--- description: Stand-up comedian and actor, Ray Romano, talks money, family, success and death ahead of the release of his new movie 'Paddleton'. title: Ray Romano Hopes to Die in the Most Ray Romano Way Ever image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt87edb107039cd299/69894575656a3f1046bd6a8a/ray-romano-10q.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Ideas](/section/ideas/) ## Ideas Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [movies](/tag/movies/) ## movies Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Ray Romano Hopes to Die in the Most Ray Romano Way Ever  by [Belinda Luscombe](/author/belinda-luscombe/)  ## Belinda Luscombe Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Editor at Large Feb 21, 2019 11:00 AM CUT  ‘I’m not going to be playing the super-macho stud. I’m realistic ’ —Ray Romano ‘I’m not going to be playing the super-macho stud. I’m realistic ’ —Ray RomanoMatt Winkelmeyer—Getty Images  by [Belinda Luscombe](/author/belinda-luscombe/)  ## Belinda Luscombe Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Editor at Large Feb 21, 2019 11:00 AM CUT _The stand-up comedian and actor on money, family, success and death, as well as some important subjects_ **After** **_Everybody Loves Raymond_** **ended in 2004, viewers didn’t see you as often. But now with** **_Get Shorty_** **, your Netflix stand-up special and new movie** **_Paddleton_** **, our screens are wall-to-wall Romano. What happened?** I’ve been working constantly since _Raymond_ ended. It’s just stuff that some people see, some people don’t. I never stopped doing stand-up. And I’ve continued to do as much other stuff as I could–or as much as people wanted me. **You were reportedly making $1.7 million an episode by the end of** **_Raymond_** **. Does being rich make you more choosy?** Yes. Yeah. I enjoyed watching _Parenthood_, and I called the showrunner Jason Katims up. I left a message: “Hey, I’m loving what you’re doing and I’m unemployed, and whatever my agent tells you it’s going to cost, I will do much better than.” And sure enough, they took me up on it. **Is there a threat to your dignity doing that?** I wasn’t a no-name begging for a part. Although I’m very insecure, so there’s no way I thought I belonged on _Parenthood_. And when I was on it, I learned my lesson about looking on the Internet, because for all the people that loved me, there was just as many who said, “What the F is he doing there?!” **Have you ever noticed that a lot of the roles you play are guys whose lives didn’t quite work out as they’d hoped?** I guess I’m attracted to that kind of story: the insecure guy, the underdog. I’m not going to be playing the super-macho stud. I’m realistic. Yeah, now that you mention it, a lot of these characters are guys who haven’t really gotten what they wanted, and are still searching and reaching for something. **After such success, how can you still be that guy?** Insecurity is relative. Before I thought my cab driver hated me, and now I think my limo driver hates me. Look, I think I’m good at stand-up. Am I a great actor? No. I’m learning. Every time I get a new role, I’m petrified and I break out in some kind of rash. **_Paddleton_** **is named after an invented ball game. What is it with guys and pointless physical feats?** I don’t know, but I’m very competitive. When I golf, I make little bets: _If I don’t break 90, I can’t watch TV for two days._ **At one point in the movie, your character waits too long to say “I love you.” Why is that phrase so hard to say?** I grew up never hearing it from my father, but it doesn’t flow out of my mouth either. My brother and I played on the same softball team, and we had a hard time even high-fiving each other. I always say if my father hugged me once, I’d be an accountant right now. **In your special, you joke about your genitalia, your sex life, your wife and kids, all in front of them. How do they feel about that?** To be honest, they’re sometimes a little jealous when they’re not in the bit. I’d never do anything they felt uncomfortable about. My wife gives me a long leash; I have to give her credit. She knows it’s comedy, and she knows it pays. She’s got a movie theater in her backyard. That doesn’t pay for itself. **You’ve been married for 30 years. Is “a long leash” the secret?** Listen, here’s the thing. I’m in show business. You can’t not be a bit of a narcissist and not need attention to be in that business. So the reason this works is because she is a person who (a) doesn’t need attention and (b) can understand how I feel about her, even though it’s hard for me to outwardly express that. She’s the hero here. **Your new movie is about death. How would you like to die?** Sniper. A very good sniper. I don’t want them to have to come down and check me out. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"OpinionNewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5534362/ray-romano-paddleton/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5534362/ray-romano-paddleton/"},"headline":"Ray Romano Hopes to Die in the Most Ray Romano Way Ever","datePublished":"2019-02-21T11:00:33.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-23T22:49:22.750Z","description":"Stand-up comedian and actor, Ray Romano, talks money, family, success and death ahead of the release of his new movie 'Paddleton'.","url":"https://time.com/5534362/ray-romano-paddleton/","keywords":["movies"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt87edb107039cd299/69894575656a3f1046bd6a8a/ray-romano-10q.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Belinda Luscombe","jobTitle":"Editor at Large","url":"https://time.com/author/belinda-luscombe/"}],"articleSection":"Ideas","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt87edb107039cd299/69894575656a3f1046bd6a8a/ray-romano-10q.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Ray Romano 10Q","caption":"‘I’m not going to be playing the super-macho stud. 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