Five Things with Lynn Hirschberg

In Part 1 of his podcast episode, Oscar-award-winning screenwriter Aaron Sorkin speaks candidly with W Magazine’s editor at large, Lynn Hirschberg, about his father, New York City, Scarsdale, and a photograph that left a major impression on him. 

Oscar-nominated director Emerald Fennell speaks candidly with W Magazine’s editor at large, Lynn Hirschberg, about her lifelong best friend, the house she grew up in Herefordshire England, shopping, a strange encounter with a "psychic," and marrying her husband.

Oscar-nominated director Lee Daniels speaks candidly with W Magazine’s editor at large, Lynn Hirschberg, about the process behind making his 2012 Paperboy, the magic of Jewel's Catch One in Los Angeles, and becoming the first same-sex couple alongside Billy Hopkins to adopt children in Pennsylvania.

Grammy and Oscar nominated star Andra Day speaks candidly with W Magazine’s editor at large, Lynn Hirschberg, about wishing she had stage parents, losing her cherished cross necklace, auditioning for The United States Vs. Billie Holiday, and her beloved niece and nephew in the latest episode of W Magazine’s podcast, 5 Things with Lynn Hirschberg.

In part 2 of Lynn’s conversation with Quentin Tarantino, the filmmaker reflects on his first experience at the Sundance Film Festival in 1991, when Reservoir Dogs premiered and, as he puts it, there was “an explosion of American independent cinema.” He also goes through every single film he saw in theaters in 1979—including The Deer Hunter, which he went to see six times.

In Part 1 of Lynn’s interview with Quentin Tarantino, the filmmaker covers everything from his decades-long admiration of the late New Yorker film critic Pauline Kael to how he rejects the characterization of Once Upon a Time… In Hollywood as a “love letter” to Los Angeles. He goes deep on the process of writing his first script, True Romance, with Roger Avary, and recalls his early attempts at screenwriting (he never made it past page 30). Tarantino says that, when he was younger, going after his dream of making movies felt almost non negotiable: “Everything else was just so depressing by comparison that I had no choice but to live my dream. It was the only outlet I had."

Charlize Theron opens up about family, her childhood in South Africa, and the people who helped her break into Hollywood. The Bombshell actress tells Lynn about JJ Harris, her late mentor, and speaks candidly about how therapy helped her balance her relationship with her home country and its traumatic history. She also shares a story of an unruly camel on her first modeling job in Morocco, confesses her love for Temptation Island and The Bachelor, and reflects on the enduring importance of one of her most vulnerable roles.

Saoirse Ronan sits down with Lynn Hirschberg to discuss pivotal moments in her life, ranging from early memories to professional milestones. The actress talks about working with filmmaker Greta Gerwig (whom she first met via Skype) on 2019's Little Women. She also highlights her favorite place in the world (the “heaven” that is New Zealand), gets into her love of the movie Dirty Dancing, and recalls how, when it came to dressing up when she was younger, she was more of a Tai than a Cher.

Greta Gerwig sits down with Lynn Hirschberg to discuss the process of adapting Little Women into her latest film, her relationship with her partner Noah Baumbach, and how getting “completely rejected by the world of academic art-making” pushed her to seek a broader education that ultimately brought her to where she is today. Gerwig tells Hirschberg about her love for Big Sur—a place that felt like “Brigadoon” to her while growing up—and how the day after attending the Academy Awards for Lady Bird, she packed up and retreated to a cabin in the woods to write. She also gets into the complex dynamics between the March sisters, the strangest part about making movies, and how she has a running list of future project ideas in the double digits.

Marriage Story director Noah Baumbach sits down with Hirschberg to discuss the films that impacted him the most as a child, his deep connection with Brooklyn, collaborating with his partner Greta Gerwig and the most difficult time in his professional career. Baumbach also talks about how the 1978 version of Invasion of the Body Snatchers still comes up in therapy sessions and how, even though people rarely ask him about the autobiographical aspect of Francis Ha, there’s a line in the film that encapsulates how he felt in his late 20s.