Mike Judge may have made his name with two of the “coolest” dudes ever with “Beavis and Butt-head,” but he’s found his nadir by celebrating nerdity in all its many forms. Now, Judge is back with HBO’s “Silicon Valley.”
Starring Thomas Middleditch as Richard Hendrix, a socially awkward programmer who accidentally creates an algorithm that could change the world, the show finds Judge back in his satirical comfort zone: skewering the power brokers and nerds who change the world, and not always on purpose.
Middleditch recently stopped by MTV News to talk about the show, and while we did challenge his knowledge of the world’s most ridiculous apps (see the video, below), he also dropped some serious knowledge about the behind-the-scenes of the show:
He’s Doing The Show With Friends
“It’s bizarre, I’m on an HBO show with friends; some friends that I’ve known for close to a decade. T.J. Miller and Kumail Nanjiani I met when I was in Chicago, learning how to do comedy. Zach [Woods] I met here in New York City through UCB. If I had met anybody previous, we all became fast friends. It’s pretty surreal to be doing a show on HBO with pals.”
Their Nerdery Only Goes So Far
“There’s a lot of, ‘can you please explain this code to me?’ We have a guy on set who is literally there to make sure the tech stuff is sound, accurate and just sounds right. An editor put together a blooper reel, and most of it is just us spouting nonsense and then giving up halfway through.”
He Knows His Apps
Kid Rock’s Cameo Was Magic
“Kid Rock was a good sport about that whole thing. In his defense, the joke isn’t so much about him, it’s just the fact that these people party, and pay a lot of money to have crazy stuff, but then they’re just code guys. My interactions with him were very limited that night. He had his own section of the house we were filming in. And to be honest, at that point in the filming, me and Martin Starr were really into ‘Magic: The Gathering.’ So we were, uh, maybe busy. Playing ‘Magic: The Gathering.’ “
They Didn’t Film In Silicon Valley
“We flew up to San Francisco for one shot. You’ll see it in, I think episode six. The camera was on top of a building, I’m driving in a car on the highway. I lean out the window. I puke, and then it pans up to the San Francisco skyline. That’s what we flew out to San Francisco for! [Laughs] Hollywood, baby!”
The Puke Is Delicious
“The puke on this show was Naked fruit juice, which I’m a huge fan of, so I was always looking forward to the puke. And they cut up little banana chunks in it. It was nice. It was a tasty little puke.”
Who’s On His Fantasy “Game Of Thrones” Coding Team?
“I want cutthroats, so [Tyrion’s] mercenary friend, Bronn, he’s kind of the badass. And I love The Hound and Arya. Their whole storyline is the best, and The Hound is one of the baddest mamma jammas. He’s got scars, and he rules, and he could cut people in half. Bronn, The Hound and Arya.
I guess codewise they’d be pretty bad, but I could be the coder and need back-up, then they’re the guys.”
“Silicon Valley” is on HBO, Sundays at 10 p.m. ET.
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