Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard

Dax and Monica talk to Armcherries! In today's episode, Armcherries tell us a crazy story about finding a foreign object in a patient's butt.

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Ellen Huet (Empire of Orgasm: Sex, Power, and the Downfall of a Wellness Cult) is a journalist, startup founder, and author. Ellen joins the Armchair Expert to discuss must-haves versus most-haves in terms of cult sexuality requirements, her hot tips for avoiding cults that are too extractive, and her dealings with Silicon Valley and venture capitalists. Ellen and Dax talk about when she began covering orgasmic meditation startup OneTaste, the OM course to cult pipeline, and the intricacies and systems of manipulation concocted by OneTaste’s leader. Ellen explains unpacking potential power dynamics of sexual abuse, how much status ga...

Marcello Hernández (American Boy, SNL, Happy Gilmore 2) is a stand-up comedian, sketch performer, and actor. Marcello joins the Armchair Expert to discuss unsponsored gift selections from Marshalls, why Dominican kids are 12 years old but they’re also 40, and thinking he may have finally found his writing process. Marcello and Dax talk about the influential character he adopted during Model UN, leaving his first wife (soccer) for his mistress (stand-up), and how a depressive episode amid Covid lockdown led to a full-time job in comedy. Marcello explains his uncertain fate at SNL following an initial sit-down with Lorne Michaels, the...

Dax and Monica talk to Armcherries! In today's episode, Armcherries tell us a crazy pet story.

Follow Armchair Expert on the Wondery App or wherever you get your podcasts. Watch new content on YouTube or listen to Armchair Expert early and ad-free by joining Wondery+ in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify. Start your free trial by visiting wondery.com/links/armchair-expert-with-dax-shepard/ now.

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Elizabeth Smart (Kidnapped: Elizabeth Smart) is a child safety advocate and founder of the Elizabeth Smart Foundation. Elizabeth joins the Armchair Expert to discuss why advocacy became her opportunity to let other victims and survivors know they’re not alone, growing up not thinking her life would be in any way extraordinary, and details she remembers of her kidnapping at knifepoint in the middle of the night at age 14. Elizabeth and Dax talk about how her perspective on her experience has evolved now being a parent herself, the twisted, manipulative history of her abductors, and the ways her brain gr...

Chris Stapleton (Traveller, Higher, Starting Over) is a multiple Grammy award winning singer, songwriter, and guitarist. Chris joins the Armchair Expert to discuss why he looks for silence, his unpreparedness for the academics at Vanderbilt University, and wanting to make a record his father would like after his passing. Chris and Dax talk about the formative folks that gave him a shot as a young, no-name songwriter, following the motto that ‘terms are better than money,’ and the potential blindspots that can exist when you’re very competent in one thing. Chris explains why there’s no such thing as a cou...

Dax and Monica talk to Armcherries! In today's episode, Armcherries tell us a crazy story.

Follow Armchair Expert on the Wondery App or wherever you get your podcasts. Watch new content on YouTube or listen to Armchair Expert early and ad-free by joining Wondery+ in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify. Start your free trial by visiting wondery.com/links/armchair-expert-with-dax-shepard/ now.

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David McWilliams (The History of Money: A Story of Humanity) is a journalist, writer, and economist. David joins the Armchair Expert to discuss having an unusually calm Irish family upbringing, being practically prescribed to study economics, and the impact that his father being screwed by the system had on him as a kid. David and Dax talk about his early, life-changing realization that no one actually has control over the economy, why economics should be seen as a form of communication about the world, and how the human advent of fire helps us to understand money. David explains the...

Kumail Nanjiani (Night Thoughts, Eternals, The Big Sick) is an actor, writer, and comedian. Kumail returns to the Armchair Expert to discuss working out his foot trauma, addressing the plastic surgery rumors, and why the Schwarzenegger pump is better than sex. Kumail and Dax talk about the benefit of going towards what we perceive to be our limits, why the gym is the only place many men feel comfortable being physically intimate with one another, and wrestling with if he contributes to the discourse around men’s bodies that affected him as a kid. Kumail explains why learning to li...

Dax and Monica talk to Armcherries! In today's episode, Armcherries tell us about a party gone wrong.

Follow Armchair Expert on the Wondery App or wherever you get your podcasts. Watch new content on YouTube or listen to Armchair Expert early and ad-free by joining Wondery+ in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify. Start your free trial by visiting wondery.com/links/armchair-expert-with-dax-shepard/ now.

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Walter Isaacson (The Greatest Sentence Ever Written) is a biographer, historian, and Professor of History at Tulane University. Walter returns to the Armchair Expert to discuss why he embeds himself into the lives of his subjects to write about them, how empathy can get in the way of success, and discovering the secret sauce of Elon Musk. Walter and Dax talk about his interest in people that try to learn as much as possible about everything knowable, the belief that growing up as a misfit can instill the drive seen in innovators of the modern age, and why an...

Cher (Cher: The Memoir, Moonstruck, Believe) is a multi-platinum recording artist, Academy Award winning actor, TV personality, author, and icon. Cher joins the Armchair Expert to discuss earlier versions of trying to write her memoir and why this one worked, accidentally falling into her first acting job with Robert Altman, and memories from the Burlesque set with Kristen Bell. Dax and Cher talk about identifying not as an icon but as a woman who has always worked, the best piece of advice her mom gave her, and growing up with strangers as a young child. Cher explains how her...

Walton Goggins (White Lotus, Fallout, Hateful Eight) is an Emmy-nominated actor. Walton joins the Armchair Expert to discuss no longer being willing to perpetuate cultural stereotypes of the south, being raised by the real Steel Magnolias, and sharing attraction to volatility on the edge of chaos. Walton and Dax talk about having wives that can walk with kings, the humiliation of poverty, and how an application for an American Express card changed the trajectory of his life. Walton explains loving lunatics, why time with his kid is worth more than any amount of money or success, and approaching his...

Nikki Glaser (Alive and Unwell, Someday You’ll Die, Not Safe with Nikki Glaser) is a comedian, actor, and television host. Nikki joins the Armchair Expert to discuss why Dax’s name has good joke texture, her plea for people not to have veneers during the apocalypse, and feeling embarrassed that her name had to take up space in Ralph Feinnes’ brain. Nikki and Dax talk about growing up resentful that she wasn’t born as pretty as she could have been, wanting the approval that comes with being extraordinary, and why Dax thinks Nikki is the Taylor Swift of comed...

Adam Scott (Severance, Parks and Recreation, Stepbrothers) is an Emmy and Golden Globe-nominated actor and comedian. Adam joins the Armchair Expert to discuss why the era of movies that produced ET, The Goonies, and Temple of Doom means so much to him, how Severance was in such apt alignment with the grief for his mother’s death, and the reason playing “fan at bar” is way more embarrassing than “guy at bar.” Adam and Dax talk about a call of the void by licking lead, rebranding artisanal nicotine delivery systems, and the ethical dilemma of whether to sneak a peek at ne...

Follow Armchair Expert on the Wondery App or wherever you get your podcasts. Watch new content on YouTube or listen to Armchair Expert early and ad-free by joining Wondery+ in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify. Start your free trial by visiting wondery.com/links/armchair-expert-with-dax-shepard/ now.

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On this special episode, we revisit some of our favorite moments from Wednesday episodes in 2025. Scott Payne gets stripped for a wire while undercover, Mark Ronson recalls his rockstar-studded childhood, Blaise Aguirre defines the difficulties of BPD, Mary Claire Haver assembles a toolkit for menopause, Malala Yousafzai struggles to make friends in high school, Michael Lewis laments male anger generated by the gambling industry, Seth Harp tracks stolen cash and corruption in the military, James Kimmel, Jr. advises on a landlord conflict, Dave Mitchell & Chris Feistl infiltrate a Colombian drug cartel, and Andy Roddick mythologizes his serve.

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On this special episode, we revisit some of our favorite moments from Monday episodes in 2025. Nikki Glaser relays the risks of a roast, Brad Pitt commits a non-union extra faux pas, Dominic Fike drops his mixtape in jail, Dove Cameron tries to mend her relationship with her dad, Alexander Skarsgård finds his way as an actor post-Zoolander, Jennifer Aniston talks kids and SNL, Adam Scott discovers grief for his mom while filming Severance, Mindy Kaling writes nerdy women who desire, and Charlie Sheen keisters an ice cube after falling asleep on camera.

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Dax and Monica talk to Armcherries! In today's episode, Armcherries tell us about a nightmare holiday experience.

Follow Armchair Expert on the Wondery App or wherever you get your podcasts. Watch new content on YouTube or listen to Armchair Expert early and ad-free by joining Wondery+ in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify. Start your free trial by visiting wondery.com/links/armchair-expert-with-dax-shepard/ now.

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On this special holiday dinner party episode of Armchair Expert, Dax and Monica are joined by Kristen, Amy, Jess, Erick, and Wobby Wob to discuss an early worm burn by Erick’s dad, Jess’s red mustache mastery, which body parts deserve the most attention, how each ranks Christmas, who among them they’d eat if necessary, why “unlimited gathering” is the perfect crime, and what the group is leaving behind in 2025.

Follow Armchair Expert on the Wondery App or wherever you get your podcasts. Watch new content on YouTube or listen to Armchair Expert early and ad-free by...

Zooey Deschanel (Merv, New Girl, She & Him) is an actress and musician. Zooey returns to the Armchair Expert to discuss the lessons of the go-bag after the fire evacuations, the elegance-centered branding of cats, and the touching surprise that fans often comfort-rewatch New Girl. Zooey and Dax talk about having a partner who's a consummate tinkerer, growing up in a family of ADHD interrupters, and the embarrassing moments running through her head at all times. Zooey explains being a broken-up couple with a depressed mutt in her new movie Merv, her kids only recent interest in watching her in...

Dax and Monica talk to Armcherries! In today's episode, Armcherries tell us about a time they stole something.

Follow Armchair Expert on the Wondery App or wherever you get your podcasts. Watch new content on YouTube or listen to Armchair Expert early and ad-free by joining Wondery+ in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify. Start your free trial by visiting wondery.com/links/armchair-expert-with-dax-shepard/ now.

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Coltan Scrivner (Morbidly Curious: A Scientist Explains Why We Can't Look Away) is a psychologist, researcher, and author. Coltan joins the Armchair Expert to discuss always preferring to do nitty gritty research in the field rather than a sterile lab, studying human fun and fear responses to haunted houses in Denmark, and his four domains of morbid curiosity. Coltan and Dax talk about why in nature there’s a lot of danger without safe opportunities to learn about it, that bar fights actually take place a lot less than if we were chimps, and how bodily injury is an ef...

Jake Johnson (We’re Here to Help, The Dink, New Girl) is an actor, writer, and podcast host. Jake returns to the Armchair Expert to discuss why anything that can still evoke fading old school Hollywood is special, how everything feeling like a black box theater has him falling in love with acting again, and focusing on playing the game his way while he’s here. Jake and Dax talk about letting go of control to be present in his movie The Dink, why he strategizes his workflow to stay ahead of the darkness, and how he tries to re-e...

Dax and Monica talk to Armcherries! In today's episode, Armcherries tell us a crazy story.

Follow Armchair Expert on the Wondery App or wherever you get your podcasts. Watch new content on YouTube or listen to Armchair Expert early and ad-free by joining Wondery+ in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify. Start your free trial by visiting wondery.com/links/armchair-expert-with-dax-shepard/ now.

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James L. Brooks (Ella McCay, The Simpsons, Taxi) is an Emmy, Golden Globe, and Academy Award-winning screenwriter, director, and producer. James joins the Armchair Expert to discuss being an industrious high school reporter interviewing Louis Armstrong and Anne Bancroft, his lucky break as a studio page bringing Edward R. Murrow coffee, and co-creating the Mary Tyler Moore Show with Alan Burns. James and Dax talk about why there’s no better job in the world than on a television show that’s working, seeing Andy Kaufman perform as the vile Tony Clifton for the first time, and that he thin...

D’Arcy Carden (Loot, The Good Place, The Handmaid’s Tale) is an Emmy Award-nominated actor and comedian. D’Arcy returns to the Armchair Expert to discuss forming a bond with travel show co-host Sherry Cola through working together on Nobody Wants This, being a musical comrade of Wobby Wob’s, and insisting that she suffers from time blindness. D’Arcy and Dax talk about finding best friendship in her husband since their early twenties, exhibiting some addictive behavior when it comes to attending concerts, and the most scared she’s ever been acting. D’Arcy explains playing a lot of emotion...

Dax and Monica talk to Armcherries! In today's episode, Armcherries tell us about the craziest thing that happened at Thanksgiving.

Follow Armchair Expert on the Wondery App or wherever you get your podcasts. Watch new content on YouTube or listen to Armchair Expert early and ad-free by joining Wondery+ in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify. Start your free trial by visiting wondery.com/links/armchair-expert-with-dax-shepard/ now.

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David Fajgenbaum (Chasing My Cure, Every Cure) is an immunology researcher, professor, and author. David joins the Armchair Expert to discuss being recruited to play football at an assortment of Ivy League schools before ending up at Georgetown, the promise he made to his mother to pursue medicine before she passed away, and starting a foundation in his mom’s honor to help college students with grief. David and Dax talk about the sudden onset of symptoms that meant his liver and kidneys were shutting down, gaining 100 pounds of fluid almost overnight, and nearly dying multiple times amid a di...

Joel Edgerton (Train Dreams, The Secret Life of Us, The Square) is an actor, writer, and director. Joel joins the Armchair Expert to discuss how he knows when his Australian Vogue Editor-in-Chief wife doesn’t like his outfit, why his approach to relationships is ‘it takes two to tango,’ and the reasons why he gets starstruck over are athletes. Joel and Dax talk about the big dreaminess of Australian filmmakers, the deficits of old school masculinity, and why his brother is ‘that guy’ as a stunt performer in movies. Joel explains pitching ideas to George Miller while getting his steps in...

Dax and Monica talk to Armcherries! In today's episode, Armcherries tell us about a dental disaster.

Follow Armchair Expert on the Wondery App or wherever you get your podcasts. Watch new content on YouTube or listen to Armchair Expert early and ad-free by joining Wondery+ in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify. Start your free trial by visiting wondery.com/links/armchair-expert-with-dax-shepard/ now.

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Andrew Ross Sorkin (1929: The Inside Story of the Greatest Crash in Wall Street History) is a financial columnist, TV anchor, and author. Andrew joins the Armchair Expert to discuss a kid telling him when he was young that god drew him wrong, actually working with Aaron Sorkin (no relation) on his show The Newsroom, and landing an unofficial internship at The New York Times as a senior in high school. Andrew and Dax talk about why his motto as a finance journalist was ‘chasing interesting,’ understanding not trusting the stock trading system because it doesn’t deserve to be truste...

Billy Crudup (The Morning Show, Jay Kelly, Almost Famous) is an Emmy and Tony Award-winning actor. Billy joins the Armchair Expert to discuss his interpretation of his findings on Finding Your Roots, how he both appreciated and struggled with having a dreamer for a dad, and the story of his parents getting twice married and divorced. Billy and Dax talk about his sentimentality sometimes sneaking up on him, wanting to create for his son the stability and consistency that he didn’t have growing up, and rebelling against his father by getting a master's degree in acting. Billy explains th...

Dax and Monica talk to Armcherries! In today's episode, Armcherries tell us about an unexpected orgasm.

Follow Armchair Expert on the Wondery App or wherever you get your podcasts. Watch new content on YouTube or listen to Armchair Expert early and ad-free by joining Wondery+ in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify. Start your free trial by visiting wondery.com/links/armchair-expert-with-dax-shepard/ now.

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Mel Robbins (The Let Them Theory, The High 5 Habit, The 5 Second Rule) is a podcast host, entrepreneur, and best-selling author. Mel joins the Armchair Expert to discuss feeling every day in college like the only one who couldn’t make it work, how the human brain is wired to avoid what’s hard, and all the attributions kids make growing up in an unsafe environment. Mel and Dax talk about the reason getting out of bed when you don’t feel like it is a skill, why we are one decision away from a different life, and the fact that t...

On this week’s episode of Mom’s Car, we welcome acclaimed director of Parenthood and sweetest man Larry Trilling. Larry, Dax, and Best Friend Aaron Weakley talk through attending Santa Monica High School with the entire cast of The Outsiders, catching the directing bug making Super 8 films in middle and high school, directing the first Comedy Central original movie Porn and Chicken, learning how to motivate blocking with storytelling, and the gang discuss their top-five favorite movies and shows of all time.

#sponsored by @Allstate. Go to https://bit.ly/momscar to check Allstate first and see...

Sir Anthony Hopkins (We Did Ok, Kid, The Silence of the Lambs, The Father) is an Academy, Emmy, and BAFTA Award-winning actor. Anthony joins the Armchair Expert to discuss feeling othered and playing the role of the dummy in school, how growing up during a war shaped him, and a chance invitation at the YMCA that changed the trajectory of his life. Anthony and Dax talk about booking his first role the same day James Dean was killed, the advice Laurence Olivier offered after seeing him perform onstage, and doing screen tests with Katherine Hepburn and Peter O’Toole. An...

Dax and Monica talk to Armcherries! In today's episode, Armcherries tell us a crazy story.

Follow Armchair Expert on the Wondery App or wherever you get your podcasts. Watch new content on YouTube or listen to Armchair Expert early and ad-free by joining Wondery+ in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify. Start your free trial by visiting wondery.com/links/armchair-expert-with-dax-shepard/ now.

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Malala Yousafzai (Finding My Way, I Am Malala, He Named Me Malala) is an education activist, Nobel Prize laureate, and author. Malala joins the Armchair Expert to discuss having a relatively normal life until a militant organization took over her valley in Pakistan, becoming an activist simply to respond to her new oppressive reality, and how lucky she was to have a male ally in her father. Malala and Dax talk about feeling like a fish out of water in a new school after her attack, winning the Nobel Peace Prize at 17 years old, and not being a good...

On this week’s episode of Mom’s Car we welcome all-around buddy Ryan Hansen. Ryan, Dax, and Best Friend Aaron Weakley talk through feeling famous from a young age at church, the legend of tough and redheaded Billy, doing bad boy things as a teen as an escape from a rough family life, adventures in attempting to be cool kids in high school, a sex dream about a rock, and Dax’s failed intimate encounter with a pint glass of jello.

#sponsored by @Allstate. Go to https://bit.ly/momscar to check Allstate first and see how mu...