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Piers Morgan Live

Interview With Will.i.am and Dean Kamen; Interview With Bryce Dallas Howard

Aired August 12, 2011 - 21:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

PIERS MORGAN, HOST: What happens when the front man of the Black-Eyed Peas -- meets the guy who invented the Segway.

Tonight, we'll show Will.i.am, music (INAUDIBLE) and some political activists, and Dean Kamen, teaming up with a big idea to keep America from falling behind, teaching kids to make the workforce of the future through robots.

This really is rocket science.

Plus, the extraordinary young life of Bryce Dallas Howard, the most anticipated movie of the summer "The Help."

This is PIERS MORGAN TONIGHT.

MORGAN: It's not easy to find a bright spot in America's economy these days, but my next guests have done just that. Inventor Dean Kamen, the man behind the Segway, and Will.i.am of the Black Eyed Peas, have teamed up to encourage kids to study science and become America's future workforce, and they join me now.

So, Will, what's a nice young rapper like you doing getting mixed up with this dangerous geeky robot-builder?

WILL.I.AM, MUSICIAN: Inspiration? You know, I do music. If you look under the hood of the industry I'm in, it's all based on technology. From radio to phonographs to CDs, it's all technology. Microphones, reel-to-reels, cameras, editing, chips, it's all technology.

MORGAN: How did you meet him?

WILL.I.AM: So I met him while I was on-stage touring as, you know, our crew was building our stage, right? Technology. Getting all the lights on and all that stuff. I'm on the Segway.

So I was riding the Segway and I was like thinking about, you know, the idea, I mean, who thought of this? I was riding it -- I wonder who thought to lean back to stop, and lean forward to -- like who thinks that way.

So I got introduced to Dean Kamen via E-mail.

MORGAN: So wait a minute, Dean, you're sitting there and you're just -- you're Mr. Robot, and you've been running this thing for 20 years where you can inspire these American kids and kids from all around the world, 56 countries, to be building robots.

And then suddenly, out of nowhere, you get a call from this guy, front man of the Black Eyed Peas, one of the biggest pop stars in the world, music stars, what are you thinking?

DEAN KAMEN, INVENTOR: I didn't know what to think until I got on the phone and within one minute I thought I was in trouble, because the first thing he said to me was, Dean, I've heard you speak and I've heard you speak about your first program, which is about convincing kids that science and technology is critical to their future.

And then he said, and you say to them that kids have all the wrong role models and heroes. They all come from the world of entertain and sports. Since he's from the world of entertainment, I figured, here it comes, the very defense.

He said, Dean, you're wrong. Some people do have the right heroes. Not to embarrass him, but he said, Dean, you're my hero -- you guys do cool stuff, but I agree with you that too many kids don't see the real opportunities, how can I help first?

And I said, well, you're doing the halftime for the other sport out there, the Super Bowl, but people already love that sport. I've got to get more people to understand what our sport is about.

MORGAN: And you did this thing called FIRST. It stands for Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology.

KAMEN: Correct.

MORGAN: It's sort of science Olympics to kids. Is that the easiest way to describe?

KAMEN: That's a very good shorthand. The trouble is, they don't know about our sport.

MORGAN: And the ethos of this is that -- it's interesting looking at you, Will, for example. You come from East Los Angeles -- you know, a very humble background. And you've talk very honestly about that before.

Do you kind of feel that everybody, whatever their upbringing and background, has the potential to be something special, whether it's technology or entertainment or whatever? Do you believe that?

WILL.I.AM: Oh, wholeheartedly. I also believe that cutting programs isn't good for our future -- whether they're the arts or science. You know, I also believe that, you know, more opportunities and -- my sister is not going to be a football player. There's just no way. But there's a football field at her school.

You know, shouldn't there be a science program at her school? Shouldn't FIRST be in her school? Right. So, people have different options on what they want to become, especially now, you think about our economy now, technology isn't suffering. Kids already had the iPhone 1, then iPhone 2 came out four months later and they rushed to get it. Or iPad, I've got the iPad 1, iPad 2 came out, got a camera, I rushed to get it. So it's like technology is still moving forward.

MORGAN: I mean, Apple are like the complete exception to the economic rule right now. They're ruling the world economically. Apple now is worth more than America virtually. It's a crazy situation.

WILL.I.AM: Technology, that's science, that's math, engineering, right? Yes, jumping jacks are good, but so is, you know, this discipline.

Listen that's not -- you know, I'm not a scientist, I'm not an engineer.

I have visions and things that, you know, when I met Dean, I was like, hey, I want to make this louder.

You know, the concept of performing at the halftime show of the U.S. FIRST robotics competition, to me that wasn't enough.

MORGAN: So this amazing outfit you wore at the Super Bowl, which was this all-flashing, all-singing, all-dancing electronic super outfit, in fact the guy that designed the code for this was a graduate of the FIRST, originally, right?

WILL.I.AM: From England. So it was English -- English bloke, were --

MORGAN: English are always the best, isn't it?

WILL.I.AM: -- backstage, and I'm like, yo, did you get my hat with the LED display in it? He was like, yes, but why do you want to put a FIRST logo on it? You know FIRST? I was like, yes, I'm doing this program with Dean Kamen a year from now. And I want to start putting little -- you know, leading up to it.

So he's like, you know, I graduated -- I was part of FIRST in England. I was like, are you serious? Let me call Dean on the phone right now. So I called Dean.

He was like, wow, thanks, I never thought I was --

(CROSSTALK)

MORGAN: So you wanted to have the logo, and actually you tell to put that in your helmet or whatever it was you were wearing, he's a guy who has graduated from this, which is an absolutely perfect way of illustrating how far this kind of project can take people.

WILL.I.AM: No, that particular guy is an amazing -- he has an amazing skill, you know, he doesn't just write code for LED lights. This guy can build anything. He's a great engineer.

And these kids have inspired me to try to push myself to do all that I can to shine a light on this movement.

MORGAN: You can do so much, Will, and you're a big role model for this, and it's very laudable. The guy that can do the most in America is the president. You know, you sang about him, you used the lyric, "Obama, let's get these kids educated."

Does he have any involvement with this now, especially now you've got involved?

WILL.I.AM: He makes an appearance on the show.

MORGAN: He does?

WILL.I.AM: Yes.

MORGAN: On Sunday?

WILL.I.AM: On Sunday, August 14th.

MORGAN: Is he playing with a robot or?

WILL.I.AM: No, just applauding and, you know, congratulating the kids and showing support for their discipline and hard work.

MORGAN: You sang, Will, "Yes, We Can." And it was a big motivating factor in getting young people out to vote for the president. And how is he getting on? It's a question with "Yes, We Can," has he?

WILL.I.AM: That wasn't a question. "Yes, We Can" isn't a question. "Yes, We Can" is a statement.

MORGAN: It's a statement.

WILL.I.AM: And then if you pay attention to the sentence, it's "Yes, We." Now, the question is, are you part of the we? And are you dedicated in doing your part in the "we" to change your community? To do your part to inspire someone to do their part?

MORGAN: Interestingly, back in Britain at the moment, we've had a lot of riots this week. And one of the reasons put up for this is bad education, parental lack of responsibility. These kids come from very impoverished backgrounds.

WILL.I.AM: No outlet.

MORGAN: Exactly, all that kind of stuff. You come from, you know, a pretty rough part of Los Angeles. You didn't have it easy when you were young. When you see what's going on with these riots and stuff, do you have an empathy with these kids or do you believe that actually the way out is to go another way?

WILL.I.AM: I remember the L.A. riot, the race riots in the early '90s. We had programs. The school I went to was a magnet program, you know, I went to Brentwood Science Magnet School, Pacific Palisades High School. That changed my life. I mean, that was the differentiating factor between me and my next door neighbors. I could've ended up like the kids in my neighborhood, but I got bused out an hour to good schools, and those schools had programs like FIRST.

He just told me a great statistic.

KAMEN: So, this year we had 90,000 volunteer scientists, engineers, 22,000 schools from 56 countries, if you count all the grades from the little kids in elementary school right on up.

But we have a special program where we recognize -- we ask teams to identify special kids, a couple from each school. And I just heard from the people back at the headquarters that 100 out of 100 of those kids are going off to college this year.

MORGAN: Wow.

KAMEN: Every single one.

MORGAN: That's amazing.

KAMEN: That's pretty good data. That's a nice statistic.

MORGAN: I mean, Dean, I take my hat off to you. You are a genius. And you invented some amazing things.

However, I have got to split one hair with you, which is that I did get on one of your Segways in 2007, here in Los Angeles, Santa Monica Boulevard, and I'd love to show you a video of what happened next.

You'll see me there crashing to the ground onto concrete. The result of this, I've been on that Segway four minutes in my life. The result was that I broke five ribs and I partially collapsed my lung.

So basically, Dean, you nearly killed me. And I've been waiting for somebody to blame for the last four years. All I want is somebody somewhere to say, sorry, Piers.

KAMEN: Sorry, Piers.

(LAUGHTER)

MORGAN: That's over and done with. I feel sort of cleansed now.

When we come back, I want to show you the robot (INAUDIBLE), you brought with you here. I have no idea what they are, what they do. But I know they're part of your twisted mind, aren't they, Dean?

KAMEN: They are.

MORGAN: You love these things, don't you?

KAMEN: I love what they do for kids.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WILL.I.AM: I've done a lot of things, played the Super Bowl, did the World Cup, did a lot of things, been to Rome, Italy, Brazil. I've been a lot of places, but spending time with those kids building robots just ignited my whole life.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MORGAN: That was Will.i.am earlier this year and he's back with me now along with Dean Kamen who invented this whole project involving kids and robots.

I mean, Will, you're basically -- you're a big kid, aren't you? You love these things. You love robots.

WILL.I.AM: I just like seeing kids inspired.

MORGAN: But you like them yourself.

WILL.I.AM: I had a good time building this with the kids.

MORGAN: This sort of -- what is it? I'm led to believe this is basically you. This is the showoff entertainer but doesn't do very much, right?

WILL.I.AM: No, no, no. This robot, you know that robot dance that we do?

MORGAN: Yes.

WILL.I.AM: This can do the robot dance better than people do the robot dance.

(LAUGHTER)

MORGAN: One of the kids built this or a team of kids?

WILL.I.AM: A big kid built that. And a team of kids built this guy.

MORGAN: So this, tell me about this one. This is the real brains one, right?

WILL.I.AM: Right.

MORGAN: Far away.

KAMEN: That's built from a kit called a FIRST Tech Challenge Kit. As I said, we have different levels of competition. And our middle level, between the FIRST LEGO League, for the elementary school, and the FIRST Robotics, which is the high school competition, sort of the Super Bowl, this sits in the middle. And it's called FIRST Tech Challenge. And once we found out that Will was going to come to our finals in a 70,000-seat dome in St. Louis and do a halftime show for us on Friday night, we said, well, some time Friday, before the show and before the championship Saturday morning, we should get Will to build one of the robots and go out there and compete with the kids.

Little did I know that he was going to compete with me, and he won.

MORGAN: Really?

KAMEN: It was humiliating.

WILL.I.AM: You have these kids that are 10, 11, 12, 13, that's the age of the kids I built this robot with -- or actually they built it and they let me screw in a couple of things.

(LAUGHTER)

MORGAN: And take all the credit.

WILL.I.AM: No, I --

MORGAN: I'm kidding, I'm kidding.

WILL.I.AM: --- getting the credit. I'm giving credit where credit is due. And they just amaze me, right? These kids -- wait, wait, Will.i.am, I have to finish writing this code, there's a bug in it. I can't do that.

They showed me that there was this whole new world that, hey, I wish I was doing that when I was 13, I wish that was there.

MORGAN: And what kind of powers does this robot have? It's not fully functional right now, but what can he do when he's going?

KAMEN: Well, the goal of the robot -- every year we give the kids a different challenge. We raise the bar each year. And the playing field for those robots had four of them on the field simultaneously. And they have to go over ramps and pick up sticks and turn them and put them in little goals, and pull the goals for --

MORGAN: Are they remote-controlled? Are they computerized? How does it work?

KAMEN: They're remote-controlled. And they also can autonomously run. They do both. The kids learn software and they learn electrical engineering and mechanical engineering and sensors.

Mostly, they learn how to deal with complex problems. And what they really learn is how accessible and fun it is to learn science and engineering and math. And they learn self-confidence. They learn to have serious relationships with serious adults and serious ideas about the real world.

MORGAN: And, Will, let's go back again to East Los Angeles when you were a kid, because you never knew your father. Your mother had three kids and adopted four others. And there was never much money around for stuff.

When you look back to that time, what was your inspiration other than the science that we've discussed? What was the motivation to you? What do you think got you out?

WILL.I.AM: Encouragement.

MORGAN: From who?

WILL.I.AM: My family, family friends, my teachers, Mr. Wright (ph), Ms. Montez (ph).

MORGAN: You can remember them.

WILL.I.AM: Yes. Mr. Wright was -- that guy really changed my life. He told me -- because I had ADD, still do, just figured out how to use it for my benefit.

So I don't think my mom, she couldn't afford the medicine, Ritalin, which is great, I'm glad she couldn't. So Mr. Wright said, hey, well, the way you're going to get through school is just ask questions. Ask questions to your teachers and you're going to get through school.

So that advice, I became like every teacher's friend. And that's why to this day, me and Ms. Montez are close.

MORGAN: When you see these gang kids, is a big part of the problem the fact they don't have anybody?

WILL.I.AM: No, but they do have somebody. That's a misconception, because they found in that community -- but if there are other things for them to get involved with, they wouldn't have that as the only option.

I know people in gangs, I could have went down that route. But music and that community saved my life. The teachers, you know, the reach out that Ms. Montez said, hey, Will, don't go writing on those walls.

She asked me, she's like, why are you writing on the walls in school? You know, because I've been practicing my script and I want people to see it. She's like, hey, don't damage the property, I promise, you always come to my classroom and write on the chalkboard, and I won't take it down.

Right? That little deed changed my life. So I would go hang out in her classroom and I would get to draw on her chalkboard. And all the other kids were like, yo, I like that piece of art that you did in Ms. Montez's room.

MORGAN: Can you achieve this kind of thing without the driving force of a mother or a father, somebody who is with you to be able to provide a chance to do it? WILL.I.AM: Well, it depends on the people around you. Sometimes your friends, good friends replace that. Of course, you're going to -- you know, I mean, I can't speak for those people. I'm speaking for me being raised by a single mom and uncles and friends that pitched in.

And -- but yes, there's always ways out of it, you know?

MORGAN: Your mother must be pretty proud of you.

WILL.I.AM: Yes, I'm proud of her.

MORGAN: But she must be really proud of you. I mean, to see what you've made of yourself, rewarding all the sacrifice she made.

WILL.I.AM: She was really happy to go to the robotics competition in St. Louis. She was happy to give out those scholarships to the kids, to feel like she was a part of something. And I'm proud of my mom and, you know, the difficult decisions.

Sometimes it takes difficult decisions to do things, to leap. You've just got to leap, especially if you know it's better than just sitting there and bickering and fighting, and -- right, and waiting for people to make it happen for you. You just have --

MORGAN: Well, funny you should say that, because when we come back after this break, I want to talk to you about the bickering and fighting in Washington, the debt crisis, America, the economy, because it strikes me you two, probably between you may have a few answers.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KAMEN: More smart kids to take over this world, which is kind of a mess. And we need to give these kids tools. We just put them in a hole in this country. We just saddled on top of them $3 million -- $3 trillion in debt. At least we can give them the tools to shovel themselves out of that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MORGAN: Now, Will.i.am. on Sunday is on ABC special combines Hollywood, sports, and engineering. Tell me about this hour of television you've got coming up.

WILL.I.AM: So, it's shining a light on the kids that are dedicated in technology, science, mathematics -- letting them shine. And so other kids can see that it's cool to do this. It should be an underground movement. It should be the most popular movement in America.

MORGAN: And, Dean, how important is it to get somebody to like Will.i.am? It doesn't get much cooler than him, I mean, short of having my endorsement for your project, this is as good as it's going to get. How important is it to you to get somebody like him who, in one swoop, can basically get to millions and millions of kids in this country?

KAMEN: You answered the question yourself. He can do it in one swoop.

By some standards, FIRST is an enormous success. I started it 20 years ago as an experiment, and I had 20-some-odd companies that adopted 20-some-odd schools. And it doubled the next year to more than 50, and it doubled the next year.

But now, we're 20 years out, and by most standards we're bigger and more exciting than any science fair, and by most standards in our culture, having thousands of schools and 90,000 volunteers is pretty good.

But by a standard not of academics and school, but the standard of our popular culture, virtually, nobody knows about FIRST compared to the people that know about the superheroes of the world of football and baseball and entertainment.

So, I said from day one, if we can make our event every bit as exciting as any other sport, or any other entertainment and we can prove to kids that it's accessible -- yes, they have to work hard, but you have to work hard to be good at basketball, it takes years.

We said particularly if young women and minorities could see just how exciting it is and what the possibilities are, and they could see that real professionals could believe in them and help them, we could change their future.

And now, we're in our 20th year. It's a big year for us. And I get this unbelievable call out of the blue from an icon of what makes things cool and popular, and he says, how can I help? We sucked him in.

MORGAN: Interesting talking to the pair of you for the last 20 minutes, it just struck me, you're the perfect guys to ask about this economic malaise that has engulfed your country.

Will, let me start with you. When you see figures like $14 trillion in debt, when you see the debt ceiling has to be raised even higher, what do you think? What do you think of America as a business model right now?

WILL.I.AM: It goes over my head because I can't comprehend it. I don't know how we got there. I don't know how -- I don't know why we don't have jobs.

All I know is that the people that create jobs are companies, right? Visionaries. Investors. Leaders of industry. I don't know if -- last time I checked, I don't know if government makes jobs.

MORGAN: Dean, what do you think? KAMEN: I agree, as usual, with Will. I'm not a politician and I'm not an economist, but I can tell you one thing that I'm sure would help, there are enormous problems out there: global warming, you believe it or you don't believe, you still want jobs and technologies that will replace old technologies with better ways to make and store and use energy.

MORGAN: But when I see what you're doing, for example, is it all about now new technologies? Should that be where America leads the field?

KAMEN: Progress has always depended on innovation. And these days most innovation requires that you have advanced capabilities with technology. Again, whether you're curing diseases -- that's going to be science and technology -- whether you're dealing with energy problems.

You can't name a major global or problem in this country that doesn't require some new technology to solve it. What we need is the world's best, most competent, most motivated kids to take over.

And in the next generation, this country has got to get back to leading the world. It's what creates the jobs, what solves the problems. It's what will ensure our security.

But a lot of kids in this country that have all the raw talent and all the raw capability to become the next generation of innovators are distracted in our culture. And they don't develop the skills sets they're going to need. We got a global competitive environment out there.

There are 6.3 billion people. We're the 0.3. We are the global rounding error after the decimal point. And yet we want to have leadership and quality of life and standard or living and security. If 300 billion people want to retain global leadership when the rest of the world is focusing on science and technology and education, the kids in country have to become superstars, all of them do, or they're not going to see the next generation be a step up to a higher bar.

MORGAN: I completely agree. I think FIRST is a brilliant idea. I think the combination of your geeky genius and his impresario brilliance is a winning formula.

Gentlemen, thank you very much. Will, nice to see you. Don't forget to Tune in to I.am.first, Science is Rock 'n Roll, which is will.i.am's brilliant collaborative show on ABC, 7:00 Sunday night. >

Coming up, Bryce Dallas Howard. She's Ron Howard's daughter, used to be baby sat by Tom Cruise. She's also in the hottest movie of the summer, "The Help."

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MORGAN: One of the most highly anticipated movies of the summer has got to be "The Help." Bryce Dallas Howard is one of the stars, in fact, was literally born to be a star. She is the daughter of actor and director Ron Howard. She joins me now.

Bryce, let's face it, you were born for this. Weren't you? Because your dad's Ron Howard. Your Godfather is Henry Winkler, the Fonz. And Tom Cruise used to babysit for you. Is that right?

BRYCE DALLAS HOWARD, ACTRESS: That's a slight exaggeration. He was just -- when my dad was doing a movie called "Far and Away" he didn't have kids yet and soon after he shot "Far and Away," he adopted his children. And I think he was just very excited having a lot of kids around. You know, when you start thinking about having children, like when you see a kid around, you just start kind of like playing with them and stuff.

MORGAN: Was he a good baby sitter?

HOWARD: Again, not babysitter.

MORGAN: Let's pretend, for argument sake, that's what he was. He clearly was practicing with you.

HOWARD: He can do a lot of acrobatics.

MORGAN: Really?

HOWARD: Yes, yes, yes. That was endlessly entertaining.

MORGAN: Tom Cruise would be doing cartwheels?

HOWARD: No, like back flips.

MORGAN: Really?

HOWARD: Oh yes, oh yes.

MORGAN: Back flips, that's quite impressive.

HOWARD: Yes, I thought it was, I still think it is.

MORGAN: What a cool babysitter.

HOWARD: Yes.

MORGAN: Do you still see him?

HOWARD: I do, actually. I do.

MORGAN: What does he make of what's happened to you? It must be quite weird. I mean, one minute, there's this little red head girl that he's doing back flips for, and the next minute you're now a hot movie star.

HOWARD: No, no, no. He's incredibly supportive and complimentary and things like that. I mean, honestly, all of my dad's friends are like that. They're all very thoughtful and supportive. And that's really wonderful.

MORGAN: And the Fonz as your Godfather. How cool that? I know the Fonz.

HOWARD: Nothing cooler.

MORGAN: He's such a nice, down-to-Earth man.

HOWARD: He's amazing, I just got an e-mail from him yesterday just kind wishing me luck with this -- with "The Help," which is coming out this week, and just checking in about everything. But he checks in -- he checks in more than my parents. He really does.

MORGAN: I can believe that. He's a very caring guy.

HOWARD: Yes. I talked to his wife, who is my Godmother, last week. They're amazing.

MORGAN: Finally, and, of course, most importantly, your dad is this Hollywood icon. So putting all this together, you've had a fairly surreal life, in terms of exposure to Hollywood and stuff.

MORGAN: Yes.

MORGAN: Has that been, on balance, a good thing or not a good thing for you?

HOWARD: I think -- personally, I think a really fortunate thing, because it exposed me to the business that I found myself in as an adult. And I think there's definitely an advantage in that. I mean, certainly.

It's also been wonderful because not only has my dad been working for over 50 years now, but my grandfather has been in the business. He's in his mid-80s now and he's still working a lot. And just to have those examples of people who have the endurance to work and work and work, and sometimes there are years and perhaps even decades where it's not going so well, but that they have that kind of determination I think is very inspiring.

MORGAN: Your middle name is Dallas.

HOWARD: Yes.

MORGAN: And the reason you're called Dallas is because?

HOWARD: I was (INAUDIBLE) --

MORGAN: I knew that.

HOWARD: Which is totally gross.

MORGAN: And your siblings's middle names are?

HOWARD: My sisters are twins. So it's Carlisle, after the Carlisle Hotel in New York. And then my brother is Cross after Lower Cross Road.

MORGAN: Fantastic. Is it true you've never had a single drop of alcohol.

HOWARD: That is true. Where do you get all of this information?

MORGAN: I've immersed myself in your life.

HOWARD: Yeah, that's true. I haven't.

MORGAN: Not one drop.

HOWARD: No.

MORGAN: You're the daughter of a Hollywood icon.

HOWARD: That's why.

MORGAN: You've never touched alcohol.

HOWARD: I knew it was important to stay away from it. I had some examples.

MORGAN: Did you? That's interesting.

HOWARD: Yeah.

MORGAN: You saw the bad effect that had been people.

HOWARD: Yes. Some people close to my family, and -- who had actually, thankfully, gone through it and were in recovery and all of that. And I was exposed to that at a young age. And I think I just kind of thought to myself, why kind of mess around with that. I mean, of course it's a bit extreme what I've done.

MORGAN: Do you ever get tempted?

HOWARD: No. If I did, I would try? Because -- you know, it's perfectly fine to do that.

MORGAN: Ever smoked?

HOWARD: No.

MORGAN: Taken drugs.

HOWARD: No. Can you imagine if I as like hardcore drugs?

MORGAN: It would be a kind of cool sort of dropped intro, wouldn't it? By the way, she's talked to me about my cocaine habit. But so you're pretty squeaky clean.

HOWARD: I don't know if I'm squeaky clean, but I just haven't done those things.

MORGAN: Any vices?

HOWARD: Well, yeah, totally.

MORGAN: Come on, share them with me.

HOWARD: I don't know. It's going to -- I did an interview with Howard Stern and it ended up being 45 minutes of him really trying to figure out exactly what was going on.

MORGAN: Just spare me the 45 minutes.

HOWARD: It's ultimately a little bit boring. I don't know. It's kind of normal vices like sugar and gossip websites.

MORGAN: Sugar? Sugar? Your vice is sugar?

HOWARD: I don't know. I don't know.

MORGAN: That's almost embarrassing.

HOWARD: I'm a night owl. I don't know. I don't know what to say.

MORGAN: Let's have a little look at the clip from the film "The Village," which was the real breakthrough movie for you, in which you played a blind character. Let's just take a look at this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HOWARD: Papa? I cannot see his color.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Come away. Come away. Take her! Take her!

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MORGAN: Pretty dramatic role.

MORGAN: Yeah, that was my first part in a movie. I mean it's crazy. I haven't seen it since it came out. I did it like eight years ago.

MORGAN: What do you feel watching it now?

HOWARD: It was such an incredible thing that happened. I was doing a play. I had auditioned for a ton of movies and didn't get close to any of them. I think I was over the top and stuff like that. I didn't really know how to act for a camera. I did a play in New York at the public theater, a Shakespeare play, and M. Night Shyamalan, who is the writer/director of "The Village," came and saw me in the play and asked to go to lunch afterwards.

I had no idea what he was going to talk to me about. And he literally just offered me this part, and handed me the script. And I went home and I read it. And I kind of couldn't believe what was happening to me.

Even now, just having been in the business for just a little while longer, I realized how extraordinary that was. You know, I mean, it's like you -- directors are given so much pressure to cast names. And if not a name, at least someone who is a little bit more experienced than I was. And I'm just really lucky that he took that chance on me.

MORGAN: It was spy casting. It was a big success for everyone involved. And now you're on the cusp of, I would imagine, the next really big breakthrough, because everyone is talking about "The Help." They're all saying this is going to be the big movie this summer.

When we come back, I want to talk to you about that and about baby number two.

HOWARD: Thank you.

MORGAN: Unless you've been eating too much sugar, which I don't think is the case.

HOWARD: No not in this case.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(NEWS BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HOWARD: I just found out the surgeon general has reviewed the Home Health Sanitation Initiative that I drafted. And he passed it along to Governor Barnett.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: When can we expect to see the initiative in the newsletter? I gave it to you a month ago. Would you please stand?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'll have it in there real soon.

HOWARD: Great.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MORGAN: That's a scene from the movie "The Help," which is out this week. The book has been on the "New York Times" best seller for 120 weeks. The film has a stellar cast to it. You play a really evil woman.

HOWARD: Yes, I do.

MORGAN: Did you enjoy that? I can't imagine anyone less suited to play evil than you, miss sugar addiction.

HOWARD: Oh gosh. Yes, I know. There's something really freeing about playing a character that isn't even like remotely likeable whatsoever. And there were a lot of very, very fun scenes that, you know, as a result of this -- playing this kind of horrible woman.

But, of course, you know, the backdrop of the movie is the Civil Rights Movement. And I play a character, Lily Holbrook (ph), who is very prejudiced. There were scenes that I would never really want to go back and do again, because I had to get into that psychology, that very ignorant psychology that is not -- that isn't fun. MORGAN: Are you worried about any controversy that this role will bring you?

HOWARD: I haven't really thought about that, I mean, because it was a book first, and because --

MORGAN: People are familiar with it.

HOWARD: Exactly. And it is the character that everyone loves to hate. I hope there's a little bit of safety built in there, but I don't know. I haven't really thought about it.

MORGAN: Let's talk about the other big production you've got this year, which is baby number two.

HOWARD: Yes.

MORGAN: How many months pregnant are you now?

HOWARD: I'm almost five months.

MORGAN: How is it all going?

HOWARD: It is -- it's amazing. The baby is healthy, and it's been a healthy pregnancy. It's been a little more challenging than my first pregnancy. But I think -- I think that's kind of good, actually, because my first pregnancy, you know, everything was great and wonderful, and I thought I was -- you know, could do everything all at once. And after I had the baby, that I would bounce back like this.

And I think I was kind of setting myself up for a little bit of -- or just being too hard on myself and stuff like that.

MORGAN: You were very open about this. You had postpartum depression after the birth of your son Theo. And you wrote this,, "I recall the moment somebody handed my son to me. I heard shouts of joy, my father crying, Bryce, you're an incredible mother. And then nothing. I felt nothing."

HOWARD: Yeah.

MORGAN: Quite a moment for a new mom to be feeling nothing.

HOWARD: Yeah, it was really confusing, especially because I'm kind of an emotional person. I mean, I found out -- today was my son's first day of camp. And I've been nervous all day because he had to go off on a bus by himself. He's four and a half. And I've just been like panicked.

And then he came back from camp and he had this certificate that he had won camper of the day, and I just burst into tears, you know? And I think that's a more appropriate reaction for a mother to have. But to just knowing that that's kind of my natural demeanor and then to give birth to my first child and to feel nothing was -- I mean, it was beyond confusing. MORGAN: Do you have any worries it may happen again?

HOWARD: I mean I do. I absolutely do. But I -- my hope is that -- that I'm at least -- I'll have that much more awareness that I need to get help. I mean, I waited so long to get help with my depression. And I mean, that's just -- that was unnecessary. It totally was.

MORGAN: Presumably, the joy you've been experiencing with young Theo I would imagine is very helpful to avoiding feeling depressed next time around.

HOWARD: Yeah.

MORGAN: Because you can see what it's all about, I guess.

HOWARD: Yeah, yeah. And just kind of knowing -- knowing that it is -- if it does happen, it is chemical. And there is treatment, and then it will be over, you know? And like I said in the beginning, when I said it was kind of a more difficult, challenging second pregnancy, but that was good. I think it is good to know that sometimes it is tougher.

It might be really tough afterwards. And I might go through that again. But just to know that -- that I can handle it and -- is just very comforting for me.

MORGAN: You're married to a fellow actor, Seth Gable. How does that work out? I mean, do you get competitive with each other.

HOWARD: No. No, no, no.

MORGAN: I can't imagine not being competitive.

HOWARD: Really?

MORGAN: Two actors together, with all of the, you know, insecurity that comes with acting, and the egos and all of the rest of it. Don't you have little moments of --.

HOWARD: I come from a family of actors so --

MORGAN: You're used to it.

HOWARD: Well, I don't -- OK, maybe I'm deluded here, but I don't look at this as a competitive business. I look at it as a collaborative business. And that's always been my perception.

MORGAN: Is that because you're just basically quite a nice person, because it is the most ruthless competitive business in the world.

HOWARD: Well, thank you for that compliment. Maybe I'm terrible.

MORGAN: I'm giving you a way out here because saying that acting is not competitive I think is a little weird. HOWARD: Right, right, right.

MORGAN: You wouldn't mind winning an Oscar.

HOWARD: No, of course. It's an incredible honor, incredible.

MORGAN: The old man's got a few stashed away, hasn't he?

HOWARD: He's doing well, yes.

MORGAN: Where does he keep them?

HOWARD: In his office.

MORGAN: Is it?

HOWARD: Yes, in Connecticut?

Yeah.

MORGAN: Do you look at them and think, one day.

HOWARD: No, no, actually, I haven't.

MORGAN: Have you written the speech in your mind?

HOWARD: No, no..

MORGAN: What if "The Help" becomes this huge thing, and you, Ms. Evil Emily from the film, wins best actress. Who are you going to thank?

HOWARD: Well, here's what would happen --

MORGAN: The Fonz, Tom Cruise, Ron Howard and Seth Gable. I mean, what a speech you've got ready to go, huh?

HOWARD: Yeah, there's a lot of people to be grateful to. But what I would be more kind of fixated on in a moment like that is I just look at the timeline with my pregnancy. And I just know that I'd only be kind of like a month or even just a few weeks, couple of weeks from having a baby. And I don't want to look at me at that moment. I don't want that captured necessarily.

MORGAN: Will your new baby's middle name be Santa or Monica.

HOWARD: No Seth and I are actually traditional. We are not like that. No, we do the family name thing. We do.

MORGAN: Excellent. Bryce, it's been a real pleasure.

HOWARD: Thank you.

MORGAN: Good luck with the film. I hear it's terrific. So good luck with it.

HOWARD: Thank you so much. I appreciate it.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MORGAN: Monday night, the former governor of South Carolina, Mark Sanford, live. remember when he said this?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARK SANFORD, FORMER GOVERNOR OF SOUTH CAROLINA: So the bottom line is this, I am -- I've been unfaithful to my wife. I developed a relationship with a -- what started as a dear, dear friend from Argentina.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MORGAN: It's been two years now. For the first time Mark Sanford, inside his very private life today.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SANFORD: Given the last storm of my life, there, needed to be some healing there for us. It's a place where I could sort of concentrate and think about what I want to do next in life.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MORGAN: That's Mark Sanford, live and exclusive on Monday. That's all for us tonight. Now here is Anderson Cooper with "AC 360."