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Rob Lowe Names Names: The Power of ‘Screw It’ | A Bit of Optimism Podcast

Hey Optimists! We’re taking a little hiatus, but exciting things are coming your way! We’ll be back on October 21 with some amazing new episodes that we can’t wait to share. In the meantime, take care of yourself, enjoy the little moments, and remember—good things are just around the corner. See you soon! —Team Simon + + + We don’t usually look to Hollywood for lessons in career longevity. But it might be the perfect place to study it. Few industries move faster or cast people aside more quickly, and yet Rob Lowe has spent more than four decades defying those odds. His story isn’t just about surviving fame—it’s about overcoming adversity, finding joy in the work, and proving that authenticity is the only path to a career that lasts. Across his career, Rob has navigated the highs of teen idol stardom, the lows of very public failures, and the challenge of reinventing himself again and again—all while staying relevant and true to himself. His secret? A willingness to take risks, embrace failure, and laugh at himself along the way. Rob and I dive into Rob’s philosophy of resilience, authenticity, and joy. He shares how humiliations turned into lessons, why not taking yourself too seriously is a strength, and how authenticity has become the ultimate currency in today’s culture. You can also see Rob hosting the fourth season of The Floor, airing September 24th on FOX. This is A Bit of Optimism. + + + Simon is an unshakable optimist. He believes in a bright future and our ability to build it together. Described as “a visionary thinker with a rare intellect,” Simon has devoted his professional life to help advance a vision of the world that does not yet exist; a world in which the vast majority of people wake up every single morning inspired, feel safe wherever they are and end the day fulfilled by the work that they do. Simon is the author of multiple best-selling books including Start With Why, Leaders Eat Last, Together is Better, and The Infinite Game. + + + Website: http://simonsinek.com/ Live Online Classes: https://simonsinek.com/classes/ Podcast: http://apple.co/simonsinek Instagram: https://instagram.com/simonsinek/ Linkedin: https://linkedin.com/in/simonsinek/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/simonsinek Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/simonsinek Simon’s books: The Infinite Game: https://simonsinek.com/books/the-infinite-game/ Start With Why: https://simonsinek.com/books/start-with-why/ Find Your Why: https://simonsinek.com/books/find-your-why/ Leaders Eat Last: https://simonsinek.com/books/leaders-eat-last/ Together is Better: https://simonsinek.com/books/together-is-better/ + + + #SimonSinek

Simon SinekhostRob Loweguest
Sep 23, 20251h 2mWatch on YouTube ↗

EVERY SPOKEN WORD

  1. 0:00 – 1:48

    Oscar song-and-dance disaster: when a big swing misses

    1. SS

      So you decide to do a song and dance for the opening of the Oscars.

    2. RL

      Can't dance, really.

    3. SS

      Okay. Okay.

    4. RL

      I mean, I didn't get footloose for a reason.

    5. SS

      Right. For a reason, right. And it doesn't go well is what you're saying?

    6. RL

      Doesn't go well? Doesn't go well. The- there was an open letter to the Academy the next day signed by, like, Paul Newman and Gregory Peck, and, like, "This was an affront to our sensibility. How dare you?" [laughs] I, I mean, I looked, I looked out in the audience and I saw-

    7. SS

      Old?

    8. RL

      It was the night Barry Levinson won 10 Academy Awards for Rain Man.

    9. SS

      Yeah.

    10. RL

      And I literally saw him mouth, "What the fuck?" [whimsical music] It didn't go well.

    11. SS

      [laughs] To borrow a line from Heidi Klum, in Hollywood, one day you're in, and the next you're out. But not for Rob Lowe. He has been a fixture since the 1980s and has had decades worth of iconic roles, from St. Elmo's Fire to The Outsiders to The West Wing to Parks and Rec. In an industry that chews 'em up and spits 'em out, how has Rob Lowe stayed relevant for so long? It's not just his good looks. And yes, he is very good-looking. It's something else. The real secret to Rob's longevity is something more powerful. As he puts it, he's got a serious case of the fuck its. He likes taking risks, knowing full well that they don't always work out. But the thrill of doing something new is exactly the thing that has helped him find opportunities where others don't. In addition to the movies and TV shows, he's also the host of the podcast Literally! with Rob Lowe, and is host of The Floor, which airs its fourth season on September 24th

  2. 1:48 – 3:33

    Early fame, sudden stall, and the rebound to ‘The Outsiders’

    1. SS

      on FOX. This is A Bit of Optimism. [whimsical music] How old were you when you got famous? Young, very young.

    2. RL

      I, uh, the first time w- 'cause then it, it, I, it came-

    3. SS

      When was the first time?

    4. RL

      ... and then went.

    5. SS

      Oh. Really?

    6. RL

      Yeah. 'Cause I got famous as a teen idol.

    7. SS

      Right.

    8. RL

      And then it didn't work. And it, it-

    9. SS

      What, what was the thing that put you on the map?

    10. RL

      [clears throat] It was a, a sitcom called A New Kind of Family, and I was 15.

    11. SS

      Wow.

    12. RL

      And so, you know, you're the, you're like the-

    13. SS

      You were on the cover of Teen Beat?

    14. RL

      Yeah, all that, all that stuff. Bop.

    15. SS

      [laughs]

    16. RL

      T- Teen Beat. There's something about, like, maybe just 'cause I'm just a fucking old pervert, there's something about-

    17. SS

      Oh, wait. I just put it together

    18. RL

      ... Teen Beat and Bop.

    19. SS

      I never... Wait, I just put that together in this moment. The minute you said pervert, immediately I understood.

    20. RL

      Teen Beat?

    21. SS

      I had never made that association.

    22. RL

      Teen Beat?

    23. SS

      You've just [laughs]

    24. RL

      They... Are they kidding with that? Bop?

    25. SS

      Uh, but you were on the cover. That's worse.

    26. RL

      SheBop. Da, da, da, da.

    27. SS

      No, no, I get it. But you were on the cover, that's the worst part.

    28. RL

      Oh, yeah.

    29. SS

      You were the teen beat.

    30. RL

      Yeah, so I was a, I was a cover boy at 15.

  3. 3:33 – 4:29

    How fame freezes personal growth—and why many never recover

    1. SS

      Uh, 'cause you, th- there's a, I've, I have a friend, you- you're pretty, you're relatively grounded.

    2. RL

      Like, relatively.

    3. SS

      I mean-

    4. RL

      I'll go with relatively

    5. SS

      ... it's re- relat- relatively.

    6. RL

      Yes.

    7. SS

      'Cause-

    8. RL

      Relatively grounded

    9. SS

      ... 'cause I kn- there's a, I've, I have a friend who has a theory that, uh, when people achieve fame, any kind of growth that they have ceases-

    10. RL

      Oh, I, I have that theory

    11. SS

      ... when they get, when they-

    12. RL

      It's true.

    13. SS

      Yeah. And so, like, child actors are screwed because-

    14. RL

      Yes

    15. SS

      ... they stop growing, and they think, th- they think everybody says yes to you is normal.

    16. RL

      Yes. Whenever I... That's 100% true. Unless you do a ton of work on yourself, you're frozen in amber.

    17. SS

      Right. The-

    18. RL

      At, at the-

    19. SS

      The minute you get famous.

    20. RL

      Yes. That's true. It's absolutely true.

    21. SS

      So when people achieve adult fame, they're a little more grounded 'cause they know where they came from, hopefully. They-

    22. RL

      And they, they-

    23. SS

      Some, some forget it

    24. RL

      ... and they've ex- well, and they also have experience just by virtue of the, of, of, of time. They've experienced more life.

  4. 4:29 – 8:51

    Staying relevant for decades: risk-taking, curiosity, and ‘the fuck-its’

    1. SS

      But your career is kind of amazing because you have, and this is a credit to you, you have been able to remain relevant for, for a l- forever. I mean, you were part of the, the, the Brat Pack-

    2. RL

      Yep

    3. SS

      ... back in the day.

    4. RL

      Mm-hmm. Yep. Mid-'80s.

    5. SS

      Mid-'80s.

    6. RL

      Early '80s. Yeah.

    7. SS

      You know, John Hughes and, and that crew.

    8. RL

      Yep.

    9. SS

      Uh, I mean, that's my childhood. I grew up watching all of your movies. Um, and, uh, and s- I think I watched the documentary. I watched, uh-

    10. RL

      Brat Pack Doc?

    11. SS

      The, the Brat-

    12. RL

      That Andrew McCarthy did

    13. SS

      ... with Andrew McCarthy.

    14. RL

      Yeah.

    15. SS

      And to your credit and Demi's credit, like, you guys, like, didn't get sucked into it, and it wasn't... And you've maintained careers and relevance up until now.

    16. RL

      We didn't let that define us in a way.

    17. SS

      It didn't define you. What, like, was there a strategy to remain current? Like, what, what is it that makes one actor be able to survive for decades and another actor be a blip in time, no fault of their own? Just like they're super hot for a while, and then they're just not.

    18. RL

      Sure.

    19. SS

      It's not, they, it's not that they're not talented. It's not that they're not good. It's not that they're bad people. It's not that they're hard to work with. It's just that they have their moment, and then they don't.

    20. RL

      Yeah.

    21. SS

      It's, they're, I mean, actors-

    22. RL

      It happens

    23. SS

      ... actors are products, you know, to some degree.

    24. RL

      Same with singers. Same with-

    25. SS

      Yeah

    26. RL

      ... authors.

    27. SS

      So what is it? Was it, was it luck? Was it something you did differently than other actors that helped you, that you're still working, and people still love you and stop you on the streets and all the rest of it?

    28. RL

      I mean-

    29. SS

      And not nostalgically.

    30. RL

      No, not nostalgia. In fact, the thing that I love the most is when, like, a group of 14-year-olds come up.

  5. 8:51 – 14:29

    Ego, resilience, and processing humiliation (Oscars aftermath)

    1. SS

      So what... So give me an example of something that, a risk you took and it didn't work out, and it was like-

    2. RL

      Oh.

    3. SS

      Well, give me one. Just give me one.

    4. RL

      Oh, I got a bad one. Um, agreeing to do a song and dance number to open the Academy Awards.

    5. SS

      Oh, I-

    6. RL

      Disaster

    7. SS

      ... I, I wish you had talked to me before that. I could have advised you against that. [laughs]

    8. RL

      What would you have said, other than it's a horrible idea?

    9. SS

      It's a horrible [laughs] idea. Okay. So can you sing and dance? Let's start there.

    10. RL

      I can s- I'm an actor who sings.

    11. SS

      Okay. So you're a double threat.

    12. RL

      I can, I can sing as well as Russell Crowe, let's put it that way.

    13. SS

      Mm.

    14. RL

      No, no disrespect to Russell Crowe at all.

    15. SS

      But not-

    16. RL

      I mean, I, I think I c- I mean, Kiefer Sutherland tours a band. I think I could go up and do a duet with him.

    17. SS

      Okay. So you decide-

    18. RL

      I mean, I'm no Bacon Brothers

    19. SS

      ... so, so you decide to do a song and dance for the opening of the Oscars.

    20. RL

      Can't dance, really.

    21. SS

      Okay. Okay.

    22. RL

      I mean, I didn't get Footloose for a reason.

    23. SS

      Right. For a reason, right. And it doesn't go well, is what you're saying?

    24. RL

      Doesn't go well? Doesn't go well. The, there was an open letter to the Academy the next day signed by, like, Paul Newman and Gregory Peck, and, like, "This was an affront to our sensibility."

    25. SS

      [laughs]

    26. RL

      "How dare you?" I, I mean, I looked, I looked out in the audience and I saw-

    27. SS

      Old

    28. RL

      ... it was the night Barry Levinson won 10 Academy Awards for Rain Man.

    29. SS

      Yeah.

    30. RL

      And I literally saw him mouth, "What the fuck?"

  6. 14:29 – 19:07

    Building the ‘humiliation muscle’: athletes, shooters, and loving the game

    1. SS

      So where did you learn that? Was that, did that come from being punched in the face a few times and learning ... Like, was that natural or did you ... What I'm getting at-

    2. RL

      I'll tell you what is-

    3. SS

      What I'm getting at is can the rest of us learn-

    4. RL

      Mm.

    5. SS

      You, you, you are, you are, you know, black belt jujitsu, you know, your ability to weather the punches. And the question I'm asking-

    6. RL

      I see

    7. SS

      ... the reason I'm going down this path is can the rest of us learn to withstand humiliation and I don't wanna say, you know, failures, but sort of like-

    8. RL

      Failures

    9. SS

      ... failure, humiliations and failures-

    10. RL

      Failures

    11. SS

      ... to, to-

    12. RL

      They wrote an open letter, Simon.

    13. SS

      Okay.

    14. RL

      Paul Newman wrote an open letter.

    15. SS

      Okay. So h- how do the rest of us learn to build the muscle-

    16. RL

      So bad

    17. SS

      ... of humiliation, to withstand humiliation and failure because ultimately it's good for-

    18. RL

      Growth

    19. SS

      ... growth, mental health, and, and, and career longevity. So I wanna know where it came from.

    20. RL

      I mean, I think it's competitiveness. Like, I'm down but I'm not out, right? You see it with athletes all the time. Literally they're down by X amount of points or, you know-

    21. SS

      But what's going through your head when you're down? 'Cause y- 'cause the difference between a great athlete and a, and a, just a very talented athlete is the mental game, not the physical game.

    22. RL

      Well, it's like somebody in shoot- th- they say what makes great shooters is they forget the last bad shot.

    23. SS

      Yeah.

    24. RL

      So I mean, they literally are impervious to the fact that they've gone 0 for 18.

    25. SS

      Yeah.

    26. RL

      They get the ball, they're not going, "Oh, I, I, I, I, what if I go 0 for 19?" They're not. I mean, that's, that's a real thing. And, and-

    27. SS

      I've been talking, I've been talking about this thing recently. I heard this guy talking about he wanted to understand what makes the best tennis players the best tennis players. And what he discovered is that the top five are always in the top five, and, like, the n- next 20, 25 are, like, circulating in the 20 to 25.

    28. RL

      That's right.

    29. SS

      So what he's asking is, like, what distinguishes the top five from everybody else? It's not diet, it's not, it's not discipline, it's not training. All those things are equals.

    30. RL

      Mm-hmm.

  7. 19:07 – 24:05

    Industry change: audiences now demand authenticity and a personal brand

    1. SS

      But I am fascinated by this, this... 'Cause you come from a, a, an industry where the egos are fascinating.

    2. RL

      Fascinating.

    3. SS

      Fascinating. My point is, is you have, you, you could make a study. You, you're c- you're one of the very few, uh, actors who's had a career across so many, so many decades that you... I'm very curious how the industry has changed.

    4. RL

      Oh my God.

    5. SS

      Like, when you were an A-lister with all the magazines and paparazzi following you around-

    6. RL

      Yeah

    7. SS

      ... then versus now. Like, what, what has changed of the personalities? What does it take to stay in this business? What does it take to get into this business? Has anything changed? The people who made it then, could they make it now?

    8. RL

      Oh my God.

    9. SS

      The people who made it now, could they have made it then?

    10. RL

      This is a f- this is not a... This is a five-hour podcast question, and I'm happy to go into it because-

    11. SS

      I'm fascinated by it

    12. RL

      ... it, it... Okay, well-

    13. SS

      'Cause for me, I'm a culture guy, and I'm so curious how the culture has changed of, of, of, of show business.

    14. RL

      So in no particular order-

    15. SS

      Yeah

    16. RL

      ... because I'm not sure w- of, of the things I'm gonna talk about, which is more important.

    17. SS

      Yeah.

    18. RL

      So I'm just gonna start talking.

    19. SS

      Go.

    20. RL

      Today, the audience is interest- interested in you to the extent that they like you and are invested in who you are.

    21. SS

      As a person.

    22. RL

      A- be-

    23. SS

      Behind off-screen

    24. RL

      ... as a, a- as a person, as a brand, as your, your thing. So compare that to when people loved Paul Newman-

    25. SS

      Right

    26. RL

      ... or Marlon Brando-

    27. SS

      Right

    28. RL

      ... or Lillian Gish. They didn't know fuck all about any of those people.

    29. SS

      Right. No parasocial relationships.

    30. RL

      Nothing.

  8. 24:05 – 29:41

    Defining authenticity: stop self-editing (and the Letterman lesson)

    1. SS

      How do you define authenticity? When you say authen- I mean, the, you say that, that the audience these days, the people are looking for an authentic personality. What does that even mean? The t- the term is so overused.

    2. RL

      You know what it is? It's like-

    3. SS

      The-

    4. RL

      What's the classic thing is what is, what is, what is porn? How do you describe it?

    5. SS

      I'll know it-

    6. RL

      You know it-

    7. SS

      ... when I see it

    8. RL

      ... you know it when you see it.

    9. SS

      That's not enough

    10. RL

      Or like, or what is modern art? You know it when you see it. But-

    11. SS

      Yeah, but that's, that's, that's a, that, that, that is an answer people give because they are struggling to find the words to define it. If you can see something, you can define it. If we know what it is and we know what it isn't, then we, then we should be able to-

    12. RL

      Okay, but what if it-

    13. SS

      Like, but like if it's, like is the Sistine Chapel modern art? Clearly not.

    14. RL

      But what if it's a feeling? 'Cause it's a feel. It is a feel. It's a feel.

    15. SS

      I, I-

    16. RL

      Like when you're with somebody, you-

    17. SS

      How do you know a dog's a dog? You know it when you see it? No. It's furry-

    18. RL

      But you're not getting a-

    19. SS

      It's got-

    20. RL

      But you're not getting a feeling off the dog. You don't get a feeling off the dog. What we're, we're talking about is a, a feel.

    21. SS

      Okay, so what's the feeling? Like I, I, I... How can we tell people be authentic if we can't tell them what to do?

    22. RL

      I can tell you exactly. Do not self-edit. Which that is practical shit that, that I have had to learn.

    23. SS

      So what does self-editing mean?

    24. RL

      So if I have an i- like in this conversation-

    25. SS

      Mm

    26. RL

      ... if I have an instinct, something funny-

    27. SS

      Mm

    28. RL

      ... I'm saying it, I'm thinking it and saying it before I've even registered that it's gonna happen. As opposed to, like I haven't even thought about it. It came from somewhere and I just blurted it out. I've lived parts of my life where in a talk show format, I wouldn't say anything until I had thought of it, how's that gonna play? Is that on br- is that on, is that off the topic we're on? Is it too mean? Does it make me... All of those things, I d- I, I don't have any of them anymore.

    29. SS

      When did that go away?

    30. RL

      When David Letterman fucked me.

  9. 29:41 – 34:18

    Availability, self-deprecation, and owning flaws without self-importance

    1. RL

      I mean, it's like, for example, if I were talking to a CEO of a company-

    2. SS

      Yeah

    3. RL

      ... and it was about, like, I, uh, how can I be better talking at a retreat, or how can I be better in interviews, right? Which, um, I would say highlight your fears, your flaws-

    4. SS

      Mm

    5. RL

      ... what you, like the very thing that you don't wanna talk about-

    6. SS

      Mm

    7. RL

      ... is the very thing that you need to talk about, that makes you interesting and makes you relatable. And you know, I, I, I think that get off script. Do something unexpected.

    8. SS

      Mm.

    9. RL

      Do something unexpected

    10. SS

      By telling, it, first of all, it takes courage. I, a, a friend of mine... So the word vulnerability and being vulnerable has, is, is now overused to the point where I'm not even sure anybody knows what it means, and worse, to m- to many people the word vulnerable is equated with weakness.

    11. RL

      That's right.

    12. SS

      My friend, I love this, she doesn't use the word vulnerable. She, for all the reasons, she hates the word. She uses the word available.

    13. RL

      Mm.

    14. SS

      Which I've really taken to, which is make yourself available, right? Like, make yourself available. Show people that you're, that you are available to, to, to t- talk about your mistakes, that you're available emotionally, that you're available, you know, to show your humility. And the courage it takes to be available, to make yourself available, because to be unavailable is nothing but walls and smoke screens.

    15. RL

      Okay, so let's talk about something that's adjacent to that. Like, people always say, "The thing I like about Rob is he doesn't take himself seriously." I hate that as much as I hate the vulnerable thing, because I do take myself... If I'm not gonna take myself seriously, who the fuck is gonna take themselves seriously?

    16. SS

      You're not a character.

    17. RL

      No, but, but you know what I mean? But they use it all the time. But what they're saying-

    18. SS

      Yeah, yeah, yeah

    19. RL

      ... is I'm, I'm w- willing to discuss and not hide my flaws.

    20. SS

      Yeah.

    21. RL

      I hate the phrase, "He doesn't take himself seriously."

    22. SS

      Yeah.

    23. RL

      No, to the contrary, bro. I take myself really s- I mean, I've worked on myself. I, I, I'm not l- running nilly-willy around the fucking world. But, but the notion of self, being self-deprecating, let's talk about that too, 'cause again, if you watch... All, all of my heroes would go on talk shows and be so funny about themself. Burt Reynolds.

    24. SS

      Yeah.

    25. RL

      Um, fucking Kennedy's press. You ever see John Kennedy's press conferences?

    26. SS

      Uh-uh.

    27. RL

      Oh, they're amazing. They're like one-man shows. He gets up there, and he's making fu- you know, he's, he's taking the pi- like the English would say, taking the piss out of himself.

    28. SS

      Mm.

    29. RL

      Um, that to me is so much more attractive than someone who's trying to show you how cool they are-

    30. SS

      Yeah

  10. 34:18 – 39:16

    Performative authenticity and social-media theater (plus selfie mechanics)

    1. SS

      Is there a, is there a line, though? Because we live in a world where authenticity, and I, now I, now I'm putting it in air quotes-

    2. RL

      Mm-hmm

    3. SS

      ... uh, uh, is performative, right? Where there's some social media influencer or just somebody on social media-

    4. RL

      Oh, yeah, the, the fake man of the people stuff

    5. SS

      ... the fa- the fake, well, not just fake-

    6. RL

      Sure

    7. SS

      ... fake man of the people, but like, but just the, just the like how many takes do I take talking about how I'm struggling with my dot, dot, dot, you know?

    8. RL

      Yep.

    9. SS

      And it's like, h- h- like, where, how do-

    10. RL

      By the way, if I were, if I were running straight an authentic man of the people game on you-

    11. SS

      Yeah

    12. RL

      ... which is, is the thing, I would've showed up not only without the makeup and hair people, but I would've showed up making sure you were very well aware that I am, I'm such a, dude, I'm just a regular guy, man. I'm, I'm a man of the people, dude. I'm, I didn't, and I'm not even sure I brushed my teeth today. I could've run that one on you.

    13. SS

      Yeah.

    14. RL

      It's all, it's complete bullshit.

    15. SS

      Yeah.

    16. RL

      It's just a different type of bullshit.

    17. SS

      Yeah. Has social media kinda lost the plot? Is it just becoming the, our new entertainment? Is it just the new theater? Where it started off as people telling their real stories, and now it's people telling their real stories-ish, but it's scripted, it's lit, it's angled, it's l- you know, I know where to put the... Is it like w- everybody like, everybody knows-

    18. RL

      Where the light is

    19. SS

      ... what their angles are.

    20. RL

      Yes.

    21. SS

      Everybody knows to lift the camera a little high. Everybody knows to put the light behind the photographer. Like, everybody knows the basics. Some people know more than the basics. But-

    22. RL

      My favorite is watching people pose for selfies on the street.

    23. SS

      Yeah.

    24. RL

      And like every single person now knows what only we used to know.

    25. SS

      Right.

    26. RL

      You know? Like, uh, the, the Olsen twins when they, you know, they did, what they did famously, they created the prune. Do you know what prune? Men don't have to do it, but when, wh- but gals, if you are getting your picture taken, you s- it's, people say say cheese. I don't get that. Never ma- che- that doesn't... But if you go prune, if you say prune, you get, you get cheekbones.

    27. SS

      Do the pru- the perfect-

    28. RL

      You get trout pout and cheekbones.

    29. SS

      Prune.

    30. RL

      See, the fact that I know this and I'm willing to share it openly-

  11. 39:16 – 44:26

    Relevance, being parodied, and the gift of getting the joke (Family Guy story)

    1. SS

      You don't mind-

    2. RL

      You can do the tie

    3. SS

      ... pissing people off. You don't mind pissing people off. Or do they n- or do they just know that you're having fun?

    4. RL

      They have to ... Listen, if somebody, if the shoe were on the other foot, I'd be like, I fucking love ... Dude, I, so-

    5. SS

      If you're s- making, being made fun of, you're relevant.

    6. RL

      Bro, I'm wa- I'm watching Family Guy-

    7. SS

      'Cause we can make fun of Lillian Gish

    8. RL

      ... she's dead. Can't make fun of dead people.

    9. SS

      Okay, fine. Bad example.

    10. RL

      Okay, so w-

    11. SS

      I'm trying to ... We ca-

    12. RL

      Okay. No, I gotta story for you. So I'm, I'm watching Family Guy with my boys. They're probably 10 and 11. "Dad, you gotta watch Family Guy. You gotta watch Family Guy." Funny show ever. I watch. It's not the first episode I watched, but I ... It's funny. It's a really funny show. And I'm watching it, and then there's a, a, a, an episode where Stewie-

    13. SS

      Mm-hmm

    14. RL

      ... the crazy little baby-

    15. SS

      Yeah

    16. RL

      ... goes to Hollywood.

    17. SS

      Mm-hmm.

    18. RL

      And he's in the makeup chair, and this flamboyant man is doing his makeup. And the scene begins with Stewie going, "Oh, please, just let me do one more. Can I do one more?" And the makeup guy goes, "Of course you can do one more." And he goes, "Rob Lowe?"

    19. SS

      [laughs]

    20. RL

      And he goes, "Straight?" And she goes, "No!"

    21. SS

      [laughs]

    22. RL

      "I never would've known it to look at him." And I thought it was the greatest ... I, it ma- it's amazing, and I called Seth MacFarlane.

    23. SS

      Yeah.

    24. RL

      And I go, "Dude, that's the fun..." And we became friends, and I've done a bunch of Family Guys, and we've worked together a bunch. But he's gotten a lot of phone calls that were-

    25. SS

      How dare you?

    26. RL

      How dare you?

    27. SS

      But to, to be made fun of means you're, you're relevant. You're in the zeitgeist. Because nobody makes fun of people unless they're ... You're making fun of the has-been-ness of them, you know?

    28. RL

      Yeah, I'm not taking a shot-

    29. SS

      Which is, which is m- which is mean-spirited.

    30. RL

      I can take a fake ass shot at Joaquin Phoenix 'cause he's one of my favorite actors.

  12. 44:26 – 48:02

    Photos with fans, Paul McCartney’s rule, and celebrities being starstruck

    1. SS

      Do you wanna hear the best story I heard? I just heard this last night. So Paul McCartney, arguably one of the most famous people in the world, right?

    2. RL

      He is.

    3. SS

      "No one's Beatles proof," as he said.

    4. RL

      It, it's amazing.

    5. SS

      That's what he said. Yeah. "No one's Beatles proof." And, um, people come up to him. They muster up the courage to come up to him. And back in the day before there were cell phones, you know, "Can I, can I take a picture with you? Can I take a picture of you?" And he would always say the same thing, "I'm terribly sorry. I'm happy to talk to you. I'm happy to chat. But I'm, I don't take pictures. If I take one, it, it'll, it'll be madness. It'll be a feeding frenzy."

    6. RL

      Yes.

    7. SS

      And, um-

    8. RL

      Totally understand that.

    9. SS

      Right. And he just, he, he, as a rule, Paul McCartney doesn't take pictures. September 11th happens, and he's, he's down there, and there's some firemen. And he goes down to them and says thank you to them, and they say, "Can we have a picture?" And he says, "Of course." Right? And he's ... There was a restaurant that wanted his picture, and he, they, he wouldn't take a picture, but he gave them the picture of him with the firemen, right? He's at the restaurant, and somebody comes over to him at the table and says, "Mr. McCartney, it's my wife's birthday. Oh, she would love ... She's a huge fan. Please, can she have his, her picture with you?" You know? He goes, "I'm sorry, I, I don't take pictures." He goes, "But your picture there." "That's with firemen. I took that with firemen. But I'm sorry, I don't take pictures. I'm terribly sorry. I appreciate you asking, but I'm sorry, I don't take pictures." Paul McCartney gets up to walk out of the restaurant, walks over to the table, and sings her happy birthday. Okay?

    10. RL

      I mean-

    11. SS

      That is better, that is better than a picture. That is a story.

    12. RL

      That's amazing. There's something about a photo, it's irrefutable evidence-

    13. SS

      That you were there

    14. RL

      ... that you can share with everybody of the mo- I get why people want photos.

    15. SS

      No, no, I have photos with people. Like, I don't get starstruck of, with many people, but there are some that I really-

    16. RL

      And by the way, I did one with Paul. The last time I saw Paul-

    17. SS

      Yeah, you have to

    18. RL

      ... the last time I saw Paul was at his l- the last concert, and he just showed up to the VIP. I said, I said, "Please..." And, and I, it's in my last book. It's a picture of me standing with him, and he's got the look of like, "Get it over with." But I made him.

    19. SS

      But it's your picture.

    20. RL

      You know what? Inside, and here's the thing is-

    21. SS

      Because you have to. Because-

    22. RL

      Yeah, and the other thing is, are these guys? The other thing is-

    23. SS

      But there's a level of celebrity that is, it's otherworldly, up, and of which he is one of the, the very few.

    24. RL

      Yeah, the other one was Redford I did it with.

    25. SS

      Yeah.

    26. RL

      Where I was like, "I just, I don't give a shit. We're, I'm, I'm taking a selfie with you."

    27. SS

      But I think it's fun when celebrities are starstruck by celebrities.

    28. RL

      Yes.

    29. SS

      It's like we are the world. They're all like, "I ca- What?" Like, they're all looking around the room going-

    30. RL

      My favorite documentary of the last-

  13. 48:02 – 51:18

    Skills from acting that transfer to real life (SEAL training, guns, rescue know-how)

    1. SS

      Did you at least take some training of where to put your fingers, or were you literally just making up whatever?

    2. RL

      A little bit of both.

    3. SS

      A little bit of both. I'm always fascinated how much effort celebrities or actors, not celebrities, actors put in for a part. Like, you have to learn the violin, like-

    4. RL

      Yeah

    5. SS

      ... and you can tell if they're getting it r- they're just making it up or not.

    6. RL

      And now with AI, you don't need to do any of it, but-

    7. SS

      That's true

    8. RL

      ... but-

    9. SS

      Now, you've done fighting scenes?

    10. RL

      Sure. Lots of them.

    11. SS

      Like, are you good, like-

    12. RL

      Yeah

    13. SS

      ... how many skills do you have-

    14. RL

      I have ... Oh, do you like-

    15. SS

      ... that you'd have never thought you would have?

    16. RL

      Can I tell you?

    17. SS

      Can you sword fight?

    18. RL

      My-

    19. SS

      Can you shoot a gun?

    20. RL

      My abilities are literally a mile wide and an inch deep. Like, I've played so many doctors, like, if you were to, God forbid, have a medical emergency right now, I could, I'm almost certain I could almost save your life.

    21. SS

      Well, [laughs] well, I mean, w- just before we turned on the cameras, there was some smoke across the street, and you literally said, "I've played a fireman. Don't worry. It's okay."

    22. RL

      It's white smoke.

    23. SS

      Yeah. I mean, you literally s- you literally-

    24. RL

      No, I, I have-

    25. SS

      ... did the, "I played a doctor on TV."

    26. RL

      No, and, and that's the beauty of what I get to do, is I learn so much. I, I have, I have a lot of knowledge.

    27. SS

      No, actually, I, I-

    28. RL

      A lot

    29. SS

      ... legit wanna know. I wanna know the skills you have. You ... We know you can act. We know you can act.

    30. RL

      And r-

  14. 51:18 – 56:44

    Don’t lose the magic: meeting heroes vs. knowing them too well

    1. SS

      Yeah. Who's, who ... Uh, so Paul McCartney is one of the highlights of your career, meeting Paul McCartney. What would you-

    2. RL

      Cary Gra- Cary Grant. Um, you know, all those ... Mick. I mean, it's ... You get to meet your heroes. Uh, there are very few people that I haven't had a chance-

    3. SS

      They always say don't meet your heroes, though.

    4. RL

      I would say don't get to know your heroes.

    5. SS

      Okay.

    6. RL

      Meeting is one thing.

    7. SS

      Okay. 'Cause-

    8. RL

      Like, I, like, uh, I'm friendly-ish with Bruce Springsteen.

    9. SS

      Right.

    10. RL

      He's my favorite. He's my guy.

    11. SS

      Right.

    12. RL

      And it's gotten ... Like, I know him enough now, like, like, I do- like, it's like you just ... It's ... You know what I'm saying? It's like I ... It's hard, it's hard to, like, cry when he's singing The River when you're gonna go have pizza with him later. Do you know what I'm saying?

    13. SS

      Yeah.

    14. RL

      It's like, gets hard. I just, I n- everybody needs-

    15. SS

      It ru- it ru- it ru-

    16. RL

      Everybody needs to be a fan of somebody

    17. SS

      ... ruins the magic. It's like I remember the first time ... There was this magic trick that I loved, super simple card trick, that a friend of mine used to do, and I begged him to, I begged him to teach me so I could do it for other people. He's, he, and he's te- he quizzed me, "Why do you wanna learn it?" I said, "I wanna learn it because I wanna give other people the feeling that you gave me." He's like, "That's a good reason. I'll teach it to you." And he taught me the trick, and it completely ruined it because it's not magic. It's just a trick, and now that I knew the trick, it, I've lost, I lost the magic.

    18. RL

      Don't lose the magic.

    19. SS

      And don't lose the magic, right? And I think-

    20. RL

      Don't lose the magic

    21. SS

      ... I think this is, and I think this is to your point, which is you can meet your heroes, just don't get to know your heroes, because turns out they're people. And, and it y- the s- you said, the song loses its magic because you know the person.

    22. RL

      Yeah. Some people can transcend it.

    23. SS

      'Cause awe, awe of something or someone is a magical thing.

    24. RL

      Yes.

    25. SS

      To, and, and-

    26. RL

      The best

    27. SS

      ... and you never wanna lose awe because n- that, that's jaded.

    28. RL

      Yes. Yes. I'm definitely not jaded. I mean, it's weird. I'm, I'm cynical, but I'm not jaded.

    29. SS

      Yeah.

    30. RL

      Is that, is that even possible?

  15. 56:44 – 59:47

    New pivots: why a game show (The Floor) fits his philosophy

    1. RL

      ... that, th- well, and they know that I'm right. But the oth- the other thing that, about longevity and, like, you know, I did television when movie people didn't do television. Like, I host a game show. That would be career death. Like, and, and I'm sure there are probably some actors... I, I don't think Daniel Day-Lewis is looking to do a game show. But what I, when they came to me with it, the reason I did it was I had just come off of doing a one-man show.

    2. SS

      Mm-hmm.

    3. RL

      Being in front of a live audience with stakes, like actual, it's live to tape. There's no second tape. There's 100 regular folks that you have to interact with. You don't know what they're gonna say. You don't what... It's a free shot on goal all the time. There's money at stake that changes people's lives.

    4. SS

      Mm-hmm.

    5. RL

      And you're the quarterback going, "Do we need to be funny now? Do we need to be, to embrace the drama? Oh, do I, I, do I have to reset how much money we played?" And it's all happening all at once live in this enormous set, and it is so exciting. It's so exciting. And it's not at all what I thought it would be, and yet it's more than I thought it would be. And it's, it's an er- it's a part of entertainment that I'd never been in.

    6. SS

      But this is, this is, I f- so you, we talked about this. So you were a movie actor where it was career death to do TV. You did TV. You're a movie and TV actor where it's considered sort of career death to now do a, a-

    7. RL

      Game show

    8. SS

      ... a game show. What is the reason you take these pretty extreme pivots where the common sense of the industry is you probably shouldn't try that? Like, what is the appeal of doing something so out of, you know, sort of off the, the game plan of the career?

    9. RL

      Well, I-

    10. SS

      Or maybe it is the career plan

    11. RL

      ... I like to think that, that I, because I can smell bullshit a mile away, I can... and I hate artifice and pretension. So if you take those things out, then all of a sudden you're not judging a game show negatively. And I know what it means to people. Like-

    12. SS

      Yeah

    13. RL

      ... like, people watch The Floor in a way that they don't watch anything else I've ever done. I have eight-year-olds watching with their parents.

    14. SS

      I love that.

    15. RL

      That does not happen. They're not all getting together to watch Euphoria.

    16. SS

      Right. Right.

    17. RL

      They're not. And, and the parents aren't there watching The Summer I Got Pretty or whatever the fuck.

    18. SS

      Yeah.

    19. RL

      It's, it's like-

    20. SS

      We live in a world in which everybody goes to their separate room to watch their TV shows.

    21. RL

      That's-

    22. SS

      And rare are the shows that a family comes together and sits on a couch and watches together.

    23. RL

      And, and when I get that, and I get it all the time-

    24. SS

      Yeah

    25. RL

      ... that means a lot to me.

    26. SS

      Rob Lowe, you are uniting families.

    27. RL

      I'm, I'm bringing, I'm-

    28. SS

      You're bringing-

    29. RL

      ... bringing back the family one-

    30. SS

      You're bringing back the families

  16. 59:47 – 1:02:20

    Rapid-fire wrap: best work personas, working with family, daily mindset

    1. SS

      Of all the characters you've played, who's your dream intern, who's your CEO, and who's getting fired?

    2. RL

      Oh, wow.

    3. SS

      And why?

    4. RL

      Dream intern, um, Chris Traeger, Parks and Recreation.

    5. SS

      Who's your CEO?

    6. RL

      I'm going with Sam Seaborn. He was running the White House, effectively.

    7. SS

      Who's getting fired?

    8. RL

      Oh. One, 100%, my character I played on Californication, Eddie Nero. 100, he's getting fired. He's going to HR immediately.

    9. SS

      [laughs] You've worked with your son. What's one piece of advice you'd give someone about working with family?

    10. RL

      Do it whenever you can. It's the greatest gift. Um, the, um, the shorthand, the pride. Uh-

    11. SS

      Is it strange playing a character with your son playing a character?

    12. RL

      Yes.

    13. SS

      'Cause, I mean-

    14. RL

      Yes. Very much so. And w- and then, and then you can't help yourself. And, and also, just accept the fact that you, lean into the fact that you're still Dad. Like, his thing is he calls, he, he, he'd never call me Dad on the set. It was always Rob. Rob, Rob, Rob, Rob. As if I was, as if ev- everybody didn't know. I wanna go, "Hey, they know."

    15. SS

      Right.

    16. RL

      Um, but we would be in a scene, and I would just be thinking, "I don't like his hair like that. He needs a haircut." [laughs] Do you know what I mean? Like, I-

    17. SS

      You can't help yourself.

    18. RL

      Yeah, I can't help myself. Or, like, I'd be like, "I think he needs to engage his core the way he's standing here." So, and then we ended up writing that into the show.

    19. SS

      Do you have any-

    20. RL

      Unstable, s- still streaming on, on Netflix. Two seasons available.

    21. SS

      Anything that you've learned, career or personal, that just help you get through the day, make life a little easier?

    22. RL

      Mm. Mm. Um, live in gratitude. Um, manage expectations.

    23. SS

      Yours or other people's?

    24. RL

      Ah. Mine. [laughs]

    25. SS

      Rob, such a joy.

    26. RL

      So fun.

    27. SS

      You're so fun.

    28. RL

      Oh.

    29. SS

      Thanks for coming on. I appreciate it.

    30. RL

      No, it was great. Thank you. [upbeat feel-good music]

Episode duration: 1:02:21

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