The Empire Film Podcast

Latest Episodes:

#649 ft. Florence Pugh & Andrew Garfield; Nicholas Hoult; Giovanni Ribisi Jan 03, 2025

Show notes

We're back! Yes, after a whole week off for the Christmas holidays, the Empire Podcast has returned to darken your aural doors once more, and the first pod of 2025 is an absolute belter, as Chris Hewitt sits down with four incredible guests. First, he talks carousel horses and chocolate with We Live In Time stars, Florence Pugh and Andrew Garfield. [24:27 - 36:32 approx] Second, he welcomes Nosferatu star Nicholas Hoult back to the pod, and they talk about embracing fear, giving golf lessons in costume, and Hoult taking over the pod one day. [55:19 - 1:11:23 approx] Third, he has a lovely natter with Giovanni Ribisi about his 15-year overnight success as DP of last year's excellent Strange Darling, which is available now in various formats for your home viewing pleasure. [1:41:51 - 1:57:00 approx] Then, in the podbooth, Chris is joined by Helen O'Hara and debutante Becky Darke for a fun episode in which they make bold and no doubt wildly off-kilter box office predictions for the year ahead, discuss Chris Nolan's The Odyssey (and not Draclier, bah!), and then review Nosferatu, Nickel Boys, and We Live In Time. The perfect listening accompaniment to that Celebrations sandwich you're currently making, we reckon. Enjoy.

The Empire Podcast Review Of 2024 Dec 27, 2024

Show notes

So, 2024: a year of cinematic highs, lows, and bits in the middle. And in the annual tradition that is our Review Of The Year podcast, Chris Hewitt, Helen O'Hara, and James Dyer drill deep into them all (time allowing, of course), answering questions from listeners on a vast array of topics, before running down Empire's Top 20 films of the year. It's a bumper-sized one, folks, just the thing to see you into 2025. Happy New Year to all our listeners — enjoy!

The Ranking: A Christmas Carol Adaptations Dec 24, 2024

Show notes

Merry Christmas, listeners! Here, as a special Christmas Eve present, is an episode of The Ranking, the show in which four Empire writers get together and argue the toss over a whole bunch of themed films. (And yes, we know this is the first one in ages. We promise to do better in 2025!) Anyway, it's Christmas Eve, the time when Ebenezer Scrooge was visited by three ghosts and shown the error of his ways in Charles Dickens' classic tale, A Christmas Carol. It's a timeless story, and one beloved of the movies and the telly, which has adapted it in dozens of ways over the years. And for this special episode, Chris Hewitt, Helen O'Hara, Neel Bhatt, and Jamie Graham immersed themselves in Dickens for what seemed like weeks on end, all with a view to finding the greatest Christmas Carol of them all. Will it be the Finney? The Sim? The Carrey? The Caine? The Murray? Or The Complete Surprise? Listen on to find out in this fun episode that is not — we repeat, not — sponsored by Spirited, in any way. Enjoy.

#648 ft. Aaron Pierre; Robbie Williams & Michael Gracey; Ben Schwartz & Jeff Fowler; Nick Park & Merlin Crossingham Dec 20, 2024

Show notes

"Four sets of guests, Jeremy? Four? That's insane!" Yes, folks, the last Empire Podcast of 2024 is an absolute barnstormer, a two-and-a-half-hour blast of film-related fun just in time for the festive season. And we have more guests than you could possibly fit under the tree. There's Mufasa: The Lion King star, Aaron Pierre! Nick Park & Merlin Crossingham, directors of Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl! Ben Schwartz and Jeff Fowler, star and director respectively of Sonic The Hedgehog 3! And Michael Gracey, director of Robbie Williams biopic, Better Man, and his movie's inspiration and subject, Actual Bloody Robbie Williams. Yes, folks, it's a belter, and we haven't even mentioned the bits where Chris Hewitt, Helen O'Hara, and James Dyer answer your Christmas movie questions, tackle the week's movie news including a deep dive into the Superman trailer, and review all four of the aforementioned guest-y films. Thanks once again for your unerring support this year, listeners. We couldn't do this without you. Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, Happy New Year, and we'll see you on January 3rd for the first show of 2025. In the meantime, enjoy this one!

#647 ft. Gerard Butler; Kenji Kamiyama, Joseph Chou & Jason DeMarco; Jon M. Chu Dec 13, 2024

Show notes

It's the penultimate Empire Podcast of the year, folks, and to celebrate the impending season of goodwill to all, we've brought you another bumper episode. Which is nice of us. Guest-wise, Chris Hewitt sits down once again with one of our favourite guests, Gerry 'Gerard' Butler, to talk about his decidedly un-Gerry Butler-like role as Santa himself in charming kids movie The Night Before Christmas In Wonderland, [17:52 - 32:42 approx] while Helen O'Hara chats The Lord Of The Rings: The War Of The Rohirrim with that film's director, Kenji Kamiyama, and producers Jason DeMarco and Joseph Chou, who also serves as Kamiyama's interpreter. [57:32 - 1:10:30 approx] That's an excerpt from the War Of The Rohirrim live event we did last week for our Empire VIP Club members, fact fans. And Helen also pops up again in the interviewer's chair to grill Jon M. Chu on how he directed Wicked, in a spoiler-free excerpt from our spoiler special, which is also out now. [1:34:32 - 1:43:57 approx] Either side of those, Chris is joined in the podbooth by Helen and James Dyer to tackle some Christmassy questions from the Empire Podcast subreddit, while they also discuss the week's movie news, including the 28 Years Later trailer and the rumoured demise of the SPUMC, and review The War Of The Rohirrim, Kraven The Hunter, Queer, and Carry-On. Oh, and Chris gets legitimately freaked out by the unexpected arrival of a sinister festive guest. Enjoy.

#646 ft. Cate Blanchett & Nikki Amuka-Bird, Amy Adams Dec 06, 2024

Show notes

This week's episode of the Empire Podcast sees the team enter into the festive season spirit with our first Christmas-themed question of the year, as Chris Hewitt, Helen O'Hara and James Dyer argue about the greatest Christmas movie villain of them all. Plus, they make the best of a very bad lot of post-Thanksgiving movie news by talking about the new Snow White trailer, Moana 2's box office and, for some reason, the sexiest Jack Ryan. And they also review Rumours, Nutcrackers, and Nightbitch. And the stars of two of those movies are our guests this week, as Chris sits down on Zoom with Rumours stars Cate Blanchett and Nikki Amuka-Bird, and gets a fun idea for a Christmas present along the way, [22:17 - 34:05 approx] and Alex Godfrey has a fantastic chat with Amy Adams about working with Marielle Heller, barking like a dog, and much more for Nightbitch. [58:12 - 1:17:22 approx] Enjoy.

Star Wars: Skeleton Crew — An Empire Podcast Preview Special ft. Jon Watts & Christopher Ford, Nick Frost Dec 02, 2024

Show notes

Skeleton Crew is the latest Star Wars show to launch on Disney+, with a two-episode premiere dropping on Tuesday December 3rd. And to get you in the mood for the show, which follows the misfortunes of four young kids who find themselves thrust into all kinds of adventures with space pirates, droids, and a mysterious man called Jod (Jude Law), here's an Empire Podcast preview special, in which Chris Hewitt sits down on Zoom for two really fun interviews with the show's co-creators and head writers, Jon Watts (who also directed the first episode), and Christopher Ford, and the great Nick Frost, who voices brand new droid, SM-33. Fear not, ye hearties, for no spoilers lurk within. Instead, they set up the world of the show, talk about the characters, and someone might do a great Nick Frost impression. Maybe. Enjoy.

#645 ft. Auli'i Cravalho, Ralph Fiennes & Stanley Tucci & Isabella Rossellini Nov 29, 2024

Show notes

It's a shorter Empire Podcast this week, folks (blame Hollywood for shutting down for Thanksgiving, which is just plain selfish), but that doesn't mean it's any less jampacked with guests, greatness, and guesty greatness than usual. First, Chris Hewitt sits down with Auli'i Cravalho, Moana herself, to talk about returning for this week's Moana 2 and the art of not talking to people on planes. [16:03 - 29:35 approx] And then Ian Freer has an audience with... well, if not the Pope, then the next best thing in the guise of legendary trio Ralph Fiennes, Stanley Tucci, and Isabella Rossellini, the stars of new papal election thriller, Conclave. [46:49 - 1:04:52 approx] Either side of those, with Chris incapacitated by a last-minute case of neck-knack, Helen O'Hara hosts and is joined by James Dyer and Amon Warmann for a fun episode in which they discuss what they're thankful for this year, run their eye over what passes for movie news, and review Conclave, Moana 2, and Dear Santa. Oh, and Helen tries desperately not to do a Mount Rushmore question. Will she succeed? Find out by listening. Enjoy!

#644 ft. Steve McQueen, John David Washington & Danielle Deadwyler, Josh Cooley Nov 22, 2024

Show notes

It's another epic episode of the Empire Podcast this week, folks, as Chris Hewitt sits down in person with all our guests. First, there's the great Steve McQueen, writer and director of Blitz, to talk about how he approached the World War II drama, and working with Paul Weller. [18:56 - 35:15 approx] Then Chris has a cracking conversation with The Piano Lesson stars John David Washington (following in the footsteps of his father, Denzel, who was a guest on last week's episode) and Danielle Deadwyler, which veers from the hilarious to the heartfelt in no time at all. [56:44 - 1:15:50 approx] And he rounds it all off with an extended excerpt from his spoilerific chat with Transformers One director, Josh Cooley. [1:39:54 - 1:54:52 approx] The full thing is available to spoiler special subscribers. Either side of those, Chris is joined by Helen O'Hara and James Dyer for a truly wicked episode in which they discuss the greatest green performances in cinema, talk about how Greenwich has been temporarily renamed Greenwitch, run their eye over the week's movie news, and review Wicked, Magpie, and The Piano Lesson. Oh, and Chris makes an impassioned plea for the greatest Spice Girls song of them all. Set your spirit free, it's the only way to be. Enjoy.

#643 ft. Denzel Washington, Zoe Saldaña, Sean Baker Nov 15, 2024

Show notes

Blimey, our guest cup continues to overflow, folks. This week's Empire Podcast sees Chris Hewitt sit down with Gladiator II star, and all-round legend, Denzel Washington, to talk about reuniting with Ridley Scott, and to clarify Denzel's recent hint that he might be winding down as an actor. Oh, and Chris quotes //that// Equalizer 2 line to Denzel's face, because he's utterly without shame. [20:15 - 39:40 approx] Elsewhere, Amon Warmann has a lovely chat with Emilia Perez star, Zoe Saldaña, about working with Jacques Audiard, James Cameron, and more, [1:03:14 - 1:16:13 approx] and Alex Godfrey catches up with Sean Baker to talk about the excellent Anora, which is still in cinemas now. [1:35:53 - 1:52:19 approx] Either side of those, Chris is joined in the podbooth by Helen O'Hara, James Dyer and, for the first time, Jamie Graham, to discuss Ridley Scott's career, cast their eye over the week's movie news, including Simon Kinberg's Star Wars trilogy, the new Mission: Impossible trailer, and Christopher Nolan's Not Draclier, and review Gladiator II, Joy, and Emilia Perez. It's a banger, folks, and the only disappointment in it for us is that we only get to do it once. Enjoy.

Our TOPPODCAST Picks

Follow Us

Stay Connected

Related Podcasts

Links

Stay Connected