This week's episode of the Empire Podcast is a celebration of our esteemed and prolific podding leader, Chris Hewitt's birthday. To mark the occasion, we have a pair of outstanding interviews and four remarkable guests joining us.
First, Chris chats with Willa Fitzgerald, the star of the highly anticipated thriller Strange Darling. Despite the film's intricate plot, Chris skillfully avoids revealing any spoilers while discussing, among other topics, Giovanni Ribisi's intriguing transition from acting to cinematography [23:05 - 40:27 approx]. Next, Chris engages in a one-on-three conversation with the formidable trio from Netflix's indie drama His Three Daughters: Carrie Coon, Elizabeth Olsen, and Natasha Lyonne [1:01:45 - 1:14:52 approx].
In between these stellar interviews, Chris is joined by Helen O'Hara and James Dyer in the podbooth for an Agatha All Along-inspired listener question about the best movie witches and a comprehensive discussion on this week's movie news. Topics include David Schwimmer's admission of turning down Will Smith's role in Men In Black, the intriguing Mickey 17 trailer, Lionsgate's Faustian AI deal, John Cena's foray into the Matchbox era, and James Cameron's announcement of his next non-Avatar project.
Adding to the festivities, the team reviews His Three Daughters, Strange Darling, and Coralie Fargeat's unsettling body horror The Substance. And, of course, it wouldn't be a celebration without acknowledging Chris' birthday, though he remains characteristically modest about it. Enjoy the episode!
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