The Empire Film Podcast

It's like an episode of Extras on the Empire Podcast this week, as Ricky Gervais - star, writer, director of the new Netflix show, After Life - and Captain Marvel star, Samuel L. Jackson - old Nick Fury himself - pop by to have a good old natter with Chris Hewitt about a great many things, from getting advice from Jerry Seinfeld to why Jackson doesn't tweet about Liverpool FC anymore. Then, in the podbooth itself, Chris is joined by Helen O'Hara and James Dyer to talk about great movie pets, discuss the week's news, including Idris Elba joining The Suicide Squad, figure out whether Sam Jackson has made more MCU appearances than Robert Downey Jr., and review Captain Marvel and dark Swedish fantasy, Border. Oh, and James mansplains the female experience to Helen, which is nice. Do, please, enjoy.

For this week's pod, the team journeyed North to bonnie Scotland to record live at the Glasgow Film Festival - mainly so we could eat our own bodyweight in Irn-Bru sweets, which one listener was kind enough to provide. We also found the time to sit down with Sir Michael Palin, who reminisced with Chris Hewitt about The Holy Grail, Doon Castle and new documentary Final Ascent. Plus all the usual movie news and nonsense, including Helen's analysis of all things Oscars and only the tiniest bit of Dune tedium from James.

"Stop getting Alan wrong!" That could well be what you shout at a couple of points in this very special Empire Podcast appreciation of all things Alan Partridge, as Alan anoraks (Alanoraks?) Chris Hewitt, Nick de Semlyen and Pilot TV's Boyd Hilton get together for a solid 49 minutes of scorching Alan-based chat... and end up misquoting him on several occasions. The authorities have been informed. But that's not all. Chris also sits down for a chat with Neil and Rob Gibbons, the clever flucking clunts who have, for the last few years, been getting Alan right, as writers (and now directors) of Mid-Morning Matters, Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa, and his triumphant return to the BBC with This Time with Alan Partridge. You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll pierce your foot on a spike -- not our words, Carol, but the words of... oh, no, those are our words, actually. Enjoy.

Due to another incredible scheduling snafu by Chris 'What's a spreadsheet' Hewitt, this week's episode of the Empire Podcast features a veritable cavalcade of star guests. There's a Fighting With My Family double bill, as John Nugent talks to that film's director, Stephen Merchant, and its star, Florence Pugh. Then a very tired Chris meets a very jetlagged Jason Clarke, star of The Aftermath, and they end up talking about David O'Leary. In the podbooth, Chris is joined by Nick de Semlyen and James Dyer to discuss the week's movie news, share their battle tips for surviving an Oscars all-nighter, and review Capernaum, On The Basis Of Sex, and Cold Pursuit. Oh, and discuss creme eggs, and the consumption thereof. Enjoy!

Empire's 30th birthday celebrations continue unabated with this very special podcast documentary - or, if you will, podumentary - exploring the biggest film of all time: James Cameron's Avatar. Host Chris Hewitt dips into the Empire archives, and also sits down for a brand-new chat with Cameron, the film's writer-producer-editor-director, to tell the story of how Cameron's groundbreaking visit to Pandora came to be. It's packed with info about Cameron's Eureka! moment, how he nearly chose to direct what would become Alita: Battle Angel instead, and some very interesting revelations about casting the film's hero, Jake Sully. Enjoy.

Holy delayed podcast, Batman! Yes, it's finally here - the Batman edition of The Ranking, the podcast/magazine crossover in which four Empire writers - Chris Hewitt, Helen O'Hara, Dan Jolin, and Olly Richards - argue the toss over a series of movies. In this case, it's the Batfilms. All the Batfilms. Yes, even the rubbish ones. So settle in for an hour of feverish Batdebate that features Helen and Dan arguing about the politics of The Dark Knight Rises, fewer impressions of Bane than you might expect, and the final, Empirical Batman Top 10. It just might surprise you. This pod needs an enema!

After the lunacy of last week's live episode, the Empire Podcast settles down this week, with an actual knight, and R&B royalty. First, Ben Travis has an audience with the wondrous Mary J. Blige, chatting about her new Netflix show, The Umbrella Academy, and much, much more. Then Chris Hewitt chats to not one, but two Merlins, as The Kid Who Would Be King stars, Sir Patrick Stewart and Angus Imrie, drop by the podbooth. We feel we should warn you - there is more discussion of @SirPatStew nudity in this than your average podcast interview. Either side of those, Chris is joined by Helen O'Hara, Nick de Semlyen, and James Dyer for much discussion of the week's movie news. They also run their eye over The Kid Who Would Be King and A Private War, and finally answer the question that has been gripping us all for years: who is the best Hollywood Chris - Hemsworth, Evans, Pratt, or Pine? The answer might surprise you. It won't.

Actor. Writer. Director. Producer. Joel Edgerton is the very definition of a multi-hyphenate, in front of and behind the camera. He performs all four duties admirably on Boy Erased, which opens in the UK this week. A drama starring Lucas Hedges as a young man sent to a gay conversion therapy centre by his Baptist parents (Russell Crowe and Nicole Kidman), where he struggles with the strict methods of Edgerton's counsellor, it's a fine follow-up to the Australian's directorial debut, The Gift. When he came to London recently, we sent John Nugent along to have a bit of a natter with him, about Boy Erased and many, many other things. Enjoy.

Can it really be seven years since four giggling idiots walked into a studio in London, and decided to inflict their godawful opinions about movies upon unsuspecting members of the public? Apparently it can, for this is the 350th episode of the Empire Podcast. And to celebrate it in style, Chris Hewitt, Helen O'Hara, James Dyer, and Empire's Editor-in-Chief, Terri White, were joined by a sell-out crowd at Kings Place in London earlier this week for a raucous live podcast. There will be movie reviews. There will be a bit where Terri hides under a desk. There will be discussion of the week's big movie news. There will be (lots of) swearing. And there will be more listener questions than you can shake a stick at. But that's not all. The podteam are also joined by special guests, The Kid Who Would Be King director Joe Cornish, and Zawe Ashton, star of Wanderlust, Fresh Meat, and the Netflix Original Film, Velvet Buzzsaw. Get ready to have a bangily-banging time. Enjoy.

This week's Empire Podcast is the kind of bumper edition you might need to book a flight in order to have time to listen to it all. We have three - count 'em, THREE - incredible guests. First, Helen O'Hara talks to Alita herself, Rosa Salazar, the star of Alita: Battle Angel. Then, Ben Travis talks with Dean DeBlois, director of all three How To Train Your Dragon movies, as he brings the trilogy to a close with The Hidden World. Finally, waiting at the very end of the pod as a lovely reward, Nick de Semlyen has a long but rather wonderful interview with freshly-minted Oscar nominee, Richard E. Grant. Back in the podbooth, host Chris Hewitt is joined by Helen and James Dyer to talk their favourite Monty Python sketches, wade through tons of movie news (Batman! Zombies! Batzombies?), and review Green Book, How To Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World, and Can You Ever Forgive Me? And don't forget - next week sees our 350th episode. Tell your friends. Tell your family. Enjoy!

This week, Oscar-winning actor Nicole Kidman drops by the pod booth to class up the joint and tell us about her latest chameleonic tour-de-force Destroyer. Plus, Charlie Brooker joins us to talk about the brain-melting branching narrative of Black Mirror: Bandersnatch. Plus, there's news on the Empire Podcast's latest foray out of the comforts of the booth...

We're huge fans of Bradley Cooper's directorial debut, A Star Is Born, here at Empire Podcast Towers. So much so we gave it five stars when it opened in cinemas late last year. So, when we heard that the star/director/producer/co-writer/caterer of the now-Oscar-nominated emotionally devastating love story was in town, Chris Hewitt went along to have a good old natter with Cooper about the challenges he faced as a director, key moments in the movie [INSERT SPOILER WARNING HERE], and cracking Jackson Maine's signature voice. Then, because we're good like that, we decided to bring you a little bonus content, as Chris sits down in the podbooth with Empire's biggest A Star Is Born fans, Ben Travis and Editor-In-Chief, Terri White, to delve deeply into the film. Warning: there is some fairly frank discussion of mental health issues, so be aware of that. Otherwise, it's business as usual. We hope you enjoy.

For years, Adam McKay was dedicated to making us laugh with brilliant, surreal, gloriously daft comedies like Anchorman, Step Brothers, and The Other Guys. Lately, he's turned his attention to making us laugh, and also scream in horror at the state of the world, with the Oscar-winning The Big Short and next week's Vice, in which Christian Bale plays former US Vice-President, Dick Cheney. In this week's podcast, McKay chats to Chris Hewitt about that film, about his new approach, and his very real brush with death. Then, in the podbooth, Chris is joined by Helen O'Hara, Empire Editor-in-Chief Terri White, and James Dyer to tackle a question about the 2019 movie news story they'd like to see, discuss the news stories that broke this week, from Missions Impossible to the Spider-Man: Far From Home trailer, and then review Glass, Mary Queen of Scots, and Beautiful Boy. And, in true Adam McKay fashion, there may be one or two LOUD NOISES. Enjoy.

Well, this is another nice mess. Stan & Ollie, Jon S. Baird's film about a UK tour undertaken by Laurel & Hardy towards the end of their careers, opens this week. So Chris Hewitt has a nice chat with Baird about that, shameless namedropping and more, and in the bargain they come up with the podcast's strangest spin-off episode to date. Then Chris has a chat with the film's Stan, BAFTA-nominated Steve Coogan, about impressions, double acts, Partridge, Tripping with Rob Brydon, Holmes & Watson, and more. It's a ruddy blast. Then, back in the podbooth, Chris is joined by pod-regulars Helen O'Hara and James Dyer, and new producer Jane, for an episode that features some tweaks we hope you'll like, and a huge dollop of the usual film-related fun as they discuss mobile phones in cinemas, the week's movie news, and review the big releases, including Colette and The Front Runner. Enjoy.

2019 may be only a few days old, but the Empire Podcast does not rest. So we're back back back for the first pod of the year, which sees Chris Hewitt, Helen O'Hara, James Dyer, and Empire's Man In LA, James 'Jaime Blanco' White, dive back into the podbooth to discuss their Christmas breaks, chat about the movie news (what there is of it), and review The Favourite, Holmes & Watson, and Welcome To Marwen. Speaking of Welcome To Marwen, that film's director, Robert Zemeckis, and star, Steve Carell, have a lovely chat about that film and more, and our Olly Richards was on hand to witness it and occasionally interject. Do please enjoy this podcast, brought to you in association with Adam Sandler's Pixels. Apparently. Happy New Year!

So, 2018. That was the year that was. And in this very special episode of the Empire Podcast, Chris Hewitt is joined by James Dyer, Helen O'Hara and, on a shared microphone because there are no airs and graces round these parts, Empire's Editor-In-Chief, Terri White, to chew the fat about the cinematic year. From cameos of the year to scenes of the year, they leave very few stones unturned, before counting down their personal Top 10s. And all while trying desperately - nay, heroically - not to wang on relentlessly about Avengers: Infinity War. So join them for 90 minutes of occasionally sweary film-related fun, and see in 2019 in style. Happy New Year, listeners - thanks for making this the best year yet for the pod.

Anyone who's listened to the Empire Podcast on an even semi-casual basis would know that Helen O'Hara and Chris Hewitt are big fans of Hamilton (particularly Helen). So, when the chance arose to have the creator/star of that already-legendary Broadway musical, Lin-Manuel Miranda, on the pod in his new guise as star of the delightful Mary Poppins Returns, they said, in unison, 'we are not going to be throwing away our shot, that's for sure'. So he's our first guest of the last regular pod of 2018. Trip a little light fantastic with us, why don't you? Then, Chris is joined by Ben Wheatley, director of Happy New Year, Colin Burstead, for a fun, slightly demob-happy chat. And in the podbooth, with everyone else off for Christmas, Chris is joined for the main pod by one colleague of such lethal cunning: birthday boy, James Dyer. Together, they preview 2019, review some films, discuss some movie news, and somehow manage not to set the whole thing on fire. Merry Christmas, listeners!

"Excuse me, has anyone got a bottle of orange juice?" The legends that are the League Of Gentlemen are back back back, freed from the confines of Royston Vasey and unleashed into the real world with their new live DVD, The League Of Gentlemen Live Again. And Chris Hewitt couldn't resist the chance to get them into the podbooth to ask all four of them - Mark Gatiss, Steve Pemberton, Reece Shearsmith, and Jeremy Dyson - about their touring arrangements, and the correct pronunciation of Claes Bang. Elsewhere, we can't get rid of Peter Jackson. Not content with his own special a few weeks ago, he's back, with writer Philippa Boyens, to talk with Ben Travis about that movie wot he produced, Mortal Engines. Meanwhile, back in the podbooth, Chris is joined by Ben, Helen O'Hara and James Dyer to talk meringue wreaths, hedgehogs on steroids, the odd bit of film news, and cast their eyes over Roma, Aquaman, and Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse. Enjoy.

Dread it. Run from it. The Empire Podcast's deeply nerdy audio breakdown of the brand new teaser for the fourth Avengers movie arrives all the same. Join Chris Hewitt and Helen O'Hara as they pore over the brand new teaser trailer for the movie we can now officially call Avengers: Endgame, conjure up more bonkers theories and possibly baseless speculation than you can shake a Time Stone at, and ask the big questions. What are those things called on Hawkeye's arms? Does Thanos hate dogs? And just what in the name of all that is holy happened to Steve Rogers' beard? In case you hadn't already guessed, this is a deep dive into the trailer, and not for the fainthearted or MCU sceptics. For everyone else, listening to this is as easy as clicking your fingers. Enjoy.

Before you ask, yes, this week's Empire Podcast was recorded five minutes before the Avengers trailer dropped. No, we didn't have time to go back in and record anything. Yes, we're upset. Yes, there will be a special podcast, up later today. No, we don't know how [REDACTED] gets out of [ALSO REDACTED]. So, to this week's episode, then, in which Chris Hewitt sits down for an audience with the great Andy Serkis, star and director of Mowgli: Legend Of The Jungle. They talk about the film's long journey to completion, how it wound up on Netflix, and what Serkis took from the great directors with whom he's worked. Then, in the podbooth, Chris is joined by Helen O'Hara and James Dyer to answer a question about Christmas presents, discuss the week's movie news (no Avengers, natch), and review the likes of Sorry To Bother You and The Old Man And The Gun. It's bangily-banging.