Ted Danson says Curb Your Enthusiasm changed his life – even though the pilot “sucked”

You can never count out Ted Danson. From horror classics like Creepshow to an Emmy-winning performance on Cheers to box office champs (sorry, Three Men and a Baby helped define ‘80s comedy) and beyond, he has conquered pretty much every front in the world of media. Now, Ted Danson has a podcast in Where Everybody Knows Your Name, and it’s there that he revealed that an unlikely turn as himself on Curb Your Enthusiasm offered a career revival.

Ted Danson would eventually give more than 30 gos as himself on Curb Your Enthusiasm – going back to season one and extending to the final shot – but he initially hated the project, saying of the pilot, “I thought it absolutely sucked, and I felt sorry for my new friend, Larry David. So, in trying to be an encouraging kind of thing, I said, ‘If you ever need us to play ourselves, we’d be happy to.’ And in that sort of idiocy, I ended up being part of something that changed my life.”

As for what Curb Your Enthusiasm did for Ted Danson, he noted, “Curb really did change my life, because it reinvigorated my desire to be funny.” Hm, that doesn’t seem to be too much of a compliment to Becker…Danson has done a whole lot of big-time movies since Curb, but he did land the crucial role of Michael on The Good Place, which I think is one of the best comedy shows of the past decade. And for it, Danson would earn three Emmy nods for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series, which, coupled with his 11 for playing Sam Malone on Cheers, made him the most nominated person in that category.

While Curb Your Enthusiasm never snagged Ted Danson an Emmy nod, he – along with the cast – received a SAG nomination for Outstanding Ensemble in a Comedy Series. But no doubt Danson made the most of his time playing himself, giving one of his best performances ever as both friend and foe (all over a whitefish sandwich!) to Larry David.

What is your favorite Ted Danson performance? Share your movie or TV pick in the comments section below.