The Fall and Rise of 'Scarface'
This week, I’m rejoined by Glenn Kenny to discuss his new book The World Is Yours: The Story of Scarface (https://www.amazon.com/World-Yours-Story-Scarface/dp/1335449620/ref=sr_1_1?crid=3OEP6QDK7Z45Z&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.wytYG_nGXi0ZUkcA7Ge2QDlnLHDRWFAP0H-Cae5CqLVMtaMH24iYYP1Fn7ajcu2frDCGd6uhap5VPlD94KrBCmYO3-OIpjweH5FLOCUeG8hBIB-3jawsL74T8JmZ9Lvi6NAFyoSIeOqcVawtofosPftoZiLQZOA3-Gkyz1FvwQ7s9tV-UX4V...
48m May 04, 2024
48m
Is David Ellison Hollywood's Great Hope?
On this week’s episode, I’m rejoined by the Los Angeles Times’s Ryan Faughnder (read and sign up for his newsletter here (https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/business/newsletter/2024-04-23/netflix-is-changing-how-it-reports-subscriber-numbers-what-that-says-about-the-streaming-wars-the-wide-shot) !) to discuss Netflix’s big data change, why some in Hollywood are hoping for David Ellison ...
30m Apr 27, 2024
30m
The Art of Costume Design
As readers may remember, The Beekeeper has been one of my favorite movies of the year thus far (https://www.thebulwark.com/p/the-beekeeper-review) . One thing in particular I loved about it was the costume design: It’s an underappreciated artform, conveying character through clothing, and the costuming in this film perfectly conveyed a range of characters, from “taciturn hero” to “crazed killer...
40m Apr 20, 2024
40m
From 'Funny or Die' to Western Neo-Noirs
On this week’s show I talked to Rod Blackhurst, the director of the new film Blood for Dust, about … well, a whole bunch of stuff. From his early shorts on the comedy website Funny or Die starring Dave Franco and Christopher Mintz-Plasse, to a documentary about Amanda Knox, to the horror short “Night Swim” (which recently received the feature-length treatment), to his new picture with the great...
1hr 4m Apr 13, 2024
1hr 4m
The Best and the Worst of Streaming 2023
I’m very excited to be rejoined by the Entertainment Strategy Guy (subscribe to his newsletter!) (https://entertainment.substack.com/) to discuss the year in streaming. What were the biggest hits (https://entertainment.substack.com/p/the-top-streaming-films-in-2023) in TV and film? What were the biggest misses (https://entertainment.substack.com/p/the-56-biggest-film-flops-bombs-and) ? Could li...
1hr 4m Apr 06, 2024
1hr 4m
Bringing 'Lousy Carter' to Life
This week I was thrilled to chat with star David Krumholtz and writer-director Bob Byington about their new movie, Lousy Carter. It’s a wide-ranging conversation, touching on topics from shooting during the age of Covid to where Krumholtz was when he got the call to audition for Oppenheimer, and I hope you find it as fun to listen to as it was for me to conduct. If you enjoyed it, I hope you sh...
37m Mar 30, 2024
37m
The 2024 Stunt Awards!
On this week’s episode I’m thrilled to be rejoined by Brandon Struessnig and Bilge Ebiri, who spearhead Vulture’s annual Stunt Awards. We talked about the year’s big winner, John Wick Chapter 4, how folks kind of have to decide for themselves how much CGI is too much CGI when determining what counts as practical and what counts as digital, and compiling the 100 most influential fight scenes of ...
1hr Mar 23, 2024
1hr
What Does a Film Commissioner Do?
This week I’m honored to be joined by Dallas Film Commissioner Tony Armer to discuss what, precisely, a film commissioner does. On this episode he discusses his own path to getting involved in the film industry, breaks down different kinds of incentives cities and states use to woo productions, and talks about how Dallas has made itself more attractive to major productions looking for a place t...
49m Mar 16, 2024
49m
'Beetlejuice: The Musical,' Indie Film, and Life on the Road
This week I’m pleased to be joined by Abe Goldfarb, who is currently playing Otho for the touring company of Beetlejuice: The Musical and both starred in and co-directed First Time Caller (which I reviewed here (https://plus.thebulwark.com/p/why-not-have-true-detective-and-night) ). You may remember a few months back that Colorado Rep. Lauren Boebert got kicked out of a showing of Beetlejuice: ...
57m Mar 09, 2024
57m
The Nelms Brothers Talk 'Red Right Hand'
A couple years back I had Ian and Eshom Nelms on the show (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-bulwark-goes-to-hollywood/id1526477480?i=1000501985809) to talk about their new Christmas classic, Fatman. We had a great talk, so I was thrilled when their people reached out to see if I’d like to discuss their new flick, a sort of southern revenge thriller/neo-noir by the name of Red Right Han...
32m Mar 02, 2024
32m
Richard Rushfield's Hollywood Field Guide
On this week’s episode, we have the original Bulwark Goes to Hollywood guest, Richard Rushfield of The Ankler (https://theankler.com/) , returning to discuss his fabulous Hollywood Field Guide. How do you assuage actors (https://theankler.com/p/field-guide-1-how-to-handle-actors) , reassure writers (https://theankler.com/p/field-guide-2-how-to-handle-writers) , and make your way through the res...
41m Feb 24, 2024
41m
Julian Schlossberg Returns to Tell More Hollywood Tales!
This week Julian Schlossberg returns to tell more tales of life in the arts. From reading his life story as the narrator of the new audiobook version of his memoir, Try Not to Hold It Against Me (https://www.amazon.com/Try-Not-Hold-Against-Me/dp/B0CSGF6GBZ/ref=sr_1_1?crid=E2S5SY33QSMQ&keywords=try+not+to+hold+it+against+me+book&qid=1707857766&sprefix=try+not+to+hol%2Caps%2C124&sr=8-1) , to his ...
46m Feb 17, 2024
46m
How Piracy Persists on the Internet
This week I’m joined by Karyn Temple, Senior Executive Vice President and Global General Counsel for the Motion Picture Association, to discuss how the trade group wages the global war on intellectual property infringement. A couple of months back we had the MPA’s Terri Davies on the show (https://plus.thebulwark.com/p/stopping-piracy-before-it-starts) to talk about the Trusted Partners Network...
42m Feb 10, 2024
42m
What Did Peak TV Let Escape from 'Pandora's Box'?
This week I’m thrilled to be joined by Peter Biskind to discuss his new book, Pandora’s Box: How Guts, Guile, and Greed Upended TV (https://www.amazon.com/Pandoras-Box-Greed-Upended-Television/dp/0062991663/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1706732398&sr=8-1) . From the rise of HBO to the streaming boom, how we watch TV—and what gets shown on TV—has radically changed over the last few dec...
45m Feb 03, 2024
45m
Sundance at 40
Very excited to have James Emanuel Shapiro, President of U.S. distribution at XYZ Films, back on the show with a recap of all the action at Cannes and a discussion about the state of the film festival scene writ large. Then we discuss some of his upcoming releases, including the new sci-fi flick Restore Point and XYZ’s exciting acquisition of Skyline: Warpath, starring action bigshots Scott Adk...
42m Jan 27, 2024
42m
How 'The Family Plan' Became a Hit for Apple
This week, I’m re-joined by David Coggeshall to talk The Family Plan, AppleTV+’s high-concept action-comedy about a dad, Mark Wahlberg, who has to take his family on the run when his past life as a hitman rears its ugly head. Released over the Christmas holiday season—as David notes in today’s episode, the perfect time to capture families looking for something everyone age 10 to 100 can enjoy—t...
43m Jan 13, 2024
43m
What's Next in 'The Streaming Wars'
This week, I’m joined by Brandon Katz to talk about Parrot Analytics’s new report (https://www.parrotanalytics.com/strategy/netflix-streaming-wars-not-winner-take-all-svod-rank/) on the state of streaming and why the “winner take all” theory of the so-called streaming wars was always a little bit silly. We discuss what attracts viewers to the streaming services, what keeps them there once they ...
45m Jan 06, 2024
45m
Francis Ford Coppola, Visionary
This week I’m joined by Sam Wasson to discuss his new book The Path to Paradise: A Francis Ford Coppola Story (https://www.amazon.com/Path-Paradise-Francis-Coppola-Apocalypse/dp/006303784X/ref=sr_1_1?crid=30T939U7YZYK8&keywords=the+path+to+paradise+a+francis+ford+coppola+story&qid=1703192430&sprefix=the+path+to+%2Caps%2C201&sr=8-1) , which chronicles the making of Apocalypse Now and the rise an...
42m Dec 23, 2023
42m
Whit Stillman on 'Metropolitan,' a Christmas Movie
This week I’m thrilled to be joined by Whit Stillman, the director of, among other features, The Last Days of Disco, Barcelona, and Love and Friendship. He’s on the show today to discuss Metropolitan and the way it has been embraced as a classic Christmas movie (https://www.thebulwark.com/metropolitan-is-a-christmas-movie/) , as well as the evolution of the indie film business over the last 40 ...
43m Dec 16, 2023
43m
The Year in the Box Office
On this week’s episode, Scott Mendelson returns to the show to discuss how 2023 shook out at the box office, why niche films and niche audiences became more important than ever to movie theaters, and whether or not studios are hiding that Wonka, The Color Purple, and next year’s Mean Girls remake are musicals because they’re worried about the impact on box office. Make sure to check out Scott’s...
58m Dec 09, 2023
58m
From Nicolas Coppola to Nicolas Cage
This week I’m joined by Zach Schonfeld to discuss his new book, How Coppola Became Cage (https://www.amazon.com/Coppola-Became-Cage-Zach-Schonfeld/dp/019755637X/ref=sr_1_1?crid=3FGAXYE5LG074&keywords=how+coppola+became+cage&qid=1701278379&sprefix=how+copp%2Caps%2C192&sr=8-1) . Zach’s look at the early years of Nicolas Cage’s career is deeply researched, featuring interviews with directors like ...
39m Dec 02, 2023
39m
Charlie Chaplin's Life in Exile
This week, I’m rejoined by Scott Eyman, author of Charlie Chaplin Vs. America: When Art, Sex, and Politics Collided (https://www.amazon.com/Charlie-Chaplin-vs-America-Politics/dp/1982176350/ref=sr_1_1?crid=N2I3D776NT3S&keywords=charlie+chaplin+vs.+america&qid=1700680883&sprefix=charlie+chaplin%2Caps%2C120&sr=8-1) . We discussed the great silent star’s exile from America, how the press and the g...
48m Nov 25, 2023
48m
Why You Can Finally Watch 'Moonlighting' on Streaming
This week I’m joined by Glenn Gordon Caron, the creator and showrunner of Moonlighting, to talk about that series’s long-awaited arrival on streaming. We discussed the show’s creation, the discovery of Bruce Willis, how he and costar Cybil Shepherd kept up with the show’s trademark rapid-fire patter, the difficulty in clearing music rights (and how Moonlighting was one of the first shows to hea...
1hr 3m Nov 18, 2023
1hr 3m
Stopping Piracy Before It Starts
This week I’m joined by Terri Davies. Terri heads up the Motion Picture Association’s Trusted Partners Network, which helps studios and other partners develop best practices for avoiding leaks of films and TV shows pre-release, from pre- to post-production. We discussed her time at Sony Pictures from 2000 to 2015, a period of time during which the business of distribution was revolutionized (an...
33m Nov 11, 2023
33m
How What We Watch Defines Us
This week I’m joined by Walt Hickey, the author of You Are What You Watch: How Movies and TV Affect Everything (https://www.amazon.com/You-Are-What-Watch-Everything/dp/1523515899/ref=sr_1_1?crid=3TPFQQ41Y3GGR&keywords=you+are+what+you+watch+walt+hickey&qid=1699113742&sprefix=you+are+what+you%2Caps%2C131&sr=8-1) . Among the many topics discussed on this show: the surprisingly durable effect of W...
47m Nov 04, 2023
47m
Zoey Ashe's Life in the (Future) Panopticon
This week I’m rejoined by Jason Pargin to discuss his new novel, Zoey Is Too Drunk for This Dystopia, and the ways in which the futuristic panopticon he envisions for Zoey and the other citizens of Tabula Ra$a is a little like now, but moreso. We talk for a bit about how book marketing has evolved over the last decade-plus, why TikTok became a must for novelists like himself, and why despite th...
52m Oct 28, 2023
52m
How Siskel and Ebert Got Their Thumbs
I’m joined by Matt Singer this week, author of Opposable Thumbs: How Siskel and Ebert Changed Movies Forever (https://www.amazon.com/Opposable-Thumbs-Siskel-Changed-Forever/dp/0593540158/ref=pd_lutyp_d_bmx_gp_cc6cxfjn_sccl_1_1/140-4069914-6608659?pd_rd_w=RFfIS&content-id=amzn1.sym.82063e04-8129-45a3-90de-950a2081643f&pf_rd_p=82063e04-8129-45a3-90de-950a2081643f&pf_rd_r=49GKYN5YYH8DWD9CNJKX&pd_r...
40m Oct 21, 2023
40m
How 'Airplane!' Changed Comedy Forever
This week, I’m thrilled to be joined by David Zucker, Jim Abrahams, and Jerry Zucker to discuss their new oral history, Surely You Can’t Be Serious: The True Story of Airplane! (https://www.amazon.com/Surely-You-Cant-Be-Serious/dp/1250289319/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1696473769&sr=8-1) In this episode we discuss, among other topics, what set the ZAZ style apart from other titans o...
32m Oct 07, 2023
32m
What the Writers Gained By Striking
This week I’m joined by Elaine Low of The Ankler (https://theankler.com/) and its Strikegeist newsletter (https://strikegeist.substack.com/) to talk about the end of the WGA strike and what the writers won, from performance-based residuals on streaming originals to minimum writers room sizes to AI protections. We also discussed how the picket line and social media helped maintain solidarity and...
32m Sep 30, 2023
32m
The Lines that Define our Lives
Before we get started: apologies for the downgrade in my audio quality about 10 minutes into this episode. My computer, unappreciative of the coffee I spilled on it earlier in the week, decided to restart itself mid-recording in protest. It shall be punished greatly. —— This week I’m joined by Brian Abrams, author of “You Talkin’ to Me?”: The Definitive Guide to Iconic Movie Quotes (https://w...
41m Sep 23, 2023
41m
Fantasy Culture and the Flight from Reality
This week I’m rejoined by Jonathan Taplin, author of The End of Reality: How 4 Billionaires Are Selling a Fantasy Future of the Metaverse, Mars, and Crypto (https://www.amazon.com/End-Reality-Billionaires-Selling-Metaverse/dp/1541703154/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1694718414&sr=8-1) , to discuss the ways in which popular culture may be leading the public down a dark road. Mr. Taplin...
48m Sep 16, 2023
48m
Data Transparency Is a Double-Edged Sword
This week I talk to Ben Dreyfuss, formerly in charge of audience acquisition at Mother Jones and currently the author of the Calm Down Substack (https://www.calmdownben.com/) , about the promise and the peril of complete data transparency. Ben watched what happened firsthand (https://www.calmdownben.com/p/public-streaming-data-will-change-hollywood) as data about what readers wanted became more...
49m Sep 09, 2023
49m
Erotic Thrillers: Unsung Heroes of Home Video
Anthony Penta, director of 'We Kill for Love,' on the history—and present—of an unfairly denigrated genre.
54m Sep 02, 2023
54m
The Rise and Fall of the Brothers Warner
This week I’m joined by Chris Yogerst to discuss The Warner Brothers (https://www.amazon.com/Warner-Brothers-Screen-Classics/dp/0813198011/ref=sr_1_1?crid=XJG4UM2L1BQI&keywords=chris+yogerst+warner+brothers&qid=1692898288&sprefix=warner+brothers+chris+%2Caps%2C168&sr=8-1) , his fascinating new look at the life of Jack, Harry, Sam, and Albert Warner, who collectively formed the Warner Bros. stud...
53m Aug 26, 2023
53m
Why We Need to Know What’s Failing
The Entertainment Strategy Guy returns to discuss the importance of failure.
52m Aug 19, 2023
52m
How to Start a Film Studio in 2023
This week I’m joined by Roy Price, the founder of Prime Video and Amazon Studios, to discuss what it would look like in 2023 to start a brand-new movie studio. Which genres are under-served? What price points should budgets be aimed at? And which audiences are looking for something they aren’t getting from the big studios? We also talk a bit about streaming networks and audience acquisition/ret...
47m Aug 12, 2023
47m
How 2023's Oddest Box Office Hit 'Paid It Forward'
Some backstory to this episode: last month I bought a ticket for Sound of Freedom because I was curious about the year’s most unexpected box office sensation. As the credits rolled, star Jim Caviezel came on the screen and gave a speech to the audience about the importance of theatrical exhibition; it’s the sort of thing you typically see at the start of movies these days, actors and directors ...
49m Aug 05, 2023
49m
Hollywood's Hopes in China Are Fading
I’m rejoined this week by The Wall Street Journal’s Erich Schwartzel, author of Red Carpet: Hollywood, China, and the Global Battle for Cultural Supremacy, to talk about Hollywood’s disastrous summer in China, where virtually every American movie released so far has underperformed. We also talk briefly about why Meg 2: The Trench may end up being one of the lone bright spots for Hollywood this ...
37m Jul 29, 2023
37m
Netflix's Soft Earnings and the 'Barbenheimmer' Juggernaut
On this week’s episode Ryan Faughnder, author of the Wide Shot newsletter, returns to the show to talk about Netflix’s softer-than-expected earnings report, the momentary bright spot at the box office, and the possibility that this strike is going to be going on for quite some time. If you enjoyed the episode, share it with a friend! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/ad...
32m Jul 22, 2023
32m
What If Evel Knievel Had Run for President?
This week I’m rejoined by Jake Tapper, who is on the show to discuss his new historical novel All the Demons Are Here, the third book in the Charlie and Margaret Marder Mysteries. It’s a great beach read and works as a standalone, but I still recommend checking out his previous novels as well to get the full scope of of the Marder family’s story. On this episode we discuss how the books have ev...
37m Jul 15, 2023
37m
Hollywood's Perfect Storm
I’m happy to be rejoined by the first (and, perhaps one day, final) Bulwark Goes to Hollywood guest, Richard Rushfield of The Ankler (subscribe today!), to talk about Hollywood’s shaky summer. Nine-figure flops, the collapse of IP, labor woes, c-suite shakeups: it’s a weird time out west. How is the industry going to handle it? And what might the future look like? All that and more on this week...
36m Jul 08, 2023
36m
A Decade of Big Muscles and Bigger Egos
This week I’m joined by Nick de Semlyen, the editor of Empire magazine and author of the new book The Last Action Heroes: The Triumphs, Flops, and Feuds of Hollywood's Kings of Carnage. We talk Sly, Arnold, Bruce, and the other big names of the 1980s, how the cinematic heroes of the decade dovetailed in a way with the presidency of Ronald Reagan, and how a second-rate Chuck Norris feature may h...
34m Jul 01, 2023
34m
New Doc Examines How Vets Are Recruited by Militias
This week I’m joined by Ken Harbaugh, the producer of Against All Enemies, to discuss his new documentary about the disproportionate number of military and police personnel attracted to extremist groups like the Oath Keepers. How did so many end up at the vanguard of the mob that stormed the Capitol on January 6? And what role do lies about elections play in radicalizing this cohort? We also di...
32m Jun 24, 2023
32m
How Universal Found a Brand-New Customer
This week I’m joined by Brooks Barnes of the New York Times to discuss his story on Universal’s efforts to build what amounts to a new release window, the premium video on demand (PVOD) window. For the first time, Brooks has some real numbers, and they’re pretty interesting. For instance, The Super Mario Bros. Movie, pictured above, has made more than $75 million since May 16 despite still bein...
35m Jun 17, 2023
35m
Just Don't Call it 'Reality' TV
On this week’s show, I’m joined by Arthur Smith, chairman of A. Smith and Co. Productions, the company behind long-running hits like Hell’s Kitchen and American Ninja Warrior. In addition to explaining why he shies away from the label “reality TV,” he’s here to talk about his career and his fascinating new book Reach: Hard Lessons and Learned Truths from a Lifetime in Television. Arthur has one...
54m Jun 10, 2023
54m
Tribeca and the Evolution of the Film Festival
This week I’m joined by Cara Cusumano, Festival Director and VP of Programming at the Tribeca Festival, for a wide-ranging chat about the nature of the modern film festival, how a festival’s sense of place can coexist with efforts to make the festival’s programming available to people around the world, and how Tribeca has expanded beyond film into a multimedia extravaganza. We also talked about...
35m Jun 03, 2023
35m
The Data that Determines What We Watch
On this week’s episode, I’m joined by the Entertainment Strategy Guy to talk about the state of streaming data. What do we know? What don’t we know? Do movies fare better on streaming after getting a theatrical run? How does the data help determine what we watch? What is the “binge curve”? All that and more on this week’s episode. If you found it illuminating, make sure to sign up for his Subst...
50m May 27, 2023
50m
How Much Free Work Do Writers Do to Get Paid Work?
I am pleased to be joined this week by screenwriter Colby Day to discuss all the unapid work that goes into getting paid work. I loved reading Colby’s diaries of annual pitch meetings and the such for 2021 and 2022, and thought I might share them, and him, with you as a way to help you understand some of the frustrations that writers have with the current state of Hollywood. How many pitches do...
37m May 20, 2023
37m
Is the Superhero Boom Officially Over?
This week I’m rejoined by Scott Mendelson of The Wrap to talk about the state of the box office. Is the comic book boom over? What should we be looking for from Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 if we want to assess the health of Disney’s cash cow? What did Scott make of The Flash at Cinemacon? When will the mid-level movie recover? Why is 2017 a better comparison point than 2019? All that and mor...
41m May 13, 2023
41m
How Do You Bring the (Fake) Real Pete Davidson to Life?
This week I’m joined by Judah Miller, showrunner of the new Peacock dramedy Bupkis, to talk about bringing Pete Davidson’s life to the small screen. Bupkis is fascinatingly hard to describe in shorthand, given the way it mixes tones and genres, and also the manner in which it blends Pete Davidson’s ripped-from-the-headlines life with a fictionalized version of his family and day-to-day existenc...
24m May 06, 2023
24m