Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey has finally landed in cinemas around the world, and to mark the occasion, we've turned the latest episode of The Interviews into an Odyssey special, as Chris Hewitt talks to two of the key pairings from Nolan's epic adaptation of the Homer poem. First up, you'll hear from Himesh Patel and John Leguizamo, who play Eurylochus and Eumaeus, two characters who are close to Odysseus, the warrior whose journey home after The Trojan War is beset by the kind of bad luck that would have you begging for a bus replacement service. And then you'll hear from Odysseus himself, aka Matt Damon, and Tom Holland, who plays Odysseus' son, Telemachus, as they talk about their toughest days on set, the worst smells, and forging a father-son bond between two characters who are apart for much of the film. These aren't spoiler interviews, but references are made to certain scenes, so perhaps wait until you've seen The Odyssey before listening, just in case. But both pairings were on cracking form, and we hope you'll enjoy.

This week's episode of The Empire Podcast sees one of the most revered Chrises in the movie business finally sit down with the director of The Dark Knight, Inception, Interstellar, Oppenheimer and now The Odyssey. Yes, our Chris Hewitt has a lovely chat with Christopher Nolan, as the latter's Odyssey odyssey finally comes to an end. [47:24 - 1:09:28] Either side of that, Chris (Hewitt) is joined in the podbooth by Helen O'Hara, James Dyer, and Alex Godfrey to pay a heartfelt tribute to the great Sam Neill, who passed away this week at the age of 78; make their selections for the Mount Rushmore of Neill films (by popular public demand); discuss the week's movie news, including the trailer for Tom Cruise's Digger; and review Heartstopper Forever, Couples Weekend and, yes, The Odyssey. With the latter review, in particular, proving so epic it might take you ten years to recover. Enjoy.

Here's a hard boiled treat that will feel like a bullet in the head initially. It may even make you want to take your face off. But hold tight, for there will always be a better tomorrow. Yes, it's a very special interview with the legendary action director, John Woo, who invited our Chris Hewitt, a lifelong fan of Woo's movies, into his LA offices last week for an hour-long talk, principally about Woo's groundbreaking, exhilarating work in Hong Kong on the likes of Hard Boiled, The Killer, Bullet In The Head, and A Better Tomorrow and its sequel. The two of them talk about Woo's humble beginnings, his discovery of action as an outlet and Chow Yun-Fat as his alter ego/leading man, his approach to staging action, his travails on Hard Boiled's greatest action sequence, and much, much more. We hope you enjoy.

Another jam-packed episode of The Interviews this week sees Chris Hewitt sit down in person with Auli'i Cravalho, the actress who originated the role of Moana in the animated films, and is now handing over the live-action torch to Catherine Laga'aia; [2:00 - 15:46 approx] and on Zoom with Robert Mark Kamen, writer of the original The Karate Kid and now also the book for The Karate Kid: The Musical, which is currently on tour in the UK; [17:05 - 38:26 approx] and finally Matt Spicer, who makes his return to directing movies with the Netflix comedy Little Brother, some nine years after he burst onto the scene with Ingrid Goes West. [39:20 - 56:14 approx] Enjoy.

Praise be to Muad'Dib! Thank the heavens for Duuuuuuuuuuuuune Part Three! Because, frankly, without the launch this week of the trailer for Denis Villeneuve's latest, and last, venture into Frank Herbert's sandy world, Helen O'Hara and James Dyer (for they are in charge this week, in Chris Hewitt's absence) would have had very little to talk about in terms of movie news on this week's episode. Thankfully it came along in the nick of time, and they bang on about it accordingly. Elsewhere, they had lots to talk about as they discuss contentious Empire reviews and movie worlds they'd like to visit in the listener questions section, and review Evil Dead Burn (with the help of Harry Stainer), the live-action remake of Moana, and Rosebush Pruning. Speaking of Evil Dead Burn, our guest this week is that film's formidable heroine, Souheila Yacoub, who talks to Chris about the film's gruelling one-shot sequence, avoiding the Evil Dead movies, and more. [43:00 - 56:16 approx] Enjoy! .

The latest episode of The Interviews is another belter, folks. And is, accidentally, double act-themed. First, Chris Hewitt sits down on Zoom for a fun chat with Phil Lord and Chris Miller, the directors of one of the year's biggest and best films, Project Hail Mary, as the Ryan Gosling-Rocky The Alien movie lands on Prime Video. It's not a spoiler chat, but they talk about some of the film's key sequences (so be mindful if you somehow haven't seen it), its immense success, and what they're doing next. [1:23 - 20:13 approx] Then, Harry Stainer sits down with another notable filmmaking duo, Matt Johnson and Jay McCarrol, the director (Johnson), writers and stars (both) of bonkers new comedy Nirvanna The Band The Show The Movie, to talk about their lo-fi five-star triumph and their favourite Spielberg movie. [21:18 - 41:57 approx] And finally, Chris Zooms it up a storm with Himesh Patel, who stars in Enola Holmes 3 as Dr. Watson, one-half of one of the greatest partnerships of them all. [42:52 - 57:07 approx] It's an episode so good that you might say, to quote another great double-act, 'uvavu'. Enjoy!

The latest episode of the Empire Podcast sees the team — Chris Hewitt, Helen O'Hara, Alex Godfrey, and James Dyer — go simply ga-ga for Olivia Wilde's new film, The Invite. In fact, Wilde is this week's guest, along with her co-star, Edward Norton, who have a lovely natter with Mr. Godfrey. Either side of that, the team talk about movies in which people bounce back after being made redundant, discuss the week's movie news, including the new trailer for Robert Eggers' Werwulf, and review not just The Invite, but Nirvanna: The Band The Show The Movie, Minions & Monsters, and Enola Holmes 3. Oh, and there's quite a bit of humming and whistling, but it'll make sense. Probably. Enjoy.

A shorter episode of The Interviews this week, folks, but it packs a lot into its 35 minutes, as Chris Hewitt talks music, Irish accents, life post-Game Of Thrones, and more with 500 Miles star, Maisie Williams, and then delves deep into Disclosure Day spoilers with that film's writer, the great David Koepp, in an excerpt from our spoiler special pod (out now). Enjoy!

This week's Empire Podcast might see Chris Hewitt and Helen O'Hara write their own ticket, folks, as they come up with an idea for Toy Story 6 that should, if there's any justice, be in production by the end of the weekend. Pixar, call us! That comes in the movie news section, where there is also much discussion of trailers and the prospect of a new Jim Carrey Grinch sequel. Either side of those, the gang — Chris, Helen, Amon Warmann, James Dyer, and this week's workie, Juliet Duff, who pops in for a cameo from time to time — talk about the most hellishly hot places in movies, review Supergirl, Jackass: Best And Last, A Private Life, and 500 Miles, and Chris has a lovely natter with Jackass supremos, Johnny Knoxville and Jeff Tremaine, about saying goodbye to the franchise, poop, and catheters. Enjoy!

Today saw the launch of Empire+, folks, for subscribers. We know you have questions. What is Empire+? What is happening? Why are we seeing the faces of three giggling idiots on the logos? WHAT IS REALITY? We answer those questions and more in this special announcement, in which Chris Hewitt and James Dyer talk you through the concept of Empire+ (what a groundbreaking name), and how you can sign up and subscribe, if you don't already. Also, Chris recommends the greatest crisps in all of crispendom. You're welcome.

With just a few days left to pick up the latest issue of Empire magazine, featuring Spider-Man: Brand New Day on the cover, here's the latest episode of The Shameless Plug, arriving in the nick of time to either entice you to buy the issue if you haven't done so, or bask in the stories behind the stories as Chris Hewitt and Empire editor, Nick de Semlyen, cram into the podbooth to talk you through how the magazine sausage was made. From Minions to Monty Python, it's all here, folks! Enjoy!