Ben Winston Refuses to Declare Late-Night TV Dead

Live from NeueHouse in L.A. Matt is joined by Lucas Shaw and FX CEO John Landgraf for the second half of their conversation about the state of television. They discuss his curation process at FX, how Disney has changed FX, how ‘Shogun’ came together, and what happened with Season 3 of ‘The Bear.’ They also talk about HBO's recent struggles, the importance of process and the problem with the decentralized power at streaming services (01:34). For a 20 percent discount on Matt’s Hollywood insider newsletter, ‘What I’m Hearing ...,’ click here. Email us your thoughts! thetown@spotify.com Host: Matt Belloni Guests: Lucas Shaw and John Landgraf Producers: Craig Horlbeck and Jessie Lopez Theme Song: Devon Renaldo Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

29 Loka 202434min

Live from NeueHouse in L.A., Matt is first joined by Bloomberg’s Lucas Shaw to revisit their movie studio power rankings and update their list of which studios and streamers are the preferred homes for movie projects in 2024 (02:55). Then, Matt and Lucas are joined by FX chairman John Landgraf for Part 1 of their conversation about the state of television. They talk about the reason for the oversaturated television market, how the streaming model has affected the quality of shows being made, and what Silicon Valley is doing to the entertainment industry at large (17:48). For a 20 percent discount on Matt’s Hollywood insider newsletter, ‘What I’m Hearing ...,’ click here. Email us your thoughts! thetown@spotify.com Host: Matt Belloni Guest: Lucas Shaw and John Landgraf Producers: Craig Horlbeck and Jessie Lopez Theme Song: Devon Renaldo Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

28 Loka 202438min

Matt is joined by writer Bruce Eric Kaplan ('Girls', 'Seinfeld', 'Six Feet Under') to discuss the life of a TV writer and how it has changed over the years, particularly coming out of the pandemic. Bruce talks about his new book chronicling his time during the pandemic as a struggling screenwriter, joining Season 2 of the hit Netflix show ‘Nobody Wants This’, the bursting of the peak TV bubble, the psychology of the working writer, and if there is room for optimism moving forward (02:31). Matt finishes the show with opening weekend box office predictions for ‘Venom 3: The Last Dance’ and ‘Conclave’. (21:30). For a 20 percent discount on Matt’s Hollywood insider newsletter, ‘What I’m Hearing ...,’ click here. Email us your thoughts! thetown@spotify.com Host: Matt Belloni Guest: Bruce Eric Kaplan Producers: Craig Horlbeck and Jessie Lopez Theme Song: Devon Renaldo Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

25 Loka 202433min

Matt is joined by Bloomberg’s Lucas Shaw to first talk about Disney’s report that it would name a new chief executive in “early 2026.” Then they offer their takeaways from Netflix’s latest earning report by looking at the streamer’s five pressure points: advertising, the threat of bundling, theaters, compensation, and growth (02:46). Matt finishes the show with a prediction about World Series ratings (29:06). For a 20 percent discount on Matt’s Hollywood insider newsletter, ‘What I’m Hearing ...,’ click here. Email us your thoughts! thetown@spotify.com Host: Matt Belloni Guest: Lucas Shaw Producers: Craig Horlbeck and Jessie Lopez Theme Song: Devon Renaldo Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

21 Loka 202436min

Matt is joined by ‘SNL’ expert, author, and journalist James Andrew Miller to assess the state of ‘SNL’ and go through some lightning-round questions about the current season, the 50th anniversary show, upcoming ‘SNL’ documentaries, and the movie ‘Saturday Night’ (02:25). Matt finishes the show with an opening weekend box office prediction for ‘Smile 2’ (30:26). For a 20 percent discount on Matt’s Hollywood insider newsletter, ‘What I’m Hearing ...,’ click here. Email us your thoughts! thetown@spotify.com Host: Matt Belloni Guest: James Andrew Miller Producers: Craig Horlbeck and Jessie Lopez Theme Song: Devon Renaldo Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

17 Loka 202436min

Matt is joined by Cineverse CEO Chris McGurk to talk about the rise of independently financed horror movies and how to turn a low-budget film into a bona fide hit. They talk about the indie horror marketing playbook and whether the recent boom in low-budget horror is a fluke or a trend (02:28). Later, Matt makes a prediction about the future of Legendary Pictures (23:08). For a 20 percent discount on Matt’s Hollywood insider newsletter, ‘What I’m Hearing ...,’ click here. Email us your thoughts! thetown@spotify.com Host: Matt Belloni Guest: Chris McGurk Producers: Craig Horlbeck and Jessie Lopez Theme Song: Devon Renaldo Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

15 Loka 202432min

Live from Bloomberg’s Screentime event in Los Angeles, Matt and Lucas Shaw make their case for buying the dip or selling high on some of the biggest entities across Hollywood. Topics include Travis Kelce’s media career, Amazon Prime Video, Todd Phillips, K-pop, Jennifer Lopez’s movie career, sports docs, Lionsgate, and much more! For a 20 percent discount on Matt’s Hollywood insider newsletter, ‘What I’m Hearing ...,’ click here. Email us your thoughts! thetown@spotify.com Host: Matt Belloni Guest: Lucas Shaw Producers: Craig Horlbeck and Jessie Lopez Theme Song: Devon Renaldo Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

11 Loka 202434min

Matt is joined by Fergus Navaratnam-Blair from National Research Group to discuss the evolution of male characters on-screen in Hollywood and what the next generation wants to see from male archetypes. Fergus explains who young men currently look up to the most in 2024 and how these role models have shifted over the years. They discuss the more fictionalized characters and superheroes in popular culture, how Hollywood sells masculinity to young men, and whether there is a market opportunity for storytellers to make new male characters that resonate with the next generation (02:40). Matt finishes the show with a trifecta of opening weekend box office predictions for ‘Terrifier 3,’ ‘Saturday Night,’ and ‘The Apprentice’ (25:14). For a 20 percent discount on Matt’s Hollywood insider newsletter, ‘What I’m Hearing ...,’ click here. Email us your thoughts! thetown@spotify.com Host: Matt Belloni Guest: Fergus Navaratnam-Blair Producers: Craig Horlbeck and Jessie Lopez Theme Song: Devon Renaldo Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

9 Loka 202432min