Politics in Entertainment, Celebrity Endorsements, and Venom's Last Dance

On this episode of The Hollywood Outsider podcast, as we approach yet another of the most consequential elections of our lifetime, it's time to discuss how politics have influenced entertainment. Are politics essentially just entertainment itself at this point? Are billionaires like Elon Musk influencing media? Do celebrity endorsements move the needle? Can we ever get politics back out of our movies and TV? Also this week, Blade's delayed, Spidey 4 is official, Netflix wants to spoil everything, Squid Game gets an unnecessary remake, and much more! Discussed on this episode (0:00 – 16:45) Movie and TV News: Blade is delayed and Spider-Man 4 finds a home, Netflix offers a Moments feature, David Fincher remakes Squid Game, and much more. (16:46 – 33:21) Reviews: Venom: The Last Dance | Recommendations (33:22 – 1:15:56) From the Outside In: Politics in Entertainment and Celebrity Endorsements Listen to our other podcast, Inspired By A True Story, now available in your favorite podcast feed! Please support The Hollywood Outsider and gain immediate access to bonus content, including Patreon exclusive podcast content like our Bad Movie Night by visiting Patreon.com/ TheHollywoodOutsider Be sure to join our Facebook Group Join us on Discord Follow us on X @BuyPopcorn Subscribe on Apple Subscribe on Spotify Subscribe via RSS

On this episode of The Hollywood Outsider podcast, it’s Halloween, and as we have done in the past for Halloween and Christmas, we like to put out a bit of a compilation of favorite topics or interviews from years past that celebrate these specific holidays. And this one has a very special anniversary episode, actually TWO of them. First up: we return to one of our favorite segments as we decide, once-and-for-all, what the is the BEST! Could it be The Exorcist, or possibly Poltergeist? Could A Nightmare on Elm Street out-slash The Blair Witch Project? Is Paranormal Activity more ghastly (and ghostly) than The Ring? Do exploding stomachs out-scare the horrific haunting that takes place in The Conjuring? Find out the winner with our Scariest Movie Battle Royale! Then, it is time to prep for All Hallows’ Eve as we take to our own respective graveyards and dig up obscure Halloween movies. Trick r Treat has taken off in recent years, and there are many little unspoken gems like this one to get us all hyped up for the best movie season of the year for horror fans! Take a listen, and rest assured to walk away with at least a few new Halloween gems to watch this season of the witch. Next, it is the 25th anniversary of The Blair Witch Project this year. If you find a list of the greatest horror films, you’ll find this now classic on that list. $250 million made worldwide, popularizing an entire genre and inspiring countless filmmakers across the globe, and even earned a Guinness world record for top budget to box office ratio – Blair Witch has earned the title of classic. And for the film’s 25th anniversary, we wanted to sit down and discuss the film and its legacy with one of the filmmakers directly responsible for it, Eduardo Sánchez. Finally, it is the 10th anniversary of our special podcast episode on Women In Horror. Justin Macumber and Aaron Peterson are joined by guests (at the time) Amanda and Eliyanna to discuss how women in films, specifically horror films, have evolved throughout the years. From the early days of the black and white classics, such as Psycho, to the ‘Final Girl’ and revenge fantasy films of the 70’s, all the way to modern times with Scream, Buffy, and others: The entire history of women in horror films is open for debate. This is a detailed, lively, and entertaining discussion you do NOT want to miss! Discussed on this episode (00:00 – 1:07:59) Scariest Movie Ever (1:08:00 – 1:52:25) Obscure Halloween / Horror Movies (1:52:26 – 2:39:49) Interview with The Blair Witch Project director Eduardo Sánchez (2:39:50 – 4:51:50) Women in Horror Listen to our other podcast, Inspired By A True Story, now available in your favorite podcast feed! Please support The Hollywood Outsider and gain immediate access to bonus content, including Patreon exclusive podcast content like our Bad Movie Night by visiting Patreon.com/ TheHollywoodOutsider Be sure to join our Facebook Group Join us on Discord Follow us on X @BuyPopcorn Subscribe on Apple Subscribe on Spotify Subscribe via RSS

On this episode of The Hollywood Outsider podcast, with Megalopolis – helmed by Apocalypse Now and The Godfather director Francis Ford Coppola and Joker: Folie à Deux directed by Joker and Hangover director Todd Phillips both hitting theaters in back-to-back weeks and both flopping spectacularly, and then Terrifier 3 shows up and somehow delivers a #1 movie in the country that is relentlessly gory and completely unrated, from a director's uncompromising vision. So we thought it as an apropos time to discuss crazy cinematic visions: meaning storytellers attempting to do something unique and different, and either wildly succeeding or failing spectacularly. Films such as Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, Terminator 2, Psycho, Battlefield Earth, Look Who's Talking, Avatar, The Room, Howard the Duck, Star Wars: The Phantom Menace, 2001: A Space Odyssey, Barbie, How the Grinch Stole Christmas, and many others! Also this week, Rob Rowald joins us for the topic - check out his podcast and YouTube series Rob (from the Internet) Talks About Beer - as well as recommendations and discussions such as Hellboy: The Crooked Man, The Substance, Laroy, Texas, and Things Will Be Different. Discussed on this episode (0:00 – 1:29:35) From the Outside In: Crazy Cinematic Visions (1:29:36 – 1:43:52) Recommendations: Hellboy: The Crooked Man, The Substance, Laroy, Texas, and Things Will Be Different. Listen to our other podcast, Inspired By A True Story, now available in your favorite podcast feed! Please support The Hollywood Outsider and gain immediate access to bonus content, including Patreon exclusive podcast content like our Bad Movie Night by visiting Patreon.com/ TheHollywoodOutsider Be sure to join our Facebook Group Join us on Discord Follow us on X @BuyPopcorn Subscribe on Apple Subscribe on Spotify Subscribe via RSS

On this episode of The Hollywood Outsider podcast, it is time to settle a debate as old as time: Is Stephen King truly the Master of Horror? Aaron and Troy dive deep into how they came into the world of the renowned writer, which type of King is the best, when he does or doesn't work, films such as Cujo, Carrie, Salem's Lot, IT, Storm of the Century, The Shining, Silver Bullet and many others, and land on that final question of is he, in fact, the Master of Horror? Then, it's time for a trip to the vault as we take a look at the movie adaptations of arguably the greatest horror author in history, Stephen King. For several decades now, both readers and audiences have been terrified by the works of Stephen King, in all forms of entertainment. As with anything, not all of his adaptations click, and occasionally the results are scarier than the source material, and those that do, have become classic films that have horrified generations. Because we love King, we left it to our listeners to decide the final eight films with which we'd handle on this Movie Battle Royale, and the nominees are all great in their own way: Film such as Pet Sematary, The Mist, Misery, Shawshank Redemption, The Green Mile, Stand By Me, IT (2017), The Shining. Which will end up as the greatest Stephen King adaptation of all-time? Discussed on this episode (0:00 – 55:26) Is Stephen King the Master of Horror? (55:27 – 1:51:33) The Stephen King Movie Battle Royale Listen to our other podcast, Inspired By A True Story, now available in your favorite podcast feed! Please support The Hollywood Outsider and gain immediate access to bonus content, including Patreon exclusive podcast content like our Bad Movie Night by visiting Patreon.com/ TheHollywoodOutsider Be sure to join our Facebook Group Join us on Discord Follow us on X @BuyPopcorn Subscribe on Apple Subscribe on Spotify Subscribe via RSS

On this episode of The Hollywood Outsider podcast, we kick off horror month with a look at the impact of true crime in our everyday lives: movies, TV, podcasts, it's everywhere. Are we consuming too much? Is it numbing our senses? Why are we so obsessed with the horror of true crime? Also this week, Reacher finally gives Neagley a spin-off, Daniel Day-Lewis returns, reviews of Megalopolis, Lee, and Nobody Wants This, and much more! Discussed on this episode (0:00 – 22:04) Movie and TV News: Reacher gets a spin-off, Hellboy: The Crooked Man skips theaters, Daniel Day-Lewis unretires, Bane vs. Deathstroke is on the way, and more. (22:05 – 46:00) Reviews: Megalopolis, Nobody Wants This, Lee (46:01 – 1:19:08) From the Outside In: The Horror of True Crime Listen to our other podcast, Inspired By A True Story, now available in your favorite podcast feed! Please support The Hollywood Outsider and gain immediate access to bonus content, including Patreon exclusive podcast content like our Bad Movie Night by visiting Patreon.com/ TheHollywoodOutsider Be sure to join our Facebook Group Join us on Discord Follow us on X @BuyPopcorn Subscribe on Apple Subscribe on Spotify Subscribe via RSS

On this episode of The Hollywood Outsider podcast, our topic revolves around a line of questioning a reporter from Empire recently asked director James Cameron about his, in his words, cringey dialogue. Cameron of course responded in the most King of the World way possible with: “I don’t think of it as some Holy Grail, that’s for sure (regarding The Terminator). I look at it now and there are parts of it that are pretty cringeworthy, and parts of it that are like, ‘Yeah, we did pretty well for the resources we had available.’” “I don’t cringe on any of the dialogue, but I have a lower cringe factor than, apparently, a lot of people do around the dialogue that I write. You know what? Let me see your three-out-of-the-four-highest-grossing films — then we’ll talk about dialogue effectiveness.” So what constitutes cringey dialogue, and who dares to question properties that millions love? It's an intriguing topic this week.  Also this week, LOST celebrates 20 years of genre storytelling while Friends hits 30, and then we dive into the concept of movie theaters spending $2.2 BILLION on updating movie theaters in the near future. What do you want in your movie theater experience? Discussed on this episode (0:00 – 41:19) Movie and TV News: Movie theaters spend $2.2 billion, LOST and Friends Anniversaries | Recommendations (22:32 – 47:46) From the Outside In: What constitutes cringey dialogue? | HO Game: Cringe It Up! Listen to our other podcast, Inspired By A True Story, now available in your favorite podcast feed! Please support The Hollywood Outsider and gain immediate access to bonus content, including Patreon exclusive podcast content like our Bad Movie Night by visiting Patreon.com/ TheHollywoodOutsider Be sure to join our Facebook Group Join us on Discord Follow us on X @BuyPopcorn Subscribe on Apple Subscribe on Spotify Subscribe via RSS

Want to know what new TV shows to watch this Fall? On this episode of The Hollywood Outsider podcast, it’s time for our Fall TV preview 2024, including our most anticipated new and returning shows on the Fall television schedule. TV has evolved so much, and there are so many options, it becomes overwhelming every year to know what we should be spending our time on. Therefore we rolled up our sleeves, jumped in the water, and pulled out some of the best – and worst – that television has to offer this season. Disclaimer, Matlock, Agatha All Along, Tomb Raider, High Potential, The Penguin, Dune: Prophecy, Internal Chinatown, How to Die Alone, English Teacher, Cross, Nobody Wants This, and so many more shows are discussed and dissected on our annual plunge into the biggest season for television. Listen to our new podcast, Inspired By A True Story, now available in your favorite podcast feed! Please support The Hollywood Outsider and gain immediate access to bonus content, including Patreon exclusive podcast content like our Bad Movie Night by visiting Patreon.com/ TheHollywoodOutsider Be sure to join our Facebook Group Follow us on X @BuyPopcorn

What were your favorite moments in entertainment from this past summer? On this episode of The Hollywood Outsider podcast, we are presenting our Summer Entertainment Awards for 2024 and each category is for EITHER movies or TV. What was the best of all of it? Deadpool and Wolverine, Twisters, Thelma, Inside Out 2, Presumed Innocent, Only Murders in the Building, what's it going to be?? It’s our pick for the BEST in entertainment for the categories from May 1st through Labor Day weekend. The winners can be from any TV series (regardless of season) or movie, but had to be a new movie or aired new episodes between those dates. What did YOU love in movies and TV this Summer? Listen to our new podcast, Inspired By A True Story, now available in your favorite podcast feed! Please support The Hollywood Outsider and gain immediate access to bonus content, including Patreon exclusive podcast content like our Bad Movie Night by visiting Patreon.com/ TheHollywoodOutsider Be sure to join our Facebook Group Follow us on X @BuyPopcorn

On this episode of The Hollywood Outsider podcast, the HO team is on sabbatical, so Aaron takes the mic solo to discuss crazy movie and TV news like Ted Lasso and Yellowstone continuing on, Megalopolis has a huge trailer controversy, and Jurassic World: Rebirth finally has a plot description.  Then, it's time to discuss several late Summer entries: Strange Darling, Alien: Romulus, The Crow (and original director Alex Proyas' trashing of it), Only Murders in the Building Season 4, and Netflix's Wyatt Earp and the Cowboy War. Listen to our Tombstone episode of Inspired By A True Story here! Discussed on this episode (0:00 – 22:31) Movie and TV News: Ted Lasso, Yellowstone, Megalopolis, Jurassic World: Rebirth (22:32 – 47:46) Reviews: Strange Darling, Alien: Romulus, The Crow, Recent Recommendations Listen to our other podcast, Inspired By A True Story, now available in your favorite podcast feed! Please support The Hollywood Outsider and gain immediate access to bonus content, including Patreon exclusive podcast content like our Bad Movie Night by visiting Patreon.com/ TheHollywoodOutsider Be sure to join our Facebook Group Join us on Discord Follow us on X @BuyPopcorn Subscribe on Apple Subscribe on Spotify Subscribe via RSS

On this episode of The Hollywood Outsider podcast, we have three distinct topics to dive into as we revisit fun or interesting topics from the past: When To End A Franchise, What It Means To Be A Film Critic, and our 80s Family Movie Battle Royale. First, we take a look at more of these tired franchises that keep popping back up. Sure, Saw X was well-received while Expendables 4 wasn’t, but did we even need to get to this point? When IS a good time to end a franchise? Also, are we – the fans – truly the problem? Next, there has much ado lately about film critics: how genuine are the reviews, should outside influences interfere with a review, how much studios interfere, etc. Well, this week, due to a recent onslaught of activity over an Amber Heard review for In the Fire, we are taking this topic head-on. Finally, we’re determining which ’80s family movie is the best, why we love them, and defending them with our last dying breath. Okay, maybe not that serious, but we are taking them into battle. Joined by our special Patreon guest who bought her way onto the show (yes, that is indeed a perk), Kristina Flores, the four of us each have two movies we bring to the ring and knock ’em down until we land on just one. Titles like Back to the Future, Raiders of the Lost Ark, The Goonies, and E.T. – you don’t want to miss out on who takes home the title AND which one landed in the listener top 10 but just wasn’t good enough for us. (0:00 – 29:17) When To End A Franchise (29:18 – 1:11:50) What It Means To Be A Film Critic (1:11:51 – 2:05:42) 80s Family Movie Battle Royale Listen to our new podcast, Inspired By A True Story, now available in your favorite podcast feed! Please support The Hollywood Outsider and gain immediate access to bonus content, including Patreon exclusive podcast content like our Bad Movie Night by visiting Patreon.com/ TheHollywoodOutsider Be sure to join our Facebook Group Follow us on X @BuyPopcorn