The Treatment

This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes Robin Thede, creator and star of HBO’s “A Black Lady Sketch Show” to talk about the groundbreaking show’s cinematic look and multi-layered approach to comedy. Then “Rutherford Falls” co-creator Sierra Teller Ornelas joins us to discuss some of the absurd situations she has found herself in as a Native American that have found their way into the show. And...

This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes back Academy Award winning screenwriter Dustin Lance Black. Black’s newest project is as executive producer and showrunner of the FX limited series “Under the Banner of Heaven,” streaming on Hulu. The series is adapted from Jon Krakauer’s book of the same name. Black won the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay for “Milk” in 2009. Black, a former member of...

This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes back Alex Kurtzman, co-creator, along with Jenny Lumet, of the adaptation of “The Man Who Fell to Earth” on Showtime. Kurtzman directed the film “People Like Us” and is the co-writer of several films, including “Transformers” and “The Amazing Spider-Man 2.” “The Man Who Fell to Earth” is an adaptation of the 1976 film starring David Bowie, which was an ad...

This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes back actress Molly Shannon, who is currently starring in the Showtime series “I Love That for You” and has written a memoir “Hello, Molly!” Shannon, a “Saturday Night Live” alum, has also recently appeared in the HBO series “The White Lotus” and “The Other Two.” Shannon, who lost her mother and sister in a car accident as a young girl, tells The Treatment...

This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes back Emmy-winning actor Bill Hader, who is also the co-creator of the HBO series “Barry,” which has just returned for its third season. Hader also was a cast member on “Saturday Night Live” for eight seasons. Hader tells The Treatment one of the keys to the distinctive tone of “Barry” is taking away the idea of genre. He says the third season deals more d...

This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes director Maureen Bharoocha whose newest film is “The Prank,” starring Rita Moreno. Bharoocha is also the director of “Golden Arm,” an arm wrestling comedy. Bharoocha tells The Treatment she wanted to transcend movie genres with “The Prank” and not just stay in the comedy or thriller category. She says part of the fun of featuring the legendary Moreno in t...

This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes back the showrunners of Prime Video's “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,” Amy Sherman-Palladino and Dan Palladino to discuss season 4 of the comedy series. The Emmy-winning comedy is currently in production for its fifth and final season. The duo discuss the contrast between night and day in season 4 and talk about reclaiming the glamor of nighttime from the ear...

This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes back director, writer and actress Sarah Polley, whose new collection of essays is “Run Towards the Danger:  Confrontations with a Body of Memory.” Polley’s films as a director include “Stories We Tell,” “Away from Her” and “Take this Waltz.” Polley tells The Treatment about her traumatic experiences as a child actor on the film set of “The Adventures of B...

This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes director Matt Reeves, whose latest project is “The Batman” starring Robert Pattinson. Reeves also helmed two of the “Planet of the Apes” films as well as “The Pallbearer.” Reeves tells The Treatment the only way he can make large genre films is to make them personal. He says he didn’t want to make another origin story for his iteration of Batman, but want...

This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes back actress Regina Hall who’s currently starring in Mariama Diallo’s “Master,” a horror film about the first Black master of an elite fictional New England university. Hall’s other films include “Support the Girls” and “Girls Trip.” Hall is also co-hosting the 2022 Academy Awards on March 27 along with Wanda Sykes and Amy Schumer. Hall tells The Treatmen...

This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes Academy Award nominated actor Benedict Cumberbatch, who is up for Best Actor for his portrayal of Phil Burbank in Jane Campion’s “The Power of the Dog.” Cumberbatch is also currently reprising his role as Dr. Strange in “Spiderman: No Way Home.” Cumberbatch talks about the superhero’s evolution while trying not to reveal plot spoilers for the upcoming “Dr...

This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes “BEL AIR” creator and director, Morgan Cooper. The series, which was inspired by “The Fresh Prince of Bel Air,” is streaming on Peacock. Cooper tells The Treatment he wants to tell everyday stories of “Black normalcy” in his work. He says his influences, which include hip-hop artists and producers J Dilla and MF Doom along with photographer Gordon Parks a...

This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes playwright Jeremy O. Harris, whose play “Slave Play” is at the Mark Taper Forum until March 13. The play received 12 Tony nominations, the most ever for a play. Harris also co-wrote the screenplay for the 2021 film “Zola.” Harris tells The Treatment that some of his inspiration for “Slave Play” came from two controversial films he watched as a child. He s...

This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes back director Denis Villeneuve, whose latest film is the adaptation of Frank Herbert’s “Dune,” which is nominated for nine Academy Awards, including Best Adapted Screenplay, which Villeneuve co-wrote. His other films as director include “Arrival,” “Sicario,” and “Blade Runner 2049.” Villeneuve tells The Treatment how fear weaves its way through many of hi...

This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes back writer Gerrick Kennedy whose newest book is “Didn’t We Almost Have it All: In Defense of Whitney Houston.” Kennedy is also the author of “Parental Discretion is Advised: The Rise of N.W.A. and the Dawn of Gangsta Rap.” His writing has appeared in Vanity Fair, GQ, and The Los Angeles Times. Kennedy tells The Treatment that one of the misconceptions ab...

This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes Academy Award winning director and writer Joel Coen, whose latest film is “The Tragedy of Macbeth,” currently streaming on Apple TV+. This is Coen’s solo directorial debut. He shared the Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay Oscars with his brother Ethan for their 2010 adaptation of  “No Country for Old Men.” Coen talks about playing with the line bet...

This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes SAG Supporting Actress nominee Kirsten Dunst, nominated for her role in Netflix’s “The Power of the Dog,” directed by Jane Campion. Dunst has appeared in many films including “The Virgin Suicides,” “Melancholia” and “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.” Dunst tells The Treatment her entire approach to acting has changed in recent years, including incor...

This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes back Academy Award winning director Guillermo del Toro, whose latest film is an adaption of the novel “Nightmare Alley” by William Lindsay Gresham. Del Toro’s 2017 film “The Shape of Water” won Oscars for both Best Director and Best Picture. Del Toro tells The Treatment about the recurring theme of monsters in human form in his films. He discusses how dre...

This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes Tabitha Jackson, Director of the Sundance Film Festival. This year’s festival has shifted to an online format because of the pandemic. Jackson tells The Treatment this shift will make the festival’s offerings even more inclusive than in years past. She talks about why she is worried about the “tyranny of story,” and says we have to move away from the trad...

Writer Noah Hawley on how fiction can create empathy.

This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes director Reinaldo Marcus Green, whose latest film is “King Richard,” which takes a closer look at Richard Williams, father of tennis greats Venus and Serena. Green’s other films include “Monsters and Men” and “Joe Bell.” Green tells The Treatment about the personal connection he felt to the story, growing up with an eye on playing major league baseball. H...

This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes Lin-Manuel Miranda, the multi-talented director, actor and songwriter, who has two projects premiering at the end of 2021. The Pulitzer Prize winner for “Hamilton” directed his first feature, “tick, tick…Boom!” on Netflix, and he wrote the songs for Disney’s new film “Encanto.” The film “tick, tick…Boom!” tells the story of the late playwright and compose...

This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes Oscar-winning actress and first time director Halle Berry. Berry’s directorial debut is “Bruised” on Netflix, which is about a disgraced MMA fighter who is battling her own personal demons. Berry also plays the lead in the film. She won the Oscar for her leading role in “Monster’s Ball” in 2001. Berry tells The Treatment that she is often drawn to charact...

This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes writer Laurie Woolever, whose new book is ‘Bourdain: The Definitive Oral Biography’ about the late writer and television host Anthony Bourdain. Woolever was Bourdain’s assistant and collaborator before he died in 2018. She is also the co-host of the podcast ‘Carbface for Radio.” Woolever tells The Treatment that Bourdain wasn’t always the brash, outgoing...

Writer Kelefa Sanneh on music’s relentless boundary blurring.