Jason Bateman said, “This is a family, and families, you know, have love, laughter, arguments — again, not to belittle it, but a lot of stuff happens in 15 years. […] I can say that no matter what anybody in this room has ever done — and we’ve all done a lot, with each other, for each other, against each other — I wouldn’t trade it for the world, and I have zero complaints.”
Will Arnett joked, “I can say that I keyed Bateman’s car. I never admitted that. Because I was like, look at this guy, taking up a spot and a half.”
David Cross added, “You know, one thing that Jeffrey has said a number of times that I think is important, that you don’t often hear from somebody in his position, is that he learned from the experience and he’s listening and learning and growing. That’s important to remember.”
After Jeffrey talked about putting his past behavior behind him, Jason said, “Again, not to belittle it or excuse it or anything, but in the entertainment industry it is incredibly common to have people who are, in quotes, ‘difficult.’ And when you’re in a privileged position to hire people, or have an influence in who does get hired, you make phone calls. […] And what you learn is context.”
Alia Shawkat, however, replied, “But that doesn’t mean it’s acceptable. And the point is that things are changing, and people need to respect each other differently.”
Then, in tears, Jessica said, “Let me just say one thing that I just realized in this conversation. I have to let go of being angry at him. […] But it’s hard because honestly — Jason says this happens all the time. In like almost 60 years of working, I’ve never had anybody yell at me like that on a set. And it’s hard to deal with, but I’m over it now. I just let it go right here, for the New York Times.”
