When Casey McQuiston’s novel ‘Red, White & Royal Blue’ was published in 2019, it was an instant bestseller. Now the story of a romance between the U.S. president’s son Alex (Taylor Zakhar Perez) and British Prince Henry (Nicholas Galitzine) is a new Amazon Prime movie (August 11). “I really didn’t know the magnitude of it,” Perez told Newsweek’s H. Alan Scott about the popularity of the book. “Everybody kind of came at me with their opinions.” And Perez went into it with little knowledge of ...
Aug 09, 2023•30 min•Ep. 109
Christian entertainment has been on the rise in recent years. With the popularity of the new film ‘Sound of Freedom’ and the show ‘The Chosen,’ it does feel like Christian stories are gaining more and more mainstream prominence. Newsweek’s H. Alan Scott spoke with Paul Pond, the author of the Newsweek cover story ‘Jesus Takes Hollywood,’ about what he found in his reporting. We’ll also chat with Jonathan Roumie, who plays Jesus in the wildly popular show ‘The Chosen.’ Visit Newsweek.com to learn...
Aug 02, 2023•49 min•Ep. 108
Last December, fans of the series ‘ Minx’ were dismayed when streaming service Max announced it was canceling the show about a ’70s erotic magazine for women. “We had heard ramblings,” says the show’s star, Ophelia Lovibond told Newsweek’s H. Alan Scott. But Starz stepped in and saved the series. (The second season premiered July 21.) “People are tweeting and sending messages, expressing their outrage [about the cancellation]...imagine if that had happened and it was like, ‘Good, I hate that sho...
Jul 26, 2023•22 min•Ep. 107
If anyone in Hollywood has experienced every aspect of the business, it’s Jamie Lee Curtis. “I’ve been doing this for a long time with very little expectations. I’ve just had a really good time doing what I get to do, when [and] with who I get to do it with. You just never know when someone’s going to really love something,” Curtis told Newsweek’s H. Alan Scott. Fresh off her Oscar win for ‘ Everything Everywhere All at Once ,’ Curtis is keeping busy, first with Disney’s Haunted Mansion , bringi...
Jul 19, 2023•30 min•Ep. 106
If you ask Tiffany Haddish if she's a fan of a good crime story, the immediate response you'll get is, "Baby! I'll be watching. I love a good mystery." Which makes her the perfect person to play the detective in the Apple TV+ comedy-mystery series ‘The Afterparty’ (July 12). The second season of the series focuses on a murder at a wedding, with each episode told from the perspective of a different character. Haddish's episode is '90s themed. "It's sexy, it's the lighting, with the blinds and the...
Jul 12, 2023•27 min•Ep. 105
Andrew Rannells, best known for his roles in ‘Girls’ and ‘The Book of Mormon,’ asks a very important question in his new book: when will we ever feel like an adult? In ‘Uncle of the Year,’ Rannells writes about acting, aging, mental health, bad jobs, and much more. Are we all just pretending to be adults? And why are so many of us skipping out on things like marriage and children? Rannells chatted with Newsweek’s H. Alan Scott about this and so much more (including his return to Broadway with Jo...
Jul 03, 2023•29 min•Ep. 104
On today’s episode, we’re talking Hollywood health fads. If there’s one thing the west coast lives, it’s a hot new alternative medicine, treatment, or spiritual experience. We’re talking things like Ozempic—the weight loss drug taking Hollywood by storm—naked retreats and hallucinogens. Newsweek’s H. Alan Scott talks with Thomas Fairman, director of WYLD, a naked retreat for men in nature that helps men find “what it takes to live a life of confidence and fulfillment in the modern world - withou...
Jun 28, 2023•49 min•Ep. 103
A new season of ‘And Just Like That’ is here and Evan Ross Katz joins Newsweek’s H. Alan Scott to talk all about it—and spill some insider knowledge. There’s just something about ‘Sex and the City’ that has captured our attention ever since the HBO series started in 1998. (Can you believe it’s been around since 1998?!) Carrie, Miranda, Charlotte and Samantha have gone on to represent little bits of who we are as we go through life, and that’s all because of the writing, of course, but also the a...
Jun 21, 2023•38 min•Ep. 102
One of the most compelling villains to come out of ‘ The Walking Dead’ was Jeffrey Dean Morgan’s Negan, and now he’s back in ‘ The Walking Dead: Dead City’ (June 18 on AMC). “Since we’ve last seen him, he’s not doing great,” Morgan told Newsweek’s H. Alan Scott. The story picks up two years after the original series, where Negan and Maggie (played by Lauren Cohan) came to a truce after Negan killed Maggie’s husband. “Some of the old Negan is back; he’s a showman and not afraid of violence.” The ...
Jun 14, 2023•29 min•Ep. 101
Everything has a story, including Flamin’ Hot Cheetos. In fact, the story behind the person who claims to have invented the flavor, Richard Montañez, was so good it warranted a film. “We worked very hard to make sure that it was entertaining as well as telling Richard’s story,” Jesse Garcia, who plays Montañez in the new Eva Longoria-directed film ‘ Flamin’ Hot’ (June 9), told Newsweek’s H. Alan Scott. “When I first got the script, I knew the part was mine.” That’s because Garcia connected to Mo...
Jun 07, 2023•25 min•Ep. 100
Asian food is one of the fastest growing dishes in popularity, and that’s almost exclusively because of its popularity on social media, particularly TikTok and Instagram. On today’s episode, Newsweek’s H. Alan Scott will chat with three experts on Asian cuisine: Kim Chi (RuPaul’s Drag Race) and Jon Kung from the podcast ‘1 For the Table,’ and Jimmy Guo, who came in second on Sweden’s Master Chef. Hopefully you’ll leave this episode hungry and eager to explore all the many amazing things Asian fo...
May 30, 2023•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 99
Do you have what it takes to win Survivor? It’s a question millions of people ask themselves every season. Over the course of season 44 of the long-running CBS reality series, three players won the hearts of viewers: Carolyn, Yam Yam, and Carson. They started in the same tribe, and over the course of the season formed an alliance that took all of them to the end. Today Carson Garrett joins Newsweek’s H. Alan Scott to discuss the season, his most embarrassing moment out there, how he feels about ...
May 25, 2023•26 min•Ep. 98
For Melissa McCarthy, playing Ursula in the live-action remake of The Little Mermaid (May 26) started with terror. “That song [“Poor Unfortunate Souls”] looms so large for me that if I can't do it, I shouldn't be doing it,” McCarthy told Newsweek’s H. Alan Scott. Fortunately for us, she did it—and did it well. That’s partly because she saw Ursula as more than just a villain. “She’s not just ostracized, she's isolated...She's so in the gray murky area; one second it's real, the next it's a con, t...
May 24, 2023•29 min•Ep. 97
Fresh off their Oscar wins for Everything Everywhere All at Once , Michelle Yeoh and Ke Huy Quan aren’t wasting time. They’ll next be seen in American Born Chinese (May 24 on Disney+). Based on the graphic novel of the same name by Gene Luen Yang, the series follows teenager Jin Wang (Ben Wang) who is trying to find his own identity when he’s introduced to Chinese mythological characters that overturn his life. “It's about family. It's about love. It's about kindness,” Quan told Newsweek’s H. Al...
May 17, 2023•31 min•Ep. 96
For Patrick Ta, a makeup artist and founder of Patrick Ta beauty, diversity and inclusion is central. Ta says it is “really important for me to make sure everyone is accounted for in campaigns or the product we make.” This direction comes from personal experience; growing up gay and Asian American, Ta says he rarely saw himself on billboards. “I wanted to make products that would empower people to feel comfortable in their own skin.” And he’s seeing that, particularly in younger fans. “I feel li...
May 10, 2023•27 min•Ep. 95
The pool of people who can call themselves talk show hosts is very, very small, and Tamron Hall is keenly aware of that. “For me, it’s not about being highbrow or low,” Hall says about the Tamron Hall Show. “We are a celebrity daytime talk show, of course, but we have real people layered in.” And that’s part of the reason why Hall’s four-time Emmy winning show has been a success. “I don’t care if you are famous. I don’t care if you’re a writer. I don’t care what it is. I just need you to come to...
May 03, 2023•29 min•Ep. 94
Are you smart enough to be on Jeopardy? This week Newsweek’s H. Alan Scott chats with Buzzy Cohen, Jeopardy champion and host of the new podcast ‘This Is Jeopardy! The Story of America’s Favorite Quiz Show.’ The two talk about the show’s legacy, Alex Trebek, and how exactly does one prepare to be on Jeopardy (turns out, some physical fitness is involved). Check out the podcast: https://greatpods.co/podcast/this-is-jeopardy-the-story-of-americas-favorite-quiz-show Visit Newsweek.com to learn more...
Apr 26, 2023•27 min•Ep. 93
When you’re in a film adapted from a beloved young adult novel like ‘Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret’ (April 28), every aspect of the movie has to be just right, so obviously directors turn to Kathy Bates. “I think the heart of acting is dress up...you play dress up and finally this character appears,” Bates told Newsweek’s H. Alan Scott. She plays Sylvia, Margaret’s grandmother, one of many obstacles Margaret must contend with as she faces puberty, adolescence, religion and discovering her...
Apr 19, 2023•29 min•Ep. 92
Characterizing Keri Russell’s new show ‘The Diplomat’ (Netflix, April 20) is difficult, but that’s part of its charm. “The drama of politics, the absurdity of that kind of politics, the pomp and circumstance mixed in with a complicated marriage,” Russell told Newsweek’s H. Alan Scott. Sounds intense, but in fact “it’s a bit saucy.” Russell plays Kate Wyler, a career diplomat “plucked from the Middle East to go and host tea parties and talk to stylists” as the new U.S. ambassador to the United Ki...
Apr 12, 2023•22 min•Ep. 91
For the past year or so, there’s been a spotlight on drag in the United States, and not just because of the popularity of ‘ RuPaul’s Drag Race .’ From state to state, legislators have been introducing and implementing legislation that would restrict drag performers from many facets of life, particularly in the presence of children. Is it legal for legislators to do this? Is this just a culture war issue Republicans are using to boost their profile in the 2024 presidential election? And what impa...
Apr 05, 2023•43 min•Ep. 90
Hello Tomorrow! on Apple TV+ is both familiar and something we’ve never seen before. “It’s representing materially and metaphorically, America as it once was, America as it will be and America as it is now,” Billy Crudup told Newsweek’s H. Alan Scott about the new series, currently streaming. Crudup plays Jack, a salesman in a retro-futuristic United States, tasked with selling condos on the moon while his life begins to unravel. On the surface, it looks like 1950s America, but with futuristic e...
Mar 29, 2023•23 min•Ep. 89
How has TV impacted our lives? If you ask Fenton Bailey (co-producer of ‘RuPaul’s Drag Race’ and co-founder of World of Wonder), TV has a had a huge impact on our lives, and he wrote all about it in ‘ScreenAge: How TV Shaped Our Reality from Tammy Faye to RuPaul’s Drag Race.’ Beyond telling the history of World of Wonder (from his early days with RuPaul in the 80’s in New York City to creating award-winning documentaries about Tammy Faye Bakker, Monica Lewinsky and on club kid culture of the 90’...
Mar 22, 2023•28 min•Ep. 88
The Paris Hilton you think you know isn’t the real Paris. “I’m not a dumb blonde. I was just very good at pretending to be one,” Hilton told Newsweek’s H. Alan Scott. She writes about this and more in ‘ Paris: The Memoir’ (Dey Street Books, March 14). “A lot of what I did with this character was just a trauma response to all the abuse that I went through as a teenager.” Placed in the controversial Provo Canyon School, a mental health treatment center for girls, Paris writes candidly about the ab...
Mar 15, 2023•30 min•Ep. 87
This week we’re breaking down who will be the big winners (and losers) at this year’s Academy Awards. Newsweek’s H. Alan Scott is joined by entertainment reporter Cameron Scheetz for a lively chat about the major Oscar categories. They ask the big questions, like: Will ‘Everything Everywhere All at Once’ be the big winner? Could Cate Blanchett really win her third Oscar? And the most shocking question of the them all: could ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ actually win Best Picture? Visit Newsweek.com to lea...
Mar 10, 2023•42 min•Ep. 86
If you're going to add on to the legacy of a classic Mel Brooks film, you've got to do it with a parade of superstars (and, of course, the blessing of Brooks himself). That's exactly what Nick Kroll has done with Hulu's ‘History of the World, Part II’ (March 6). "You can expect an insane cast, " Kroll told Newsweek’s H. Alan Scott. The cast includes Wanda Sykes, Taika Waititi, Jay Ellis and Sarah Silverman, among others. "Our goal was to continue to be provocative, but not necessarily preachy an...
Mar 07, 2023•22 min•Ep. 85
Never has a title fit a show's subject more than Eugene Levy's new Apple TV+ travel show ‘The Reluctant Traveler with Eugene Levy’ (February 24). When the idea was pitched to him, he thought, "That's so not me. What am I going to do? I don't care to travel that much,” Levy told Newsweek’s H. Alan Scott. But he came around when he realized that's the show. For example, how does someone like Levy approach a night hike in the Costa Rican rainforest? "I didn't get any enjoyment out of it. 'Watch out...
Feb 28, 2023•30 min•Ep. 84
It seems like there are a ton of award shows these days (because there are), but there’s one that started it all: the Academy Awards. For better or worse, it’s the one awards show that all are judged against. But the history of the awards says less about what was ever actually best and worst of the year, and more about film history and even the history of Hollywood itself. Today Newsweek’s H. Alan Scott chats with Michael Shulman, author of ‘Oscar Wars: A History of Hollywood in Gold, Sweat and ...
Feb 22, 2023•37 min•Ep. 83
Nowadays, if you're cast in a Marvel film, it's like winning the lottery. But it didn't start that way for Evangeline Lilly, who stars alongside Paul Rudd in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (February 17). "I was late to the Marvel game because I wasn't into superhero movies." But after watching them, "I came away feeling like I'd won the jackpot." For the third installment in the Ant-Man franchise, Lilly's Hope Van Dyne aka Wasp faces many changes: she's in love with Rudd's Scott Lang; the ret...
Feb 15, 2023•27 min•Ep. 82
There’s just something special about a good reality competition show, and Peacock’s ‘Traitors’ certainly delivers. Hosted by Alan Cumming, it’s one of those shows that you start to watch and then can’t stop—which is exactly what happened to Newsweek’s H. Alan Scott. On today’s Parting Shot, Cumming joins Scott to talk about his time on the show and why it’s his campiest role. We also talked about the nail-biting suspense of that finale. Honestly, if you’ve watched the show, you need to listen to...
Feb 08, 2023•23 min•Ep. 81
When you’re in a M. Night Shyamalan movie, it’s easy to understand an actor obsessing over the eventual twists that are surely to come. But as Jonathan Groff experienced in Shyamalan’s new film Knock at the Cabin (February 3), it’s easy to get “lost” in the story. “We're really submitting to his vision and trying to help him achieve exactly what he wants,” Groff told Newsweek’s H. Alan Scott. Groff plays Andrew, a father held hostage with his partner and young daughter by criminals who force the...
Feb 01, 2023•21 min•Ep. 80
