-Welcome. Welcome back. -Thank you.
-First of all, you look gorgeous.
And you look gorgeous on the cover of "Vanity Fair," as well.
-Oh, that's very kind of you. -Ooh-la-la.
[ Cheers and applause ] -Thank you.
You really figured out, like, the dream situation here.
You get to hear the Roots every night.
-I know. Very lucky human being, yeah.
-That's like my teenage dream.
-Is it really? -And my current dream.
-Wow. And I'm in the dream, too?
-You are a great partner...
-Dream adjacent?
-...to listen to the Roots with.
[ Laughter ] -Dream adjacent.
-You're dream adjacent.
-Oh, man. That's a new term.
I was looking at --
You posted this photo of your first magazine cover.
You were 13 years old.
-I was 13.
-And look at this. And you look exactly the same.
-That's very kind of you to say. -You really do.
-They really fed you the lines to tell me.
-No, are you kidding? -I'll give you a --
I'll slip you a little favor later for that.
Thanks. [ Laughter ]
I look exactly the same?
That's so nice to say to, like, a woman in her middle-age years.
-Oh, my -- You're being silly.
How's the babies?
Last time you were here,
you were pregnant with your second baby.
-Yes! I have had that baby.
And she's almost 2 now.
-Congratulations. Oh, my gosh.
-Thank you. How are yours?
-Really cute, really good.
I mean, they're so different, my kids.
-They're 4, 5?
-5 and 4, and that's when they wake up in the morning, too.
-Oh, boy. -5:00 and 4:00, yeah.
I mean, is it a difference having a girl and a boy?
Can you see the difference?
-You know, I don't really see it as, like, gender.
They're just such different people.
Like, they're not -- -Oh, yeah.
-It doesn't feel like boy things, girl things.
They just feel like such different human beings.
-Yeah, I feed them the same stuff
and I read them the same books
and I show them the same TV shows.
And they just -- they are two different humans.
Winnie, my older daughter, is very, like, kind of polite
and just, like, she'll go, "Don't touch that."
"Okay."
And the little one will turn around,
and she has, like, a knife. "Where'd you get that?"
It's like, "Amazon Prime. I used your account."
I go, "How do you even know how to do that?
I don't know what you're doing."
I want to talk about the movie "Vox Lux."
Look at you right there.
Congrats on this.
It's a cool project. You're fantastic in it.
-Thank you. -And you sing very well in this.
-Yes. I got to sing Sia songs.
Songs that Sia wrote for the film are just so cool.
Yeah, I got to meet her on your show here.
-I was going to say, is that when you met?
-I had met her I think once before, but --
-This is me, you, and Sia. We did a version of "Iko Iko."
-I was so dorky.
You even, like, came up to me after
and were like, "Nice mom moves."
-No, I did not say "mom." No, I didn't say "mom moves."
You were so cute. Are you kidding me?
Everyone editing was like, "Oh, my gosh."
Natalie Portman is so my dream adjacent.
It was amazing. -Thank you.
-But the movie's very interesting.
How did you get to -- did you get to --
I didn't even know you sang.
-Thanks. Well, I mean, I sing.
Like, when I went into the recording studio
with Chris Braide, the producer,
who's so lovely and really talented,
I was like, "I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry."
He was like, "Don't worry about it.
We can do a lot of magic."
You all know.
There's, like, a lot of magic that you can help --
help people with to make it sound real, right?
-They deal with me every single night.
Yeah, yeah, they help out a lot.
It's a very interesting story, though.
Basically, your character is a --
starts as a little girl who survives a school shooting,
and she writes a song that goes viral
and becomes a giant pop star.
Staten Island? Is that where you're from?
-Staten Island. -Staten Island.
-Yeah. -Staten Island.
-Yeah. Good accent in the movie. -Thanks.
-And then you become, like,
almost the biggest pop star in the world,
but, like, so much fame and what happens with that.
-She's kind of a disaster, yeah.
-It's really -- It's great, though.
Interesting role for you to play.
-Thank you. It was really, really fun.
-Who directed this one?
His name is Brady Corbet. It's his second film.
-Really? -So, yeah, he's super talented.
I was really lucky.
-And you got to film the big concert scene in your hometown?
-Yes, they weirdly opened up a studio,
like, around the corner from where I went to high school.
So my guidance counselor from high school
brought her kids and her friends.
And they were in the audience. It was really cool.
-No way! I love doing that.
I remember, like, when I was doing stand-up,
I would go to my hometown and do --
It was Bananas Comedy Club.
And I would go to Bananas. I'd do a set.
-It's a great name. -Thank you.
And my guidance counselor and my principal
were sitting in the front. -That's so cool.
-I was like, "I have no material about you guys, but thank you."
-They were probably relieved
that there was no material about them.
-It was like, "I didn't counsel your guidance to do this.
But good for you. You're a stand-up comedian."
I want to show everyone a clip.
Here's Natalie Portman in "Vox Lux."
Take a look at this.
-Now, thankfully, I'm type A.
But it's no secret that I'm on meds for my injury,
and I never should have been
behind the wheel of a car that night.
Josie!
-You know, I didn't mean to upset you, but --
-I used to be treated like I was a hero,
and then they start talking about me like I'm trailer trash.
But that's what the show is about.
It's about rebirth.
-Oh, yeah.
You're good.
Natalie Portman, everybody.