Rob: Yeah, that’s true.
Lynn: You guys developed this comedic chemistry in the way you play off each other. When did you start thinking, huh, we’re really good together, this could really work?
Rob: That’s really interesting, you know, you’re so right. I think the more we had these offstage experiences, the more it fueled the onstage personas that we had started to form. Traveling out of the country together always does that to you too. Going to Australia and to Rome, all those trips helped form our relationship together and the sort of comedic bonds that we had. But yeah, it was very organic, you know. I mean, we always got along, our backgrounds were similar, but it’s like when you become friends with someone, you develop the rapport. I was telling my brother about this, and he’s a basketball player, nothing like me, but he said you know, it’s like playing basketball with someone that you’re a really good teammate with. You can pass the ball and you know where they’re gonna be, you know?
Lynn: I do, yes. That analogy really works. You and Richard can do that, just as quickly and on the spot as basketball players would within a game. Jared and Jensen do that too, when they’re onstage together.
Rob: Rich and I kinda naturally have that and we discovered it as we became closer friends. And now we’ve been through so much together, we’ve travelled so much, the show has been a big part of our journey together, and so now it’s kinda this well oiled machine. And so we were like, you know, let’s do something with this! Let’s make a show out of it! It’s very gratifying.
Lynn: Well, now’s the time, while Supernatural is still on the air and has such a passionate fandom. I think Kings of Con goes beyond Supernatural too, though. It’s about cons and fandom and acting, but it’s about more than that too. But it’s great to have that fan base help to spread the word.
Rob: Oh certainly. All that is true. The fans have always been and I feel like they will continue to be so supportive of us. And it is a show about the relationship between these two guys, with the background of the conventions, but it’s about their friendship. So I think people outside the convention world will still get it.
Lynn: People who haven’t ever experienced a convention might be like, oh, this is funny, and it looks like people are having fun!
Rob: Exactly. And that’s why our mantra has been ‘We’re doing it. We’re doing the show.’ No matter what, we’re gonna make this happen. And I think the Indiegogo thing has been a really good launching pad that we hadn’t thought of before. It gets us that much closer to making this a reality.
Lynn: Clearly. You’re over 200K now.
Rob: (laughing) Yeah. Yeah! It’s crazy and it keeps coming. We have five more days and it’s amazing, the fans are just unbelievable, so supportive. You feel the love, you know? And it’s really great.
Lynn: Ain’t no fandom like this fandom. So what portion of the show is improv and what’s scripted? You guys are so damn good at improv.
Rob: It’s hard to say, we do sit down and write the scene, and we go back and forth, and the way we’ve been doing it so far is we’ll do one as it’s written and then we’ll start just improvising. And we end up using maybe 60% written 40% improv. I mean, you do have to know where you’re going in the scene. So as long as we know where we need to get to in the scene, that’s [the improv] the icing in the scene, that’s some of the best stuff that happens in the moment. But from an editing and storytelling point of view, you need to know where you’re heading. But a lot of the real zingers, the funniest lines that we’ve shot so far, that’s all been improv stuff.
Lynn: That doesn’t surprise me. I’ve seen the R2M show onstage a lot, and it never fails to make me laugh. Like, tears streaming down my face laugh sometimes.
Rob: (laughing) That’s great! It’s so much fun for us too. And it’s a great thing, to work in that place where you have lines written – I mean, at the end of the day, we knew Rich had to rip my robe off – but beyond that, we didn’t plan. I had written down words like, ‘Rich what are you doing’, but beyond that, you know, that’s the fun part, how we react to that.
Lynn: Oh that’s right, I forgot that Matt’s not the only one who had to expose himself for this show. You did too! I feel like it’s Richard’s turn next…
Rob: Exactly. Hahaha. I’ll work on it.
Lynn: One of my other favorite con stories is the train story – when Jared stopped all the trains in Europe? Richard tells that story and I just die.
[Find the video, fandom. It will be worth it]
Rob: Oh that was great, yeah. And we have talked about shooting stuff when we’re abroad. Having an episode in Rome or whatever. That would be a great story to tell.
Lynn: So you’re headed to Rome soon, and then Australia. I think you’re right, that all the traveling together has brought all of you closer. Even other television shows, the actors who do occasional conventions, they don’t travel together like that.
Rob: Right. And also at those cons, we spend more of our down time together. Like Rich and I aren’t hosting it, so on Saturday we’re done at 5 pm and we go to dinner, we hang out together. That’s what’s unique about those experiences. And on Friday it’s a tradition that we tour some place with like 50 fans or something.
Lynn: I guess you all get to spend more time with Jared and Jensen too. You guys see them at the US cons, but the actors who are on Friday or Saturday might not.
Rob: Yeah, definitely. We all spend time together because we all usually come in early, the day before it starts we’re there together, and we all go out Thursday night and we’re all in the same green room, so we hang out there too. That’s where a lot of these friendships formed. That’s where I first met Sebastian and Mark. And Rich and I first spent a day together, it’s a bonding experience.
You know, like this green room photo that Misha tweeted…
Lynn: So I see that you’ll announce another surprise guest star now that you’ve hit 200K. Tomorrow, right? Any teasers?
Rob: Hmm. Well, it is not a Supernatural person. Though it is someone that a lot of the Supernatural people will know. Someone from my past and someone especially who Richard has worked with, so…
Lynn: Hmmmm…any other clues….
Rob: I can tell you that, I don’t know how high a number we’ll get, but there are definitely other Supernatural actors who have voiced that they want to be in it and that we’re writing parts for. I can’t say for sure to announce it yet, but nearly all your favorite Supernatural actors want to be in this or are going to be in it. The parts we’re writing – either they play themselves or they play someone else.
Lynn: Oooooooh!
Rob: And our plan is, the Indiegogo will be done by this weekend, and then after we’re back from Rome and Australia, we’ll start fulfilling all these perks for people and move forward.
Lynn: You’ve got a lot of perks!
Rob: (laughing) A lot a lot a lot. We’ll inevitably need some help, but then we’ll start making the show! We hope to be in production by the fall and go from there. It’s definitely happening. It’s funny, I got an email the other day, or a facebook post, that asked what happens to the money if you don’t make this show? And my answer was, oh we’re making the show! The show is happening.
Lynn: Absolutely. You were gonna make it anyway.
Rob: Yes. It probably would’ve taken longer. Even the ten minute teaser, we wrote it, we shot it, we edited it all ourselves, and it was a lot. So this will allow us to hire an editor, and hire a DP, and someone to help put it together. I’m just so excited to start making it, because the episodes that we’ve outlined are just super funny and I’m so excited to do it!
Lynn: I’m so excited to see it! That’s really exciting to hear that everyone from SPN wants to be involved. So I hope your Indiegogo is really successful, since more money will mean more episodes and more Supernatural cast can be involved! So they might play themselves or you might write caricatures for them too?
Rob: Exactly. A caricature, or like – like Matt Cohen is playing Matt, but he’s nothing like Matt. A couple people, we have them playing someone completely different. We have the world of the show and the world of Rich and my life.
Lynn: Intriguing…
Rob: Cool!
Lynn: Before we end, can I just say that the VegasCon Saturday Night Special was beyond amazing? When Jensen came out and sang Sister Christian, and Jeffrey Dean Morgan was there, and….it was just so amazing! I know you and Richard worked hard to make it happen. Did you know how freaked out the audience was (in a very good way)?
Rob: Yeah, no, I mean we knew it was gonna be pretty huge, and we had planned to do it and the band had learned Sister Christian, but up until a couple days before, we weren’t certain that it would happen, that Jensen would be able to do it. We hoped, but we weren’t sure. And then to have Jeffrey Dean be there… yeah, it was crazy. Remarkable. It’s gonna be hard to top that experience.
Lynn: (laughing) True, but please try. I talked to Jensen at the next convention and he was a little surprised by everyone saying please please do it again! I think I said well, it doesn’t mean you have to do it every time, but don’t expect us not to want you to!
Rob: (laughing too) Exactly. We talked about it for Seattle but yeah, he doesn’t want to do it every time and have it be a thing because he can’t be there to do it every time…
Lynn: But I think doing it sometimes is awesome.
Rob: Oh yeah, and it will happen again. We’ve already talked about some other songs. I just don’t know when. He’ll have to get in early on Saturdays…
Lynn: I’ll keep my fingers crossed. So, it occurs to me that you have a lot of irons in the fire right now. You’re a busy busy man. How are you balancing all this