Sibling Revelry with Kate Hudson and Oliver Hudson - Blockbuster Brothers: James & Sean Gunn

Episode Date: July 7, 2025

The Gunn brothers are behind some of the highest-grossing superhero films in history, and now they are flying high as 'Superman' hits theaters. Hear how the creative geniuses behind the 'Guardians of the Galaxy' franchise are putting their stamp on the DC Comic character who started it all! Plus, what are their brotherly superpowers? What is their kryptonite? And can their vision of Clark Kent spur an even bigger appreciation for the 'Man of Steel?' See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an IHeart podcast. September is a great time to travel, especially because it's my birthday in September, especially internationally. Because in the past, we've stayed in some pretty awesome Airbnbs in Europe. Did we've one in France, we've one in Greece,

we've actually won in Italy a couple of years ago. Anyway, it just made our trip feel extra special. So if you're heading out this month, consider hosting your home on Airbnb with the co-host feature you can hire someone local to help manage everything. Find a co-host at Airbnb.ca slash host. I'm Jorge Ramos. And I'm Paola Ramos.

Together we're launching The Moment, a new podcast about what it means to live through a time, as uncertain as this one. We sit down with politicians, artists, and activists to bring you death and analysis from a unique Latino perspective. The Moment is a space for the conversations we've been having us father and daughter for years. Listen to The Moment with Jorge Ramos and Paola Ramos

on the IHeart Radio app, podcast or wherever you get your podcasts. I just normally do straight stand-up, but this is a bit different. What do you get when a true crime producer walks into a comedy club? Answer, a new podcast called Wisecrack, where a comedian finds himself at the center of a chilling true crime story. Does anyone know what show they've come to see? It's a story.

It's about the scariest night of my life. This is Wisecrack, available now. Listen to Wisecrack on the IHeart Radio app. Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. On a cold January day in 1995, 18-year-old Krista Pike killed 19-year-old Colleen Slemmer in the woods of Knoxville, Tennessee. Since her conviction, Krista has been sitting on death row. How does someone prove that they deserve to live? We are starting the recording now. Please state your first and last name. Krista Pike.

Listen to Unrestorable Season 2. Proof of Life on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. The murder of an 18-year-old girl in Graves County, Kentucky, went unsolved for years, until a local housewife, a journalist, and a handful of girls came forward with a story. America, y'all better work the hell up. Bad things happens to good people. and small towns. Listen to Graves County on the IHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast.

And to binge the entire season, add free, subscribe to Lava for Good Plus on Apple Podcast. Hi, I'm Kate Hudson. And my name is Oliver Hudson. We wanted to do something that highlighted our relationship. And what it's like to be siblings. We are a sibling rivalry. No, no.

Sibling reverie. Don't do that with your mouth. Sibling reverie. That's good. Okay, well, this is fun. We've got coming on, right now we have a... James and Sean. James and Sean Gunn.

I mean, what's a cool last name. Did James direct the episode Paul was in? I mean, the episode, the Guardians. I don't know. It's a good question. I'm not sure. Yeah, we've got to ask him that. Yeah, he's got SuperBan coming out.

He's an incredible director. I think he was married. married to Jenna Fisher for a minute, who I worked with. Oh, yeah. Yeah. And I'm excited to learn about how, you know, and I think Sean has been in a bunch of his movies. He's an actor, I think.

Let's just bring him on and talk to him. Hi. Hey, what's up? How are you? I'm good. Good. There's Sean Gunn. Hello, Sean.

Hey. So you guys grew, you guys grow, but the coolest last name ever. I mean, Jesus. A lot of pressure to become cool. Well, there was a source of a lot of puns in grade school and so forth. Tommy Gun, BB Gun, Ray Gun, everything. Yeah, son of a gun was a really hilarious one.

Yeah, yeah. Hey, we have some connections, guys. Oh, yeah. We have a few connections, you know? So, you know, we're friends with, blind friends with Meredith and Wyatt. Yes. Because Meredith was in a movie that I produced called Brightburn, and she's lovely, and I met Wyatt through her.

And then, Aliver, did we meet one time with Kurt? Well, yeah, because did you direct to his guardians? Yeah, I directed his guardians, and we met in passing somewhere for two seconds. Yeah, but then you were also married to Jenna. And I was also married to Jenna. Who I worked with for two years. That's right. That's right.

Yes. So, yes. So, yes. So we have many connections. A lot of connections. Jenna and I are still very close. She's a great person. I was talking to her yesterday for a long time.

I know the buck, all the bucks. Yep. Yeah, yeah, it's all the St. Louis connections. Everyone knows everyone. But you had a really big family. Yeah, we have a big family. There are, well, there's four siblings between me and Sean. Yeah, we're bookends.

Really? Oh, really? They're sick. And a sister who passed away. So there would have been five between us. And yeah, yeah, there's seven years between us. We had eight kids or six kids, seven kids in seven years. Wow.

Well, I didn't have them. My parents had them. Wow. Okay, so let's get into that. Okay, go ahead, Kay. So what, so like, so what was your family like? What are your mom and your dad? So how old, first old was your mom when she had?

Are you the first one? I'm the first one. she was 25 when I was born and so you know she was yeah she was 33 when I was yeah yeah so by the time she was 33 she had 7 yeah not quite 6 yeah not quite she was 32 a month yeah yeah yeah 32 yeah and she had all of us in that time we have two siblings that like my how far are Patrick and then Beth are like 11 yeah you're familiar with an Irish twin where there's if there's less than 12 months that separates, you know, siblings, they call them an Irish twin.

My sister, Beth, is an Irish twin on both sides. So she, she, so like, our brother Patrick was born, you know, 11 months before her. And then our brother Brian was born, was born 10 months after her. Yeah, she was born in February. And then Brian, who was born with a twin, had was born in December. yeah they were women women who have families like this are just they're like superhero i can't even imagine like i have three right i couldn't imagine having yeah like and then and then raising them well at some point i'm deshaun did you eventually have to like just fend for yourself it's like i've

done this a million times like you're good i think at some point you know there's like a little bit of a pack mentality takes over and we're like our our mom is doing so much work raising everybody but we're but my older siblings also started to help share the load so i'm also getting um you know help and advice and things like this from all of all of my older siblings um so yeah it's not like i felt neglected by my parents but i also i felt very much, you know, that my older siblings were very much part of my upbringing. Were there some older siblings that were more nurturing than others, you know? You want me to name names? Yeah, I do.

That's what this podcast is about. List us from most, most of the least, most of it. Yeah, list. Yeah, just who you love the most. Let's start with who did not give a shit about Sean. I was going to say, can we start with the worst. Can we go from the bottom of?

He's the next he's the next oldest from me. So he, you know, like he's not doing his share of, of the work raising me. If anything, he's picking on me too much.

No, you know, honestly, it's like the, it's very interesting being the youngest in a big family like this because I have little

different things that I've, that I've learned from each one of my siblings. And, and, And, you know, I could I could go through and parse it all out. But I feel like there are elements of all of them in my personality, which is sort of a strange feeling. Mm-hmm.

Mm-hmm. You're a mix. I'm an amalgamation. What line of work were your parents in? My dad was a lawyer and my mother was a homemaker. My mother to glean the house obsessively with six kids. always completely spotless. Wow. And my next-door neighbor never saw my mother without full makeup on until she was probably

in her 60s. Wow. Wow. So just like on fire. Mom's tight. Mom's intense. Mom's intense. Taipei like was very structured households. No, not really because we kind of were left to our own devices. We just kind of did what we wanted. And I think it was a unique environment to grow up in because, we were each other you know there were six kids we were very close and we played together a lot and we laughed together a lot and i think other families are sort of competitive in terms of you know academics or sports or things like that and for us it really was just making each other laugh like that was so humor humor was a very big sort of important piece of incredibly that that was

absolutely all we did was make each other humor and and and sharing sharing pop culture, sharing movies, sharing music, sharing TV shows. And yes, to repeat what James said, it's like, I think if there was anything really unique about our family, it's that we, for whatever reason, we were not competitive with one another, and still aren't to this day. I think we always rooted for one another completely. What would you attribute that to, or is it just genetics in the way it is? Or was there something else?

I don't know for Sean, but for me, I, My dad and his siblings were a little bit competitive, and I saw that as a really kid, a young kid, and it made me incredibly sad because they were this close family and everybody loved each other, but there was some competition among them in terms of, they were all lawyers. And my dad was very successful, and they were all different levels of success, but it made me feel sad. And I think that affected me from an early age, and that I, just never felt like that with with my with my siblings you know and also to like I I agree with that and I'm not even even though my dad was part of it I'm not sure he liked it so much no um being competitive with his siblings and so I think that he um he actively would have would have liked to foster that change in in his own kids you know um that uh you know our parents

were really cool. They had a lot to deal with and they made a lot of mistakes but I think they learned from their mistakes frequently, which is pretty amazing. And I would assume that they were as funny as you guys were and they wanted to make you laugh as much

as you guys wanted to make each other laugh. Yeah, they're funny. My mom is very funny. Yeah, my mother's very funny. She's Riley funny. My father was always funny But my father had this big heart. He was just this emotional guy, and he had a lot of issues growing up, and he changed and got better as he got older, which is how I think he impressed me the most,

was somebody who was open to change. And he got sober and changed a lot. Like later on in his life, meaning he- Later on in his life. Yeah, I mean, he quit drinking at a certain age, and then he quit doing other chemicals and stuff at a later age. And he just, and he, you know, he started out very close. minded about things and then, you know, years later, he's, he's, he's, he's incredibly open

minded and very supportive. It's interesting, like, as a child of someone who is dealing with some substance stuff, you know, as you get older, how to relate to your, that, that parent, you know, because you want to be a nurture, you want to help at the same time, there might be some disdain or some anger. Yeah. You know, yeah. I don't know how old you guys were. Well, I got, I got sober when I was very young and I went through rehab and at that time my dad then had to be a part of like these family groups and he would come in and Sean would come in and he was a kid at the time and and that's my dad got then went through rehab himself and then my brother went through and then my other brother and so it was you know and we've all nobody's ever relapsed in all those years you

sort of kicked that off yeah essentially oh yeah yeah yeah definitely yeah that's that's pretty Oh, I love, but that's, like, said, again, that just shows, like, how close all of you are that, that you going through that process was became your dad kind of looking at himself. I mean, that must have been. Yeah, I think it was. I think it was also because my dad had quit drinking and went to AA for a short while, but he was still using a ton of, this is, I, he's, he's passed away, so I'm not like, you know, and he would, actually, he would love the fact that I'm sharing this story. that he was on tons of prescription drugs, tons. And he was, you know, he was a lawyer, but he represented doctors, and so he had access to anything he wanted.

And I think when he went, when I went through treatment, he saw that all of those things were connected. And his prime addiction was not alcohol. His prime addiction was drugs and pills. And so that, you know, led him to make a change. And I think he didn't really see it. that before he thought he was an alcoholic who quit drinking yeah that's that's that's really interesting you know and it was and from my perspective like i was i'm right at the age where for james

he had gone you know he james got sober when he was young but he was still at least a young adult you know who had uh you know was in his you're 18 19 yeah yeah but i mean and so i was i was 11 or whatever or 12. And so I saw it from, like, the other, the other side of it. And I had a, you know, even though we're very close in age, I had a different father at the ages of 15 and 16 than James had. Yeah, there's a very big difference in the first half and the second half of the family. Yeah, we talk about this a lot. This happened.

In our podcast, it's been so interesting because we've interviewed so many people. people that have, especially when there's an age difference, like how different the parenting was and that their experience was just completely different. Yeah, raised by almost two different people. Yeah. And so my family was more dysfunctional than Sean's family in a way. And my family was definitely less well off than Sean's family was. So my dad started to make more money because he was 25 when I was born. So he was a young lawyer. He was, you know, making, he was surviving he bought a house and but i was you know first lived in an apartment and then a very small

house and then we moved out to the suburbs in the house where my parents still live and um that or my mom still lives um but it they got you know they just had a lot more patrick and i had to work i paid for my college it was just a much different situation for me than for matt and sean so sean you didn't have to pay for college right yeah no i'm nodding by the way you can't see me nodding. That's true. And I'll tell you the truth, I wouldn't have paid for college. I would have just, I don't know where I would have landed. September always feels like the start of something new, whether it's back to school, new projects, or just a fresh season. It's the perfect time to start dreaming about your next

adventure. I love that feeling of possibility, thinking about where to go next, what kind of place will stay in and how to make it feel like home. I'm already imagining the kind of Airbnb that would make the trip unforgettable somewhere with charm character and a little local flavor. If you're planning to be away this September, why not consider hosting your home on Airbnb while you're gone? Your home could be the highlight of someone else's trip, a cozy place to land, a space that helps them feel like a local. And with Airbnb's co-host feature, you can hire a local co-host to help with everything managing bookings to making sure your home is guest ready. Find a co-host at Airbnb.ca slash host. I'm Jorge Ramos. And I'm Paola Ramos. Together we're launching The Moment, a new podcast about

what it means to live through a time, as uncertain as this one. We sit down with politicians. I would be the first immigrant mayor in generations, but 40% of New Yorkers were born outside of this country. Artists and activists, I mean, do you ever feel demoralized? I might personally lose hope. This individual might lose the faith, but there's an institution that doesn't lose faith. And that's what I believe in. To bring you depth and analysis from a unique Latino perspective.

There's not a single day that Paola and I don't call or text each other, sharing news and thoughts about what's happening in the country. This new podcast will be a way to make that ongoing intergenerational conversation public. Listen to The Moment with Jorge Ramos and Paola Ramos, as part of the My Cultura Podcast Network on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. My name is Ed. Everyone say, hello, Ed. I'm from a very rural background myself.

My dad is a farmer, and my mom is a cousin. What do you get when a true crime producer walks into a comedy club? I know it sounds like the start of a bad joke, but that really was my reality nine years ago. I just normally do straight stand-up, but this is a bit different. On stage stood a comedian with a story that no one expected to hear. Well, 22nd of July 2015, a 23-year-old man had killed his family. And then he came to my house.

So what do you get when a true crime producer walks into a comedy club? A new podcast called Wisecrack, where stand-up comedy and murder takes center stage. Available now. Listen to Wisecrack on the IHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is a tape recorder statement. The person being interviewed is Krista Gail Pike. This is in regards to the death of a Colleen slimmer. She started going off on me, and I hit her.

I just hit her and hit her and hit her and hit her. On a cold January day in 1995, 18-year-old. year old Krista Pike killed 19-year-old Colleen Slemmer in the woods of Knoxville, Tennessee. Since her conviction, Krista has been sitting on death row. The state has asked for an execution date for Krista. We let people languish in prison for decades, raising questions about who we consider fundamentally unrestorable. How does someone prove that they deserve to live?

We are starting the recording now. Please state your first and last name. Krista Pike. Listen to Unrestorable Season 2, Proof of Life, on the IHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. All I know is what I've been told, and that's a half-truth is a whole lie. For almost a decade, the murder of an 18-year-old girl from a small town in Graves County, Kentucky, went unsubes. solved until a local homemaker, a journalist, and a handful of girls came forward with a story.

I'm telling you, we know Quincy Kilder, we know. A story that law enforcement used to convict six people, and that got the citizen investigator on national TV. Through sheer persistence and nerve, this Kentucky housewife helped give justice to Jessica Curran. My name is Maggie Freeling. I'm a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, producer, and I wouldn't be here if the truth were that easy to find. I did not know her and I did not kill her or rape or burn or any of that other stuff

that y'all said. They literally made me say that I took a match and struck and threw it on her. They made me say that I poured gas on her. From Lava for Good, this is Graves County, a show about just how far our legal system will go in order to find someone to blame. I reckon y'all better work the hell up.

Bad things happens to good people in small towns. Listen to Graves County in the Bone Valley feed on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. And to binge the entire season ad-free, subscribe to Lava for Good Plus on Apple Podcasts. this is just interesting like if you could have self-analysis as to sort of how you guys are different based on how you were raised and how different that might be you know what did like james what did you might gain that sean didn't sean what did you gain maybe james didn't know is there a grit that you have james that sean didn't you know is there a security that shon has that james I think my desperation is more than Sean's, which is a, you know, desperation and ambition

go hand in hand for me. And so those things are very connected. But I also, I also think that, you know, and they talk about this a lot in psychology, that the biggest determining factor of any person's psychology is their birth order and how they are among their peers. And Sean and I are oldest and youngest of a large family. And I also know, and Sean and I are very close to this day and we've worked together more than any of the other siblings and we really rarely ever have any sort of conflict and it's like those two those most of my friends in my life are like the youngest of large families there's those something about those two we make up completely different parts of the personality spectrum yeah and I would say that um you know

it's definitely true like if you reverse engineer this it's definitely true that changes always kind of worked harder than I have as a as a professional and out in the world. Like he's more, first of all, working less than James is a low bar to clear. He's a crazy,

he works like a maniac all the time. But I also, I have less, I have less drive and less focus in some ways, which is maybe partially informed by our birth order, but there's also, you know,

there's tons of factors. Yeah, there's personality, too. I mean, it's just, genetics, where do you land? Yeah, well, I mean, look, if we just, if we just go off of your backgrounds right now, it's easy to tell. You know what I mean?

Like, you've got the bar, you're in Mexico. We've got, we've got some amazing pains in your cat and, you know, James is at his desk. Church Hill, I don't know. Taft. Taft. That's Taft. Sorry, that's tapped, yeah.

So who introduced you to the arts? I think it was going, well, my parents. I mean, my parents. My brothers. Yeah, yeah, that's true. For me, it's my older brothers. Yeah. I'm sorry, go on.

My parents brought me to movies when I was very little. And like, I just, I mean, I love the magic of the movies. We always, like, we were raised by the television, like a lot of kids in the 80s. You know, it's just. And we also. were and we all they also took us to plays in theater and they love we we grew up with the love of theater and musicals and things like that so my parents my grandparents met on sort of a vaudeville they were you know my grandfather was a lawyer and his you know his his wife was a homemaker

but they met acting on the vaudeville on like this sort of off vaudeville circuit when they were young and um and so it's in our blood it was always my dad acted in plays you know in high cool it was always in our blood show business it just was it was like it was like the recessive gene and then somehow it became dominant in our family because you know all of our my sister is a lawyer but the five brothers are all in the entertainment industry you know my brother brian is a screenwriter who's written a bunch of movies my brother matt uh has been one of the main writers on the bill marr show for the past 20 years that's amazing favorite show on tv and uh And then my other brother, Patrick, sort of on the business side of film.

He's, you know. No one knows what Patrick does. Yeah, nobody. We don't, you know, I try to explain. Is he in business affairs? He's like, yeah. My earliest memories in some ways are of going to, like, going to see theater in this, like, small repertory company down in Lake Ozark, Missouri, and being a little kid and watching,

watching plays and feeling like I want to be up there I'm going to be up there on the stage performing yeah yeah that was like a weird thing

that's experiences yeah I talk about that because everybody's always like you know when did you know it's like I'm not so sure it's not even like did you know it's like no that you it's like

you're like drawn to a stage it's literally like oh you're like no that's where I need I need to go there I feel exactly the same way. It's like when people say, when did you know? It's like, no, it's, you're getting in the wrong order. When did I?

Yeah. Like I knew before I knew. Like my consciousness like fully developed. Do you guys have any recollection of the moment where it was like, holy shit, like this, whatever I've just watched has inspired me to say, bang, this is what I want to do with my life. I think I can say that in different ways. but for me, a way in which Sean and I are incredibly different is that Sean decided at the age of seven or whatever that he was going to be an actor.

And he never wavered from that. He never thought. And whereas I was always just more of an artist and I was kind of like, however it's going to happen, it's going to happen. And, you know, I played in rock bands. That was like the main thing I did when I was younger. But I drew comic strips that were published all over the place. I did, you know, I acted.

What did you play? Do you play guitar? I sang. I sang in a band. I sang in a couple bands. Yeah, the icons in the pods. People can go listen to the icons. And here are thousands of views.

But I've also written a bunch of songs. You know, I have a song coming up in Superman, but I also have written songs for a bunch of different places. Cool. And so, yeah, so I was more of just like, I just liked entertaining in telling stories in show business. And however it worked out, I was going to be happy because I'm just happy spending my day being creative.

And I don't really care how. And I happen to be good at directing. Like, I kind of fell into it, you know, in a weird way. Like, this is my backup job. This is my directing is plan B. Plan A was playing in bands. And then I sort of fell into the film industry. But at the same time, it's hard to say that

because I started making movies when I was 11 years old. Wait, James, we have a similar thing. My plan A just never even happened because I just started getting, I was like my plan it was always to sing Oh yeah I always wanted to sing and write I write music

But of course I was like you Like I just wanted you know Anything creative anything Perform performance But I wanted to be on a stage And then I just started getting movies And I was like well I guess I'm

Yeah because you were so young when you started acting I was so young Yeah It was 20 or 19 Yeah that's crazy That's crazy That's cool Wow

but uh you're like the female eddie murphy and this is what i this is what i mean by that i'm sure you've heard that many many times yeah because i'm always it's a little less so now but eddie murphy seems to have been around since i was a little child yeah and he's not that old he was around since he was 19 you know and you're still so young and yet you've been around for so long you know it's like it's these people that you're so surprised i had this i did this like retrospective the other day and it like i like shocked to myself i was like oh my god like i was i was i started so young that i think people think i'm like 65 years exactly there are people there are many actors um there are actors your age getting their first stab at something i mean i know i'm like

it makes me really happy and like I was just thinking about it today like I did I actually like my show did really well and I was like thank God I'm still working like I thanks I I I'm just grateful that it's still going you know okay so what was so what was like did you have a definitive movie that was like your all the kids were like like you went home and like you put like your imagination went wild I love this question it's so good what is because there's There's a couple of them, yeah. Yeah, there's a couple. I mean...

Do you want to name a couple that come to mind for me? Star Wars? Yeah. Well, yeah, okay, that's... I mean, come on. Star Wars, yeah, yeah. Of course. I was jumping ahead a few years from that, but because I was two...

I was three when Star Wars came. Okay, yeah, yeah. Greece? Greece. Greece. Yeah. Because we used to perform summer nights and for our older families. Yeah.

Yeah, with me. and my sister is kind of creepy but yeah if you skip ahead a few years like to win to win

you James was more of it like early teens but I was also getting a little older there's movies like the Flamingo Kid and like Bertie and

the Wanderers the Wanderers yeah like these movies I'm going more like artists like what makes you want to be like the oh that's art you know when you're like eight nine years old and you're like i'm looking

at art yeah stand by me was like i remember watching standby well first of all i was in love with every single one of those boys but yeah but i just remember watching river phoenix and i remember this scene where he was crying about his life and i was like i need to be in like a female stand when were you old enough to appreciate the older classic incredible movies as a director and as an actor when you're watching, like... For me, as a kid, I remember watching on PBS when I was probably 13 the Humphrey Bogart film festival

and it played nonstop over a weekend and I watched it the whole thing and fell in love with those older, you know, Humphrey Bogart movies. And then that led into like Preston Sturges, who I still would say is like my biggest influence. and, you know, all these, you know, but also all the Altman films, you know, McCabe and Mrs. Miller, long goodbye, all of that stuff. We just, we always had a love for that stuff from a pretty young age.

I saw Chinatown and the Godfather. And when I was like eight years old, I saw those movies because my, because I had the older siblings and I got to, got to see movies like that. And then by the time I was just a little bit older, I had siblings in college when I, I was still in middle school, and I was getting introduced to, like, Chaplin and Keaton and pressing surges, and just always took on as much as I could. I think for me it was seeing Bonnie and Clyde for the first time, and it was on TV when I was very young, and when they get, you know, rattled with bullets at the end of the movie, spoiler, sorry, I should have said that first.

I was like, holy cow, a movie can do anything. It can end in any way. It can take any twister turn because until then, I had really only seen Disney movies. I don't know what my dad was even letting me watch this movie for. And it was just, it was so incredible. And so Bonnie and Clyde was a huge one for me, you know. So interesting, isn't it? Because, like, movies can completely change your life.

I mean, I know that sounds really dramatic. But I feel like it, it's like the movies that really, if you're a creative person and you, you want enter a world of storytelling, right? Like, there are certain, like, Bonnie and Clyde would have never been that movie for me, right? Right.

But it was for, but like, for me, like, when I saw, you know, postcards from the edge or Terms of Endearment,

it was like, it was like, oh my God, this movie. Like, terms of endearment was like, you can make stuff like, like,

it's so hard to make people feel that way and to have that emotional experience in a film you know for me it was like some like summer school with mark harman oh my god i saw that movie so many times yeah can i can i make a detour and oh gosh i i don't know if i say that but i won't i don't want to name names but when i first moved to hollywood one i like one of the actors from that movie um i i bumped into in the middle of the day in a bar and he was really not in great shape and he was just talking about how Hollywood would spit me up and swallow me out like swallow me up and spit me out and then I should quit now and move back to

Chicago right? A true Hollywood story from one of the summer schools. Oh that is so funny. Oh, that's so funny. Kirk by the way, the thing was a huge movie. Oh, that's a big gun family movie. It's one of my favorite movies ever. It's one of my favorite movies of all time. It's truly an incredible movie. It's astonishing and it's one that I saw when I was, like, I was just young enough that it made a massive impression on me, but old enough that it didn't scare the

daylights out of me too much. Also, John Carpenter. That was one of his best. That movie's amazing. Yeah. Yeah. I got to work with him when I first came to town. My brother, Brian and I pitched a TV idea to John Carpenter that he wanted to do.

And I don't know, I remember what happened. I got distracted. and we're not going to do something else. He was my first big audition. The thing is one of those rare movies that holds up better is what, not only as a hold up, it's like almost better now than it was when it came out. Oh, yeah.

Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Oh, well, the themes in it are evergreen. You know, it's, it's, you'll never, the themes of the thing. Just that those can just play throughout time. And just the increasing paranoia also, also, also. No, you can't trust anyone, you know. Also, the sense of humor, that great, like, moment when the head is, you know, crawling across the floor and the guy just looks and goes, you've got to be fucking fucking.

It's like the best. Yeah, that's the best. That's so good. September always feels like the start of something new, whether it's back to school, new projects, or just a fresh. season. It's the perfect time to start dreaming about your next adventure. I love that feeling of possibility, thinking about where to go next, what kind of place we'll stay in, and how to make it feel like home. I'm already imagining the kind of Airbnb that would make the trip unforgettable,

somewhere with charm, character, and a little local flavor. If you're planning to be away this September, why not consider hosting your home on Airbnb while you're gone? Your home could be the highlight of someone else's trip, a cozy place to land, a space that helps them feel like a local. And with Airbnb's co-host feature, you can hire a local co-host to help with everything from managing bookings to making sure your home is guest ready. Find a co-host at Airbnb.combe.combe. I'm Jorge Ramos. And I'm Paola Ramos. Together we're launching The Moment, a new podcast about what it means to live through a time as uncertain as this one. We sit down with politicians.

I would be the first immigrant mayor in generations, but 40% of New Yorkers were born outside of this country. Artists and activists, I mean, do you ever feel demoralized? I might personally lose hope. This individual might lose the faith, but there's an institution that doesn't lose faith. And that's what I believe in. To bring you depth and analysis from a unique Latino perspective.

There's not a single day that Paola and I don't call or text each other. sharing news and thoughts about what's happening in the country. This new podcast will be a way to make that ongoing intergenerational conversation public. Listen to The Moment with Jorge Ramos and Paola Ramos as part of the MyCultura podcast network on the IHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. My name is Ed. Everyone say hello, Ed. Hello, Ed. I'm from a very rural background myself. My dad is a farmer, and my mom is a cousin, so, like, it's not like...

What do you get when a true crime producer walks into a comedy club? I know it sounds like the start of a bad joke, but that really was my reality nine years ago. I just normally do straight stand-up, but this is a bit different. On stage stood a comedian with a story that no one expected to hear. The 22nd of July 2015, a 23-year-old man had killed his family. And then he came to my house.

So what do you get when a true crime producer walks into a comedy club? A new podcast called Wisecrack, where stand-up comedy and murder takes center stage. Available now. Listen to Wisecrack on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is a tape recorder statement. The person being interviewed is Krista Gail Pike. This is in regards to the death of a Colleen. Slammer.

She started going off on me, and I hit her. I just hit her and hit her and hit her and hit her. On a cold January day in 1995, 18-year-old Krista Pike killed 19-year-old Colleen Slemer in the woods of Knoxville, Tennessee. Since her conviction, Krista has been sitting on death row. The state has asked for an execution date for Krista. We let people languish in prison for decades,

raising questions about who we consider fundamentally unrestorable. How does someone prove that they deserve to live? We are starting the recording now. Please state your first and last name. Krista Pike. Listen to Unrestorable Season 2, Proof of Life, on the IHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. All I know is what I've been told, and that's a half-truth is a whole lie.

For almost a decade, the murder of an 18-year-old girl from a small town in Graves County, Kentucky, went unsolved, until a local homemaker, a journalist, and a handful of girls came forward with a story. I'm telling you, we know Quincy Kilder, we know. A story that law enforcement used to convict six people, and that got the citizens. investigator on national TV. Through sheer persistence and nerve, this Kentucky housewife helped give justice to Jessica Curran.

My name is Maggie Freeling. I'm a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, producer, and I wouldn't be here if the truth were that easy to find. I did not know her and I did not kill her, or rape or burn, or any of that other stuff that y'all said. They literally made me say that I took a match

and struck and threw it on her. They made me say that I put it. Or guess on her. From Lava for Good, this is Graves County, a show about just how far our legal system will go in order to find someone to blame. America, y'all better work the hell up. Bad things happens to good people in small towns. Listen to Graves County in the Bone Valley feed on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And to binge the entire season ad-free, subscribe to Lava for Good Plus on Apple Podcasts.

Were you guys like us in the sense like you'd get inspired and then you'd make your movies? Like did you ever? Yeah, no, I started making movies when I was 11. Yeah. Sean was often the star of these movies. This is what we did the same thing. One of the first things I did was have my brother, Matt, you know, I liked, I saw Night of Living Dead, which was like blew my mind because it seems like you can make a movie

for $2. And that in Friday the 13th and those movies, I started seeing those in my, you know, when I was 11, 12, 13. And so I started trying to make these like slasher movies and they didn't go very far. And I made animated movies with Playmobile figures and Sean was in that. He killed my brother Patrick. There was always death. Always death. Oh, yeah. My best friend and my now producing partner as well, you know,

what's always a director as well. But that's all we did was make movies. And it was slasher based. We were obsessed with horror. We were obsessed with Friday the 13th, and I'm on Elm Street. And I spent on your grave and all those blockbuster titles that we used to go in and being like, oh, my God, you know.

Were you shooting on Super 8 or what were you shooting? No, we had, we had, well, yeah, we had, we had, we had, We had those big VHS cameras that were like fucking this big. We got filters. We had this. We all was all in camera editing. You know, it was like, shit, like erase it. Go stop it right there.

And then we'd tape over it. I mean, that's how we sort of did. And then we would have blood and knives and latex. All the things. Yeah, yeah. And we would do these things where we would put in a Ziploc bag, we'd mix like a blood mixture and water. And then we'd put it under a shirt. And then we'd cut little holes in.

and take fucking fireworks and put it in the thing and light it and the guy, the actors with the gun going like you can see the thing and he's like what could go wrong?

What could go wrong? He's like, ah, fuck, blah, blah, blah. That's realistic. Yeah. We're sitting and we're talking about it. It makes me sad

that our kids don't get to have the experience of, like, having to make their imagination, like, to actually get their imagination to, like, work with their hands to create these things versus, like, it in their phone. I mean, I, my friends in high school were called the splicers because we made Super 8 films and we each had our own little, you know, editing bay, the little tiny scenes. And we, I would cut and splice. my own movie so I would edit on actual 8mm film and on when it was when it was super 8 and it was

video it was hard because the film strip goes further than the uh um the picture so it was always really uh you know it was fun and I had just fell in with this group of kids that all did the same thing you should do a passion project cold splicers it's going to be a horror movie on super 8 and you're You're going to splice the whole. No, the murder weapon is an actual little splicer where they just like slit people's little jugular. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I mean, I came in my first movie ever. We actually cut on film.

That's the only movie I've ever cut on film. And it was because it was in a low-budget studio. I mean, Avid was already the way people were cutting things. What was that movie? It was a movie called Tromeo and Juliet. How many films have you done now? That's a classic. Directed.

Oh, directed? I think this is A. Okay. This is A. But I've written, like, I don't know how many movies. I was just talking about Tromeo and Juliet last night because I was in that movie and I was telling the story of how my character gets punched in the nose. Oh, yeah.

And how I actually got punched in the nose and the sound, the popping sound you hear in the movie when I get punched is the actual sound. my nose breaking it actually broke it was a blast yeah yeah it was it was it was good times it was our friend val yes yeah trauma if you don't know is the oldest independent film company in the world and they've been around for i don't know 50 60 years now and they they they create all sex and violence very low budget movies and that's where how i got my start in filmmaking was writing the screenplay for Tremio and Juliet for $150

and then and then just became involved in the movie and sort of just inserted myself until I was directing actors and you know

choreographing sex scenes and and all of that stuff and brought all my friends in like Sean and my friend Val or friend Val to act in it and yeah and it's still it played for a year in theaters isn't it

isn't that so great know, we'll talk about Superman in a second, but obviously you're doing these big-ass action movies and there's the artists and you will always be there. But there's also this sort of, not sadness, but how free it all was, where you could just go do whatever the hell you wanted to do. But I'll be on a, I'd get more free now. I definitely. Definitely because I can do anything I want. No, I know, but you've reached that point, right, to where that studio is not going to fuck with you really and you can kind of do whatever you want. I know, but I'm an idiot.

I've always treated myself like that. Like, I've never, I've always, every movie I've made is a movie that I've directed. Now, writing is a different story. Writing was pretty hellish for me because I'd have to write and turn it over. And then sometimes I got a good director and sometimes I didn't. And it would be, it's so frustrating. No, I know. I know.

Yeah, I guess it's not. Yeah, go ahead. But as a director, like, I could imagine, like, when I made super, my, you know, my second film I directed, I had all these action sequences in my head that I wanted. that I wanted to do that I couldn't afford to do, you know? And so I can do all of that with Superman. I could do all that with Guardians of the Galaxy, you know? And then I go and I do TV, so I do like the Peacemaker series,

which, you know, comes to second season in August. And I can do, that's like as, you know, R-rated as we want it to be and has action and drama and comedy and everything. And there's no rules to that whatsoever. That's pretty great. I get that. I know what you're saying. I guess what I think you get.

You, you, when you have like a really clear vision, too, I would assume that you end up working with the people and the executives and people in the studio system that like, you know, that you trust, that trust you back. So you have sort of a nice, you know. Yeah. I think I always survived in the Hollywood system by being the non-squee wheel. So even from the first movie I directed Slither, I'm very influenced by the thing. no even from that movie from that movie forward I just was always responsible under budget made my

days made sure the dailies look good and there was always another in marvel same thing there was always another project that was causing more problems that the studio was involved in and so I never had I never have ever had any interference

whatsoever from any studio I've ever worked with so I hear all the time people talking about studio interference and getting upset with that, and I know it exists. I have friends that's happened to, but it just never has happened to me. I've always been able to do my thing, and I'm incredibly fortunate in that respect. But I also choose good, I'm really good at choosing people, whether it's people that work for me or whether it's partners that I'm going to, you know, like, you know, dealing with, you know, Kevin Feigy at Marvel or, you know, Dylan

Clark on my first movie Slither or whoever it is at the studio, who I'm dealing with. I'm good at that as well. I think that's such a good lesson for people who really have strong drive and vision to want to be, to work with people. Like I think so many people are like, well, how did you succeed or how do you get, like to actually be someone who shows up, says what they're going to do, gets, like, gets it done on time, on budget, creates like not, doesn't, doesn't, isn't the problem, isn't the, isn't the problem maker, but always. is the problem solver. Yeah, yeah.

It's a lot easier said than done. Like I think... It is. Yeah, it's easier. But I think the other thing that I think is necessary for a filmmaker is listening to people, you know? So a studio exec comes in and they tell you their ideas. Now, there's those people out there that take it all as a word of God and do whatever

they want. And that leads to issues, you know? And then there's other people that are like, nope, fuck off. And then it's, then they are a problem. But if you can sincerely listen to someone, consider the idea people sense that in you. They know that you're listening and considering what they're saying. And then you have the ability to say, if you're honest, say, listen, I thought about it, but I don't think it works as well as what I'm thinking because of this and this and this.

They usually are very amen. You know, they listen to that. And having that relationship is important. That's cool. And I think when you're the listener, like, you know, that people, will be incredibly respectful when they know you're taking in everything and that you're honoring everything they're bringing to the table. Yes.

That when it comes time for you to say this is what you need. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. And also, you know what? It's just good for you as a filmmaker. I mean, we look at these great filmmakers of the 70s and a few of them kept making good

movies but most of them made a couple good movies yeah and then made shit yeah and i don't know what the reason for that is some people just don't like they you're a man that is a part of society and you listen to other people and you go to work and you buy milk and then all of a sudden you're in this place where you're not connected to other people and then people bring you ideas and you're like no i'm the greatest i'm going to do whatever i want and you get eaten up by that and it's so it would be so easy for me to make a movie without listening to anyone

and it would be to the detriment of the film itself. And I think that some of this is how you, is how people identify as artists that like the, you know, we're all artists, but for some people, to them being an artist means it's

all my vision and that's all my vision all the time as though they're a painter or something like that. And they forget the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the idea that film and television and, you know, storytelling is a collaborative art. So it has to be, you can't just be the person who's,

you know, has a singular vision all the time, but it's a great point because you're actually, you're actually leading into what I was actually going to say, which is working with actors and egos and, you know, situations where, you know, there are collaborative sort of disagreements,

potentially. do you navigate that world? I can't deal with it. You know, I can deal with actors who are difficult, but if they are disrespectful to people or they're trying to assert authority over the directorial vision, it's just not, it won't happen. Some actors have a lot of questions. I just dealt with Superman.

Both David and Rachel have a lot of questions. Your dad has a ton of questions. So many questions. The most questioning actor I've ever. Oh, my God. Totally. But they're good to the, they're good to the crew. They're good to people.

You know, your dad was so nice and so good to people. He's constantly putting that son of a bitch Chris Pratt in his place. Yeah. And there's a great story about your dad where Chris is like, Chris is, and by the way, Chris Brad's one of my best friends. Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah. Chris was in the trailer and he's, you know, we just finished shooting for the day. And he's sitting there, and he's going through his post-shooting routine with, like, the cucumber, literally, cucumbers in his eyes and getting all his face, the makeup taken off his face and all the little, you know, pieces of the costume and is getting, you know, getting taken apart after.

By the way, he took it. Chris Pratt took more time than Dave Batista to get ready every morning. Oh, Dave, the best. He's the best. He's the best. And so they, oh, that's right.

You worked with him on Glass Island. Well, add Chris. Yeah. Oh, yeah. So Chris is, he's getting taken apart.

Your dad comes into the trailer. He's getting his, you know, he's getting his makeup off or his beard or whatever he had on. And, and he's like, you know, Chris goes to your dad.

He says, uh, you know, what time is call time tomorrow to Kurt. Um, and, and he goes, and Kurt says, you know, Kurt says, oh, I think it's at whatever, 7 a.m.

And that was like 11 and a half hours from the time. And he goes, what, what are we, you know, he says, you know, he says, yeah, we're off the clock a half hour ago. And Chris says, what, I'm not working now? And your dad goes, oh, this is working. Oh, look at how hard you're working. I want to talk about Superman, but what's it like directing your brother? Sean was to like being directed by your brother.

Has there ever been pushed back where Sean's like, yo, like James, no, this, that's, they can't do that. Only on Humansy. You know, yeah, that's right. That lets that talk about that. Well, I would say, first of all, the fact that he's the oldest of six and I'm the youngest of six helps, you know, that helps the dynamic on set. There's an idea of like, of like, you're not really.

the boss of me, but you're kind of the boss of me that is, that I think is that I think is useful for our jobs on set, and it's like it's just comfortable. It's like he's a

director and I'm an actor and it's always been that way. So us working together, we slip right into our roles quite easily. And I, you know,

you know, part of my whole philosophies and actors is that once I do my work with my character, once I'm on set, I'm a soldier. So I'm like, I'm doing whatever this, whatever the story takes once I'm there. And I think James actually really respects, you know, not just me, but actors who are like that. And so I've always felt like collaborating with James

is actually easier than with anyone else I've ever really worked with. I love that. think I've ever heard anybody say it like that. Like I'm like a soul, I'm like a soldier on set. I feel similar. Like I always feel like I'm there. You do the prep. You do the work, but I'm there to facilitate the vision. Yeah. I always feel like there's, there's two parts to my job. The first part is being true is, is that my first boss is the character I'm playing. Right. So there I have to tell their story truthfully or I'm not doing my job. That's number one. But once I feel capable of doing that, then I'm at the mercy of the storyteller and of the people on set, the director and co-workers.

Sean is literally my favorite actor to work with. And I just, you know, I just never have, I mean, I really don't have to direct you very much. You know, sometimes I guide him because I have a better sense of what the overall story is or what's happening in the scene or how this scene relates to the next scene. But it's always just kind of tonally moving things around. It isn't, it's about dialing. It's not about changing anything he's doing. There's very rarely a moment where I go, the way you said that didn't work. And I have a pretty good sense for like, I can finish a take and look at his face.

Right. If he's sitting at the monitor and know, like, oh, that, and just cut to the chase and like, what's not working? This isn't right. What do we need to change? Just tell me. What is this? Right. And just, yeah, shortcut.

September always feels like the start of something new, whether it's back to school, new projects, or just a fresh season. It's the perfect time to start dreaming about your next adventure. I love that feeling of possibility, thinking about where to go next, what kind of place will stay in, and how to make it feel like home. I'm already imagining the kind of Airbnb that would make the trip unforgettable, somewhere with charm character and a little local flavor. If you're planning to be away this September, why not consider hosting your home on Airbnb while you're gone? Your home could be the highlight of someone else's trip, a cozy place to land, a space that helps them feel like a local. And with Airbnb's co-host feature, you can hire a local co-host to help with everything from managing bookings to making sure your home is guest ready.

Find a co-host at Airbnb.ca slash host. I'm Jorge Ramos. In Adam Paola Ramos. Together we're launching The Moment, a new podcast about what it means to live through a time, as uncertain as this one. We sit down with politicians. I would be the first immigrant mayor in generations, but 40% of New Yorkers were born outside of this country. Artists and activists, I mean, do you ever feel demoralized? I might personally lose hope.

This individual might lose the faith, but there's an institution that doesn't lose faith, and that's what I believe in. to bring you depth and analysis from a unique Latino perspective. There's not a single day that Paola and I don't call or text each other, sharing news and thoughts about what's happening in the country. This new podcast will be a way to make that ongoing intergenerational conversation public. Listen to The Moment with Jorge Ramos and Paola Ramos as part of the MyCultura podcast network on the IHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

My name is Ed. Everyone say hello Ed. Hello, Ed. I'm from a very rural background myself. My dad is a farmer and my mom is a cousin. So, like, it's not like... What do you get when a true crime producer walks into a comedy club? I know it sounds like the start of a bad joke,

but that really was my reality nine years ago. I just normally do straight stand-up, but this is a bit different. On stage stood a comedian with a story that no one expected to hear. Well, 22nd of July 2015. A 23-year-old man had killed his family. And then he came to my house. So what do you get when a true crime producer walks into a comedy club?

A new podcast called Wisecrack, where stand-up comedy and murder takes center stage. Available now. Listen to Wisecrack on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. This is a tape-recorded statement. The person being interviewed is Krista Gail Pike. This is in regards to the death of a Colleen Slimmer.

She just started going off on Eve and I hit her. I just hit her and hit her and hit her. On a cold January day in 1995, 18-year-old Krista Pike killed 19-year-old Colleen Slimmer in the woods of Knoxville, Tennessee. Since her conviction, Krista has been sitting on death row. The state has asked for an execution date for Krista. We let people languish in prison for decades,

raising questions about who we consider fundamentally unrestorable. How does someone prove that they deserve to live? We are starting the recording now. Please state your first and last name. Krista Pike. Listen to Unrestorable Season 2, Proof of Life, on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. All I know is what I've been told, and that's a half-truth is a whole lie.

For almost a decade, the murder of an 18-year-old girl from a small town in Graves County, Kentucky, went unsolved. until a local homemaker, a journalist, and a handful of girls came forward with a story. I'm telling you, we know Quincy Kilder, we know. A story that law enforcement used to convict six people, and that got the citizen investigator on national TV. Through sheer persistence and nerve, this Kentucky housewife helped give justice to Jessica Curran. My name is Maggie Freeling. I'm a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, producer, And I wouldn't be here if the truth were that easy to find.

I did not know her and I did not kill her. Or rape or burn or any of that other stuff that y'all said. They literally made me say that I took a match and struck and threw it on her. They made me say that I poured gas on her. From Lava for Good, this is Graves County, a show about just how far our legal system will go in order to find someone to blame. America, y'all better work the hell up. Bad things happens to good people in small towns.

Listen to Graves County in the Bone Valley feed on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. And to binge the entire season ad-free, subscribe to Lava for Good Plus on Apple Podcasts. Is it super professional on set when you guys were working to there? Because I know that if it was like me and Ollie was directing, I'd be like, if Oliver tried to direct me, I'd be like, no, no, I'd just be like, I'd just be cracking jokes all the time. If you want to be great, listen to me. If you want to be good, do your own thing. No, they're really, I mean, really, it's just never like that.

I mean, I think, you know, everybody trust me. I mean, so it's like I work with the same actors again and again, and I'm really comfortable with that because, you know, you get to know them inside and out, you know. I'm going on the, you know, press tour stuff for Superman, and I'm writing Chris every day because I miss him so much because he was my partner for so many years in this stuff, and it was so fun being around him.

But, you know, whether it's him or Jim, Or, you know, Linda Cardlini or, you know, my wife, Jen, who's on Peacemaker, or, you know, Sean, Stevie Blackheart, who's been in almost every single one of my films, you know, Nathan Filian, Michael Rooker. Like, I like working with the same people because, you know, directors are difficult and it takes me, you know, and I make long movies. So I make movies that usually are shooting for like four or five months, right? And it takes me about half of a movie to figure an actor out, you know, to see what works. and what doesn't, you know? You know, should I do this person's coverage first or should I do this person's coverage second, you know?

And it's all, you know, like when I first worked with Chris Pratt and Zoe Saldana, Zoe was the bigger star at the time. And so I shot her coverage first and then Chris's. But I found out that Zoe gets better and better with every take. And Chris is, you know, he was especially early, he was more, you know, crazy and, like, kind of started off hot and then went down and then came back. And so, you know, as time went on, then I started with Chris's. And then when

he started to falter, I'd turn around to Zoe. And then he'd come back and I'd turn around and get him again. Yeah. And, you know, you don't know that for, it takes a couple months to that's that's such a beautiful thing about directing, especially directing actors. Is this the nuance that goes into all of that stuff that people don't get. to really see a director do they see what's on the screen but those little things we can which which can change performance which can elevate performance because you know how to unconsciously sort of manipulate it is you know that that that's the shit that's that's that's the sauce that people don't get to see as much it's also like the magic of just being in the circus like all

together it's just so fun it's the greatest business in the world if you have good people that are smart and you're you know i i you just have this like i don't know it's it's it's it's like the most beautiful weird roller coaster and everyone starts to get to know each other and if it's good people and there's good energy there's just nothing better it's just like you think oh it's the most fun it's the best place to be i i i hated it until a couple movies ago did you really yeah yeah I loved pre-production and then I loved post-production and I hated shooting because I was a madman

and it was so intense all the time and so but over the past few movies I think since the suicide squad Guardians 2 was like the height of like I have to change the way I'm living otherwise I can't do this for the rest of my life

you know because it just takes too much out of me and I'm too insane I don't sleep and so something changed and I've had more and more fun on every project since that time. Did you have to, like, do, like, did you have to create a different routine? I did. I did.

I can't, you know, I can't work. I work a lot. I work seven days a week in my normal life. But I can't, I have to come home and actually have a little bit of a life after shooting. If you're going to shoot as much as I shoot, I mean, I'll shoot sometimes, you know, you know, for, you know, 200, you know, days out of the year. So it's like I can't, I have to have a life, you know, when you, when I started out, and I'm making a movie every three years or whatever, because that's when you get the

opportunity to do it and you're always trying and then you get to do it. Then, you know, you can live like a mad person and not sleep and then just do nothing else but that for the time you're doing it. And I was also only shooting for, you know, 30 days, 40 days, 45 days, as a person. 90 days, 100 days, 110 days. Is it fair to say that you had a great time shooting Superman? I did. I had the best time shooting Superman.

I think that was the greatest time I've ever had shooting anything because... It looks fucking great, by the way, and I'm not just blowing smoke right now, but I saw... I was actually watching Wyatt's movie. Thunderbolts, yeah. And the first trailer was Superman, and the audience was just taking it back. It's this cool sort of throwback feel for me. Like, I was just like, wow, it just had a different quality to it that looked really, really exciting and really, really fun.

Who shot it? Who do you work with? Henry Bram is his name. So, Henry shot, starting with Guardian 2, he shot all of my movies. Cool. And he's, who's the Superman? What's his name? His name is David Corrin Sweat.

And he is a great. He looks amazing. He actually is amazing. I have something to say about this. He's a Twister. I'm watching Twister. I went to the London, in London, to the premiere. I turned to my agent who is with me and I go, that guy's a movie star.

Oh, wow. That's so funny. Yeah. And she goes, oh, my God, he's the new Superman. Oh, my God. That's so funny. And I just immediately was like, who is he? I just like.

I had the similar, I saw him in Pearl, my friend, Ty West's film. Oh, my God. A magnificent little horror-ish movie. And he has a small role in that. And it's not that small. It's a medium-sized role in that. And I'm like, oh, this guy, shoot, could this guy be Superman? And so I wrote our casting director because I was just starting at that time to put things together.

I'm like, make sure this guy, David Cornswet auditions for the movie. And he was actually like the second audition I saw. Really? Yeah. I mean, we went through hundreds after that. That's rare. You scream tested, you know, but I was really lucky that he was like the second person I saw auditions. And Rachel was like the 10th Lois Lane I saw.

Wow. So I kind of knew that I had these, you know, really good options early on, you know. I think both of them, they're both, both David and Rachel, like, their performances are just astonishing. And I think that I always try to point out that to a lot of just regular views, viewers, it's hard to understand the degree of difficulty of playing and I can, because it just seems like, oh, movie star superhero role. Like, all you got to do is look good and, and it's, it seems, it looks easier than it is and they're both, they both give it such incredible layers of depth. They're really both. They're really, really great performances. And the,

the aesthetic looks great of the whole movie, at least in the trailer. And then he looks amazing. He's almost like this cross between Reeves and Tom Welling in a weird way. Oh, yeah, yeah, I totally see that completely. They are his parents. Those are his parents, actually. Yeah, okay, good. I knew I was on it. Yeah, it's a little.

He's a little sensitive about it. Not many people know. Do you get stressed out about the performance of the movie and all that shit? Or do you kind of let it go? I work at letting it go and I get stressed out about it. You do. Yeah, definitely. You got stressed out about it.

I get stressed out about it. It's hard not to do it. You live in a person. It's your baby. Yeah, she gets stressed out about it. It's like you, I mean, I think anybody who has high stakes, I mean, there's like, this is like, you know, hundreds of millions of dollars. Yeah. It's part of the job, you know.

Yeah. Yeah, you're like, oh, man. The box office is part of the job at that level, right? I mean, yeah. Yeah. Yeah, no, it is. I mean, you know, it's, it's, it's, it's stressful. And we've, you know, Peter and I took over a.

DC, so it's just this whole thing, you know, but also one of this, I'll tell you one of the most stressful things about it is that people have these expectations that are so much higher than what my expectations are. Yes. We're an expensive movie. We certainly aren't as expensive as like Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 3. Yes. And so we don't have the same requirements in terms of we're creating a, you know, a Superman in a world that, you know, it needs to make a certain amount of money. But when people come up with these outlandish ideas about what that's supposed to be, I'm like, God, guys, it's just like, don't put that on me, you know? And it's also like, you know, articles come out and they're like, you know, talking about some aspect of Warner

Brothers and like, everything rides on Superman. I'm like, no, it doesn't. It doesn't. You know, We are taking care of us. D.C. Studios is 14 people, you know. And we have, you know, we're taking care of D.C. We're not, you know, taking care of all of Warner Brothers, which, by the way, has had a magnificent year. Oh, dude, with Minecraft. You know, Jesse Irman's my best and oldest friend.

Oh, the greatest guy. Yeah. And he basically, Minecraft is his. I don't care what anyone else says. I'll say it straight up. Like, he shepherded that movie from the beginning. For a long time. And when people didn't want, it's been 12, 13 years in the making.

So great. You know, a lot of people were saying, no, no, no, we don't want it anymore. And he's like, no, this is going to be. This is going to happen. Yeah. That's my boy. Well, Minecraft, I mean, first of all, Jesse is one of those great guys. Yeah.

You know, the head of a, you know, is a very powerful executive. Yeah. But everyone loves. He's the best. And he's such a good guy. But beyond that, Minecraft, final destination, sinners have all been so extraordinarily well. It's a really, it's good, and it's a good time for the movie. Well, for the record, I did do the voice of Plastic Man in an animated show.

You did? I didn't know this. I am throwing my hat in the ring for a 48-year-old plastic man. Perfect. If there's any live action, I've got a decent wingspan, you know, I know you'll see G, but I can help you out with some of my lankiness. September Owens feels like the start of, something new, whether it's back to school, new projects, or just a fresh season. It's the perfect time to start dreaming about your next adventure. I love that feeling of possibility, thinking about

where to go next, what kind of place will stay in, and how to make it feel like home. I'm already imagining the kind of Airbnb that would make the trip unforgettable, somewhere with charm, character, and a little local flavor. If you're planning to be away this September, why not consider hosting your home on Airbnb while you're gone. Your home could be the highlight of someone else's trip, a cozy place to land, a space that helps them feel like a local. And with Airbnb's co-host feature, you can hire a local co-host to help with everything from managing bookings to making sure your home is guest ready.

Find a co-host at Airbnb.ca slash host. I'm Jorge Ramos. And I'm Paola Ramos. Together we're launching The Moment, a new podcast about what it means to live through a time, as uncertain as this one. We sit down with politicians. I would be the first immigrant mayor in generations, but 40% of New Yorkers were born outside of this country.

Artists and activists, I mean, do you ever feel demoralized? I might personally lose hope. This individual might lose the faith, but there's an institution that doesn't lose faith. And that's what I believe in. To bring you depth and analysis from a unique Latino perspective. There's not a single day that Paola and I, on call or text each other, sharing news and thoughts about what's happening in the country.

This new podcast will be a way to make that ongoing intergenerational conversation, public. Listen to The Moment with Jorge Ramos and Paola Ramos as part of the MyCultura podcast network on the IHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. My name is Ed. Everyone say hello, Ed. I'm from a very rural background myself. My dad is a farmer, and my mom is a cousin. What do you get when a true crime producer walks into a comedy club? I know it sounds like the start of a bad joke, but that really was my reality nine years ago. I just normally do straight stand-up, but this is a bit different.

On stage stood a comedian with a story that no one expected to hear. The 22nd of July 2015, a 23-year-old man had killed his family. And then he came to my house. So what do you get when a true crime producer walks into a comedy club? A new podcast called Wisecrack, where stand-up comedy and murder takes center stage. Available now. Listen to Wisecrack on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is a tape recorder statement.

The person being interviewed is Krista Gail Pike. This is in regards to the death of a Colleen Slimmer. She started going off on Eve and I hit her. I just hit her and hit her and hit her and hit her. On a cold January day in 1995, 18-year-old Krista Pike killed 19-year-old Colleen Slimmer in the woods of Knoxville, Tennessee. Since her conviction, Krista has been sitting on death

The state has asked for an execution date for Krista. We let people languish in prison for decades, raising questions about who we consider fundamentally unrestorable. How does someone prove that they deserve to live? We are starting the recording now. Please state your first and last name. Krista Pike. Listen to Unrestorable Season 2, Proof of Life, on the IHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get

podcasts. All I know is what I've been told, and that's a half-truth is a whole lie. For almost a decade, the murder of an 18-year-old girl from a small town in Graves County, Kentucky, went unsolved, until a local homemaker, a journalist, and a handful of girls, came forward with a story. I'm telling you, we know Quincy. killed her, we know. A story that law enforcement used to convict six people, and that got the citizen investigator on national TV. Through sheer persistence and nerve, this Kentucky housewife

helped give justice to Jessica Curran. My name is Maggie Freeling. I'm a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, producer, and I wouldn't be here if the truth were that easy to find. I did not know her and I did not kill her. Or rape or burn or or any of that other stuff that y'all said it. They literally made me say that I took a match and struck and threw it on her. They made me say that I poured gas on her. From Lava for Good, this

is Graves County. A show about just how far our legal system will go in order to find someone to blame. America, y'all better work the hell up. Bad things happens to good people in small towns.

Listen to Graves County in the Bone Valley feed on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. And to binge the entire season ad-free, subscribe to Lava for Good Plus on Apple Podcasts. Like, is there something that when you see it, it's just like creatively that your family's like, oh, that's so our family? What is it, Sean? It feels like it's got to be humor based some way. Oh, my gosh.

We disagree on so many movies and so many things, do you? No, I'm, my brother Brian is an artiste. Like, he does not, you know, he finds flaws and things, you know, that, you know, I love, you know, for instance, wicked. Like, he hated wicked, you know, it's like, it's very much like that, that type of thing, you know. I think it's fighting, like we said earlier, we're not competitive and we're not competitive, but we will fight to the death on what we like and what movies we think are good and, like, probably the angriest. I ever get at my siblings or in movies that they like that I think are terrible. Yeah, you guys would be a fun

like screening party. Yeah. Just like academy, academy time, like fall, just all watch at the gun at the gun family. We definitely all like stick it. I mean, James is, all James movies are like this. But we all, like, like,

sticking up for the little guy, having the, like, the sort of band of misfits thing. outsiders you know like we all grew up and you know outside of the suburbs outside of st louis missouri and we all i think all of us to some degree felt like outsiders a little bit so so things that champion outsiders is probably a through line for all of us yeah we definitely were outsiders in terms of los angeles like in terms of hollywood you know we you know i remember one time as a little kid seeing danny k walking by in the airport with glasses surrounded by bodyguards and I was like holy shit that's like a magic man you know and if to me it was

always it was this was a pipe dream it seemed like a pipe dream this was not I never knew anybody in the entertainment industry like it would have been amazing to be a morning DJ like that was the biggest I thought was possible so the fact that we're doing what we're doing now is just it's crazy pretty awesome yeah a couple more questions because I love talking you guys so much like this same same but but okay really quickly for going back to superman it's such an iconic brand and we've seen all these different sort of iterations of Superman like how does james gun what did you do to sort of put your own spin on it to put your twist on it what did your own nuances to superman did you have an idea of like here's how i want to just be a little bit different well i think

it wasn't you know it doesn't so much come from a matter of how can it be different because if it was the same and good, I'm fine, you know? But for me, how, like, looking at it afterwards and what is different about it and what really interested me was bringing... I grew up with comic books, right? I loved comic books as a kid.

I started reading with comic books. And so back in the... Even when I came to comic books and I'm reading Superman, he always came with a world of superheroes and metahumans and, you know, all these different people. It was a universe. It was a D.C. universe that was a different reality, an alternate reality, to the one we lived in.

So I wanted to create Superman in a different universe where there were these other heroes, just like when I came to comics and started reading those. I didn't have to learn where he came from and all that. Everybody knows where he came from. So I wanted to come into the story at a different place with Superman as a young man at the beginning of his relationship with Lois Lane at a part of his life that we hadn't necessarily seen yet. and then also surround him with these big science fiction things

that we don't normally see in Superman movies there's a flying dogs and robots and giant monsters and all these things are a part of this world but then at the same time I always ask myself and this is like when I first started doing Guardians of the Galaxy and they first pitched it to me and I went oh my God how am I going to do this

this is like Bugs Bunny in the middle of the Avengers I don't know, you know, it's a talking raccoon. And then I said, okay, well, stop, wait a minute. What if the raccoon was real, right? And I thought, oh, my God, that means he's totally, he was created by this person. He was completely alone. He's the only one of his type in the world.

And he's the saddest being in the universe. That, to me, became the engine for the entire Guardians of the Galaxy trilogy and why, to me, Rocket was always a secret protagonist and why the ending of that movie was where it was leading from the very beginning. It was about a character finding his humanity, finding God in one respect, you know?

And so for me, it was like, okay, well, what if Superman is real? So that leads to a whole bunch of different things that are completely true to the character. I mean, he's got glasses that hide his identity. How does that work? Right. He's got this relationship with Lois Lane.

Well, what does that exactly mean? If you're in a relationship with somebody who can, you know, squash buildings, what are the problems with that? He's completely a hero. He believes in saving lives no matter what. And what is that, what is that ideologically? How does that play when you're a journalist? And she sees things in a little bit more balanced way, a more utilitarian way. And so what is that relationship like?

And so it's about taking these broad, big concepts and bringing them to the screen in the most comic booky movie of all time, but simultaneously having the humans be as real as possible and having the characters be as real as possible. So we have an interview scene with Clark and Lois that lasts for 10 minutes. Wow. And it's about the, it is both about her interviewing him as Superman and we find out what he did, where he came from what's going on, but also it's about their relationship and the, their different ethics and different morality. Did you ever take the piss out of the glass thing, meaning like how no one knows it's him? Is that, is it? We explain it in the movie. If you see the movie, We explain why.

Oh, you do. Oh, great. I can't wait. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. We explain it. We explain it. I feel like there's this, it's like taking over D.C. And then there's the whole Marvel kind of, you know, people calling it like Marvel fatigue and, and, you know, box office declines and all that kind of stuff.

It's like, how, what you're saying, you know, is like there's this thing that you sort of, I wonder. Well, I guess my question would. be like how do you approach DC as the world so that you're not, you know, going down kind of that path of like oversaturation? Well, I think it, for me, it isn't so much, you know, superhero fatigue as it is people get bored with seeing the same things again, again, you know. Right. And so it's about, you know, focusing on script first and foremost. And the thing I miss the most in Hollywood from when I started out, is that even back when I was like writing Scooby-Doo, right? That screenplay didn't, it didn't, that movie did not get greenlit until the studio was

happy with the screenplay. This is like 1999. Today it doesn't work like that. Today, people greenlight ideas and IPs without having finished screenplays. And I'll never allow a movie in DC Studios or make a movie that doesn't have a finished really good screenplay, you know? And I think that that is the, you know, obviously IP drives a lot of the business, but at the same time, I think we can be, we can be more, being a former writer, I try to be as, I like to prop up the writers as much as possible. Well, actually, leading into my sort of last question I wanted to ask was, will you ever go back and make smaller movies or something that is not sort of these IP, the DCs. I know now you're so ingrained in that, but is there any desire to sort of move into

or at least do a movie that's not so massive? And where are the, do you think those movies will ever come back? Those 30 to 50 million dollar movies? Like, where are the comedies now? Is this all, is it going to come back? I think the comedies will come back. I think that there's a place for watch, you know, right now it does seem as if people want to see spectacle films in studios, whether it's superheroes or Lilo and Stitch or whatever. and they want to see horror movies in theaters. Always.

Yeah. You know? And then other theatrical experiences, people have great television sets, so they're like, I can see a Nora at home and get a lot out of it. Yeah. Which is one of the, you know,

it's an amazing film. Well, we're seeing in a theater, by the way. But I think that it, that is changing a little bit. I think comedies are kind of the big question mark because why have what has happened? to the hangovers. Why are there no big comedies right now? Why are people staying at home?

I think it's the same thing you said about about script. Yeah. I know in my experience when it comes to comedy or rom-com, it's just talent. It's writing talent and investing in it. And, you know, it's like it's the place where people find

like new talent or someone who wants to do it instead of like investing and great writing. Well, I think the other thing is, is that when I came to town, you know, the people that were made the most money as writers were screenwriters and then a handful of big television writers of people who created friends or, you know, whatever, law and order, you know. Today, it's like, it's very hard as a writer to come to, you know, into the industry and be like, okay, I can write. dribble for films and not get paid that well, or I can go create, do anything I want and create the craziest, I can create, you know, the craziest show of all time and have it on TV and have complete freedom and be the boss because I'm the writer.

Yeah, I have a writer. Fighters are the bosses. Right. And have help. Yeah. And that is a hard, you know, with the rise of premier television, that is a really hard thing for a writer not to say, you know, yes to. And so I think the screenwriting pool of talented writers writing for film has gotten smaller. There's not as many movies. But there are also that the writers, it's gotten smaller because a lot of the best and the brightest have been, you know, are mazzed at the flame of television. Yeah. Okay. Proudest achievements of each other. There's the two part, I mean, this question and then we'll do our last question, but the proudest achievement in

each other. So my product's achievement of James. Yeah. It doesn't have to be word related, but it can be. Like for me, I think it's the first I think the thing that comes to mind is really delivering the goods on the first Guardians movie. You know, making that jump from

from being a smaller sort of niche artist to making an actual great movie that has mass appeal is just like so insanely difficult and I think the degree to which he delivered the goods on all of that

is astonishing and there's a lot of elements of James's job in his career that I think are really impressive and where he really he was the best at what he does in a lot of ways.

But that first one is the one that's kind of like, wow, holy smokes. That really, that really threaded the needle. Cool. James. You know, it's interesting because I feel unspeakably proud of Sean when we're working together. And, you know, I even said at the end of Guardians 3,

and I got emotional when I was giving my speech to the cat, the casting crew that, you know, the best part of making the movies was being with my brother, Sean, and was having somebody that you trust and love around you all the time is incredibly important to me. Without that heart, I just, I don't know if I could do it, you know. But, I mean, Sean, I don't really know. I mean, it's Selena's the proudest I've ever was of you. but that's another podcast yeah yeah i mean it's a it's a simple thing but that's another Sean helped a family member when they were very very much in need and did the right thing to a

degree that very few people would and showed what a truly good and caring and loving human he is and in a way that none of my other siblings nor me stepped up in a way um and uh and And that's, that, it's, it's that, that heart that he has and that true, a concern and love for other people that makes me the proudest. I love that. The first part of the question is, you know, what is it about your sibling that you would love if you had more of something you could emulate, that you wish you could emulate? And then the other part of it is what's one thing you would alleviate from your sibling that you think would make their life easier and. smoother. I mean, that's, like, the one thing that I, like, I, I wish I had his energy and focus.

Like, if I had, I feel like I would, I would love to have one quarter of James's energy and focus. Can I interrupt really quickly? Because I'm like, yeah. If I had even like a quarter of Kate's sort of drive, ambition, her energy, her focus, I would be George Clooney and Steven Spielberg. I would be both of them There is so much bubbling up inside of this

I wish I had just even like just an ounce of her shit too I'm going to throw it over to him While I think about the second part of that question I wish I wasn't allergic to cats We both love cats And I have a cat And I love my cat more than anything But yeah I think Sean is way more chill than I am

And so I can be very reaction I react to things immediately way too much. And if I could have a little bit more of the sobriety in reacting to situations that Sean has and take a beat before becoming, making an intense, it's part of me that's good as a director because I make intense quick decisions. But when it comes to real life and just doing that constantly, it really is a wear and tear on me. So I wish that I could have been. well that that that feeds right into what i would what i would you know alleviate as i would i would give you

um the ability to to fully chill at least for like you know two weeks at a time when you needed it or something like that like i don't i don't i you know you he you your your your stress level starts to raise with when when you get dormant and i think like a little bit more a little bit more chill. I'm going to work on that after, after, after, you know, Superman and Peacemaker comes down. I really am. I'm committed to it. I've told my wife I'm going to do it.

That's great. Yay. I think if I could alleviate one thing from Sean and said he's really hard on himself. So I think that if I could relieve him of, of just being so hard on himself, I would, I would love to see that, you know. Great. Oh, this is so fun. So fun. I think you guys for taking the time.

It went long, but it's just so great talking to you guys. I love it. I love it. I hope I see you guys in person. Yeah, me too. This is so fun. Yes, we will. Good luck with the movie, man.

I cannot wait to see it. Yeah, good luck. We'll see you around. Yeah. For sure. All right. Thanks, guys. Later, guys.

Awesome. That was so great. I learned so much from both of them. Sean is so cool. He's like, it reminds me of me. He's like super chill, like great-headed hair. I wish you were more like Sean. What do you mean?

We're cool. We're like two peas in a pie. I loved it. That was so much fun. Have a good table read. Okay, bye, you guys. Love you. I'm Jorge Ramos. And I'm Paola Ramos.

Together we're launching The Moment, a new podcast about what it means to live through a time as uncertain as this one. We sit down with politicians, artists, and activists to bring you death and analysis from a unique Latino perspective. The moment is a space for the conversations we've been having us, father and daughter, years. Listen to The Moment with Jorge Ramos and Paola Ramos on the I Heart Radio app, Apple podcast, or wherever you get your podcasts. I just normally do straight stand-up, but this is a bit different. What do you get when a true crime producer walks into a comedy club? Answer, a new podcast called Wisecrack, where a comedian finds himself at the center of a chilling true crime story. Does anyone know what show they've come to see? It's a story. It's about the scariest night of my life.

This is Wisecrack, available now. Listen to Wisecrack on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. On a cold January day in 1995, 18-year-old Krista Pike killed 19-year-old Colleen Slemmer in the woods of Knoxville, Tennessee. Since her conviction, Krista has been sitting on death row. How does someone prove that they deserve to live? We are starting the recording now. Please state your first and last name. Krista Pike.

Listen to Unrestorable Season 2, Proof of Life, on the IHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. The murder of an 18-year-old girl in Graves County, Kentucky, went unsolved for years. Until a local housewife, a journalist, and a handful of girls, came forward with a story. America, y'all better work the hell up. Bad things happens to good people in small towns. Listen to Graves County on the IHeartRadio app,

Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And to binge the entire season, ad-free, subscribe to Lava for Good Plus on Apple Podcasts. Introducing IVF3. Disrupted, The Kind Body Story, a podcast about a company that promised to revolutionize fertility care. It grew like a tech startup. While KindBody did help women start families, it also left behind a stream of disillusioned and angry patients. You think you're finally, like, in the right hands. You're just not. Listen to IvyF Disrupted, the Kind Body Story, on the IHeart

Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is an IHeart podcast. Thank you.