Pop Culture Confidential

This week we are at the 2022 Sundance Film Festival! We are excited to be joined by Ryan McQuade, editor at InSessionFilm , host of the Chasing The Gold podcast and covering Sundance for AwardsWatch.com ! We are a little more than half way through the virtual festival, Christina & Ryan sit down to talk about some the incredibly interesting movies at this years' fest. The most about buzzed film...

We are thrilled to be joined by EP Jessica Rhoades ( Sharp Objects, The Affair ) and creator, showrunner & EP Patrick Somerville ( The Leftovers , Maniac ) to talk about their groundbreaking series “Station Eleven”. On making a post apocalyptic show about joy and healing during an actual pandemic. On themes of grief and living in the now. And so much more. “Station Eleven” is streaming on HBOM...

Thrilled to welcome NPR TV critic Eric Deggans back to the show for a new year of television! In this episode we talk about some of the most anticipated new shows coming the first half of 2022. Notorious scandals like the story of Pamela Anderson and Tommy Lee’s stolen sex tape in the upcoming Hulu series 'Pam & Tommy’, Julia Garner as con artist Anna Delvey in ‘Inventing Anna’ (Netflix) creat...

Critic & author Thelma Adams joins us for an in-depth conversation on the many incredibly interesting portraits of motherhood in film & TV this season, from The Lost Daughter to Succession to Spencer and many more! Thelma Adams recent article in Variety is “Screenplay Contenders From ‘Lost Daughter’ to ‘Spencer’ Grapple With Messy Emotions of Motherhood” Twittter @thelmadams Learn more abo...

We are so happy to have Jazz Tangcay, Senior Artisans Editor at Variety, back on the show! We take a look at some of the incredible achievements behind the scenes, this tumultuous year in cinema. 2021 has been an incredible year at the movies, from giant blockbusters like Dune and Spider-Man to the haunting cinematography of The Power of the Dog, make up transformations and tragedy on set. Listen...

Editor in Chief of AwardsWatch Erik Anderson is back! We analyze the controversial Hollywood Foreign Press Association and their Golden Globe nominations. We talk about the state of the Oscar awards race. Give our thoughts on West Side Story, Don’t Look Up and more. Plus we discuss this incredible season finale of Succession! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week we revisit our 2019 interview with the great Jeremy Strong! Jeremy Strong talked to us while on location filming season two. We talked about researching media-moguls for the role,  the relationship between Kendall and his father Logan, Succession in the age of Trump,  filming the very powerful last scene of season 1 and how it almost made him quit acting, what's in store for Kendall in s...

Happy Holidays to all celebrating Thanksgiving this week! As a holiday treat here is is a special episode of Pop Culture Confidential: Kirsten Dunst & Benedict Cumberbatch speak to us about their incredible performances in Jane Campions’ The Power of The Dog (Netflix) Interviews were done by Christina on location at the Venice Film Festival for a segment originally aired on SVT, Swedish Nation...

Thrilled to be joined by the multi-award-winning television writer and producer Georgia Pritchett ( In The Thick of It, Veep, Succession ) She is currently a writer and co-executive producer on HBO's Succession , now in it's third season and show runner of the new Apple TV+ miniseries The Shrink Next Door , starring Paul Rudd and Will Ferrell. Her new memoir is “ My Mess Is A Bit of A Life. Advent...

One of our favorite guests returns! Actor, writer, director Arian Moayed joins us to talk about the incredible season opener of 'Succession' S3 (HBO Max), Stewy & lots of behind the scenes talk from the show. Plus Moayeds upcoming projects: from Shonda Rhimes new limited series ‘Inventing Anna’ (Netflix) to the much awaited new MCU blockbuster 'Spider-Man: No Way Home'. The actor , who’s born...

AwardsWatch Erik Anderson is back with a report for the AFI fest & more! We talk about Will Smith, on his way to Oscar glory as KING RICHARD & Lin Manuel Mirandas excellent directorial debut TICK TICK …BOOM! Nicole Kidman is incredible in Aaron Sorkin's Lucille Ball biopic BEING THE RICARDOS. Erik was disappointed by HOUSE OF GUCCI. We talk angry fans & much more Listen now! Learn more...

A conversation with Danny Strong (‘Game Change’, ‘Recount’) the creator/writer/director of ‘Dopesick’. Mr Strong talks about making the series & taking on the origins and devastation of the opioid epidemic in the U.S. And how one company triggered the worst drug epidemic in American history. ‘Dopesick’ starring Michael Keaton, Kaitlyn Dever, Michael Stuhlbarg premieres on Disney+ on November 1...

Actor Reed Birney (House of Cards, The Blacklist) joins us to talk about his Gotham Award nominated performance in the powerful film ‘Mass’. We spoke about his role (which first time director Fran Kranz wrote specifically for him), the tragedy of his character, themes of grief, forgiveness and surviving the worst. And much more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Erik Anderson, editor-in-chief AwardsWatch .com, is back for our regular segment covering all the most important industry & awards news! Dune and Belfast. The Golden Globes, just when we thought we were out they are dragging us back in. As well as the Dave Chapelle controversy and the tragedy on the set of Rust. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

An unwanted pregnancy, an animated fetus and Rakel, a great character at the center, Ninjababy is a hilarious film that packs some powerful punches. We talk to director Yngvild Sve Flikke about the interesting themes, how differently the film has resonated around the world and much more, The movie won 4 Amanda awards at the Norwegian International Film Festival, it is one of Norways 2021 Oscar sub...

At the height of the pandemic lock-down, while waiting to finish season 3, the great Brian Cox sat down with Christina to talk about his incredible portrayal of Logan Roy on HBO’s Succession, who he jokingly calls his “evil twin”. Now just days away from the premiere of S3 we are re-airing this candid conversation! We go deep into the making of the show, his thoughts on Logans motivations, emotion...

This week we talk about the biggest television show in the world, Squid Game! Honored to have Professor Areum Jeong with us to talk about the cultural, political & artistic impact of the Netflix megahit Dr. Jeong, assistant professor at Sichuan University-Pittsburgh Institute in China, researches and teaches Korean film, theatre and performance including South Korea’s modern culture & K-po...

We are honored to talk to Rick Stanton MBE, one of the lead divers & key players in the 2018 dramatic rescue of the 12 boys and their soccer coach from an underwater cave in Thailand. An incident that, for weeks, was followed by the world. Mr. Stanton talks to Christina about his hobby, his passion for cave diving, the Thai rescue, how the boys got through it, his new book 'Aquanaut' and how h...

The stars are out this festival & awards season and Erik Anderson of AwardsWatch.com is back with us! We talk Denzel, Will Smith, Kristen Stewart, Chastain. The state of the oscar race and festival hits & misses. Why musicals are struggling, the beautiful Gyllenhaals, we taste some Licorice Pizza and much more! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ted Lasso! The Crown! Get your ballots ready for Emmys 2021! Critic and writer Thelma Adams joins Christina as they predict this exciting year ahead of the Emmys telecast on Sunday the 19th. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Welcome to part two of our Venice Film Festival dispatch! Critic, writer & host of the ‘Writers on Film’ podcast John Bleasdale joins Christina, in Venice, to talk about the the 2021 festival and review & discuss the films they have seen. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In part 1 of our Venice Film Festival special writer & critic John Bleasdale (The Guardian, Sight & Sound) talks to Christina about some of the movies, directors and performances they are most looking forward to at the festival: Almodovar, Sorrentino, Campion, Ridley Scott! Pablo Larraín imagines the days leading up to Diana and Charles divorce. The premiere of the much anticipated Dune. A...

Director Jonas Poher Rasmussen joins us to talk about his remarkable animated documentary 'Flee"‘. The Sundance Grand Jury Prize winner ‘FLEE ‘tells the story of Amin, who through a series of interviews with Rasmussen, tells his dramatic journey as a child refugee from Afghanistan to Denmark in the 1980s & grappling with his traumatic past. Riz Ahmed and Nikolaj Coster-Waldau are set to star,...

Culture writer Constance Grady (vox.com) joins us to talk about Britney Spears court case which she has followed closely, the #freebritney movement, how it has started major discussions on reforming conservatorships, the cultural implications and what will be happening going forward. Grady recently written a series of articles “The Purity Chronicles” where she examines the bubblegum misogyny of po...

Erik Anderson, editor-in-chief of AwardsWatch , is BACK! We have a great conversation about the Venice Film Festival line-up, the Cannes winners, early Emmy predictions and those incredible House of Gucci posters. Listen now! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices