Comedian David Cross on His New Tour, Dealing With Criticism and If 'Arrested Development' Should Come Back

David Cross is simply a self-described "professional talker," but let's spell up and grow connected that bio conscionable a bit. Cross is 1 of nan funniest quality beings connected this satellite we telephone Earth, touting a resume that is perfectly littered pinch iconic drama creations — Mr. Show, Arrested Development and his latest special, Worst Daddy successful nan World, to sanction a few.

He's very funny — and very busy. He presently hosts nan podcast Senses Working Overtime pinch David Cross and put together a show, David Cross and His Super Pals, which will characteristic nan likes of Bob Odenkirk, Sarah Silverman and Fred Armisen New York City's SummerStage successful Central Park connected August 8. Also connected August 8, he'll prima successful nan 4th and last play of The Umbrella Academy, and aft that? He's hitting nan roadworthy pinch his caller drama tour, David Cross: The End of nan Beginning of nan End.

Yes, he is very busy. But happily, not excessively engaged that he couldn't find clip to beryllium down for a chat for an upcoming section of nan How Success Happens podcast. I was nan different personification progressive successful that chat, truthful I tin show you that Cross was some hilarious and insightful arsenic he elaborate his way from drama nine newbie to 1 of nan apical comedians moving today.

Here are immoderate sneak peeks astatine our conversation, which person been edited for magnitude and clarity. Enjoy!

On creating caller worldly for specials

"Like astir comics, erstwhile you do a typical and your stuff's retired there, unfortunately, that worldly is done," Cross says. "Standup is nan only spot wherever this exists successful nan arts. That worldly is done. You pain it. You've sewage to commencement caller each azygous time. When I commencement out, I don't person a peculiar taxable successful mind. I riff a lot, and past bits will expand, and I constitute connected stage. So, nan worldly I'm doing astatine nan extremity of nan circuit is different than nan beginning. When it comes clip to make a special, I ever request to trim immoderate worldly I've developed because I don't want to beryllium up location for 2 hours. I'll ever person astir 20 minutes of worldly that I haven't done yet that I tin transportation into nan caller show, truthful I'm not starting wholly from scratch."

On insulting parts of nan state he performs in

"When was nan past clip you went to Phoenix?" Cross asks. "Because I was location precocious and had really nosy shows, but those group aren't nether nan belief that they're surviving successful a spot that doesn't suck. We cognize this spot sucks. I person to beryllium present for school. I person to beryllium present for work. Look, a 3rd of our state lives successful areas wherever they are required — by metropolis ordinance — to put retired cooling h2o misters. Otherwise, half of nan citizenry will die. Believe me, group who unrecorded successful these places cognize it sucks."

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On assembling his Super Pals

"Super Pals is going to beryllium an astonishing show," Cross says. "We person an astonishing lineup, but I will opportunity this now: I guarantee 1 aliases 2 of these folks will flake. It ever happens. Always. I shouldn't opportunity that, but there's ever thing that comes up. It happened erstwhile I did 2 nights astatine Irving Plaza successful New York. I said, 'There are going to beryllium typical guests because I'm location and each my friends are here.' And past 2 of them called — for valid reasons — and were like, 'Oh yeah, I can't do nan show.' So you conscionable person to woody pinch it. It was excessively bad it wasn't a use because past I could guilt them."

On being a concealed prima successful his ain home

"My girl Marlow conscionable saw a clip of Chipmunks and said, 'Hey, that's daddy.' And past that was astir each nan liking she showed — which I'm thrilled about," Cross says. "Honestly. She's heard my sound successful movies and shows but ne'er made nan connection. She's astir apt watched Megamind 5 times, and she's watched Kung Fu Panda a bunch. I did Bubble Guppies and immoderate different kid things because she liked them, but she ne'er made nan connection. Maybe erstwhile she's older, she will. I'm not going to beryllium her down and move connected these shows and go, 'Hey kiddo, it's astir clip I showed you what daddy does.'"

On resurrecting Arrested Development

"I don't deliberation it's a bully idea," says Cross. "I conscionable don't. And Jessica [Walter]'s not pinch america anymore, truthful I don't cognize really you do it without Lucille. And, I mean, ideally, we would person stopped aft play four. Look, I loved it, and I still emotion it, and I'm truthful fortunate to person been fixed that opportunity, and I emotion those guys, but I don't deliberation we should do it anymore."

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On staying motivated

"Sometimes it's tough," Cross says. "I'm tired; we were retired past nighttime till 2 successful nan morning, and past we had to get up and spell to nan Spokane airdrome and make a connecting formation to Oklahoma City, and you don't get successful till late, and I've conscionable been eating Fritos. But I mean, it's professionalism. You person to fig retired really to get yourself fresh to go, whether it's doing a bunch of pushups aliases whatever. One point I pridefulness myself connected is that I springiness 100% each clip I'm up there. And moreover if nan crowd sucks, which doesn't hap that overmuch anymore, I ever ideate a 16-year-old kid successful nan pavilion who is astatine his first drama show. And he aliases she wants to do stand-up. I want to do that show for that kid, because I was that kid astatine 1 point."

On taking criticism

"The group whose disapproval I ever perceive to are my wife, Amber, Bob Odenkirk and a fistful of people, including Jon Benjamin," Cross says. "When they springiness maine a compliment, I cognize it's not bullshit, and I cognize it comes from an intelligence place. But immoderate group for illustration my worldly measurement excessively much. And immoderate group conscionable dislike my stuff. I effort not to perceive to those extremes. If nan disapproval is thing for illustration 'You're offensive' aliases 'You shouldn't talk astir that,' those things aren't really criticisms. But if personification has a captious return connected a bit, and I tin spot their constituent and wherever they're coming from, that's a disapproval I'll return and acknowledge. Whether I take to do thing astir it is simply a different story. Sometimes I do. Sometimes I don't."

On nan extremity of times

"Aliens are not going to beryllium nan origin of an apocalypse," Cross says. "We're successful a very, very, very, very, very slow yet perfectly existent apocalypse. Apocalypse doesn't needfully mean a bunch of fireballs descend connected satellite Earth, and successful 7 seconds, we're wiped out. No. We're going done nan apocalypse correct now successful real-time. My plan? Go retired connected tour, waste immoderate merch, and past conscionable put successful caller water."