President Obama zings Zach Galifianakis over ‘Hangover’ movies

Now that the debauched “Hangover” film franchise seems to have slowed, star Zach Galifianakis has been keeping himself occupied with his painfully, purposely awkward online talk show “Between Two Ferns.” Hosting his most recent guest — none other than President Obama — Galifianakis delivered his usual mix of stilted conversation and deadpan insults that have made the show a Web favorite, but the commander in chief matched him joke for joke.

Galifianakis, for example, asked Obama what it’s like to be “the last black president” and followed up by noting that he can’t run for a third term.

“Actually, I think it’s a good idea,” Obama countered. “If I ran a third time it would be sort of like doing a third ‘Hangover’ movie. Didn’t really work out very well, did it?” (Indeed, the third “Hangover” installment was shredded by critics and trailed its predecessors at the box office.)

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Obama, who appeared on the show to encourage young people to buy health insurance, also needled Galifianakis by praising his “Hangover” co-star Bradley Cooper.

“Those ‘Hangover’ movies, basically he carried them,” Obama said of Cooper, who also garnered an Oscar nomination this year for his role in “American Hustle.”

Obama added that Cooper is a “handsome guy,” which prompted Galifianakis to blurt out, “Being like that in Hollywood, that’s easy. Tall, handsome, that’s easy. Be short, fat and smell like Doritos and try and make it in Hollywood!”

Elsewhere in the interview, Galifianakis asked the president about “Ambassador [Dennis] Rodman,” whose bizarre, unsanctioned diplomatic efforts in North Korea have inspired a big-screen comedy pitch. He also inquired about the first lady, the Winter Olympics and Obama’s “home country” of Kenya.

Make no mistake though, Galifianakis is a busy man in Hollywood. He will next appear on the big screen in “Muppets Most Wanted,” and his other projects include the Alejandro González Iñárritu comedy “Birdman,” the indie drama “Freeheld” with Ellen Page and an untitled heist movie with Owen Wilson. Until then, you can watch him interview President Obama on “Between Two Ferns”:

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