The Big Picture

By The Ringer

TV & Film

What's The Big Picture about?

The Ringer dives into movies as Editor-In-Chief Sean Fennessey sits down with Hollywood’s biggest filmmakers, breaks down the latest industry trends, handicaps the upcoming Oscars race, and reviews new films with Ringer colleagues like Shea Serrano, Amanda Dobbins, and Bill Simmons.

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The MCU Comes to TV: A Guid...

01.18.2021

After concluding their discussion of Part 2 of HBO’s Tiger Woods documentary series, Sean and Amanda dive back into the MCU by taking a close look at the first two episodes of Marvel’s first Disney+ series, ‘WandaVision.’ Hosts: Sean Fennessey ...

The Big Picture episodes:

01.18.2021 The MCU Comes to TV: A Guide to ‘WandaVision’ After concluding their discussion of Part 2 of HBO’s Tiger Woods documentary series, Sean and Amanda dive back into the MCU by taking a close look at the first two episodes of Marvel’s first Disney+ series, ‘WandaVision.’ Hosts: Sean Fennessey ...
01.15.2021 Top 10 Stage-to-Screen Movies and ‘One Night in Miami’ Inspired by Regina King's directorial debut 'One Night in Miami,' Amanda and Sean share their top 10 stage-to-screen adaptations: five musicals and five plays each (0:45). Then, Sean is joined by Kingsley Ben-Adir, one of the stars of 'One Night ...
01.12.2021 Thirteen Awards Movies to Watch Out for, Oscar Do-Overs, and More From the Mailbag It was a busy streaming weekend. Sean and Amanda break down Part 1 of HBO's 'Tiger,' Netflix's Martin Scorsese and Fran Lebowitz series 'Pretend It's a City,' and a wave of award-season updates (0:40). Then, they dig into the mailbag ...
01.08.2021 The 20 Most Anticipated Movies of 2021 Movies are back! Sorta! With dozens of releases delayed in 2020 due to COVID-19, this year figures to be one of the busiest in history. From Marvel's return to 'Dune' to a Beatles documentary to surefire Oscar contenders, Sean and ...
01.05.2021 'The Godfather Coda' and Top Five Director's Cuts In December 2020, Francis Ford Coppola oversaw the release of 'The Godfather Coda: The Death of Michael Corleone,' a reconfiguration of his film 'The Godfather: Part III' and the latest in a long line of director's cuts. What is a ...
12.31.2020 The Genius of Pixar's 'Soul' and 'Wonder Woman 1984' Backlash Sean and Amanda look at the early reactions to DC's latest film, which arrived on HBO Max on Christmas Day, and discuss what the ramifications could be to backlash against the film (0:43). Then, they discuss one of the year's ...
12.29.2020 The 1995 Movie Draft Happy (almost) New Year, 'Big Picture' listeners. Sean and Amanda are ringing it in by going back in time to 1995, and they are joined, as always, by Chris Ryan to draft the very best movies of that year and ...
12.25.2020 'Wonder Woman 1984' Is Here, on HBO Max. Plus: Paul Greengrass! 'Wonder Woman 1984,' the latest installment in the DCEU, has arrived on HBO Max after a controversial decision by Warner Media. Sean and Amanda break it all down, from the '80s time jump to the additions of Kristen Wiig and ...
12.23.2020 The George Clooney Hall of Fame. Plus: Carey Mulligan and Emerald Fennell! The iconic movie star directed and stars in a new Netflix film, 'The Midnight Sky.' To celebrate, Amanda and Sean build a Hall of Fame in his honor, where they enshrine 10 movies from his long career, and 10 only ...
12.21.2020 The Top 20 Performances of 2020 and 'Ma Rainey's Black Bottom' Awards season has officially begun with the New York and L.A. Film Critics handing out their annual awards over the weekend. Sean and Amanda talk about the winners and what they mean for the Oscar race (1:00). Then they look ...
12.18.2020 Rewatching 'Tenet' (at Home) in the Year of Christopher Nolan. Plus: Steve McQueen! Nolan's controversial time-inversion saga is finally available to watch at home. Chris Ryan joins Sean and Amanda to break down the movie on a second viewing, celebrate its extraordinary action, and discuss Nolan's future after his comments about Warner Bros.' ...
12.15.2020 Hollywood Is at War with Itself. Plus: The Inaugural “You Blew It!” Movie Awards. The fallout from Warner Bros.' HBO Max announcement is still rippling through Hollywood. Sean and Amanda talk about the responses from Christopher Nolan, Denis Villeneuve, producers at other studios, agencies, and fans. Then, they use the announcement of a glut ...
12.11.2020 The Steven Soderbergh Rankings, Featuring Steven Soderbergh! Acclaimed filmmaker and 'Big Picture' hero Steven Soderbergh returns with a new film on HBO Max, 'Let Them All Talk.' Sean and Amanda discuss his new movie, the news that he will be one of the producers of next year's ...
12.08.2020 The Top Five Movies of 2020 This has been a strange year for movies, most of which were seen at home. But we didn't struggle to find some that lit up our imagination and reflected the times. Sean and Amanda are joined by Chris Ryan and ...
12.04.2020 ‘Mank’ Is Here. Does David Fincher’s Movie Live Up to the Hype? After great anticipation, ‘Mank’ has arrived. Sean and Amanda look at David Fincher’s 11th feature film from every angle. What’s it really about? How does it play? Will it live up to the billing as Netflix’s great Oscar hope? All ...
12.03.2020 Emergency Pod: Did Movie Theaters Just Die? Why Warner Bros. Is Dropping Its 2021 Releases on HBO Max Major news in Hollywood: Warner Bros. has announced it will stream all of its new films in 2021 on HBO Max, including 'Godzilla vs. Kong,' 'In The Heights,' 'Space Jam: A New Legacy,' 'The Suicide Squad,' and 'Matrix 4.' Why ...
12.01.2020 ‘Mank' Week: The Importance of ‘Citizen Kane’ and Orson Welles This week marks the arrival of David Fincher’s long-awaited 'Mank,' which chronicles the screenwriter Herman Mankiewicz’s life and work on the script for 'Citizen Kane.' Sean and Amanda are joined by Chris Ryan and Adam Nayman for an expansive chat ...
11.27.2020 Bonus Episode: Errol Morris on ‘Dr. Strangelove,’ Donald Trump, LSD, and America The legendary documentarian Errol Morris has a new film called 'My Psychedelic Love Story' premiering on Showtime this week. He returns to the show to talk with Sean about a wide array of topics, from psychedelics to psychotics. Host: Sean ...
11.25.2020 The 2014 Movie Draft: CR's Revenge It's time once again for a Movie Draft. Chris Ryan returns with hopes of staving off Sean and Amanda to claim his first draft victory (15:00). Then, Sean is joined by Clea DuVall, an actress you may know from films ...
11.24.2020 'Hillbilly Elegy’ and the 10 Types of Oscar Bait You Meet in Hell Ron Howard's adaptation of JD Vance's bestselling memoir hits Netflix this week—Sean and Amanda look at the film and the careers of stars Amy Adams and Glenn Close, including their chances at their first-ever Academy Award win (1:00). 'Hillbilly Elegy' ...
11.19.2020 ‘The Queen’s Gambit,’ ‘Small Axe,’ and the Top Five Miniseries of 2020 With so many movies pushed to 2021, TV has taken an even bigger share of our viewing time this year. Sean and Amanda talk about the Netflix sensation ‘The Queen’s Gambit,’ Steve McQueen’s ‘Small Axe’ anthology series, and the best ...
11.17.2020 The Fate of ‘Wonder Woman 1984’ and Top-Five Gambling Movies The last big-ticket theatrical release, 'Wonder Woman 1984,' is still on the calendar. Will it go to HBO Max? PVOD? When will we see it? Amanda and Sean break down the possibilities (0:54). Then, they are joined by David Hill, ...
11.13.2020 Mailbag Special: 25 Movies You Should Stream Now Sean and Amanda dive back into the mailbag to answer an array of questions about under-the-radar 2020 movies you can watch now on VOD and streaming, the prolonged closure of movie theaters around the country, and the book adaptation they've ...
11.10.2020 Introducing the Garbage Crime Movie Oscars. Plus: Brandon Cronenberg! Things are quiet in the world of movies, so we’re taking a moment to celebrate one of our favorite subgenres: GARBAGE CRIME. What’s that? Allow chief criminologist Chris Ryan to break it all down and hand out some awards to ...
11.06.2020 ‘Dazed and Confused’: Making a Modern Movie Classic, With Richard Linklater We want to go back to a more nostalgic, maybe even more hopeful, period in history. So Sean is joined by Richard Linklater and journalist Melissa Maerz to talk about Maerz’s new book, ‘Alright, Alright, Alright: The Oral History of ...
11.03.2020 RIP, Sean Connery. Plus: ‘Mank’ Oscars Preview and 20 Classic Election Movies. It’s Election Day, so Sean and Amanda have compiled a collection of double features for the politically minded. Cast your ballots! (31:29) Plus, they discuss the passing of iconic screen actor Sean Connery and briefly discuss David Fincher’s forthcoming film ...
10.31.2020 The Big Picture: A Ringer Movies Podcast Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins review the movies you need to see. Plus: Top 5s, Movie Drafts, Oscars analysis, and conversations with Hollywood's biggest filmmakers.
10.30.2020 The 2013 Movie Draft. Plus: Sofia Coppola and Rashida Jones! The end of the month beckons, and with it another Movie Draft. Chaos agent Chris Ryan returns to join Sean and Amanda in a showdown selection of 2013 movies (0:40). Then, Sean and Amanda are joined by 'On the Rocks' ...
10.27.2020 ‘Borat Subsequent Moviefilm’ Is the Movie America Deserves Sacha Baron Cohen's Kazakhstan correspondent has returned in a sequel to the 2006 comedy classic. Sean and Amanda are joined by Bryan Curtis and David Shoemaker of 'The Press Box' to discuss whether or not Borat is still effective in ...
10.23.2020 The Sofia Coppola Rankings and 'On the Rocks' With Sofia Coppola's new film 'On the Rocks' arriving this weekend on Apple TV+, Sean and Amanda are convening to discuss her work as one of the greatest filmmakers of her generation. They discuss her career, her family's creative history, ...
10.20.2020 ‘Hubie Halloween’ and 25 Horror Movies Classics In the terrifying year of 2020, we needed our horror correspondent to weigh in on the state of the genre, so Chris Ryan joins Sean to talk about the new Adam Sandler Netflix vehicle ‘Hubie Halloween,’ the best horror flicks ...
10.16.2020 Aaron Sorkin Top 5s and ‘The Trial of the Chicago 7’ Acclaimed writer-director Aaron Sorkin’s new film, ‘The Trial of the Chicago 7,’ hits Netflix this weekend, so Sean and Amanda commence a walk-and-talk on one of their favorite Hollywood voices. They examine his long career on film and television, share ...
10.13.2020 300th Episode Ask-Us-Anything Mailbag Spectacular To celebrate 300 episodes of 'The Big Picture,' Sean and Amanda are opening up the mailbag and answering an array of wide-ranging questions about the movies that drew them to their careers, the future of film post-COVID-19, the movies they ...
10.09.2020 The Nancy Meyers Hall of Fame This week is the 40th anniversary of ‘Private Benjamin,’ Meyers’s first screenplay. Meyers would go on to write and direct a number of modern comedy classics, including ‘What Women Want,’ ‘Something’s Gotta Give,’ ‘It’s Complicated,’ and, yes, ‘The Holiday.’ Sean ...
10.06.2020 'Dune' and James Bond Are Delayed. Here Are 10 Ways to Save the 2021 Oscars. In this unprecedented year, the Oscars need a boost. Sean and Amanda have just the right ideas, including ways to improve the ceremony, rule changes to enliven the ballot, and a new way to unveil the winners (0:30). Then, Sean ...
10.02.2020 Top Five Movie Dads What makes a great movie father? Inspired by the new movie 'Dick Johnson Is Dead,' Sean and Amanda pick not necessarily the best movie dads, but their favorites (15:23). Then, Sean is joined by 'Dick Johnson' director Kirsten Johnson (and ...
09.29.2020 The 2012 Movie Draft ‘Tenet’ is struggling at the box office. The MCU is on pause. And TV is threatening to take over our beloved movies. So we have to return to the past. That’s right: The movie draft is back. Chris Ryan rejoins ...
09.25.2020 The David Fincher Rankings, Part II We're ready to complete our journey into the commercials, music videos, TV shows, and films of David Fincher. But there are some shenanigans in our midst. What's his greatest music video? What will be no. 1? And is 'Mindhunter' making ...
09.22.2020 The David Fincher Rankings, Part I It's Fincher Week at The Ringer, so Sean and Amanda are teaming up with Chris Ryan to present a highly sophisticated, meticulous ranking of the filmmaker's work that would make Fincher proud. In Part I, they analyze his feature films, ...
09.18.2020 The Oscars Show Returns: The Five Best Movies at the Fall Festivals … So Far It's (virtual) film festival season! Sean and Amanda break down the Telluride Film Festival and Toronto International Film Festival movies they've seen thus far—including 'Nomadland,' 'Ammonite,' and 'One Night in Miami'—and what these festivals mean for the elongated Oscar race, ...
09.15.2020 Let’s Talk ‘Tenet’ Christopher Nolan’s 11th feature film, ‘Tenet,’ has opened in theaters around the world and we are going to talk about it. But first, we dive into the big changes in Academy Awards eligibility; ‘Wonder Woman 1984’ changing release dates and ...
09.10.2020 Breaking Down ‘I’m Thinking of Ending Things,’ With Charlie Kaufman The acclaimed writer-director Charlie Kaufman has returned with a new film, the disorienting, fascinating adaptation of the 2016 novel 'I'm Thinking of Ending Things.' Sean and Amanda are joined by film critic and Kaufman expert Amy Nicholson to talk about ...
09.09.2020 Did Disney’s ‘Mulan’ Experiment Work? A Binge Mode Investigation Amanda and Sean are joined by Binge Mode's Jason Concepcion and Mallory Rubin to explore the 1998 Disney classic 'Mulan' and the new live-action remake. They talk about what worked, what didn't, and what was removed from the original that ...
09.04.2020 Top Five Hitchcock Movies and ‘Psycho’ at 60 The Master of Suspense's classic film ‘Psycho’ turns 60 this month, so Sean and Amanda have convened Chris Ryan and The New York Times' Wesley Morris for a deep conversation about the filmmaker's career and best work. They pick their ...
09.01.2020 Top Five Christopher Nolan Movies and a ‘Tenet’ Review From Canada 'Tenet' is here! But not everywhere. With Christopher Nolan's latest unavailable to California and New York residents, Sean and Amanda call on Ringer contributor and Canadian citizen Adam Nayman to share a spoiler-free review of the filmmaker's latest journey into ...
08.28.2020 Are Movies the New TV? A Podcast Crossover Special, Part 1. Plus: Keanu Reeves and Alex Winter! In a special mega-pod, Andy Greenwald and Chris Ryan join Sean and Amanda for a two-part conversation about the way that movies seems to be aping the modes and styles of TV, and vice-versa (0:29). (For Part 2, check out ...
08.25.2020 'The Batman’ Is Coming and the 2011 Movie Draft Is Here It’s baaaaack. Due to popular demand, we’ve decided to run back the movie draft. Chris Ryan rejoins Sean and Amanda to make their picks for the best of 2011. But first, we discuss the debut of some new trailers from ...
08.21.2020 Movie Theaters Are Reopening. Is America Ready? Plus: RZA! In 44 states around the country, movie theaters will reopen their doors this weekend for the release of the Russell Crowe thriller 'Unhinged,' a controversial decision by the major theater chains. Amanda and Sean talk about the ramifications of the ...
08.17.2020 The Movie of the Year Is Here: ‘Boys State’ Amanda and Sean dive deep into the year’s most provocative and entertaining film, the documentary ‘Boys State,’ an intimate portrait of the summer program that has produced some of the most compelling figures in recent American political history (1:08). Then, ...
08.11.2020 Ben Affleck's Next Movie and Five Behind-the-Scenes Hollywood Stories We Want Sean is joined by Chris Ryan to talk about Ben Affleck's recently announced new movie, an adaptation of 'The Big Goodbye' about the making of the film 'Chinatown.' Then, they pitch other chaotic behind-the-scenes stories they'd like to see captured ...

Older episodes

The Big Picture

What's The Big Picture about?

Download our free app to listen on your phone

The Big Picture episodes:

The MCU Comes to TV: A Guide to ‘WandaVision’

Top 10 Stage-to-Screen Movies and ‘One Night in Miami’

Thirteen Awards Movies to Watch Out for, Oscar Do-Overs, and More From the Mailbag

The 20 Most Anticipated Movies of 2021

'The Godfather Coda' and Top Five Director's Cuts

The Genius of Pixar's 'Soul' and 'Wonder Woman 1984' Backlash

The 1995 Movie Draft

'Wonder Woman 1984' Is Here, on HBO Max. Plus: Paul Greengrass!

The George Clooney Hall of Fame. Plus: Carey Mulligan and Emerald Fennell!

The Top 20 Performances of 2020 and 'Ma Rainey's Black Bottom'

Rewatching 'Tenet' (at Home) in the Year of Christopher Nolan. Plus: Steve McQueen!

Hollywood Is at War with Itself. Plus: The Inaugural “You Blew It!” Movie Awards.

The Steven Soderbergh Rankings, Featuring Steven Soderbergh!

The Top Five Movies of 2020

‘Mank’ Is Here. Does David Fincher’s Movie Live Up to the Hype?

Emergency Pod: Did Movie Theaters Just Die? Why Warner Bros. Is Dropping Its 2021 Releases on HBO Max

‘Mank' Week: The Importance of ‘Citizen Kane’ and Orson Welles

Bonus Episode: Errol Morris on ‘Dr. Strangelove,’ Donald Trump, LSD, and America

The 2014 Movie Draft: CR's Revenge

'Hillbilly Elegy’ and the 10 Types of Oscar Bait You Meet in Hell

‘The Queen’s Gambit,’ ‘Small Axe,’ and the Top Five Miniseries of 2020

The Fate of ‘Wonder Woman 1984’ and Top-Five Gambling Movies

Mailbag Special: 25 Movies You Should Stream Now

Introducing the Garbage Crime Movie Oscars. Plus: Brandon Cronenberg!

‘Dazed and Confused’: Making a Modern Movie Classic, With Richard Linklater

RIP, Sean Connery. Plus: ‘Mank’ Oscars Preview and 20 Classic Election Movies.

The Big Picture: A Ringer Movies Podcast

The 2013 Movie Draft. Plus: Sofia Coppola and Rashida Jones!

‘Borat Subsequent Moviefilm’ Is the Movie America Deserves

The Sofia Coppola Rankings and 'On the Rocks'

‘Hubie Halloween’ and 25 Horror Movies Classics

Aaron Sorkin Top 5s and ‘The Trial of the Chicago 7’

300th Episode Ask-Us-Anything Mailbag Spectacular

The Nancy Meyers Hall of Fame

'Dune' and James Bond Are Delayed. Here Are 10 Ways to Save the 2021 Oscars.

Top Five Movie Dads

The 2012 Movie Draft

The David Fincher Rankings, Part II

The David Fincher Rankings, Part I

The Oscars Show Returns: The Five Best Movies at the Fall Festivals … So Far

Let’s Talk ‘Tenet’

Breaking Down ‘I’m Thinking of Ending Things,’ With Charlie Kaufman

Did Disney’s ‘Mulan’ Experiment Work? A Binge Mode Investigation

Top Five Hitchcock Movies and ‘Psycho’ at 60

Top Five Christopher Nolan Movies and a ‘Tenet’ Review From Canada

Are Movies the New TV? A Podcast Crossover Special, Part 1. Plus: Keanu Reeves and Alex Winter!

'The Batman’ Is Coming and the 2011 Movie Draft Is Here

Movie Theaters Are Reopening. Is America Ready? Plus: RZA!

The Movie of the Year Is Here: ‘Boys State’

Ben Affleck's Next Movie and Five Behind-the-Scenes Hollywood Stories We Want

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