This week sees the return (for, sadly, the final time) of everyone's favourite adventurer, Henry Jones Jr., in Indiana Jones And The Dial Of Destiny, and along with Harrison Ford and John Williams, producers Kathleen Kennedy and Frank Marshall have been with Indy every step of the way from Raiders Of The Lost Ark (the movie on which they met, setting them on the path to getting married). And in this week's Empire Podcast, they sit down with Chris Hewitt for an extended chat that touches upon every single Indy movie. Yes, even that one. Then, in the podbooth, Chris is joined by Helen O'Hara and James Dyer, while Eddie Hamilton, editor of Top Gun: Maverick and the upcoming Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part One, slides back into the fourth chair for a fun episode in which they discuss Eddie's experiences at the Oscars, James and Chris' experience at the equally prestigious PPA Awards, the order in which they will see Barbie and Oppenheimer, their favourite non-franchise Harrison Ford film, movie news including the casting of the new Superman and Lois Lane, and review Indiana Jones And The Dial Of Destiny. Oh, and Chris grills Helen over her experiences at Glastonbury. It's a cracker of an episode, folks. It belongs in a museum. Enjoy.

The Empire Film Podcast

#571 — Kathleen Kennedy & Frank Marshall; Eddie Hamilton

Wes Anderson's new film, Asteroid City, has so many incredible actors in it that we were able to send John Nugent to the Cannes Film Festival recently, steal three of them away for interview purposes, and put them back before anyone even noticed. So, in this week's episode of the (soon to be award-losing once again) Empire Podcast, you can hear that fun interview with old hands Adrien Brody, Bryan Cranston and Jeffrey Wright. Then, in the podbooth, Chris Hewitt is joined by James Dyer and Amon Warmann to finally drive a stake through the heart of the 'which director won a particular decade' question, introduce Amon to horror movie soundtracks, discuss the week's movie news, including an extended look at the repercussions of the weak openings for The Flash and Elemental, and review Asteroid City, No Hard Feelings, and Nimona. Oh, and chaos reigns. Enjoy.

#570 — Adrien Brody, Jeffrey Wright, Bryan Cranston

The Wicker Man (the film, not the terrifying, flammable wooden figure) turns 50 this year, and to celebrate it's being re-released in UK cinemas for one day only, on June 21st. And to celebrate that, in this interview special Chris Hewitt sits down with the legendary Britt Ekland, who plays Willow in Robin Hardy and Anthony Shaffer's classic folk horror, and talks about her troubled relationship with the film and her treatment during/after it, how that relationship has healed over the years, becoming friends with Christopher Lee at the Empire Awards, and much, much more. It's a fun and frank interview that is a must for all fans of The Wicker Man, so whether you have come here of your own free will, whether you have the power of a king, whether you're a virgin, or whether you're a fool, enjoy.

Britt Ekland on The Wicker Man 50th Anniversary: An Empire Podcast Interview Special

Where do we get those wonderful guests? This week's Empire Podcast brings you the audio from our recent Empire VIP Club Q&A with the one, the only Michael Keaton, on the occasion of his return to the role of Batman in Andy Muschietti's The Flash. Hear Keaton talk to Alex Godfrey about why he signed on to play Batman for Tim Burton, coming up with that voice, and the fun he's having reteaming with Burton on Beetlejuice 2, and then sign up to the Empire VIP Club, why don't you, so you can experience events like this in person. Our other guest this week is the wonderful Alice Lowe, who talks to Mike Muncer about her Take That musical comedy, Greatest Days, and about what we can expect from her next film as a director, Timestalker. Then, in the podbooth, Chris Hewitt hosts and is joined by Helen O'Hara and James Dyer for a dissection of the week's movie news, reviews of The Flash, Extraction 2, Pretty Red Dress and Greatest Days, and come up with a brand new musical. Also, with inspiration failing to strike on the question front, they return to an old favourite and ask which director owned the Noughties. [Note: if your favourite director isn't mentioned, chances are they were, and we cut it out. That's our story, and we're sticking to it.] Enjoy! Follow us on the Twitters! @ChrisHewitt @JamesCDyer @HelenLOHara

#569 — Alice Lowe, Michael Keaton

25 years after it became (for quite a spell) the biggest film of all time at the UK box office, The Full Monty is back with an eight-part limited series, streaming now on Disney+. Writer Simon Beaufoy has reassembled the original cast for a show that goes The Full Monty on the current state of the nation, with Gaz (Robert Carlyle) and chums navigating their way through a series of misadventures that shine a spotlight on everything from the education system to the NHS. In this, the latest collaboration between the Empire Film Podcast and the Pilot TV Podcast, Chris Hewitt sits down with Robert Carlyle and fellow cast members Mark Addy (Dave), Lesley Sharp (Jean), and Steve Huison (Lomper) for candid chats about their return to Sheffield, the show's return, and their relief at being able to keep their clothes on this time. Then, in the podbooth, Chris is joined by Kay Ribeiro and James Dyer to talk about their memories of the original film, the phenomenon it became, and their thoughts about the new series. Oh, and Chris has a meltdown about the existence, or lack thereof, of a certain television commercial... Enjoy.

The Full Monty: An Empire & Pilot TV Podcast Special, In Association With Disney+

Another jam-packed edition of the freshly award-losing Empire Podcast this week, folks, with three separate interviews, and four incredible guests. First, Chevalier star Kelvin Harrison Jr. talks French accents and violins with Neel Bhatt (making his pod interview debut!). Then, Eva Longoria — director of Flamin' Hot and possessor of one of the best laughs in the business — sits down on Zoom with James White to talk about her feature film directorial debut. And then Chris Hewitt is visited in studio by Transformers: Rise Of The Beasts stars Anthony Ramos and Dominique Fishback, and gets one of them hopelessly addicted to M&S Phizzy Pigtails. Be warned: there are sounds of chewing during this interview, which we know puts some people off. Forewarned is forearmed and all that. Then, on either side of those interviews, Chris is joined by Helen O'Hara and James Dyer to discuss which film director owns the 90s, the week's movie news (such as it is), and review Transformers: Rise Of The Beasts, Chevalier, Flamin' Hot, and Guy Ritchie's The Covenant. Enjoy!

#568 — Kelvin Harrison Jr., Eva Longoria, Anthony Ramos & Dominique Fishback

That's right, woodchuck-checkers, it's Groundhog Day Day! The sensational musical adaptation of the beloved Harold Ramis-Bill Murray comedy is now back on the London stage at The Old Vic, and in this interview special Chris Hewitt sits down with Danny Rubin, writer of the original movie and the book for the musical, Tim Minchin, the mastermind behind the music and lyrics, and director Matthew Warchus, to talk about taking another bite of the cherry, the songs of the musical, its ill-fated Broadway stint, and much, much more. Enjoy.

Groundhog Day The Musical Interview Special ft. Tim Minchin, Danny Rubin & Matthew Warchus

Greetings, Spidey fans! This week's episode of the Empire Podcast sees Chris Hewitt point at Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse stars, Shameik Moore (aka Miles Morales), Hailee Steinfeld (aka Gwen Stacy), and Daniel Kaluuya (aka Spider-Punk). They also have a fun chat once the fingers are holstered. Speaking of fingers, Chris is joined in the podbooth by Helen O'Hara, who has her full complement, and James Dyer, who... well, you'll see. Together, the three of them chat about the week's movie news, review Across The Spider-Verse, Rob Savage's The Boogeyman, and Tina Satter's Reality, while they tackle a listener question that asks which director won the 1980s. Whoever it is, we hope they keep it on their mantelpiece. But that's not all! Ian Freer also has a chat with the most excellent Melissa Barrera, star of the recent Scream series and now this week's adaptation of Carmen. OK, let's do this one more time... enjoy!

#567 — Melissa Barrera, Shameik Moore, Hailee Steinfeld, Daniel Kaluuya

Since he burst onto the scene in the late Eighties, Spike Lee has been one of the most inventive and vital voices in American cinema. The great director came to London in February to receive a BFI Fellowship, the highest honour the British Film Institute can bestow, and as part of that received the highest honour the Empire Podcast can bestow: an interview special, in which he sits down with Chris Hewitt for a fascinating chat, in which they talk primarily about Malcolm X, his epic biopic of the great African-American civil rights leader and activist, and a few other things besides. A remastered print of Malcolm X is playing at the BFI Southbank as part of the BFI's excellent Film On Film season, which runs from June 8-11. For tickets and info, go to whatson.bfi.org.uk

Spike Lee Interview Special

This week's episode of the Empire Podcast is better, down where it's wetter. Although we wouldn't recommend listening to this under the sea, in case you get your phone all soggy. Anyway, this is our way of saying that we're joined this week by Javier Bardem and Daveed Diggs, two of the stars of the latest Disney live-action animation adaptation (try saying that when you're the worse for wear), The Little Mermaid. They talk to Helen O'Hara and Ben Travis, respectively, and both are tons of fun. Then, in the podbooth, Chris Hewitt hosts and is joined by Helen, James Dyer and, in the fourth chair, Kobi Omenaka, co-host of the Flixwatcher podcast, who tells us all about his brush with fame on Gladiators. Then, the four of them pay tribute to Tina Turner, talk about their favourite musicians-turned-actors, discuss the week's movie news (including the sad death of Ray Stevenson), and review The Little Mermaid, Sisu, Master Gardener, and Hypnotic. Listeners, ready! Colleagues of such lethal cunning, ready! Enjoy!

#566 — Javier Bardem, Daveed Diggs

This week's episode of the Empire Podcast lives its life a quarter of a mile at a time, with some hot peri-peri sauce on the side, as Sung Kang — aka Han from Fast X — Zooms in for an extended chat with Chris Hewitt, in which mind-blowing revelations are, um, revealed about Sung's predilection for Nando's, Tesco, and Liverpool FC. Did he and Chris just become best friends? YEP! Elsewhere, in the studio, Chris is joined by James Dyer and Alex Godfrey and, remotely from her Covid-cave, Helen O'Hara for a fun episode in which they tackle another Mount Rushmore question; discuss the 298 trailers that were released this week, including Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part One and Gareth Edwards' comeback movie, The Creator; and review Fast X, Beau Is Afraid, and Are You There, God? It's Me, Margaret. Oh, and Chris gives a four-hour lecture on the Pink Panther movies and goes quite insane after discovering a massive conspiracy. And hey, you can't spell 'conspiracy' without... no, we'll let you discover that one for yourselves. Enjoy.

#565 — Sung Kang

It's been 30 years since Wallace & Gromit: The Wrong Trousers and Chris Hewitt, in a special preview of a bigger interview to come, sat down with Nick Park to talk all things Aardman. And Aml Ameen joins Amon Warmann to discuss hunting down paramilitaries in '70s London with Sky original Dead Shot. Plus, with Chris in LA, James Dyer, Helen O'Hara and John Nugent converge upon the studio to chat about the movie location landmarks that take them to their respective happy places, whether The Meg 2 will be the greatest film ever made and quite who Jenna Ortega plays in the new Beetlejuice sequel.

#564 — Aml Ameen, Nick Park

The Guardians Of The Galaxy — or, at least, James Gunn's Guardians Of The Galaxy — are about to make their last stand with this week's long-awaited Vol. 3, and in this week's episode of the Empire Podcast, Chris Hewitt Zooms with Nebula herself, Karen Gillan, for a fun chat taking in everything from conspiracy theories to James Gunn's initial firing from the project, and everything in-between. Chris also has a chat with another regular pod-guest, Joe Russo, who tells Chris about the second year of the St. Andrews International Film Festival, why he never keeps track of his score at golf, and more. That 'more' includes an in-depth chat about the state of the filmmaking union and the rise of A.I. and its impact upon movies, and while this was recorded a couple of weeks ago, it feels very timely now given this week's decision, by the WGA, to call a strike, with the rise of A.I. just one of the issues at stake. Discussion of that decision forms a big old chunk of this week's movie news section, as Chris and Helen O'Hara and James Dyer get their teeth into the issue, but they also find time to talk about the Best Movie Kings (guess why), and review Return To Seoul, The Laureate and, of course, Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 3. I am Groot.

#563 — Karen Gillan, Joe Russo

Yub nub, motherfubbers! To celebrate Return Of The Jedi's 40th anniversary (no, of course that doesn't make us feel old), and re-release in cinemas around the world, we bring you a gift that would have impressed even the mighty Jabba the Hutt: the live podcast we recorded a few weeks ago when Star Wars Celebration came to London. So join Chris Hewitt, Helen O'Hara, Nick de Semlyen, and Ben Travis for a fun-filled hour of bad impressions, even worse opinions, audience questions, and Ewok recipes. Oh, and it's a family show, so no swearies! Enjoy.

Empire On Jedi: A Return Of The Jedi Special (Live At Star Wars Celebration)

If this week's episode of the Empire Podcast seems even more incoherent than usual, that's because it was recorded very early in the morning. Mind you, that doesn't explain why Chris Hewitt, Helen O'Hara and James Dyer are incoherent at the best of times, but we digress. In this episode, our intrepid trio tackle a listener question about Dodgeball 2 and end up answering a completely different Q; discuss the week's movie news, including almost everything that emerged from CinemaCon; and review Peter Pan And Wendy, Polite Society, and The Unlikely Pilgrimage Of Harold Fry. Chris also has lovely chats (but, crucially, not booty call texts) with the stars of that movie, Jim Broadbent and Penelope Wilton, and David Lowery, director of Peter Pan And Wendy, who reveals his love of Event Horizon. Do you see? Yes, we see. Enjoy.

#562 — Jim Broadbent & Penelope Wilton, David Lowery

The Empire Film Podcast is the official podcast of Empire, the world's biggest and best movie magazine. We bring you all the latest movie news and nonsense, as well as reviews of the week's new films, an assortment of irreverent, film-related chat and interviews with some of Hollywood's best and brightest. New episodes every Friday. For our famous deep dives into specific movies, subscribe to the Empire Spoiler Special Podcast at https://empire.supportingcast.fm/ Love TV? Subscribe to our sister show, The Pilot TV Podcast, which covers every quality show landing on the small screen — because you can't watch *everything*. https://podfollow.com/pilot-tv-podcast/

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The Empire Film Podcast

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