"A lot of comic actors derive their main force from childish behavior. Most great comics are doing such silly things; you'd say, 'That's what a child would do.'"
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Comedy’s “force” is a telling word choice from Wilder: not charm, not cleverness, but propulsion. He’s naming what actually moves an audience to laugh and keep watching - the jolt of seeing an adult body, with adult consequences, suddenly run on child logic. The subtext is that the great comic actor isn’t aiming down at childishness as a cheap gag; he’s reaching down into it as a power source, a way to bypass the social editor that makes grown-ups boring.
Wilder also slips in a quiet defense of silliness at a time when “serious” acting is treated like the real art and comedy is dismissed as light work. Childish behavior, in his framing, isn’t regression; it’s precision. Kids don’t hedge, they commit. They don’t do “bit-by-bit” irony; they do belief. That’s why the best physical comedy looks almost reckless: it has the unselfconscious momentum of play, plus the tension of risk because the performer is not, in fact, a child.
Context matters: Wilder’s own persona - sweet, controlled, then suddenly volcanic - runs on this exact gear shift. Think of the way Willy Wonka or Young Frankenstein toggles between decorum and impulsive mischief. The laugh comes from watching a sophisticated adult let the id loose, not as confession but as craft. He’s pointing to a paradox: the most “childlike” comedians are often the most disciplined. The innocence is staged, timed, and engineered to feel like it isn’t.
Wilder also slips in a quiet defense of silliness at a time when “serious” acting is treated like the real art and comedy is dismissed as light work. Childish behavior, in his framing, isn’t regression; it’s precision. Kids don’t hedge, they commit. They don’t do “bit-by-bit” irony; they do belief. That’s why the best physical comedy looks almost reckless: it has the unselfconscious momentum of play, plus the tension of risk because the performer is not, in fact, a child.
Context matters: Wilder’s own persona - sweet, controlled, then suddenly volcanic - runs on this exact gear shift. Think of the way Willy Wonka or Young Frankenstein toggles between decorum and impulsive mischief. The laugh comes from watching a sophisticated adult let the id loose, not as confession but as craft. He’s pointing to a paradox: the most “childlike” comedians are often the most disciplined. The innocence is staged, timed, and engineered to feel like it isn’t.
Quote Details
| Topic | Funny |
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