This transcript was automatically generated and might contain errors.

[0:00] Robert Bannon: Are you ready? It's The Roundtable with me, Robert Bannon.

[0:08] Robert Bannon: All right. Can you hear me all right? You look great. We look like we could be brothers, Peter. It's remarkable. We're long lost brothers. We could start another internet sensation. You never know. We could be another. Oh, fudge. Here we are. We're together. Do you get tired of people asking you, yelling things? How many times have people told you, you'll shoot your eye out in your life? It's countless.

[0:32] Peter Billingsley: Yes. Does it make you smile?

[0:32] Robert Bannon: Do I get tired of it? It makes me smile every time. Because truly, and it's how you just opened when I logged onto Zoom, it's with such joy that this movie's been received by so many people. It's brought so much joy to so many people. And that's genuine. And you can really see it. So if you get tired of that, then you're probably in the wrong business.

[0:54] Robert Bannon: Well, look, everyone, this is Peter Billingsley. He's on tour. You know him. He's on television for 24 hours a day from now until the end of time. He's just living on there forever. Plus, he's been an elf. He has directed Couples Retreat. He has produced Iron Man. He has helped The Christmas Story is on. I call it Iron Man because I like to give it official.

[1:15] Peter Billingsley: Yes. Thank you.

[1:15] Robert Bannon: And the musical is on tour as well. And Peter had something to do with that. So he's done it all.

[1:22] Peter Billingsley: Yes. Thank you.

[1:23] Robert Bannon: You're such a good actor that at two years old, you were doing Geritol commercials. That's how good of an actor you are, Peter.

[1:30] Peter Billingsley: Yeah. Well, it's remarkable how long of a career it's been. Started in New York City doing commercials. My family was not in the business, knew nothing about it, thought it might be fun if maybe I got a little something for the scrapbook later in life. And it turned into a full-blown career.

[1:47] Robert Bannon: When you look back to this, how did this movie come to you? Did you have to audition? Was it a hard process?

[1:51] Peter Billingsley: I did. Yeah. By the time I was around 12 when this came up. And so at that point, I had been, I guess, acting for 10 years or so. So you're kind of in the rhythm of it.

[1:56] Robert Bannon: Yeah, exactly. That wasn't me, kid. I was dispelling words of wisdom on every set as a veteran.

[2:09] Peter Billingsley: You would get auditions, pretty regular, a lot of which or most of which you didn't get, you know. And there was a lot of parts on TV and film and commercials and all this stuff. So this was one. It was an audition. I went. Seemed like a cool part. Read for it. Heard nothing. Assumed I didn't get it. I guess they found someone else, which was pretty common. About three months later, I was asked to come screen test for the role.

[2:33] Peter Billingsley: And they did a whole mix and match deal, which can be kind of stressful. I had to learn, I think, like probably Flick and Schwartz's parts and Ralphie's. And they do chemistry reads where they try to get the right mix and match of who's going to play who. And at the end of it, I was sort of the last man standing. And the director said, if you want to play Ralphie, it's yours. And I said, absolutely. And, you know, it was a small movie. It took years and years for them, 12 years for them to get the movie made. The director put his entire salary back into the movie to get it made. This was a labor of love. I know that's a term that's thrown around a lot. It truly was no studio, no production company wanted to support this movie and he was able to get just enough financing to get it off the ground. And it's a great lesson because you see what the movie became and clearly they saw that in the film.

[3:21] Robert Bannon: And it's now a staple. I know that you must—

[3:23] Peter Billingsley: Remarkable.

[3:24] Robert Bannon: Remarkable. You go to stores, I'm sure you go, you see your face. I mean, there's merchandise 40 years later that there's games.

[3:29] Peter Billingsley: Nobody expected that either. Yes, I know. I mean, you expect that on a big science fiction or an action movie or a comic book movie or something, but not from what I call a little talkie like this. You don't really expect it to come from that. So the movie continues to seemingly deliver in ways that I think nobody anticipated and people say, oh, did you know? Nobody had any clue.

[3:55] Peter Billingsley: We'll tell you, I did know this, that because of all the time and passion that went into getting this made, when they were finally given the chance, Bob Clark and Gene Shepard, director and writer, they were so prepared, so focused, so devoted to just trying to make what was kind of their baby at that point. And that was a great lesson for me that you weren't putting the hype machine first or anticipating the results before you had done the work. They just, I always call it a take your lunch pail to work movie. Just show up, know your stuff, we're prepared. Let's just do the best that we can to make this movie. And it turned out to be something really, really special.

[4:36] Robert Bannon: PeterBillingsleyTour.com, everyone, you've decided, and I'm talking about, I'm a nerd, so I was looking at the dates and the tickets. There are not a lot of tickets left, everybody, so you've got to get tickets right now. You hit the road soon. You'll be in New Jersey.

[4:51] Peter Billingsley: A couple of weeks, yes. We start in New Jersey. This is my third year doing this. I've been asked to maybe do some screenings and kind of Q&A type format. It just was hard for me to make the space, and three years ago I did, and I said, okay, I'm committed to doing this, and I loved it. And it's been such a reciprocal. The audiences have loved it. Audiences get to go to a theater, watch the movie with other people, not in their living room, which I know they love and do, but it's a different experience in the theater when everyone's laughing in all the same spots. You're anticipating things. You can feel that energy. And then afterwards I come out and I share a lot of insight into what it was like to make this movie, how it came about, great stories, moments about the cast, and then I turn it over to the audience.

I don't pre-take questions. I let them line up and ask whatever they want, anything they've been wanting to ask me, maybe for a very long time. It's great. We get a couple of big lines and we just go through everyone's questions. So it's a really fun night, and it's been really great, and it's kind of expanded for me. So we're starting a little earlier this year. It's after Halloween, so I guess it's time. It's time. Let's go. It's time. November 14th, all the way till December 20th, and all my Detroit Michiganders that are listening says I moved here two years ago from New Jersey. My first job, Peter Billingsley, was at the Bergen Performing Arts Center selling tickets in the box office.

[6:12] Peter Billingsley: That is amazing. That's where the tour starts.

[6:12] Robert Bannon: Yeah. So we're starting to see my date on 11-14. There's only like 12 tickets left, by the way. I just saw it. I know. And then come to Ann Arbor right here December 5th at the Michigan Theater. I'm coming. Me and my husband are coming. He has six Christmas trees up already.

[6:26] Peter Billingsley: Oh my goodness. I guess you guys like Christmas.

[6:32] Robert Bannon: We love Christmas, and we love your movies, and we love the new one, the old ones. We love Elf. We love all of the things. So we're going to be there.

[6:37] Peter Billingsley: That's awesome. We're there. Get your tickets. Get your tickets. And see, for you, the transition from a lot of people, we just had Melissa Joan Hart, and she was talking about being a child star. And she said growing up in New York and doing theater kind of grounded her in a different way. How did you navigate becoming a grown-up after so much success?

[6:59] Peter Billingsley: Yeah, it's a good question because I think unfortunately it's a difficult transition for a lot of kids. I grew up in New York City as well. I come from a good family. I have four brothers and sisters. So I had chores. I had things to do. I had to fight for my own space in my house. My siblings loved and respected me, but we also challenged each other. So I wasn't always just given the golden chalice in the house because I was on TV or film. It was a very normal life, and my parents worked very hard to ground me. And I think that's really the difference that you see is when you are able to just maintain something normal. I also quite, you know, look, child actors, I know we're in the public eye, we get a lot of that media, but it can be a tough road for an athlete. Somebody who's

[7:44] Peter Billingsley: Showing a lot of aptitude younger, you know, you see the different parents that really treat those athletes in the right way versus maybe the wrong way, allowing them too much fame, too much letting their heads get too big too early. And when they're grounded, you can have a great experience either way, but it relies on your family. And the older I've gotten, the more grateful I am for how my parents raised me. It's incredible. Well, they did a heck of a job. And now you have your dad, and now you get to live in the entertainment business. At some point, you are still on camera, but you went behind the scenes, and you have a lot of fancy friends you work with and great projects you've worked on.

How was that? Was that on purpose, the transition? I had always wanted to do it. And you know, I had opportunities like when you're on the set of A Christmas Story for, I think it was close to three months. You know, that really being on sets were my film school, and I learned that as I got older, just being around the rhythms and understanding. And I would always ask a lot of questions. Bob Clark, director of A Christmas Story, tremendous mentor to me, really gave me access. Let me—this is back when, you know, when you operated the camera on film before the video tap. Now directors sit in front of a screen like this, right? They watch it back. Then the camera operator had to kind of give the thumbs up if we got it.

Let me operate a shot of Darren in the kitchen, hold the wheels and look, and then he said cut, and I gave him a thumbs up that it was focused. You know, got to ride the dolly that they push around the camera. I asked him about lenses and different choices that he was making, and I was always very curious about it. And maybe just consciously or unconsciously realized kind of a wonderful access that I had and really met some tremendous people along the way. So as I got older, I continued to act, but I really shifted into wanting to produce, direct, really be a part of the filmmaking process.

[9:26] Robert Bannon: And you have been, and as an executive producer, and from—I talked about Iron Man, but you know, The Break-Up and Four Christmases, and you know, Elf is the rare group 13 Christmas movie. And I like—I love Vince Vaughn and Reese Witherspoon's chemistry in that movie. And as a person who lives away from home and thinks about not going home, that, you know, what that feels like, very relatable concept, the stress of it. But you still want to go home because it's family. You gotta make the trip, of course. And Craig T. Nelson is weirdly like my dad in many ways. Yes, add that to the list of the lineup. And then when you directed a film, when you directed Couples Retreat, and it was a hit, and it made money, and it was played all the time. Now it's got to feel so different for you as an actor to be a director, to be a producer, that you've checked these boxes off on your bucket list.

[10:14] Peter Billingsley: Yes, it's been great. Obviously, extremely different disciplines. And you know, there's something really fun about being an actor, and I've returned to that a little bit because you come a little later in the process, you leave a little earlier. You know, you're in that great window of filming, but when you're producing, directing, you're involved in all the prep and all the post, which I also love. So listen, I feel very blessed to have, you know, been able to, as you say, check a lot of these boxes and continue just to work on stuff that you're passionate about and really like. And I think that's the key. You gotta be drawn to the material, gotta have a good point of view to want to make it. And then, and then you, because it's gonna take a lot of effort, whether it's a small movie or a big one, it's gonna take about the same amount of time.

[10:56] Robert Bannon: Look, so if he's coming to your neighborhood, you have to get your tickets. Peter Billingsley tour.com. Go see him, get the tickets to certain dates, have a VIP experience. You can get a picture, you could have your moment. He will be there to answer your questions. I have a good question lined up. And the community—I asked this question, I went to one of these, and I said, I wonder what makes people come together to do this? And then I sat in that audience, and you laugh together, you have community together, you bring your kids for the first time. There's something special about watching a movie with a group of people.

[11:23] Peter Billingsley: I completely agree in that sense of community, particularly around the holidays and for families. We're a very family-friendly show. A lot of people bring kids out. You know, as we live in this sort of AI, is it real, is it fake time? It's like, it's me, I'm there, I'm in front of you, we're having a great time. The movie's real, it's in front of you, it's what we made. You don't have to question any of it. You can come out, and I love seeing people really dress up. They dress up very festively. It's a great way to get into the Christmas spirit because you can really, really feel it on people. And it's—we're celebrating a movie that they love that's been a part of their life. And it's really been cool to see the multi-generational families where you'll have grandparents, children, and then their children all come as a clan because this movie has miraculously worked its way down from generation to the next.

And kids still enjoy finding it now and seeing it. And those experiences of being a kid, wanting that great gift, dealing with bullies in school, and all the things that kids still go through today, it makes it a very, a very almost timeless movie, which is remarkable to think about because the movie really takes place in 1940. So we're coming up on a hundred years old in terms of cinema time, but it feels like it was yesterday. People are still navigating the cold, they're dealing with all these things, the stresses of family and Christmas. But there's also something that is so magical about Christmas morning that just releases so much of that. It brings people together, we forgive each other, and we just enjoy that incredible magic. That's what makes it so special, and that's why it lives forever.

[12:55] Robert Bannon: Yes, and it's a Christmas movie that's realistic about real families. It makes me feel warm. I love fantasy, and I love Santa Claus, and I love all the hoopla, but this makes you think of family.

[13:07] Peter Billingsley: Right, it is because it's real. It's not too saccharine, and it's not sort of too dark. It's real. Like there's real fights and arguments, but you know what? No one's leaving that house. There's still a lot of love at that core, which is really, really sweet. So see him around the country. If you don't—if he's not in your neck of the woods, you of course are gonna stream A Christmas Story. You could see A Christmas Story Christmas as well, which must have been a trip to call, right? And be back on the set of that is awesome.

[13:32] Peter Billingsley: Yes, it was fun to get the band back together. Really great to imagine where these characters were later. And I had been asked maybe a sequel kind of right after. It never came, and then it was about letting the right amount of time to pass. And the idea of exploring Ralphie as a father was really exciting to me, and is a great way in to think, oh yeah, what kind of dad is he? What is he going through now? And it's that great flip because in A Christmas Story, as a kid, all you want is, right, the greatest Christmas gift for you. But as a parent, all you want is for your kid's Christmas to be great. And that becomes that same pursuit of a great Christmas, but it's for someone else, not really for yourself anymore.

[14:09] Robert Bannon: That's—oh, Peter Billingsley, I love that transition of that. We like life, right?

[15:26] Peter Billingsley: Merry Christmas back at you.

[15:30] Peter Billingsley: Yes, life. Yes, and that's what I think the first movie captured so well. Well, we'll be celebrating with you all. We'll be watching the movie. We'll be there on the 5th in Ann Arbor. We're going to see A Christmas Story at the Fisher Theatre. The musical is on tour, and we'll be here, so Detroit's showing up for you.

[15:47] Peter Billingsley: Detroit is showing up. I love it. We're sure, we're happy. It's cold enough. Put your tongue on the pole. Don't—okay, don't put your tongue on the pole. Don't put your tongue on the pole. And let's celebrate together. It's an honor. You are such a part of our—I hope these checks keep coming for the end of time in your mailbox. They should be. This movie will play forever. It will exceed all of us. It will be here and a part of the holidays forever.

[15:58] Peter Billingsley: Well, Robert, I appreciate it. It's a real, real pleasure to meet you as well. Thank you for being here. Everybody go to the website. Kicks off right in my hometown, right in New Jersey, in Angola, New Jersey, performing at Brigham Performing Arts Center November 14th all the way to the 20th. Seattle, Washington, Peter Billingsley is going coast-to-coast to show you, to introduce you to the Christmas spirit and season this year with A Christmas Story live with him. Go see it and check it out. Thank you for being here, my show. I love you. Thank you ever. I hope you have a really, really merry, merry Christmas.