Ahsoka is the latest Star Wars TV series on Disney+. This one's about a character who's beloved by fans of the franchise's animated series – but if you only know the Star Wars movies, you're likely meeting her for the very first time. Ahsoka Tano (Rosario Dawson) was once a Jedi who rejected the Order's stuffy, bureaucratic ways and is harboring a great sense of guilt over her mentor becoming Darth Vader. She's back with a new Jedi mentee of her own (Natasha Liu Bordizzo) as they try to stop a n...
Oct 03, 2023•19 min•Ep 1713•Transcript available on Metacast In the new movie The Creator , humanity is at war with artificial intelligence. It stars John David Washington as a former soldier who's been recruited to find and kill the creator of a powerful AI weapon. Directed by Gareth Edwards, the film's big themes involve the role of AI, the brutality of war, and the building blocks of life and society. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy...
Sep 29, 2023•22 min•Ep 1712•Transcript available on Metacast Talking Heads' Stop Making Sense has been called the greatest concert film of all time. Directed by Jonathan Demme, the iconic 1984 film takes the audience onstage with the band and captures them at the height of their power. Now, a restored version of the film is back in theaters, featuring propulsive performances of early hits like "Psycho Killer," along with deeper and funkier cuts, too. Subscribe to Pop Culture Happy Hour Plus at plus.npr.org/happyhour Learn more about sponsor message choice...
Sep 28, 2023•19 min•Ep 1711•Transcript available on Metacast In the new film Cassandro, Gael García Bernal plays the real-life Mexican-American wrestler who came to international stardom by adopting the persona of the flamboyant Cassandro, the Liberace of Lucha Libre. It's the story of a queer man who challenges a macho and homophobic system through sheer showmanship – and earns the respect of his fellow wrestlers and audiences. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy...
Sep 27, 2023•20 min•Ep 1710•Transcript available on Metacast The snappy "eat the rich" comedy Dumb Money is about a sly bunch of Reddit users who made some Wall Street billionaires sweat, in an infamous stock market incident known as the Game Stop short squeeze. With a star-studded ensemble including Paul Dano, Seth Rogen, and Pete Davidson, the movie has got class warfare and needle drops galore. But will it inspire you to fight the power or just go out and buy some stocks? Subscribe to Pop Culture Happy Hour Plus at plus.npr.org/happyhour Learn more abo...
Sep 26, 2023•22 min•Ep 1709•Transcript available on Metacast Netflix's hit series Sex Education is a refreshing and frank coming-of-age story about modern teens learning about their bodies and themselves in awkward, relatable ways. In the final season, amateur sex therapist Otis (Asa Butterfield), his best friend Eric (Ncuti Gatwa), and their friends juggle academic life and young adulthood. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy...
Sep 22, 2023•27 min•Ep 1708•Transcript available on Metacast Starfield is one of the biggest and most anticipated video game releases of the year. It's a massive open world game set in humanity's future, when we've settled on star systems throughout the galaxy. There's over 1000 planets to explore, multiple factions to join, spaceships to pilot and quests to go on. But does Starfield live up to the hype? Subscribe to Pop Culture Happy Hour Plus at plus.npr.org/happyhour Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Pol...
Sep 21, 2023•23 min•Ep 1707•Transcript available on Metacast When you're talking about the movies of the 1990s, you have to mention the decade's huge assortment of thrillers. From courtroom standoffs and frantic chases to wild twists and A-list stars, today, we are recommending three of our favorite 90s thrillers. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy
Sep 20, 2023•9 min•Ep 1706•Transcript available on Metacast Part blistering workplace satire, part creepy thriller, Hulu's The Other Black Girl packs a lot of punches. Nella (Sinclair Daniel) is a young editorial assistant who forms a fast-friendship with her new-coworker, Hazel (Ashleigh Murray) as they both navigate working in a mostly white publishing company. Hazel is confident, a bit mysterious, and full of secrets. The Other Black Girl is based on the novel by Zakiya Dalila Harris. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoi...
Sep 19, 2023•25 min•Ep 1705•Transcript available on Metacast Today we offer up a guide to some of the most exciting movies, TV, and music you can check out this fall. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy
Sep 15, 2023•28 min•Ep 1704•Transcript available on Metacast Olivia Rodrigo's debut album, Sour , was one of the biggest hits of 2021. Now, she's back with a new record called GUTS , which has already spawned two hits with "vampire" and "bad idea right?" The album sharpens a sound inspired by pop, punk and singer-songwriters. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy...
Sep 14, 2023•19 min•Ep 1703•Transcript available on Metacast This summer, millions of us got cozy with Beyoncé during the Renaissance World Tour. With stunning visuals, an array of costume changes, and the occasional Blue Ivy cameo, this is reportedly Beyonce's highest-grossing tour yet. Renaissance has been unlike any other Beyoncé experience, a truly communal and social media-hyped dance party. Subscribe to Pop Culture Happy Hour Plus at plus.npr.org/happyhour Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy...
Sep 13, 2023•23 min•Ep 1702•Transcript available on Metacast Recently, late night talk show hosts Jimmy Fallon, Seth Meyers, Stephen Colbert, John Oliver and Jimmy Kimmel started the chat podcast Strike Force Five to raise money and support their staff during the actors and writers strikes. Shortly after it launched, an investigation in Rolling Stone outlined allegations of erratic and aggressive behavior by Jimmy Fallon and a generally terrible working environment at The Tonight Show . So now, this unusual project finds itself in an awkward position. Lea...
Sep 11, 2023•20 min•Ep 1701•Transcript available on Metacast The family comedy My Big Fat Greek Wedding was a very big hit back in 2002. So it was inevitable that the movie spawned a couple of sequels – thus, we now have My Big Fat Greek Wedding 3 . Writer and director Nia Vardalos is back as Toula, John Corbett is back as her husband, and this time, they're headed to Greece for a family reunion. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy...
Sep 08, 2023•26 min•Ep 1700•Transcript available on Metacast Movie stars are larger than life, and usually have some sort of mystique or mystery. And they defined the movies for generations, from Charlie Chaplin to Denzel Washington and Julia Roberts. But in an age of Disney and Marvel, the movie star seems to have been eclipsed by the franchises in which they appear. So are we witnessing the death of the movie star? Today we present an episode of NPR's Consider This podcast about the history of movie stars, and their place in Hollywood today. Learn more ...
Sep 07, 2023•12 min•Ep 1699•Transcript available on Metacast Taylor Swift's Eras Tour is on pace to become the biggest and most lucrative concert tour in history. Each night's show offers up a career-spanning three-hour epic, with a sprawling setlist that includes a nightly assortment of surprises. But what made the tour such a juggernaut this summer? Subscribe to Pop Culture Happy Hour Plus at plus.npr.org/happyhour Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy...
Sep 06, 2023•23 min•Ep 1698•Transcript available on Metacast New seasons of FX's The Bear and Hulu's Only Murders in the Building are bringing in big talent like Jamie Lee Curtis, Olivia Coleman and Meryl Streep. So we decided to discuss: What makes a great TV guest star? And who are some of the best guest stars of all time? Subscribe to Pop Culture Happy Hour Plus at plus.npr.org/happyhour Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy...
Sep 05, 2023•26 min•Ep 1697•Transcript available on Metacast The long-running lawyer show Suits is this summer's streaming sensation, and riding high on Netflix's top ten. Starring Gabriel Macht and Patrick J. Adams, the series originally ran on the USA Network and ended its run four years ago. So why is it now so popular? Is it nostalgia for a different kind of television? Is it Meghan Markle? And how good is this show? Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy...
Sep 01, 2023•26 min•Ep 1696•Transcript available on Metacast In a little more than a year, NewJeans has become huge in the world of K-pop, with a reputation for upending industry conventions. They've become the fastest K-Pop act ever to reach one billion streams on Spotify, and their new EP, Get Up, just hit number one on the Billboard charts. Plus, their single "OMG" went viral on TikTok, spawning dance challenges and memes. Subscribe to Pop Culture Happy Hour Plus at plus.npr.org/happyhour Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adc...
Aug 31, 2023•17 min•Ep 1695•Transcript available on Metacast HBO has two great new documentary projects about two very different scams. BS High is about a high school football team that came from what turned out to be a nonexistent high school. Telemarketers is about telemarketing scams, and how hard it is to stop them. Both stories are about not just the very colorful nitty-gritty details of a successful scam, but also the conditions and the systems that make scams possible. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Priva...
Aug 30, 2023•27 min•Ep 1694•Transcript available on Metacast The FX animated comedy Archer explores the raunchy exploits of Sterling Archer (H. Jon Benjamin), who is known from Berlin to Bangkok as the world's most dangerous spy. The show is violent, smutty, and packed with profanity, wordplay, and callbacks. The final season is about to premiere, so we thought now would be the perfect time to revisit our conversation about the series. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy...
Aug 29, 2023•16 min•Ep 1693•Transcript available on Metacast Hollywood loves a movie about horny teens desperate to lose their virginity, and the smart new comedy Bottoms is a welcome addition to the canon. Ayo Edebiri and Rachel Sennott star as unpopular best friends who start a fight club in hopes of seducing the cheerleaders of their dreams. Bottoms was co-written by Sennott and Emma Seligman, who also directs. They previously collaborated on the movie Shiva Baby . Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Polic...
Aug 25, 2023•24 min•Ep 1692•Transcript available on Metacast In the great new DC superhero film Blue Beetle, Xolo Maridueña plays Jaime Reyes, a young Mexican-American man who stumbles across a creepy bug-like alien artifact that bonds to him and gives him superpowers. It may seem like just another story about a reluctant hero, but in execution, centering the film on a Latino family changes the familiar formula in ways big and small. Subscribe to Pop Culture Happy Hour Plus at plus.npr.org/happyhour Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices...
Aug 24, 2023•17 min•Ep 1691•Transcript available on Metacast We know you read on your own. But we also know you read together. Today we're recommending some great books for your next book club. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy
Aug 23, 2023•9 min•Ep 1690•Transcript available on Metacast In the raunchy new comedy Strays , four talking dogs embark on an incredible journey. Reggie (voiced by Will Ferrell) doesn't realize his owner Doug (Will Forte) is desperate to abandon him on the streets. But when Doug's intentions become clear, Reggie's motivation shifts from a reunion to revenge. Strays' voice cast also features Jamie Foxx, Isla Fisher and Randall Park. Subscribe to Pop Culture Happy Hour Plus at plus.npr.org/happyhour Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices....
Aug 22, 2023•16 min•Ep 1689•Transcript available on Metacast The Apple TV+ murder mystery comedy series The Afterparty looks at the events around a murder and its investigation from a different character's point of view in each episode. Starring Sam Richardson, Zoë Chao, Tiffany Haddish, and many others, each installment is made in a different film style — like an erotic thriller, a midcentury melodrama, or a Wes Anderson sendup. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy...
Aug 18, 2023•20 min•Ep 1688•Transcript available on Metacast On Sunday morning, England and Spain will face off in the Women's World Cup Final. Both countries are playing in the women's final for the first time. And whether you'll be watching for the first time or a diehard soccer fan, we've got you've covered. Plus, we'll talk about why the U.S. was knocked out in the round of 16, and the impact of the American team on the sport. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy...
Aug 17, 2023•20 min•Ep 1687•Transcript available on Metacast The fantastic Max animated series Harley Quinn is set in its own separate version of the DC Universe where the violence is frequent and the raunchy jokes come at you fast. In the show, Harley (Kaley Cuoco) has ditched the Joker and started making her own brand of mayhem alongside her best friend and romantic partner Poison Ivy (Lake Bell). Harley Quinn recently returned for a new season, so we decided to revisit our conversation about the series. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcast...
Aug 16, 2023•17 min•Ep 1686•Transcript available on Metacast What makes for an unshakable rap verse — the kind that shifts your world view and sticks around years after the first time you encountered it? This month marks 50 years since the birth of hip-hop, so we reached out to some NPR colleagues and a few hip-hop luminaries and asked them what hip-hop verse changed their lives. You can hear all the tracks discussed in this episode in our Spotify playlist. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy...
Aug 15, 2023•32 min•Ep 1685•Transcript available on Metacast The new film Red White & Royal Blue is a classic enemies-to-lovers rom-com, though in this case the rom is queer, and the com arises out of the fact that there are huge geopolitical stakes involved. That's because the two lovers in question are Alex (Taylor Zakhar Perez), the son of the American president and Henry (Nicholas Galitzine), the prince of England. Directed by Matthew López, the movie is based on Casey McQuiston's wildly successful and much-loved novel. Learn more about sponsor messag...
Aug 11, 2023•25 min•Ep 1684•Transcript available on Metacast 
