Jack McBrayer, Robert Smigel & Michael Koman – Triumph / McBrayer Sitcom – Comic Con 2014

Interview By: Lynsey Tamborello

Q) So what drew you to this project?

Jack McBrayer: We had fun with the piece we did on “Conan” back in 2012 at the “Weiner Circle.”

Robert Smigel: And we were like “What else can we do with Triumph?” Triumph had offers to do other stuff, like the talk show kind of thing where he would rattle off topical jokes and such. I was offered a movie, where it would be like 80-minutes of what I do on “Conan,” basically. And, though it was fun, I’d avoided doing any of that stuff for years. But you know, I need money (laughs). So, I knew I was going to do something. And the “Weiner Circle” was just so much fun and it was the most well-received Triumph that we had done since maybe Star Wars in 2002. It was really exciting to think of Jack in a sitcom with Triumph and then we just slowly started putting it together. We just like the challenge of it because it’s so different and out of the box. The idea of doing a “multi-cam,” it’s sort of a throw-back show.

Jack McBrayer:  It is a “multi-cam,” in front of a live studio audience. And one last thing about the “Weiner Circle” bit that we did, instead of Triumph just being an antagonist all the time, at the Weiner Circle he kind of came through as a hero for me. So, that was a fun dynamic that we hope to explore more of in our new show.

Robert Smigel: In this version, he will have the best intentions, but they won’t always work out.

Jack McBrayer: Yeah, SPOILER ALERT!

Q) Robert, you are mostly known for your stand-up routines as Triumph The Insult Dog. I’m curious about how your experiences have been transitioning to this new multi-camera, full half-hour, live studio audience format, and working with Jack?

Robert Smigel:  For one thing, we are all newcomers to the idea of a multi-cam sitcom.

Jack McBrayer: Even “30 Rock”  was single camera.

Robert Smigel: The silliness of the characters and the premise makes it exciting for us. We have an affection for it, especially if it’s done well. Michael and I talk about our favorite old shows all the time. Going back to “The Honeymooners” and obviously” Seinfeld” was a hilarious multi-cam sitcom that was done more recently. And what we love about it, when it’s done really well, it’s a great vehicle for performers. You have that same energy that you get in “Saturday Night Live” sketches, where you see performers play off any audience. And it’s a little slower pace than the rapid-fire stuff you see in single cam. We’re kind of attracted to that as well.

Michael Koman: And it’s Robert, Jack and June Squibb from Nebraska playing another character in the show. She a regular. For us, I think the thing we were most excited about was just having really strong actors for the live part of it. We were just feeling like this show would be best suited to a live studio audience.

Q) Are we going to see any characters from “30 Rock or “Conan” show up?

Robert Smigel:  Anything’s possible, but nothing is planned.

Jack McBrayer: Maybe not “The Mastubating Bear,” but “A Masturbating Bear,” perhaps?

Michael Koman: He would have to be the president of a bank.

Q) Since you’re doing this as a sitcom, will there be single episodes stories or story arcs?

Robert Smigel: I would say the plan is to watch this and not feel like you’ve missed out on something from week to week.

Jack McBrayer: Like reality!

Robert Smigel: I think there will be little arcs and certainly a “will they or won’t they” with June Squibb.