‘Whatever You Say Boss, I Am An Idiot.’ Gabriel Basso’s The Big Name On The Night Agent, But It Sounds Like Working With Clint Eastwood Was A Different Experience
The Night Agent’s Season 2 premiere on Netflix’s 2025 schedule means Gabriel Basso is about to be catapulted back into the spotlight because he plays the titular agent, Peter. However, while he’s the big name in this megahit series, he spent some time between seasons working on movies in smaller supporting roles. This included starring in Clint Eastwood’s Juror #2, and now he’s opening up about working with the legendary director. Let me tell you, it sounds like a totally different experience from leading The Night Agent.
While chatting about Juror #2 on The Tonight Show, Jimmy Fallon pulled up an image of Basso sitting next to Eastwood, who appeared to be giving him a direction. The host asked the actor if he remembered what the director was telling him at that moment, and in response, The Night Agent star joked:
I think he called me an idiot, and then they took the picture.
Obviously, he’s joking, however, I would assume that it’s quite intimidating working with Clint Eastwood, especially since he’s one of the legendary great actors-turned-directors. Not to mention, Basso wasn’t the lead of this film.
For context, he plays James Michael Sythe in Juror #2, the man on trial for the murder that Nicholas Hoult’s titular juror is hearing. While Basso plays a pivotal part in the film, he’s also part of a much larger ensemble that includes Hoult, Toni Collette, J.K. Simmons, Chris Messina, Zoey Deutch and more. So, that alone makes this a different experience from leading a show like The Night Agent.
However, adding the fact that he worked with Clint Eastwood makes matters even more distinct. While chatting about what it was like to collaborate with the “badass” director, Basso said:
What do you say to Clint Eastwood? Like, he’s seen it, he’s done it. He’s been everywhere, he’s seen everything. You’re not as cool as he is. So, you just kind of sit there, and you’re like [puts hand up to shake hand] ‘Yeah. Whatever, you say boss. I am an idiot.’ [gives a thumbs up].
While Basso is the badass in The Night Agent, there’s no question (I don’t think) that he can out cool someone like Eastwood, not many can.
To that point, the actor told a story about his director and working on Juror #2, noting that the filmmaker’s “lore is just way cooler” than anyone else, and you know what, he’s right:
His stories, his lore, is just way cooler. You know? My favorite Clint Eastwood interaction, he has this Airstream that he has on set, he walks out, and he’s just eating these Cheese-Its and this attractive young woman walks by and he nods at her and she waves at him and he goes ‘Cheese-It?’ It was like ‘What the hell is going on here?’ And it worked.
So, not only is Eastwood apparently quite charming, but, he also made a great movie with Juror #2 (as reviews show) at 94 years old, talk about impressive! Despite being ignored in theaters, the film has found its audience, and people love the story, cast and direction.
However, now, it’s time for Gabriel Basso to step back into the No. 1 spot as The Night Agent is set to premiere on the 2025 TV schedule on Thursday, January 23. So, make sure your Netflix subscriptions are ready for that, and in the meantime check out the actor in Clint Eastwood’s Juror #2 with a Max subscription.
