Minor Celeb | Max Joseph | TEDxManchester

A couple years ago Max unexpectedly became a minor celebrity, entering a whole new world of experiences, etiquette and awkward situations. Here are the funniest, weirdest and most insightful parts of the journey and what it has revealed to him about human nature. Max Joseph is a filmmaker who grew up in New York, lives in Los Angeles, and shoots all over the world. He is perhaps best known as the co-host of the MTV reality TV series entitled “Catfish: The TV Show” which investigates the murkier end of the online dating world. He has written, directed, and produced over 70 short films that have screened at Sundance, Telluride, and SXSW. Max’s short film “Follow the Frog” was featured as one of TED’s Ads Worth Spreading in 2013. He most recently co-wrote and directed the film WE ARE YOUR FRIENDS starring Zac Efron and Emily Ratajkowski. He is also a frequent collaboroter with KZbin filmmaker Casey Neistat. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at www.ted.com/tedx

[@soysaucegirl2007]

Been watching Catfish since the start and never, ever thought of Max as a sidekick. It has always been an equal partnership, and a fine one at that. His no nonsense attitude to the catfishers is a reality check that makes me laugh each week.

[@justinterry7853]

I mean the real deal is always the best deal

[@MrBiswas123]

This guy is so underrated.....

[@chaimaeelgharbaoui3023]

i support that

[@033_gauravpatel8]

Cannot agree more.

[@beckyandrus3977]

I think Max's work on Catfish has been so helpful for so many people in this country who needed help with relationship issues. I think his work on this show was so much more meaningful and impactful than any movie or anything else really. He helped out with something this country needs so desperately: Help with relationship issues. People just don't get the training in self-esteem and relationships that they need in this country. And he was so good at it: He and Nev both were so helpful to so many. Look at all the homicides around relationships and subsequent marriages. I feel stories like the O.J. Simpson case and countless stories like that just don't have to be if the right healthy relationship training were available.

[@AK-bx1ot]

Max is a MAJOR celebrity to me. If I ever ran into him, I'd probably cry.

[@itsautomaticfaegirl]

boo same

[@mostlytrue3150]

You could get him to come to you. All you need to do is wait for him to go back on catfish, then create a fake profile and get someone to fall madly in love with you, and refuse to see them in person.

[@60sbabydoll777]

Parasocial brain rot

[@amazed92]

Shame Max has decided to quit catfish. It won't be the same without him

[@beautronics]

Max Joseph is a lovely humble talented and smart man. He's gonna do great things, I'm sure of it.

[@RobinMarconeCassidyRN]

Catfish won't be the same without Max, he was such a brilliant part of the show. Definitely going to miss his presence😥

[@hannahtrecovery]

I love MAX! He is the realist to Nev's optimism. Max calls BS, and gets tough with the Catfish and he has the absolute best facial expressions on the show!!!! Each season Nev, is getting better at being more skeptical with these Catfish. I missed Max when he was filming his movie. The substitute Maxes were OK but can't fill Max's shoes~! I keep hoping I will run into Max and Nev at an airport/airplane, cafe or at a park. HAHA!

[@SoftTangerineDreams]

No one will ever be able to fully replace Max and I will always miss him even when someone else comes along. The show just isn't that enjoyable without him to me. Max's smile seriously lights up the entire room.

[@beckyandrus3977]

I love Max too! I think he did an invaluable service to mankind on that show. So many in our culture need help with self-esteem issues, relationship issues and how to conduct a successful and meaningful life. He could really do great things in these areas if he were to get back on Catfish with Nev or another similar type of show.

[@JOVIJOLEE]

I hope to see Max more his personality is great! And him and Nev mesh so well together. Hopefully they’ll do more projects outside of Catfish together as well!

[@zaysay5422]

Max is as important as nev in the show

[@SaraH-jn5db]

"Getting hugged from strangers is a pretty nice thing" cut to compilation of max whining whenever nev hugs him

[@teachermichelle9632]

Max...you were never a sidekick!

[@JimmyGrl09]

Max your awesome!!! Catfish isn’t the same without you!!! I love his blunt honesty!

[@rinisonline4312]

i cannot articulate how much i love him

[@dukees4612]

Max was actually the reason I watched the show now and again. I heard he quit the show, not much reason to watch it now. Nice to see him in a TED talks, although I did not expect that. By the way , I would definitely now who he is if I saw him in the street. :)

[@teachermichelle9632]

Max is honestly one of the last remaining good human beings on this planet. I loved this tedtalk. I am going to be a better person.

[@Rob_-dv6ei]

I never saw catfish, but I subbed to this guy's KZbin channel and love his stuff.

[@geminizing]

Such a good talk! I definitely don’t see him as a sidekick on the show. His point of view as a “minor celeb” is quite interesting; I definitely learned a thing or two.

[@Max-ur7sx]

Such a good ted talk glad I found this

[@audreyhilton4570]

Max: Your point at 12:44 really hit me! I feel this in any sort of approach when talking to people. And then you go on to mention your #3 takeaway which made me a bit sad. I never thought about this. Thank you for the change of perspective!

[@TheHollyChronicle]

Max’s KZbin videos are incredible!

[@alanatheunicorn]

ugh hes so wise and his brain is huge i love him

[@maryannehajducky8716]

I love you, Max.

[@MS-rj8dp]

I’ve been watching Catfish for several seasons! You and Nev make an awesome pair! And a great Ted Talk Max!

[@AeromaticXD]

He’s just amazing.

[@danhle7999]

I love his short films on youtube, it seems like he put a lot into them, he is probably deserve more

[@rosemarystewart3335]

Love this!

[@Kas_Styles]

Great talk. Max did good

[@sagarparani1370]

Max you are simply awesome. I love your “Book Stores” video. Thank you❤

[@SoftTangerineDreams]

I loved this! Love Max!

[@shamblesx2801]

Good talk Max

[@hgam12]

Max, I love you.

[@hgam12]

I'm so glad I saw his tweet

[@apricott]

i love this man so much

[@gumsguey]

Max!!! I love him so much. He's the older brother I wish I had.

[@gabes3dvideos]

“You don’t know me, but I’m famous. I’ve prepared this talk explaining it”.

[@fatoumattajobarteh2357]

Max is just Great!

[@dave-bailey]

This is a great talk (with a terrible title)... super informative, nicely done Max.

[@feliciav.4158]

Love you max !

[@TheDee1894]

Oh sweet Lord! Well, this stranger loves you even more now!

[@millardthompson6844]

I KNOW YOU LOVE YOUR SHOW YOU WERE BROUGHT UP VERY GOOD

[@dancoffey8412]

Catfish is a public service and a warning for the gullible population that relies on JUST the internet for personal relationships. It teaches that knowing real, physical people is far better than relying upon photos and words alone. I hope Max can get on the VIP list he hopes for.

[@38waystoThink]

I miss max he wasn't caught in the fairytale he was real and funny Young Silver Fox as well

[@Homieskillettt]

Me giving a presentation in school

[@katecristina2216]

Max, I'm your big fan

[@moniponi2176]

Max is great. Intelligent and funny. And very handsome, almost forgot to mention.

[@gabrielgrassmayrtoo]

I would recognize him from “follow the frog”

[@lily-cc1sw]

was really hoping he'd play the harp

[@logankomprood1482]

That girl he described during the Bus Tour story was definitely his side ting

[@BDPRx3]

Miss you Max❤️

[@hollybronwyn8176]

Oh, *I'd* recognize you. ... truly enjoy you & Nev & I am likely 25 years past the "normal" age of a "Catfish" watcher. ah, well. ;)

[@Amy-fg6in]

Holly Bronwyn Same here! 💙

[@DoniaEcker]

Woohoo, me too!

[@yellowroze]

Add me to that list as well! We could form our own group lol

[@peccantknavery6356]

I love Max! Max, when you leave the show to work on something else, my family is like “Why is this person taking Max’s place? Where's Max?” We don't enjoy the show as much as when you're there. I love it when you get pissed at some of the Catfishes and call them out. I hope we get to see more of you.

[@umamahal9078]

Man i thought this was a comedy show... don’t regret watching

[@swisscanadian9695]

Thanks Nev for your funny and interesting talk ;)))

[@burnpoet]

Nice guy.

[@millardthompson6844]

LOVE YOUR SHOW LEARN FROM IT TOO

[@parish5537]

god he's the best

[@Offo_Aditi]

Someone from other country admires you alot, isn't minor celeb thing love from🇮🇳

[@Pauuu81]

I' ve had a crush on Max ever since the show started.😍 Now I'm grey-haired too.

[@astridkehl4729]

Max i think your Great!!

[@evernightrose5152]

Oh oh! He didn't explain why major celebs don't get to see the best side of people

[@itsautomaticfaegirl]

Always saw him and Nev as equals. If I ever would visit the US, and magically happen to meet him, I would totally want to become friends with him and listen to his questions! Why wouldn't you be interested in what this smart, caring and handsome man has to say? No disrespect to him or his wife, but he will remain a big crush to me haha ^.^ Hope he's very happy

[@lewismatthews4247]

People show their best selves for celebrities, not their true selves. They would just be fake in that moment because they are shallow enough to do that.

[@Heideberry]

Peter berg Catfished you.

[@missUn1verse81]

No such thing as a minor celebrity 😁 He's very handsome. His wife is lucky.

[@jenniferwatts3777]

Hi max it's me Jennifer

[@orvil9223]

Not quite getting the laughs he had hoped to get, lol.

[@YVRCasting]

Maxwell, practice so you omit the Uhms. I'mma charge you $100 errr time! Come on, man. You're the best guy xo Casey

[@mhyryndenoa1723]

Love Max, but this talk wasn't very engaging. I do wonder what he's doing these days...

[@carltoncotter2614]

Everything wrong with the world in < 20 minutes, although so boring I couldn't even make it to 5 minutes...

[@_birdie]

Carlton Cotter haha so you’re saying it’s the cinemasins of Ted Talks?

[@hrhbear]

who would want to know what its like to be a tv show minor celebrity about max ???????....the show he was working on with Zak Ephron that he left cat fish for fell flat and got very poor ratings, so what does that tell you about how talented he is???.,,.,,, says alot!.......,,.Max is very boring as a speaker,...what is he there to say?...he acts like hes grasping for words and I do hope he didnt get paid very much to talk there about nothing!....I wouldnt want to have paid money to hear him talk so much but say so little! It would have been betterif he and Nev had both attended and spoke about the most shocking catfish ever in the show!.....This is so embarrasing to see him giving a talk about nothing interesting...once again, another bomb for Max!........

[@r.t.b615]

😠 party pooper!

[@jasonmc1199]

Like max but worst Ted talk I've seen

[@radicaldude36]

This is just some half grade actor / writer talking about his ego for 20 minutes. Even if you're someone actually famous like Beyonce, doing a TED talk centered around your "celebrity", what it means to the world, how your "struggle" is is unique and important, is just narcissistic and embarrassing

[@Andrew-mm5qn]

After watching a few of his works, I can say that he is not that type of guy. He’s also not really an actor or a writer. He’s a film maker.

[@djvdiddy]

I like max, but honestly can't stand his leftist political advertising on his shirts he wears on the show....

[@alexs.3383]

why

[@millardthompson6844]

I BUY MY HUSBANDS THINGS LIKE MAX WEARS LOVE HIS STYLE

[@ugh4387]

that's the beauty of politics, tho. you may not like it or agree but politics allows freedom of expression/speech and means he can wears what he likes. if you're right leaning (which it seems you are, considering you don't like max's style) then you'd be applauding the fact that freedom of expression works, you can say this comment, he can wear what he wants, that's the beauty of what politics is all about

[@djvdiddy]

@@ugh4387 it's not the beauty of politics, you mean it's the beauty of freedom. And clearly as a conservative I have zero problem with his right to do so. It's just the forum in which to push an agenda. It doesn't just go 1 way. I have the freedom to voice my opinion that I don't like it, or care for what his shirts stand for. Can he do it? Yes! Can I disagree and say I think it's the wrong format to display an agenda? YES!!

[@ugh4387]

@@djvdiddy politics allow said freedom and politics can also take that freedom away. freedom is a political concept.

[@jcroth2644]

I liked the show until I saw him verbally abuse and assault an Uber driver. Totally disgraceful. And apparently he thinks "Um" and "Uh" and "So" and "you know" for fillers in a presentation work just fine. Try Toastmasters.

[@beckyandrus3977]

Max is a MAJOR celebrity to me too as so eloquently said below by AK-bx2ot. I think Max's work on Catfish has been so helpful for so many people in this country who needed help with relationship issues. I think his work on this show was so much more meaningful and impactful than any movie or anything else really. He helped out with something this country needs so desperately: Help with relationship issues. People just don't get the training in self-esteem and relationships that they need in this country. And he was so good at it: He and Nev both were so helpful to so many. Look at all the homicides around relationships and subsequent marriages. I feel stories like the O.J. Simpson case and countless stories like that just don't have to be if the right healthy relationship training were available.