The Empire Film Podcast

This week's Empire Podcast features two bona fide legends of Hollywood, California, both having a chat with that bona fide buffoon of a town not too far away from Holywood, Northern Ireland, Chris Hewitt. First off, Chris travels to Madrid for an audience with Elliot Ness/Wyatt Earp/Jim Garrison/We Could Do This All Day [delete as applicable], Kevin Costner, star of Netflix film, The Highwaymen. Then, back in a London hotel room, Chris comes face to face with the wild, weird, and wacky imagination of the great Tim Burton, director of Dumbo. And back in the podbooth, Chris is joined by the returning Helen O'Hara and James Dyer to discuss the death of Supernatural, talk about the week's movie news, review Dumbo and The Highwaymen, and talk about a very serious issue: the sanctioning of buffoonery. Enjoy.

This week's Empire Podcast sees something of a first for the show. No, it's not coherent - you should know by now that that is but a mere pipe dream. Instead, it's the first time (we think; we may be wrong) that we've featured a translator on the show, as Nick de Semlyen chats to The White Crow's director, Ralph Fiennes, its star, Oleg Ivenko... and Oleg's lovely translator. Then, Chris Hewitt has an in-depth chat about Us and Black Panther with the wonderful Winston Duke, before heading back into the podbooth to have a good old natter about the week's big movie happenings with James Dyer and John Nugent. They discuss James Gunn returning to Guardians 3, Dune casting news (of course), the Disney takeover of Fox, review Us and The White Crow, and go potty for Alan Partridge's Irish doppelgänger, Martin Brennan. Oh, and James pronounces 'psychopathy' in a way that will rock your world. Enjoy.

Since he stopped being the friendly neighbourhood Spider-Man, Andrew Garfield has largely taken a step back from the big screen. But he returns this week with David Robert Mitchell's gonzo noir, Under The Silver Lake, and on the latest Empire Podcast he has a nice old natter with Ben Travis about that movie, Scorsese, and Stan Lee. 'Nuff said, True Believers. Then, back in the podbooth, with Chris Hewitt absolutely, positively not available for recording, Helen O'Hara steps ably into the breach, reviewing the week's releases with John Nugent and James Dyer (but let's face it, mainly John Nugent), discussing big news concerning the current Spider-Man, Tom Holland (no, not that one), and tackle a listener question about non-superhero-based comic book movies. Enjoy.

Because (somewhere around a dozen of) you demanded it, here it is: a podcast about a trailer. But not just any trailer. In this very special episode, Chris Hewitt and Helen O'Hara pop into the podbooth to discuss and dissect the second, and final trailer, for Avengers: Endgame. Along the way they come up with all kinds of harebrained theories about what Joe and Anthony Russo may have in store for us when the movie opens next month, call Thanos all kinds of rude names, and discover the meaning of life. Oh, and Chris shills desperately for a brand-name speaker system. Enjoy.

It's like an episode of Extras on the Empire Podcast this week, as Ricky Gervais - star, writer, director of the new Netflix show, After Life - and Captain Marvel star, Samuel L. Jackson - old Nick Fury himself - pop by to have a good old natter with Chris Hewitt about a great many things, from getting advice from Jerry Seinfeld to why Jackson doesn't tweet about Liverpool FC anymore. Then, in the podbooth itself, Chris is joined by Helen O'Hara and James Dyer to talk about great movie pets, discuss the week's news, including Idris Elba joining The Suicide Squad, figure out whether Sam Jackson has made more MCU appearances than Robert Downey Jr., and review Captain Marvel and dark Swedish fantasy, Border. Oh, and James mansplains the female experience to Helen, which is nice. Do, please, enjoy.

For this week's pod, the team journeyed North to bonnie Scotland to record live at the Glasgow Film Festival - mainly so we could eat our own bodyweight in Irn-Bru sweets, which one listener was kind enough to provide. We also found the time to sit down with Sir Michael Palin, who reminisced with Chris Hewitt about The Holy Grail, Doon Castle and new documentary Final Ascent. Plus all the usual movie news and nonsense, including Helen's analysis of all things Oscars and only the tiniest bit of Dune tedium from James.

"Stop getting Alan wrong!" That could well be what you shout at a couple of points in this very special Empire Podcast appreciation of all things Alan Partridge, as Alan anoraks (Alanoraks?) Chris Hewitt, Nick de Semlyen and Pilot TV's Boyd Hilton get together for a solid 49 minutes of scorching Alan-based chat... and end up misquoting him on several occasions. The authorities have been informed. But that's not all. Chris also sits down for a chat with Neil and Rob Gibbons, the clever flucking clunts who have, for the last few years, been getting Alan right, as writers (and now directors) of Mid-Morning Matters, Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa, and his triumphant return to the BBC with This Time with Alan Partridge. You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll pierce your foot on a spike -- not our words, Carol, but the words of... oh, no, those are our words, actually. Enjoy.

Due to another incredible scheduling snafu by Chris 'What's a spreadsheet' Hewitt, this week's episode of the Empire Podcast features a veritable cavalcade of star guests. There's a Fighting With My Family double bill, as John Nugent talks to that film's director, Stephen Merchant, and its star, Florence Pugh. Then a very tired Chris meets a very jetlagged Jason Clarke, star of The Aftermath, and they end up talking about David O'Leary. In the podbooth, Chris is joined by Nick de Semlyen and James Dyer to discuss the week's movie news, share their battle tips for surviving an Oscars all-nighter, and review Capernaum, On The Basis Of Sex, and Cold Pursuit. Oh, and discuss creme eggs, and the consumption thereof. Enjoy!

Empire's 30th birthday celebrations continue unabated with this very special podcast documentary - or, if you will, podumentary - exploring the biggest film of all time: James Cameron's Avatar. Host Chris Hewitt dips into the Empire archives, and also sits down for a brand-new chat with Cameron, the film's writer-producer-editor-director, to tell the story of how Cameron's groundbreaking visit to Pandora came to be. It's packed with info about Cameron's Eureka! moment, how he nearly chose to direct what would become Alita: Battle Angel instead, and some very interesting revelations about casting the film's hero, Jake Sully. Enjoy.

Holy delayed podcast, Batman! Yes, it's finally here - the Batman edition of The Ranking, the podcast/magazine crossover in which four Empire writers - Chris Hewitt, Helen O'Hara, Dan Jolin, and Olly Richards - argue the toss over a series of movies. In this case, it's the Batfilms. All the Batfilms. Yes, even the rubbish ones. So settle in for an hour of feverish Batdebate that features Helen and Dan arguing about the politics of The Dark Knight Rises, fewer impressions of Bane than you might expect, and the final, Empirical Batman Top 10. It just might surprise you. This pod needs an enema!