The Empire Film Podcast

Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey has finally landed in cinemas around the world, and to mark the occasion, we've turned the latest episode of The Interviews into an Odyssey special, as Chris Hewitt talks to two of the key pairings from Nolan's epic adaptation of the Homer poem. First up, you'll hear from Himesh Patel and John Leguizamo, who play Eurylochus and Eumaeus, two characters who are close to Odysseus, the warrior whose journey home after The Trojan War is beset by the kind of bad luck that would have you begging for a bus replacement service. And then you'll hear from Odysseus himself, aka Matt Damon, and Tom Holland, who plays Odysseus' son, Telemachus, as they talk about their toughest days on set, the worst smells, and forging a father-son bond between two characters who are apart for much of the film. These aren't spoiler interviews, but references are made to certain scenes, so perhaps wait until you've seen The Odyssey before listening, just in case. But both pairings were on cracking form, and we hope you'll enjoy.

This week's episode of The Empire Podcast sees one of the most revered Chrises in the movie business finally sit down with the director of The Dark Knight, Inception, Interstellar, Oppenheimer and now The Odyssey. Yes, our Chris Hewitt has a lovely chat with Christopher Nolan, as the latter's Odyssey odyssey finally comes to an end. [47:24 - 1:09:28] Either side of that, Chris (Hewitt) is joined in the podbooth by Helen O'Hara, James Dyer, and Alex Godfrey to pay a heartfelt tribute to the great Sam Neill, who passed away this week at the age of 78; make their selections for the Mount Rushmore of Neill films (by popular public demand); discuss the week's movie news, including the trailer for Tom Cruise's Digger; and review Heartstopper Forever, Couples Weekend and, yes, The Odyssey. With the latter review, in particular, proving so epic it might take you ten years to recover. Enjoy.

Here's a hard boiled treat that will feel like a bullet in the head initially. It may even make you want to take your face off. But hold tight, for there will always be a better tomorrow. Yes, it's a very special interview with the legendary action director, John Woo, who invited our Chris Hewitt, a lifelong fan of Woo's movies, into his LA offices last week for an hour-long talk, principally about Woo's groundbreaking, exhilarating work in Hong Kong on the likes of Hard Boiled, The Killer, Bullet In The Head, and A Better Tomorrow and its sequel. The two of them talk about Woo's humble beginnings, his discovery of action as an outlet and Chow Yun-Fat as his alter ego/leading man, his approach to staging action, his travails on Hard Boiled's greatest action sequence, and much, much more. We hope you enjoy.

Another jam-packed episode of The Interviews this week sees Chris Hewitt sit down in person with Auli'i Cravalho, the actress who originated the role of Moana in the animated films, and is now handing over the live-action torch to Catherine Laga'aia; [2:00 - 15:46 approx] and on Zoom with Robert Mark Kamen, writer of the original The Karate Kid and now also the book for The Karate Kid: The Musical, which is currently on tour in the UK; [17:05 - 38:26 approx] and finally Matt Spicer, who makes his return to directing movies with the Netflix comedy Little Brother, some nine years after he burst onto the scene with Ingrid Goes West. [39:20 - 56:14 approx] Enjoy.

Praise be to Muad'Dib! Thank the heavens for Duuuuuuuuuuuuune Part Three! Because, frankly, without the launch this week of the trailer for Denis Villeneuve's latest, and last, venture into Frank Herbert's sandy world, Helen O'Hara and James Dyer (for they are in charge this week, in Chris Hewitt's absence) would have had very little to talk about in terms of movie news on this week's episode. Thankfully it came along in the nick of time, and they bang on about it accordingly. Elsewhere, they had lots to talk about as they discuss contentious Empire reviews and movie worlds they'd like to visit in the listener questions section, and review Evil Dead Burn (with the help of Harry Stainer), the live-action remake of Moana, and Rosebush Pruning. Speaking of Evil Dead Burn, our guest this week is that film's formidable heroine, Souheila Yacoub, who talks to Chris about the film's gruelling one-shot sequence, avoiding the Evil Dead movies, and more. [43:00 - 56:16 approx] Enjoy! .

The latest episode of The Interviews is another belter, folks. And is, accidentally, double act-themed. First, Chris Hewitt sits down on Zoom for a fun chat with Phil Lord and Chris Miller, the directors of one of the year's biggest and best films, Project Hail Mary, as the Ryan Gosling-Rocky The Alien movie lands on Prime Video. It's not a spoiler chat, but they talk about some of the film's key sequences (so be mindful if you somehow haven't seen it), its immense success, and what they're doing next. [1:23 - 20:13 approx] Then, Harry Stainer sits down with another notable filmmaking duo, Matt Johnson and Jay McCarrol, the director (Johnson), writers and stars (both) of bonkers new comedy Nirvanna The Band The Show The Movie, to talk about their lo-fi five-star triumph and their favourite Spielberg movie. [21:18 - 41:57 approx] And finally, Chris Zooms it up a storm with Himesh Patel, who stars in Enola Holmes 3 as Dr. Watson, one-half of one of the greatest partnerships of them all. [42:52 - 57:07 approx] It's an episode so good that you might say, to quote another great double-act, 'uvavu'. Enjoy!

The latest episode of the Empire Podcast sees the team — Chris Hewitt, Helen O'Hara, Alex Godfrey, and James Dyer — go simply ga-ga for Olivia Wilde's new film, The Invite. In fact, Wilde is this week's guest, along with her co-star, Edward Norton, who have a lovely natter with Mr. Godfrey. Either side of that, the team talk about movies in which people bounce back after being made redundant, discuss the week's movie news, including the new trailer for Robert Eggers' Werwulf, and review not just The Invite, but Nirvanna: The Band The Show The Movie, Minions & Monsters, and Enola Holmes 3. Oh, and there's quite a bit of humming and whistling, but it'll make sense. Probably. Enjoy.

A shorter episode of The Interviews this week, folks, but it packs a lot into its 35 minutes, as Chris Hewitt talks music, Irish accents, life post-Game Of Thrones, and more with 500 Miles star, Maisie Williams, and then delves deep into Disclosure Day spoilers with that film's writer, the great David Koepp, in an excerpt from our spoiler special pod (out now). Enjoy!

This week's Empire Podcast might see Chris Hewitt and Helen O'Hara write their own ticket, folks, as they come up with an idea for Toy Story 6 that should, if there's any justice, be in production by the end of the weekend. Pixar, call us! That comes in the movie news section, where there is also much discussion of trailers and the prospect of a new Jim Carrey Grinch sequel. Either side of those, the gang — Chris, Helen, Amon Warmann, James Dyer, and this week's workie, Juliet Duff, who pops in for a cameo from time to time — talk about the most hellishly hot places in movies, review Supergirl, Jackass: Best And Last, A Private Life, and 500 Miles, and Chris has a lovely natter with Jackass supremos, Johnny Knoxville and Jeff Tremaine, about saying goodbye to the franchise, poop, and catheters. Enjoy!

Today saw the launch of Empire+, folks, for subscribers. We know you have questions. What is Empire+? What is happening? Why are we seeing the faces of three giggling idiots on the logos? WHAT IS REALITY? We answer those questions and more in this special announcement, in which Chris Hewitt and James Dyer talk you through the concept of Empire+ (what a groundbreaking name), and how you can sign up and subscribe, if you don't already. Also, Chris recommends the greatest crisps in all of crispendom. You're welcome.

With just a few days left to pick up the latest issue of Empire magazine, featuring Spider-Man: Brand New Day on the cover, here's the latest episode of The Shameless Plug, arriving in the nick of time to either entice you to buy the issue if you haven't done so, or bask in the stories behind the stories as Chris Hewitt and Empire editor, Nick de Semlyen, cram into the podbooth to talk you through how the magazine sausage was made. From Minions to Monty Python, it's all here, folks! Enjoy!

It's another jam-packed edition of The Interviews, folks! This episode sees Chris Hewitt sit down on Zoom with Haley Bennett and Jack Whitehall, stars of Virginia Woolf's Night & Day, for a discussion that turns into a thinly-veiled attempt to secure a Nando's Black Card. [1:10 - 14:10 approx] Chris also has a lovely chat with the great Cary Elwes about his one-two punch of Dead Man's Wire, now on Sky Cinema, and the TV show M.I.A., now on Paramount+. [15:54 - 27:57 approx] And finally, you get a chunky excerpt from our brand new spoilerific chat with Curry Barker, the director of the year's hottest movie, the horror movie turned cultural juggernaut, Obsession, as he reflects on his changed circumstances, getting a voicemail from Taron Egerton, and more. [29:34 - 41:35 approx]

If this week's Empire Podcast doesn't give you a Buzz, it might at least give you a... wonderful sense of warmth and well-being, as all-round acting legends Tom Hanks and Tim Allen chat to Chris Hewitt about returning as Woody and Buzz Lightyear for Toy Story 5, and their surprising plans to keep working together. [47:02 — 1:01:44 approx] Either side of that, Chris is joined in the podbooth by Helen O'Hara and James Dyer to discuss the strange phenomenon of minor celebrities being asked to lend their voices to animated movies; movies that could have a sequel if you added an 'S' to their title, a la Aliens; look at the week's movie news, including a discussion of the final Spider-Man: Brand New Day trailer; discover Helen's hatred for a major Hollywood star; and review Toy Story 5 and Virginia Woolf's Night & Day. To podfinity and beyond!

This week's Empire Podcast sees Chris Hewitt, Helen O'Hara, and James Dyer pack the sunscreen, flip-flops, and oversized hats into a tiny bag as they discuss some of the movie holidays they'd like to take. And yes, they somehow manage to do this without mentioning Roman Holiday, The Holiday, M. Hulot's Holiday, or Mr Bean's Holiday. Any film with the word 'holiday' in it, basically, the colossal eejits. They've been placed on gardening leave as a result. But before that, they also discuss the week's movie news, including 24 Jump Street (with a special cameo), and review Steven Spielberg's latest movie, Disclosure Day, plus Jorma Taccone's Over Your Dead Body, and Peter Mullan drama, The Fall Of Sir Douglas Weatherford. Speaking of Spielberg, Disclosure Day writer David Koepp returns to the podbooth to tell Chris all about how this latest slice of sci-fi came to life. [46:26 - 1:06:00] Enjoy.

It's another packed episode of The Interviews, folks. First off, listener discretion is advised as Chris Hewitt talks to Brett Goldstein, star and co-writer of Office Romance, and his director, Ol Parker, about C-bombs, of which this interview contains plenty, and explicit childbirth scenes. Then, to our great delight, Actual Rock Star Ben Gibbard, frontman of Death Cab For Cutie, pops into the podbooth to have a chat with Beth Webb about his love of movies, working with the late, great Lynn Shelton, and his band's new album, I Built You A Tower. Finally, we bring you a big old chunk of Chris' spoiler special interview with Masters Of The Universe director, Travis Knight, aka He-Director.

This week sees the release of Travis Knight's live-action adaptation of 80s cartoon (and toy line), Masters Of The Universe, so our very own He-Man, Chris Hewitt, sits down on Zoom for a fun chat about films and football with the actual He-Man, Nicholas Galitzine, and Teela, Camila Mendes. [46:56 — 59:46 approx] Then, Chris is joined in the podbooth by Helen O'Hara, James Dyer, and He-Dan, Dan Jolin, for a fun episode in which they discuss their favourite movie swords, take a look at the week's movie news including the trailer for Adam Wingard's Onslaught (aka The Guest 2?), and the sensational box office for Backrooms and Obsession. Finally, they review Masters Of The Universe, Brett Goldstein and J-Lo rom-com, Office Romance, Savage House, Madfabulous, and Scary Movie. Enjoy!

The latest episode of The Interviews is all about extravagance, high fashion and big spending. But enough about Chris Hewitt. Instead, we're focused on Savage House and Madfabulous, two costume dramas about upper-class types whose lives spiral out of control. In the first, Richard E. Grant and Claire Foy play a married couple who attempt to mount a lavish dinner party, with disastrous consquences, and they tell Chris all about their approach to acting, their connection to the characters and, in one wild, hilarious segment, how one of them handled a very unusual sex scene. Then Chris has a lovely Zoom chat with Callum Scott Howells, the Welsh actor who stars as Lord Henry Paget, a flamboyant real-life figure who is the subject of Celyn Jones' period piece, Madfabulous. The two of them talk about saying the title of the film, about the film's approach to Paget's sexuality, and Howells' upcoming turn opposite Michael Sheen in Amadeus on the West End stage. Oh, and Chris receives an offer that might just change his life... Enjoy!

It's a packed line-up of directors this week on The Interviews, folks. Directorpalooza? First up, we bring you an extended excerpt from our spoiler special interview with The Mandalorian And Grogu, Jon Favreau, who tells Chris Hewitt about his intentions behind the first big-screen Star Wars film in seven years. Then Chris leaps onto Zoom to have a lovely natter with the great Joe Dante about his beloved (eventually) 1987 sci-fi comedy, InnerSpace, which is out now on 4K UHD, and English director Mike Figgis about his hard-hitting, Oscar-winning drama, Leaving Las Vegas, which has also received the 4K UHD treatment. The Figgis chat is an extended excerpt from an hour-long deep dive into the movie which, like the Favreau interview and Team Empire diving deep into The Mandalorian And Grogu, can be found over on our spoiler special feed. empirespoilerspecials.com, if you haven't already taken the plunge. Enjoy!

Things get awkward on this week's Empire Podcast, folks. Not just because Chris Hewitt seems to be wearing a Skeletor mask for some of it, nor because he's so heat-addled that he forgets to introduce James Dyer properly. No, things get awkward because the team – Chris, James, Helen O'Hara, and Ben Travis – discuss whether it ever gets awkward for them when visiting film sets. Then, our intrepid quartet also discuss the week's movie news, including the shocking news of Paddington 4's potty-mouthed writers, and review Daniel Roher's Tuner, John Carney's Power Ballad, Kane Parsons' Backrooms, and Kristin Scott Thomas' directorial debut, My Mother's Wedding. Oh, and Chris sits down for a lovely chat with Leo Woodall, star of the excellent Tuner, and discovers that Woodall has some hidden talents. Enjoy!

All hail the Alien Queen! For the legendary Sigourney Weaver, star of some of the finest sci-fi films of all time, is our esteemed guest on this week's episode of the Empire Podcast, as she tells Chris Hewitt all about starring in her first Star War, The Mandalorian & Grogu. [44:47 - 58:17 approx] Then, Chris is joined in the podbooth by Helen O'Hara and James Dyer to discuss their predictions for the biggest movies of the year, cast their eye over the week's movie news, including a shocking development in the hunt for the new James Bond, and review The Mandalorian & Grogu, Jack Ryan: Ghost War, and Finding Emily. Oh, and the team eat some burgers, but thankfully they don't bang on about it. Enjoy.

This time it's more. Yes, folks, The Shameless Plug — the show in which Chris Hewitt and Empire editor, Nick de Semlyen, chat about the stories behind the current issue of Empire — is usually a two-hander (well, four hands), but for reasons unknown this month we've also invited James Dyer into the podbooth to add a third pair of hands, and one more mouth. Well, not for reasons unknown, as Jimbo is here to talk about his favourite film, Aliens, which just happens to be the cover film of this month's issue, which is still on sale in all good, evil, and virtual newsagents. So we decided to turn this month's Shameless Plug into an Aliens appreciation special, as well as getting the full story on how we managed to get James Cameron, Sigourney Weaver, Michael Biehn and Jenette Goldstein to come together on Zoom and natter about Aliens as it hits 40. Elsewhere, our intrepid trio also talk about the rest of the issue, and how it came together, but really, this one is fully focused on Ripley, believe it or not. Enjoy!

Fly, you fools! Yes, that's right, Ian McKellen — the legendary English actor who is Gandalf and Magneto, get over it — is our guest on this week's Empire Podcast, as John Nugent pops over to McKellen's own pub, The Grapes in Limehouse, for a lovely chat about his new film, Steven Soderbergh's The Christophers. [46:32 - 1:00:02 approx] Speaking of Christophers, back in the podbooth Chris Hewitt is joined by Helen O'Hara, James Dyer, and Harry Stainer for a fun episode in which they discuss the greatest characters who joined franchises after the first film, and whether event cinema is making a comeback. They also run their eye over the week's movie news, including news of a possible Tintin 2, and review Curry Barker's Obsession, The Christophers, The Punisher: One Last Kill, and Ben Wheatley's Bob Odenkirk action fest, Normal. Enjoy!

This week's episode of The Interviews sees Chris Hewitt sit down face-to-face with the legend that is Saul Goodman/Jimmy McGill/Gene Takavic, the one and only Bob Odenkirk. The comedy great was in town to talk about his latest pivot into action movies, with Ben Wheatley's wild romp, Normal, and the two of them also talk about sketch comedy, Odenkirk's love of movies, his aversion to horror movies (in which he possibly spoils the end of Zach Cregger's Weapons, so be careful), and more. Then, Helen O'Hara leaps onto Zoom and has a chat about how the times are a-changin' in The Devil Wears Prada 2, with that film's writer, Aline Brosh McKenna. Enjoy!

This week's Empire Podcast sees Alex Godfrey sit down for an audience with music superstar Billie Eilish and her co-director on her new concert movie, Billie Eilish: Hit Me Hard And Soft: The Tour Live In 3D, one James Cameron. Blimey! Then Alex slides into the podbooth to join Helen O'Hara, James Dyer and host Chris Hewitt for a fun-filled episode in which they discuss Karl Urban's killiest characters, the best movie farmers, a whole bunch of trailers (including The Odyssey, Evil Dead Burn, and Resident Evil), and review the aforementioned Billie Eilish movie, The Sheep Detectives, Remarkably Bright Creatures, and Mortal Kombat II, a Helen-led review that may be more fun than the film. Oh, and what the hell is Thrawnhub? Enjoy!

It's a legend-laden episode of The Interviews this week, folks, as Chris Hewitt sits down in person with James Cameron to talk about his new, unexpected venture as co-director of eye popping 3D concert movie, Billie Eilish: Hit Me Hard And Soft — The Tour Live In 3D, and then the great Guillermo del Toro, with the Mexican director coming to town to receive the BFI Fellowship and launch a season of his films at the BFI Southbank. That is an excerpt from a longer del Toro interview which will be up on its own next week, but this should whet your whistle as they talk about del Toro's British cultural connections, his approach to writing, his penchant for collecting, and more. Finally, Sally Field and Lewis Pullman, the stars of new Netflix movie Remarkably Bright Creatures, Zoom in for a spirited chat with Chris. Enjoy!

This week's Empire Podcast is the kind of episode that could leave other film podcasts in its wake. Mainly because there's a lot of discussion of ships, boats, the high seas and the like. First off, our guests this week are Callum Turner and George Mackay, the British actors who star in Mark Jenkin's latest movie, the fisherman-themed Rose Of Nevada, which is out now, and in a cracking chat with Alex Godfrey, they talk about how they first met, working with the unique Jenkin, and more. Either side of that, Chris Hewitt returns to the host chair after two weeks away, some of which was spent on a cruise ship, and he scrapes the barnacles off long enough to welcome Helen O'Hara (or is it?) and James Dyer into the podbooth to discuss the best ship-related scenes, have a look at the week's movie news, try to convince James of the merits of the Jackass movies, and review the likes of The Devil Wears Prada 2, Rose Of Nevada (with help from an unexpected quarter), Greenland 2: Migration, and new Adam Scott horror, Hokum. You best start believing in Empire Podcasts, Ms Swann... YER IN ONE! Enjoy.

It's a director-led edition of The Interviews this week, folks, as Helen O'Hara sits down with David Frankel to discuss his returning (along with Meryl & Anne & Emily & The Tooch) for The Devil Wears Prada 2, some twenty years after the original movie. And if you liked BenDavid Grabinski's Mike & Nick & Nick & Alice as much as we did, you'll be delighted to hear an extended excerpt from Chris Hewitt's spoiler special interview with Grabinski, which can be found in full over on our spoiler special feed. Obviously, don't listen to that one if you haven't seen Mike & Nick & Nick & Alice (or Mikey And Nicky, for that matter). Enjoy.

If we told you that this week's episode of the Empire Podcast featured not one but two people banging on about Taylor Swift, odds are you'd reckon one of them was James Dyer. And you'd be wrong. For those people are Ben Travis and David Lowery, director of the new poptastic psychodrama, Mother Mary. Lowery is this week's guest, and he popped into the podbooth to sit down with Ben to talk all about how Taylor Swift influenced part of his approach to the Anne Hathaway-Michael Coel flick, and much, much more, including an ultra-geeky exchange about Star Wars action figures. [36:32 - 58:21 approx] Either side of that, Helen O'Hara welcomes James Dyer and Amon Warmann into the podbooth as they discuss great movie prison breaks and what makes for a good biopic; the week's movie news (at least, the stuff that broke before the pod was recorded... thanks a bunch, Miami Vice '85 casting news and Clayface trailer!); and review Mother Mary, Charlize Theron-Taron Egerton thriller Apex, and Antoine Fuqua's Michael Jackson biopic, Michael. Enjoy.

This month's episode of The Shameless Plug sees Chris Hewitt away and James Dyer stepping in to sit down once more with Empire editor/podcast hostage Nick De Semlyen for a look at the new issue. In a complete upending of the entire format, Nick goes rogue and decides to inject a little drama into the mix by listing his ten favourite things from the new issue (without telling James what they are). Are all of them James' Dunesplaining breakdown of the new Dune: Part 3 trailer? No, no they're not. It's unclear why.

With Chris Hewitt away on an actual holiday, this week's Empire Podcast sees Helen O'Hara slide into the host's chair as she, Ben Travis, and Amon Warmann tackle a hat-trick of listener questions, including musing on male damsels in distress, movies-turned-plays, and the ongoing role of Bluey in saving the world. Then the trio tackle movie news, most of which comes out of this week's CinemaCon, including the revelation that Jamie Dornan, and not Leo Woodall, will be filling Aragorn's boots in The Lord Of The Rings: The Hunt For Gollum. Finally, they review not one but SIX movies, including Lee Cronin's The Mummy, Jonah Hill's Outcome, and Brian Cox's directorial debut, Glenrothan. Speaking of Cox, the legendary Scottish actor pops into the podbooth to have a delightful, and delightfully foul-mouthed, chat with Chris about popping behind the camera at almost 80 years of age, singing Spice Girls with Alan Cumming, and his complicated relationship with Scotland. Oh, and if there are any glaring editing errors on this week's show, it was edited on a cruise ship, so please bear that in mind. Oh, and due to the absence of several key members of personnel, our next Daredevil: Born Again spoiler special will be next week. Sorry about that. In the meantime, enjoy!

It's another jam-packed edition of The Interviews this week, folks. First, Chris Hewitt talks fillums, scary and otherwise, with the wonderful Jack Reynor, star of Lee Cronin's The Mummy. [1:35 - 18:44 approx] Then he has a chaotic, recorded-on-iPhone-because-reasons, chat with Seamus McLean Ross and Samuel Bottomley, the stars of James McAvoy's California Schemin' [20:48 - 37:01 approx]; and finally there's a fun chat between Chris and Kat Coiro and Will Packer, director and producer respectively of the frothy rom-com You, Me & Tuscany.[37:59 - 52:47 approx] Enjoy.

Ok, first things first. Let's get it out of the way. Yes, the Empire Podcast team — Chris Hewitt, Helen O'Hara, James Dyer, and John Nugent — spend a great deal of this week's podcast answering a listener question about great movie quartets. They also spend a great deal of time, in the Movie News section, talking about The Lord Of The Rings: The Hunt For Gollum. And yes, despite all that, they spectacularly fail to mention Bilbo, Samwise, Merry and Pippin in the former category. So, just letting you know that now lest you wish to shout at your podcast device of choice. Forewarned is forearmed and all that. Or maybe fourwarned is more apt in this case. Anyway, it's a fun episode in which our own quartet also talk Taskmaster series 21, discuss other nuggets of movie news, and review James McAvoy's directorial debut, California Schemin', Francois Ozon's The Stranger, rom-com You, Me & Tuscany, and podcasting horror, Undertone. And Chris has a lovely chat with James McAvoy, who pops into the podbooth to talk about directing for the first time. [41:45 - 1:00:32 approx] Oh, and the group make tentative and fun plans with this week's work experience person. Enjoy.

This week's episode of The Interviews is a one of a kind, as the legendary Richard Kind pops in to the podbooth to tell Chris Hewitt all about his role as Max Bialystock in the West End production of Mel Brooks' The Producers. Also popping into the podbooth this week are Regé-Jean Page and Halle Bailey, the ridiculously charming pair who headline new rom-com You, Me & Tuscany. They tell Chris about shooting that film in Tuscany, meeting at the Met Gala, getting splashed by sprinklers, and more. And finally, Mike Muncer has a lovely chat over Zoom with Ian Tuason and Nina Kiri, the director and star of Undertone, a new horror movie all about a podcaster undergoing a terrifying ordeal. That's us every time Adobe Audition decides to update in the middle of an edit. Enjoy!

This week's episode of the Empire Podcast is an Easter bonanza, folks, that sees Chris Hewitt, Helen O'Hara, and James Dyer (with new honorific firmly in place, at least for now) discuss the best resurrections in movies, wax lyrical about Richard Kind in The Producers, and cast their learned eyes over a glut of movie trailers, including the new one for Supergirl, and review Fuze, The Drama, The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, and Mike & Nick & Nick & Alice. Speaking of Fuze, Chris has a lovely chat with that film's star and director, Aaron Taylor-Johnson and David Mackenzie, about their heist thriller, accents, working on a building site, and more. Pop this pod in the fridge, smash it from a great height, and feast on the shards of film-related fun. Enjoy!

This week's episode of The Interviews, the spin-off show that rounds up our chats with film folk, is a belter. First, Chris Hewitt chats accents and auditions and more with Theo James, star of The Fuze [1:36 - 17:51 approx], and then Jamie Graham is joined for some trash talk by The Pope Of Trash himself, John Waters, just in time for the launch of a new season at the BFI Southbank called Trash! The Wildest Films You've Ever Seen. [19:02 - 32:45] Finally, we have an extended excerpt from our Ready Or Not: Here I Come spoiler special interview [34:18 - 52:52 approx] with that film's directors, Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett, which features strong, unbleeped language from the off, as well as a deep dive into that movie's twists and turns. So be advised! And also, of course, enjoy.

This week's Empire Podcast sees us clamber into the Magic Faraway Tree to talk with the writer and director, respectively, of the brand new Enid Blyton adaptation, Simon Farnaby and Ben Gregor, who tell Alex Godfrey all about how they branched out. Ahem. Either side of that, Chris Hewitt hosts Helen O'Hara, James Dyer, and Kobi Omenaka to discuss their favourite movie trees and competence porn; run their eye over the week's movie news, including the revelation that Stephen Colbert is co-writing a new Lord Of The Rings movie; and review Splitsville, They Will Kill You, and The Magic Faraway Tree. Enjoy!

This month's episode of The Shameless Plug sees Chris Hewitt sit down once again with Empire editor Nick de Semlyen for a deep dive into the latest issue of Empire magazine. Our dynamic duo talk about the origins of the first ever cover shoot with Star Wars characters, as we celebrate The Mandalorian & Grogu, plus many more stories about the brand new issue, which is on sale right now in all good, evil and virtual newsagents. But as if that weren't enough, at long last Chris and Nick answer listener/reader questions about the magazine and how it's put together. It's a cracker, this one — enjoy!

Snakes! Why did it have to be snakes? Because St. Patrick's Day was earlier this week, and to celebrate the man who drove all the snakes out of Ireland ("you alright in the back there, lads?") this week's Empire Podcast sees Chris Hewitt, Helen O'Hara, James Dyer, and Beth Webb discuss some of their favourite snake moments in films. Or fillums. Then, our intrepid quartet get their parseltongues into the week's deluge of movie news, including the Spider-Man: Brand New Day and Dune Part 3 trailers, and they look back at the Oscars as well. Reviews-wise, Phil Lord & Chris Miller's Project Hail Mary, Radio Silence's Ready Or Not: Here I Come, Ugo Bienvenu's Arco, and Gus Van Sant's Dead Man's Wire are given the once-over, while the wonderful Lord and Miller are this week's guests, sitting down for a lovely natter about puppets, space, and much more with Chris. [55:48 - 1:10:19 approx] Oh, and James edges closer to a new nickname. Enjoy!

The Interviews is back, folks, with a cracking hat-trick of cinematic conversations, as Chris Hewitt talks to Ready Or Not 2: Here I Come director duo, Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett, and their star, Samara Weaving, about coming back with a sequel after six years away; Iain Forsyth and Jane Pollard, directors of Marianne Faithfull docu-drama Broken English, about shining a spotlight on one of the most fascinating figures to emerge from the 1960s music scene; and there's an excerpt from Chris' spoiler special interview with Hoppers director, Daniel Chong, and producer, Nicole Paradis Grindle. From slugging to beavering, it's all here. Enjoy.

This week's Empire Podcast is the second of the year to fall on a Friday the 13th (November will complete the hat-trick), and so the podteam — Chris Hewitt, Helen O'Hara, James Dyer, and Ben Travis — discuss the life and work of one Jason Voorhees, and head off in a rather unexpected direction. Speaking of unexpected directions, they also pop off to space to discuss their favourite movie astronauts (SPOILERS for some space films, including Gravity), run their collective eye over the week's movie news, including the new Disclosure Day trailer, Quentin Tarantino's newly-announced play, and Arnie's perhaps premature announcement of King Conan. They also review War Machine (again, with a SPOILER WARNING attached), Reminders Of Him, and How To Make A Killing. And guest-wise, Chris sits down with the great Tim Roth, star of Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man, from 44:40 - 1:01:50 to talk about improvising the movie's opening line, not watching his own movies, and his love of Would I Lie To You? Which is, in fact, true. Enjoy!

This week's Empire Podcast sees Chris Hewitt sit down with The Bride! herself, Jessie Buckley, and her writer/director, Maggie Gyllenhaal, for a lovely chat about their wildly ambitious new movie, The Bride!, which daringly reframes the story of the Bride Of Frankenstein. [22:21 - 40:21 approx] Either side of that, Chris is joined in the podbooth by Helen O'Hara, James Dyer, and Alex Godfrey to cast their eye over the week's movie news, including the latest developments in the Warner Bros takeover, and news of a Ghosts movie; review The Bride!, Pixar's Hoppers, and Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man; and discuss the movie mums they wish they'd been raised by. Oh, and Chris tries and fails to do a Birmingham accent. We can only apologise to the whole of the Midlands. Enjoy.

This week's episode of The Interviews brings you another sensational hat-trick of goodies, as Chris Hewitt gets frank, and Frank, with The Bride! star, the wonderful Christian Bale; has an absolute hoot and a holler with Hoppers lead voices, Piper Curda and Bobby Moynihan; and celebrates the shiny disc release of Edgar Wright's The Running Man by bringing you an excerpt from our spoiler special interview with the great man. Enjoy!

This week's Empire Podcast sees Chris Hewitt sit down in a London hotel room with Amanda Seyfried and Mona Fastvold, star and director respectively of the audacious new musical biopic, The Testament Of Ann Lee. It's a conversation that takes in everything from wearing T-shirts with your face on it to the trick of choreographing incredibly complex dance numbers, and is a ton of fun. That starts around 42:18 and finishes around 1:02:50. Elsewhere, Chris is joined in the podbooth by Helen O'Hara, James Dyer and, for the first time on the regular pod, Evolution Of Horror host Mike Muncer, as they discuss movie news including the BAFTAs and the latest Toy Story 5 trailer, answer questions on what movie-related thing they'd give up for Lent, the movie juries they'd like to be on (or not), and run their critical eye over Scream 7, The Testament Of Ann Lee, Sirat, and The Bluff. Oh, and Chris finally gets round to explaining how, and why, he nearly stepped on Florence Pugh's dress. Enjoy.

The latest episode of The Shameless Plug — the show in which Chris Hewitt and Empire editor Nick de Semlyen dig into the latest issue of Empire magazine — is here, folks, and it's a cracker. Join Chris and Nick as they talk about the Masters Of The Universe cover story, Chris' encounter with Renny Harlin, and the long pursuit to nab Jon Hamm for Pint Of Milk. We should have just scooped him up in a Hamm-net. Elsewhere in the episode, the two talk Threads, magic trees, and Chris does a First Line Of A Feature read in a Scottish accent. Our apologies to the people of Scotland. We hope this will not damage relations between our countries. Enjoy.

Another week, another episode of The Interviews, the new show that compiles our most compelling cinematic conversations. This week, Chris Hewitt has lovely chats with Rose Byrne about her Oscar-nominated turn in If I Had Legs I'd Kick You, Neve Campbell on returning as Sidney Prescott for Scream 7, and Corin Hardy about his new horror film, Whistle. The latter is an excerpt from our epic spoiler special interview with Corin, which can be found in full over on our spoiler specials subscription feed. Enjoy!

Want to know the story of how Chris Hewitt almost stepped on Florence Pugh's dress? Well, this isn't the podcast for you, as it features Chris and Helen O'Hara trying to tell that tale, from the press night of Cynthia Erivo's Dracula (sorry, Draclier), only to get sidetracked by a dozen different things and forget to finish it. But if you want to hear Chris, Helen, James Dyer, and John Nugent talk about movie characters falling from great heights, pay tribute to the great Robert Duvall, discuss the latest The Mandalorian And Grogu trailer, and review The Secret Agent, Good Luck Have Fun Don't Die, Wasteman and If I Had Legs I'd Kick You, this is the podcast for you. Oh, and Chris and Helen launch new careers as theatre reviewers too. Guest-wise, Harry Stainer talks to the Oscar-nominated star of the Brazilian thriller, The Secret Agent, one Wagner Moura, and his director, Kleber Mendonça Filho. It's a cracking episode, even if we're still nowhere nearer to finding a nickname for Tin Jim. Enjoy.

The Interviews returns this week, folks, with a bumper-sized edition of chatty goodness. First, Chris talks to David Jonsson and Tom Blyth, the stars of hard-hitting prison drama, Wasteman, about the impact of their movie, and wild auditions. Then, Chris has a right giggle with Asim Chaudhry, who is one of the potential saviours of the world recruited by Sam Rockwell in Gore Verbinski's Good Luck Have Fun Don't Die. And, finally, Chris has an audience with a genuinely legendary film critic, the great Leonard Maltin, who tells Chris all about his new book, Every Movie Is A Miracle, meeting Buster Keaton, and starring in Gremlins 2. Three cracking interviews about three wildly different subjects. Every movie podcast is a miracle. Enjoy.

Love is very much in the air on the Empire Podcast this week, as Chris Hewitt, Helen O'Hara, James Dyer, and Becky Darke cram themselves into the podbooth and get all misty-eyed over Jason Voorhees, the masked maniac from the Friday The 13th movies, just in time for his birthday. But Valentine's Day also looms large this weekend, so the podteam answer a listener question about the worst choices made in rom-coms. The answers will shock you. Elsewhere, our intrepid quartet discuss the week's movie news, including the shock news that Mike Flanagan has decided to adapt a Stephen King story, and review Emerald Fennell's Wuthering Heights, Bart Layton's Crime 101, Corin Hardy's Whistle, and Hasan Hadi's The President's Cake. And Helen sits down on Zoom with Emerald Fennell to ask her all about her adaptation of the classic novel. [45:29 - 1:02:11 approx] Enjoy!

This week's Empire Podcast sees Chris Hewitt sit down for a delightfully dotty chat with Send Help stars, Rachel McAdams and Dylan O'Brien, who talk about being directed by Sam Raimi with a paper bag over his head, pretending to know how to play golf, and delivering the greatest line reading of all time. There are no spoilers here, but maybe wait until you've seen Send Help before listening. Either side of that, Chris is joined in the podbooth by Helen O'Hara, James Dyer, and Amon Warmann as they use Steven Spielberg's elevation to EGOT status to Mount Rushmore the greatest EGOTs of them all. They also bid a sad farewell to Catherine O'Hara and pore over the pictures of Sam Mendes' Beatles in the news section, while a packed reviews section sees them run their collective critical eye over Send Help, Riz Ahmed's Hamlet, My Father's Shadow, The Chronology Of Water, another Dylan O'Brien movie in Twinless, and 100 Nights Of Hero. Oh, and James may have got a new nickname at last. Enjoy.

Another week, another episode of The Interviews, the new show that collects the Empire Podcast's chats with filmmakers into a handy one-stop shop. This week sees Chris Hewitt talk to Kristen Stewart about her directorial debut, The Chronology Of Water, the directors who inspired her to direct, and working with national treasure, Imogen Poots; Zootropolis 2 director Jared Bush about the wild success of that Oscar-nominated, billion dollar-grossing, A-list-cameo-crammed animated movie; and Andrew Guest, co-creator of Wonder Man, drops by to drop some spoiler chat about his new MCU Disney+ show, Wonder Man. It's another cracking line-up, and we hope you enjoy.