The Writers Panel

Writer/director Leslye Headland (creator, The Acolyte; co-creator, Russian Doll; Dying for Sex) returns to discuss individuality and authenticity, loving Star Wars, creding her team, how Russian Doll began, auteurism, and lots more.THE WRITERS PANEL IS A COMPLETELY INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION.Follow and support the show by subscribing to Ben Blacker's newsletter, Re:Writing, where you'll also get weekly advice from the thousands of writers he's interviewed over the years, as well as access to exclusive live Q&As, meet-ups, and more: benblacker.substack.comSOCIALS:Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/benblacker.bsky.socialInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/bablacker/

Rebecca Cutter (creator, The Hunting Wives and Hightown) returns to discuss why she thinks people have responded so positively to The Hunting Wives, hiring the writers' room, regulating tone by instinct, quality without "prestige," and more.The Thrilling Adventure Hour celebrates its 20th anniversary with shows in London!Come see Paul F. Tompkins, Paget Brewster, Busy Philipps, Joshua Malina, Janet Varney, and more this fall! https://thrillingadventure.live for details.THE WRITERS PANEL IS A COMPLETELY INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION.Follow and support the show by subscribing to Ben Blacker's newsletter, Re:Writing, where you'll also get weekly advice from the thousands of writers he's interviewed over the years, as well as access to exclusive live Q&As, meet-ups, and more: benblacker.substack.comSOCIALS:Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/benblacker.bsky.socialInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/bablacker/

DMV showrunners Dana Klein (9JKL; Fresh Off the Boat; Friends) and Matt Kuhn (Doogie Kameāloha, MD; Fresh Off the Boat) discuss pitching and selling the show, keeping a positive and open writers' room together, what they look for in samples when staffing, how comedy has changed since Friends and How I Met Your Mother (where each began), keeping inspired, and more.The Thrilling Adventure Hour celebrates its 20th anniversary with shows in NY and London!Come see Paul F. Tompkins, Paget Brewster, Busy Philipps, Joshua Malina, Janet Varney, and more this fall! https://thrillingadventure.live for details.THE WRITERS PANEL IS A COMPLETELY INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION.Follow and support the show by subscribing to Ben Blacker's newsletter, Re:Writing, where you'll also get weekly advice from the thousands of writers he's interviewed over the years, as well as access to exclusive live Q&As, meet-ups, and more: benblacker.substack.comSOCIALS:Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/benblacker.bsky.socialInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/bablacker/

Shane Black (writer/director, Play Dirty, The Nice Guys, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang; writer, Lethal Weapon,The Last Boy Scout) returns to discuss his connection to Donald Westlake, the writer on whose work Play Dirty is based, what he and his co-writers each bring to a script, how he pushes through imposter syndrome, respectful but playful actors, how production is just "shopping for ingredients," and lots more.Listen to the last time Shane visited the podcast in 2016 on Apple podcasts or wherever you get your pods.The Thrilling Adventure Hour celebrates its 20th anniversary with shows in NY and London!Come see Paul F. Tompkins, Paget Brewster, Busy Philipps, Joshua Malina, Janet Varney, and more this fall! https://thrillingadventure.live for details.THE WRITERS PANEL IS A COMPLETELY INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION.Follow and support the show by subscribing to Ben Blacker's newsletter, Re:Writing, where you'll also get weekly advice from the thousands of writers he's interviewed over the years, as well as access to exclusive live Q&As, meet-ups, and more: benblacker.substack.comSOCIALS:Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/benblacker.bsky.socialInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/bablacker/

Nnamdi Asomugha (director/co-writer, The Knife) discusses going from playing in the NFL to becoming an actor and now writer and producer, embracing new skills, imposter syndrome, teamwork, and just how hard it really is to get a movie out into the world.The Thrilling Adventure Hour celebrates its 20th anniversary with shows in NY and London!Come see Paul F. Tompkins, Paget Brewster, Busy Philipps, Joshua Malina, Janet Varney, and more this fall! https://thrillingadventure.live for details.THE WRITERS PANEL IS A COMPLETELY INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION.Follow and support the show by subscribing to Ben Blacker's newsletter, Re:Writing, where you'll also get weekly advice from the thousands of writers he's interviewed over the years, as well as access to exclusive live Q&As, meet-ups, and more: benblacker.substack.comSOCIALS:Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/benblacker.bsky.socialInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/bablacker/

Niya Palmer (co-creator, Miss Governor; Run the World) discusses working with Tyler Perry, being quiet on set, getting inspired by D.A.R.Y.L., how growing up sparring prepared her for some very bad writers' rooms, driving in the wake of an ambulance, and more.LIVE STUFF!A live Dead Pilots Society in LA (or available to stream on demand) on Sunday 9/14 2-4pm at the Elysian Theater. With scripts by Lisa Muse Bryant (The Four Seasons; Black-ish) and Jim Brandon & Brian Singleton (Animal Control; Mixed-ish). Starring Amber Riley (Glee), Melissa Fumero (Brooklyn 99), Yvette Nicole Brown (Community), Kyla Pratt (One On One), Dan Gregor (The Naked Gun co-writer), Marcel Spears (The Neighborhood), Brian Safi (Throwing Shade), Jessica McKenna (Dropout), and more.Get live or streaming tickets here.The Thrilling Adventure Hour celebrates its 20th anniversary with shows in NY and London!Come see Paul F. Tompkins, Paget Brewster, Busy Philipps, Joshua Malina, Janet Varney, and more this fall! https://thrillingadventure.live for details.THE WRITERS PANEL IS A COMPLETELY INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION.Follow and support the show by subscribing to Ben Blacker's newsletter, Re:Writing, where you'll also get weekly advice from the thousands of writers he's interviewed over the years, as well as access to exclusive live Q&As, meet-ups, and more: benblacker.substack.comSOCIALS:Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/benblacker.bsky.socialInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/bablacker/

Writer/director Macon Blair (The Toxic Avenger; I Don't Feel at Home in This World Anymore) discusses managing a bigger production for his second feature, "handmade" films, balancing tones, writing a movie that's not "accidentally stupid," and lots more. LIVE STUFF!A live Dead Pilots Society in LA (or available to stream on demand) on Sunday 9/14 2-4pm at the Elysian Theater. With scripts by Lisa Muse Bryant (The Four Seasons; Black-ish) and Jim Brandon & Brian Singleton (Animal Control; Mixed-ish). Starring Amber Riley (Glee), Yvette Nicole Brown (Community), Kyla Pratt (One On One), Dan Gregor (The Naked Gun co-writer), Phil Lamarr (King of the Hill; Futurama), Marcel Spears (The Neighborhood), Brian Safi (Throwing Shade), Jessica McKenna (Dropout), and more.Get live or streaming tickets here.The Thrilling Adventure Hour celebrates its 20th anniversary with shows in NY and London!Come see Paul F. Tompkins, Paget Brewster, Busy Philipps, Joshua Malina, Janet Varney, and more this fall! https://thrillingadventure.live for details.THE WRITERS PANEL IS A COMPLETELY INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION.Follow and support the show by subscribing to Ben Blacker's newsletter, Re:Writing, where you'll also get weekly advice from the thousands of writers he's interviewed over the years, as well as access to exclusive live Q&As, meet-ups, and more: benblacker.substack.comSOCIALS:Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/benblacker.bsky.socialInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/bablacker/

A double-header today!First, Jen Statsky (co-creator, Hacks) returns to discuss maintaining the high quality of the show four seasons in, staying honest while staying funny, season 4's big emotional moments, Carol Burnett, being raised by television, and more.Then, Severance creator Dan Erickson discusses the challenges of season 2, finding "things you can only do on this show," early comedy influences, "Bad Pitch Mondays," and more.LIVE STUFF!A live Dead Pilots Society in LA (or available to stream on demand) on Sunday 9/14 2-4pm at the Elysian Theater. With scripts by Lisa Muse Bryant (The Four Seasons; Black-ish) and Jim Brandon & Brian Singleton (Animal Control; Mixed-ish). Starring Amber Riley (Glee), Vic Michaelis (Dropout's Very Important People), Dan Gregor (The Naked Gun co-writer), Phil Lamarr (King of the Hill; Futurama), Marcel Spears (The Neighborhood), Brian Safi (Throwing Shade), Jessica McKenna (Dropout), and more.Get live or streaming tickets here.Come see Paul F. Tompkins, Paget Brewster, Busy Philipps, Joshua Malina, Janet Varney, and more in The Thrilling Adventure Hour live in New York or London this fall! https://thrillingadventure.live for details.THE WRITERS PANEL IS A COMPLETELY INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION.Follow and support the show by subscribing to Ben Blacker's newsletter, Re:Writing, where you'll also get weekly advice from the thousands of writers he's interviewed over the years, as well as access to exclusive live Q&As, meet-ups, and more: benblacker.substack.comSOCIALS:Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/benblacker.bsky.socialInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/bablacker/

Michael Seitzman (creator, The Rainmaker, Intelligence) discusses selling his John Grisham adaptation three times, shooting Dublin for Charleston (for Memphis), his approach to adaptation, storybreaking a conspiracy, hiring a writers room of Finders, Minders, and Grinders, and more.THE WRITERS PANEL IS A COMPLETELY INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION.Follow and support the show by subscribing to Ben Blacker's newsletter, Re:Writing, where you'll also get weekly advice from the thousands of writers he's interviewed over the years, as well as access to exclusive live Q&As, meet-ups, and more: benblacker.substack.comCome see Paul F. Tompkins, Paget Brewster, Busy Philipps, Joshua Malina, Janet Varney, and more in The Thrilling Adventure Hour live in a city near you! https://thrillingadventure.live for details.SOCIALS:Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/benblacker.bsky.socialInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/bablacker/