Sean and Amanda are joined by Chris Ryan to lead a team of skilled operatives to the most dangerous place on earth, a ‘Jurassic Park’ sequel. Before diving in, they react to the first trailer for Christopher Nolan’s ‘The Odyssey,’ which played before their screening (1:23). Then, they unpack their complicated and (at times) contentious feelings on the newest installment of the dinosaur action franchise, Gareth Edwards' ‘Jurassic World Rebirth,’ starring Scarlett Johansson and Mahershala Ali (9:4...
Jul 02, 2025•1 hr 32 min
Sean and Amanda start the show by reacting to the major opening-weekend box office success of ‘F1’ and the new trailer for Phil Lord and Chris Miller’s ‘Project Hail Mary’, starring Ryan Gosling (1:07). Then, they are joined by an all-star cast of some Ringer colleagues and other friends to share their favorite movies of the year so far. Their selections cover some notable heavy hitters, a few underlooked films, and one controversial choice that might start some Ringer beef (12:37). Hosts: Sean ...
Jul 01, 2025•2 hr 6 min
Sean and Amanda start the show by reacting to two huge news headlines from this week, with Denis Villeneuve set to direct the next James Bond film and Aaron Sorkin set to write and direct a sequel to ‘The Social Network’ (1:38). Then, they get behind the steering wheel to discuss Joseph Kosinski’s highly anticipated action blockbuster ‘F1,’ starring Brad Pitt. They talk about how the electrifying filmmaking displayed throughout the racing scenes makes the film worth the price of admission, ackno...
Jun 27, 2025•1 hr 49 min
Sean and Amanda return to continue their yearlong project of listing the 25 best movies of the 21st century so far. Today, they discuss Adam McKay’s ‘Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy’ starring Will Ferrell, one of the most iconic comedies of all time. They highlight the wildly successful partnership of McKay and Judd Apatow, why they made the painfully difficult decision to choose this as their official studio comedy selection over ‘Superbad’, and celebrate Christina Applegate’s wonderful p...
Jun 25, 2025•54 min
Sean and Amanda celebrate 800 (!) episodes with a special “Ask Us Anything” movie mailbag. They answer your questions on whether or not 2025 has been a good movie year, share theatrical experiences that have floored them this century, and build their own “Intro to Film” curriculum (3:39). Then, they unpack a pair of two recent children’s movie releases. They start with the new Pixar animated film, ‘Elio,’ and wonder whether its lack of box office suggests that there is a Pixar movie crisis (1:14...
Jun 23, 2025•1 hr 44 min
Sean and Amanda are joined by Chris Ryan and react to a myriad of different movie news headlines, including the Academy’s decision to give Tom Cruise an honorary Oscar, Glen Powell’s casting in an upcoming Ron Howard firefighter film, and the first trailer for ‘Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere’—starring Jeremy Allen White (3:54). Then, they unpack Danny Boyle and Alex Garland’s highly anticipated zombie horror sequel, ‘28 Years Later.’ They celebrate its exhilarating filmmaking and the inter...
Jun 21, 2025•1 hr 25 min
Sean and Amanda return to continue their yearlong project of listing the 25 best movies of the 21st century so far. Today, they discuss ‘Before Sunset,’ the second installment of Richard Linklater’s beloved romantic trilogy starring Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy. They talk about why this film is their favorite of the trilogy and the official selection from Linklater’s career, discuss what its legacy is at large, and how its performances helped shape the most romantic, emotionally incisive film of ...
Jun 18, 2025•46 min
Amanda and Sean went live on YouTube to give you, the people, life advice. They answered questions about how to confront smelly friends, whether you can base a romantic relationship on a mutual passion for cinema, how to incorporate movies into wedding speeches, and much more. Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins Producers: Jack Sanders and John Richter Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices...
Jun 16, 2025•1 hr 32 min
Sean and Amanda have an in-depth conversation and unpack their very mixed feelings on a pair of two new releases coming this weekend. They start with Celine Song's ‘Materialists’ and celebrate Song’s wonderful writing while also exploring their inability to connect to Dakota Johnson's and Pedro Pascal’s performances of the material (1:46). Then, they create their list of the top five movie love triangles of all time (45:10). Next, they discuss Mike Flanagan’s newest Stephen King adaptation, ‘The...
Jun 13, 2025•1 hr 42 min
Sean and Amanda are joined by Chris Ryan to discuss their disappointment with the newest installment in the John Wick franchise, ‘From the World of John Wick: Ballerina’ (2:08). Next, they cover the second horror feature film from the Philippou brothers with the deeply upsetting ‘Bring Her Back’ and explain why it was an interesting follow-up to their first feature, ‘Talk to Me’ (25:45). Then, they revisit Kevin Smith’s 1999 classic, ‘Dogma,’ and share everything they loved about it when they fi...
Jun 10, 2025•1 hr 55 min
Sean and Amanda take a deep dive into one of their favorite directors' newest films: Wes Anderson’s ‘The Phoenician Scheme.’ They discuss the new themes Anderson tackles that he typically avoids, celebrate the phenomenal performances from Michael Cera and Mia Threapleton, and discuss how a second viewing can unlock a better understanding of the movie’s ideas (1:36). Then, for the first time in Big Picture history, Wes Anderson joins the show to discuss the movie, the connective tissue across his...
Jun 06, 2025•1 hr 14 min
We are drafting again! Sean and Amanda are joined by several Ringer all-stars for a mega-draft of the best movies from 2000. The Big Picture will be live in Chicago on July 21! Tickets go on sale Wednesday, June 4 at 12p CT. Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins Guests: Chris Ryan, Van Lathan, Mallory Rubin, Joanna Robinson, Rob Mahoney, and Bobby Wagner Producer: Jack Sanders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices...
Jun 04, 2025•2 hr 8 min
Bobby Wagner joins the show to bid farewell to The Big Picture and The Ringer at large. We look back at how he started working on the show and run through all of his favorite moments during his time as a producer (0:54). Then, Bobby finally convinces Sean and Amanda to discuss ‘Shrek’ and ‘Shrek 2’ on the show and talk about why ‘Shrek’ is such a critical movie for young millennials and early Gen Z (23:40). Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins Guest: Bobby Wagner Producer: Jack Sanders Learn...
May 30, 2025•1 hr 28 min
Sean and Amanda start the show with a quick recap of all the awards handed out at the Cannes Film Festival and wonder what this year's ‘Anora’ could be (1:13). Then, they react to the biggest Memorial Day weekend box office in history and consider what it means for the industry going forward (7:34). Next, they discuss Disney’s newest live-action remake, ‘Lilo & Stitch,’ and explain why not only this specific movie but also this “genre” at large does not work for them (17:34). Finally, they c...
May 28, 2025•1 hr 28 min
Sean and Amanda return to continue their yearlong project of listing the 25 best movies of the 21st century so far. Today, they discuss Hayao Miyazaki’s masterpiece, ‘Spirited Away’: the wonderful 2002 animated fantasy film, which features an unbound representation of what it feels like to be a child. They talk about what they make of Chihiro as an unusual main character figure, celebrate the huge technical achievement in its stunning animation, and explore how its “perfect movie status" is defi...
May 26, 2025•41 min
Sean and Amanda need you to trust them one last time as they unpack the highly anticipated ‘Mission: Impossible—The Final Reckoning,’ starring Tom Cruise. Before diving into the film, they briefly recap all of the news headlines from the Cannes Film Festival by highlighting all of the heavy hitters, big surprises, and disappointments (1:05). Then, they unpack their complicated feelings on the newest ‘Mission: Impossible’ movie and discuss its legendary set pieces that might be the greatest of th...
May 23, 2025•1 hr 34 min
Sean is joined by Chris Ryan to discuss the flaw in death’s design by covering ‘Final Destination Bloodlines,’ the latest installment in the legendary, violent franchise (2:57). They share why they have such a great affinity for the 'Final Destination' series at large, spoil the movie by highlighting the electrifying kills that define the movie’s success (14:38), and go through every single kill in the entire franchise and rank their personal favorites (31:29). Host: Sean Fennessey Guest: Chris ...
May 20, 2025•1 hr 12 min
Sean and Amanda are joined by Bill Simmons, Van Lathan, and Chris Ryan for a very special episode where they draft the best movies of Tom Cruise’s legendary career. They talk about their relationship to Cruise, introduce some new draft categories, and have a whole lot of fun. Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins Guests: Bill Simmons, Van Lathan, Chris Ryan, and Bobby Wagner Producer: Jack Sanders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices...
May 16, 2025•2 hr 8 min
Sean and Amanda return to continue their yearlong project of listing the 25 best movies of the 21st century so far. Today, they discuss Lars von Trier’s ‘Melancholia,’ the deeply upsetting 2011 science fiction drama, which stars Kirsten Dunst and Kiefer Sutherland and features one of the greatest opening scenes of all time. They discuss Dunst’s astounding performance, explain why this was such a critical project for von Trier’s career, and revisit the infamous controversy at the Cannes Film Fest...
May 14, 2025•43 min
Sean and Amanda open up the mailbag once again to answer all of your questions about underrated indie directors they’d like to see get the “Sean Baker treatment” at this year's Oscars, why Amanda majored in classics, recent films that are the most likely to inspire the next generation of filmmakers, and much more (3:05). Then, Alex Ross Perry returns to the show to discuss his new genre-bending music biopic, ‘Pavements.’ They discuss what attracted Perry to making this stylized vision, the compl...
May 12, 2025•2 hr 19 min
Sean and Amanda briefly tease next week’s mailbag episode and react to the Golden Globes adding a new category for Best Podcast (1:34). Then, they dive into their long-awaited Paul Newman episode, where they unpack who Newman was as a person (7:06), explore what made him such a special actor (16:13), and build his Hall of Fame by selecting the 10 most essential performances of his career (43:47). Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins Producer: Jack Sanders Learn more about your ad choices. Vi...
May 09, 2025•2 hr 16 min
Sean and Amanda briefly react to the news that President Donald Trump wants to impose a 100 percent tariff on any films produced outside of the United States (1:46). Then, they react to the new trailer for Spike Lee’s film ‘Highest 2 Lowest’ and discuss ‘Another Simple Favor,’ the sequel to ‘A Simple Favor,’ starring Blake Lively (7:41). Later, they create their 2025 Movie Star Rankings, where they select and rank the 35 biggest movie stars over the age of 35 (21:11). Finally, Sean is joined by ...
May 06, 2025•2 hr 15 min
Sean and Amanda are joined by their superhero correspondent, Mallory Rubin, to cover the latest installment of the Marvel Cinematic Universe with Jake Schreier’s, ‘Thunderbolts*’ (2:04). They praise the strong performances from Florence Pugh and Sebastian Stan, and dive deep into some spoilers to project which key characters could play a critical part going forward (18:15). Lastly, they have a big-picture conversation about the MCU and debate whether this return to form is too late to course-cor...
May 02, 2025•1 hr 31 min
Sean and Amanda return to continue their yearlong project of listing the 25 best movies of the 21st century so far. Today, they discuss their favorite installment of the beloved Tom Cruise action franchise with ‘Mission: Impossible—Fallout’, which features some of the greatest action filmmaking of all time. They explain why this concretized director Christopher McQuarrie as a legitimate star filmmaker, explore what this film means and represents about Cruise’s movie stardom persona, and share wh...
Apr 30, 2025•45 min
Sean and Amanda are joined by Chris Ryan to recap their trip to the mobile Criterion Closet before celebrating the big box-office weekend performances of ‘Sinners’ and ‘Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith’ and explain why movies are so back (1:09). Then, they cover some recently released mediocre action films: ‘The Accountant 2’ (14:30), ‘Havoc’ (25:39), ‘A Working Man’ (36:33), and ‘The Amateur’ (44:41), and have a big-picture conversation on what these four films mean for the state of...
Apr 28, 2025•1 hr 21 min
Sean and Amanda briefly react to some Oscars news, including a rule requiring Academy members to watch the movies and the details surrounding the new Casting and Achievement in Stunt Design award (1:34). Then, for the first time, they play the Summer Movie Preview Game, in which they predict the box office and Metacritic score for every major summer movie release in 2025 (16:27). Later, Sean is joined by Adam Nayman to give a brief “state of the movies” before discussing David Cronenberg’s newes...
Apr 25, 2025•2 hr 40 min
Sean is joined by Chris Ryan to honor the late Val Kilmer by creating his Hall of Fame. Before creating the list, Chris shares his thoughts on why Ryan Coogler’s ‘Sinners’ worked so well, sort through the box office controversy, and consider what kind of award chances the film has (4:18). Then, they build the Val Kilmer Hall of Fame by selecting the 10 most essential performances of his career (34:13). Host: Sean Fennessey Guest: Chris Ryan Producer: Jack Sanders Learn more about your ad choices...
Apr 23, 2025•1 hr 38 min
Sean and Amanda return to continue their yearlong project of listing the 25 best movies of the 21st century so far. Today, they discuss Alfonso Cuarón’s ‘Children of Men,’ a deeply upsetting 2006 apocalyptic thriller starring Clive Owen and Julianne Moore, which features some of the most emotionally moving image-making of all time. They explore how this film altered the trajectory of Cuarón’s “shapeshifter” filmmaking career, celebrate Owen’s amazing physical performance, and revisit the Academy...
Apr 21, 2025•45 min
Sean and Amanda are joined by Van Lathan to unpack Ryan Coogler’s highly anticipated vampire horror film, ‘Sinners.’ They applaud the film for its originality and authenticity, debate whether or not this is Michael B. Jordan’s best performance of his career, and unpack one of the film’s most controversial and daring scenes by hypothesizing about whether its boldness will be well received (2:28). Then, Sean is joined by Ryan Coogler to explain why he felt like he needed to make this movie, the im...
Apr 17, 2025•1 hr 41 min
We are drafting again! Before their draft, Sean and Amanda are joined by Chris Ryan to briefly discuss Matt Damon’s shredded appearance for Christopher Nolan’s ‘The Odyssey’ and the new trailer for Ari Aster’s ‘Eddington’ (1:03). Then, they talk about who they were in 1990 and draft the best movies from the year (10:37). Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins Guests: Chris Ryan and Bobby Wagner Producer: Jack Sanders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices...
Apr 15, 2025•1 hr 42 min
