Is Nathan Fielder Acting?

[@KamikazeDreamer]

One thing is for sure: he graduated from one of Canada's top business schools with really good grades

[@Homer-OJ-Simpson]

@KamikazeDreamer, Are you dumb?

[@KamikazeDreamer]

@@Homer-OJ-Simpson yes

[@Winteramen]

@@KamikazeDreamer another thing for sure is that lie-detector machines are broken, and that Nathan doesn't watch pornography

[@growlerzero883]

@@Winteramen in fact they really are broke. In reality they don’t work nearly as good as I believed. This is just one of many failures of those machine.

[@Eralen00]

@@growlerzero883 Yeah a lie-detector test is not admissible as evidence in a court trial in most places, since they're not very reliable

[@MattSaysHello]

Acting or not, the man is a genius.

[@solo5865]

@@criminalsaint9611 um what

[@solo5865]

@@criminalsaint9611 no, I was just surprised by how preposterous and dumb your comment was

[@TheNiiinjaa]

@@criminalsaint9611 what the fuck bruh

[@willjensen5595]

@@criminalsaint9611 What is wrong with you? What a strange and horrible thing to say.

[@chrishyslop4792]

@@willjensen5595 what'd he say? it's deleted

[@monkey-choppa2751]

He transcends acting. He is a whole other being

[@jacobwardYT]

Nathan's ability to handle uncomfortable situations is incredible.

[@maxgamesst1]

Most people accidentally creat uncomfortable situations, he actively creates them and makes them constantly more uncomfortable

[@andreswang6666]

somehow he has a lot more opportunities to practice, not sure why

[@garyhardy4865]

He is the uncomfortable situation.

[@ststst981]

His ability to also push the situations into the uncomfortable is incredible

[@ringtail5021]

Yeah he creates uncomfortable situations, handles them uncomfortably and makes others uncomfortable as well

[@kjelljesus3784]

I think Nathan's most obvious (and hilarious) character-break is his reaction to when the gas station man reveals he sometimes drinks his grandsons pee, for good luck. From eposode "Gas Station Rebate"

[@conoroates]

Also when Bill says 'here I go, digging in again' when reaching to pick up a peanut in his nieces kitchen in the final episode.

[@michaeld9226]

@@conoroates also when bill said you gotta know what you’re sticking it into. nathan actually smiled

[@AK907LSD25]

I like when he threatens to take away the ladies horse ride as he walks away he covers his mouth and looks like hes trying to hide a smile

[@valeriag9443]

YES I was watching that episode yesterday and Nathan’s reaction took me out of the episode

[@leahdresser2290]

Yes!!!! My boyfriend and I quote that damn scene so much. Whenever anyone says they're scared, we say "Drink the grandson's pee!" Lol. Best show ever.

[@brettricker9049]

"Genuinely shocked and concerned for her safety" Nathan (monotone voice): Are u ok... Sue

[@Mothgoth1]

That’s a serious tone though right?

[@marianoguy]

@@Mothgoth1 exactly, in real life people would guard their concern a little, so as to not seem to overreact.

[@ich243]

@@marianoguy man i dont know... Sue legit looked like she had a heart attack or just passed out. She losssst it. I'd be concerned too hahaha.

[@dfhdf4214]

i think it was still mostly just funny to point out Sue's exhausted melted state and that's the nicest way to point it out. doesn't mean he wouldn't be concerned if she actually started having a heart attack. that would genuinely scare him/he'd be calling an ambulance.. i mean he's not an alien guys.. lol

[@vincevvn]

He clearly was being comedic in his tone 100%

[@Nkanyiso_K]

Many philosophers have pondered on this question for thousands of hours

[@truenickspivak]

Some say it’s linked to the fall of Constantinople

[@postbunnie]

@@truenickspivak Istanbul?

[@thejesuschrist]

Finding Francis by Nathan Fielder should be required study for all high school students.

[@voztoklov1393]

Hey thanks for dying for my sins man

[@DragonsFrogs]

@@voztoklov1393 seriously, you’re a real stand up guy JC...well I guess its kind of cheating if you’re nailing your body to wood but still

[@takahashierik]

Preach

[@DilgFLIX]

Dude that felt like a Nathan for you movie in the spirit of movies based on other shows and felt conclusive to the shows narrative.

[@WHITEPERSUAS1ON]

Youre always surfing on your Crucifix in the comments. Love you Jesus

[@FreddyMacT]

He is acting... but his style is so bizzarre. He is just so damn serious and that's the comedy, he talks in a monotone voice, he is very serious and never breaks. It's just an incredible performance and the show was so brilliant.

[@myfriendscallmepat]

He broke a tiny bit when the gas station dude told him he drank piss, but he is so iron faced.

[@Alex-lf5yi]

100%. This is an interesting video, but I'm not sure how anyone could think he's not acting. If he didn't know how weird and funny it all was, there's no way he'd just accidentally stumble into 4 perfect seasons of TV. Plus he does drop his character somewhat during that AMA.

[@forposterity4031]

He's just doing Andy Kaufman's style pretty much.

[@tomyoung2682]

Are you watching his new show on HBO? It’s called The Rehearsal and I highly recommend it. It essentially takes Nathan for You up a level or two.

[@FreddyMacT]

@@tomyoung2682 nah haven't caught it yet, but I can only imagine how much more elevated they take the discomfort.

[@Lomi311]

The one thing we know for sure about Nathan is that he is fun. It’s been scientifically proven.

[@94_pu]

😂😂😂

[@cheydinal5401]

I remember Nathan's best bit ever, where he had an interview with his boss at the Canadian public TV channel he was working for, and at some point he pressed him on whether he actually watched his bits. The guy said yes, but as he pressed him more, it became more and more awkward, as it became clear that the guy had just been lying.

[@ShivamSharma-5622]

"don't do this to me Nathan" (Nathan smiles then regains composure) "You haven't watched a single show have you?"

[@cube2fox]

Or one where he interviewed an expert on how to hack the Emmy Awards while hinting that this is very much what he wants people to do.

[@Hect0rx]

Ethan Klein met him at a party and said on a later podcast that Nathan acts the same way (monotone, awkward) in real life and that he was confused about whether he's getting trolled by Nathan or not

[@inlinechris]

It’s pretty obvious that’s his “character”. Just like how Larry the cable guy is always in character

[@SinisterShrink]

I mean Nathan himself said that his character is just a slightly exaggerated version of his actual personality

[@Mackenzie-s4q]

Fupa troopa?👀

[@handsoap3346]

@@Mackenzie-s4q family

[@Mackenzie-s4q]

@@handsoap3346 family

[@internetshaquille]

i came for Nathan Answers but I left with Shaquille Questions :/

[@NowYouSeeIt]

OMG Internet Shaquille!!! Big fan, I've watched all your videos. KZbinrs with separate full-time jobs who hate the Attention Economy unite!

[@Spaghettaboutit]

Staaaaaaaay Salty!

[@scarredfanumberone]

shaquille ALL IN !

[@GreMLinSLoveCoOkies]

@@NowYouSeeIt are you.... acting ? ... :3

[@Maestro-gh2ei]

AYOOO

[@Linkzcap]

The title of the show says it all, "This is Nathan (for you)"

[@altangerelol]

Brah

[@oxxenchillero]

Dang

[@matthewdavis8774]

Perfect

[@sbv7210]

Omg you nailed it

[@thatonegirludontknow]

I met the caricature artist he had on the show, the one he turned into “The King of Sting” - that show definitely had real life impact! He now gets lots of celebrity gigs and commissions wanting him to roast them like he did on the show. He didn’t have any say in the direction Nathan had him go in, but it ended up working out well. It’s honestly really cool to see.

[@charles67198]

That's pretty cool

[@billyjackoff]

"I like this!"

[@JordanBeagle]

Yeah, that one was actually amazing

[@NoUploadJustComment]

I met Nathan on the street after one of his talking events. I was waiting for a ride and I noticed he was standing a few feet away trying to pet a cat on the sidewalk. Nice guy. He liked my LCD Soundsystem shirt (turns out we went to the same show).

[@postbunnie]

Wouldn't you have had to have gone to the same show? If he was the one performing at the talking event, and you went to see him, you had to have known before meeting him on the street.

[@Oliver_Hallowee]

@@postbunnie they had seen LCD soundsystem performance

[@postbunnie]

@@Oliver_Hallowee oooo Same band concert! That makes wayyyy more sense. Lol

[@juma__]

I think Nathan is like the old magician from "The Prestige", a true artist committed to his craft.

[@NowYouSeeIt]

Yes!!!! This almost went into the video, but when we added it in, it totally did not fit the tone of the video haha

[@danlightened]

That's what exactly came to my mind, watching another such video.

[@shwift8789]

Dude went to school with Seth Rogen. I think he is putting on a show for the camera. Nobody can be that consistently self aware and hilarious without knowing it.

[@kymandjamesshh]

Went to Humber University in Canada

[@broomguy7]

Nathan is a completely accurate representation of how all Canadians actually act on a regular day. I don't see why everyone has so much issue figuring out that it's real.

[@samueljohnson541]

This almost reminds me of when Filthy Frank used to leave in errors. Like when he woke up his neighbors filming or when random people would just ignore him.

[@victheimpa15]

I remember I think it was in bad internet rappers where he was in public stalls and he threw his mixtape on some guys feet and he got caught so he and his friend ran, it was hilarious I love seeing little bits like that left in

[@devilex121]

rip papa franku :(

[@mirandacooper4878]

A buddy of mine who works behind the scenes at Knotts Berry Farm saw him at a Halloween scary maze walk through type thing. He was completely alone and still being as weird and awkward as he is on the show, apparently.

[@Mark-td6wh]

Really

[@lemonwhxre]

He was just in character

[@BritneyLaZonga]

Well, obiously he was not alone and he knew it. Even an audience of one is an audience.

[@ivpt]

Nathan knew real people would act in front of the camera so he put them in awkward and absurd situations, to squeeze what's real

[@courtney4093]

this video deserves a pulitzer it's literally like a doctoral thesis in performance studies

[@ignaciomartinez6245]

I feel the same way, although I'm sure the film students are all going "duh, what's new"

[@Lonnie123]

Lol for real. I came for a yes or no answer and got a dissertation on the TV landscape and audience viewing behavior over the last 30 years

[@jeb1691]

He took an acting program at my college! Not one of Canada's top business schools though, unfortunately.

[@maxgamesst1]

Must not have been him, everyone knows the real Nathan Fielder graduated from one of Canadas top buisness schools with pretty good grades

[@kymandjamesshh]

Humber!

[@emillelee5999]

yess he was with seth rogen right?

[@Rauldlg8]

I can’t believe that i just found out about this show this year. One of the funniest shows of all time. Thank you for this video!

[@sariyordi5835]

I feel all of this can be applied to Jordan Schlansky. He's not a main character but the "acting vs not acting" dilemma is alive and well with this dude

[@timelapsega]

I think the only thing "fake" about his shows is his awkwardness level, because only someone with supreme confidence could do some of the shit he does. I think Nathan is going to go down in history as one of the great comics of our time. Yes he knows how to make a show funny but he also is a master of human behavior, which often leads to very profound insights. Very few comedy shows can make you feel such a wide range of emotions.

[@eladguitar]

I agree

[@ewan897]

Nathan for You is one of the most genius and original television shows in recent years. I can't help but laugh at virtually everything Nathan does, as it seems he's always (very cleverly and convincingly) playing this fabricated character that perfectly combats the expectations of what reality television is normally like.

[@CelicGames]

Watch The Rehersal, its basically a sequel

[@germainprieto1320]

Clicked for Nathan and got wayyy more than I expected thank you for the deep dive into reality tv. Great video!

[@brayden6449]

I like how the second search result was, “ is Nathan Fielder single?”

[@vipidy]

This kind of mockumentary format is quite established in the UK, so it kind of feels like, "yeah, of course it's acting". Think all Sacha Baron Cohen work in the late 90s, which was part of a bigger show doing the same with different characters.

[@LukeRohling]

Finding Frances is unironically some of the best filmmaking in recent years

[@brantub]

There really is no mystery. He's a very unique and experienced comedian. Every moment he is being filmed, like Sacha Baron Cohen or other next level prank performers, he is always 'in character' and always 'acting'.

[@jajo492]

Exactly, there is no mystery. Well put!

[@seventeensixty-nine6092]

You touched on so many topics and amazing shows--- from Fleabag to The Office to the movie Eighth Grade-- all to answer a one simple question about Nathan. I just loved how this whole episode felt like a journey and it offered a visual representation of how the brain of a movie geek or a TV geek is continuously resonated while watching something. It shows us why we geeks love the things we love. Loved it.

[@Varphi_]

🙌🏽🙌🏽

[@denimchicken104]

I’m dying to know the full truth of every second of the show, and yet, I also don’t want to shatter any of the illusions.

[@jacobnussbaum2309]

Fastest click of my life. We STAN Nathan Fielder

[@gregai8456]

He broke character once on the drunk antique shopping episode. So yes he is acting. He even said that as soon as the cameras roll other people start acting just for the camera.

[@mikegribanov6105]

Nathan For You has more humanity and depth in its portrayal of our world than just about anything on TV right now.

[@graham1034]

In some sense, we are nearly always acting. Even alone people lie to themselves or have a biased view of themselves that informs their actions. It's more like a spectrum of authenticity rather than a binary acting or not acting

[@jonb3167]

If you're fraud then be that.

[@tony6795]

@@jonb3167 Acting like a tough guy, eh?

[@josuepena269]

I reached this conclusion on lsd too. As it was wearing off if became easier to "act" like myself. I realized i didn't know how to be authentic or what that meant. We just get used to acting a certain role and "performing" a certain way.

[@badboy-si4jg]

Nathan for You is the one show that everyone i know loves. i could watch this with my mom, dad, brother, sister, girlfriend and all my homies, and we’d all be sitting there cracking up.

[@Kilroyan]

I find that entire concept - everyday life as performance, as acting - incredibly interesting. Why am I acting one way to this friend, but a different way to another? What am I trying to express, how do I want to be seen? Who am I posting on social media for? There's so much you can learn about yourself when viewed through a performativity lense.

[@leeskerry1609]

Perfect timing, I have been binge watching this show for two weeks!

[@BennyHarveyRIP]

One things for sure. Quiznos use chef inspired sauces.

[@Mr_Case_Time]

I oftentimes comment on social media as a “character”. It’s my real profile that I’m using, but I say things that don’t necessarily reflect my true feelings because it’s more interesting to have conversations with strangers as someone who thinks differently than I do. Does that make sense? Maybe it doesn’t, I don’t know.

[@isabellamorris7902]

This is interesting. Do you tend to have a consistent idea of the character you're acting out when you post? How detailed is the character perspective you're working from?

[@Mr_Case_Time]

@@isabellamorris7902 not really. Usually it’s just a character that’s at least somewhat ignorant to what is being discussed, regardless of the level of actual knowledge I have on the subject. That way I get to ask more questions about it, rather than just saying what I already know. I actually learn a lot that way. People are more willing to explain their case to someone if they think they’re actually teaching something.

[@youlooksuperfly5463]

Nathan breaks only three times in the whole series from what they show in Nathan For You. One time with a gas station attendant who admits to drinking his grandsons pee and offers it to Nathan, another time when he meets two drunk brothers who brag about tag teaming girls they meet (it’s very quick but you see him painfully hold back a smile and bite his tongue hard), and finally on the last episode when an old impersonator he’s talking to says “you better know what you’re sticking it in” when talking about using escorts to Nathan. Those moments in the show are absolute gold.

[@96deloused]

“The Rehearsal” adds a whole new layer to this question 👀

[@mercenarytao7930]

The question at the end around 19:28 which can be boiled down to, "when people know they are being watched, are they putting on a show or being their authentic selves?" is thought provoking. It implies people naturally put on a show for others and that we are our most authentic when we think no one is watching us. Even then, when completely alone, the mind is always watching itself so are we ever truly authentic or do we still put on a show even to ourselves? I'll conclude with a Kurt Vonnegut quote that I think provides a bit of optimism and cautionary guidance to this paradox: "We are what we pretend to be, so we must be careful about what we pretend to be."

[@DreamingOfTheHeart]

I cannot wait to hear your thoughts on The Rehearsal.

[@GheyForGames]

honestly the show is soo beyond genius in its execution i was genuinely blown away when i found out that it was as real as any other reality tv show as i was convinced something that absurd had to have been 100% scripted. nobody has ever been this committed to a bit before

[@cornqueen9391]

My favorite character break is the photo of him with his pet fly…he looks so happy

[@npcimknot958]

hahahha and him laughing at thr ghost sex LOL

[@gentianviolet2785]

i really needed this video 😭

[@ethanomcbride]

My mom was always weirded out that I could properly pronounce “realtor” when I was a toddler.

[@TXMusicalNerd]

Hands-down the funniest show on TV

[@VinhTheKitchen]

I was hoping you'd touched on his work on This Hour Has 22 Minutes. Growing up watching him do those segments I knew what a genius he was destined to be!

[@camazotzz]

I'm a person who didn't learn how to preform for people until my mid-twenties, I was aggressively authentic which was incredibly liberating, but also meant i had few friends, I never cared until i realized that having friends is very useful. I think its better in the long run because its a mask that I'm conscious of, where it seems to be harder for most people to know who they are from their projected persona.

[@fnpoolguy]

Holy shit

[@clairbear1234]

Would you identify on the autism spectrum ?

[@camazotzz]

@@clairbear1234 I don't think its an identity so much as a diagnosis. I was testted for autism when i was a kid at the behest of the public school machine and I'm not autistic. I think autistic people have trouble developing these masks too, but I don't think its difficult for me, I just didn't do it til later in life.

[@clairbear1234]

@@camazotzz Good points. I have just been wondering about where the line is drawn for autism vs other neurodivergence. Seems like there is a lot of grey area. Thanks for sharing your story

[@Saranap-y4n]

yeah he's actually a really chill and relaxed guy in real life

[@Lmask13]

I love how slowly you hammer the point home, fantastic vid

[@RG_77]

How brilliantly you broke that down!!

[@dougiehockeym8071]

Excellent insight! Great video to watch before the premiere of The Rehearsal!

[@ericw712]

Hear me out: Nathan Fielder is the modern day Andy Kaufman

[@CreamFraiche]

He's acting as a very plain and awkward person. Instead of being a person people can bounce off of he acts as like a social brick wall that people just run into and he catches their reactions. Also a lot of this is described by the Hawthorne effect

[@clairbear1234]

This is a great analogy. It kind of forced other peoples performance to drop, almost like an improv show where one of the participants drops the ball.

[@amalia7513]

Have you seen Pretend That You Love Me by Joel Haver? It dovetails perfectly into what you're talking about in this video - the blend of reality with fiction, authentic versus projected self, but with the purpose of exploring how we strive for authentic connection despite all these hindrances of projection. It's really beautiful and made me cry, I strongly recommend it.

[@hahathatsgood]

He shares a family resemblance with a lot of these shows / creators

[@noelvalenzarro]

Yeah I couldn’t really tell where reality split from the film. It was amazing.

[@NemorisInferioris]

We're always acting because we have egos, and we protect them by projecting our own idea of ourselves for others. We're weird.

[@quinterbeck]

One of problems with performativity is that it sneaks in this idea that there's a 'real you' distinct from what others see, and you enact a variation of that because of subconscious intent - which isn't necessarily true. It's certainly good to ask "what desire is driving my behaviour in this situation?" That question could unearth something good about you, or bad! But personally, I don't want to conceptualise my ways of being and relating as performative - I believe we can find much better metaphors than performance.

[@fajn]

Wow I didn't expect such a great video!

[@Real_Talkz]

I miss Nathan for you so much

[@PixeletDan]

the rehearsal is just as good.

[@npcimknot958]

imagine if Nathan did this to youtubers LOL it would blow their minds.

[@Real_Talkz]

@@npcimknot958 his new show the rehearsal is one step away from him doing it to KZbinrs haha

[@sadmermaid]

Is this the same channel that dissected the Casey Frey video? You guys are brilliant.

[@shortcutDJ]

i love Nathan regardless if it's acting or not, it's brilliant.

[@RockBarnRecords]

Same, I don't even care. He is entertaining regardless, but you can't help but analyze his persona because it's so bizarre.

[@HauntedVault]

Not one Andy Kaufman reference this entire video. I want my money back.

[@thanglee2345]

i discovered the show today and was thrilled and wanted to know more. Now i double down and discover an amazing video essayist

[@Nkanyiso_K]

13:50 *Nathan Posts Photo* and chuckles to himself: *"Good one Nathan"*

[@Afrosy19]

Excellent breakdown. Very impressive editing and examples.

[@benkrauss5041]

This video was so well done, good job!

[@desladiablesse]

was not expecting moonlight and eighth grade to be referenced in a video about nathan for you but i couldn’t be happier about it

[@quinlanhogan7543]

He plays a character, but for himself and his purposes. He just allows us to watch

[@philippwieczorek2141]

Really great video, thanks for putting in the Time

[@scottywalkinghere]

super well done, as always !

[@WojocoleShorts]

I'd say Nathan solves the Fight Club dilemma also: A cpl of big themes in Fight Club are the feeling (and the strong revulsion towards the feeling) of being entangled in a culture where authenticity is considered discordant; where coworkers see each other everyday but dont know how to relate to each other; and where the thin masks ppl put on, in order to climb the corporate ladder, have a tendency to meld into your real face, if left unattended. It's as if Fight Club and the other shows that were mentioned in this video helped future creators in society notice these cultural dilemmas.. and then those ppl grew up and discovered a cultural solution that proves there's a functional and acceptable social role within society that can serve as a portal out of these cultural cages we all individually hide our real selves behind.

[@williamsussman7343]

I loved this so much I saved it to favs, which I don’t think I’ve ever done (on purpose). Thank you.

[@alexiryo]

This is a BRILLIANT video! A completely unexplored topic (Or at least I haven't seen it explored before) that is constantly presented to us and we don't even realize, and even more so we contribute to. So glad you were able to explore this topic using Nathan Fielder, one of the funniest people of the generation.

[@andreasleonhard1512]

You do see Nathan break character. It's just rare. One example is when the gas station owner tells Nathan that his grandma told him that drinking a young boy's pee would help if you are nervous (or something along the lines of that). He cracks up and genuinely curious about what he is saying.

[@gentianviolet2785]

aww elsie fisher from eighth grade at 1:24❤️

[@BarnabyCodswallow]

Man the title of this video does not do it justice. Amazing video, I loved the insight about how characters aware of the audience have changed over time. genius

[@BenBonk]

Nathan for you is the best tv show.

[@johnnybadboy3475]

Totally agree

[@BenBonk]

@@johnnybadboy3475 sus?

[@charlesbook8229]

That was an incredible video!

[@swifteh1780]

This show had myself and partner in tears laughing. Absolute genius comedy.

[@brianphillips6463]

Interesting viewing Fleabag from a reality TV lens. When I watched it I saw more like the one-woman play that led to the series. Its a slightly different setup because the other characters can't see the audience but Fleabag can, like we're the voice inside her head, or we're watching her show us something, or we're the voice inside her head. There's definitely aspects of performance for the audience, but i saw it almost like an ironic detachment from her own actions caused by shame rather than playing for the camera.

[@Marshenanigans]

This is SUCH a well made video. Props.

[@MarietyShow]

I literally found Nathan like a month ago so this came out at a perfect time

[@Meekox]

The talk about fleabag reminded me of the movie Perfect Blue which came in the 90's it was way ahead of its time

[@kanyenotthatone5275]

this video has given me a lot to think about. thank you so much.

[@NowYouSeeIt]

I'm so glad!

[@Arthurguy95]

Whenever I hear someone bring up Fleabag, I know for a fact that they are a person of taste.

[@itsnicetoseeyou]

"Toooo much stubble, let's get that beard all gone" there's real emotion in those lyrics

[@SarahSnow99]

having been raised on old-school history documentaries, the death of the history channel is still something i mourn

[@samwellick1706]

History channel as well as Mtv

[@BostonMBrand]

When I watch episodes of ancient aliens or hunting for Hitler, I often wonder if these guys are legit or if they’re acting? I hope it’s the latter because they try to prove some of the dumbest shit I’ve ever heard.

[@rek8193]

I wish I could watch this show because it seems funny, but my full body reaction to the awkward makes it impossible to enjoy.

[@barzontus]

the only show with powerful enough cringe that I have to pause at some of the jokes to take a break

[@RockBarnRecords]

You gotta power through it, man! The reward is worth the pain.

[@loljoker127]

great man thanks for the video x

[@TheJagga100]

Brillant Video, Made me think about the Show Even More.

[@romainmaille8584]

Really good video, good comparisons and great writing, thanks !

[@AriannaLuxAeterna]

I’d love to know your take on The Rehearsal

[@liamp6491]

Wow this is a good video the final conclusion and question was really great and expanded what I thought would be a simple video