Worse Than You with Mo Fry Pasic

Ronald Young Jr. is building his career in audio the same way that he'd like to build a house: with care, intentionality, and a strong foundation. And with each project that he releases, he wants listeners to hear that he's making progress. This week, he joins Mo to discuss how he approaches his critically acclaimed podcasts like Weight For It, the importance of having friends who know you off mic...

Becky Chicoine and Sam Reece met as UCB interns more than a decade ago. Since then, they've headlined comedy festivals across the country and co-written and co-starred in filmed projects like their upcoming short Apocalypse Besties. This week, they join Mo to reflect on their enduring creative partnership as Girls with Brown Hair—with talk of theater conservatories, Broadway dance calls, scripted...

Hosting a popular web series wasn’t part of Catherine McCafferty’s plan. But when her friends Sam Reich and Elaine Carroll asked her to collaborate, she leapt at the opportunity. What resulted was the dating show Pretty Gay, which has seen twenty-fold growth in just over a year. She joins Mo this week to discuss her non-linear creative path, how she maintains an abundance mindset, and why it's so...

Ashley Ray was told that she would need to choose between writing comedy and writing about it. But as an acclaimed critic, TV writer, and stand-up comedian, she's having the last laugh. This week, she joins Mo to discuss bringing her critical sensibility to all of her creative work, how she juggled a full-time job with a burgeoning stand-up career, and how a chance encounter with Maria Bamford shi...

Experiencing Richard Perez's comedy is a lot like riding a rollercoaster: one moment, you're laughing your head off; the next, you're clutching your heart. This week, Richard joins Mo to discuss taking big swings on stage, his leap from photography to comedy, and why he's never written down his solo show I Have To Do This. You can see Richard on tour with the show this spring; next up, New York Ci...

Vinny Thomas lets his characters speak to him, whether he's playing a pigeon at Pride or Clarence Thomas's grandson. He joins Mo this week to discuss his viral comedy videos, his dream of hosting a Jeff Corwin-style show about animals, and his absolutely, one hundred percent neutral opinions on a certain early 2000s reality TV host. Vinny is on Instagram and TikTok @vinn_ayy. Worse Than You with M...

By the age of three, comedian Ruby Karp had made her Upright Citizens Brigade debut. By the age of ten, she was performing stand-up across New York City. Now in her mid-twenties, she's settling into her comedic voice—and doing so with the maturity and grace of someone who's been working on their craft for more than half their life. Ruby joins Mo this week to discuss her digital footprint, T.J.Maxx...

Comedian Kyle Ayers feels funniest when he's not in control. But after brain surgery for Trigeminal neuralgia, he wondered whether he could be funny at all. He joins Mo this week to discuss how he's reclaimed a sense of adventure on stage, why he thinks stand-up is becoming a more patient art form, and what it was like to perform in an Edinburgh plague crypt. Kyle revels in the fact that his comed...

For Parvati Shallow, life is a game—and she's playing it authentically. She joins Mo this week to discuss what it's been like to take control of her own narrative after nearly two decades of appearing on reality TV competitions, how she creates a genuine rapport with on-screen allies, and why there's more to survival than fight or flight. You can follow Parvati on Instagram @pshallow. Make sure to...

This week, we're honored to present an episode of At Liberty, from our friends at the ACLU. Every other week, host W. Kamau Bell is asking the big questions on the big issues affecting our country. Recent episodes cover immigration rights and LGBTQIA+ rights, and today, we're sharing an episode about disability rights. We hope you'll listen, and subscribe to the ACLU's At Liberty wherever you like...

Writer and actor Jeffery Self isn't afraid to let go—whether he's pursuing a creative path that doesn't feel generative or reflecting on an early project of his. He writes, too, with a reflexive self-awareness, and an openness that's as vulnerable as it is steady-handed. This week, he joins Mo to discuss treating mental health as a perpetual roommate, finding creative elders, and channeling Jacque...

Artmaking can help heal us emotionally; for Kate Helen Downey, that healing process has also been physical. Kate's spent more than two decades living with severe period cramps, but it was only when she picked up a microphone for her new podcast CRAMPED that doctors started to take her seriously. This week, she joins Mo to discuss how she shows herself grace when pain limits her productivity, what...

Tim Platt is a creative polymath: he can write songs, he can draw, and he can commit so hard to a bit that he ends up infiltrating a multi-level marketing scheme for healthy energy drinks. At the heart of all his work is a desire for collaboration, and for over a decade, he's been Mo's other half in the comedy duo Pasic & Platt. Tim joins Mo this week to reflect on their creative partnership, his...

It’s one thing for an audience to separate the art from the artist. But what if an artist wants to keep aspects of their life separate from their art? Sasheer Zamata has spent over a decade navigating this precarious balance, from her early days on SNL to her recent turn in Agatha All Along. She joins Mo this week to discuss how she stays authentic, why she likes working with her friends, and the...

For actor and comedian Chris Grace, writing a solo show isn't the hard part. Neither is performing it. It's the feeling that he should always be doing more—more promotion, more show dates, or more new material—that he has to contend with. This week, Chris and Mo get into the complexities of staging a solo show—especially one at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival—treating the audience like a scene partn...

Writer and director Bri LeRose periodically asks herself: if a teenage Bri, living in Wisconsin, looked at her career today, would she think it was enough? And the answer's always yes: she would have thought it was the coolest thing in the world to even share space with the people she admired. Today, Bri joins Mo to discuss her comedy process, from directing titans like Maria Bamford to co-writing...

If you’re a regular listener of Worse Than You, then you know that Albertina Rizzo is inner circle. Albertina and Mo connect through the shared philosophy that life is funny, even the sad parts. And that being funny and interested in life is the key to joy. Albs joins Mo this week to discuss writing for late night, how she follows the fun on—and off—the page, the power of anonymity, and why she’d...

It's not every day that we get to witness someone's process on the eve of a major creative milestone. Today's one of those special days. Join us in celebrating our dear friend Chris Renfro as they make their Broadway debut in Oh, Mary! Mo and Chris discuss how Chris landed one of Broadway's most exciting roles as Mary's Teacher, the skills they're hoping to develop off stage during their run, and...

A note from team Worse Than You: When we recorded our first batch of episodes for season two, we had no idea that we'd be releasing them amidst the ongoing, incomprehensible fires in LA. We hope that these conversations can bring comfort to our listeners as we process this difficult time together. Make sure you're following @meauxpas and @worsethanyoushow on Instagram, where we'll continue to shar...

Happy new year, dear friends! We figured you might want to start 2025 off with a burst of creative inspiration... and we've got you covered, with an early release from our new season, featuring Matt Rogers! Listen in as Mo and Matt reflect on their decade-long friendship, how they approach creative collaborations, and an early character of Matt's that still makes Mo crack up. Also, we've got a ful...

It's a new year, and we've got an all new season teed up for you! We're thrilled to announce that we'll be back on Wednesday, January 15, with weekly episodes to follow. And as a special gift for our listeners, we're releasing a full episode with Matt Rogers... today! So go take a listen, and make sure you're subscribed to the show so that you don't miss a beat. Also, if nobody's told you yet this...

We're celebrating our season finale with a very special guest: Sam Taggart! The Straightiolab co-host joins Mo to discuss millennial jokes, the fine line between judgement and critique, and the unforgettable night that Mo went blonde. We'll be back soon with new episodes, and an exciting new group of guests. Make sure to stay subscribed so you don't miss a thing! Sam Taggart is a comedian, actor,...

Julio Torres has never let other people measure his success. This week, Julio joins Mo to discuss being a "zero waste" artist, embracing chaos and mess, and the Sex and the City scene that speaks best to his creative process. Plus, Mo shares a poem of Julio's that they've held for ten years. Julio Torres is an Emmy-nominated, Peabody-winning, and WGA-winning writer, director and comedian from El S...

What does it mean to be gay? It's a question that actor and comedian Stephen Brower is working out in his stage show Palatable Gay Robot, where he plays HumaVibe's latest humanoid creation. Listen in as Mo and Stephen discuss sharing scenes with a voiceover, distinguishing theater from therapy, and the creative power of Snoopy! The Musical. Stephen Brower is a New York City-based actor, writer, an...

It's homecoming week for Worse Than You! Mo's back in LA and back in the saddle with their friend Greta Titelman to discuss the creative life cycle. When do we put the pen down and when do we run with the momentum; is a creation ever really complete? Greta Titelman is a comedian, actress, and writer. You know her from shows like Search Party and Los Espookys, films like Problemista, and podcasts l...