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'The View': Ken Jeong introduces serious role in 'Elsewhere', says comedy is 'hardest form of entertainment'

When co-host Joy Behar, a comic herself, noted that stand-up comedy could feel like “you're naked” on stage while “everybody else is dressed,” Jeong said, “I have been naked in movies," referring to 'The Hangover’ movies. “Being naked on stand-up -- emotionally naked -- is even worse," he added

On Tuesday’s episode of ABC’s ‘The View’, co-hosts Whoopi Goldberg, Joy Behar, Sunny Hostin, and Meghan McCain spoke to comedian Ken Jeong about his return to stand-up comedy and his new movie, ‘Elsewhere’.

Jeong, who is perhaps most famous for his roles as Ben Chang on the sitcom ‘Community’ and the drug lord Leslie Chow in ‘The Hangover’ film series, had taken a decade-long break from stand-up. And he had his reasons. His acting career, starting a family and helping his wife, Tran, be treated for breast cancer took up all his time. 

But the doctor-turned-comic returned to the stage in 2019 for his first stand-up special, ‘Ken Jeong: You Complete Me, Ho’.

Speaking to the co-hosts, he said, “I really kind of didn't know if I would actually come back to stand-up. Stand-up is by far the hardest form of entertainment. I mean, I overact well, you know, and I do other things well. But, stand-up is really the hardest art form.”

When co-host Joy Behar, a comic herself, noted that stand-up comedy could feel like “you're naked” on stage while “everybody else is dressed,” Jeong said, “I have been naked in movies," referring to the iconic scenes from the first two ‘The Hangover’ movies -- once locked up inside a car’s trunk and then inside an icebox. “Being naked on stand-up -- emotionally naked -- is even worse,” Jeong explained.

“I'm kind of back in the flow and I just really love doing stand-up comedy and I appreciate all the love,” he added.

Incidentally, one of Jeong's first big breaks in stand-up comedy was on ‘The View’ in 2001 when hilarious doctors were called upon to share jokes with the co-hosts of the daytime talk show.

Jeong also talked about his upcoming film ‘Elsewhere’. An indie comedy, the film starring Jeong, Parker Posey, Jackie Tohn, Beau Bridges, and Kathleen Munroe, follows the life of Bruno, a man mourning the death of his wife, and who is hopelessly attached to the seaside cottage they built together. When he is evicted by his soulless in-laws, Bruno vows to get it back at any price.

“It was a departure for me,” said Jeong, talking about his serious role in the film. “It’s really one of my favorite things I’ve ever done and I’m really just so grateful that the director had trusted me to, you know, to know the tone of the story; to handle the material. So, I’m just really blessed to be a part of the film.”

‘The View’ airs every day at 2 p.m. ET on ABC.