Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins review the movies you need to see. Plus: Top 5s, Movie Drafts, Oscars analysis, and more. Subscribe to Sean's newsletter, Projections, here.
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Is ‘Digger’ the Tom Cruise Movie We’ve Been Waiting For? Plus: Our Top 10 Tom Cruise Performances.
Friday, October 2, 2026 • Duration 01:54:12
BANG! BANG! BANG! On today’s show, Sean and Amanda discuss one of their most anticipated movies of the year in Alejandro González Iñárritu’s ‘Digger,’ starring Tom Cruise. They unpack their very complicated feelings and make the case for why you need to see this incredibly divisive movie on the big screen. Later, they look at Iñárritu’s career at large and wonder: Why did Tom Cruise make this movie? Finally, they take an extensive look at where Cruise fits into the Best Actor race at this year’s Academy Awards, and share their 10 favorite performances from his fascinating career.
(0:00) Intro
(1:07) ‘Digger’
(13:05) SPOILER WARNING
(54:18) Iñárritu’s career at large
(59:21) Why did Tom Cruise make this movie?
(1:08:07) The Best Actor race
(1:23:05) The top 10 Tom Cruise performances
Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins
Producer: Jack Sanders
Production Support: Lucas Cavanagh
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The Baseball Movie Draft
Wednesday, September 30, 2026 • Duration 01:44:19
Batter up! Sean and Amanda are joined by Chris Ryan and Mallory Rubin to draft some of their favorite movies focused on one of their biggest shared interests: baseball. They break down what makes baseball movies so special, explain the new (and somewhat controversial) categories, and, most importantly, draft.
(0:00) Intro
(1:19) Why baseball movies are the best sports movies
(17:27) The categories and draft order
(25:11) The Baseball Movie Draft
(1:29:47) Honorable mentions and draft recap
Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins
Guests: Chris Ryan and Mallory Rubin
Producer: Jack Sanders
Production Support: Lucas Cavanagh
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Old Movies vs. New Movies: How ‘Avengers: Endgame Encore’ Beat Brad Pitt, Robert Pattinson, and an Awesome Weekend Movie Lineup
Monday, September 28, 2026 • Duration 02:23:00
What does it mean when old movie rereleases make more money than ever at the box office? Sean and Amanda try to answer that question on today’s show by discussing ‘Avengers: Endgame Encore’ outperforming a slew of new releases this weekend, including ‘Heart of the Beast,’ ‘Forgotten Island,’ and ‘Primetime.’ Then, they cover a handful of other recent releases in ‘The Weight,’ ‘The Love Hypothesis,’ and ‘The History of Concrete.’ Finally, Sean is joined by acclaimed documentarian John Wilson to discuss his new film, ‘The History of Concrete,’ and why he finds the current state of the genre to be strange.
(0:00) Intro
(1:57) Jon Watts to direct new ‘Star Wars’ film
(7:13) Sabrina Carpenter, Margaret Qualley join Tom Holland's Fred Astaire biopic
(10:15) The weekend box office and the old vs. new wave
(18:28) ‘Avengers: Endgame Encore’
(34:51) ‘Heart of the Beast’
(50:38) ‘Forgotten Island’
(58:28) ‘Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother’
(1:05:10) ‘The Weight’
(1:13:07) ‘The Love Hypothesis’
(1:25:32) ‘The History of Concrete’
(1:30:45) John Wilson joins the show!
Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins
Guest: John Wilson
Producer: Jack Sanders
Production Support: Lucas Cavanagh
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‘Primetime’ Is a Robert Pattinson Transformation and the Nightmare Media Movie of Our Time, With Lance Oppenheim!
Friday, September 25, 2026 • Duration 01:52:56
Why don’t you take a seat and sit back, because on today’s show, Sean and Amanda discuss one of their most anticipated films of the year: ‘Primetime,’ starring Robert Pattinson. Before diving in, they briefly share their overall feelings with the Paramount-Warner Bros. merger looking likely to go through, and preview an exciting weekend at the movies. Then, they break down the new film from Lance Oppenheim and sing its praises by identifying it as one of the most exciting movies of the year. Finally, Oppenheim joins Sean to explore the difficulties of transitioning from documentary to narrative film, how he first discovered Chris Hansen as a kid and found him endlessly fascinating, and shares a handful of films that ultimately inspired Pattinson’s performance.
(0:00) Intro
(1:37) Paramount merger feelings and looking forward to an exciting weekend at the movies
(10:00) ‘Primetime’
(31:56) SPOILER WARNING
(53:11) Opening weekend cultural, critical, and box office expectations
(1:00:33) Amanda’s (very brief) ‘La Bola Negra’ thoughts
(1:03:00) Lance Oppenheim joins the show!
Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins
Guest: Lance Oppenheim
Producer: Jack Sanders
Production Support: Lucas Cavanagh
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The Best Movies About Filmmakers, and ‘Boorman and the Devil’
Wednesday, September 23, 2026 • Duration 01:45:18
On today’s show, Sean is joined by Tracy Letts to cover a new documentary, ‘Boorman and the Devil,' which tells the fascinating tale of director John Boorman and his misbegotten ‘Exorcist’ sequel. They discuss the film at length as well as use it as a springboard to discuss what a director actually does on set, as well as share their favorite documentaries and scripted movies about filmmakers.
(0:00) ‘Halloween’ double feature in San Francisco!
(1:05) Intro
(2:10) ‘Boorman and the Devil’, why ‘The Exorcist II’ doesn’t work, and John Boorman’s legacy
(43:30) Demythologizing the director myth and the best documentaries about directors
(1:28:37) Scripted films about real directors
Host: Sean Fennessey
Guest: Tracy Letts
Producer: Jack Sanders
Production Support: Lucas Cavanagh
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2026 Best Picture Power Rankings, and the Best Movies at TIFF. Plus: Zach Cregger on ‘Resident Evil’!
Tuesday, September 22, 2026 • Duration 02:13:23
In today’s action-packed episode, Sean and Amanda react to ‘Resident Evil’ smashing its opening weekend box office expectations, Paramount settling lawsuits paving the way for the Warner Bros. merger to go through, and the new trailer released for ‘The Further Misadventures of Cliff Booth.’ Then, they bring in mean pod guy Adam Nayman to break down the good, the bad, and the strange from the Toronto International Film Festival. Next, Sean and Amanda construct their first Best Picture power rankings of the year and go over 31 possible contenders for the Oscars' biggest prize. Finally, Zach Cregger joins the show to have an in-depth (spoilers included) conversation about his new film, ‘Resident Evil,’ and explains why it was the hardest thing he’s ever made.
(0:00) Intro
(1:56) ‘Resident Evil’'s big box office success
(3:02) Paramount to settle lawsuits, paving the way for Warner Bros. deal to go through
(8:39) ‘The Further Misadventures of Cliff Booth’ trailer reaction
(10:57) Teaser for Jeremy Saulnier’s new film, ‘Slayground!’
(14:15) ‘NARNIA’ NEWS
(19:06) Best of TIFF with Adam Nayman!
(54:04) The first Best Picture power rankings
(1:23:42) Amanda’s thoughts on ‘Resident Evil’
(1:29:55) Zach Cregger joins the show!
Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins
Guests: Zach Cregger and Adam Nayman
Producer: Jack Sanders
Production Support: Lucas Cavanagh
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‘Resident Evil’ Absolutely Rips!
Thursday, September 17, 2026 • Duration 01:41:57
Get in, gang. We’re going to Raccoon City. Sean is joined by Chris Ryan to discuss Zach Cregger’s thrilling follow-up to his mega-successful ‘Weapons’ with his video game adaptation ‘Resident Evil,’ starring Austin Abrams. Before diving in, they react to a handful of movie news headlines, including Noah Baumbach leaving Netflix for Warner Bros. Clockwork, Quentin Tarantino publishing a new Cliff Booth novel, and John Leguizamo joining ‘Miami Vice ‘85’. Then, they giddily break down ‘Resident Evil’ and gush over the countless reasons why the movie is absolutely incredible. Finally, they look into what the future holds for movie video game adaptations, and take a look at the history of horror-comedy genre mashups and talk through why it’s so hard to pull off successfully.
(0:00) We’re coming to San Francisco!
(0:36) Intro
(2:02) Noah Baumbach leaves Netflix for Warner Bros. Clockwork
(9:15) Quentin Tarantino is publishing a new Cliff Booth novel
(11:04) What do strange rollouts for big movies mean for their box office potential?
(14:27) ‘River’ is the big acquisition out of TIFF
(15:59) John Leguizamo joins 'Miami Vice ‘85'
(18:49) ‘Resident Evil’
(35:36) SPOILER WARNING
(1:08:51) Box office expectations and what’s next for Zach Cregger
(1:17:57) The future of video game movie adaptations
(1:30:49) A brief history of horror-comedy
Host: Sean Fennessey
Guest: Chris Ryan
Producer: Jack Sanders
Production Support: Lucas Cavanagh
Talk to a State Farm agent today to learn how you can choose to bundle and save with the Personal Price Plan®. Like a good neighbor, State Farm is there®.
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The Sandra Bullock Movie Star Playbook and ‘Practical Magic 2.’ Plus: ‘Oasis: Don’t Look Back in Anger.’
Tuesday, September 15, 2026 • Duration 01:37:18
Don’t look back in anger if you spent over two hours watching a pretty rough legacy sequel. On today’s show, Sean and Amanda are joined by Yasi Salek to cover two new releases in ‘Oasis: Don’t Look Back in Anger,’ a film they loved, and ‘Practical Magic 2,’ a film they found to be quite poor. Later, they bring back the movie star playbook for Sandra Bullock and explore what they’d like to see from her career going forward.
(0:00) We’re coming to San Francisco!
(0:45) Intro
(2:02) TIFF premieres and Venice film festival prize winners
(10:21) ‘Oasis: Don’t Look Back in Anger’
(33:17) Our relationship to the original ‘Practical Magic’
(41:59) ‘Practical Magic 2’ is a brutal watch
(59:11) ‘Practical Magic 2’ significantly underperforms at the box office
(1:05:29) The Movie Star Playbook: Sandra Bullock
Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins
Guest: Yasi Salek
Producer: Jack Sanders
Production Support: Lucas Cavanagh
Talk to a State Farm agent today to learn how you can choose to bundle and save with the Personal Price Plan®. Like a good neighbor, State Farm is there®.
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The Winners and Losers of the Summer Movies Came Roaring Back. Plus: ‘Hope,’ ‘The Uprising,’ and 10 More We Missed.
Friday, September 11, 2026 • Duration 03:03:44
On today’s action-packed show, Sean and Amanda briefly react to the first trailer released for M. Night Shyamalan's new film, ‘Remain,’ and the news that Paul Feig is attached to remake ‘The Italian Job.’ Then, they look back at the historic summer at the box office and share some of their biggest winners and losers, as well as recap the final results of their very serious summer movie preview game. Later, they cover a handful of recent releases they haven’t discussed on the show yet, including ‘The Uprising,’ ‘Hope,’ and more. Finally, in collaboration with his curation for the Criterion Channel, Sean is joined by friend of the show BenDavid Grabinski to celebrate legendary filmmaker Abel Ferrera. They explore his complicated legacy, dive deep into his filmography by highlighting their personal favorites, and identify what makes Ferrera such a special director.
(0:00) Intro
(2:01) ‘Remain’ trailer reaction
(3:46) Paul Feig attached to remake ‘The Italian Job’
(7:33) An incredible summer for the box office (and us)
(10:02) The biggest winners of the summer
(41:18) The biggest losers of the summer
(55:13) The Summer Movie Preview Game results
(1:00:38) Movies we missed
(1:40:28) BenDavid Grabinski joins the show to discuss Abel Ferrera
Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins
Guest: BenDavid Grabinski
Producer: Jack Sanders
Production Support: Lucas Cavanagh
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The 10 Best Movies at the Telluride and Venice Film Festivals. Plus: Nathan Fielder’s Stunning Elizabeth Holmes Doc.
Tuesday, September 8, 2026 • Duration 01:53:15
It’s time for one of our favorite episodes of the year: the fall film festival report! Sean and Amanda break down all of the best things they saw this year at the Telluride and Venice film festivals, the general vibes, and what it all means for the Oscar races going forward.
(0:00) Intro
(3:22) ‘Artificial’ trailer
(6:22) The secret screening of Nathan Fielder’s Elizabeth Holmes documentary stuns at Telluride
(23:30) The festival vibes report
(40:50) The best movies from Telluride and Venice
Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins
Producer: Jack Sanders
Production Support: Lucas Cavanagh
Talk to a State Farm agent today to learn how you can choose to bundle and save with the Personal Price Plan®. Like a good neighbor, State Farm is there®.
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The Big Picture, a podcast by The Ringer - Stats, Episodes and Rankings - My Podcast Data
