It's a fascinating culture [the South in the Civil War period] and so rife with comedic possibilities. And not in a way that...I have no intention of making fun of re-enactors. I think it's more just a celebration of their passion and enthusiasm, which is so infectious and maybe at times a little misguided.

You are literally too stupid to insult.

There are currently more political parties in Iraq than unbombed buildings to hold them.

Vulnerability is huge. I love to see that in characters. It's something I feel like a lot of my comedic heroes have always done.

I'm a very jaded and cynical person.

[Chickens] are very frenetic. So if you think about it and you look back in other movies, like if someone's taking a crazy bus ride somewhere and it's like, 'Oh, what makes this bus ride crazy?' There's a chicken in the aisle, or like there's a chicken in a crate. So I just think the presence of chickens makes things crazy.

So long as your desire to explore is greater than your desire to not screw up, you're on the right track.