Off Air... with Jane and Fi - The potential to be problematic (with Paul Feig)

Episode Date: December 11, 2025

Today is a new day and the playlist is closed! Fi finally delivers her heavily-trailed lodger email, and there are accents… proceed with caution. There are also threats of a Christmas haiku, discussions about childhood hobbies, and another door of Hetty's advent calendar is opened. Plus, Paul Feig, director of Bridesmaids, discusses directing the adaptation of Freida McFadden’s bestselling novel The Housemaid. You can listen to our 'I've got the house to myself' playlist here: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2MkG0A4kkX74TJuVKUPAuJIf you want to contact the show to ask a question and get involved in the conversation then please email us: [e-mail] us on Instagram! @janeandfiPodcast Producers: Eve SalusburyExecutive Producer: Rosie Cutler Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

I've got that as my earworm, which is Haley's suggestion for the playlist, which is the rubber band man by the spinners. I haven't heard it for years. Now welcome to off-air with not Jane, but Fee and Eve and all of you and happy Christmas to you all. quite quietly today because Eve was at the Christmas party last night and as her party trick which I've never seen as you know by now Eve everything is content yes Eve's party trick is to do the splits which she did last night in the bar but she can't remember why can't remember why definitely pulled a muscle when when I drop into the splits that's how you know I'm really I just love this. I love the idea that everybody is just going about their business at the Christmas party.

They're all having a nice little huddle, having a bitch about management, getting a little bit too drunk, talking about people they fancy, and suddenly Eve just drops. At uni, I actually split my trousers. Oh, Eve, well, thank God it was just your trousers, love. Oh, this is just brilliant. And so I haven't been to the Christmas party since Jane and I went on the first year that we were at Times Towers. And it was an absolutely magnificent event in an arch in Waterloo. And we had a great time. We've never been back.

You were missed. Nothing would make me return to the Christmas party more than just being able to see you randomly drop into the space. I don't think I'd be able to look you in the eye. Do you? Do you? that happens in every workplace after a while I've left many because of that reason but are you doing the legs straight out or scissors splits what are you doing it's the one where one of your legs goes in front of the other I think it's insanely

impressive if you can do it where they go outwards yeah that is quite impressive no it's still very impressive you can do the scissors splits very embarrassing have you always been able to to do it no god No, I was trained to do them When I used to dance when I was younger When you used to dance when you were younger, you say? It was actually quite intense They would literally pull our legs apart

Yeah That's not nice But it does mean I can now do it when I'm obliterated at the pub Were you destined for a troop? Yes, I believe so Were you? Eve, you are a woman of mystery When did you decide that dancing wasn't for you?

When I started drinking as a teenager. Really? Well, it was a lot of early Saturday mornings. Yeah. So then, I mean, as with all hobbies, which I do find quite sad, that you kind of grow out of them because you'd rather socialise. I think it happens. It's such a good point, Eve.

I think you should be allowed a hiatus where you can just stop doing the intensive thing that you did before you discovered drinking boys, girls, fags or wards. whatever it is, and you should be allowed to just go off and do all of that for a couple of years and then rejoin at the point that you exited, because the orchestra thing was exactly the same for me. I just got up one morning and thought, I just don't want to go and join it, I just don't want to go and play. It feels a bit late. On a Saturday, it's just like, you know, everybody else has got a hangover. And then you regret it so much later on. Well, you do, because there's never an opportunity to go back in at the same level, is there? Because everybody has, you know, carried on

regardless and they've made their sacrifices and you know they're the ones who are out in front and it is complicated but does that mean that you can really you know that you've got rhythm so so if there was a disco section at the office party yes i've got amazing rhythm have you though i can kind of bob along a song okay but you must have moves oh i've got moves oh i don't have moves you're just a you're a dream boat

you're like you're an iceberg person there's a tiny bit above the waves and there's so much going on underneath okay I will do more digging for everybody's benefit on Eve's previous lives I was nervous about you calling on me today well we've been very gentle

very gentle so far in the office some people haven't made it into work not on our team because we're all very professional indeed but presumably was it a good party it was a very good party i actually won an award there was awards okay that we um got voted for rosy won social butterfly which i think translates to slacker yeah um i won best interview for booking miriam margley oh well done you well she was she was amazing she was really good so she said some very controversial things during that interview but you can't have a person like Miriam on

without doing the full range of questions because she is more than capable of giving you an answer but in fact there was an extraordinary response wasn't there on social media it's still doing quite well yeah she's so articulate yep it was it was a very good booking well done what do you what do you win gold coins I got a certificate I was quite chuffed with that actually and then I want another one

It wasn't actually really for me It was for best group chat moment On our time's really a big group chat Dare I bring it up again Schengel posted About me passing my driving Oh my gosh There has never been a more celebrated

Driving Death pass In his tree I feel that I feel that we should have footage That we can show of this great moment at the emergency stop was one of the most beautiful the world had ever seen the mirror signal manoeuvre

had fespian qualities got out of hands still going on you know it would be terrible if you had a slight bump shall we do some lodger emails and then exciting news for everybody I know but the

podcast playlist is almost complete and Rosie is currently she's put down her social butterfly wings, she's doing some work a little bit of work today and she is logging it all so it should be available on Spotify for your pleasure

by the end of today and it is called I'm in the cupboard at Christmas so we'll go there in a couple of moments of time but incoming from Abby and Abby thank you for your patience because I think I've promised that I'd read out your email for the last three days and simply due to my ineptitude and my

filing system I haven't had it to hand but here we go. Eve says that I should do the accents in this. Are you sure? Did I say that? I did, I did say that. It's all right, they're European. It's fine. We're friends with Europe. We're so friendly. We're almost going back in. Right, here comes Abby. Twenty-one years ago, I was about to graduate from the Royal Academy of Music in London

and had just gained a place on a prestigious post-grad course in Geneva. There were very few affordable accommodation options over there, and I'd heard horror stories about living miles away in bleak French border towns. After a couple of days of non-starters, who wants a new flatmate who will be practising the viola five hours a day, I saw an advert for a room for hardworking student with a small view of the lake. I ran the number and agreed to go to the apartment to meet the landlady. Let's call her Gisella von Schullenberger.

Because it was that kind of a name. Gisela met me at the entrance to this very nice grown-up building, but upon seeing her, my blood ran slightly cold. She had platinum blonde hair in a high pony with loose-curled side bits hanging down, was wearing glittery pink clothes, peep-toed stilettos, and had a distinct bunny boiler look in her eye.

Her star was, Aging Bond Girl meets 80s-era Barbie. I followed her up to the fourth floor where I was greeted by antique furniture and huge awful paintings on easels of romantic lovers strewn with roses. Sicky burp. She proudly showed them to me as her own works and also told me she was a poet.

I looked at the room which was nice and did indeed have a small view of the lake. However, alarm bells in my head were Molto Fottissimo. You're enjoying it. I would be leaving my fun student flat share above an Indian restaurant in Wilson Green to sleep in a chinty bed

with a key stage two left. painting of star cross lovers bearing down on me. I sat at her huge walnut bureau desk in the living room and looked over the contract. I quietened the doubting voices in my head and she handed me a quill made for a swan feather from the late to sign the contract. Do you think it was a sign, Eve? I'm blumen hell. To be honest, I was relieved momentarily to have found somewhere affordable where bills were included, etc. However, as I left, she paused and told me where she slept, which to my horror was on an oak panel pulled down bed in the open plan living

area. I'd have to walk through every night. Ewe! After moving in, I spent many months avoiding her. I'll come home and no matter how silently I entered, I'd hear her creepy faux childlike voice say, Thunnery, Abby, which gave me

equity card in the post, which gave me an ick like no other. I could tell she had the potential to be problematic. really. No shit Sherlock. So I really kept myself to myself and then towards the end of the academic year I found out I've been awarded a really generous funding award

from the Leaver Hume Trust, few e. The second I got that I knew it was my ticket to get out of there and move on to somewhere less concerning. A lovely Japanese student that was joining our course the following year was desperate to find somewhere to live but I couldn't bring myself to tell her that this room was available but to my horror my new friend found it anyway and my fears were confirmed months later

Gisela had become obsessed with her following her everywhere and had threatened her when my friend got the courage to tell her she was leaving she phoned the police and told them she had been stealing from her can you imagine being a student

from the other side of the world with very little English or French and having to be interviewed by the police fortunately they didn't believe Gisela my friend was free to go and in an interesting turn of events she ended up dating the policeman that had interviewed her. A happy ending.

So a happy ending eventually. But oh my goodness, I mean all of that, it's just, it's ick with fairy lights on, isn't it? And you can just picture that type of woman, the one who's still kind of dressing as a child, but in a slightly wrong way. I do quite like the swan feather. The swan quill? That's just ridiculous. That's quite nice touch for much.

So thank you very much indeed for sending that in, Abby. And I hope that all your future lodgings were a little bit more palatable. Interestingly, there is a Japanese theme to our lodging stories today because this one comes in from Linda. I'm 73 Live Alone and have just moved into my new house and decided this year to do something different, partly for financial reasons and partly to help somebody out and partly to broaden my horizons.

Well, good for you. I decided to take in a lodger just for a short three-month term to see if it worked out and a lovely Japanese lady who's come over from Tokyo to settle her 10-year-old son a border into the cathedral school in my city came to live with me I can honestly say it's been the best thing I've done for ages it's been such a lovely experience we've both learnt a lot about our very different cultures her son is the same age as my grandson and they've met and enjoyed time together too she's been so lovely to have around very kind and respectful

and even a trip to Japan could now be on the cards for me. Shall I do it again? She'll be a hard act to follow. I wouldn't actually, Linda. That would be what I'm feeling deep within my bones. You've had a very lucky experience there and I don't think you should leave anything to charm. Well, I mean, you might need to take an lodger,

so that's the silly thing of me to say, but that is definitely, sometimes it's good to just stop, isn't it? Jill from Dunbar is in contact with us again. yesterday you read out my gamash email and suggested the bed and breakfast program on Channel 4. Last night my pal ex-lodger, so maybe another tale, keep them coming, Jill, was out at the panto

and I had total controls of the controls. 6.30, evening mail or tea, as I call it, on a tray in front of the TV. I'm nearly 70 and still get goosebumps as I hear my late mum's voice in my head suggesting that digestion would be better if I sat at a table. Hey-ho, you do it your own way of your seven.

did Jill. Found the B&B programmes and started from the beginning. What a joy and delight. It's unlike any of the other shows at that time of day because of the jeopardy of the prize. I watched three episodes I'm hooked. Who's thought I could get excited about dust on the showerhead, but OMG, no shorts, effing magic at breakfast, and lasagna in France with local mints from Niddle. I love it. Thankfully, my pal is out this afternoon, so bring it on. If you've only done three episodes, Jill, you've got a whole week's worth ahead of you. but can I just tell you it climaxes

I think either it must be tomorrow and we'll know who's won the B&B in France the more. Who are you backing? I'm backing the young Northern Irish couple because I think they want to move their whole family to France and live a completely different life

and they have got their kids learning French already and they are really really sweet Nicolumbrecht I think they're called and very very dedicated and I just think they deserve a chance at a massive stretch of new life ahead of them, which isn't being ageist at all,

but the other three couples are older and they're not going to move with their entire families. I see. Well, I hope they've got it for their sake and yours. Yeah, and also they are terrific cooks, and Nicole in particular, she cooks curries, you know, using her Indian heritage. They've got shared Indian and Sri Lankan heritage, and actually their curries look sensational. Would you be tempted to perhaps book a stay? Yes,

very much so. No, I'd like to, but I do need to find out where it is because I was very, very drawn to the Doidoin, Eve, with its promise of sunshine and lavender feels. If I'm honest, I'm less drawn to Northern France. I'm sorry about that, everybody. That's just the way it is. Top TV tips

from Down Under comes in from square-eyed of Chichester. Your eyes will go square, also known as Melanie. Catching up on your listener asking for TV recommendations. Can I add to the list The Letdown, also Australian about a group of

new mothers. It's very funny and incidentally this recommendation is from someone who's never bought a pack of nappies, me and yet I loved it. It includes a guest appearance from Patrick Bramel who is of course one of the writers and stars of Colin from accounts. Also worth a watch is upper middle

Bogan, bonus family and Ripple all on Netflix. Now Bogan was a term I wasn't familiar with at all. If you visited the Australia? I haven't but I'm familiar with the term from Chris Lilly. Jemay, private school girl

and Summer Heights High He kind of... You're just putting words together. What's happening? He's a really successful Australian comedian who does kind of like mockumentary style TV shows Jonah from Tonga, you don't know any of those I think some of them haven't dated that well but yeah they use the term Bogan and that's how

I've come from it's long and what do you understand bogan to be because it was used a lot in married at first sight australia i mean a lot i think i thought it's kind of like loser yes and and some someone who every well the snobby ones felt they could patronise yes yeah okay interesting well upper middle bogan it sounds a little bit like they've done a kind of um keeping up appearances class thing there haven't they or class if you want to appeal to both ends of our country good Right, I'm just going to run through. We've got a great guest, haven't we?

We've got a great, great guest. Well done to Eve for this booking, too. This is Paul Feig. Am I saying that, right? Yes, you are. Sorry. Because sometimes I can mispronounce, Paul. I had Susie Wolfe in my head.

Yes, no, we've done Susie Wolfe. Eve is a little bit on us. Not quite with it today. No, so Susie Wolfe, the Formula One Queen. She has written her memoir called Driven, and we've done a recording with her already. today but I believe that we're putting that out sometime next week. That's correct.

I'll tell you what, you should all be worried if I'm the one who's across our schedule. And Paul Feig is going to join us live on the Zoom from the Hollywood on the program at 3.30 this afternoon because he is the director of the housemate which is a blockbuster. I can guarantee it'll be a blockbuster.

It opens in Kinemar's, as my mother would say. That's not a story for it. the time I'll hold you to that we often just broke into Latin pronunciation it's I think it opens on Boxing Day

and it is an adaptation the film adaptation of the phenomenally successful book by Freedom McFadden so I think there are four in the series of The Housemaid and I've read

The House Maid and it is properly properly she writes so cleverly whether or not you know you enjoy her genre which is the twisty, turny, unreliable narrator, thriller genre. She just writes so cleverly that you cannot stop reading it. Every chapter ends on something where you just can't go,

okay, I'm all caught up for tonight, I'll put the book down, and the film has managed to do the same thing. Because I think it knocks out over two hours, which is regular listeners will know as a bugbear to Jane and I. We like everything. We like a book to be about, I don't know, 200 pages. and a film to come in at about one hour ten and that keeps us happy

and our podcast should be shorter as well I'm well aware of that so I'll crap it up so Paul Fieger's on the programme today he's a delightful man and we've got lots to talk about there so I'm just going to run through what has made it onto the Spotify playlist

in fact I'm going to just hand those ones over to you could you do the names and the titles and the playlist is now closed because we're going to do tiny short playlists and this is for everybody who will find themselves over the festive season taking a little bit of a break from reality in a small cupboard area. So from Louisa we have Harry Stiles Golden, which is a bloody good one.

From Caroline we have Fleet Fox's White Winter hymnal. It's a must for a gentle stomp around. I don't know what that one is, so I'm looking forward to hearing that. Do you? No. Fleet Foxes are, they're quite lelting, aren't they? They're quite often, if you walk into a shop that's got overpriced ceramics, candles and woolens, Fleet Foxes is often playing in the background, I feel. It's going to be quite a mix, isn't it?

Such a mix. It's quite uplifting and some bits quite gentle. Oh, well, this one is quite Saturday by Sam Fender from Lillia. And that one is a bit more, I think, upbeat. And we love Sam Fender, don't we? I feel he speaks to the middle-class middle-aged woman. Oh, do you very much? I do.

I absolutely do I think when he was writing many of his bangers he had me in mind even I'm sure that's true this one comes in from Sarah and it is Abba I still have faith in you

now I think that is a little bit more kind of downbeat but we love Abba so that's absolutely fine Fiona has put in Mr Blue Skies by ELO and Love Takes Miles by Cameron Winter never ever come across Cameron Winter before.

So we're popping that in there too and we've got our selections as well. Eve has gone for Jack Johnson Banana Pancakes. I've gone for Diana Ross upside down and Rosie is... She's still deciding? I don't think she's decided yet. By the end of today

I think it should be good to go. Which is remarkable. It's very quick timing for us. So there you have it. Hope you enjoy it and we will do another playlist in the new year too. Jane and Fees, Advent, Advent, Calendar. of joy from Hetty we are still opening we're doing

two a day which is just lovely isn't it so I think we must be on to we're on to 11 and 12 10 and 11 so what shall I do 11 and you can do 12 because I'm not going to be here tomorrow okay um was that your stomach it was yeah I was sorry about that gosh let's get you to the canteen

no because it's Christmas dinner again today and I walk past it even it just looks daunting the amount of food on the plate and I haven't brought my Tupperware in today because I'm a bit hung over You should have the whole lot. Cubs, carbs, a hoy. What are you going to have instead then? Well, no, I probably will have to.

I'll have it in a takeaway box and I'll take some of it home with me. I'll eat it on the tube with my fingers. Oh, God. Don't do it to yourself. Absolutely clear the Jubilee line. Good luck to anyone heading home tonight. You can't, but you would not, no human would be able to have a takeaway box that had cold stuffing and pigs in blankets

with them on public transport and not have a nibble. If anyone sees Fee on the Jubilee Lam with a hand, send me a photo and I'll put it on the Instagram. Okay. Okay, the 11. Yep. God, it's a bit too much for me today.

Write a Christmas haiku. Oh, God. I'll be passing that one over to you. Okay, yep. Do you want to do the 12th? Oh, okay. What are the rules for haikus? I never know.

Okay, hang on. Hang on, I'm just going to find 12. Don't make me multitask, please. Oh, make mince pies to share with your neighbours or the off-air team. Hetty? Blimey, love, that's a lot. Hang on, have I got to make my own pastry?

I have! Got me my own pastry! Good God, I haven't got time to look through the woolover's catalogue and make my own mince pies. Right. You just get some just roll. Fantastic. Yes, I think you're allowed to.

And, yeah, and you don't want to be making your own mincemeat either, do you? You're just going to go for our M&S. Yes, basically, exactly that. Okay, well, we'll bring the Christmas haiku to you on Monday. That's a promise. Yep, Eve will spend her weekend using... Oh, I'm very, very, very busy. Her last remaining brain cell.

And what subject did you study at university? English. There we go. High hopes, everybody. High hopes. Now, let us bring a touch of glamour and Hollywood magic to your Thursday afternoon as we welcome to the show Paul Fieg, director of huge monster blockbuster hits like Bridesmaid, Spy and Ghostbusters.

Last time Paul came on the afternoon show, he had a book out about cocktails. He's so debonair, he's so suave. But he is here now to talk about The Housemade, the movie of the book of the same name, a worldwide bestseller by Frieder McFadden. I'm lying already, Paul, because you're not here with us, which is a great sadness to Rosie and myself. If only I was.

Oh, if only I was, but you join us through the magic of technology. How are you? I'm very good. I'm happy to see you again. I had so much fun last time. Remember we made martinis and everything? I'll have to make you a virtual little martini right now. Yes, if you wouldn't mind, that would be great,

especially because it's a Thursday. It's the beginning of our weekend. Who have we just heard in that 27-second trailer there for The Housemaid? Yes. You've just heard the great Sydney Sweeney and Amanda Seifred, who are the two stars of this movie The House Made, which is based on a bestselling book. It's been on the bestseller list, at least here in the U.S. for about two years, I've written by Freedom McFadden, and it's a fantastic thriller, twisty tourney, but a very fun experience. Audiences really kind of go crazy for this movie. They are very interactive with it. Let's just say that. Okay. It is really, really twisty tourney, isn't it? I've read the book. It is such a cleverly.

written book because Frieda McFadden genuinely makes you the reader unable to just stop at a chapter's end. The way that she writes means you've got to turn the page and then you've got to turn the page and turn the page. So how do you

do that as a director because the language of a film is obviously different to the language of a book? Yeah, I mean, you have to make sure that it's cinematic. You have to make sure that it moves along. The great thing about Frida's books are that they have that pace, like you said. It's a page turner.

And so Rebecca Sunnenshine, who was our screenwriter, who adapted this, was really good at like cherry picking the moments, but making sure that we drive through. And then we were able to add more of an ending than is in the book. The book ends very satisfyingly for a reader, but for a movie audience, we need it a little bit extra. And book readers so far have just really loved the movie and grateful that we were faithful. You know, having read the book myself, I think that your ending is fantastic because you know if you've read it that there's a little something at the end, a punctuation mark in emotion that I think when you're watching the movie, you know, you're still hoping to see. I mean, it is a difficult film to do interviews about, isn't it, Paul?

Because we don't want to give away too much about it. We don't want to say any. And the funny thing is people are always like, I have to go read the book first. I'm like, no, if you haven't read the book, don't read the book. Watch the movie, buy the book, then go read the book afterwards. Okay, so how long? How many more minutes do you think we can do on a film where we don't want to give away any of the course of themselves? Oh, we can dance around all day.

Come on, man, here we go. It is not for the faint-hearted if you've got any kind of a thing about dentistry. Spoiler alert, yes, exactly. You know, it's fun to make an audience cringe and scream. Because, look, I'm a, you know, I come from the comedy world, and look, I consider all my movies. to be comedy. Some are just extremely dark like this one. And just to elicit that kind of an emotion out of an audience, it's why a lot of people from comedy, directors from comedy, like myself, are going more into thriller and going into horror. I mean, it was a movie earlier this year

called Weapons that Zach Krieger did. He's a comedy guy. But, you know, the scares and laughs are such a similar emotion that we like to tie them together. Yeah. Also, you can watch this movie just for the background, and I'm not suggesting people do. But the house is amazing, isn't it? Yeah. There's a property pornography thing going on there. Well, when we were prepping the movie, my directive from day one with the whole crew and everything is like, this has to look like a Nancy Myers movie that goes terribly wrong.

And so we leaned into these, you know, beautiful white kitchens and this kind of gothic house that was built in 1908 and beautiful furnishings. my production designer Elizabeth Jones put amazing artwork all over the place that's kind of male gaze and sort of like female empowerment at the same time. So very subtly, look at the backgrounds

and you'll see lots of little Easter eggs and amazing aesthetics. Yeah, but I love that description of kind of Nancy Myers with menace. That will definitely do for me. Sydney Sweeney is one of the stars of the show. She's had quite a backlash recently. Hasn't she, Paul, after her jeans out,

it had that strapline. Sidney Sweeney has great jeans, which was imagined by some to have very sinister undertones. I mean, that completely denied by Sydney Sweeney herself. But she got herself endorsed by Trump. She's a registered Republican voter. I suspect that you don't like Trump because I've seen from your social media postings.

You're quite happy to take the Mickey out of him. So does that bother you at all? Because our politics are very in our face at the moment. We're very polarised. Everybody's wearing a badge. Yeah, you know, look, I have my own beliefs and other people have their beliefs and I try not to impose mine too much. I don't like when people impose theirs on me either. Yes, I'm not a big fan of our current administration.

This is a light way of putting it. But at the same time, you know, we're all artists and we're trying to make an artistic project. And Sydney is one of the most lovely professional people I've ever worked with hands down. And this is not Hollywood BS. This is really like she is a wonderful person. Was she knocked a bit sideways by all of that, though, Paul? She is the most resilient young woman I've ever met in my life. I mean, she is just driven, she knows what she wants, she's very savvy.

And no, it's kind of water off a duck's back to her. She's really, really a smart person. I really admire her a lot. Paul, Rosie here, would you have made a different casting decision if that had happened the opposite way around? So whether the American Jeans advert had come out before, you then made the casting. Would it have changed your mind? No, not at all. Not at all. Sydney is such a talented actor. Look, these things come and go.

You know, I went through it with Blake lively on, you know, another simple favor. And I went through it on Ghostbusters, you know, my all-female Ghostbusters. So the internet loves to get really upset about things that kind of don't really matter. And, you know, and there's so much, there's so much to be outraged about these days. And if you're outraged about pop culture, you're outraged about the wrong thing. Well, let's carry on delving into the outrage, Paul, because there's a lot going on in Hollywood right now. How are you feeling as a top director about the prospect of AI? I despise AI. I always say, did any of us ask for AI? I don't think so. You know, AI, I feel it was basically created for people who want to reduce their workforce. Look, watching Star Wars growing up,

It was like, yeah, that'd be cool to have a droid, you know, that has a sentient. But the fact that it's just going to try to replace everything. But as far as being a creator, I don't worry about it that much. I worry about it for people that come up with artistic things, you know, some of our designers and all that because it's very easy to just like, you know, hit AI and kick out some painting or picture or something like that. But art in movies and storytelling is all based on human experience. And all AI can do is scrape together what's happened in the past. But everybody, everyone you meet in the world has a story that is unique to them that I don't think an AI can come up with.

So it just, if anything, it'll make us have to work much harder to tell stories that matter to people. But that's good. It's a meritocracy. We should be working hard. Yeah. Well, I'm thrilled by your positivity, actually. And I really hope that we do carry on going for the authentic human experience. It is going to be, AI will be based on that experience, though. and I wonder whether or not you can already tell that a lot of your back catalog has been scraped. Yeah, that I can tell.

My brother-in-law for my birthday thought it would be really fun to have AI kick out like two cocktail recipes based on me and it knew everything about me and it kind of wrote the way I wrote, right. So I was like, okay, well, it's out there. But at the same time, it's only going to do stuff I did already. So, you know, we just have to keep being unique, being unique individuals.

And I've been to the movie, but it's long enough to hear they're always decrying the death of movie theaters. People are, you know, none of this happens. We are all humans. We all want human connection. We want to connect with other humans. We want to watch other humans.

And AI, the terrible thing now is anything that you see on the internet that's fun or funny, you're like, is that real? And you don't believe anything anymore. So that's the bad side of it. It's just like people won't believe anything anymore. But some of the brands, Paul, let's say big advertisers, Coca-Cola, who are relying on that sort of nostalgia, human experience and feeling,

they are using AI for their adverts because presumably they've thought, well, if we look at our bottom line, the creativity that the AI can create can still engineer those feelings of nostalgia and sell our product. When you've got big giants like that who think actually we don't need to hire a cast crew, directors, yes, but in a very different way to before, does it suggest to you that others in the industry think actually the public won't mind or won't notice that actually this wasn't shot, filmed, acted, directed by individuals instead, AI. Yeah, I mean, it's a good point. But I think you already see now people are getting very savvy about it.

I was hearing something, my producing partner, Laura Fisher, has two boys, one like nine and seven. And they were able to tell her when something was an AI or not, like she see a video. And they said, no, the eyes this. And they were able to pick stuff out. So the good thing is like, you know, everybody growing up with it now is going to know what it is. You just, you hope that people don't lose their appreciation of an authentic, you know, experience or authentic, anything that's been captured on film. But, you know, I think people are much smarter than we give them credit for.

And you can fool them for a little bit and then people go, okay, enough. Yeah, but I think you might be right then. And I mean, what's so joyful, if you're going through all of the endless cat memes, just to use that as an example. My favorite thing to watch, by the way. My favorite thing to watch. Cats creating mayhem is hilarious. But when it's too perfect and too funny, you know it's AI.

And so, you know, we will keep that kind of consciousness about us, won't we? There's one doing the rounds at the moment of fat cats without jobs, you know, these two huge cats kind of falling off sofas and stuff. And whoever's done it has just made it too perfectly. You know, they're falling off the tops of doors and you just say, no, that doesn't happen. So you go on to the next thing very quickly. I'm just in I'm indulging myself now and I'm going to ask a proper question of you I promise I can talk cat videos all day too

Well that's what's your favorite cat video Paul Anything where a cat freaks out or jumps on something And it collapses and then they go nuts I think that's the funniest thing I just saw one where I Actually it was a not is a dog video but where it's this is so dumb We're talking about it A rooster brings a balloon into a room full of dogs And it pops and everyone goes crazy and it's really funny

and I hope it's real because it really made me laugh. I'm going to seek that out. I think we're doing valuable work here. Checking with a balloon. There you go. Do you worry that Hollywood won't be able to make films of conscience or question now in the same way that it used to because President Trump is doing something weird to voices of discontent, isn't he? Yeah.

Yeah, he's trying to silence them. But that will never work. That will not work. People will not put up with it. I mean, if you look at his polling, he's at the lowest, He's the lowest, I think any president has ever been since they started polling. So people are on to it. America is all about free speech.

And they can say, oh, you should shut that guy up. But the minute it turns on them, where they start to go, that's going too far. Trust me, they always rebel. But isn't there going to be a problem with distribution? I'm just thinking of The Apprentice, which is a film that was quite freely available in this country, which was detailing the early life of Donald Trump. I would imagine some of it was exaggerated. It was highly watchable.

It could not get the light of day in America, which is where films will fall down. Surely that's going to happen. Yeah, I mean, look, they did get distributed here, but it was by a smaller, brave distributor. I can't remember who it was, unfortunately. But no, look, they're always going to try to chill. This is what wannabe authoritarians like to do.

but again, people won't put up with it, and they're always going to find it. They can't shelve it. So, look, if it has to live on streaming, which is really depressing, because you want these things in theaters, so people can have a kind of a group experience with them. But, you know, once it exists,

that's the biggest thing, is just getting something to exist. And if you can keep making things, and they can't stop us from making things unless they find out at advance and send the army and doesn't, you know, take our cameras away. But I don't think that's going to happen. Well, you never know these days.

Yeah. And do you think that in the future, this period of time will be looked at how by filmmakers? Transitionary, I would dare say. But again, you know, theaters kind of got in trouble during COVID, and it's taken a while to come back. But it's coming back. I mean, if you look at the box office reports recently, people are coming back to theaters, but they're more discerning because it's really expensive to go to the movies. And I do think the studios should probably figure out a way to drop the prices a bit

because, you know, I was just talking to it when we did a premiere in New York and one of the workers at the theater was saying, yeah, I took my kids to see Zootopia 2 and it was like $100 for, you know, and it's, that's the problem, you know. That's one of the problems on top of just making sure that we're putting stuff in the theaters where you go like, okay, it's worth it to get out of my house and pack up the car and go and pay money for this. Yeah, we have exactly the same problem here. I think it's about 20 quid, isn't it? to go and see a movie at the moment.

So if you want to take a whole family, we're knocking up towards a three-figure sum, too. How are your cocktails? Do you have a current cocktail that you'd like to share the recipe with us ahead of this Christmas tide, Paul? Oh my gosh. Wow, I'm not ready for this. What are you drinking at the moment, Paul?

What are you drinking? I'm always drinking martinis, my friend. It's my drink of choice. I love it. I mean, you know, if it's Christmas time, you can put a little bit of peppermint schnaps in there just to give it a nice, a nice minty wash. I know heresy, I dare say. But if you want a little bit of Christmas

color in there, I wouldn't do it personally, but it can be done. Okay, a peppermint martini. Oh, good Lord. I know. Let's not even call it a martini. Let's call it a peppermint cocktail. Yeah, that'll do. In the shape of a martini. I was interested to report that your parents were teetotal. So who did you nick your first surreptitious bottles of booze from? it was my drama teacher in high school who was quite a quite a drinker and she would let her like star students come over to her apartment occasionally and then she would serve us alcohol so completely illegal exactly but uh you know that was many many years ago uh but yeah she she she i think burgeoned my love also i just watching old movies from the 30s and seeing

people drinking martinis and supper clubs like the thin man movies and all that that really got me wanting to be an adult who drinks cocktails okay that was such a dodgy story paul isn't it i know exactly call the authorities okay she's long gone she's long gone sadly thank goodness thank goodness right best christmas movie ever and you might be about to nominate one of your own here i would never do that although i'm very tempted to say last christmas ooh did i just do a plug yes i did um no my favorite it's uh it's corny everybody loves it or a apparently, but it's a wonderful life.

I do love that movie. To me, that movie is the perfect movie. It does everything that a Hollywood movie should do. It makes you happy, makes you sad, makes you cry, puts you through a whole range of emotions. I think it's wonderful. And can you carry on watching it over and over again and still get the same emotions from it?

Yeah, you know, it does get me. It does get me. Although a friend of mine, Clive, his mother, and they're British, she had never seen it before. and so we showed it to her and it ends and we're all kind of all sad and she goes so why do americans like this movie so much and it's like well i guess you didn't like you okay and the housemaid opens on boxing day in the uk when is it already in cinemas in america no it opens on the 19th here and then yeah boxing day there and i decided Sidney Sweeney was just in london and she was showing me sending me pictures of there's ads all over the buses so i'm very excited there certainly are there certainly are they are everywhere I was very lucky, and I had a sneak preview of it last night on a screener from Lionsgate. And honestly, I think it is a fantastic movie, especially for the Boxing Day mind. Because you put yourself down in front of it and you know you are just going to be entertained for 131 minutes.

And I like to say, too, because the holiday seasons are, let's not say, they're happy. They're very happy, but there is a tension that royals underneath families getting together. So you'll have that tension. You can't release a friend of your family. Go to this movie. You release it all in the theatre because you'll be yelling and screaming and everything, and then you'll feel much better when you come back to your family. Yeah, I mean, the family don't get on.

Should we just say that and leave me with that? There we go. Not all the time. Paul, what a pleasure to talk to you. Thank you so much indeed for joining us. A very merry Christmas to you and your family. And so you can see The House Made available in all your cinemas from, Boxing Day, and it's a hard recommend from me.

Yeah, it's a film so steeped into family dynamics tensions of which I'm sure there will be plenty at Christmas whether you need to escape them yourself on Boxing Day. Rosie, and then some. I hope nobody's family is like the Winchester family. Paul Feig, and you will be able to see The House Made in Cinemas from Boxing Day, and it really is a belter. I'm not the only person to have commented on the extraordinary lush, sumptuous, wonderful to look at internal decoration and stuff like that in the house that they filmed most of the house made in.

And it is just amazing. So even if you're not involved in the plot or you're just finding Sydney, Sweden, a little bit annoying or whatever it is, you can just have an absolute gorp at all of these marble-topped islands. I mean, they're just vast in American kitchens, aren't they? Absolutely vast.

That's why Megan has to have all of these fake friends around, isn't it? Because the kitchens are just too big. I quite like their fridges, though. Oh, their fridges are just to die for. And then they just have all of these rooms because, you know, the big American house is huge by comparison to our normal-sized family house in this country.

So they've got their boot rooms and their utility rooms. I mean, there's a whole utility room porn on Instagram for American washer dryers and stuff like that. So it is wonderful to look at. So you can just, you know, you can just go. and kind of be Kevin McLeod if you want to in the cinema

if you're not that into the book. But I would recommend the film, I think, for a Christmas movie. It ticks all of the boxes. So don't forget people's. We've got so much to look forward to next week. In at number one, Eve's haiku. About Christmas.

In at number two, Maggie O'Farrell is going to be on the podcast in January. I tried. We've got some guests for you next week and we've got a poem from Eve. Goodbye. Congratulations. You've staggered somehow to the end of another off-air with Jane and Fee.

Thank you. If you'd like to hear us do this live, and we do it live every day, Monday to Thursday two till four on times radio the jeopardy is off the scale and if you listen to this you'll understand exactly why that's the case uh so you can get the radio online on d a b or on the free times radio app off air is produced by eve salisbury and the executive producer is rosy cutler Thank you.