The Next Best Picture Podcast

For this week's main podcast review, Katie Johnson, Josh Parham, and Cody Dericks join me to discuss the latest film from Sam Raimi, "Send Help," starring Rachel McAdams, Dylan O'Brien, Edyll Ismail, Xavier Samuel, Chris Pang, and Dennis Haysbert. Written by writers Damian Shannon and Mark Swift, the film finds Raimi back in his wheelhouse for the first time since "Drag Me To Hell," embellishing on the gore, horror and shock value of this two-hander survivor premise. What did we think of it, though? Please tune in as we discuss Raimi's direction, the two performances from McAdams and O'Brien, the practical effects, the wild directions the story takes, and more in our SPOILER-FILLED review. Thank you for listening, and enjoy! Check out more on NextBestPicture.com Please subscribe on... Apple Podcasts - https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/negs-best-film-podcast/id1087678387?mt=2 Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/7IMIzpYehTqeUa1d9EC4jT YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWA7KiotcWmHiYYy6wJqwOw And be sure to help support us on Patreon for as little as $1 a month at https://www.patreon.com/NextBestPicture and listen to this podcast ad-free Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

"A Poet" is a tragicomedy film written, co-produced, and directed by Simón Mesa Soto. An international co-production between Colombia, Germany, and Sweden, the film had its world premiere in the Un Certain Regard section of the 2025 Cannes Film Festival, where it won the section's Jury Prize. The film stars Ubeimar Rios as an obsessed poet who has achieved no glory, is aging, erratic, and has become the cliche of the poet in the shadows. When he meets Yurlady (Rebeca Andrade), a teenage girl, he helps cultivate her talent. It was selected as the Colombian entry for the Best International Feature Film at the 98th Academy Awards, but it was not nominated. Simón Mesa Soto was kind enough to spend some time talking with us about his work and experience making the film, which you can listen to below. Please be sure to check out the film, which is now playing in theaters from 1-2 Special. Thank you, and enjoy! Check out more on NextBestPicture.com Please subscribe on... Apple Podcasts - https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/negs-best-film-podcast/id1087678387?mt=2 Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/7IMIzpYehTqeUa1d9EC4jT YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWA7KiotcWmHiYYy6wJqwOw And be sure to help support us on Patreon for as little as $1 a month at https://www.patreon.com/NextBestPicture and listen to this podcast ad-free Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

"The Testament Of Ann Lee" had its world premiere in the main competition of the 82nd Venice International Film Festival, where it received positive reviews from critics, with Amanda Seyfried receiving acclaim for her performance (often described as "career-best" and earning nominations from the Golden Globe Award and the Critics' Choice Award for Best Actress. Directed and co-written by Mona Fastvold (with "The Brutalist" filmmaking and real-life partner, Brady Corbet), the historical musical drama follows the founder of the Shaker religious sect in the 18th century with a supporting cast that includes Thomasin McKenzie, Lewis Pullman, Stacy Martin, Tim Blake Nelson, and Christopher Abbott. Fastvold was kind enough to spend some time speaking with Next Best Picture Owner & Editor In Chief Matt Neglia, while Academy Award-winning composer Daniel Blumberg spoke with Dan Bayer, and Cody Dericks had the opportunity to speak with production designer Sam Bader, costume designer Gosia Karpiuk, and hair, makeup, and prosthetics designer Stephanie Pasicov. Please be sure to check out the film, which is now playing in theaters from Searchlight Pictures. Thank you, and enjoy! Check out more on NextBestPicture.com Please subscribe on... Apple Podcasts - https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/negs-best-film-podcast/id1087678387?mt=2 Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/7IMIzpYehTqeUa1d9EC4jT YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWA7KiotcWmHiYYy6wJqwOw And be sure to help support us on Patreon for as little as $1 a month at https://www.patreon.com/NextBestPicture and listen to this podcast ad-free Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The first of Pixar's two films this year, "Hoppers," hits theaters on March 6th. This sci-fi, spy-thriller-influenced nature flick could be considered a major departure for the famed animation studio. While previous Pixar films are plentiful in humor, "Hoppers" is their first truly comedy-first film. Ahead of the film's release in just over a month, Pixar invited Next Best Picture to the studio to check out "Hoppers," along with an extensive look behind the scenes at how they brought this hilarious new adventure to life. We were lucky enough to get to spend some time speaking with Director Daniel Chong and Producer Nicole Grindle, Production Designer Bryan Imagire, Visual Effects Supervisor Beth Albright, and Character Art Director Anna Scott. We hope you enjoy this behind-the-scenes look at Pixar's newest film. Thank you and enjoy! Check out more on NextBestPicture.com Please subscribe on... Apple Podcasts - https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/negs-best-film-podcast/id1087678387?mt=2 Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/7IMIzpYehTqeUa1d9EC4jT YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWA7KiotcWmHiYYy6wJqwOw And be sure to help support us on Patreon for as little as $1 a month at https://www.patreon.com/NextBestPicture and listen to this podcast ad-free Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For Episode 476, Ema Sasic, Nadia Dalimonte, Dan Bayer, Megan Lachinski, and Alyssa Christian join me to discuss the 2026 Oscar nominations for the 98th Academy Awards after they were unable to do so for our live reaction video to the nominations. It's been a few days since the initial announcement, and already we're looking at potential shifts in momentum, who got in vs. who was left off, and what will happen with BAFTA and WGA nominations this week? For last week's poll, for the Oscar nominations we asked, "Which Film Do You Think Will Be The Next Best Picture Oscar Winner?" And for this week's poll, with the announcement of the Oscar nominations, we're asking, "Which Oscar Nomination For The 98th Academy Awards Made You The Happiest?" We also give our reactions to the trailers for "Masters Of The Universe" and "Tuner," answer your fan-submitted questions, and more. Thank you all for listening, supporting, and subscribing. Daniel Howat, Cody Dericks, and I are still in Sundance and will be back next week with a recap of the festival as this year's awards season continues. Enjoy! Check out more on NextBestPicture.com Please subscribe on... Apple Podcasts - https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/negs-best-film-podcast/id1087678387?mt=2 Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/7IMIzpYehTqeUa1d9EC4jT YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWA7KiotcWmHiYYy6wJqwOw And be sure to help support us on Patreon for as little as $1 a month at https://www.patreon.com/NextBestPicture and listen to this podcast ad-free Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Megan Leshinsky, a sharp film critic, breaks down Mona Fastvold’s period drama. She highlights Amanda Seyfried’s career-best lead and raves about the haunting modernized hymns by Daniel Blumberg. They discuss jaw-dropping cinematography, choreography as ecstatic expression, and debates about pacing, compressed third-act structure, and missed character introspection.

"Dead Man's Wire" is an American crime thriller film directed by Gus Van Sant and written by Austin Kolodney, about the 1977 hostage standoff involving Tony Kiritsis and Richard Hall. It stars Bill Skarsgård as Kiritsis, alongside an ensemble cast including Dacre Montgomery as Hall, Cary Elwes, Myha'la, Colman Domingo, and Al Pacino. The film premiered out of competition at the 82nd Venice International Film Festival and received positive reviews for its performances, direction, and writing. Skarsgård, Montgomery, Elwes, Van Sant and Kolodney were all kind enough to spend some time speaking with us about their work and experiences making the film, which you can listen to below. Please be sure to check out the film, which is now playing in theaters from Row K Entertainment. Thank you, and enjoy! Check out more on NextBestPicture.com Please subscribe on... Apple Podcasts - https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/negs-best-film-podcast/id1087678387?mt=2 Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/7IMIzpYehTqeUa1d9EC4jT YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWA7KiotcWmHiYYy6wJqwOw And be sure to help support us on Patreon for as little as $1 a month at https://www.patreon.com/NextBestPicture and listen to this podcast ad-free Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For Episode 475, Nadia Dalimonte, Josh Parham, Dan Bayer, Giovanni Lago, Daniel Howat, and Tom O'Brien join me for the year's biggest and most exciting episode to endlessly discuss what we think will be nominated for the 98th Academy Awards. Yes, it's our famous, comprehensive, epic annual final Oscar nomination predictions episode! We recommend you listen to this mammoth-sized episode in three parts: the Shorts categories (4:13), the Below the line categories (1:15:43), and the Above the line categories (3:29:29). There are no fan questions this week and only one trailer discussion for Baz Luhrmann's "EPiC: Elvis Presley in Concert." For last week's poll, for the release of "28 Years Later: The Bone Temple," we asked, "Which Is Your Favorite Ralph Fiennes Performance?" And for this week's poll, for the upcoming Oscar nominations, we ask, "Which Film Do You Think Will Be The Next Best Picture Oscar Winner?" Thank you all for listening (no matter what the runtime says), supporting (our Patreon keeps so much of this operation running and could always use your help), and subscribing (every person matters for an independent outlet such as our's). You are the lifeblood that allows us to do what we do, and we cannot thank you enough. Enjoy the nominations this week. Daniel Howat, Cody Dericks, and I will be in Sundance when they drop, but we'll keep you updated with more to come as this year's awards season rolls on. Enjoy! Check out more on NextBestPicture.com Please subscribe on... Apple Podcasts - https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/negs-best-film-podcast/id1087678387?mt=2 Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/7IMIzpYehTqeUa1d9EC4jT YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWA7KiotcWmHiYYy6wJqwOw And be sure to help support us on Patreon for as little as $1 a month at https://www.patreon.com/NextBestPicture and listen to this podcast ad-free Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For this week's main podcast review, Katie Johnson, Josh Parham, Dan Bayer, and Giovanni Lago join me to discuss the latest in the "28 Days" franchise, "28 Years Later: The Bone Temple," starring Ralph Fiennes, Jack O'Connell, Alfie Williams, Erin Kellyman & Chi Lewis-Parry. Directed this time by Nia DaCosta with another screenplay in the franchise by Alex Garland (And Danny Boyle serving as a Producer), this is a direct sequel to last year's "28 Years Later,"continuing the stories of Spike and Dr. Ian Kelson in a post-apocalyptic world infected by the rage virus. There is a lot of gore and humanity to be found in this one, with plenty of shocks and surprises. But what did we think of it? Please tune in as we discuss the performances, writing, themes, direction, makeup effects, the needle drops, its awards season potential, and more in our SPOILER-FILLED review. Thank you for listening, and enjoy! Check out more on NextBestPicture.com Please subscribe on... Apple Podcasts - https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/negs-best-film-podcast/id1087678387?mt=2 Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/7IMIzpYehTqeUa1d9EC4jT YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWA7KiotcWmHiYYy6wJqwOw And be sure to help support us on Patreon for as little as $1 a month at https://www.patreon.com/NextBestPicture and listen to this podcast ad-free Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Nia DaCosta, a visionary director known for her diverse filmography, and Jack O'Connell, an accomplished actor, dive deep into their latest project, "28 Years Later: The Bone Temple." They discuss balancing brutal violence with human emotion, crafting a distinct visual style, and mixing horror with dark humor. Nia shares her creative journey and future aspirations, while Jack highlights the fun and collaborative atmosphere on set, especially working alongside Ralph Fiennes. Their insights reveal the artistry behind the film and the characters within.