Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg Open Up On Sequels: “We’re Not Opposed to Revisiting Some”

“This is awkward. Jesus Christ, man,” Evan Golderg says over Zoom, almost defensively.

From an entirely different location, Seth Rogen, his longtime collaborator and literal best friend in the world, agrees. “We don’t really answer these kinds of questions.”

They were referring to my question asking them what they “most appreciated” about the other. Though (jokingly) hesitant to answer when directly asked, the two weren’t shy about acknowledging how special their relationship is in regular conversation.

“[We] can't ignore the truth that we are just better together than apart,” Goldberg reflects elsewhere in our talk.

And it makes sense. The two friends, who met as kids, have an impressive body of work together, creating some of the most iconic comedy blockbusters in recent memory; from Superbad, to Pineapple Express, This is the End, 50/50. The list goes on and on–and that’s not even including their contributions to popular shows like Preacher, The Boys, and Invincible.

With nearly two decades of work together, the two have taken Hollywood by the reins to establish themselves as some of the premiere figures in the world of entertainment. Now, the dynamic duo are expanding on their catalog of hits with Sausage Party: Foodtopia, a sequel series to their 2016 film of the same name (minus “Foodtopia”).

“Of all the things we’ve done, it’s been the most fun thing to work on,” says Goldberg. “It’s just nonstop joy and has infinite potential for more.”

We caught up with the duo to talk about their creative partnership over the years, sequels, superheroes, and much more.

Be sure to check out these exclusive images of Sausage Party: Foodtopia below.

(This interview has been edited in length for clarity.)

What was the inspiration behind creating a series adaptation of Sausage Party? When did that start?

Evan Goldberg: Pretty much as we were finishing Sausage Party, the movie. We were like, “If this does well, how can we keep it going?” We just enjoyed making it so much. Of all the things we've done, it's been the most fun thing to work on. It’s just nonstop joy and has infinite potential for more. f

Seth Rogen: The story is structured more like an action-adventure movie than anything, and those movies are often designed to continue. I think a lot of the movies we were really inspired by–Toy Story, and stuff like that–are part of a continuing story. So as we were doing it, it was fun to constantly think of more ideas, and we always hoped that we could do more of it.

What was the biggest challenge in transitioning from a movie to a series format?

SR: Most of what we were trying to figure out was how to bring the tone of the movie to a TV show. I think too often shows, especially comedic ones, settle into a very comfortable pace and tone, but the movie was always very high stakes, life-and-death situations at all times. And that made it funnier to us. So bringing those types of stakes to the television series was something that we worked a long time on.

Seth, you've been vocal about supporting animation teams and making sure they’re treated properly during production. What have you learned – and what did you bring to this project?

SR: It was important for us that the studios had the time and resources to do what we were asking of them, and we kept asking for Amazon to provide us with more time and resources to do the work that we all thought was necessary.

I think with animation especially, there's a gravity that pulls you towards breaking the backs of the team at times, so we wanted to make sure they were supported in the way they needed to be.

It's being realistic with the amount of time people have and not expecting them to dedicate their lives to a thing that is their job, making sure that it's a fun environment, that people really feel like their ideas are a part of the process.

Seth, you've been playing around in the world of animation for a while now. What about animated projects is so attractive to you – and what are you bringing to this project that’s different from other roles?

SR: For me, I don't view animated projects differently than live action ones. But I will say with Sausage Party, when you're doing R-rated stuff that genuinely speaks to the things that you think are really funny, it's a little different. As much fun as things like Mario Brothers are, it doesn't allow us to really do the stuff that cracks us and our friends up when we're really trying to make each other laugh. And that's what's particularly fun about this show, it is the stuff that we actually do to make each other laugh.

You two have known each other since you were kids. When did the moment materialize that you two had something special together? Was there a specific moment?

EG: There was one moment. We were 12 years old and we used to get $7 movies from a local video store, and we’d watch seven bad movies for seven days. One day, we're watching a terrible movie and we looked at each other and were like, “I legit think we could probably write a better movie than this.”

Then we went upstairs, used my dad's computer and gave it a shot. We wrote the first scene of Superbad that day, and it was the most embarrassing, terrible writing you could ever imagine. And then we kept at it for ten years until we got good at it.

There aren’t many duos like you two in Hollywood–and they certainly don’t last long if they do come up. What’s been the secret to your creative partnership lasting so long?

EG: I think it's, simply put, we legitimately developed the skills together, whereas other people are fully baked humans by the time they're like, “Let's be writing partners,” and they're like 23 years old.

We were children, and our brains forged a thing where it's like, “This is how you write with another person.” So we just learned how to write together–and can't ignore the truth that we are just better together than apart.

Evan, do you have a favorite role that Seth has played in his career?

EG: I think Frank in Sausage Party.

SR: It's my longest running role. It’s got the most legs.

EG: Probably that or–I don't know that that's too deep a question. Because in Superbad, the cop is so funny. For This is the End, we get to literally make fun of Seth directly in a way that is unbelievably ridiculous and fun to do. But I do think the answer is ultimately Sausage Party because it just keeps going. We can do this for another 40 years and I will continue to find it hilarious.

I'm going to flip the script now. Seth, do you have a favorite project of yours from Evan in his career?

SR: Goon! Evan co-wrote this movie. There's not a lot that we have done without each other [chuckles], but Evan made this movie with Jay Baruchel that is amazing.

On the topic of appreciation, what do you two admire most about each other’s work in the creative process?

EG: This is awkward. Jesus Christ, man.

SR: We don't really answer these kinds of questions.

I’ll be the happy mediator to bring it out.

SR: Who do you think we are, the Daniels?

EG: Yeah we were born in the ‘80s. We're men. We're not in our emotions. But no, Seth just works harder than everyone else. That's nice. He works harder than me. That's what I appreciate the most, is having a partner who works harder than me because who doesn't want that?

SR: And Evan's in a better mood than I am a lot of the time [chuckles].

You two made Knocked Up, Superbad, Pineapple Express, all within a 12 month span. Do you all ever look back on that period of your life and how do you feel?

EG: We were legit talking about this last week at work and it's still insane to think about. It was crazy.

SR: It was a backlog of stuff. We had written Superbad many, many years earlier. Pineapple Express was written six years before we made it. So it was nice that the floodgates finally opened. It's crazy that those movies all came out in such a short succession of time and that people like them so much.

EG: It was, it was very unhealthy for our bodies. That's when I started going bald at a quick pace and I gained like 15 pounds.

SR: Yeah, we were in our mid-twenties though, so we were probably more equipped to deal with it then.

EG: When you have something like that, it's not like we could say no to any of it and be like, “Nah, not right now. We're tired.” You’ve got to go when you have the chance.

Are there plans to revisit any of your movies from the past in any form?

EG: We're not opposed to revisiting some things, like Sausage Party. Superbad and Pineapple Express, we will not be revisiting. We will keep those safe and sound. There are a few things that are best left untouched.

Because you guys have such an insane catalog of hits, what is the number one movie that fans come up to you guys to speak about?

EG: Pineapple Express? Probably.

SR: Yeah, Superbad and Pineapple Express are still probably two of the ones that people bring up the most. It's nice that high school kids still seem to like Superbad. I get a lot of 18-year-old kids coming up to me talking about it, which is not what I would have expected.

EG: Which I think also ties into your last question, which is why I don't want people to be like, “But the sequel was a little shitty.”

SR: Yeah, exactly. Let's fucking leave it as is. Because it’s very personal to us and based on our high school experience, it’s nice that so many people found it funny and resonated with it. It’s unexpected.

You two had an early connection over comics, and now you’re working on multiple comic book TV series. Does it feel like a full-circle moment for you both?

EG: Literally, the reason we make movies together is because of comic books. Initially, we bonded over comics, and this was back when you were just a nerd and a loser for loving comics, as opposed to it being the cornerstone of all current culture.

SR: It was not mainstream. [Chuckles]

EG: Yeah, so we became buddies because of that and then developed a love for movies together. And we've been trying to make The Boys and and Preacher, another show we already made, for a decade each. We've been chasing those forever since the moment we had the ability.

SR: The first issue came out and we bought it at the comic book store, and we brought it to Sony and we're like, “You guys should make this.” And they were like, “We agree.” And then for ten years they hired other people to try to make it. Eventually, none of those people made it.

EG:Yeah for Invincible, we've been obsessed with that comic since it came out. Reading it every week as it landed.

SR: I think because we made Preacher, which was always known as this unmakeable comic book for a very long time, and we made a good version of it and one that Garth Ennis, the writer, was happy with. That's how we were able to make The Boys as well. I think it made people like [Robert] Kirkman look at us as people who wouldn't fuck up their shit, basically.

EG: And we know everything that's coming for both of them. And we won't say a damn word.

My final question is, you two are Canadian. We're a music company. I have to ask, have you guys been keeping up with the Kendrick-Drake beef?

SR: Little bit.

EG: We're up to date on it. Following the events.

SR: My mother's working out to “They Not Like Us."