USA TODAY US Edition

Hey, Just Sayin’

- Jefferson Graham

Ricky Gervais’ app, Just Sayin’, is a voice tool to post updates to Facebook and Twitter.

BEVERLY HILLS Comedian Ricky Gervais has a new app, Just Sayin’, a voice tool to post spoken updates to Facebook and Twitter via the iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad.

The app, which just launched, is the brainchild of David Hayden, CEO of San Francisco-based CloudTalk, who approached Gervais about partnering with him on the app.

Gervais, creator of the British version of The Office and frequent talk and award show guest and podcaster, brings his large audience of 3 million Twitter followers to the party. He serves as creative director for the venture. We met up with Gervais recently in a suite at the Four Seasons Hotel in Beverly Hills.

JUST SAYIN’

“I embrace what’s new. I got into podcasting, before I knew what it was, as an experiment, for a laugh. We don’t know where Just Sayin’ will go. It’s exciting, because you don’t know what will happen. (The app) is another form of social networking. It will be to radio what Twitter was to newsprint. You can be the first to put your opinion out there.”

HEAVY TWEETING

“I like to annoy people, I like to agitate. I want to see what the reaction is. One of my favorite pastimes is arguing with creationis­ts who think the earth is 5,000 years old. You can’t lose, and you can’t win. That’s a nice debate. It’s an exhibition­ist match.”

BAD MOVIE REVIEWS

On Just Sayin‘, Gervais picks up his longtime habit, first started in his podcasts, of reviewing movies poorly. “They’re terrible, un-insightful ... often I haven’t seen the film. (People) get the gag right away. Movie reviewers want to be erudite and often pompous, and they want to talk about the art of the movie. I deconstruc­t that. I’m just an idiot.”

BRINGING TV SHOW TO NETFLIX

His controvers­ial British sitcom,

Derek, set in a retirement home, will play on British TV and here online via Netflix, next year. “Netflix is the future. I want it to be seen by as many people as possible, without compromisi­ng. Netflix gives you total freedom, and they made me an offer I couldn’t refuse. An artist’s got to eat!”

INVITING FEEDBACK?

‘”I don’t reply to everyone. It’s a spectator sport. I’m not there to do oneto-one on people. I’m not a politician, I’m not a guru. I’m an entertaine­r. I try to make it interestin­g for as many of the 3 million followers I have.”

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 ?? JEFFERSON GRAHAM, USA TODAY ??
JEFFERSON GRAHAM, USA TODAY

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