Pop-Culture News And Analysis From NPR

Listen to recent stories

Playlist

browse by date
subscribe
share

On Vacation, See You Soon

by Linda Holmes

October 22, 2014 • Just a brief administrative note to say we'll be back soon.

Debra Messing stars with Robert Klein in NBC's The Mysteries of Laura. Will Hart/NBC hide caption

itoggle caption Will Hart/NBC

Winners And Losers Of The Fall TV Season Begin To Emerge

by Eric Deggans

October 21, 2014 • One month into the TV season, NPR TV critic Eric Deggans says diversity is winning and rom-coms are losing as new shows battle for viewers.

Listen Loading… 3:53

A drawing of two clinking martini glasses.

NPR

Pop Culture Happy Hour: 'Transparent' And Pop Culture Debuts

by Linda Holmes

October 17, 2014 • On this week's show, NPR's Ari Shapiro joins us to chat about the Amazon show Transparent and about lots of different pop culture debuts.

Listen Loading… 47:23

Support NPR

NPR Shop

Support The Programs You Love

Neil Patrick Harris, seen here hosting the 2013 Emmys, is getting the Oscars job many have long wanted for him. Kevin Winter/Getty Images hide caption

itoggle caption Kevin Winter/Getty Images

With Few Stages Left To Conquer, Neil Patrick Harris Goes To The Oscars

by Linda Holmes

October 16, 2014 • It seems like Neil Patrick Harris has always hosted everything, but in fact, his February 2015 outing hosting the Oscars will be his first time in that particular job.

Costumes were plentiful at the New York Comic-Con at Jacob Javitz Center. Daniel Zuchnik/Getty Images hide caption

itoggle caption Daniel Zuchnik/Getty Images

Pop Culture Happy Hour, Small Batch: A Report From New York Comic-Con

by Linda Holmes

October 15, 2014 • Pop Culture Happy Hour pal Petra Mayer just got back from New York Comic-Con, so we got her to update us briefly on Gillian Anderson, fandom and very big crowds.

Listen Loading… 5:14

Lena Dunham and Allison Williams star in Girls, one of several popular HBO shows that stand-alone streaming could include. Mark Schafer/HBO hide caption

itoggle caption Mark Schafer/HBO

HBO Without Cable, Coming In 2015

by Linda Holmes

October 15, 2014 • HBO has announced that beginning in 2015, it will offer what many have long wanted: access to HBO without having cable.

J.K. Simmons plays brutal music teacher Terence Fletcher in Whiplash. Daniel McFadden/Sony Pictures Classics hide caption

itoggle caption Daniel McFadden/Sony Pictures Classics

J.K. Simmons Won't Throw A Chair At Your Head, But His Character Might

October 14, 2014 • NPR's Audie Cornish speaks with actor J.K. Simmons about his much buzzed about performance as a brutal music teacher in the new film Whiplash.

Listen Loading… 8:11

Ken Marino and Casey Wilson star in NBC's Marry Me. Greg Gaynes/NBC hide caption

itoggle caption Greg Gaynes/NBC

'Marry Me' Throws Plenty Of Jokes (And Its Lead Actress) At The Wall

by Linda Holmes

October 14, 2014 • NBC's new romantic comedy Marry Me may wind up joining a frustrating group of shows that struggle to survive on broadcast, where appealing to everyone is key.

Juliette Binoche and Kristen Stewart star in Clouds of Sils Maria, a film about a world-famous actress who is asked to perform in a revival of the play that made her famous. Courtesy of IFC Films hide caption

itoggle caption Courtesy of IFC Films

In Film, Women's Stories Break Through At Fall Festivals

by Bilal Qureshi

October 13, 2014 • Study after study reveals that women remain underrepresented in film, both on screen and off. But film festivals can play a role in closing the gap.

Listen Loading… 8:11

Go on, guess what it's about. Marvel hide caption

itoggle caption Marvel

Wolverine's Death: Superheroes And The Cycle Of Eternal Return

by Glen Weldon

October 12, 2014 • Nerd-about-town Glen Weldon explains to a non-comics-reading guy exactly what is up with the impending death of Wolverine. (That's not a spoiler; the miniseries is actually called Death of Wolverine.)

Listen Loading… 3:44

NPR

Pop Culture Happy Hour

Pop Culture Happy Hour: 'Gone Girl' And What Pop Culture Can Teach

by Linda Holmes

October 10, 2014 • On this week's show, we get around to a discussion (as unspoiled as practical) of the film adaptation of Gone Girl, and we talk about what we've learned from movies, books, and television.

Listen Loading… 43:39

M Cream, written and co-directed by Agneya Singh, won Best Feature Film at the Rhode Island International Film Festival. Courtesy of the filmmaker hide caption

itoggle caption Courtesy of the filmmaker

Movies

The Indian Film Scene Diversifies, Even As Bollywood Dominates

by Amulya Shankar

October 9, 2014 • When you hear about Indian film, you most often hear about the sprawling Indian film scene. But young filmmakers with other points of view are making a splash of their own.

Sherilyn Fenn and Kyle MacLachlan starred in the original run of Twin Peaks. MacLachlan is rumored to be reprising the role of FBI Special Agent Dale Cooper in the new episodes. ABC Photo Archives/Getty Images hide caption

itoggle caption ABC Photo Archives/Getty Images

Pop Culture Happy Hour

Pop Culture Happy Hour, Small Batch: 'Twin Peaks' Returns

by Linda Holmes

October 8, 2014 • Stephen Thompson and Glen Weldon take a few minutes to discuss the resurrection of the David Lynch cult television series Twin Peaks.

Listen Loading… 7:41

The cover of Cameron Esposito's Same Sex Symbol.

Comedy

Cameron Esposito And The Comedy Of Confidence

by Linda Holmes

October 8, 2014 • In a new comedy album, Cameron Esposito covers strip clubs, her attraction to "women in crisis," her awkward youth, and her bone-deep comfort in her own skin.

After being struck by lightning, Barry Allen (Grant Gustin) realizes he's gained super speed and takes on the persona of the Flash. The CW hide caption

itoggle caption The CW