Jeff Daniels On 'The Newsroom' Criticism: 'It's Impossible' For Aaron Sorkin To 'Live Up To Himself'

Jeff Daniels won't say for sure whether Aaron Sorkin truly apologized for previous seasons of "The Newsroom" -- "maybe he did, maybe he didn't," Daniels said -- but he will say the criticism laid upon his HBO series isn't entirely merited.

According to the "Dumb and Dumber To" actor, it arguably stems from viewers having extraordinary expectations for the Academy Award-winning screenwriter, leading them to pan the HBO show when they get disappointed.

"The problem is that Aaron writes it all by himself, and it's too difficult," Daniels told HuffPost Live on Friday. "He's gotta live up to himself every two weeks with another 80 pages, and it's impossible. To get three seasons out of him and to have the third season be the one where now we really feel like we know what we're doing, I couldn't be more proud of it."

Daniels was honest about the criticism the show has received in the past, noting that the first season "got pummeled by some of the critics," but he now feels the cast has found a rhythm.

"We're really good at what we do, but season one, we're guessing. Season two, we're guessing better. And the feeling on the set of 'The Newsroom' on season three was, 'Alright, we're ready to open,'" he recalled. "All of us are still working it out. We're guessing right but we're still working it out, and that's why I wish, in some ways, [the] series could go on as four, five and season six, because I think we're just figuring out how to do it."

"The Newsroom" returns to HBO on Sunday, Nov. 9, while "Dumb And Dumber To" hits theaters on Nov. 14.

Watch the rest of Jeff Daniels' conversation with HuffPost Live here.

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