@Getty Images
This week's episode of the Empire Podcast sees Christmas on our mind as we enter December, and accordingly we deliver a sackful of great guests to you, our loyal and loving listeners. First off, Chris Hewitt goes to Taron Egerton's actual flat (smells divine… and the flat wasn't bad either) to sit down with him for a candid chat about his career, his new film She Rides Shotgun, and whether or not he knows his lines. [21:05 — 38:44 approx.] Then, Chris sits down with two of his absolute faves, George Clooney and Adam Sandler, for a riotous conversation about their new movie Jay Kelly, basketball, and accents. [1:03:17 — 1:22:31 approx] And finally, that man Chris Hewitt is back once again, this time talking to Wicked: For Good director Jon M. Chu in an excerpt from our upcoming spoiler special for his cinematic musical spectacular. [1:43:57 — 1:55:17 approx.]
Either side of those, Chris is joined in the podbooth by Helen O'Hara and James Dyer to review Jay Kelly, She Rides Shotgun, It Was Just An Accident, and Eternity. The gang also discuss the week's movie news (a ton of which *ahem* Netflix buying Warner Bros. *ahem* broke after we had finished recording, as ever) and answer the first Christmas-related questions of the year, leading to an unexpected Die Hard/Love Actually mash-up… and the team trying to figure out how to take down an Infinity Gauntlet-wielding Santa Claus. Oh, and our intrepid trio also dig into Quentin Tarantino's list of the 20 best films of the 21st Century, as well as his accompanying comments about Paul Dano. Enjoy!
Click here to preview your posts with PRO themes ››
You can listen to this week's episode (which, if you're counting, is #696) on the pod app of your choice. And if you want more of The Empire Film Podcast, but LIVE and IN PERSON, then boy do we have just the thing for you. On Friday 9 January, 2026 at 7pm, Team Empire will be coming at you live from Kings Place for an evening of movie news, reviews, nonsense, and maybe a special guest or two to celebrate our 700th episode. Head on over to Kings Place's website to secure your ticket now. We'll see you there!