Vince Vaughn's Wild West Comedy Show Interview: Ahmed Ahmed

Mike Massie from MoviePulse.net and photographer Joy Dominguez caught up with comedian Ahmed Ahmed to discuss his latest film Vince Vaughn's Wild West Comedy Show. They talked with Ahmed right at the end of his lengthy press tour, traveling across the Midwest and appearing at several screenings and Q&A's.

MoviePulse: What question are you most sick of answering?

Ahmed Ahmed: "Was Vince really on the bus?"

MP: Did people think he was digitally added in afterwards?

AA: Like they Photoshoped him in. He was there every night. A lot of people asked me what my favorite city was. Did you guys have that in there?

MP: Actually, we did. But I'm sure the answer is Phoenix.

AA: My favorite city was Las Vegas because of the sweet redemption. Arizona was great. The footage they shot wasn't great, so for some reason they couldn't use the footage from the celebrity theater. It just didn't translate on film. I thought it was one of our best shows.

MP: How did you pick which locations to perform at?

AA: Vince picked them. He wanted to pick cities in the Midwest and the South that didn't normally get variety shows. The idea was to go through rural America. A lot of these places had never seen anything like that, with a movie star and guest celebrities.

MP: In the film we got to see Caparulo dispense quite a few vulgarities, and we know that two of the shows you guys had to do "clean". Where do you draw the line of decency when you create your sets - or is there one?

AA: I try to work clean. If I don't have to curse, I won't. In a comedy club at night when people are drinking, I think it's okay to throw the F-bomb in there once in awhile. But I try to stay relatively clean with my material. Most comics will stay away from handicapped people, anyone who's the underdog. I don't make fun of cancer, rape - there's nothing funny about that. People say "Oh, you're a comic, you should push the limits, funny's funny". Yeah, but to an extent. Being an Arab-Comedian is a statement enough.

MP: How much footage was shot?

AA: 700 hours.

MP: How are you handling the publicity? Are people recognizing you?