Stop Everything!

Let’s go to the movies and feel joy again! Jon M. Chu’s Wicked and 86-year-old Ridley Scott’s Gladiator II are going head-to-head at the box office and we’re lapping it up.

We haven’t had movies this big since 2023’s back-to-back releases of Barbie and Oppenheimer, aka “Barbenheimer”.

Will “Glicked” save the movies and snatch the awards season trophies?    

Guest critic Maria Lewis – screenwriter, film geek and pop culture etymologist is in the house.

Also, something’s not right: John Krasinski aka Jim from The Office is People magazine’s sexiest man alive?  

We’re throwing what we think about celebrity endorsements out the window after the US election results. Endorsements from Taylor Swift, Beyoncé, Bruce Springsteen, Bad Bunny and Cardi B couldn’t help Kamala Harris in a race where Donald Trump had the likes of Joe Rogan – the world’s biggest podcaster – and Elon Musk – the world’s richest person – in his corner.  

Stop Everything! show daddy Benjamin Law and English teacher-turned comedian Urvi Majumdar join BW live on stage from the OzAsia Festival in Adelaide to debrief on the US election, and chat through everything there is to love about hit comedy The English Teacher, created by TikTok singing and dancing star Brian Jordan Alvarez. 

Show notes:Brian Jordan Alvarez on Stop Everything!ABC Fresh Blood series: "Urvi went to an all girls school"

Twenty-three years after the original series of The Office debuted, Australia has its own version of the mockumentary workplace comedy, for the first time featuring women in two of the core roles.

Felicity Ward, who plays needy bad boss Hannah Howard, and show runners Jackie Van Beek and Julie De Fina talk to BW about how this 13th version of The Office, streaming on Prime Video, adapts itself to the post-pandemic world of work.

Secure your wig, pour yourself a hot cup of tea, and settle in as Kween Kong – Stop Everything! guest critic and RuPaul's Drag Race Global All Stars finalist – speaks exclusively to BW about the series finale and her experience on the show.

We get into the Nehellenia drama, RuPaul saying the 'L' word, fandom backlash, and of course – the final result which saw USA's Alyssa Edwards take home the $200,000 prize and a spot in the International Pavilion at the Drag Race Hall of Fame, located in Daytona Beach, Florida.

Show notes:

Vanity Vain on NehelleniaStop Everything! Adelaide live show November 9

James Blunt weirdly got us on board with the 20th anniversary re-release of his debut album, Back to Bedlam, which features the divisive ear worm "You're Beautiful." Then actor Andrew Garfield got vulnerable on Sesame Street talking to Elmo about grief; and went on a chemistry-packed Chicken Shop Date with Amelia Dimoldenberg.

How did these two celebrities, both on promotional press tours, manage to make us feel real feelings while selling us stuff?

Jennifer Wong, writer, comedian and this week's guest critic, is in to discuss.

Show notes:

James Blunt name change video

Andrew Garfield Chicken Shop Date

Andrew Garfield Esquire profile

What happened when Simu Liu summoned the Kenergy to address cultural appropriation of Boba, also known as bubble tea and pearl milk tea, on CBC reality show Dragons' Den, and how did the internet react? (spoiler: not well)

And what's the secret sauce behind Netflix's hit rom-com series Nobody Wants This, starring Xennial dreamboats Adam Brody and Kristen Bell?

Guest critic Patrick Lenton, freelance culture writer and author, joins BW to figure it out.

Show notes:

Simu Liu on Dragons' DenBobba apologises

Why is the moist, ungovernable baby pygmy hippo named Moo Deng the aloe vera on our parched souls?

What's it like to use Social AI, the social media app where you're the only human interacting with a universe of AI chatbots with different personalities?

How is Netflix's Culinary Class Wars refreshing the cooking competition show genre?

And what does Zelda do now that she's the star of her own game?

BW and guest critic Gianni Di Giovanni meditate on these questions.Show notes:How games are evolving to embrace feminine perspectivesVerge cast interview with Social AI creator Michael Sayman

The big Hollywood blockbusters barely feature a kiss anymore, let alone any amorous affairs.

So, why are studios so afraid of this core human experience and where do we need to go to get our vicarious fix?

This week's host Wenlei Ma is joined by guest critic, Vogues' Hannah-Rose Yee to talk about sex on film.

Plus, with the release of the Pitt/ Clooney vehicle Wolfs on streaming, is the movie star dead?

Is it ok that "fake German heiress" Anna Delvey has appeared in the current season of Dancing With The Stars (US)? Can a convicted scammer dance her way to reputation rehab – and should she even have the opportunity?

Guest critic (and trained dancer!) Rudi Bremer is in to discuss.

Show notes:

"Maybe She Had So Much Money She Just Lost Track of It" by Jessica PresslerZiwe interviews Anna Delvey.

After Taylor Swift made her politics clear by endorsing Kamala Harris for president, Donald Trump reacted by posting: I HATE TAYLOR SWIFT! But does he understand how that's activated Swifties?

Guest critic Steph Van Schilt is a writer, podcast producer and Taylor Swift specialist, and she shares her take on the situation.

Also: is The Bear really a comedy? We recap the Emmys and Steph explains why you should be watching Below Deck.