Nicolas Cage has always been an animal lover, and he has often talked about his wonderful relationships with all of his little pets. Even his crow, who is a known bully. But not every pet loves their owner. Cage has done some questionable things with his pets (like the one time he took shrooms in solidarity with his cat) so it was inevitable that one of them would try to get away.
Earlier this year, Cage starred in Sympathy for the Devil alongside Joel Kinnaman, who got a first-hand look at what it’s like to be starring with Nic Cage in a film. It seems to involve a lot of animal wrangling.
“I knocked on his door, and when he opened it, he had pink hair,” Kinnaman told The Hollywood Reporter. “And he was like, ‘My wildcat f*cking ran away for the third time,’ So it just carried on from there,” Kinnaman said in his best Cage voice. He did not reveal if the wildcat came back, or if the third time was a charm for the little guy, and we will likely never know. Maybe he just really did not want to eat magic mushrooms.
Kinnaman continued, “I then got a tour of his house, and he was like, ‘That’s my reptile manager,’” Kinnaman said, offering no explanation of what a “reptile manager” is. Maybe Cage needs a Cat Wrangler next?! Kinnaman then confirmed what we already know: Cage is a professional. “We went down to the basement to rehearse for the first time, and he was completely off-book on the entire script. He’d already spent countless hours working on the script to get to a point where he knew it by heart on the first day of rehearsal,” he added.
“Last year, I went through a period of really deep mourning because I lost two very important people in my life. One is Taylor Hawkins, our drummer. The other was my mother. She passed in July of 2022, and I was with her for all of the time leading up to her passing. Every day during that period, I would write something on the guitar, because I felt that if I didn’t have that release, I would explode. So, I would spend the day at the hospital and then come back to my house and try to translate it musically, with no real clear intention of what I was trying to achieve. I was just finding these chords and progressions that mirrored the way that I felt.”
He also reflected on what those last days with her were like, sharing a funny story:
“As I was sitting with my mother in her final days, we’d watch tennis and drink coffee and… I’d strum a guitar and play guitar to her all day long. I was working on a riff the whole time and it was coming into shape each day until… I think it might have been the day before she passed, I said to her, ‘I’ve been writing this. It’s a song on our new record called ‘Show Me How,’ and it’s a really beautiful kind of melancholy riff.’ I played the riff to her and sang the vocal melody and I said, ‘What do you think?’ And she looked at me and she was like, ‘Eh’ [laughs].”
He continued, “But with this song, I don’t know how to explain it other than to say that she was the most important person in my entire life, so I thought this had to be the most important music I’ve ever made, and that’s when ‘The Teacher’ started to take shape.”
Listen to the full episode on your preferred podcast platform or here.
Your timeline is likely drowning in a tsunami of Best Of Lists at the moment but if there’s any TBR list to pay attention to this year, it’s this one. We’ve recruited our most bookish UPROXX staffers and contributors to jot down their picks for the 2023 titles that deserve a place on your shelf and, as always, they answered with an eclectic roster of fantasy epics, sci-fi adventures, true-crime retellings, travel photobooks, and more. There’s truly something for every kind of bookworm on this list (which is presented in no particular order) with familiar bestsellers and hidden gems ranking right next to each other. Bookmark them for when your holiday vacation begins or just add them to your Kindle now.
Simon & Schuster
Whalefall by Daniel Kraus
Stories about men being swallowed by whales are nothing new, going all the way back to the biblical Jonah, but Whalefall: A Novel by Daniel Kraus is a stunning new take on a very old idea. The novel is a scientifically accurate representation of the nightmarish reality of being slowly digested by the world’s largest mammal, but it’s also an emotional journey through its protagonist’s life as he tries to face his past in order to make it to the future. Whalefall centers around Jay Gardiner, whose rough-and-tumble father was a diver who died by suicide the previous year. In an attempt to make things “right” before he goes off to college, Jay wants to try to recover his father’s body from the deadly waters off the coast of Monastery Beach, but nothing goes as planned and he ends up deep in the belly of the beast — literally. The book mixes pure existential dread with the fight for survival, making it an especially compelling read when the world feels soul-crushingly unbearable. It took the threat of immediate death for Jay to really want to live, and that’s a feeling that’s all too relatable. — Danielle Ryan
The Upcycled Self: A Memoir on the Art of Becoming Who We Are by Tariq “Black Thought” Trotter
As good as Black Thought has been for as long as he has, there was always a sense of disconnect between his skills as an MC and his reception among hip-hop fans (who insist, against all evidence to the contrary, that skills are paramount to personality). I was never able to put my finger on why until I read this insightful, personal memoir; Tariq Trotter is a unique, colorful individual, and it’s a shame he took so long to show us the man behind the mic. Let’s hope he continues to do so in the future.
Harold is a stream-of-consciousness spin through the forming mind of a highly imaginative grade-schooler. As with the start of any universe, explosions happen everywhere as curiosity rules the day. Matters existential and irrelevant are pondered as we’re brought to remember the super-powered capacity of our brains when we were more focused on figuring things out than on weathering the storms of existence. It is the exact kind of proudly irreverent and sneakily brilliant work you’d expect from legendary comedian Steven Wright in his first novel. Check out our interview with him for more on the book. — Jason Tabrys
Jessica Knoll (author of Luckiest Girl Alive, adapted by Netflix and starring Mila Kunis) generally specializes in books that should come with a trigger warning, and here, she grinds her heels into the true crime genre. This book travels back to the 1970s and begins on the night that a serial killer attacks a sorority home before going on to charm the press and pull the wool over law enforcement’s eyes. Knoll wields her own ink-filled knife upon the situation, and it’s clear that this is a story about a real-life murderer whose name rhymes with “Med Mundy,” but his actual name does not appear in print. Why? Because Knoll realizes that he would have wanted it that way, and this book will not indulge his cravings for attention. Whew. — Kimberly Ricci
The future that author Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah imagines in his latest book, Chain Gang All Stars is a perverse dystopia that, sadly, feels all too possible. An allegory of America’s moral decay via our unique vices – consumerism, mass incarceration, and systemic racism — Adjei-Brenyah’s sci-fi masterpiece tells the story of a prisoner named Loretta Thurwar made famous thanks to televised gladiator games that pit her against rival inmates in a bloody (but always entertaining) fight to the death. By opting into the Criminal Action Penal Entertainment (CAPE) program, Thurwar and her fellow prisoners – known as Links – have the opportunity to earn their freedom, if they can survive three years on the circuit. Their Pay-Per-View-style deathmatches are interspersed with episodic reality footage of their teams – or Chains – carrying out their daily routines in a kind of Big-Brother-meets-The-Hunger-Games-esque hellscape that turns suffering into social currency and penal punishment into watercooler fodder. As wild as its premise sounds on paper, Adjei-Brenyah grounds his nightmarish vision in unavoidable truths and footnoted history, quieting doubts that we’d ever let things get this bad. It’s a doomed Queer love story with a kind of lyrical brutality you can’t look away from – no matter how much you might want to. — Jessica Toomer
I’m happy to say I read more books than usual in 2023 but not that many from 2023. I’m still looking forward to reading my most-anticipated book of the year, my friend Matt Singer’s Opposable Thumbs: How Siskel & Ebert Changed Movies Forever but I’ve been saving it for Christmas break. I thought I had a winner in Emily St. John Mandel’s Sea of Tranquility, but that came out last year. I guess by default my favorite 2023 book would be James Ellroy’s The Enchanters, a hallucinatory retelling of the events surrounding Marilyn Monroe’s death from the perspective of Hollywood fixer Freddy Otash. As Ellroy novels go, I’d put it in the good-not-great category and it’s a bad place to start if you’ve never read him before. But he’s still the one writer whose books I read the week they’re published for a reason. He’s built his own alternate Los Angeles out of yesterday’s headlines and telegraphic prose stripped to its ugly essence. — Keith Phipps
Why We Love Baseball: A History in 50 Moments by Joe Posnanski
On the popular baseball podcast The Poscast, there’s a running joke in which co-host Joe Posnanski highlights the absurdity of writing a book called Why We Love Baseball just two years after publishing the 800-page The Baseball 100. Is there really more to say about the national pastime? The answer is a resounding “Yes.” In his latest New York Times bestseller, Posnanski counts down the 50 greatest moments in baseball history, telling the stories we know and love from fresh angles, while sharing untold stories about baseball’s more esoteric figures. With Posnanski’s informed, accessible tone, reading Why We Love Baseball feels akin to sitting down on a bar stool next to the most informed baseball fan you’ll ever meet—and staying until they kick you out. — Noah Gittell
Alright, so plenty of criticism has been lobbed at this book for arguably being “too long.” That’s impossible to ignore because an argument could be made that this book deserves both a shorter and unabridged version in the manner of Stephen King’s The Stand, only with vastly different subject matter. Ultimately, author Nathan Hill has delivered a layered American epic with a damn fine book inside — whip-smart, charming, funny, and devastating all at once. There’s also a good chance that most adults age 30 or older will see shades of themselves in this story about how people make life-altering decisions to cement their identities at very young-adult ages, long before their true identity fully forms. Fast forward several accomplishments and phases, and blammo, suddenly it’s rediscovery time. Don’t worry, the naval gazing in this book is fully worth the revelations that finally surface. — Kimberly Ricci
Thank You Please Come Again: How Gas Stations Feed & Fuel the American South by Kate Medley
For years whenever people have asked me about the best meals I’ve ever had, I’d often mentioned meals I’ve gotten from gas stations in the South, especially south Louisiana. So when I learned a few months ago that photojournalist Kate Medley was putting together a book of photography featuring gas stations in the South that serve food, I pre-ordered it immediately. That book — Thank You Please Come Again: How Gas Stations Feed & Fuel the American South — finally arrived recently and boy what an absolute treat it is. Available exclusively via The Bitter Southerner’s online store, the book features nearly 200 photos Medley has taken over the course of her career and travels, as well as a beautiful essay by Kiese Laymon. It’s my favorite photography/art book purchase of 2023. — Brett Michael Dykes
If you scrolled your way onto Tik-Tok this year then you no doubt stumbled upon Rebecca Yarros’ fantasy epic, The Fourth Wing. A kitchen-sink medley of genre tropes this entry in Yarros’ planned five-book series checks all the boxes for New Adult Romance fans and yet, even its something-for-everyone premise can’t fully explain its rise in the best-seller ranks. Set in a world where dragons are real and mere humans are tasked with riding them, the book follows a young woman named Violet Sorrengail whose chronic illness destined her for the life of a Scribe until her mother – a war general without those pesky maternal instincts – orders her to enroll in the Riders Quadrant where she’ll be tasked with surviving a series of brutal trials in order to earn her wings. If this deadly bootcamp stint weren’t dangerous enough, Violet’s name and her obvious weaknesses make her a target for sadistic cadets and revenge-driven wing leaders determined to see her fail at any cost. While no element of her premise is particularly original, Yarros’ prose – breezy and spellbinding in equal measure – effortlessly builds a world filled with enough action, forbidden romance, and moral stakes to make it an instant page-turner. — Jessica Toomer
This is the book that just about every person I know read this year. And it is quite good. In many ways, it feels like Rubin’s response to all the people who arched their eyebrows when they heard him tell Anderson Cooper he doesn’t play instruments or get behind the soundboards:
Rick Rubin became a world-class music producer without knowing the first thing about music pic.twitter.com/3DhJi0IpK0
The idea that Rubin’s superpower is his confidence in his own taste is really the nut of this book. But to his credit, he shares freely the idea of how to form that same level of confidence when creating. As such, I find the book to be quite inspiring. Morever, the audible version — with Rubin reading in his sonorous, resonant voice — fits the meditative tone of the text perfectly and makes an excellent companion on the car or at the gym. — Steve Bramucci
Colors of Film: The Story of Cinema in 50 Palettes by Charles Bramesco
Modern-day film criticism is hyper-focused on plot, politics, and whether there are enough sex scenes, so it’s refreshing to find a writer who sees film primarily as a visual art. Charles Bramesco is one of those critics, and his latest book, Colors of Film: The Story of Cinema in 50 Palettes, reminds you to look first and think second. Both a trenchant work of critical analysis and a dazzling coffee table book, Colors of Film winds its way through film history, stopping to note each time a use of color was innovated. Douglas Sirk, Jacques Demy, and Dario Argento all get their due, but there are also chapters on Tron: Legacy and, perhaps most startlingly, Saw II. Colors of Film invites you to gaze at the view and, in doing so, shows you a new, beautiful film canon. — Noah Gittell
After news of BTS’ hiatus hit the internet, their devoted international fanbase was gutted. However, each member keeps the chart-topping K-pop group’s legacy alive with their own solo releases. Now that the band’s future seems certain, supporters can enjoy the BTS Monuments: Beyond The Star documentary with sobering thoughts.
In addition to the Disney+ exclusive series, member Jimin hit the booth one more time to pen a heartfelt thank you through the single “Closer Than This.” As the documentary explores BTS’ roots, on “Closer Than This” gives a first-hand account of their ground-breaking start.
“Do you also remember? / The moment we first met? / We were so shy and awkward back then / Now that I look back / We’ve come this far in just a blink of an eye / We walked it together, alongside each other / At times, I fell and shed tears / We comforted each other, with a pat on the back / Gazing at one another with tears in our eyes / Calling out each other’s names / Starting on June 13 / To the us of thе present, herе and now / Even if you’re not here / At the same place, always,” Jimin sings.
The official video for the track features touching footage of the group over their meteoric decade in music.
Director Denis Villeneuve is ready to bring you and your loved ones back to a world of giant sandworms and sand and more sand and lots of other piles of sand and Timothee Chalamet in Dune Part Two, in case you didn’t get enough of that sacred spice. And sand.
Dunewas a massive hit in 2021, following Chalamet as Paul Atreides, a young man with a complicated destiny. The epic sci-fi franchise, based on the book series of the same name, will get another installment next year which will follow Paul as he tries to bring peace to the people of Arrakis.
“Part One is more of a contemplative movie. Part Two is an action-packed, epic, war movie,” Villeneuve said at CinemaCon earlier this year. “It is much more dense. We went to all new locations… I didn’t want a feeling of repetition. It’s all new sets. Everything is new… This time, it’s full IMAX,” he added. What else is new with Dune Part 2 besides its fun rhyming capability? Here is everything we know so far.
Plot
While the first film followed the first half of the novel, Dune Part 2 is expected to pick up where the cliffhanger left off. In Part 2, Paul rises power among the Fremen, which includes Chani (Zendaya), while preparing to lead a rebellion against Emperor Shaddam IV. Here is the official synopsis:
Paul Atreides unites with Chani and the Fremen while seeking revenge against the conspirators who destroyed his family. Facing a choice between the love of his life and the fate of the universe, he must prevent a terrible future only he can foresee.
Villeneuve has been hyping up the next installment, promising it will be worth the (already long) wait. It’s going to be another beautiful journey in the desert again,” Villeneuve told Deadline. “It’s the journey where Paul Atreides and his mother, Lady Jessica, make contact with the Fremen culture and meet with the Fremen. It’s Paul’s journey against the enemy. It’s a movie that will be more cinematic.”
After all this, will there be a third installment? All signs point to yes, as Villeneuve has been working on a third film, based on the novel Dune 3: Messiah.
Cast
The stacked cast includes our good friend Timmy C alongside Zendaya, who will have more screen time in the second film compared to her measly 7-minute appearance in the first installment. Professional Elvis impersonator Austin Butler also joined the cast for the sequel, as well as Florence Pugh, who will portray Princess Irulan.
The rest of the cast includes Rebecca Ferguson, Josh Brolin, Dave Bautista, Christopher Walken, Tim Blake Nelson, Charlotte Rampling and Javier Bardem. Stellan Skarsgard is also returning to fulfill the longtime prophecy that you must have a Skarsgard in your film for maximum creepiness.
Release Date
After some delays and pushback, the film is finally slated to hit theaters on March 1st, 2024.
Pat Sajak didn’t even try to hide his lack of interest in a Wheel of Fortune contestant’s hobby during a recent episode. The veteran host, who’s no stranger to moodiness on set, had little patience for a woman’s story about her fish.
The incident went down when it came time for Connecticut resident Mariha Feliciano to introduce herself to Sajak and the audience. Feliciano started by gushing about her recent interest in “aquarium life” until the conversation went belly-up after she started detailing her home collection.
“What do you have in there?” Sajak asked her, to which she replied that she currently had “some shrimp, snails and guppies.”
Feliciano continued, “And then I got two other fish I wasn’t familiar with and I named Piranha and Predator because they killed my other fish.”
This earned a laugh from the audience, but Sajak appeared shocked by the sudden turn of events. He replied, “Really a downer. I don’t wanna go on.”
Realizing the interaction went south, Feliciana tried to salvage the mood by noting the other fish are “still alive,” but Sajak wasn’t having it. The host was clearly over the introduction and bluntly said, “Let’s move on.”
According to Decider, the exchange was an omen of things to come as Feliciana finished the episode with a paltry $3,700 in winnings.
No one expected Suits (which aired its final USA Network episode in September 2019) to be the most runaway streaming show of Summer 2023. Even Meghan Markle, who might have been the initial reason for resurrected interest on Netflix, expressed surprise. The rest of the cast felt similarly, even “gobsmacked,” to see the first eight seasons of the legal drama trend week after week until people ran out of episodes on Netflix.
After reaching that point in the show, viewers must hop over to Peacock or Amazon Prime to watch the show’s final season, which did end in a seemingly sudden way. The good news, however, is that there will be more Suits. Sort of!
Let’s rundown what we know so far:
Plot
If you’ll recall, Suits attempted spinoff-land once before in the form of 2019’s Pearson, which lasted one season and probably far fewer seasons than initially planned. That show also followed Jessica Pearson’s non-New York legal travels and took an inward glimpse of why she decided to pursue the practice of law. This new Suits series will be nothing like Pearson.
Instead, Suits creator Aaron Korsh is now developing a show that is not a spinoff, a reboot, or a revival. Clear as mud? Yet this new show has been fast-tracked, according to Deadline, and could take place in Los Angeles rather than New York. This would add up to a “Suits universe” much like NCIS has LL Cool J solving Navy-related crimes in LA and Vanessa Ferlito doing the same in New Orleans. Here’s that lowdown:
This is not a revival or reboot and, unlike the 2019 Pearson, the new legal procedural is not a spinoff either — it would be a Suits universe series in the vein of the CSI and NCIS franchises featuring new characters in a new location, sources said. I hear Los Angeles is a backdrop considered for the workplace drama.
At the moment, NBCUniversal has not clarified whether the new series will also be a USA Network mainstay or head to Peacock and/or NBC proper. The door is also not closed to additional series from the Suits well.
Cast
Since Korsh has indicated that this will be all-new cast material, we definitely cannot expect the old characters to be present, although it seems unlikely that the show could resist dropping in the occasional original-cast cameo. And you know, Meghan Markle lives in the LA area, so why not allow her to get a little more paralegal action?
At the same time, Sarah Rafferty (who portrayed Donna and now stars in Netflix’s My Life with the Walter Boys) is enjoying the Suits resurrection and doesn’t sound like she’d be opposed to a pop-in, either. From People:
“I’m incredibly grateful, because our world right now feels like it is growing increasingly dark and fractured, and if escaping for a few moments through TV helps — that makes me feel good … It’s just as simple as that, knowing this thing that we worked on for 10 years is providing escape for people, or providing connection, meaning, in any way, shape, or form. Even if that’s just having a break from the news of the world, I’ll take it.”
Release Date
No release date has been publicized as of yet, but in all likelihood, NBCUniversal will want to push this baby out, soon, and hopefully, it won’t be quickly axed like Pearson was.
Trailer
Are you kidding? We wish there was a trailer, but instead, we can only suggest that you watch Harvey Specter closing those deals.
Last week, Steven and Ian kicked off part one of their most sacred annual tradition, the Indiecasties. This week, they bring home part two. (This is a banked episode so if any major indie-rock news occurred this week, the guys won’t be talking about it.)
Part one had many incredible categories, including Most Valuable Annoying Music Story, The Album Cycle Of The Year, The Feel-Good Story Of The Year, The Most 2023 Album Of 2023, and the Most Hyped Album That Turned Out To Be Actually Good. But Steven and Ian saved the really good stuff for this week. Categories include Biggest Disappointment, The Album We’re Most Surprised We Liked, The Most Egregiously Overrated Album On Year-End Lists, The Comeback Of The Year, The Year’s Most Enjoyable Trend To Hash Out, and (Steven’s personal favorite) The Most Memory-Holed Album Of 2023. Who won? We can’t wait to share the news!
New episodes of Indiecast drop every Friday. Listen to Episode 169 here and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. You can submit questions for Steve and Ian at [email protected], and make sure to follow us on Instagram and Twitter for all the latest news. We also recently launched a visualizer for our favorite Indiecast moments. Check those out here.
Bleachers performed on Late Night yesterday (December 21), but before that, Jack Antonoff sat down for a chat with Seth Meyers. During the interview, Jack Antonoff shared a list of celebrities he thinks he looks like, and it was spot-on.
A handful of times in the first couple minutes of the interview, Antonoff either referenced, looked at, or gestured towards Late Night bandleader Fred Armisen. Meyers noticed this and brought it up, saying, “You’re the first person who’s had this much trouble with Fred being in their eye line.”
So, Antonoff offered up an explanation, saying, “Me, Fred, Andy Samberg, Rick Moranis: we’re just a kind of person.”
Meyers asked, “So, when you’re in the same room with him, you do feel a need to be like, ‘I’m here, you’re here?’”
Antonoff answered, “I don’t feel it, but, like, other people… people on the street will be like, ‘You look like Fred Armisen.’”
Meyers noted, “I think, on an aura level, you also have a similarity, in a very positive way. I like both of your vibes a lot.”
Antonoff and Armisen then started both doing the same smile and nod to each other, which the studio audience got a kick out of.
Check out the full interview above and find Bleachers’ performance of “Alma Mater” below.
Podcasts hit their Peak TV era in 2023, and with that glut of good listening came some unwanted consequences. Cutbacks, cancellations, celebrity deals gone wrong — the “too much of a good thing” crowd warned us long ago what happens when a content bubble bursts, and podcasts proved to be no exception. But despite the growing pains, some truly terrific shows were made this year (including the Uproxx produced Indiecast with Steven Hyden and Ian Cohen and People’s Party with Talib Kweli.
This list, with picks from staffers and contributors, includes a few steady favorites, fresh true crime takes, comedy audio hangs, and shows with a focus on debunking medical mysteries. All fascinating, entertaining, and illuminating in their own right. We listened to them during our daily commutes, miles-long runs, work breaks, and more, learning, laughing, and now we’re suggesting them to you (in no particular order) as we wrap up 2023.
iHeartMedia
Who Killed JFK? (with Rob Reiner and Soledad O’Brien)
Something I did not have on my 2023 bingo card was to become utterly enthralled by a podcast exploring the JFK assassination hosted by Meathead from All in the Family (Rob Reiner) and former CNN host Soledad O’Brien, but here we are, life is strange and full of surprises. With all of that said, Who Killed JFK? somewhat shockingly offers some new perspective and insight into one of the 20th century’s (and world history’s) greatest mysteries. Hint: it may have actually been an inside job all along. – Brett Michael Dykes
The best interviews don’t feel like interviews. It’s just a conversation, loose yet interesting because people are comfortable enough to let their guard down and be a little silly as they tell stories about their lives and careers. Conan O’Brien, freed from the limits of a late-night talk show (though he was pretty great as an interviewer in that format too) has become a master of this kind of interview with Conan O’Brien Needs A Friend. Whether the guests are fans, returning favorites like John Mulaney, actual real-life Conan friends like Timothy Olyphant, legends like Harrison Ford, or the sitting President of the United States, the vibe is the same: a breezy hang with the guest, Conan, and co-hosts Sona Movsesian and Matt Gourley. — Jason Tabrys
You’ve absolutely seen The Basement Yard on TikTok. This is how I got my introduction to them: These clips of two dudes going back and forth talking about god knows what pop up on my FYP all the time. At some point, I made the decision to actually listen to them, which made me realize these are two of the funniest guys on the planet. The chemistry between Joe Santagato and Frank Alvarez is something that can only come from childhood friends, while their ability to take mundane topics and make them hilarious is something few (if any) can match. — Bill Difilippo
Six Trophies with Jason Concepcion and Shea Serrano
Okay, sure, I’m biased with this podcast pick. But set aside my admiration for both hosts and look at the pedigrees involved; both men are clearly in their wheelhouse and their friendship and working chemistry makes this hangout sports show even more of a gem. This is how hoops talk should be done: by people with unadulterated love for the game and all the awe, curiosity, and humor the insane feats and quirks the modern NBA and its culture-dominating figures deserve. – Aaron Williams
My favorite kind of projects are ones that balance the very serious with the very silly. Think about a show like Succession, where the drama and comedy co-exist to make each hit harder. It’s a tough trick to pull off, sure, because the wrong formula or the wrong process of mixing them can bungle everything, but when it works, hoo boy. That’s probably my favorite thing about Pablo Torre’s new podcast, Pablo Torre Finds Out. Where else are you going to find silly extended chats with Action Bronson next to legitimate and humanizing pieces of journalism like the episode where he looked into a state law banning trans athletes from high school sports in the name of competitive fairness and then interviewed the one (1) trans athlete in the entire state it impacted, who wasn’t even all that good at the sport in question? Nowhere, I suspect. It’s a nice reminder that anything can be more than one thing and still do all of them well. And it’s also a really good time. – Brian Grubb
Ding dong, the best pop culture podcast of 2023 is calling. Saturday Night Live breakout Bowen Yang and comedian Matt Rogers have been serving the tea on all things pop culture since 2016 and, despite the podcast market being flooded with imitators, their brand of savvy, sharp-tongued, hysterical commentary is still the best of its kind. That’s mostly thanks to their easy banter – an inimitable byproduct of their years-long IRL friendship – and their in-depth knowledge of all things Real Housewives, but their roster of celebrity guests, unique industry insight, and comedic instincts also elevate the show beyond its format. — Jessica Toomer
There are surely countless film podcasts currently running (I’m not going to verify this, but it just feels true) and even more comedy podcasts (same), but there is only one comedy-film hybrid podcast hosted by two friends that go through the filmography of auteurs (probably?). This podcast is Blank Check With Griffin & David, hosted by actor Griffin Newman and The Atlantic film critic David Sims. The episodes often run long as all hell (sometimes going beyond three hours) but somehow the duo, their beloved scum-bum producer Ben Hosley, and generally fantastic guests (Tatiana Maslany, Zach Cherry, Nia DaCosta) never wear out their welcome while breaking down the work of recently featured directors David Fincher, Park Chan-wook, and Danny Boyle. Weekly episodes focus on a single film and are typically hilarious, empathetic, and deeply insightful. But what always strikes me is how after years of doing this, the podcast still comes from a place of love that increases both the cinematic knowledge and appreciation of the listeners. — Philip Cosores
There are few podcasts that can mix history lessons, humor, and the occasional public health service all in one, but Sawbones: A Marital Tour of Misguided Medicine does just that. While the podcast began as a way for Dr. Sydnee McElroy and her husband Justin (of My Brother My Brother and Me fame) to discuss interesting stories from medical history, in recent years they have also debunked dangerous myths, helped promote proper vaccinations, and more, making them a must-listen. Sydnee is knowledgeable and self-assured, bringing her experience as a physician to help explain everything from leprosy to burping, while Justin jokes and helps represent the audience, who are likely not doctors themselves. The podcast has been going strong for a decade, but it’s never dipped in quality and is still hilarious and educational. — Danielle Ryan
I listen to a lot of film podcasts, too many to recommend just one. So let’s zig over to film-adjacent territory because this is the year I finally listened to a friend’s advice and started listening to Podcast: The Ride. Tied, sometimes loosely, to amusement park rides and attractions (or any sort of themed entity really, it finds Mike Carlson, Jason Sheridan, and Scott Gairdner exploring the obsessions that have stayed with them well into adulthood, be it old TV specials filmed in EPCOT or long-forgotten celebrity-branded restaurants. I’m probably at the low end of theme park appreciation in my house, but their enthusiasm is infectious, their knowledge of this world impressive, and their digressions often as fun as their discussion of the topic at hand. — Keith Phipps
Werner Herzog said, “We have to articulate ourselves, otherwise we would be cows in the field.” Cows in the Field puts that quote to the test, packaging the headiest of concepts into language that any curious filmgoers can understand. Each week, MIT philosopher Justin Khoo and his wife Laura Khoo invite a film critic, friend, or colleague in academia to bring one of their favorite movies for discussion. While the conversation can go in many directions — Justin and Laura are as informed about film as they are about philosophy — the common denominator is their rare blend of intelligence, curiosity, and accessibility. If you ever wanted a film podcast that considered Joe vs. the Volcano in the context of Immanuel Kant’s notion of the sublime, or compared Yoda to Christian philosopher St. Augustine, Cows in the Field is the film podcast you’ve been waiting for. — Noah Gittell
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