The Business – Details, episodes & analysis

Kim Masters and Matt Belloni banter about the summer box office, noting that it started with a whimper but is ending with a bang thanks to a sequel and two superheroes. Edgar Bronfman Jr. has withdrawn his bid for Paramount, and as the Venice Film Festival kicks off, Italy's increasingly right-wing government is courting Hollywood productions.

Additionally, Meg LeFauve and Dave Holstein, the writers of the Pixar megahit Inside Out 2, join Kim Masters to discuss the importance of putting animated movies in theaters instead of only on streaming platforms — as former Disney CEO Bob Chapek did during his tenure. They also address whether the culture at Pixar has changed since John Lasseter’s 2018 departure amid misconduct allegations.

Matt Belloni and Alex Weprin discuss Edgar Bronfman Jr.'s unexpected bid for Paramount Studios, challenging the existing agreement with Skydance Media.

Plus, Slow Horses kicks off its new season with nine Emmy nominations, including Best Drama Series and Best Actor in a Drama for Gary Oldman. Eric Deggans revisits his interview with Oldman, where the actor shares insights into his career, the challenges of his craft, and what drew him to his latest role. This conversation offers a fascinating glimpse into the life of one of Hollywood's most acclaimed actors.

Kim Masters and Matt Belloni examine the dissolution of the Paramount-Skydance merger after Shari Redstone calls it quits on the deal. They also discuss Sony’s purchase of Alamo Drafthouse theaters.

Plus, Masters speaks to Rob Reiner and Albert Brooks about Reiner’s HBO documentary, Albert Brooks: Defending My Life. The legendary filmmakers talk about their early years in the industry and they talk about the drastically changing landscape of entertainment. 

Mike Rinder spent most of his life as a member of the Church of Scientology International. He joined as a child, and by the age of 18, he signed the organization's Sea Org contract, pledging loyalty and allegiance to the church, while committing all of his future lifetimes to it as well. But after years of emotional and physical abuse, he left the organization in 2007. “I didn't make it all the way through to the end, that's for sure,” he says. Now, Rinder discusses his just released memoir “A Billion Years: My Escape From a Life in the Highest Ranks of Scientology,” in which he exposes a harrowing account about the church that only someone of his former high rank could provide. But first, Netflix has made several adjustments recently due to competition. Kim Masters and Matt Belloni look into whether they will need to make more changes to survive. 

Comedy is not exactly in vogue among big studios, so when filmmakers Judd Apatow and Nicholas Stoller approached actor Billy Eichner about making ‘Bros,’ the first big-studio, big-screen LGBTQ+ rom-com for Universal Pictures, he was skeptical. “I have an openly gay man in comedy for over 20 years,” he said, “and I am telling you that even the most gay-friendly execs at a major studio are not going to greenlight this movie. And even if they do, they're not going to let me tell it in an authentic, honest way.” The movie was greenlit, and now Eichner talks about starring on a feature film for the first time, the thrill of co-writing the script with Stoller and how a major movie studio came on board to make a gay romatic comedy came to life. But first, Kim Masters and Matt Belloni look into the return of The Golden Globes to NBC in 2023, and what it means for next year’s awards season.

When Aubrey Plaza’s colleague handed her the script for “Emily the Criminal,” she was immediately struck by it. “It was just one of those scripts that I started to read, and I just flew through it,” she says. “It's so readable and fun…it has this momentum that propels you forward.” While Plaza had found her next great project, director John Patton Ford explains why it took 12 years to write the story. With Plaza, they discuss the struggles of making “Emily The Criminal” and independent movies in general, and the film’s unexpected success. But first, Kim Masters talks to Matt Belloni about her 15-minute interview with Disney’s head Bob Chapek at the D23 Expo, as well as the PR effort to give the embattled CEO an image reboot at the event.

In 1994 Kevin Smith wrote, produced, and directed his first feature “Clerks.” The movie became a cult classic, and Smith introduced the audience to Jay and Silent Bob, the fictional friends portrayed by Jason Mewes and Smith, respectively. Despite the film’s success, the filmmaker reveals he didn’t necessarily have a plan moving forward. “There's never been a career path,” he says. “There's never been, ‘One day I'll get to the Oscar.’ No, not at all.” Almost three decades later, Smith discusses his latest movie “Clerks III,” his work in animation, and changes in the movie industry. First, Kim Masters and Matt Balloni detail yet another setback for Warner Bros. Discovery on its quest to find a head to run DC Films. And, more about Disney+ perks.

Documentarian Alex Pritz didn’t have a background in film. He studied environmental science in college and was certain he wanted to be a scientist to “work on these big problems plaguing our planet,” he says. But at the end of his time at university, he realized that film was a better way to engage with big issues. “I have always been interested in participatory video working with communities that are experiencing conflicts and challenges to help them use film as a method of advocacy and also self expression,” he remarks. With that approach in mind, he went to the western part of Brazil’s Amazon rainforest to direct “The Territory.” The filmmaker discusses how he was introduced to the Uru-eu-wau-wau people, a small indigenous community that is fighting to protect their land, the challenges and accessibility issues he faced to make the documentary. But first Kim Masters and Matt Belloni look into the competition between Amazon and HBO for more viewers. Which series will win: ‘The Rings of Power’ or ‘House of the Dragon?’

This week, The Business revisits a conversation with Danny Strong, writer, producer, and creator of “Dopesick,” which has 14 Emmy nominations for the portrayal of the evils of Purdue Pharma. Before co-creating the hit show “Empire,” Strong won accolades for writing two HBO movies based on real events: “Recount” and “Game Change,” as well as “Lee Daniels’ The Butler.” So when he decided to make a series about the opioid epidemic based on Beth Macy’s book “Dopesick,” he thought he’d be met with open arms. “I was going around to these pitches like, ‘I’m coming back to my nonfiction roots, like ‘Recount’ and ‘Game Change,’ and I’ve got a bestselling book,” he recalls. But the reaction he got was, “No one cares. ‘Oh, ‘Recount?’ Cute. That was 14 years ago’... if no one cares who you are, or what you've done… or if they don't want the project, they're not going to engage. It's not it's not an easy business. It's a tough racket.” Hollywood can be cold, but “Dopesick” eventually found a home on Hulu. Strong tells Kim Masters about falling down the Sackler family rabbit hole while researching Purdue Pharma and its deadly drug, OxyContin, and the many challenges he faced to get the show made. First, KCRW has fresh banter with guest-hosts Matt Belloni and Lucas Shaw about how two major theater chain operators AMC and Regal have recently made desperate financial moves to stay afloat.

Ashley Lyle and Bart Nickerson are co-creators and co-executive producers of the series “Yellowjackets” on Showtime. The married team say they bonded over a revision class and have been collaborating ever since, but they write the series from the retreat of their own spaces. “We definitely cannot be in the same room when we're working,” Lyle quips. Writing this complex show is a joint effort where they pick a different starting point, and repeatedly review each other’s work. But their thinking is not always fully aligned, so Nickerson explains that with the back and forth process, “we kind of find a shared point of view.” With Yellowjackets’ seven Emmys nominators, the duo is now working on season two of the hit series. They join The Business to discuss the show’s conceptualization, their hit-and-miss pitches, and how Showtime proved to be the right home for their vision.  First, Kim Masters and Matt Belloni, founding partner of Puck News, delve into the latest decisions Warner Bros. Discovery CEO Zaslav has made, and how the industry is responding.