Matt is joined by John Wells, executive producer of ‘The Pitt,’ to discuss how ‘The Pitt’ is reviving an old model of television and why it is considered innovative in 2026. John talks about how the show is made, the benefits of filming in Los Angeles, and whether streaming TV is going back to the broadcast model (00:00). Matt finishes the show with an opening weekend box office prediction for ‘Scream 7’ (28:30).

Host: Matt Belloni

Guest: John Wells

Producers: Craig Horlbeck, Jessie Lopez, and Jon Jones

Theme Song: Devon Renaldo

AVATAR: FIRE AND ASH. FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION.

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Live from the American Film Institute, Matt is joined by Bloomberg’s Lucas Shaw and the CEO of Sony Film Tom Rothman to discuss the future of the Spider Man franchise, Marvel’s recent struggles, if movie stars should make movies for streamers, and the biggest crisis facing the movie industry right now.  Matt finishes the show with a prediction about who will be cast as the next James Bond.

Host: Matt Belloni

Guest: Lucas Shaw, Tom Rothman

Producers: Craig Horlbeck, Jessie Lopez, and Jon Jones

Theme Song: Devon Renaldo

AVATAR: FIRE AND ASH. FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION.

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Live from the American Film Institute, Matt is joined by Bloomberg’s Lucas Shaw and the CEO of Sony Film, Tom Rothman, to discuss why now is the fifth moment of crisis in the history of the movie industry, how large-scale tech companies have disrupted Hollywood, reasons for optimism, legacy studios vs. streamers, and the future of the 'Spider-Man' franchise.

Host: Matt Belloni

Guest: Lucas Shaw, Tom Rothman

Producers: Craig Horlbeck, Jessie Lopez, and Jon Jones

Theme Song: Devon Renaldo

AVATAR: FIRE AND ASH. FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION.

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Matt is joined by Michael Lynton, former head of Sony Pictures and current chairman of Snap Inc., to open up about his regrets greenlighting the movie ‘The Interview,' which ultimately led to the infamous Sony hack. Michael walks us through the unique scenario that led to him greenlighting the film, what he should have done differently, and highlights some of the challenges that come with dealing with A-list talent (00:00). Matt finishes the show with a prediction about the Best Actor race for this year's Academy Awards (26:55).

Host: Matt Belloni

Guest: Michael Lynton

Producers: Craig Horlbeck, Jessie Lopez, and Jon Jones

Theme Song: Devon Renaldo

ZOOTOPIA 2. FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION FOR BEST ANIMATED FEATURE.

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Matt is joined by Netflix Co-CEO Ted Sarandos to discuss why they reopened the Warner Bros. sale process for 7 days, why he thinks the Netflix bid is better for Warners Bros, consumers, and the industry at large, if they will commit to a theatrical window and robust marketing spends for Warner Bros. films, and much more.

Host: Matt Belloni

Guest: Ted Sarandos

Producers: Craig Horlbeck, Jessie Lopez, and Jon Jones

Theme Song: Devon Renaldo

ZOOTOPIA 2. FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION FOR BEST ANIMATED FEATURE.

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Matt is joined by Bloomberg’s Lucas Shaw to discuss Casey Wasserman putting his company up for sale, why this happened, the Hollywood jockeying at play, and who the potential buyers might be (00:00). Matt finishes the show with a prediction about Paramount’s next bid to acquire Warner Bros (24:35).

Host: Matt Belloni

Guest: Lucas Shaw

Producers: Craig Horlbeck, Jessie Lopez, and Jon Jones

Theme Song: Devon Renaldo

ZOOTOPIA 2. FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION FOR BEST ANIMATED FEATURE.

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Matt is joined by Shicong Zhu, head of West Coast Studios at DramaBox, to discuss just how successful and profitable vertical micro-dramas have become, how they are produced so cheaply, the genres that work best for vertical video, and whether this is a threat to traditional Hollywood filmmaking (00:00). Matt finishes the show with an opening weekend box office prediction for ‘Wuthering Heights,’ ‘Goat,’ and ‘Crime 101’ (25:47).

Host: Matt Belloni

Guest: Shicong Zhu

Producers: Craig Horlbeck, Jessie Lopez, and Jon Jones

Theme Song: Devon Renaldo

AVATAR: FIRE AND ASH. FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION.

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Matt is joined by ‘Survivor’ host and showrunner Jeff Probst to go behind the scenes of one of America’s most iconic reality television shows and discuss how the show has sustained its success for 50 seasons, the complicated production challenges, how much the show costs, casting, and why no one has managed to replicate it (00:00). Matt finishes the show with a prediction about Timothée Chalamet after visiting the Oscars luncheon (33:24). 

Host: Matt Belloni

Guest: Jeff Probst

Producers: Craig Horlbeck, Jessie Lopez, and Jon Jones

Theme Song: Devon Renaldo

AVATAR: FIRE AND ASH. FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION.

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Matt is joined by Bloomberg’s Lucas Shaw to get his thoughts after attending the Netflix hearing in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee’s Antitrust Subcommittee examining the proposed acquisition of Warner Bros. by Netflix. They discuss the most valid arguments made during the hearing, Ted Sarandos’s comments on theatrical distribution, and if Paramount has any chance to still win the bidding war (00:00). Later, they discuss new Disney CEO Josh D’Maro’s biggest problems to hurdle as he ushers in a new era at Disney (15:54). Finally, Matt makes a prediction about Casey Wasserman’s involvement in the 2028 Olympics (27:16).

Producers: Craig Horlbeck, Jessie Lopez, and Jon Jones

Theme Song: Devon Renaldo

AVATAR: FIRE AND ASH. FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION.

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Matt is joined by Adweek’s Bill Bradley to discuss the expensive and competitive battle of Super Bowl advertising. Bill breaks down how many ad slots are available each year, how much they cost, which parts of the game are the most lucrative, why A-lister fees for commercial cameos are going down, what’s up with those Jesus ads you see every year, the ad auction if the game goes into overtime, and more (00:00). Matt finishes the show with a Super Bowl ratings prediction (26:41).

Host: Matt Belloni
Guest: Bill Bradley

Producers: Craig Horlbeck, Jessie Lopez, and Jon Jones
Theme Song: Devon Renaldo

ZOOTOPIA 2. FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION FOR BEST ANIMATED FEATURE.

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Matt is joined by LightShed media analyst Rich Greenfield to react to Disney hiring Josh D’Amaro as its next CEO. They discuss why Disney chose the head of Disney Parks in D’Amaro rather than its cochairman of entertainment in Dana Walden, what this says about the company's priorities moving forward, whether now is the right time for Bob Iger to leave, and whether this is the beginning of a reevaluation of Disney’s entire business strategy. They also discuss why this decision could be seen as a reflection of the current state of the entertainment business (00:00).

Matt finishes the show with an opening weekend box office prediction for ‘Dracula’ (27:47).

Producers: Craig Horlbeck, Jessie Lopez, and Jon Jones

Theme Song: Devon Renaldo

ZOOTOPIA 2. FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION FOR BEST ANIMATED FEATURE.

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