-Welcome back. -Thank you.
-Welcome back. It's been a long time.
-People. -I haven't -- yeah,
there's humans, there's people. Yeah, that's right!
-I love it. [ Cheers and applause ]
-You love it, right? -I love it.
-It's an amazing -- -Yeah, it's lovely.
It's lovely. Yeah, of course.
-It's an amazing feeling. Well, I want to say
you're making your Broadway debut.
-I am. -And I'm very excited.
I cannot wait. [ Cheers and applause ]
And not a little challenging, but you're doing Shakespeare.
You're doing "Macbeth"? -Yeah.
-Wow! -We can say it here, yeah?
[ Cheers and applause ] -What does that mean?
Yeah, you can say it. -Well, people are loathe
to say it in the theater, because it's --
-Oh, it's superstitious. -Superstitious, yeah.
You have to -- If you say it in a theater, you have to, like,
turn around four times, spit over your shoulder,
and go out the door and come back in.
-Yeah -- Yeah, exactly right. Yeah, no.
-Take your pants off or something.
-In here, in the TV show, you can say --
-You can say it. "Macbeth," "Macbeth," "Macbeth."
-"Macbeth," "Macbeth," "Macbeth."
"Macbeth." But you and Daniel Craig?
-Yeah, I know. -James Bond -- that's my guy.
[ Cheers and applause ] -I know, I know.
You're a big fan. I know.
-I'm an uber fan. Like, we --
I was his last interview as James Bond.
-Isn't it great? -We had a martini together.
-Aww. -Yeah, it was --
-Isn't he lovely? -It was actually --
it was emotional. -He's one of the soundest people
I've ever met. -He's the great -- Oh, he's --
Did you get to rehearse yet or no?
-We've -- We just did a couple weeks, yeah,
sitting around, talking about it,
and he's just so down-to-Earth and lovely.
We bonded over a pencil -- -Pun intended.
-Oh! -Thank you.
-Yes, completely intended. -That's my style.
-Steal my joke. "We bonded.
We bonded over --" -I have to steal yours.
I've none of my own. [ Laughter ]
-Well, if it gets that reaction, you won't want to steal it.
Yeah. [ Laughter ]
Yeah, fair enough. Yeah, I'm sorry.
But what did he -- did you -- Now you can't say the word.
-Pencil sharpeners. Parers.
You know, pencil sharpeners. Like, stationery.
-Really? -Yeah, he loves --
he loves a good pencil parer.
[ Laughter ] So do I -- yeah.
-Pencil -- -Sharpener, yeah.
-Yeah, like the -- -It's very satisfying, isn't it?
-Yeah. Like, the -- now they're battery-powered and stuff.
And electric. -Yeah, yeah.
It's very exciting. [ Laughter ]
-No, no, no, no, no. The old crank.
-I just ruined Daniel Craig's reputation.
[ Laughter ] The coolest man in the world.
-The coolest man. Imagine if a scene
in "James Bond" is him sharpening a pencil.
[ Laughter ] No.
But even he would do it cool. -Yeah, yeah.
-He'd, like, come in, shirt off, and, like --
-Yeah, yeah. -Bzzz!
-He's got cool coming out of his pores.
It's sort of effortless, isn't it?
-Speaking of effortless -- it's a good segue for me.
You're fascinating and fantastic in "Passing."
-Oh, thank you. -Your film.
[ Cheers and applause ] -Thanks a million.
Means a lot. -You're getting rave reviews,
and awards buzz and all that stuff.
Do you listen to that or -- -No. Can't.
-No. -No, get too nervous.
-Yeah, right? -Yeah.
And, you know, it's -- I mean, I'm sure, you know,
you've heard this before. That, like, the --
the good stuff, sort of, it doesn't stick,
and the bad stuff, you're just waking up
in the middle of the night, tearing your hair out about it.
-It does. It is true.
-I think it's better not to... -Well, I can tell you,
as a friend, and after watching you, you're fantastic in this.
-Thank you so much. -Yeah, you're really great.
-Well, I am -- [ Cheers and applause ]
Thank you.
-I'm not a critic. -No, but I -- I am very --
I'm so proud to be involved in this film.
You know, it's Rebecca Hall's debut and...
-Yeah. -...getting to work with her
and the lovely Tessa Thompson,
who is extraordinary in this film, yes.
-Tessa Thompson is fantastic, as well.
-Can we set it up? Can we explain to everyone
what the film is about?
-So, "Passing" is Rebecca Hall's debut film.
And she adapted it from a novella written by Nella Larsen,
which was published in 1929.
And it's a story based on two childhood friends
who bump into each other in the lobby of a hotel.
And one is passing for White, my character Clare,
and the other is living in the Black community
with her Black family.
And it's about the -- how they're sort of enchanted
by one another's lives and the different choices
they make, and how that impacts them in the future.
It's kind of -- -It's -- It's beautiful.
-It is beautiful, isn't it? -It's absolutely stunning.
-Yeah. -And the story is beautiful.
And every -- and just the performances, everything,
just top to bottom. Congratulations.
It's so good. I want to show everyone a clip.
Here's Ruth Negga and Tessa Thompson in "Passing."
Take a look at this.
-Pardon me. I don't mean to stare,
but I think I know you.
-I'm afraid you're mistaken.
-No. Of course I know you, Reenie.
You look just the same.
Tell me, do they still call you Reenie?
-Yes. Though no one's called me that for a long time.
-Don't you know me? [ Heel clicks ]
Not really really?
-I'm afraid I can't seem to place...
-[ Laughs ]
-Clare? -Mm-hmm.
That's right.
-Oh. [ Cheers and applause ]
Ruth Negga, everybody! -Oh, you're so sweet.
-Whatever you're doing, don't stop.
-Thank you.
-"Passing" is streaming now on Netflix.