Kevin Smith: ‘Dogma’ Secrets Revealed!
The Last Laugh
The Daily Beast
4.6 • 661 Ratings
🗓️ 4 June 2025
⏱️ 73 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
25 years ago, Kevin Smith released his most controversial and provocative film. Then, after a solid run in theaters and a robust life on VHS, it disappeared into the ether and has never been available to stream. Now, as ‘Dogma’ makes its triumphant return to theaters this weekend, Smith reveals the full story of how he got huge stars like Matt Damon, Ben Affleck, George Carlin and others to appear in his audacious satire of the Catholic Church, how he was able “rescue my movie about angels from the devil himself” Harvey Weinstein, how a planned sequel will change now that he has fully lost his own faith, and so much more. Plus, Smith confirms the Oscar-winning actors who almost played God before Alanis Morissette got the coveted role and reveals the major Hollywood job he turned down to focus on finishing his greatest film.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | This is The Last Laugh. I'm Matt Wilstein from The Daily Beast. |
| 0:09.4 | Starting about three decades ago, my guest today wrote and directed a string of comedies |
| 0:15.3 | that not only changed movies forever, but also had a profound impact on my teenage brain. |
| 0:22.6 | Clerks, mall rats, chasing Amy, and the film he's here to talk about today, Dogma. |
| 0:29.6 | I am, of course, talking about Kevin Smith, who is marking the 25th anniversary of what is arguably his greatest |
| 0:36.6 | cinematic achievement by finally re-releasing |
| 0:39.6 | dogma in theaters after it spent years held hostage by Harvey Weinstein. Much more on that later. |
| 0:47.0 | Kevin gets into so much history about the movie, including how he landed a cast that includes |
| 0:52.7 | then newly minted movie stars Matt Damon and Ben Affleck, |
| 0:56.5 | iconic comedians George Carlin and Chris Rock, well-respected actors like the late Alan Rickman, |
| 1:02.7 | and of course, Alanis Morescett as God. Hint, she was not his first choice. |
| 1:08.4 | This episode is just a really great hang with someone who is so passionate |
| 1:12.2 | about movies and comedy. So we are going to get into it in just a minute. But first, let's listen |
| 1:18.4 | to a clip from early in the movie where the fallen angels, played by Damon and Affleck, plot their |
| 1:23.9 | revenge on humanity. You really are just a simple creature. |
| 1:29.3 | We finally find a way back and you want to jeopardize that because you've got a soft spot for the good old... |
| 1:33.3 | Hey, what better way to repent than by resuming the position I once denied, thanks to you? |
| 1:38.3 | I really don't think a killing spree is going to make things better for us. |
| 1:42.3 | Killing spree. I'm talking about divine justice here. |
| 1:45.0 | I'm talking about raining down fire and brimstone, punishing the wicked. |
| 1:48.0 | He's all about that. |
| 1:50.0 | I know he'd want this done. |
... |
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