Awards Chatter

The stunning and versatile actress reflects on how modeling led her to acting via a 1996 magazine cover; the challenge of finding multi-dimensional parts even as she rose to prominence in horror (two 'Final Destination' and three 'Resident Evil' films), comedy ('Legally Blonde') and superhero ('Heroes') projects; and why the part of Angela Norris opposite Billy Bob Thornton in Taylor Sheridan's dramedy series is a dream come true. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In front of an audience at Chapman University, the former child actor-turned-multi-hyphenate reflects on his five years of work in front of and behind the camera on 'Ozark,' the unanticipated success of his — and Will Arnett and Sean Hayes' — podcast 'SmartLess,' and stepping outside his acting comfort zone on two limited series over the past year. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The chameleonic character actor reflects on the importance of his college training and getting sober, his career-changing turn as the bipolar brother of Laura Linney's character on 'Ozark' and how becoming a parent with wife Kaley Cuoco helped to prepare him for his role of a lifetime opposite Mark Ruffalo in Brad Ingelsby's follow-up to 'Mare of Easttown.' Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In front of an audience at the Newport Beach TV Fest, the prolific multi-hyphenate reflects on the evolution of his interests in animation, comedy and music; the longevity and future of 'Family Guy'; and why he insisted upon expensive CGI for Peacock's adaptation of his films about a foul-mouthed teddy bear. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The trailblazing standup comedian, actress and writer, whose seventh hourlong comedy special recently dropped on Netflix, reflects on why she left a job at the NSA at the age of 27 to pursue standup, how her comedy changed after she divorced her husband and came out as gay, and what she makes of "cancel culture." Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The actor, writer, director and producer, who is best known for playing emergency room doctors on two Emmy-winning drama series 16 years apart, reflects on the pros and cons of landing his big break at 22, the creative frustrations and rewards of the years between Dr. Carter and Dr. Robinavitch, how COVID sparked the conversations that led to a reunion with 'ER' showrunner John Wells and writer R. Scott Gemmill, and what it’s like to now be back at the center of the cultural conversation after so many years away from it. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In front of an audience at the Newport Beach TV Fest, the trailblazing writer/director/producer/actress reflects on her time on 'The Office' and how it shaped the series she subsequently created, including 'The Mindy Project,' 'Never Have I Ever' and 'The Sex Lives of College Girls'; the sense of responsibility and pressure that comes with being an American-Indian creator and making shows with American-Indian protagonists; and why she has enjoyed working strictly behind-the-camera on her most recent series. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Six Broadway standouts — nominated this year for 'The Lost Boys,' 'Fallen Angels,' 'Ragtime,' 'Giant,' 'Death of a Salesman' and 'Titaníque,' respectively — discuss the challenges and rewards of working on the Great White Way. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The ultimate character actor — and guide to Italy’s food and culture — reflects on early-career frustration with being asked to portray stereotypes of Italian-Americans, and how it led him to his breakout film 'Big Night'; the pros and cons of a career in which he has tended to play small parts in large projects and large parts in small projects; and the little-known story of how his food-centric shows, for which he has won three Emmys, grew out of a battle with oral cancer that forced him to eat his own food through a tube. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In front of an audience at Meta House during the Cannes Film Festival, the celebrated comedy actress reflects on how a bruising experience at 'SNL' inadvertently led to 'Seinfeld,' why 'Veep' was such a different and exciting acting challenge, and what led her to a new animated film in which she provides the voice of a wife and mother who is diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In front of an audience in the Campari Lounge at the Cannes Film Festival, the Oscar-nominated German actress, who is in the midst of one of the great years in film history, reflects on her breakthrough roles in 'Toni Erdmann,' 'Anatomy of a Fall' and 'The Zone of Interest'; how she approaches art house projects, like those she accompanied to Berlin and Cannes this year, versus studio films, like her recent collab with Ryan Gosling; and why she is so excited for people to see Alejandro González Iñárritu's 'Digger,' in which she stars opposite Tom Cruise. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In front of an audience of students at Chapman University, the 32-year-old veteran actress reflects on child stardom and what she learned from co-stars like Sean Penn, Denzel Washington and Tom Cruise; how she navigated growing up, on screen and off; and why she has done some of her best work yet in limited series, including 'The Alienist,' 'Ripley,' 'The Perfect Couple' and, most recently, Peacock's show about the kidnapping of a child. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In front of an audience of students at Chapman University, the legendary Broadway star — who has been nominated for and won more acting Tonys than anyone else — and TV character actress reflects on the early struggles that led her to attempt suicide, finding her voice and confidence on stage, overcoming her fear of screen acting and, most recently, highlighting a little-known chapter of Black history on three seasons of Julian Fellowes' critically-acclaimed HBO drama series. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In front of an audience at the Napa Valley StreamFest, one of TV's most prolific creators reflects on being fired early in his career from 'Boy Meet World,' 'The Nanny' and 'Friends,' how he wound up co-creating and running 'Spin City' while in his 20s, the happy accidents that led to 'Scrubs' and 'Ted Lasso,' and why his Apple TV+ Emmy contender is being extended beyond its original three-season plan. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In front of an audience at the Napa Valley StreamFest, the legendary TV actress and breakthrough film director reflects on following her late mom Jayne Mansfield into the business; playing sex crimes investigator Olivia Benson for 27 years and counting (making her the longest-running character in an American primetime live-action show); and exploring her complicated personal history in a 2025 HBO doc that is now eligible for an Emmy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In front of an audience at the Boulder International Film Festival, the veteran star of screens big ('The Hunt for Red October' and 'The Cooler') and small ('30 Rock' and 'SNL') reflects on how he stumbled into acting, what forced his pivot from leading man to character parts, how we wound up impersonating Trump and what his life has been like since the tragic accident that claimed the life of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the set of 'Rust' in 2021. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The legendary star reflects on how clinical depression led him to acting, the unlikely ways he broke into the movies and was cast in 'Star Wars,' why he long yearned to escape "leading man" roles and to play "character parts" and why he so loves his current challenge of playing an acerbic psychotherapist battling Parkinson's disease on Apple TV's Emmy-nominated comedy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Oscar-winning producer of films like 'Chariots of Fire,' 'Local Hero,' 'The Killing Fields' and 'The Mission,' who was once described by the New York Times as "the white knight of the British film industry," and who later became the first non-American to run a Hollywood studio, reflects on his path from school dropout to ad industry phenom to filmmaking; why he so often bet on first-time directors, non-star actors and character-driven dramas; and his brief and turbulent time running Columbia Pictures. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In front of an audience at Chapman University, the co-chairs/co-CEOs of Warner Bros. Motion Picture Group reflect on their paths through the business as producers and execs over the last three decades; their crazy 2025, during which they went from almost losing their jobs to presiding over one of the most successful years any studio has ever had; and what it's like being behind both horses in a two-horse best picture Oscar race, 'Sinners' and 'One Battle After Another.' Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The legendary punk and rock singer/songwriter, who was a key part of the MTV-driven “Second British Invasion” back in the ’80s and has been a major figure on the global music scene ever since, reflects on coming to America, his greatest hits and the new documentary about his rollercoaster journey. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices