Whoopi Goldberg tries to save Bobby Cannavale's career after he 'kicked Conan in the balls' in Ezra clip

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What better way to get a reality check than for Whoopi Goldberg to sit you on her lap and ask sincerely, "Why are you so crazy?"

In Tony Goldwyn's upcoming film Ezra (out May 31), Bobby Cannavale's Max Brandel, a down-on-his-luck comedian, gets that treatment from his agent, Jayne (Goldberg). The scene, debuting exclusively above on Entertainment Weekly, is pulled directly from the life of its screenwriter, Tony Spiridakis, who based the movie on his relationship with his autistic son, Dmitri. Goldwyn's longtime friend, Spiridakis was never a standup, but he's had an up-and-down career in Hollywood for years, working at various points as an actor, director, and screenwriter.

"Long before he was a screenwriter, Tony started out as an actor and Tony is very Max as a person," Goldwyn tells EW of his sometimes mercurial friend. "I knew the second I met him, I was like, 'Oh my God, this guy's amazing,' But he also was like a bull in a China shop, and he alienated a lot of people. Tony would have these cycles of massive success that you just couldn't believe the opportunities he would create for himself. And then, sometimes, he would completely blow himself up and lose the success that he just created."

The scene above, Goldwyn says, is "based on a day when Tony went to see his agent. He explains, "Tony was freaking out about the business, and he didn't understand why he wasn't getting the parts [actors like] Dustin Hoffman would get. And she said, 'Come here and sit on my lap.' And this wonderful sort of famous New York agent called Iris Grossman made Tony come and sit on her lap to calm him down. And she was like, 'Why are you so crazy?'"

When the exchange happens in the movie, Jayne has just informed Max that Jimmy Kimmel's booker is interested in having him on his show. It's a gig Max desperately needs at this stage of his career, and he can hardly believe Kimmel would even want him. "Max was a very successful late-night comedy writer who, because of his difficult personality, kind of blew up his career by punching Conan O'Brien in the balls and got himself blackballed, no pun intended," Goldwyn explains with a laugh. "Now he's become a standup, and he's trying to find his voice and express himself. He's a comedian who talks about his family, and he has an 11-year-old autistic son, Ezra, and he's really going through it."

In addition to his flatlining career, Max is in the midst of a divorce with Ezra's mom, Jenna (Cannavale's real-life partner Rose Byrne). He's also broke and has moved back in with his dad, Stan, played by Robert De Niro. Plus, Ezra is having behavioral problems at school, and his teachers want him transferred somewhere that specializes in working with autistic kids. Convinced that Ezra needs to go to school with neurotypical kids to grow into a well-adjusted adult, Max is strongly opposed to the idea.

So, the comic is under some serious pressure when the opportunity to book Kimmel comes up. But, like Spiridakis, he can't seem to help sabotage himself. All Max needs to do to get the gig is perform a set at the Cellar and impress Kimmel's booker. The only problem is that Max, endlessly dedicated to his son, has already promised Ezra he'll take him to a Big Lebowski festival at the same time. "Whoopi's convincing him, you need to, if you want to help your son, you better go do this. This is a big opportunity for you," Goldwyn explains.

As revealed in the film's trailer, Max does end up getting booked on Kimmel. But since the show won't fly him to Los Angeles, he decides to make a cross-country road trip, and without informing Jenna, he brings Ezra along for the ride. Hijinks inevitably ensue as Max and his son navigate obstacles and come to understand each other more deeply.

Sometimes, tough love delivered on a kind lap can go a long way.

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