As the sad Poe image implies, former co-host Ryan Scott is back, at least for one episode. They never found the body; he fixed the autopilot six months ago, an enraged Superboy punched the space-time continuum or whatever a bunch of times, and/or the entire last season was a dream. Either way, we hope for a few more Ryan Scott guest appearances over the next year to the extent his schedule allows. It was like riding a bike as we discussed why Wolf Man earned too little, with Scott discussing the specifics of Invisible Man’s success. Ryan correctly noted the unusually high budget, and both Jeremy and Lisa pointed out a relatively cold streak for Blumhouse as they face no longer being the cool kids in the horror sandbox. 

And yes, we discussed the borderline miracle that was One of Them Days pulling 2010s-level box office for what is an original, non-franchise, R-rated, not-a-white-guy theatrical comedy. Oh, and alongside a random digression about The Super Mario Bros. Movie 2 and wondering what A24 forgot to do with Sing Sing, Ryan will correctly note that the notion of a Disney+ series being pretzeled into a $1 billion-plus theatrical film outweighs overall concerns about Disney relying on pre-packaged nostalgia for top-tier box office success. 

As always, if you like what you hear, like, share, comment, and smash (using a cartoon mallet) that subscribe button with every justified ounce of strength and passion. If you want to bother us and offer good cheer, request in-show discussions, or offer ideas for bonus episodes, ping us at [email protected].

Yes, I’m going to start scheduling weekly subscriber chats this week (I just did one this morning, to relative success) and eventually become more aggressive about encouraging and answering listener emails.

Scott Mendelson - The Outside Scoop and Puck NewsJeremy Fuster - TheWrapLisa Laman - Looper, Cultress, Comic Book and AutostraddleRyan C. Scott - SlashFilm and Fangoria

Finally, if you have the means and motivation, several worthwhile organizations are attempting to help those impacted by the California fires.

As Jeremy mentions at the end of the previous episode, the Los Angeles-based Anti-Recidivism Coalition, a nonprofit dedicated to ending mass incarceration, is raising funds to support California’s prison fire crews.

Likewise, as Lisa noted at the end of last week’s episode, please take a look at this spreadsheet listing GoFundMe links for displaced Black families (and impacted businesses) in Altadena, California.

And here are links for…The Red CrossThe LA food bankThe LAFD Wildfire Emergency FundThe California Fire FoundationDirect Relief

Get full access to The Outside Scoop at scottmendelson.substack.com/subscribe