
Dead Pilots Society
In Dead Pilots Society, scripts that were developed by studios and networks but were never produced are given the table reads they deserve. Starring actors you know and love from television and film, a live audience, and a good time in which no one gets notes, no one is fired, and everyone laughs. Presented by Andrew Reich (Friends; Worst Week) Ben Blacker (The Writers Panel podcast; co-creator, Thrilling Adventure Hour), and Noah Findling (The New York Times, Comedy Central).
Latest episodes

Mar 23, 2023 • 54min
Episode 115: Wheelan Motors "Bad Press" written by Brooks Wheelan (I Think You Should Leave, SNL) & Isaac Rentz (Opening Night)
It’s Max Fun Drive! The one time of year where we ask you to become members or upgrade your membership to help make our show possible. For this year’s Max Fun Drive we’re bringing you something super special. A full on Dead Pilots Society Series. Well, the first three episodes of one at least.Today we’re releasing episode two of Wheelan Motors written and created by Brooks Wheelan (I Think You Should Leave, SNL) & Isaac Rentz (Opening Night). In this episode, Wheelan Motors becomes embroiled in an insurance scam and Jim sponsors a little league team to get the community to trust him again. After finding out the team has a losing record he fires Todd as the coach, and hires Brooks as his "puppet."The cast for this one was next level! Wheelan Motors stars Brooks Wheelan, Jessica Lowe as Jenny Valvino, Paul Scheer as Todd, Will Sasso as Jim Wheelan, Kerri Kenney-Silver as Chris Wheelan, Bobby Moynihan as Michael, Mike O’Brien as Freddie Admunson, Gary Anthony Williams as Doug T, Ryan Asher as Layton, Nick Rutherford as Ries, Joe Mande as Lincoln, Katrina Davis as Stacy T, and Joey Lyons with stage directions.This year our bonus content includes our library of video from our table reads. You can get them for as little as $5 by going to https://maximumfun.org/joinTune in Monday for episode three of Wheelan Motors written by Brooks Wheelan & Isaac Rents. Thanks for supporting our show! Enjoy!For more Dead Pilots Society episodes and information about our live shows, please subscribe to the podcast!Make sure to like us on Facebook, follow us on Instagram, and Twitter, and visit our website at deadpilotssociety.com

Mar 20, 2023 • 60min
Episode 114: Wheelan Motors "The Pilot" written by Brooks Wheelan (I Think You Should Leave, SNL) & Isaac Rentz (Opening Night)
It’s Max Fun Drive! The one time of year where we ask you to become members or upgrade your membership to help make our show possible. For this year’s Max Fun Drive we’re bringing you something super special. A full on Dead Pilots Society Series. Well, the first three episodes of one at least.This week’s pilot is called Wheelan Motors written and created by Brooks Wheelan (I Think You Should Leave, SNL) & Isaac Rentz (Opening Night). Brooks and Isaac sold this show to Fox and the network was so excited about it that they ordered them to write two more episodes. Over the next two week’s of Max Fun Drive you’ll get two hear all three episodes of this show. Wheelan Motors centers around Brooks, who returns to Iowa to accept a job at his family’s car dealership after a misunderstanding lands him in a mental hospital. This is also the first pilot we recorded live since the pandemic began so you’re going to actually hear some real laughs!The cast for this one was next level! Wheelan Motors stars Brooks Wheelan as Brooks, Jessica Lowe as Jenny Valvino, Paul Scheer as Todd, Will Sasso as Jim Wheelan, Kerri Kenney-Silver as Chris Wheelan, Bobby Moynihan as Michael, Mike O’Brien as Freddie Admunson, Gary Anthony Williams as Doug T, Ryan Asher as Layton, Nick Rutherford as Ries, Joe Mande as Lincoln, Katrina Davis as Stacy T, and Joey Lyons with stage directions.This year our bonus content includes our library of video from our table reads. You can get them for as little as $5 by going to https://maximumfun.org/joinTune in Thursday for episode two of Wheelan Motors written by Brooks Wheelan & Isaac Rents. Thanks for supporting our show! Enjoy!For more Dead Pilots Society episodes and information about our live shows, please subscribe to the podcast!Make sure to like us on Facebook, follow us on Instagram, and Twitter, and visit our website at deadpilotssociety.com

Feb 23, 2023 • 1h 20min
Episode 113: Andrew Leeds (The Patient, Barry) Lindsey Kraft (Grace & Frankie) and Richie Keen (It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia) Interview (Throuple)
The theme of today’s episode is friendship! We sat down with three great friends and writers of Throuple, Andrew Leeds, Lindsey Kraft and Richie Keen. In their interview they debate whether handing out ice cream to executives during their network pitches was a good idea or not. They told us about how their pitch made no sense. Their words not ours. Andrew Leeds told us about how Richie coached him for an audition for Andrew Reich’s pilot. Insight into mining comedic characters from real ones and how they went about adding a hook to a show about nothing. This is a fun one. Enjoy it! Get the video for the table read of Throuple for as little as $5 by going to https://maximumfun.org/joinFor more Dead Pilots Society episodes and information about our live shows, please subscribe to the podcast!Make sure to like us on Facebook, follow us on Instagram, and Twitter, and visit our website at deadpilotssociety.com

Feb 16, 2023 • 47min
Episode 112: Throuple written by Richie Keen (It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia), Lindsey Kraft (Grace & Frankie) & Andrew Leeds (Barry, The Patient)
We’re bringing you a great pilot this month! It’s called Throuple written by Richie Keen (It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia), Andrew Leeds (The Patient, Barry), and Lindsey Kraft (Grace & Frankie). Throuple is an autobiographical comedy based on a short film written by and starring the three real-life best friends. It revolves around a long-term couple and their best friend as they navigate everyday situations in their own unique way. Keen was attached to direct, Scott Fedro and Perry Rogers were also attached to executive produce. The project was set up at NBC with Universal TV as the studio. It’s a real slice of life relationship comedy that we know you’re going to love.Throuple stars Richie Keen, Lindsey Kraft, Andrew Leeds, Moujan Zolfaghari, India De Beaufort, Jay Lacopo, Gloria Calderón Kellett, and Andrew Reich with stage directions. You can watch the short film that inspired this pilot here:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=73PR_Isbh58If you’d like to see the video feed of Throuple, you can do so by going to maximum fun.org/join and become a member for as little as $5. For $5 you’ll get our entire catalogue of bonus content and a bunch of bonus episodes too! Tune in next week for our interview with Steve. Thanks for watching and supporting our show! Enjoy! For more Dead Pilots Society episodes and information about our live shows, please subscribe to the podcast!Make sure to like us on Facebook, follow us on Instagram, and Twitter, and visit our website at deadpilotssociety.com

Jan 26, 2023 • 60min
Episode 111: Steve Basilone (Happy Endings, Community) Interview (Falling/Apart))
Steve Basilone is on the podcast today! Steve has written for Happy Endings, The Goldbergs, and Community. He’s also the writer of last week’s dead pilot, FALLING/APART. In our discussion, Steve told us about his beginnings in Hollywood. How helpful it was to finish his last semester at Emerson College in LA. He told us about how he pivoted from acting to writing after realizing he could write a script as bad as the projects he was auditioning for. Steve discussed his first feature sale, his experience in the Happy Endings room, and a tale or two about pitching Arnold Schwarzenegger, Danny Devito, and Eddie Murphy the remake of TWINS. We love talking to writers and we loved talking to Steve! Thanks for listening! Enjoy! Get the video for the table read of Falling/Apart, for as little as $5 by going to https://maximumfun.org/joinFor more Dead Pilots Society episodes and information about our live shows, please subscribe to the podcast!Make sure to like us on Facebook, follow us on Instagram, and Twitter, and visit our website at deadpilotssociety.com

Jan 19, 2023 • 55min
Episode 110: Falling/Apart written by Steve Basilone (The Goldbergs, Community, Happy Endings)
We’re starting off the year with a great dead pilot! It’s called Falling/Apart written by Steve Basilone (The Goldbergs, Community, Happy Endings). In Falling/Apart Lena and Evan, both newly single, must navigate the uniquely demoralizing song-and-dance of single-hood: the swiping right, the ghosting, the banal first date banter. Honestly, they both (kind of) hate it...until they meet each other. And thus the romantic cycle of falling in love and falling apart begins anew. This project was set up at NBC, with Seth Gordon attached to direct and Sony Pictures TV attached to produce. Falling/Apart is a time-bending rom-com that concurrently explores the beginning and the end of a relationship and illuminates the ridiculous cyclical nature of love, life and getting older.Falling/Apart stars Gareth Reynolds (Maron), Sam Lerner (The Goldbergs), Olivia Sui (Smosh), Jessy Hodges (Barry), Will Greenberg (Wrecked), Zoë Chao (Love Life), Garrick Bernard (Single Drunk Female), Moujan Zolfaghari (The Brothel), and Andrew Reich with stage directions. We’re so excited to share this podcast with you. Thanks for listening and enjoy!If you’d like to see the video feed of Falling/Apart, you can do so by going to maximum fun.org/join and become a member for as little as $5. For $5 you’ll get our entire catalogue of bonus content and a bunch of bonus episodes too! Tune in next week for our interview with Steve. Thanks for watching and supporting our show! Enjoy! For more Dead Pilots Society episodes and information about our live shows, please subscribe to the podcast!Make sure to like us on Facebook, follow us on Instagram, and Twitter, and visit our website at deadpilotssociety.com

Dec 29, 2022 • 1h
Episode 109: Scotty Landes (Workaholics, Ma) Interview (Dear America: We've Seen You Naked Interview)
This week’s episode is an insightful interview with the writer of Dear America: We’ve Seen You Naked, Scotty Landes (Workaholics, Ma). In it, Scotty discusses the Politico article his pilot is based on. You can check that out here. He tells us how he wrote a pilot with 9 main characters, the best breaking into the business story we’ve ever heard, his transition from a reality TV producer to a scripted TV writer and how working in reality made him a better TV writer. Scotty’s insightful stories made this a delightful interview and his pilot was truly hilarious. Go check it out if you haven’t yet. Thanks for listening! Enjoy!Get the video for the table read of Dear America: We’ve Seen You Naked for as little as $5 by going to https://maximumfun.org/join and becoming a Max Fun member. For more Dead Pilots Society episodes and information about our live shows, please subscribe to the podcast!Make sure to like us on Facebook, follow us on Instagram, and Twitter, and visit our website at deadpilotssociety.com

Dec 22, 2022 • 48min
Episode 108: Dear America, We've Seen You Naked written by Scotty Landes (Workaholics, Who Is America?, Ma!)
Happy Holidays, Dead Pilots Society listeners! Our pilot this month is Dear America, We’ve Seen You Naked written by Scotty Landes (Workaholics, Who Is America?, Ma). It’s a workplace comedy about a group of TSA agents at Chicago O’Hare airport. We think this pairs well with our Episode 25: Airport Marriott written by Phil Hay and Matt Manfredi. Dear America also has a unique origin story in that it’s based on a non-existent book. You’ll hear all about that and more in Scotty’s pre-read interview. This is a great pilot! We know you’re going to love it! Dear America, We’ve Seen You Naked stars Lucas Hazlett (American Princess), Erika Rankin (House Of Lies), Courtney Pauroso (Reno 911! It’s A Wonderful Heist), Jesus Trejo (Sullivan & Son), Matt Oberg (Harley Quinn, Veep) Sabrina Jalees (Search Party), Danny Jolles (Crazy Ex-Girlfriend), Ankur Bhatt (Platonic), Shawn Vance (MVP) Bryce Craver (Limits Of Therapy), Shannon Dee (Hacks, Good Girls, I Love That For You) and Andrew Reich with stage directions.If you’d like to see the video feed for Dear America, you can do so by becoming a Max Fun member for as little as $5 by going to maximum fun.org/join. For $5 you’ll get our entire catalogue of bonus content and a bunch of bonus episodes too! Tune in next week for our interview with Scotty. LIVE SHOW ALERT! Come to our first live show in three years on January 12th, 2023 at The Elysian Theater! We’ll be reading the first three episodes of a show created for Fox by Brooks Wheelan & Isaac Rentz called Wheelan Motors. Wheelan Motors is a blue-collar workplace comedy that follows three dysfunctional brothers, their larger-than-life parents, and the eccentric staff of the business where they all work: a family-run car dealership in small-town Iowa. Get your tickets now because we have a monster cast for this one featuring:Tim Heidecker (Tim and Eric)Bobby Moynihan (SNL)Alyssa Limperis (Flatbush Misdemeanors)Kerri Kenney Silver (Reno 911) Jermaine Fowler (Tuca and Bertie) Mike O’Brien (AP Bio)Jessica Lowe (Minx) TICKET LINK: https://www.elysiantheater.com/shows/deadpilotssocietyThanks for listening and supporting our show! Enjoy!For more Dead Pilots Society episodes and information about our live shows, please subscribe to the podcast!Make sure to like us on Facebook, follow us on Instagram, and Twitter, and visit our website at deadpilotssociety.com

Nov 24, 2022 • 53min
Episode 107: Emily Cutler (Fresh Off The Boat, AP Bio) Interview (Step Dave After Show)
Happy Thanksgiving to all of our Dead Pilots Society listeners! This week we caught up with Emily Cutler (Fresh off The Boat, AP Bio) the writer of Step Dave! Emily talks in depth about how the Step Dave format came to her. Also, Andrew will give you a brief education about what a format even is! Emily felt a special connection to the material because, like Annie in the pilot, her husband is 10 years younger than her. She told us about how she mined material from her own marriage to pitch and develop the show. Emily also discusses her early career transition from an actor to a writer and she shared with us her best practices for people wanting to staff. This is a really great episode with a brilliant writer. Enjoy it and thanks for listening! Get the video for the table read of Step Dave for as little as $5 by going to https://maximumfun.org/joinFor more Dead Pilots Society episodes and information about our live shows, please subscribe to the podcast!Make sure to like us on Facebook, follow us on Instagram, and Twitter, and visit our website at deadpilotssociety.com

Nov 17, 2022 • 47min
Episode 106: Step Dave written by Emily Cutler (Fresh Off The Boat, AP BIO)
We have a wonderful pilot for you this month! It’s the perfect pilot to listen to while curled up next to a fire this holiday season! You all have fireplaces, right?! Either way, this month’s script comes from Emily Cutler (Fresh Off The Boat, AP BIO). In STEP DAVE, lives are turned upside down when a 24 year-old bartender and a 36 year-old divorced mom fall in love. That's right, it's a romantic comedy pilot! Step Dave was set up at NBC through Universal in 2017 and it was inspired by a New Zealand show of the same name. It’s sweet, romantic, and just so much fun. We hope you like it! Enjoy!Step Dave stars Lindsay Sloane (Bring It On, The Odd Couple) as Annie Buckman, Luke Mones (Insecure) as Dave Gibbs, Vinny Thomas (Platonic) as Ozzie, Alyssa Limperis (Her latest Peacock special No Bad Days) as Carla/Stella, Greg Santos (The Neighborhood) as Ken/Leo, Mariana Klaveno (True Blood, Devious Maids) as Suzanne, Linda Purl (The Office) as Margaret, Neska Rose (Drama Club) as Jessie, Libi Rose (Angelyne) as Sara, and Andrew Reich with stage directions.If you’d like to see the video feed of Step Dave, you can do so by going to maximum fun.org/join and become a member for as little as $5. For $5 you’ll get our entire catalogue of bonus content and a bunch of bonus episodes too! Tune in next week for our interview with Emily. Thanks for watching and supporting our show! Enjoy! For more Dead Pilots Society episodes and information about our live shows, please subscribe to the podcast!Make sure to like us on Facebook, follow us on Instagram, and Twitter, and visit our website at deadpilotssociety.com