The Empire Film Podcast

Because (some of) you demanded it, and because we probably won't have a lot of time to do so on this week's regular pod (what with saying goodbye to Terri White and all that), here it is: a podcast special in which Chris Hewitt, Helen O'Hara, and birthday boy Ben Travis gather in the virtual podbooth and have a breakdown while breaking down the exciting teaser trailer for Spider-Man: No Way Home. From discussion of many madcap theories to speculation about Spider-Man's OnlyFans page, it's the pod that has it all, and even attempts to answer the biggest question of them all: why is Tobey Maguire standing behind Ben? Enjoy.

Celebrate Our Cinemas is a brand-new, limited-edition podcast series, brought to you by Empire in association with Meerkat Movies from Compare The Market. Each week, Chris Hewitt will sit down with a notable guest from the world of film and dig deep into their cinema-going history. What was the first film they remember seeing? What film made them laugh so hard that tears streamed down their face? What's their favourite cinema? And, most important of all, what's their cinematic snack of choice? In this week's episode, the amazing Simon Pegg -- star and co-writer of Spaced, Shaun Of The Dead, Hot Fuzz, and The World's End; and star of the modern Star Trek films, and the Mission: Impossible franchise, where he plays Benji Dunn -- is our guest, taking time out from his busy schedule filming Mission: Impossible 7 and new TV series The Undeclared War to tell Chris all about the films that shaped a young Pegg (no prizes for guessing that there's a Star Wars in there somewhere), his experiences in different cinemas across the world, how Ari Aster got inside his head, and that time he nearly killed Johnny Knoxville. It's a lot of fun, and we hope that you enjoy.

As a wise doctor once said, "we're in the endgame now." Particularly when it comes to The Walking Dead. The eleventh and final season of the iconic, groundbreaking show is set to premiere from Monday 23rd August, with new episodes dropping every week as a Star exclusive on Disney+, and that is an occasion so momentous that, once again, the Empire Podcast and Pilot TV Podcast teams have joined forces with Star on Disney+ to talk about it. So, in this very special crossover episode, Chris Hewitt, James Dyer, and Beth Webb pop into the virtual podbooth for an in-depth discussion about their hopes, fears, and dreams for the final season. Who will survive, and what will be left of them? And what about the characters on the show? But that's not all. In an exclusive interview, James sits down across Zoom with Angela Kang, the show's producer and co-writer of Acheron Part I and Acheron Part II, the first two episodes of this 24-episode run, and they have a conversation about sticking the landing. So sit back, relax, and enjoy.

This week's episode of the Empire Podcast sees Chris Hewitt return from a short stint in Norn Iron, accent stronger than ever, for a fun episode in which he, Helen O'Hara, James Dyer, and Amon Warmann play another round of the beloved The Three Fact Structure, talk about their favourite surgery scenes from the movies (spoilers abound, so tread carefully), discuss the week's movie news and, in a bumper reviews section that is the main reason why this week's episode is so darn long, cast their eyes over Censor, People Just Do Nothing: Big In Japan, Pig, Reminiscence, Boss Level, Beckett, and G.I. Joe Origins: Snake Eyes. Blimey! And that's not all, folks. Chris sits down with Asim Chaudhry, aka Chabuddy G from People Just Do Nothing, for a very funny interview including a dissection of the Pina Colada song (you know the one), while Helen has an in-depth chat with Niamh Algar, star of Prano Bailey-Bond's brilliant and mindbending horror, Censor. Enjoy.

Celebrate Our Cinemas is a brand new limited edition podcast series, brought to you by Empire in association with Meerkat Movies from Compare The Market. Each week, Chris Hewitt will sit down with a notable guest from the world of film and dig deep into their cinema-going history. What was the first film they remember seeing? What film made them laugh so hard that tears were streaming down their face? What's their favourite cinema? And, perhaps most important of all, what's their snack of choice? In this week's episode, Chris has a fun chat with Asim Chaudhry, who once again plays the iconic Chabuddy G in People Just Do Nothing: Big In Japan, the big-screen spin-off from the beloved BBC sitcom. Asim tells Chris all about his formative cinematic experiences growing up in Hounslow, the time Paranormal Activity nearly got him in trouble with U.S. Customs, and he talks about the movie he thinks might just be the greatest of all time. Its identity may surprise you. Oh, and do be advised: there's some fairly adult language in this one, and a smidgen of literal toilet humour. Enjoy.

With Chris being off on.... *looks up the term* a 'ho-li-day', it's up to the lethally cunning Helen O'Hara and the consistently megalomaniacal James Dyer to hold down the fort alone, largely by dancing on the grave of the Three Fact Structure and plugging the Pilot TV podcast every third minute. Beyond that, though, Hell's Bells and Jimbo manage to re-cast the Discworld with members of the MCU and remake a number of 80s fantasies for the modern era (hypothetically, you understand - they haven't set up a studio). Plus they dive into this week's releases and give Free Guy, The Courier, and CODA the full Empire Podcast treatment. Not to mention the fact that Jodie Comer joins us on the podcast this week to chat all things Free Guy, while Uatu The Watcher (aka the legendary Mr Jeffrey Wright) steps away from the multiverse of possibilities to talk to us about What If? WHY ARE YOU STILL READING THIS? Download the pod and start listening!

Celebrate Our Cinemas is a brand new limited edition podcast series, brought to you by Empire in association with Meerkat Movies from Compare The Market. Each week, for six weeks, Chris Hewitt will sit down with a notable guest form the world of film and dig deep into their cinema-going history. What was the first film they remember seeing? What film made them laugh so hard that tears were streaming down their face? What's their favourite cinema in the whole wide world? And, perhaps most important of all, what's their cinema-going snack of choice? In our second episode, Chris chats to David Arnold, the acclaimed composer of some of the finest film and television scores of the past couple of decades. From Casino Royale to Sherlock, he's long been one of the best in the business, and David took time out from working on A Circle Of Sound, a ten-movement work he composed to mark the reopening of The Royal Albert Hall, to walk down memory lane. So listen on for tales of the movies that moved David to become a composer, how he masterminded James Bond's musical reintroduction, and his beef with pick'n'mix. Regular listeners will know that David is a very funny man, and this is no exception. Enjoy.

This week's Empire Podcast sees the podteam — Chris Hewitt, Helen O'Hara and James Dyer — return to the virtual studio after last week's live show. But that doesn't mean that they're phoning it in, or Squadcasting it in. Far from it. Instead, this is a jam-packed, fun-filled show in which the three colleagues of such lethal cunning discuss the best and worst movie disguises, delve deep into the week's news (which includes speculation about the new Doctor Who, as if this is an episode of Pilot or something), and review Stillwater, Zola, The Boys From County Hell, Vivo, and The Last Letter From Your Lover. And on the interview front this week, you get two short and sweet, and slightly spoilery, chats with Matt Damon, star of Stillwater, and Felicity Jones, star of The Last Letter From Your Lover, and admirer of room service chips. Enjoy.

Celebrate Our Cinemas is a brand new limited edition podcast series, brought to you by Empire in association with Meerkat Movies from Compare The Market. Each week, for the next six weeks, Chris Hewitt will sit down with a notable guest from the world of film and dig deep into their cinema going history. What was the first film they remember seeing? What film made them laugh so hard that tears were streaming down their face? What’s their favourite cinema? And, perhaps most important of all, what’s their cinema going snack of choice? 

In our first episode, Chris chats to Olga Kurylenko, the star of Black Widow, Quantum Of Solace, and The Death Of Stalin, about her moviegoing memories. From her tales of growing up in the Soviet Union to discovering the joys of cinema after moving to Paris, it’s an interview that’s full of surprises. You’ll never guess which movie she’s seen most. Believe us. 

Enjoy.

Aaron Eckhart has spent much of his career fighting not to be typecast as the all-American hero, what with his blond hair, blue eyes and chin that could level mountains. And he's very much succeeded in that quest with his new movie, Wander, in which he plays a paranoid private eye-turned-podcaster who stumbles upon what could potentially be a vast conspiracy. He's scuzzy, nervy, unpredictable, and a million miles away from films like The Dark Knight and The Core. And, as Chris Hewitt discovered when he chatted to Eckhart on Zoom recently, that's just how the actor likes it. So listen on as Eckhart talks about his process, how he likes to work with directors, what it's like being directed by Clint Eastwood, Sean Penn, and Steven Soderbergh (to name but three), and how he bonded with his Wander co-star, and fellow Two-Face, Tommy Lee Jones. Two things of note: Eckhart was in his car, and on his phone, so bear that in mind. And Wander is out now, to rent or buy, wherever you get your PVOD films. Enjoy.