STARS ON MARS: Natasha Leggero on Her Exit, Unexpected Fans, and Her One Regret

STARS ON MARS delivered a double-whammy with the Monday, June 26 episode as Natasha Leggero and Tom Schwartz were eliminated—and four new mysterious celebs crashed-landed on “Mars.” (Fox has teased they are “a late night personality, a NBA champion, a reality star, and a hall of fame chef”; their identities will be revealed when the show returns on July 10.)

For Leggero, joining the Fox reality show was a “fun idea” to get out of her comfort zone.

“Even though I wasn’t really worried about COVID as much anymore [during the production of this], I wanted to get out of my habits that I formed during COVID, which are staying and just staying inside my comfort zone,” she explains to Give Me My Remote. “And I feel like this opportunity really helped me get out.”

Here, the actress/comedian talks about the challenges that came with the show, her one regret, unexpected fans, and more.

How closely did your hopes about the experience actually sync up with the reality of what you went through?
You know, I was so scared on this plane, flying over there. I had no idea what to expect. I usually produce my own stuff, so not having any of that control was very scary. I was really worried about the physical aspects.

Even physically getting to where we shot this was harrowing for me. We flew to Sydney, and then I had to take a four-hour trip to the middle of the Outback—a four-hour passenger plane trip. As soon as I landed, they wanted me to immediately get in my outfit. And I couldn’t stop vomiting. So it was a physical challenge for me all the way.

But it ended up being socially super fun. And I just really wasn’t expecting that. So I am just really happy that I did it.

Another contestant revealed there’s a cast text chain. What has it been like keeping in touch outside of that environment? And what has it been like reliving the series with them as it’s now airing?
Well, it’s funny because I have some of the people on the text chain saved wrong. And so I [kept wondering], “Why does Christopher Mintz-Plasse keep sending us basketball updates?”…So I tried to get those all straight. And then also some of the people on the text chat are people that I haven’t met yet, because, as you know, four new people are coming. So that’s a little weird as well. But it’s always fun to keep in contact. A few of us watched the first episode together, and that was really fun.

Which relationship that you formed surprised you the most?
I thought Ronda [Rousey] was really almost like a den mother. She was kind of the glue that held everyone together. And she just has this real emotional streak, but also is super strong, obviously, in other ways. It was just really cool getting to know her.

There were a lot of crazy challenges during your tenure. Which was the hardest for you?
The absolute hardest for me was putting on this oppressive 60-pound outfit that when I latched it all together, I couldn’t breathe very well. A lot of times it would fog up so I couldn’t see at all. I couldn’t even stand carrying the 60 pounds of equipment.

I feel like if they do a show like this again, they should maybe troubleshoot the equipment and possibly some of the things that we were carrying around—maybe there’s a way to make it lighter. But I think, to their credit, the producers really wanted to simulate this Mars experience and everything we were carrying in this backpack was essential. So we kind of had to have it like that.

The bile challenge looked really rough. Was it as bad in real life as it appeared?
It wasn’t dramatized for effect. It was disgusting! And when I asked what it really was, they had put fake vomit in it. Like there’s movie vomit that still makes you want to vomit and smells like vomit. So that’s what they used. Isn’t that charming?

That sounds as bad as it appeared! With your exit, it certainly appeared as if you self-eliminated. Do you have any regrets?
I do have regrets, because now my daughter is hooked on the show and wants to keep watching it. And I’m like, “Well, I’m not in it anymore.” And she’s like, “I don’t care. I’m watching this.” So in that respect, I do wish she hadn’t seen me opt out like that.

But it was just physically too much for me. I couldn’t bear it anymore. I live in my head. And as a comedian, it was fun for a little bit, but just the continuous pressure to be physical, it was just way too hard for me.

Was there a particular breaking point or was it cumulative?
I mean, my breaking point was the first time they put us out there. It was so scary. And there was wind blowing everywhere. I didn’t know what to expect, everyone was freaking out…I just went into it really not wanting to be the first person to leave. [Laughs.] So I feel like I succeeded.

Looking back, what was your favorite part of the experience?
My favorite part was probably just getting to know everybody in a social way. It was really fun. And observing people—everyone was at the top of their game, but in a lot of fields I wasn’t really familiar with. When do I get to hang around Olympians and world-class athletes and famous football players? It was just a really fun experience.

Outside of the physical element, what was the most difficult part of the show for you?
[Joking.] You know, I thought it was going to be leaving my family. But it turns out after like two or three days in a different timezone, you just kind of forget about them. So that was good.

[Seriously.] Honestly, the food. The food was really challenging. To not be able to eat what you want—there [were] really no choices. I can be a little bit snobby about that, so I just kind of chose to not eat…it was time for me to go.

Do you know who won the season?
I do.

Without spoilers, what can you say about who you think might be dark horses as we get further into this competition?
Well, I think that you know, there were varying degrees with which people took this seriously. [Laughs.] And so I think that some of the people who took it more seriously, even though they might not be physically as capable as some of the others, I think that is a really important thing; something I wasn’t able to do. Every time they told us we were on Mars, I would just kind of roll my eyes and be like, “Okay, but we’re not on Mars. Can we all just at least confirm that?” But I do think that there are a few people who took it more seriously and let’s just say that that actually helps.

Besides your daughter, what has been the best or most unexpected reaction to your time on the show?
I was just at a hot spring in the middle of Oregon, and it was a clothing-optional [place]. So this naked woman came up to me and…I don’t know if she was a model or what, but she was just like, “Oh my god, you’re from STARS ON MARS. I love that show.” It was definitely a weird experience, having a fan come up to you when they’re totally naked, and you’re naked.

Outside of the show, where can fans see you next?
I have a podcast I do with my husband, Moshe Kasher. It’s called THE ENDLESS HONEYMOON PODCAST, and we give relationship advice. We’re actually in Portland right now—we just had a live taping. We also play people’s deep, dark secrets. And it’s just been such a fun thing that we started doing during the pandemic. We ramped it up during the pandemic to twice a week. And it was just such a great experience because I feel like it helped me just as much as we helped other people, so it’s something that I really love doing. And hopefully you guys check it out…you can watch it all on YouTube.

Is there anything else you’d like to share about STARS ON MARS?
I’m just looking forward to see[ing] how these four new people do with the physical challenges. And then they’ll know I wasn’t lying!

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STARS ON MARS, Mondays,8/7c, Fox

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