The Playlist Podcast Network

Rob McElhenney is one of the hardest-working guys in TV right now. Not only is he one of the main stars of the history-making FX sitcom, “It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia,” which is about to begin production on episodes for Season 15, but he’s also the co-creator, co-writer, director, and star of the Apple TV+ series, “Mythic Quest.” And on top of that, he took the time out of his busy day in the writers room for ‘Sunny’ to join The Playlist Podcast.

Kate Herron isn’t quite a household name when it comes to filmmaking. And as she discusses in the new episode of The Playlist Podcast, it’s that reality that drove her to create a 60-page pitch document that helped her land the biggest gig of her career, “Loki.” She also talks about her influences in this sci-fi love letter and why she has her eye on Spider-Man as a dream project. 

In this episode of The Playlist Podcast, Dane DeHaan joins us to talk about his new Apple TV+ series, “Lisey’s Story.” He goes deep about getting into the mindset of a dark character and how he honed those amazing yo-yo skills. In addition, he explains why he's not interested in returning to the Marvel film world in a new 'Spider-Man' film. 

Somewhat shockingly, it appears that 2021 will actually have a summer filled with big franchises, surprising indies, and original films. And on this episode of The Playlist Podcast, we break down the summer films including "Black Widow," "F9," "Candyman," and many, many more. 

With theaters around the U.S. either open or on that path, today's BE REEL explores films that hinge on the theatrical experience, narratively speaking. From “The Last Action Hero” (1993) to “The Majestic” (2001) to “The Blob” (1958), today's episode pays tribute to how films depict movie houses for magical purposes, nostalgic ambiance and self-aware carnage. See you back at the theater soon. We'll be ones toasting ginger ales and Narragansetts.

Whether you love his films or not, there's no denying that Zack Snyder is one of the boldest, most unashamedly stylistic filmmakers of all time. His resume speaks for itself. From “Dawn of the Dead,” to “Watchmen,” to “300,” to “Batman v Superman,” Snyder has spent over 15 years bringing audiences some of what they crave most: genre thrills coated in glorious slow-motion and served with a side of top-tier special effects making for a product so distinct, its as though it was ripped out of the pages of a graphic novel. He’s unafraid of spectacle, but his critics seem to focus solely on that, almost obtusely ignoring his ability to craft emotional and thematically rich character stories, particularly when dealing with the notion of parenthood and family.

Enter “Army of the Dead.” Coming off of the tumultuous production of “Justice League,” and an immense personal tragedy, Snyder brings us his latest take on the zombie genre with his directorial hallmarks aplomb. Set in Las Vegas after the zombie apocalypse ravages the city - and ONLY that city - “Army of the Dead” stars Dave Bautista in a knockout role as a hard-edged mercenary who is leading a crew into Vegas to steal $200 million before the city goes up in a nuclear blast, partly so that he can secure his future, but primarily so that he can rebuild his relationship with his estranged daughter (Ella Purnell).

"Army of the Dead" is a special film for Snyder as he not only wrote and directed the project but got back behind the lens serving as its director of photography and sole cameraman. “There’s no sitting down, like, I banned chairs from the set,” said Snyder, “but the nice thing is, it’s really intimate. I can just talk to the actors right there, I’m not back in a monitor across the room. It was definitely the most purely engaged I’ve been making a movie.”

With the hype generated by Snyder’s return to the zombie genre, there’s already work being done on at least two spin-offs: an animated series, and a prequel starring Matthias Schweighöfer as Ludwig Dieter, a safecracking genius from the main film. “We’re in the middle of the animated series, and [the sequel] about Dieter’s character in Germany,” said Snyder. “It’s kind of a romantic comedy about him being drawn into this international crime syndicate. It’s a pretty low-budget movie, but it’s pretty big feeling. They go all over Europe and they’re being chased by Interpol.” The fact that the “Army of the Dead” universe is being expanded like this is sure to please  “Dawn of the Dead” fans who never got the sequel or expansion that they desired from that earlier film.

Those who missed out on “Dawn of the Dead” during its initial release were probably introduced to Snyder through “300”, the semi-fantastical historical epic recounting the Battle of Thermopylae. Though the film enjoyed a Snyder-produced sequel with 2014’s “300: Rise of an Empire,” a third entry never came to fruition. “You know, we did talk about it a lot, a whole bunch of different iterations for '300 Part III.' And who knows, maybe there will be still? I couldn’t really get my teeth into it. I [tried to write] the final chapter, but I actually [ended up writing] a different movie. I was writing this thing about Alexander the Great, and it just turned into a movie about Hephaestion and Alexander. It didn’t really fit as the third [“300”].”

During our conversation with Zack Snyder, we also discussed his long-rumored George Washington film, his upcoming King Arthur adaptation, crafting an instantly iconic opening title sequence for "Army of the Dead," zombie carnage and mayhem, and much more!

Timur Bekmambetov joins The Playlist Podcast to talk about “Profile” and how he utilized Screenlife to tell a story that he feels could only be told this way. He also discusses the possibility of making a "Wanted" sequel and why Mark Millar has to get involved. 

When it began its run a few years ago, “Mayans MC” was “Sons of Anarchy” with a Latino flair. Sure, the cast was all new and the story didn’t pick up where ‘Sons’ left off, but with Kurt Sutter at the helm, “Mayans MC” felt like “Sons 2.0.” Well, with Sutter gone and Elgin James the sole showrunner, the FX drama moves further away from its ‘Sons’ past in Season 3, and it’s actually much, much better because of it.

Elgin James recently sat down for an extended interview on The Playlist Podcast, where he talked about the massive changes that happened in Season 3 of “Mayans MC” and goes deep into his overall goals for the series now that co-creator Kurt Sutter is no longer involved. And since we also share a common love of punk, hardcore, and the straight edge movement, we also talk quite a bit about how that culture has affected his storytelling in “Mayans.”

In this May the Fourth episode of The Playlist Podcast, Charles, Mike, and Brian are once again joined by The Playlist Editor-in-Chief Rodrigo Perez to talk about “Star Wars.” More specifically, the guys talk about where the franchise is right now (seemingly at a crossroads) and what this means for the future.