The Black List Podcast

Happy Independence Day. Spike Lee joined Franklin and Kate to talk about narrative filmmaking, his longtime collaborators, and the movement for Black lives. From Do the Right Thing , to Malcolm X , to Bamboozled , to his ilm for Netflix, Da 5 Bloods , the trio talks about how culture talks to movies, and how movies talk back to the culture. Questions? Comments? Criticism? Hit us up on social media...

Emmy winner and two-time Oscar nominee Kirby Dick joins Kate and Franklin for a riveting conversation about the role of investigative journalism in film and the responsibility of storytellers to speak truth to power. The acclaimed director, known for his groundbreaking work exposing abuse and institutional cover-ups, discusses the #MeToo movement, his HBO Max documentary On the Record (co-directed...

Maybe you love Adaptation, or Synechdoche, or Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. The prolific screenwriter Charlie Kaufman discusses some of the diverse and notable projects of his career, starting with his early days as a staff writer for shows like Get A Life, and The Dana Carvey Show. He also recounts the unbelievable, and ultimately life-changing story of his screenplay for Being John Malk...

When cultural tastemakers get stuck inside what do they watch, read, or play? In this throwback episode that has since become a classic, Franklin and Kate talk to each other about the things they discovered or rediscovered during lockdown. From Animal Crossing and Sarah Cooper, to Ted Lasso and Michaela Coel's I May Destroy You , you'll have some new gems to add to your list. See the show notes fo...

Actor and director Jay Ellis joins Kate and Franklin for some real talk. Jay opens up about starring in Top Gun: Maverick and how becoming a father has shifted his perspective on life and work. He also reflects on his iconic role as Lawrence in Insecure —including some truly wild fan encounters—and takes us behind the scenes of his directorial debut on the show. The trio covers career milestones,...

Jeremy O. Harris joins Kate and Franklin to talk about eliciting polarized audience reactions to Slave Play , describes his co-writing process with Janicza Bravo on Zola and talks about accessing the fascinating intersections of high and low culture, and so much more.  Questions? Comments? Criticism? Hit us up on social media at @theblcklst. This conversation took place in 2020. To learn more...

Academy award winning writer and director Lee Isaac Chung joins Kate and Franklin to talk about the trip to Rwanda that changed his filmmaking trajectory, his deep admiration for Charlie Chaplin and Wong Kar-wai, the making of his irresisitable Minari, and so much more.  Questions? Comments? Criticism? Hit us up on social media at @theblcklst. This conversation took place in 2020 To learn mor...

A very special encore. Kate talks to Barbara Crampton, BJ Colangelo, and Gigi Saul Gurerro about their lives in the horror community, what they're working on, what types of stories they'd like to see told about women in horror, and so much more. Questions? Comments? Criticism? Hit us up on social media at @theblcklst. This conversation is from 2020. To learn more about The Black List, visit ...

Encore episode with award-winning journalist Soledad O'Brien. She joins Franklin for a conversation about growing up Black, her approach to documentary filmmaking, the state of journalism in the Trump era, and so much more. Questions? Comments? Criticism? Hit us up on social media at @theblcklst. This conversation was recorded in 2020. To learn more about The Black List, visit  www.blcklst.co...

[Encore] Kate and Franklin sit down with Steven Canals, the brilliant mind behind Pose, to talk about growing up Afro-Latinx in the Boogie Down Bronx, why Cardi B is everything, and how a 2004 screening of Paris is Burning lit the spark that would eventually become one of TV’s most groundbreaking shows. They dig into the complicated, beautiful realities of intersectional identity, the tough questi...

In a special Emmy-themed roundtable, Franklin and Kate welcome three powerhouse creators—Billy Porter ( Pose ), Robin Thede ( A Black Lady Sketch Show ), and Ramy Youssef ( Ramy )—for an unfiltered, deeply personal conversation recorded just ahead of the 72nd Annual Emmy Awards. This episode breaks the usual format to let the magic of the moment unfold. The trio dives into what it means to bring t...

Olympic gold medalist. Figure skating icon. Self-proclaimed "dramatic monster." Adam Rippon joins Franklin and Kate for an unhinged and hilarious episode that covers everything from Molly Shannon obsession to curating the perfect skating soundtrack. The trio dives into Useless Celebrity History, shares pop culture hot takes, and gets wonderfully derailed during a chaotic movie quiz. Plus, Adam ope...

In this episode, Franklin and Kate sit down with visionary director Cathy Yan to discuss her dynamic approach to crafting action sequences in Birds of Prey . From blending practical effects with high-energy combat to her grounded take on VFX, Cathy shares how she brought Gotham’s most stylish mayhem to life. The conversation also delves into her journey from journalist to filmmaker, revealing how...

[Reprise] Franklin and Kate are joined by the incredible Radha Blank—director, playwright, rapper, and friend of The Black List. Her debut feature, The 40-Year-Old Version , premiered at Sundance and earned her the Directing Award, making an unforgettable mark on the industry. The film is a deeply personal and hilarious take on reinvention and artistic expression. Radha takes us through her journe...

[Encore! ¡Otra!] Two powerhouse talents, one unforgettable episode. When The Black List teamed up with Hulu to launch the first-ever Latinx List, it was only natural for Franklin and Kate to sit down with two of the initiative’s driving forces: Gloria Calderón Kellett ( One Day at a Time ) and Tanya Saracho ( Vida ). In this classic conversation, the acclaimed showrunners discuss how their friends...

[Listen again]. Filmmaker Alice Wu joins Franklin and Kate to discuss her journey back into Hollywood as a queer Asian-American storyteller. She shares how Chinese-language films shaped her love of cinema, her time away from the industry, and the creative process behind  The Half of It —a fresh take on the teen romantic triangle movie. From  Saving Face, which was a huge hit at Sundance,...

Gremlins, Goonies, Home Alone, Mrs. Doubtfire —iconic films that few of us haven't seen. But how did they come to be? In this episode, Kate sits down with legendary filmmaker Chris Columbus to explore his journey from aspiring screenwriter to Hollywood heavyweight. Columbus shares how his college screenplay sold for just $5K, the professor who told him success was 50% talent, 50% luck, and the ser...

Jay Ellis ( Top Gun: Maverick, Insecure ) joins Kate and Franklin for their signature movie survey, diving into the films that shaped him—from Spaceballs (his surprising answer for what made him fall in love with movies) to He Got Game and White Men Can't Jump. They also talk about his experience starring in Top Gun: Maverick , how fatherhood has changed his perspective, his Insecure directorial d...

Franklin and Kate sat down with comedy legend Ed Helms to explore his journey from Saturday Night Live -fueled interest in high school, to performing with the Upright Citizens Brigade as a young adult to making waves on  The Daily Show  during the George W. Bush era. They discuss how those experiences shaped his perspective on political comedy today, dive into his roles in blockbuster hi...

In honor of her electric performance of a Michael Jackson cover--to honor the late great Quincy Jones, at this year's Grammys ceremony, we're bringing back her conversation with Franklin and Kate from a few years ago. The trio talk about how her music has informed her film career, her childhood memories of Steel Magnolias , seeing herself onscreen in Sister Act 2 , and so much more. Questions? Com...

Be Water filmmaker Bao Nguyen joins Kate and Franklin to talk about bringing Bruce Lee to a new generation, his Saturday Night Live documentary, depictions of the Vietnam War on screen, and a lot more deep cut film talk. Questions? Comments? Criticism? Hit us up on social media at @theblcklst. This conversation originally took place in 2020. To learn more about The Black List, visit  www.blck...

Film historian and cultural commentator Karina Longworth joins Franklin and Kate to talk about her love for Judy Garland, the imaginative world of Film social media, and her iconic podcast, You Must Remember This, and more. In honor of the season premiere of YMRT (the 21st season!), we bring back this excellent interview. Meanwhile, we send out our thoughts to the entire community of greater Los A...

What do the NBA, the Chicago Bulls, and Michael Jordan all have in common? Iconic storytelling, brought to life by Jason Hehir, the director of The Last Dance —a documentary miniseries that became a cultural phenomenon during the early months of the Covid lockdown. In this conversation, Franklin and Kate dive deep with Jason to uncover how he got Michael Jordan to finally open up, the parallels be...

Her film Nightbitch arrives on Hulu this week; revisit a captivating interview with director and actor Marielle Heller. Too often seen as understated and underappreciated, Heller is undeniably a filmmaking powerhouse. In this conversation, she reflects on her theater roots, the challenges of navigating gender dynamics in the industry, and the experience of directing Tom Hanks in A Beautiful Day in...

You may know him as Jean-Ralphio from Parks and Rec , or the voice of Sonic the Hedgehog. Friend of The Black List family, Ben Schwartz, joins Kate and Franklin for an insanely funny conversation about his improv adventure on Middleditch and Schwartz , bringing Dewey to life in the DuckTales reboot, his Netflix series, Space Force , and so much more.  Questions? Comments? Criticism? Hit us up...