Behind the Billions

Before getting into "The Limitless Sh*t," Episode 7 of 'Billions' Season 5, cocreators Brian Koppelman and David Levien discuss the concept of high-end mental-performance-enhancing drugs; the difficult editing required to pivot into a midseason finale; crew superstars, including the line producer, key grip, and gaffer; obscure references; guest cast; and more (0:05). They next speak with actor-director David Costabile, who plays Mike Wagner, about directing as well as acting in Episode 7, figuring out who Wagner is as a character, old-school NYSE traders, and more (31:05)

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Before getting into "The Nordic Model," S5E6 of 'Billions,' cocreators Brian Koppelman and David Levien discuss the real billionaire art community, this episode's director Shaz Bennett, script-to-screen changes in location, the show's stellar sound department, revealing the layers of Chuck Rhodes Sr., a laundry list of obscure references, guest cast performances and more (0:50). They next speak with actor Stephen Kunken, who plays Ari Spyros, about joining the show as a guest star in the pilot episode, the change in his character's demeanor as the show progresses, "defending" Spyros to fans of the show online, and more (32:30).

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Before getting into "Contract," S5E5 of 'Billions,' cocreators Brian Koppelman and David Levien discuss diving into Bobby Axelrod's childhood; the greatness of the episode's director, Adam Bernstein; and the costume and wardrobe department's effect on the show; they also explain some obscure references and shout-out some guest-cast performances (0:30). They next speak with actress, writer, and comedian Eva Victor about her signature style-satire videos; the dynamic relationship between her character, Rian, and Winston; how Eva's part came about; set stories; and more (36:06).

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Before diving into S5E4, "Opportunity Zone," 'Billions' cocreators Brian Koppelman and David Levien discuss the challenges of filming the opening scene of Episode 4, having Daymond John of "Shark Tank" on the show and the insight he provided, Dominique Wilkins set stories, listener questions, obscure references, and more (0:45). Then they talk with actress Maggie Siff about her coaching scene with Frank Grillo's character, Nico Tanner, auditioning for the part of Wendy Rhodes, the toughest scenes to play as Wendy, and more (35:23).

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Before diving into S5E3, "Beg, Bribe, Bully," 'Billions' cocreators Brian Koppelman and David Levien discuss real-life examples of billionaire feuds, script-to-screen changes, a stellar performance from the assistant director, guest cast members, obscure references, and more (0:40). Then they talk with author Ben Mezrich about his time in the writers' room as consulting producer for Season 5 of 'Billions' (32:44). 

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Before diving into S5E2, “The Chris Rock Test,” 'Billions' cocreators Brian Koppelman and David Levien discuss some parallels between ‘Billions’ and real-life billionaire behavior as well as how the location manager and prop master truly shined in Season 5's second episode (0:30). Then they talk to Corey Stoll, who plays Michael Prince, about his character, joining an already established show, learning from his castmates, filming at Mohonk Mountain House, and more (36:40).

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'Billions' cocreators Brian Koppelman and David Levien discuss the show returning for its fifth season, what a showrunner really does, the importance of season openers, and Episode 1 of Season 5 of 'Billions,' "The New Decas" (0:20), before talking to "The Man" Becky Lynch about her cameo in Episode 1 (32:20).

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Brian Koppelman and David Levien give a behind-the-scenes look into 'Billions,' Season 5. After each episode's airing on Showtime, the podcast will unpack the writing of the script, exclusive stories from production, the ideas behind the music cues, and much more. The 12-episode podcast season will also include interviews with cast and crew members as well as bonus podcast episodes devoted to inside stories from 'Billions.'

Hosts: Brian Koppelman and David Levien

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We break down ‘GLOW’ Season 3 by diving deep on Episode 6, “Outward Bound.” We talk about why we love the show, the ongoing conflict between Ruth and Debbie, and how ‘GLOW’ handles wrestling stereotypes.

Hosts: Alison Herman and Michael Baumann

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Finally, we discuss 'The End of Evangelion' in comparison with the TV series finale and the modern temptation to discount the show’s characters and sexuality as “problematic.”

Episodes discussed: 27 - 28

Hosts: Justin Charity, Micah Peters

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