The Next Best Picture Podcast

"Hope" is a 2026 South Korean epic science fiction action thriller film written, directed, and co-produced by Na Hong-jin ("The Wailing"). Featuring an ensemble cast that includes Hwang Jung-min, Zo In-sung, Jung Ho-yeon, Taylor Russell, Cameron Britton, Alicia Vikander, and Michael Fassbender, the film centers on a village police chief and his rookie deputy who must defend his local community from a mysterious creature after wildfires sever all communications, while a local hunting party finds itself being hunted deep in the mountains. The film premiered in the main competition at the 2026 Cannes Film Festival, where it competed for the Palme d'Or and received positive reviews, with special praise for Na Hong-jin's direction in action sequences. Na Hong-jin was kind enough to spend some time talking with us about his work and experience making the film, which you can watch or listen to below. Please be sure to check out the film, which is now playing in theaters from NEON. Thank you, and enjoy!

https://youtu.be/3eg3pvQ5TAQ

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"The Uprising" (briefly marketed in the U.S. as "The Uprising: The Rise of Robin Hood") is an action period drama film written, produced, and directed by Paul Greengrass. It stars Andrew Garfield, Jamie Bell, Stephen Dillane, Tom Hollander, Cosmo Jarvis, Thomasin McKenzie, Jonny Lee Miller, Woody Norman and Katherine Waterston. It dramatizes the 1381 Peasants' Revolt in England. Academy Award-nominated star Andrew Garfield was kind enough to spend some time talking with us about his work and experience making the film, which you can watch or listen to below. Please be sure to check out the film, which is now playing in theaters from Focus Features. Thank you, and enjoy!

https://youtu.be/lGF--eZiqc4

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The 2026 Telluride Film Festival has concluded. Unfortunately, Will Mavity had to leave early, and J Don Birnam wasn't staying with us again this year, so it was just Daniel Howat and me as we take you through all of the movies we saw over the Labor Day weekend. From world premieres such as "The Debut," "Elsinore," "Tender Loving Care," and "The Liberation," to the secret screening of "You Can See Everything," to Sundance and Cannes favorites such as "Fjord," "La Bola Negra," "Club Kid," "Once Upon A Time In Harlem," to Venice crossovers such as "Wild Horse Nine," "Ink," and "Bucking Fastard" and more, we've got you covered. We hope you enjoy our recap. Thank you!

https://youtu.be/JUnBFexwmz8

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For this week's main podcast review, Giovanni Lago joined me before I left for Telluride/TIFF to review and discuss the latest film from Elegance Bratton, "By Any Means," starring Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Mark Wahlberg, Nicole Beharie, Josh Lucas, David Strathairn, and Giancarlo Esposito. Following up his feature narrative debut, "The Inspection," Bratton finds himself working within the major Hollywood studio system to tell a true story about a young Black FBI agent who teams up with notorious New York City mafia hitman, Greg Scarpa, to investigate the murders of civil rights leaders in Mississippi in 1966. What did we think of the film? Please tune in, either on video or audio only, as we discuss the story, performances, its themes of using violence to achieve a goal, Bratton's evolution as a filmmaker, the Diane Warren song during the end credits, and more in our SPOILER-FILLED review. Thank you for listening, and enjoy!

https://youtu.be/CE0v8TGfk9s

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"By Any Means" is an American historical crime thriller film directed by Elegance Bratton and written by Sascha Penn. The film stars Yahya Abdul-Mateen II as a young Black FBI agent who teams up with notorious New York City mafia hitman Greg Scarpa (Mark Wahlberg) to investigate the murders of civil rights leaders in Mississippi in 1966. The film also stars Nicole Beharie, Josh Lucas, LisaGay Hamilton, LaChanze, Ethan Embry, David Strathairn, and Giancarlo Esposito. Bratton was kind enough to spend some time talking with us about his work and experience making the film, which you can watch or listen to below. Please be sure to check out the film, which is now playing in theaters from Paramount Pictures. Thank you, and enjoy!

https://youtu.be/Du_F-WWG01c

Check out more on NextBestPicture.com

Please subscribe on...

Apple Podcasts - https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/negs-best-film-podcast/id1087678387?mt=2

Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/7IMIzpYehTqeUa1d9EC4jT

YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWA7KiotcWmHiYYy6wJqwOw

And be sure to help support us on Patreon for as little as $1 a month at https://www.patreon.com/NextBestPicture and listen to this podcast ad-free
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