Back To The Blockbuster

It’s the first anniversary episode of 2024 and we’re kicking things off with one from the Class of 99! Varsity Blues is celebrating its 25th anniversary and the team is chatting the film up with special guest JC of @mercwiththemovies on Instagram. Directed by Brian Robbins, the film follows a small-town high school football team through a tumultuous season, in which the players must deal with the pressures of adolescence and their football-obsessed community while having their overbearing coach constantly on their back. In the small fictional town of West Canaan, Texas, football is a way of life and losing is not an option. The films stars James Van Der Beek, Jon Voight, Paul Walker, Amy Smart, Ron Lester, Scott Caan, Eliel Swinton, and Ali Larter.

Links For Guests: MercWithTheMovies

The Back To The Blockbuster team is here with a special bonus episode breaking down all of the Oscar nominations. From what was expected, to the snubs, to the surprises, the team is here to discuss the pinnacle of awards season. Some of your favorites from awards season, including Barbie, Oppenheimer, Poor Things, Maestro, and more all covered as well as the discourse from those who missed out on nominations. Did it go the way we thought it would? Did Greta Gerwig and Margot Robbie deserve nominations if their respective categories despite being shut out? Were you expecting Saltburn or May December to make the cut? Listen in to find out all of our thoughts on what has been a truly stacked awards season so far.

It’s a special milestone for the team as Jackson celebrates one year as a permanent co-host of the show. To celebrate, we’re looking at our Most Anticipated Films Of 2024. From Dune: Part Two, to Challengers, to Deadpool 3, to Joker: Folie a Deux, there are many films to look forward to and the duo is running down what movies have them excited in the new year. In addition, we answer some of your questions that were sent in to celebrate Jackson’s one year anniversary as a part of the BTTB team.

It’s a big news day for the team as we break down one of the biggest weeks for movie news in awhile with news about The Mandalorian & Grogu being the next Star Wars movie, the SAG, DGA, and PGA nominations, the Critics Choice Awards winners, Tom Cruise signing a deal with Warner Bros. to make new movies, Top Gun 3 being in development at Paramount Pictures, David Bruckner directing The Blob reimagining, Leonardo DiCaprio, Sean Penn and Regina Hall joining Paul Thomas Anderson’s next film and many, many more. In addition to news, we talk the box office, reveal your predictions for Mean Girls and predict the film’s second week for our weekend box office predictions.

In this latest episode of the Deep Dive spinoff, Gaius is joined by Jeremy Kibler, movie blogger and writer for Guy At The Movies, to discuss the 2013 film, You’re Next. Directed by Adam Wingard and written by Simon Barrett, the film follows an estranged family under attack by a group of masked assailants during a family reunion.

Other: Where To Watch You’re Next

Links For Guest: Jeremy Kibler (The Artful Critic), Jeremy Kibler Twitter/X

The team is back breaking down some of the biggest news of the week but first Gaius details his attendance at the Astra Awards as a member of The Hollywood Creative Alliance! The news then kicks off with Francis Ford Coppola giving an update on the long-gestating Megalopolis, Steven Knight announcing news about the also long-gestating Peaky Blinders spinoff, and Yorgos Lanthimos revealing new tidbits about his next film Kinds of Kindness. Also hitting the weekly news recap is Steven Yeun exiting Marvel’s Thunderbolts and Jacob Elordi replacing Andrew Garfield in Gulliermo del Toro’s Frankenstein adaptation for Netfli. The due then finishes things off with box office results and box office predictions for Mean Girls.

The team is going over all of the winners from the 81st Golden Globe Awards and giving their reactions to the results from the show. From winners that include Cillian Murphy, Christopher Nolan and their film Oppenheimer, to Emma Stone and her film Poor Things, to Paul Giamatti and Da’Vine Joy Randolph taking it home for The Holdovers, the duo has you all covered on all of the major wins. In addition to the winners, the team also discusses Jo Koy’s mixed reviews from critics as a host and reveal how well the ceremony did in the ratings compared to its performance last year.

The team is back with its first episode of 2024 and it’s all about some of the biggest movie industry stories of 2023. The duo goes over some of the stories that made the year a memorable one, including the Barbenheimer phenomenon, the discourse over Skinamarink, the official end of the DCEU, Marvel taking its share of critical and financial hits, the rise and fall of Jonathan Majors, the WGA and SAG strikes, the upheaval of the Scream franchise and much more!

The Back To The Blockbuster team is celebrating the 25th anniversary of The Faculty, directed and edited by Robert Rodriguez with a screenplay by Kevin Williamson. Starring Jordana Brewster, Clea DuVall, Laura Harris, Josh Hartnett, Shawn Hatosy, Famke Janssen, Piper Laurie, Bebe Neuwirth, Robert Patrick, Usher Raymond, Jon Stewart, and Elijah Wood, the film follows the students at Harrinton High and they have always believed that the principal and her posse of teachers have always been a little odd, but lately they have been behaving positively alien. Controlled by otherworldly parasites, the faculty try to infect the students one by one. Ultimately, Cheerleader Delilah, football player Stan, nerdy Casy, drug dealer Zeke, outcast Stokely, and new girl Marybeth team up to fight back against the invaders. Helping us out with this special anniversary, for his fifth appearance this year, is our boy Mark J. Parker of the Release Date Rewind Podcast and JC of @mercwiththemovies on Instagram!

Links For Guests: Release Date Rewind Instagram, MercWithTheMovies Instagram

Our December limited series Merry Bingemas concludes with a look at 1974’s Black Christmas. Directed by Bob Clark and written by A. Roy Moore, the film stars Oliva Hussey, Keir Dullea, Margot Kidder, Andrea Martin, Lynne Griffin, and John Saxon. The story follows a group of sorority sisters who receive threatening phone calls and are eventually stalked and murdered by a deranged killer during the Christmas season. This one is a first time watch for Jacksons! Will it become an unconventional Christmas favorite for him?