In celebration of Oscar Sunday, our conversation with actor Monica Barbaro. Her portrayal of Joan Baez in the Bob Dylan biopic, A Complete Unknown, earned her an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress.

At the top, we discuss how director James Mangold drew inspiration from Miloš Forman’s Amadeus (7:00), the vocal lessons Monica received in preparation for the role of Baez (10:15), and her affecting rendition of House of the Rising Sun (16:00). Then, we dive into Monica’s California upbringing (18:00), her pivot from dancing to professional acting (24:00), and the winding journey that led her to A Complete Unknown (29:00).

On the back-half, we talk about her breakout role in Top Gun: Maverick (38:00), her evolving relationship to perfectionism (39:30), the deep, autobiographical research she did to portray Joan Baez (42:00), and what she hopes for in the years to come (54:15).

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In the lead-up to Oscar Sunday, our conversation with actor, writer, and director Jesse Eisenberg.

At the top, we unpack the journey that shaped his film A Real Pain (9:18), memories from his travels to Poland (15:40), and what he observed about his family growing up in East Brunswick (22:23). Then, Eisenberg reflects on his first jokes written on post-it notes (29:20), his breakthrough acting roles in Roger Dodger (31:35) and The Squid and the Whale (34:37), and formative visits to his aunt Doris in New York City (35:32).

On the back-half, we talk about his transformation in The Social Network (41:15), the erotic dream that inspired his play The Spoils (42:48), the real anxiety he explored while writing A Real Pain (46:39), lessons on directing from Richard Ayoade and Greg Mottola (51:14), and why he cares so deeply about his art (1:00:10).

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One week from Oscar Sunday, we’re joined by Nickel Boys director RaMell Ross.

At the top, RaMell describes the formal innovations of the new film (6:44), the naivete that allowed him to make this singular project (8:02), and how photography is shaped by race in ways we don’t consider (12:00). Then, we dive into RaMell’s Virginia upbringing (29:28), the hoop dreams that brought him to Georgetown (29:35), and the “question everything” mindset that took flight in his college years (30:30).

On the back-half, Ross explains the cinematic lineage of his Oscar-nominated documentary Hale County This Morning, This Evening (42:25), his aim to portray the American South in a new light (50:26), and why Nickel Boys is just the beginning of this next chapter in Black cinematic history (57:00).

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A celebration of 50 years of Saturday Night Live, featuring stories from Bill Hader, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, and Jason Reitman.

Find links to hear each of these full episodes. Visit Peacock to watch The SNL Anniversary Special, The Homecoming Concert, and the four-part docuseries Beyond Saturday Night.

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For more than a decade, Chris Hayes has been one of our most incisive political thinkers. He joins us this week in New York City, hours before taping his hit MSNBC show, All In with Chris Hayes, to discuss his new book, The Sirens’ Call.

At the top, we unpack America’s Constitutional crises (5:30), the editorial inner workings of “All In” (7:00), and how attention became our most endangered resource (12:00). Then, Hayes talks through the challenges of maintaining viewership in the era of cord cutting (14:00), the diversity of his primetime audience (25:00), and how he balances the performative elements of the job with his authentic self (44:00).

On the back-half, Hayes describes the challenges of reaching a wider audience in our increasingly partisan political landscape (50:00), his tenure on television (55:00), his formative years writing at The Chicago Reader (1:05:00), and a short story from Albert Camus that keeps him on course (1:10:00).

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Actor Mikey Madison has delivered the performance of the season with her star-making turn in Anora. She joins us this week on the heels of her recent Oscar nomination for Best Actress.

We begin by discussing the organic partnership she formed with writer/director Sean Baker (3:30), the ‘emotional preparation’ required to tell this vulnerable story (7:00), her San Fernando Valley upbringing (11:45), and her formative years working with Pamela Adlon on Better Things (22:38).

On the back-half, Mikey reflects on her breakout part in Quentin Tarantino’s Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood (30:30), the sex professionals who helped inform her work in Anora (32:50), how she excavated her past to create in the present (43:10), and where she hopes to go on the other side of this towering achievement (49:50).

Feedback, future guest ideas, or thoughts on Anora? Email us at [email protected].

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From The Walking Dead to Minari to Beef, Steven Yeun has become one of the most singular performers in Hollywood today. With his latest role in the sci-fi romance Love Me, we look back at our conversation with the leading man.

At the top, Yeun unpacks his acclaimed Netflix series Beef (5:09), a powerful church scene from the show (11:30), and his personal experience immigrating to the US from Seoul as a child (18:15). Then, we walk through Steven’s coming of age in Michigan (21:24), his memorable audition for The Second City Touring Company (25:29), and his pursuit of on-screen work in Los Angeles (33:40).

On the back-half, Steven reflects on his portrayal of Glenn on The Walking Dead (36:22), the films that followed, including Okja (48:10), Burning (50:02), and Sorry to Bother You (51:16), his transformative experience making and premiering Minari (55:42), and to close, a poem that guided him on set by the great Wendell Berry (1:08:19).

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David Lynch was an artist in every sense of the word. Rest in peace to the legendary filmmaker, who passed away this month at the age of 78.

Today we present a tribute to Lynch, featuring excerpts from two of his most enduring collaborators: actors Kyle MacLachlan and Laura Dern. In each conversation, they reflect on the early projects they worked on with Lynch—together in Blue Velvet and Twin Peaks, separately in Dune and Wild at Heart. They also discuss David’s original creative process, his fascination with the mysteries of life, and memories from over three decades alongside the beloved director.

To close, a love letter to the movies and a piece of music by Lynch himself.

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Writer Emily Witt (“Health and Safety: A Breakdown”) has spent the past two weeks on the ground covering the Los Angeles wildfires for The New Yorker.

Her latest story centers around the Benns (5:39), a multigenerational Black family with deep ties to Altadena (8:35), where they’ve raised children in homes they’ve owned dating back to the late 1950s (16:13). We discuss how they’re managing as the Eaton fire continues to rage (17:00), the value of community in crisis (18:40), and the measures the city was urged to take to mitigate this disaster (23:28).

On the back half, Witt reflects on her 2023 interview with Mayor Karen Bass (32:40), the prophetic work of Altadena author Octavia Butler (39:28), how on-the-ground reporting offers a chance to “write a first draft of history” (46:30), and where Los Angeles goes from here (56:10).

To help support the Benn family, visit their GoFundMe or text “Talk” to 858-358-5881. 

And special thanks to Weyes Blood.

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This week, we revisit a soulful conversation around climate change and the restorative power of nature with author Richard Powers.

We begin by defining the thematic through-line between The Overstory and Bewilderment (5:06), the eco trauma articulated in each text (9:10), how we may redefine hope today (16:08), and what the pandemic taught us about the climate crisis (26:18). Powers also details the ecological shortcomings of capitalism (29:00) and our myopic interpretation (and fear of) death (30:56).

On the back-half, we unpack why he writes (33:48), the need for “productive solitude” (40:40), and the singular way he writes analytical and emotional characters (44:42). To close– a fitting scene from one of Powers’ earlier works, Plowing the Dark (50:30), in which an older man enters an used bookstore, unable to find the book intended. And in the absence of that book, Richard Powers will continue to do so (52:50).

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