This is What It's Like to Interview Cheryl Hines About the New Season of Curb Your Enthusiasm

The season finale of Curb Your Enthusiasm left Cheryl Hines in an interesting position: Would her character rekindle a relationship with her estranged husband Larry David, or was her habit of not using a coaster too much for him to bear? When I ran into Hines at an Emmy party recently, I tried to pry her for information about how involved she'll be in the upcoming eighth season, but as you'll see, she had a spoiler policy even Matthew Weiner would be impressed by.

So tell me about the new season of Curb. I've seen the picture of Larry and Ricky Gervais together. What does Ricky bring to the table?

I have no idea.

No?

I don't know what's going on.

Have you shot anything for the new season?

Well...I'm around.

You're being so secretive.

I know! I can't tell you anything. That's the thing: If I'm not there, I don't know what they're shooting.

So how much of the new season are you in?

I can't talk about that.

Oh my God! What can you tell me, Cheryl?

I can't tell you anything!

Give me a word that doesn't mean anything to me now, but will later.

[Laughs]

I have to try something.

Oh my God. I know! Here's the thing: To be honest with you, I don't even know what I'm shooting when I'm not there. So I can't even tell you.

But you've definitely shot something, right?

[Long pause] Yes.

Something weird?

Everything's weird on Curb Your Enthusiasm.

All right.

I know. There's not much I can talk about, is there?

You tell me. What can I talk to you about?

Well, I am producing a show that's going to be on NBC this fall. It's called School Pride, and it's a reality show where we're going around the country and renovating schools. It's really great.

How did this show come to be?

You know, it started at a very grassroots level. When I became a mom, I became interested in kids and schools, and I literally picked up the phone and called the principal [of Foster Elementary,] Jackie Sanderlin in Compton, and said, "Do you need any help at your school?" And she said, "Yes," so I literally drove over there and started renovating the school. That's the kernel of the idea.

Were you surprised by the state of schools today?

I was shocked. I mean, people ask me about this show and say, "It sounds so exciting," and it is, but these kids aren't asking for big beautiful classrooms. They're asking for water fountains and bathrooms that work. There's a part of it that's very sad because I don't know how it got like this, but then there are these really cool stories that unfold naturally that really capture what's going on now. There aren't a lot of traditional families anymore and they're just trying to make it work.

Prior to Curb, you used to be an assistant to Rob Reiner, right?

I did!

And he's very involved in children's education. Have you talked to him about this project?

I haven't, but he's definitely an inspiration. When I was working for him, he was very vocal about ages 0-5 how much kids develop during that time and how important it is for kids to go to preschool and have that opportunity. I suppose I was influenced by that idea, that kids deserve opportunities and a clean place to go to school.

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