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Film Stories with Simon Brew is a podcast that looks to dig into the stories behind popular movies.From troubled productions, to rights issues, to difficulties with release to films nearly falling apart, the podcast will be looking at the stories that don't always seem apparent when watching a movie!
The podcast is hosted by Simon Brew, the founder of Den Of Geek. You can find Simon at www.twitter.com/simonbrew
303 Episodes
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A film that's not yet happened - at the time of recording! - takes centre stage in this Film Stories episode. In 2019, Quentin Tarantino released his apparently penultimate film as director - Once Upon A Time In Hollywood - but five years on, it's no clearer what his final film will be. It doesn't look like it's going to be The Movie Critic, as had been suggested....
One film that did happen? How about the wildy successful Erin Brockovich? A 2000 movie that brought with it the challenge of adapting a real life story to the screen. Oh, with a major movie star on board...
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In this special episode of Film Stories, Dan Stevens joins Simon to talk about his latest film, Abigail. They talk about the making of the film, the sort-of crossover with Cocaine Bear, and why it needed to be shot in a certain order.
Plus, they also touch on drinking receptables, Colossal, choosing roles, and a whole lot more...
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Two risky films take centre stage in this episode of Film Stories, starting with Steven Spielberg's Saving Private Ryan. A 170-minute film released in the midst of a summer jammed with over 100 films to choose from in cinema. Who would have thought it'd prevail at the box office?
Spielberg for one wasn't too worried: but also, he came to it directly after making The Lost World: Jurassic Park and Amistad. No wonder he had to rely heavily on his instincts.
Fran Kranz meanwhile, better known for his acting, got nowhere with a script he'd written for a $100m alien invasion movie. He turned his attention to something a lot smaller, that he could raise the funding for. He came up with Mass, on a shoestring budget. Completing the film was just part of the challenge...
Stories of both are told in this episode
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In this special episode of the Film Stories podcast, Simon is joined by director Philip Martin, chatting days after the release of his latest film.
That movie is Scoop, the dramatisation of the infamous BBC interview with Prince Andrew. The pair chat about Philip's early work, his time in Canada trying to break into the film industry, then jetting to Los Angeles at one point to pitch to John Travolta.
Then there's Scoop, and the challenges of making a film where everybody pretty much knows the ending...
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A pair of bang up to the minute films in this episode of Film Stories, both of which enjoyed the fruits of viral marketing.
Saltburn (2023) had been in the head of its writer/director Emerald Fennell for years before she even got to work on her Oscar-winning Promising Young Woman (2020). The catalyst? A really rather famous scene in with a bathtub. But who could have guessed how the internet would take hold of her film post-release?
In the case of Mean Girls (2024), the battle was on to hide what it actually was. The new take on the 2004 film of the same name was a musical, but you'd never guess that from the (very deliberate) way that Paramount marketed the movie. A movie that, incidentally, was originally intended for streaming services before getting a cinema upgrade...
Stories of both are told in this episode.
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In a special episode of the Film Stories podcast, Simon is joined by Dolph Lundgren. Yep, that Dolph Lundgren: not only Ivan Dragon, but a writer, director, actor, TED Talker, academic and lover of cats.
They chat about his latest directorial outing, Wanted Man, that's available on UK digital services now. Plus, which version of Rocky IV is the best, why his cat has ended up in the end credits of his latest film, his love of watching Sex And The City, and a chat about the impact of putting his own story out into the world...
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There's a Ghostbusters theme running through this episode of Film Stories, starting off with a dive into 1989's Ghostbusters II. Dismissed by critics on its release and not matching the commercial performance of the 1984 original, the movie had a very difficult path to the screen. Then, when it finally started moving forward, it found itself in a queue with films such as Twins and Scrooged, to which others had commitments to.
We dig into that in this episode - including the crucial meeting in a Los Angeles restaurant that unlocked Ghostbusters II in the first place.
Then finally, a very special guest: Ernie Hudson joins us for the second half of the episode. On the one hand, he's talking about the newly-released Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire. On the other? Well, how are we supposed to resist talking to him about Congo...
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In a special episode of the Film Stories podcast, director and co-writer Gil Kenan joins to talk about his latest movie, Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire.
He tells Simon about being one of four people to direct a Ghostbusters movie, and the one moment where it hit him how monumental that was. Plus, how filming got underway one year before release, the practicalities of puppets, and some of the career challenges that led to this moment too.
Plus, reflections on Kenan's own story, and what got him to this point in time...
Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire is now in cinemas.
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It's back to the 1980s in this episode of the Film Stories podcast, kicking off with one last James Bond 007 adventure for Roger Moore.
A View To A Kill - teased at the end of 1983's Octopussy as From A View To A Kill - came together initially with little fuss for a James Bond movie. Roger Moore was quickly invited back. John Glen was asked to direct even before he'd finished the last film. Pinewood Studios was booked. And then the problems: question marks over whether Roger Moore was too old for the role, announcing someone for the villain who turned the part down - and then the 007 stage at Pinewood burning down.
1988's Buster by comparison was a fairly smooth shoot. Phil Collins agreed to take his first lead role, Julie Walters was in the USA for the Oscars when she got the script. But the story of one of the Great Train Robbers came with questions, not least should such a movie be with such a light tone about such a serious subject. Still, it got to the Oscars...
Stories of both - and their respective royal premieres too - are told in this episode...
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In a special episode of the Film Stories podcast, director Phillip Noyce joins Simon for a good, long chat.
They talk about many of films from across Noyce’s career, starting with his latest, Fast Charlie. The Pierce Brosnan-headlined pulpy thriller has quite the story of its own.
From there, the conversation moves across Noyce’s career: from the printer of Clear & Present Danger, working with Rutger Hauer on Blind Fury, the crisis of confidence surrounding The Giver and the impact of Rabbit Proof Fence. And that’s just a flavour of the conversation – there’s lots more…
Fast Charlie streaming on Prime Video 15 March. Distributed by Signature Entertainment
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With Christopher Nolan now an Oscar-winner, this particular episode of Film Stories begins by zipping back to 2017, when he had a his first serious drive-by of the Academy Awards. That'd be with Dunkirk, the first time he told a true story on film. It took him a long time to be in a position where he felt confident enough to make the film - and even then, he faced some pretty significant technical and logistical challenges to get it made.Even before he asked Warner Bros for the money to make it it.
Back in the mid-1990s meanwhile, uber-producers Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer - best known for the likes of Flashdance and Top Gun - had acquired an unusual project for them, an inspirational teacher film based on a true story. The author of that story, LouAnne Johnson, was alert to working with Hollywood though, and absolutely wouldn't be bowing down to people who thought they were Hollywood royalty. The film Dangerous Minds would, too, take some liberties with her story.
Stories of both of these films are told in this very episode...
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In a special episode of Film Stories, Simon is joined by writer/director Jeff Wadlow, as he releases his new film - Imaginary - into the world. There's therefore discussion about that, the challenge of making a traditional 'Blumhouse' film, and working with puppets too.
Along the way, they chat too about Truth Or Dare, 2005's Cry Wolf and - yes! - The Muppets. Plus, some words on The Adrenaline Film Project, a tremendous initiative that's very close to Jeff Wadlow's heart.
Imaginary is in cinemas now.
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Superhero movies? Oh, go on then. A pair of very different projects take centre stage here, at different ends of the budget spectrum.
2016's Batman V Superman: Dawn Of Justice was a pivotal movie for Warner Bros, and a big screen showdown that it'd first attempted nearly 20 years previously. This time, director Zack Snyder was effectively charged with leading the fightback against Marvel and its cinematic universe - and his Batman/Superman showdown would have plenty of ramifications.
In the case of 1996's The Phantom, here was a lower budget superhero outing, where the price was chopped just weeks ahead of filming. Joe Dante had originally been set to direct, and Simon Wincer would step in. But 10 days away from release, the boss of Paramount was very aware few people had heard of the movie...
Stories of both are told in this episode.
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A very warm welcome to the Film Stories podcast to screenwriter (and producer!) Eric Roth. He joins Simon for a conversation that goes right back through his career: from working on a hit Airport movie, to thinking he picked the wrong ending for the thriller Suspect.
Things turned in the 1990s though with the success of Forrest Gump, and Roth reflects on that, as well as touching on films such as Michael Mann's masterpiece, The Insider. We come right up to date too with Killers Of The Flower Moon, writing for Cher, his thoughts on AI, and his upcoming project that reunites him with Robert Zemeckis...
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Two films with very short titles in this episode, starting with a comedy favourite from the 2010s.
Director Paul Feig broke out of movie jail with 2010's Bridesmaids - and he used his freshly-inked deal with 20th Century Fox to get his own take on a James Bond film to the screen. Thing is: how do you persuade studio executives that Jason Statham can be a comedy lead? And, come to think of it, how do you convince Jason Statham?
As for 1986's F/X, here was a movie written with television originally in mind, until a producer read it and reckoned there was more to it. Harrison Ford, Mel Gibson and even George C Scott were linked. But the final cast would lead to a solid hit - albeit one that led to questions over the film's title.
Stories of both in this episode...
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In a special episode of the Film Stories podcast, a pair of guests join Simon to talk about the really, really good indie film American Star, and the ecosystem of independent filmmaking.
A guessable spoiler for the film is dropped by Ian McShane in the conversation.
Director Gonzalo López-Gallego and his star/producer Ian McShane talk about how the film took years to come together, and then was shot in under a month, and edited in under a month. The pair clearly enjoyed working together, and it's a lively chat. The film is out on video on demand and in cinemas now...
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The Fantastic Four take centre stage on the Film Stories podcast, with a pair of films that each had their demands.
The 2015 Fantastic Four was set to reboot the characters on the big screen, and give 20th Century Fox another ongoing superhero franchise. Yet this didn't go to plan at all. Director Josh Trank was hired, and wouldn't get to make the film he wanted. Others were quite happy to point the finger at Trank. Either way, the film would struggle.
Yet at least it'd get a release. In 1994, a $1m version of The Fantastic Four was made, with those making it fully expecting a cinema release. Trailers were released, promotions began - but on the eve of the film's world premiere, everything was stopped: and there's a strong theory about just what happened.
Stories of both are told in this episode.
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In this latest episode of Film Stories, we start with sharks. Very big sharks. A story imagined by a young screenwriter's memory of a childhood incident, that he eventually turned into a script. Then that script would go on to become Deep Blue Sea.
There were challenges, though: should the tone be Jaws-like? Or Jurassic Park? Or Alien? And then the very late need for more footage to be shot too.
In the case of 1984, adapted from George Orwell's novel of the same name, time was a luxury they didn't have. And, for six weeks of shooting, a co-star for John Hurt was missing too. Sean Connery turned the film down, Rod Steiger was rejected. But could they trust Richard Burton?
Stories of both films are told in this episode...
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In a special episode of the Film Stories podcast, Simon is joined by Oscar-nominated director of photography Hoyte van Hoytema for a long chat about his work.
They talk extensively about Hoyte's work with Christopher Nolan, not least on Oppenheimer. But also, there's a bit of Dunkirk and Interstellar in there. Furthermore, a few words on working on the James Bond movie SPECTRE too. Plus: the chances of working with Tomas Aldredson again.
Oppenheimer is available now on DVD, Blu-ray and 4K disc.
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Neither The King Of Comedy nor I Love Trouble were met with strong box office or enthusiastic reviews on their initial releases - but one has fared a lot better since.
1982's The King Of Comedy would be the last time Robert De Niro and Martin Scorsese would unite for many years - and for a long time it was a project that appealed more to De Niro than Scorsese. Still, after a damp initial response, the film's reputation has grown. A lot.
Not so with 1994's I Love Trouble, a rare movie star-driven summer film from Disney in the early 1990s. Julia Roberts starred, but didn't sign on the dotted line until he co-star was chosen. That'd be Nick Nolte, and it wouldn't be a particularly successful pairing...
Stories of both movies are told in this episode.
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Good enjoyable podcast with lots of interesting facts