>>> Welcome Jackson Harper is
getting ready to say good-bye to
"The good place" as the show
wraps its fourth and final
season.
>> We're not ready for it, but
he's also working with director
Barry Jenkins on the upcoming
Amazon series "The underground
railroad."
>> Oh, yeah.
>> Please welcome William.
Hello, man.
>> What's going on?
>> I know Sunday night were the - critics choice awards, which you
were nominated for best
supporting man.
That's great!
>> Yeah.
>> And especially in a sea of
great content right now.
Very impressive.
>> Yeah, no, I definitely feel
like there must have been a
mistake, but I mean, like, I'll
gladly take it.
I mean, it's such an honor.
>> Right on.
>> How was it?
Give us some insight there.
It was stacked.
>> Yeah, it was.
>> Anybody you met that you
hadn't met or that you wanted to
meet?
>> I mean, you know, like
honestly, I had people coming up
to me that I had admired for so
long saying hey, man, liked you
in this thing or this thing.
And I was like, what?
You're kidding me.
I've been watching you for
years.
Like Nick role came up and said
hey and Seth Meyers came up and
said hey.
So I was just sort of flipping
through the whole night.
>> I heard there was a dress
emergency --
>> Yeah, a rip --
>> That you found yourself in
the center of.
>> Yeah, all right.
So --
>> That was -- can I tell this
story?
Can I tell this story.
>> Yeah.
Well, I worked with Florence
Pugh on this movie a year and
some change ago.
And you know, I hadn't seen her
since.
And we saw each other on the
floor and we were just like,
hey!
Hey!
We ran to each other, give each
other this big, big hug.
We meant it.
We meant it so much that I broke
her dress.
>> Ooh.
>> Right before the ceremony
started.
>> That's aggressive.
>> Yeah.
>> That means you're a good
I like a good hugger.
>> But it also means she's about
to maybe walk on the stage and
accept an award --
>> Just, yeah, with just, you
know.
But, like, but she was totally
Actually, I mean, she had
someone there to sew it up real
quick and she was carrying on
the conversation like nothing
happened.
So yeah, she's a real "G."
>> We talk about this, of
course, being the last season of
"The good place," but before you
got this show, you lived with
like a group of dudes, right?
>> Mm-hmm.
>> In an apartment?
How many other guys?
>> Three other dudes.
>> In New York?
>> Yeah.
>> Ooh, wow.
So that must have been tight
quarters right there.
>> Yeah.
>> How was that?
>> I mean, you know, it's fun.
I mean, like, it's -- it's
gross.
I'll tell you, it's always
gross.
>> I was going to say, hygiene
was probably not a top priority.
>> No, it's always gross.
>> It's gross.
>> Yeah, it's a New York
apartment and summertime was
always like a real struggle, you
know.
I actually just had like this
clip-on fan that I'd like just
clip to the edge of my bed that
just blew onto my head so I
could sleep.
>> Yeah, ooh.
>> Yeah, it was mean.
It was mean.
>> So ac was like a dream.
>> It was -- that's the highest
of luxuries.
You know.
>> My husband lived with three
guys when I met him.
There were mushrooms growing out
from under the tub and not good
mushrooms.
I don't know where they came
from.
Do you ever look back on it
poetly, where you were then and
where you are now in your life?
>> Totally.
I really loved that time and I
loved those dudes that I lived
with.
>> It's fun when you're young.
>> Yeah, it's great.
It's hard when you hit your
mid-30s and you're like, wait a
minute, I can't keep doing this.
>> Right.
>> And so, like, but yeah, I
look back on it very, very
fondly.
I mean, we had late-night dance
parties to Al Stewart, you know.
We just got weird with each
other.
>> Right on.
>> And you've got a big birthday
coming up that I don't think
anybody on this stage would
guess.
>> Yeah.
>> Yeah, I would not have
guessed this.
>> Yeah, 40.
40 is coming up.
>> Four-oh!
>> Yeah, four-oh.
>> Were they for real?
Black do not crack.
>> Are you going large or how
are you celebrating?
>> I don't know.
I mean, honestly, I don't like
being the center of attention,
throwing parties and birthdays
sort of stress me out.
>> Me neither.
I'm good at your birthday party,
but I don't like it for me.
It's not my thing.
>> Yes, hate it.
>> But four-oh, you've got to do
something.
>> What I'll probably do is wait
for somebody else to turn 40 and
be like, by the way, I turned 40
a while ago.
It's no big deal, happy
birthday!
>> Less expensive, too.
Piggyback right there.
>> You're not living in that
little apartment anymore.
What was it like when you got
the call about "The good place"?
>> It was -- you know, actually,
that's crazy poetic because I
happened to be watching the
pilot episode of "Cheers" at the
time --
>> What?
And the pilot episode of it?
>> Yeah, because I had done the
audition.
I was just sort of climbed the
walls waiting for the call, and
a friend of mine had said, like
Yo, you should watch the pilot
episode of "Cheers," it's a
really good episode of
television.
>> Because they already knew Ted
Danza was going to be on it.
>> Yeah, they already knew, and
I was like cool.
So middle of the afternoon, like
let's do this.
It's something to do.
>> Get my mind off of it.
>> Yeah.
I was like yeah, yeah, yeah.
And then I finished the episode
and the phone rings and they
tell me that I got the job.
>> As you're watching Sammy
Malone --
>> As I'm watching --
>> Come on, Sam Malone, one of
the all-time best.
>> It's nuts.
>> Jamilah jammel was here
talking about how much she loves
Ted and that's one of the things
she'll miss about the show
wrapping up, but that he taught
her how to dance, almost
ballroom dancing.
Did you guys have a dance that
you did?
>> Your ballroom --
>> Well, me and Ted just
ballroom flossed.
Like, we just --
>> Ballroom flossed?
>> Ballroom flossing, you know,
because he had to do it for an
episode, and you know, he's
gang.
And I happened to know how to
floss.
And so, we would, in between
takes, we would just, like --
>> Practice.
>> Just rehearse.
And you know, he was really into
it.
I mean, he wanted to speed up,
though.
He wanted to go -- he wanted to
like run before he could crawl.
And so, we had to like sort of
take him down to basics and
bring him up, but he got it.
>> Take it down to the basics of
flossing.
>> Did you take anything from
the set before we leave?
>> I did.
I took one pair of cheaties
loafers because I needed some
grown man shoes.
But other than that, I was like,
the rest of it can stay.