J.B. Smoove on his Curb Your Enthusiasm character: "Leon is the condom in your wallet and you never f*cking know when you’re gonna need it"

The Ringer

“Leon’s the guy who gives you good bad advice, which is always good because there is f*cked-up sh*t out there and you need a way to get out of that bullsh*t," Smoove tells The Ringer's Jeff Weiss. "He knows how to move." Weiss adds: "Leon’s function on i extends much deeper than crack-up one-liners and the inherent comedy that comes from Odd Couple pairings between Larry and anyone vaguely hip-hop (see also: Killa, Krazee-Eyez). Leon opens Larry up to a world that he didn’t know existed and would never encounter amid his wealthy white Brentwood bubble. The axiomatic need to 'get in that a**' would never have occurred to either the actual or fictionalized Larry. Leon is a study of contrasts: both constantly scheming and always chilling (in a 'Lampin' gold necklace). He’s the wild card, guaranteed to juice up any staid premise. He is the Kramer of Curb, albeit crossed with the Bobby Digital–era RZA (and maybe a splash of ODB). Lanky eccentrics with no clear origin and no source of income, proverbial house guests that never leave, who usher the protagonists into scenarios they would never otherwise entertain. But unlike Kramer and (Tracy Morgan's Tracy) Jordan, who exist alongside Leon in a holy sitcom trinity, Smoove operates within a choose-your-own-adventure framework." ALSO: Smoove only watches Curb when it airs on TV.