Bill Hader has spent years playing hitmen, anchoring sitcoms and voicing animated characters, and now he is trying to figure out what happens next — and what the machines might do to it. Speaking at the Variety Entertainment & Technology Summit presented by EY, held Thursday in Los Angeles, Hader told executive editor Michael Schneider that young people hate AI, that voice acting is harder than it looks, and that he is still pushing ahead on a Jim Jones HBO series.
The conversation touched on everything from generational tech anxiety to scream-filled recording sessions to the challenge of turning a grim historical event into television. Hader was candid throughout, and the result reads as a portrait of an actor who is comfortable with his own range — from dark comedy to animated children’s fare — even as he watches the industry around him change.
Hader on the Generational Divide Over AI
Hader’s central observation is simple: older folks like their gadgets, and younger ones are deeply suspicious of them. When asked about his concerns as a filmmaker, Hader noted the familiar pattern of panic that follows every new tool.
“A new technology comes along and everybody kind of flips out,” he said. “Like, oh shit, a lot of people are going to be out of work. I don’t want production designers to go out of work … those people are real artisans, and they’re amazing. If this stuff can help them, it’d be better.”
But the younger generation feels differently. Hader said he has spoken to young people who actively dislike AI.
“I have talked to younger people, and they seem to hate AI,” he said. “They’re not into it. I don’t know why, but that’s the vibe I get. When I got an iPhone, I was stoked on it, and I didn’t think about Steve Jobs, you know? But [young people] are very aware of the people making [AI]. They just know so much. They’re afraid that anything can be manipulated.”
That fear is a shift from past tech adoption cycles, where the cool factor often won out. Hader himself jumped at the iPhone. Younger viewers, by contrast, arrive at new tools with a sense of skepticism about who built them and what they might do.
Why AI Can’t Beat Martin Scorsese
Hader is not worried about AI taking his job as a director or writer. He is worried about it taking the jobs of the people around him — the artisans who build sets, design costumes and craft visual effects. He sees AI as a potential helper, not a replacement.
“If it can help things, you know … but I don’t think so,” Hader said about using AI in the filmmaking process. “I haven’t seen anything yet where I went, ‘Whoa, that’s better than Martin Scorsese.'”
He was adamant that AI cannot rival the human creativity behind shows like “Barry” or the new Emmys darling “Widow’s Bay.” The implication is clear: the machine can assist, but it cannot create.
From ‘Barry’ to ‘They Know’
Hader’s career after “Barry” has been busy. The HBO dark comedy, in which he played a hitman who gets bitten by the acting bug, earned wide acclaim. He co-created the show with Alec Berg and directed the majority of episodes.
Now he is moving into feature films. He directed and wrote a psychological horror film called “They Know,” starring opposite Linda Cardellini. The film is coming soon.
Hader also voiced the Cat in the Hat in an animated adaptation due this November. The Warner Bros. reboot reunites him with co-director Erica Rivinoja, who worked on “South Park” with Hader almost two decades ago.
When Schneider asked how he approached voicing the iconic Dr. Seuss character, Hader quipped, “The same way I approached Barry.”
The Voice Acting Secret Nobody Talks About
Hader’s description of voice acting is a corrective to the popular image of actors simply rolling out of bed and reading lines. The reality, he said, is far more demanding.
“It requires a lot of energy,” he explained. “Everybody thinks you roll out of bed and you just do it. It is so hard, and you’re literally screaming for four hours, saying the same line over and over and over again.”
He illustrated the grind with a specific example: “Open the door! Open the door! Open the door!” He said they would ask for multiple takes of the same line, and he would deliver eight versions of it.
“It’s kind of mind numbing. And then you see it and you forget all about how exhausted you are,” he said. “Genuinely, I remember doing ‘Inside Out’ and driving back from a recording session, and I was like, ‘I need to pull over and like just drink some water’ because I was my brain was just fried.”
The exhaustion is real.
The Jonestown HBO Project
Hader confirmed that the Jim Jones series is still alive at HBO. “We’re talking about doing Jonestown at HBO,” he said with laughter. “That’s not a joke. That is true.”
Variety broke the news of the project in April 2025, reporting that Hader was developing (and would potentially star in) a project about the infamous cult leader. Asked about the status of the show, Hader said, “I don’t know. Me and Daniel Zelman, we’re kind of still working through that. It’s a very rough subject.”
| Project | Status | Platform |
|---|---|---|
| “They Know” | Directed and written by Hader, starring opposite Cardellini | Coming soon |
| “Cat in the Hat” (animated) | Voiced by Hader | Due this November |
| Jonestown HBO series | In development with Daniel Zelman | HBO |
A Second Run of ‘Documentary Now!’
For fans of lighter fare, Hader also mentioned his interest in returning to “Documentary Now!” The IFC mockumentary show starred Fred Armisen, Seth Meyers, Rhys Thomas and John Mulaney.
“That would be amazing,” he said about continuing the show. “I really enjoyed doing that show. That was a very funny show.”
Hader’s enthusiasm for the format suggests he would jump at the chance.
The Career Snapshot
Hader’s comments offer a snapshot of where he stands on technology, creativity and his own career. He is not afraid of AI, but he is wary of it. He sees it as a tool that could help his colleagues, not replace them. He is confident in his own creative instincts, and he believes they cannot be matched by a machine.
His voice acting revelations are a reminder that fame does not equal ease. Even a successful actor like Hader faces physical exhaustion and repetitive strain from long recording sessions. The work is hard, and it is not glamorous.
The project is rough, but Hader and Daniel Zelman are still working through it.
Source material: “Bill Hader on Why Young People Hate AI, Voicing Cat in the Hat and the Status of His Jonestown HBO Series,” Variety.
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