Former Fox News host Tucker Carlson is finally coming out of his shell.
It may seem odd to say about a television personality who had more eyes on him during his nightly broadcast than his closest leftist competitor ever did.
However, there’s a lightness about Carlson that suggests he’s happier now that he’s free from the network’s expectations, culture and corporate censorship.
In behind-the-scenes footage released from Carlson’s sitdown with Andrew and Tristan Tate, it was clear that the 54-year-old could hardly contain his excitement about the entire endeavor.
He did not let the fact that the brothers Tate routinely brag about seducing women and roping them into their sleazy, money-making webcam scheme stop him from connecting with the men, an important step to getting a great interview from even the most repugnant guests.
“It’s so nice to meet you. What a trip!” Carlson exclaimed as Tristan Tate, 35, welcomed him through the gates of the Romanian estate where the brothers were on house arrest after being investigated for human trafficking. Both men were subsequently set free last week on the condition that they don’t leave the country, Fox News reported.
“You’re the famous one, bro,” Andrew Tate, 36, reminded Carlson.
The men talked about the sight-seeing they wished they could do if not for the pesky criminal probe keeping the brothers locked away at that moment.
Their attention then turned to a red 1979 Lada, the single vehicle that was not confiscated by authorities as part of the investigation.
After some quick clips of a convivial conversation among the group during the formal interview — including bonding over a shared love of sparkling water — the footage cut back to Carlson geeking out over the lone “old-school” vehicle.
“This is so f—ing old-school,” Carlson commented after he sat down in the driver’s seat and closed the door.
A quick back and forth in the driveway is all that it took for Carlson to burst into his signature schoolboy giggle.
“I like sh—y old stick shifts, I just do,” Carlson declared. “That tells you something.”
The men excitedly talked over each other about the vehicle until they opened the hood, and a moment of reverence settled over them.
The whole video was a little more than 13 minutes, but was likely meant to humanize the Tate brothers amid their legal woes.
(What the Tate brothers engaged in is appalling, but it’s still up to the judicial system to determine whether it was illegal.)
Andrew Tate shared the clip Thursday on his account on Twitter, the social media platform now known simply as X, to showcase the interaction.
WARNING: The following video contains graphic language that some viewers will find offensive.
Andrew Tate x Tucker Carlson
Behind The Scenes pic.twitter.com/TJIZEeZnGw
— Andrew Tate (@Cobratate) August 10, 2023
Throughout the 13-plus minute video, Carlson came across as a kind of charming, docile everyman, in stark contrast to the monster the left has painted him to be.
A leaked video from Fox News that was likely meant to embarrass Carlson showed him lamenting the fact that there were “a lot of liberals” working for one of the other hosts and other relatable banter.
Instead, Carlson is now thriving after Fox News unceremoniously fired him earlier this year, despite consistently delivering top-notch programming for eight years.
This is great news for his fans, but this footage comes at a time when many conservatives are split on what to do about the Tate brothers.
Andrew Tate, who made his mark as a kickboxer, essentially operates as a pimp, but is now a right-wing superstar as he sufficiently “owns the libs” with his misguided philosophy of masculinity that filled the void the left created.
Men who are tired of being told they’re useless — or worse, toxic — found a home listening to someone who seemed to value maleness.
It’s surprising that Carlson would be so welcoming to these characters, except that he’s a consummate professional who knows how to get what he wants from his mark.
Still, it underscores the fact that Carlson is a new man with the Fox News monkey off his back.
This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.