Film Stories with Simon Brew

In this episode of Film Stories with Simon Brew, a sequel that was a beast to make, and a British book adaptation that Tom Hanks sort-of-unlocked. Aliens remains the template for how to make an excellent sequel - but heck, was it beset by problems. Not least that writer/director James Cameron and the crew at Pinewood Studios making the film were not exactly on each other's Christmas card lists. St...

In this episode of Film Stories with Simon Brew, two hit films come under the microscope - but one of them nearly fell apart days before filming was due to begin. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles would become for a long time the most successful independent film of all time in terms of box office returns. Yet none of the major studio would commit to the film, and it'd take a late deal to save the movie...

In this episode of Film Stories with Simon Brew, two very successful films - one of which nearly lost the confidence of its parent studio The tale behind Hidden Figures had seemingly been all but lost to history. That was until one writer went digging, and then a producer won a bidding war for movie rights in which barely anyone else was interested. A late release date change also would prove insp...

Paul Feig is a busy man. He's got a new film (The School For Good And Evil) and a new cocktail book too. But he squeezed some time into his schedule for a special podcast recording, where he chats to Simon about his directorial career. Recorded in front of a live audience in London, the pair chat about Paul Feig's early stand-up and acting work, the films that landed him in movie jail, and then th...

In this episode of Film Stories with Simon Brew, a pair of films that faced their challenges, but one came out of it all better than the other. A third Blade film was announced even before Blade II had arrived in cinemas. David S Goyer took on the director's chair, but to say the production had a few problems would be quite the understatement. Gulp. Things were a little smoother with 1992's Candym...

After building a strong career as an actor over the past few decades, Frances O'Connor has now taken the jump into feature writing and directing. In a special episode of the Film Stories podcast, she chats to Simon about why she's decided to take the plunge now, and what was it that unlocked her film, Emily. She takes us into the writing process of the film, the battle to get funding, and making t...

In this episode of Film Stories with Simon Brew, two films that hit much bigger than expected - each of which changed a lot in post-production. Horror hit Paranormal Activity actually first debuted on screen in 2007. But it'd be two years before it got a full wide release in cinemas, and by then the ending would have undergone changes (and a planned remake abandoned). 20th Century Fox was having d...

Decade after decade, director Stephen Frears has maintained an enviable output of movies and TV shows, and his latest film - The Lost King - is now playing in UK cinemas. He joins Simon for a podcast special, where they chat about his work, from breaking through with My Beautiful Laundrette, to the ultra-fast turnaround of Dangerous Liaisons. They also talk about the perils of making studio films...

In this episode of Film Stories with Simon Brew, a pair of films released within a few months of each other, that had one or two things in common. The Silence Of The Lambs was originally earmarked by Gene Hackman for his directorial debut, and a deal was struck for the book rights. But the story's violence was putting people off, and there was a bit of a rights hurdle that had to be negotiated too...

Recorded before a live audience in London in September 2022, this very special episode of Film Stories sees Simon in conversation with writer and director Gurinder Chadha OBE. They chat about her early days, how she broke into movies with I'm British But... and the wonderful Bhaji On The Beach. And then she takes us through tales of films such as Bend It Like Beckham, Angus Thongs & Perfect Snoggi...

In this episode of Film Stories with Simon Brew, two movies that hit at the box office - but it didn't stop one of them being regarded a commercial disappointment. 2006's Mission: Impossible III went though a range of directors before Tom Cruise settled on giving JJ Abrams his feature directorial debut. But that decision brought with it delays, and the film's aftermath would see Cruise's deal with...

In this episode of Film Stories with Simon Brew, a franchise-starting hit, and a modest thriller with an impressive roster of personnel. The success of the Marvel Cinematic Universe is now written large into movie history - but it's often forgotten just what a risk the first Iron Man movie was. And also, that it was arguably Marvel's most tight-fisted production too. Pacific Heights was more modes...

In this episode of Film Stories with Simon Brew, two big hit movies - but both of them took at least a decade to make it to the screen. In the case of I Am Legend, the latest take on the story was all ready to go in 1997 with Ridley Scott directing and Arnold Schwarzenegger starring: but not everything went to plan there. And there'd be other attempts that failed before we got the version we got....

In a special episode of Film Stories, Simon chats to Jan De Bont about his extensive movie career. They chat about his work as cinematographer on movies as varied as Die Hard, Flatliners, The Hunt For Red October and Black Rain. They chat too about De Bont nearly having his face fully ripped off by a wild animal while shooting Roar. And then there's his work as a director, specifically Speed and T...

In this episode of Film Stories with Simon Brew, a massive film that didn't cost too much, and a box office disappointment that did. 1999's The Sixth Sense would prove to be an absolute box office sensation: but heck. Disney wasn't happy about making it. The executive who gave the film the greenlight would ultimately lose his job, and Disney would sell off most distribution rights before it was re...

In this episode of Film Stories with Simon Brew, two films that went through some tough physical production. Mind you, Quentin Tarantino's second western, The Hateful Eight, nearly didn't get as far as production. A script leak, a law suit, Tarantino dropping the project? That was all before filming began, and the idea of shooting on location in freezing cold conditions suddenly seemed a bit... ta...

In a special episode of Film Stories, Simon chats to Hollywood producer Will Packer. It's a good long chat, so they get to chew over Beast, ladder holding in Hollywood, getting non-franchise films off the ground, and the odd ways people pitch projects to Packer! Beast is in cinemas in the UK on August 26th 2022. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad...

In this episode of Film Stories with Simon Brew, two films that benefitted from surges in popularity for their leading actors. The action movie Broken Arrow would ultimately end up in the hands of director John Woo, his second Hollywood feature. John Travolta led the cast. And oddly, it all came together in the way it did thanks to Free Willy 2. Julia Roberts had already shot Pretty Woman and Flat...

In this episode of Film Stories with Simon Brew, David Fincher's last movie for over five years, and the challenge in bringing a much-loved man to the big screen. Gillian Flynn's novel Gone Girl was an absolute publishing sensation. But even before it was released, Reese Witherspoon had snapped it up. Gillian Flynn meanwhile was able to strike an unusual deal for her book, that left her in charge...

In a Film Stories special episode, Oscar-nominated director John Madden reflects with Simon on the release of his latest film, Operation Mincemeat. The pair look at its changing release plans, and its eventual success. Plus the perils of bringing a true story to the screen. They also touch on the release of Madden's 2016 film Miss Sloane, and go back to investigate the casting of his breakthrough...

In this episode of Film Stories with Simon Brew, two films that delayed production to get their star of choice on board. The Living Daylights - the 15th James Bond film - ended up with around 18 months start to finish to get made. And it was complicated by the fact that the search for a new 007 wasn't going entirely to plan. With Crazy Rich Asians, the core of behind the camera creatives would hav...

In this episode of Film Stories with Simon Brew, a pair of sequels that both did well at the box office, but faced other problems. Fantastic Four: Rise Of The Silver Surfer should have been fan gold, and was planned to set up a couple more movies. But the Fantastic Four sequel found itself looking a little out of time - and even promoting it, the cracks were showing. Jaws 3-D meanwhile nearly ende...

In this episode of Film Stories with Simon Brew, a high budget sequel, and Kevin Costner's first box office disappointment. The original Speed movie was lean, relatively modestly costed and a big, surprise hit. Speed 2 was pretty much the opposite - and its story ended up being reverse-engineered from a dream its director had. Revenge meanwhile brought together director Tony Scott and star Kevin C...

In this episode of Film Stories with Simon Brew, a deeper look at a sequel that took a while to happen, and a film that spawned no shortage of sequels itself. The wheels of Star Trek Into Darkness (2013) started moving nearly a year before the 2009 reboot of the franchise hit the big screen. Yet it'd have to wait, not least for a definite yet from director JJ Abrams. And there'd be a bit of a post...

This episode contains spoilers. In a Film Stories special episode, director Scott Derrickson joins Simon to chat about his new film, The Black Phone. They talk about adapting and changing the source short story, one or two moments within the film itself, right through to overseeing the release of the film. Note that the discussion does veer into spoiler territory, hence we're releasing this after...