It Was a Sh*t Show

Making high fantasy television is hard. Let’s talk about how difficult it was to make the pilot of Game of Thrones, from the showrunners producing a terrible first episode, to recasting the iconic Daenerys Targaryen.

Making the first episode is hard. Let’s talk about how difficult it is to make TV Show Pilots, from the recastings in 30 Rock, Gilmore Girls, and Full House, to the more serious versions of Big Bang Theory, and Saved by the Bell.

Being the master of your domain is hard. Let’s talk about how difficult it was to make Seinfeld, from Jerry Seinfeld and Larry David’s rocky first episode, to battling the network about being a show about nothing.

Making a dark version of The Jungle Book is hard. Let’s talk about how difficult it was to make Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle, from competing with Disney’s massive Jungle Book in 2016, to Warner Bros. selling the film to Netflix.

Making a superhero film universe is hard. Let’s talk about how difficult it was to make Phase One of the Marvel Cinematic Universe; from Avi Arad leaving Marvel, and Edward Norton fighting for a final edit, to firing Terrence Howard and forcing script changes on Jon Favreau, or casting troubles with Chris Hemsworth and Chris Evans, and overlooking Favreau for Joss Whedon.

Making a monster universe is hard. Let’s talk about how difficult it was to make the sequels to Cloverfield, from making 10 Cloverfield Lane fit the franchise after the movie was finished, to forcing reshoots into The Cloverfield Paradox and selling it to Netflix.

Restoring your original vision is hard. Let’s talk about how difficult it was to make Zack Snyder's Justice League, from Ray Fisher’s revelations about Joss Whedon’s cruel treatment, to Warner Bros reviving and completing a film they buried in 2017.

Throwing off someone's groove is hard. Let’s talk about how difficult it was to make The Emperor's New Groove, from throwing away four years of work by director Roger Allers, to the film ending Disney’s Renaissance by becoming their first bomb in over a decade.

Making fairytale creatures leave your swamp is hard. Let’s talk (LIVE via Utah Remote-Con) about how difficult it was to make Shrek, from Jeffery Katzenberg making it a revenge film against Disney, to the sudden loss of original voice actor Chris Farley.

Fighting trolls is hard. Let’s talk about how difficult the #ReleaseTheSnyderCut campaign was, from critics receiving death threats for not liking DCEU movies, to rewarding toxic fandom with Zack Snyder's Justice League.

Making a family is hard. Let’s talk about how difficult it was to make The Fast and the Furious Saga, from Vin Diesel walking away from the franchise (2 Fast 2 Furious), to Justin Lin fighting for a diverse cast (Tokyo Drift), or James Wan overcoming the death of Paul Walker (Furious 7), and Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson’s feuds with Vin Diesel and Tyrese Gibson (The Fate of the Furious).

Invading Earth is hard. Let’s talk about how difficult it was to make Independence Day, from fighting 20th Century Fox to cast Will Smith, to reshooting most of Randy Quaid’s scenes.

Breaking the fourth wall is hard (except for you, Wade). Let’s talk about how difficult it was to make Deadpool, from the 13 years Ryan Reynolds took to get it made, and that detour through X-Men Origins: Wolverine, to 20th Century Fox cutting Director Tim Miller’s budget before production.

Fighting a virus is hard. Let’s talk about how difficult it was to make Osmosis Jones, from the difficulty hiring The Farrelly Brothers and Bill Murray, to how the film helped bring an end to Warner Bros. Feature Animation.

Being on a Mission from God is hard. Let’s talk about how difficult it was to make The Blues Brothers, from Director John Landis not able to describe the movie he was making, to the constant and costly delays caused by John Belushi’s cocaine addiction.

Backseat-driver-rebooting James Bond is hard. Let’s talk about how difficult it was to make two different Casino Royale films, from Peter Sellers fighting Orson Welles in Charles Feldman’s 1967 version, to the 50 year journey to properly making Ian Fleming’s novel in 2006 with Daniel Craig.

Making a movie with two directors is hard. Let’s talk about how difficult it was to make Poltergeist, from the endless rumors of Steven Spielberg overtaking Tobe Hooper to shadow-direct the film, to its legend of being truly cursed. Join us and our first guest, Sequoia Simone from the podcasts Fanatical Fics (and Where to Find Them) and But Make It Scary.

Making James Bond films is hard. Let’s talk about how difficult it was to make Quantum of Solace (from starting the film with a barebones script, to the multiple injuries and accidents that occurred on set), and discuss the decades old Curse of Bond.

Busting ghosts is hard. Let’s talk about how difficult it was to make sequels to GhostBusters, from the decades of Dan Aykroyd attempting a follow-up to the disappointing second one, to the rise of online hate groups and toxic fandom that harassed Paul Feig’s female-led reboot.

Making a third movie as a video game is hard. Let’s talk about how difficult it was to make GhostBusters: The Video Game, from the troubles getting Bill Murray to record his part, to the Vivendi-Activision merger that put the game into limbo.

Romancing a second stone is hard. Let’s talk about how difficult it was to make The Jewel of the Nile, from suing Kathleen Turner $25 million to star, to Michael Douglas' endless problems in the Moroccan desert.

Making a video game into a movie is hard. Let’s talk about how difficult it was to make Super Mario Bros., from the dozen attempts to adapt a video game for the first time, to the on-set chaos caused by a directing duo.

Rebooting the Batman is hard. Let’s talk about how difficult it was to make Christopher Nolan's Batman Begins, from picking up after the disaster of Batman & Robin, to the multiple failed projects of Batman Unchained (Joel Schumacher), Batman Beyond (Boaz Yakin), Batman: Year One (Darren Aronofsky), and the original Batman vs. Superman (Wolfgang Petersen).

Being removed from a movie is hard. Let’s talk about famous actors removed from the movies they had already filmed, from Eugene Levy in GhostBusters 2, and Ana de Armas in Yesterday, to Harrison Ford in E.T., and Shailene Woodley in The Amazing Spider-Man 2. Plus: how Twitter took over the Oscars!

Designing the Blue Blur is hard. Let's talk about how difficult it was to make Sonic the Hedgehog—from the early attempts to make a film in the '90s, to the fallout of the CGI Sonic that no one liked.

Writing a Batman is hard. Let’s interview screenwriters Lee Shapiro and Stephen Wise about how difficult it was to write and sell Batman: DarKnight, the unproduced script that attempted to revive the Caped Crusader, before Christopher Nolan’s Batman Begins.

Finding your son on an island full of dinosaurs is hard. Let's talk about how difficult it was to make Jurassic Park III, from the multiple script revisions that remained unfinished during filming, to a production that director Joe Johnston called "a living hell." Recorded live with Reddit Talks.