Jason Sudeikis and the cast of the Apple+ series Teddy Lasso appeared at the front of Monday’s White House briefing, telling reporters he wanted to spread the message of mental wellness.
“The big theme of the program is to reach out to your neighbors, your colleagues, your friends, your family and ask how they are doing and really listen,” said Sudeikis. “You ask all questions for a living, but you listen to everyone for a living. So who am I preaching to? The chorus, that is.”
He added: “And while it’s easier said than done, we also need to know that we shouldn’t be afraid to ask for help ourselves.”
Her appearance preceded a scheduled closed-door meeting with President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden to discuss mental health.
But when Sudeikis and the cast took the stage, a reporter interrupted the session, protesting that he hadn’t been called to earlier briefings for seven months.
Press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre saw reporter Simon Ateba of Today News Africa and said: “No. NO. NO. We don’t do that. We don’t do that.”
Finally he stops and Jean-Pierre says: ‘Are we done? Are we going to behave?”
“Sorry to our guests. We apologize,” NBC News’ Kelly O’Donnell said.
Ateba was silent while Sudeikis spoke, but started shouting again when they left.
A reporter told him, “The rest of us are here too, my friend.” Another reporter said: “If you have any complaints, take them to her later.” Another reporter shouted at him: “They’re attacking everyone here, just trying to do his job.”
Jean-Pierre said: “As you all know, this is the White House press room, a historic room, a room that must have decency, a room where people show respect to their colleagues and to the guests who are here . I understand there will be give and take… I will always respect that. However, what I fail to appreciate is the disdain of your colleagues and guests who were here to talk about an incredibly important issue, namely mental health. And what happened in the last 10 or 15 minutes is unacceptable. It’s unacceptable. So we will continue with the briefing, or we can end the briefing here.”
Sudeikis and the cast are the latest celebrities to appear in the Biden-era briefings. Last year, Matthew McConaughey spoke to reporters about gun violence, Cyndi Lauper spoke out about same-sex marriage, and BTS caused a stir with their anti-Asian hate act. The White House has typically promoted POTUS appearances and meetings through social media channels, hoping that specific posts on specific topics will reach a wider audience.
The cast’s appearance at the White House also takes place as the show enters its third season.
At the briefing, Sudeikis said: “I know that in this city many people do not always agree and do not always feel that they are heard, seen and heard. But I believe that we should all try our best to take care of each other. This is my very personal belief. I think everyone on stage believes in that. It’s something we talk about in the writers’ room and the editing room and everything in between.
He added: “We just want to emulate these pretenders that we all play at AFC Richmond and the way they look after each other. It’s the wish-fulfillment of the program, aside from the fact that I’m playing coaching and these guys are professional football players. It’s a big part of the show.”
Sudeikis took a question from a surprise reporter: Trent Crimm (James Lance), who plays a reporter for The Independent on the show. Crimm asked what he thought of Kansas City, where he grew up, as one of the named host cities for the 2026 World Cup.
“I was hoping for a softball,” Sudeikis joked. “You know what? I’m really excited, honestly… What I worry about in general is whether we’re going to bring all these people from all over the world to Kansas City to see our city and eat our food, eat and meeting our people, a lot of people will want to move in. That’s what I’m worried about.”
As he was leaving, a reporter asked Sudeikis if he was doing his Biden impression, which he was Saturday night live. “No, they have the right one here now,” he said. “I need false teeth and a lot more chutzpah to pull it off.”
Source: Deadline
Mary Crossley is an author at “The Fashion Vibes”. She is a seasoned journalist who is dedicated to delivering the latest news to her readers. With a keen sense of what’s important, Mary covers a wide range of topics, from politics to lifestyle and everything in between.
