really quickly.
It would be great to see more of you on Netflix because of this. And people will be thinking, ‘Why didn’t we raid all his other specials?’
clearly. They will eat their words. They’ll say, “Hey, can we take all your stuff?” special? And I said, ‘I’m sorry. I’m a (YouTube) person now.’
Adam Ray performs as Dr. Ray in the main room of the Comedy Store. I played the role of Phil.
(from corona)
How did you get the idea to dress like Dr. Phil?
I was falling into a monotonous routine of auditions, stand-up, podcasting, and waiting to be featured in people’s work. All was well, no complaints, but I was losing some of the joy in what I was doing. I’m not happy if I don’t create. I was just tired of waiting and was thinking what if I could do it? my Show, what is it? I thought releasing a pilot would be a way to challenge myself, so I thought I’d like to play three different characters in one piece. dysfunctional family show. I met Jennifer Aspinall, who does my Phil makeup on the CW’s “Mad TV” reboot. She created “SNL,” the original “Mad TV” and “Westworld,” for which she won an Emmy Award. I asked her if she could fill in for some of these characters. There was a son and a grandmother, and one was a gay hairdresser in a fat suit. A bald man who abandoned his wife, became gay, and opened a beauty salon. The makeup took over 4 hours, was filmed over the weekend, and I received a lot of favors from my friends. One of my friends, who played a hair salon customer in the movie, said I looked like Dr. Phil, so that night I thought I should wear this and do a stand-up performance. After wearing makeup for so long, I figured I should milk it and get some more content. I contacted Joel McHale at the Laugh Factory and told him I was coming and Joel sent me to Dr. I said I would raise him as Phil. I was going up like that and messing up my voice a little bit and people were eating it up.
And that was before the pandemic, right? Because it’s a prop that keeps things going.
accurately. When COVID-19 hit, Jeremiah Watkins, who plays a different character on each show, and I were talking about trying to find safe ways to have fun. We rented a small studio space to create The Lost Doctor, where Phil interviews one of his characters. Phil produced the episode. We improvised for two hours and then uploaded about 40 minutes of it to YouTube. From there, I was able to find what version of the character was right for me, hone it, and get reps through it. I found this likeable, yet tough guy who was still trying to help these people.
How did you evolve from entertaining video podcasts to your current stand-up stage?
The actors’ strike hit right after I got back from Corona, and it felt like I had to throw more darts. I was already doing the “Adam & Friends” show at the Comedy Store, and a lot of those types of shows started popping up, so I felt like I was doing what everyone else was doing again. Bill Burr had to cancel one of my shows, but he promised to go on our next date no matter what. I thought, ‘Okay, now would be a good time for someone to try this.’ Bill, instead of doing a stand-up show, Dr. I’m thinking of doing Phil’s monologue and crowd work. I’ll do the interview and then play a game. He really gave me the juice to do it because he couldn’t be more excited about it. It did really well, sold out in one day, and then it became a challenge to ‘let’s do more of this but really play with those elements.’ It changes every time, but we’ve found a really good groove. Next we’ll be doing a Netflix festival and live streaming, which has been a huge success and allows us to showcase the show to people outside of our general fan base.
Dr. What was Phil’s camp reaction when they found out about your show? Have you ever met him before this point?
I had been doing the show for about a year and had never met him. Dr. Phil’s son contacted me on Instagram and said, ‘You should invite my dad to your show.’ We contacted his publicist and we went back and forth for about six or seven months. I almost gave up, but then I thought, ‘Okay, I have three more dates left.’ They said it would be done on September 18th. I FaceTimed Phil an hour before makeup to talk about what the show would look like. Then we locked everyone’s phones and no one knew, and Phil was really cool. The crowd went crazy and the whole show was great.
Dr. at the Comedy Store Adam Ray and Dr. Phil on the live show. Phil fist bumps.
(from corona)
Please tell us about the fly on the wall. What did the conversation sound like backstage after the meeting?
I asked him if he was online and he said: “That’s why I found you! My son said, ‘You have to see this! I’ll admit it. “It’s hysterical.” He gave me some nice flowers during the performance, and backstage he said, “If you didn’t like this, you would have known a long time ago.” I think he and his fans know that my intentions were pure for the character, and I think that’s made him popular in spaces he wouldn’t have been able to get into otherwise. I think he’s enjoying the extra boost in recognition, right?
Oh, I’m sure! I love that he came down to enjoy it all. You too have become a star in this field. Kill Tony Universe. The real Dr. at Madison Square Garden. How did it feel to receive the show’s 2023 Guest of the Year award from Phil?
It was wild. I thought I was dying for a moment because they were playing a game. my montageAnd I thought the real Phil was going to come out and stab me in the throat and go. “We won’t be back anytime soon. “I will correct that part.” It really caught me off guard and made me emotional too. It’s not for narcissistic reasons, but when I saw a video of me performing in 2014, I felt like, ‘Wow, I’ve been doing this for a long time.’ I’m so happy to see how the show has grown, and I’m so happy for Tony (Hinchcliffe) and (Brian) Redban. Consistency is key and they stuck to it. We were in the Belly Room at the Store and now we’re in Madison Square Garden. Then I started thinking emotionally about all the looks and characters, and my place in the show really evolved. Then I looked up and Tony gave me a look that said F—yeah buddy. Above all, you want to do a good job and make people smile. Get a chance to create more opportunities. And then all you want is to be respected and acknowledged by your peers, and I felt that. Then I came back to reality when I saw Joe Rogan dressed like Agent Big Bird.
Wouldn’t it be great if Dr. Phil went on tour as Adam Ray?
I mean, I don’t know if he has what it takes, but I’m sure he can keep his voice down. I will see it.
