The Next Best Picture Podcast

For this week's main podcast review, Megan Lachinski, Josh Parham, Cody Dericks, and Tom O'Brien join me to review and discuss the latest film from four-time Academy Award winner Alejandro González Iñárritu, "Digger," starring Tom Cruise, Riz Ahmed, John Goodman, Sandra Hüller, Michael Stuhlbarg & Jesse Plemons. The final film released by Warner Bros. after 103 years as an independent studio, Iñárritu's latest may also be his and the studio's most timely, given where we are heading as a society, and it certainly isn't short on bold storytelling from a filmmaker unafraid to take risks. That risk comes with split opinions, as this environmental comedy has divided audiences and critics, with recent marketing asking everyone to decide for themselves whether this is a misfire from Iñárritu or a banger that will stand the test of time. Where do we fall on it? Please tune in, either on video or audio only, as we discuss the story, its shocking twist, the performances, most notably from Tom Cruise, Iñárritu's direction, the craft of the cinematography by three-time Oscar winner Emmanuel Lubezki, the creative production design, and more in our SPOILER-FILLED review. What's the truth? You decide. Thank you for listening, and enjoy!

https://youtu.be/Q9MvLv67l-Y

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"Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother" is a 2026 American action thriller film written and directed by Bassam Tariq, starring Mahershala Ali, John Cho, Giancarlo Esposito, Abubakr Ali, Tramell Tillman, Tiffany Boone, and Laith Nakli. The film follows a devoutly religious widower and hitman (Ali) who embarks on a desperate journey across Houston to protect his children, confronting the forces closing in around him and the beliefs threatening to unravel within. The film had its world premiere at the 2026 Toronto International Film Festival, where critics widely praised Tariq's writing and directing and Ali's performance. Tariq was kind enough to spend some time talking with us about his work and experience making the film, which you can watch or listen to below. Please be sure to check out the film, which is now playing in limited release and will expand to more theaters on October 9th from Amazon MGM Studios. Thank you, and enjoy!

https://youtu.be/idkFAPSDLyw

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"Atonement" is a 2026 American drama film, written, produced, and directed by Reed Van Dyk in his directorial debut, based on the 2012 New Yorker article "Atonement" by Dexter Filkins. It stars Boyd Holbrook as a U.S. Marine who accidentally kills three members of a family during a firefight in Baghdad, Iraq. Haunted by memories of war and racked with guilt, he tries to reconcile with the family matriarch, played by Hiam Abbass, years later, with help from English journalist Michael Reid (Kenneth Branagh). The film had its world premiere at the Directors' Fortnight section of the 2026 Cannes Film Festival, where it was nominated for the Caméra d'Or and received positive reviews for its writing and performances. Van Dyk, Abbass, and Holbrook were all kind enough to spend some time talking with us about their work and experiences making the film, which you can watch or listen to below. Please be sure to check out the film, which will be released in theaters on October 2nd by Kino Lorber. Thank you, and enjoy!

https://youtu.be/HTjqRoO_jW0

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"Beware Boiúna" is a 2026 monster horror film directed by Mike P. Nelson and written by Alan B. McElroy, based on a story by McElroy and Tony Giglio. The film stars Kiana Madeira, Jessica Rothe, and Logan Marshall-Green. It follows a medical mission deep in the Amazon rainforest that encounters a colossal mythical serpent. Nelson, Madeira, and Rothe were all kind enough to spend some time talking with us about their work and experiences making the film, which you can watch or listen to below. Please be sure to check out the film, which will open in theaters on October 2nd from Lionsgate. Thank you, and enjoy!

https://youtu.be/Cqm1tR7PG2U

https://youtu.be/xS8_-LgAUGY

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THIS IS A PREVIEW PODCAST. NOT THE FULL REVIEW. Please check out the full podcast review on our Patreon Page by subscribing over at - https://www.patreon.com/NextBestPicture

For this week's main podcast review, Ema Sasic, Dan Bayer, Megan Lachinski, Larry Fried, and Lauren LaMagna join me to review and discuss the narrative feature debut from director Lance Oppenheim, "Primetime," starring Robert Pattinson, Merritt Wever, Skyler Gisondo & Phoebe Bridgers. Based on the 2007 Esquire article "Tonight on Dateline This Man Will Die" by Luke Dittrich, the film follows the production of the reality television series "To Catch a Predator," with Pattinson playing Chris Hansen. The film had its world premiere at the Venice International Film Festival, where it received positive reviews for its performances and Oppenheim's direction. What did we think? Please tune in, either on video or audio only, as we discuss these elements, including the writing from Ajon Singh, the editing, cinematography, and more in our SPOILER-FILLED review. Thank you for listening, and enjoy!

https://youtu.be/4IIshkUBfck

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Following our 509th episode of The Next Best Picture Podcast, we're back with a new episode of Mailbag Monday. Katie Johnson, Josh Parham, and Lauren LaMagna join me in this new series dedicated entirely to answering your fan-submitted questions from the NBP Film Community. Covering everything from the latest movie news, awards season, and Oscar predictions to filmmaking, industry trends, and whatever else is on your mind, Mailbag Monday allows us to engage more directly with all of you every week. Thank you to everyone who submitted questions for this episode, whether on our X account or on our Discord (Patreon members get a private link to chat with other members of NBP and me). If you'd like to be featured on a future edition of Mailbag Monday, be sure to leave your questions in the comments or submit them through our social media channels every Sunday morning when prompted on our X account. We hope you'll join us every Monday as we continue the conversation beyond our weekly Sunday podcast. Thank you, as always, for listening, subscribing, and supporting Next Best Picture, and helping us build such an incredible film community. Enjoy!

https://youtu.be/ZYxF3SKGydY

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For Episode 509 of the Next Best Picture Podcast, I am joined by Katie Johnson, Josh Parham, Lauren LaMagna, and Cody Dericks. This week, we're discussing the start of the New York Film Festival (NYFF), including the North American Premiere of the Opening Night Film "Paper Tiger," the world premiere of the Spotlight Gala, "Godzilla Minus Zero," and more! For this week's NBP poll question, for the release of "Digger," we're asking everyone, "Which is Your Favorite Alejandro González Iñárritu Film?" And we reveal the winner of last week's NBP poll, where we asked everyone, "Which Films Are You Most Looking Forward To From The New York Film Festival (NYFF)?" We also share our reactions to the trailers for "The Further Mis-Adventures Of Cliff Booth," "Werwulf," "Ray Gunn," "Clayface," "Day Drinker," and "Madden." We are still answering your fan-submitted questions, but we'll now release our answers separately the next day in a new show called Mailbag Monday. So stay tuned for that and many other updates from Next Best Picture as this year's awards season continues. Thank you all for listening, subscribing, and supporting us. Enjoy!

https://youtu.be/oD0AS-WRHGA

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For this week's main podcast review, Josh Parham joins me to review and discuss the latest film from "Puss In Boots: The Last Wish" Academy Award-nominated filmmakers Joel Crawford and Januel Mercado, "Forgotten Island," starring H.E.R., Liza Soberano, Dave Franco, Jenny Slate, Manny Jacinto, Dolly de Leon, Jo Koy, Ronny Chieng, Kevin McCann, and Lea Salonga. Steeped within Philippine mythology and bursting with creativity for its animation, this highly unique and original animated film is unfortunately struggling at the box-office but has received acclaim for its story, performances, visual style, and music. Did we feel the same way? Why are audiences not turning out for this? Will it be an Oscar contender for Best Animated Feature Film? Please tune in, either on video or audio only, as we discuss these elements and more in our SPOILER-FILLED review. Thank you for listening, and enjoy!

https://youtu.be/jGmVcQtCGtw

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"Primetime" is a 2026 American psychological crime thriller film directed by Lance Oppenheim in his narrative feature film debut. Based on the 2007 Esquire article "Tonight on Dateline This Man Will Die," the film follows the production of the reality television series "To Catch a Predator." Robert Pattinson stars as series host Chris Hansen and also serves as a producer with Merritt Wever (Andie Bender, Hansen's producer at Dateline NBC, a fictional composite of producers on the show who prioritizes its ratings above all else), Skyler Gisondo (Dan Plumb, a young aspiring actor hired for the show's sting operations), and Phoebe Bridgers (Del Harvey, a young decoy who played both boys and girls on the show) in supporting roles. The film premiered in the main competition of the 83rd Venice International Film Festival, where it competed for the Golden Lion and received positive reviews for Pattinson, Gisondo, and Wever's performances, Oppenheim's direction, the cinematography, and editing. Oppenheim, Gisondo, and Wever were all kind enough to spend some time talking with us about their work and experiences making the film, which you can watch or listen to below. Please be sure to check out the film, which is now playing in theaters from A24. Thank you, and enjoy!

https://youtu.be/vZRI_HG1p74

https://youtu.be/vyVApIIabFc

https://youtu.be/OycmWRbMpIY

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"Unabomber" is an upcoming American crime drama film directed by Janus Metz Pedersen and written by Sam Chalsen and Nelson Greaves. It stars Russell Crowe, Jacob Tremblay, Annabelle Wallis, and Shailene Woodley. The film centers on Ted Kaczynski (Tremblay), also known as the Unabomber, a domestic terrorist who terrorized the United States for nearly 20 years. It alternates between two timelines: Kaczynski's time attending Harvard University and his prolonged manhunt decades later. Director Janus Metz Pedersen was kind enough to spend some time talking with us about his work and experience making the film, which you can watch or listen to below. Please be sure to check out the film, which will be available to stream on Netflix on September 25th. Thank you, and enjoy!

https://youtu.be/ASu8Z72LmCY

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