Writing.
Interviews & Features.
Total Film cover features – click on a cover to read the full story
Spider-Verse 2 – SFX feature
"“Across The Spider-Verse is a movie on its own, but it definitely ends on a bit of a cliffhanger,” says Kemp Powers. “I think it’s a good cliffhanger. We hope that it’s a satisfying tee-up for what’s coming in the third film, because you want people to be excited about what’s coming next. "
“I was very satisfied after The Empire Strikes Back,” adds Dos Santos. “And hopefully, this is our Empire.”” Link
Tom Holland – Total Film profile
"I started acting when I was 11, and I’m now 25,” he says. “I just think there are endless opportunities for me to do what I want, and doing what I want might not be in the film industry. It might be completely separate. I might go and be a carpenter for two years, and take a big break, and come back. Or I might not come back. I might go away, and get married, and have kids, and just disappear for the rest of my life.” Link
Peter Jackson interview – The Independent
"My favourite quote, which I think describes me, comes from when Alfred Hitchcock was asked about this sort of thing,” he says, leading way to a rare moment of eye contact. “He said: ‘Some people’s films are slices of life, mine are slices of cake.’ I’ve always thought that’s what I want to do.” Link
Daniel Radcliffe – Total Film Q&A
How different would your Potter experience have been if social media had been what it is now?
Holy shit, man. I cannot imagine. It was starting to come around just towards the end of Potter. But there was certainly no compulsion from any studio for us to be on it. I don’t have social media, but it’d have been more inevitable that I’d have been naturally on it if we were doing it now. I don’t know how I would have coped with that. I’m very grateful we’ve just about managed to get famous before all that. It would destroy my mind if I was on it. Link
Louis Theroux interview – The Independent
“When you make documentaries, sometimes you’re giving voices to the voiceless and other times you’re giving voices to those with voices,” he responds. “It’s incumbent on you as a journalist to decide how to handle that. I’ve done programmes on neo-Nazis, the Ku Klux Klan, the Westboro Baptist Church. I like to think I’ve acquired a maturity to handle those people, to challenge them and question them with enough focus and sensitivity that it isn’t a simple case of giving them a platform." Link
Dumb Money feature – Total Film
‘I had taken almost a year off after The Fabelmans and the chance to do something fun and funny, to be working with people like Pete [Davidson], I haven’t gotten to really do something like that in a while, where we just mess around and play,’ says Dano. ‘I just wanted a piece of that, I wanted a piece of the cat shirt and the bandana.’ Link
The Little Mermaid – SFX feature
In the end, Marshall just hopes that, after all these years, The Little Mermaid will have people feeling emotional in cinemas. “I know this sounds crazy, but when we released that little tiny teaser of Ariel singing ‘Part Of Your World’, people were crying. They were moved. They were like, ‘Why am I crying?’
“And I’m like, I know why you were crying – because she feels it deeply.” Even under all the CG, at its heart The Little Mermaid just wants to move you. Link
Charlie Brooker & Annabelle Jones interview – The Independent
"Sorry, I’m a real f***ing prick,” says Charlie Brooker, just 30 seconds into our conversation. All I did was ask the self-deprecating satirist, seated beside Black Mirror co-producer Annabel Jones, how the day was going. Jones answered, politely, that she’s exhausted. I replied by saying I’m sorry to hear that.
“Are you?” responded Brooker in a patronising tone.
“He’s being very f***ing contrarian,” Jones said, sounding – for lack of a better word – exhausted. “Every f***ing thing.” Link
Rupert Grint interview – The Independent
“I don’t feel like I’m 30 at all,” Grint says. “I have quite a weird relationship with age, because of that period of my life on Potter. It was very strange.” Link
Zack Snyder on 300 – Total Film retrospective
"The aesthetic of the Spartans is just outside of our own aesthetic," says Zack Snyder. "And I think that’s the difference. That’s why, to me, it was never us against them. It’s like a painting or drawing of a heroic battle. I never meant it to be some race war.” Link
Diane Morgan & Maxine Peake interview – The Independent
P: People on Twitter? We didn’t have Twitter before, so you didn’t know if people were annoyed. Who gives a toss what people on Twitter think? That’s all they’re on there for, to whinge, and promote themselves.
M: There are always going to be angry people. I never get involved in Twitter. ’Cause where does it end? You just end up with people wanting to stab you.
P: This has all turned very political.
M: What next? Hashtag MeToo?
P: Oh, don’t. Link
Selection of other interviews.
SFX Magazine
– Brandon Cronenberg’s Infinity Pool takes us on a terrifying holiday (PDF)
– Francisca Alegría on her new film The Cow Who Sang A Song Into The Future (PDF)
– Mia Goth talks Infinity Pool and MAxxxine (PDF)
– Rob Marshall talks how Divine inspired his take on The Little Mermaid (PDF)
– Don’t Peter Panic! David Lowery’s Peter Pan & Wendy is finally here (PDF)
– The creator of Star Wars Visions on the new series (PDF)
– Director Rob Savage talks The Boogeyman (PDF)
– Elemental’s Peter Sohn on making his most personal Pixar movie (PDF)
– Blue Beetle director Ángel Manuel Soto and star Xolo Mariduená talk new DC universe (PDF)
– The team behind Scott Pilgrim Takes Off! reveal all about their Netflix show (PDF)
– The director of Saw X on reversing the bear trap (PDF)
– Meet the writer and director behind the Stranger Things stage play (PDF)
Total Film & GamesRadar+
– Brad Pitt and Damien Chazelle talk the making of Babylon
– Alejandro González Iñárritu talks Bardo: "To make a film is relatively easy – but to go inward, it's a very scary place"
– Kate Winslet interview on Avatar: The Way of Water: "I have the video of me surfacing saying, 'Am I dead, have I died?'"
– Guillermo del Toro talks Pinocchio: "To animate is to give soul"
– Luca Guadagnino talks Bones and All, Timothée Chalamet, and Call Me By Your Name copycats
– Kazuo Ishiguro on remaking Akira Kurosawa's Ikiru: "There were certain dissatisfactions I had"
– Pierce Brosnan, Aldis Hodge, and more talk Black Adam and the Justice Society
– Kathleen Kennedy on the future of Star Wars movies: "We need to create a whole new saga"
– Anya Taylor-Joy and Alexander Skarsgård on The Northman: "It's a miracle that anyone survived this"
– The Batman interviews with Matt Reeves, Colin Farrell, Andy Serkis, and Paul Dano + Jeffrey Wright
– Ridley Scott Q&A on House of Gucci, Lady Gaga, and dropping out of Dune
– Keanu Reeves + Carrie-Anne Moss, Jada Pinkett Smith + Priyanka Chopra, and Jonathan Groff on Matrix Resurrections
– Denis Villeneuve interview on Dune, Part Two, and the future of cinema
– How Steven Soderbergh made No Sudden Move – as told by Brendan Fraser, Don Cheadle, and more
– Daniel Craig + Lashana Lynch and Lea Seydoux talk No Time To Die
– John Cena, Vin Diesel, and Justin Lin talk F9
– David Chase talks Sopranos, Many Saints of Newark, and the TV show that gives him hope for the future
– Paul Feig talks directing Last Christmas: "My goal was to never do a Christmas movie again"
– James Gray on Ad Astra, streaming, and why Twitter is garbage
– Mackenzie Davis discusses filming Terminator: Dark Fate: "It was the hardest thing I've ever done"
– Mike Flanagan talks The Turn of the Screw adaptation and Doctor Sleep
– Damon Lindelof breaks down Watchman's best episode
– Viggo Mortensen and Lance Henriksen on why Falling was the hardest movie they have ever made
– Seth Rogen interview: "If you're going to make a huge comedy, your competition is Marvel"
– John Malkovich and Ben Schwartz take us on a slight detour
Yahoo! Entertainment
– Nicolas Cage: Dream Scenario is a response to the 'meme-ification of so-called Nic Cage'
– Michael Fassbender shares reason for acting hiatus: 'Family is my priority now'
– Ben Schwartz and Awkwafina talk Nic Cage and Renfield
– Jack Whitehall says partner revealed child's gender after he kept letting it slip
– John Cho says Hollywood is opening up to Asian actors as 'part of a larger trend'
– Thanksgiving director Eli Roth admits his biggest fear is... Paul Hollywood
– Steve Coogan hopes Jimmy Savlle drama will prevent abuse from 'happening again'
– Sebastian Stan: 'Money imprisons and isolates you'
– Tessa Thompson addresses Sylvester Stallone’s absence in Creed III: 'I really felt his presence'
– Dungeons & Dragons cast: Shooting in lockdown gave us 'a cabin-fever level of insanity'
– M3GAN star Allison Williams hopes sequel can 'recreate that same magic'
– Jim Broadbent: Streamers 'have changed everything' in the British film industry
– Awkafina and Ben Schwartz admit seeing Nicolas Cage as Dracula was 'pretty intimidating'
– Ted Lasso’s Brendan Hunt on show ending: 'It doesn't necessarily mean that it's done'
– The cast of BBC's Boat Story on the one-of-a-kind comedy/drama
The Independent
– Charlie Cox interview: "Maybe I’m not good enough to play Bond"
– Jeff Goldblum interview: 'I’m on the threshold of doing something better'
– Andy Serkis interview: "Cinema is slipping away. The streamers are taking over"
– Mark Hamill interview: 'Everyone thinks they know me, wherever I go'
– Holly Hunter interview: 'The movement that’s happening right now is real. There is no equality'
– Armando Iannucci interview: ‘The danger is turning Donald Trump into a comedy character. He’s not. He's dangerous'
– Ana de Armas interview: 'Moving to Hollywood was a good exercise for my ego'
– Barry Keoghan interview: 'I want three Oscars in three different categories'
Reviews.
Movies
– Blue Beetle: "Family-driven superhero movie has heart"
– Transformers: Rise of the Beasts: "Switch off your brain and let the CGI wash over you"
– The Matrix Resurrections review: "Succeeds where other reboots have failed"
– Avatar: The Way of Water – SFX Magazine review (PDF)
– El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie review: "A final farewell to some of television's greatest characters"
– Army of Thieves review: "A fun, unessential addition to Netflix’s new franchise"
– Fear Street Part 1: 1994 review: "New Netflix horror is a fun throwback slasher"
– Mortal Kombat movie review: “Great fights, terrible characters”
– Lego Star Wars Holiday Special review: "Lovingly pokes fun at the Star Wars saga"
TV shows
– The Mandalorian S2 finale review: "They went there"
– The Reckoning review: BBC's Jimmy Savile drama is a horrific and unsettling watch
– The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power finale review: "Sauron is here – and it's glorious"
– Andor episode premiere review: "The Star Wars show we’ve been waiting for"
– The Book of Boba Fett finale review: "A missed opportunity"
– Moon Knight premiere review: "The best start to a Marvel Disney Plus series yet"
– Loki premiere review: "Tom Hiddleston is a joy in time-bending premiere"
– Falcon + the Winter Soldier premiere review: "The most grounded Marvel series yet"
– WandaVision episodes one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, and nine reviews
– Making a Murderer: Part 2 review: Netflix's mystery is intriguing but meandering
– Good Omens review: Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman’s whimsical book brought to life
Music
– Sziget festival review: A wonderfully unique few days
– Anderson .Paak, Ventura review: Tightly packaged, danceable funk
– Hans Zimmer review, SSE Arena Wembley: Breathtaking, career-spanning set
– Liam Gallagher, Electric Brixton, London, live review: A triumphant, emotional return
– Adele, Glastonbury, review: It's impossible not to love her
– Foo Fighters, Glastonbury, review: Dave Grohl's charismatic performance was worth the wait
Gaming
– Edited the gaming column "The Console" for The Independent's Saturday magazine
– Tekken 7 review: The king has returned
– The Last Guardian review, PS4: Technical faults can't dampen this emotional, heartfelt adventure
– Breath of the Wild review: Nintendo has created an almost-perfect game
– Super Mario Odyssey review: Possibly game of the year
Features & Other Coverage.
Total Film & GamesRadar+
– San Diego Comic-Con tweets and coverage
– Star Wars Celebration interviews with Ewan McGregor and Hayden Christensen
– The best movies and shows of 2022
– "Back to the Cinema" campaign – selection of major features + reviews from Total Film mag and online
– How The Matrix Resurrections and Spider-Man: No Way Home approach nostalgia in completely opposite ways
– Is it just me, or do blockbusters require too much homework?
– Is it just me, or is romance dead at the multiplex? – featured in Total Film magazine
– How Avengers: Endgame perfected the finale where Star Wars and Games of Thrones stumbled
– The Pokémon timeline, explained
– Good Job! is the antidote to missing the days of broken printers and annoying co-workers
– The 100 best shows of the decade
– The 100 best movies of the decade
– Coverage and tweets from D23
Den of Geek
– Skinamarink: How Reddit and an Internet Leak Created a Horror Box Office Hit
– How Ant-Man 3 Became the Most Important Marvel Movie Since Endgame
– Tetris Is Definitely Not the Video Game Movie You’re Expecting
– John Wick: Chapter 4 Sets Up Multiple Spinoffs
– Hail The Last Temptation of Christ! The Movie That Made Jesus a Scorsese Antihero
– Men in Black International: On set with Chris Hemsworth and Tessa Thompson
– They Shall Not Grow Old: Is First World War hyper-restoration historical sacrilege?
– Watchmen at 10: The fascinating story of how the 'unfilmable' comic book series finally made it to the big screen
– From Ghost Stories to The Killing of a Sacred Deer, why horror is having its moment at LFF
– Artist Peter Liversidge sends unwrapped items covered in postage stamps to people around the world
The Independent
Yahoo! Entertainment
– Oscars 2023: The biggest snubs and surprises from the Academy Awards
– Oscars 2023: The Best Picture race is impossible to call
– The Matrix Reloaded's 'Zion rave' was the moment the series 'jumped the shark'
IGN
Random Stuff I've Done Over The Years...
– Space Force cast and showrunner on why the new Netflix series is no The Office rehash
– Gugu Mbatha-Raw on Misbehaviour, Marvel's Loki series, and Black Mirror
– Extraction director explains how he pulled off the Netflix movie's incredible one-shot
– Rob McElhenney: "Mythic Quest's quarantine episode is by far the most difficult production I've ever been associated with"
– New Mutants director Josh Boone talks sequels, Demon Bear, and Stephen King's The Stand
– Andy Serkis talks Venom 2, unfinished post-credits, and Gollum
– Black Widow's Cate Shortland talks pushing Marvel, post-credits, cameo no-show, and surprise character reveal
– Spiral director discusses bringing back the Saw franchise with Chris Rock – just don't call this Saw 9
– Rob McElhenney, Ashly Burch, and Danny Pudi talk the return of Mythic Quest
– Godzilla vs Kong interviews on a potential sequel, the post-credits scene that wasn't, and Lance Reddick's cut-down role
– Carey Mulligan and Ralph Fiennes talk "terrifying" The Dig scene
– It: Chapter Two director Andy Muschietti talks cameo, deleted scenes, and changes from the book
– Willow's Jon Kasdan talks bringing back George Lucas' creation
– Galadriel actor Morfydd Clark talks Rings of Power: "I wasn't obsessed with people liking her"
– The Wonder director Sebastian Lelio: "Cinema is a language and not a format"
– Charlie Cox interview: "Maybe I’m not good enough to play Bond"
– Jeff Goldblum interview: 'I’m on the threshold of doing something better'
– Andy Serkis interview: "Cinema is slipping away. The streamers are taking over"
– Mark Hamill interview: 'Everyone thinks they know me, wherever I go'
– Holly Hunter interview: 'The movement that’s happening right now is real. There is no equality'
– Armando Iannucci interview: ‘The danger is turning Donald Trump into a comedy character. He’s not. He's dangerous'
– Ana de Armas interview: 'Moving to Hollywood was a good exercise for my ego'
– Barry Keoghan interview: 'I want three Oscars in three different categories'
– Mike Colter interview on Luke Cage: 'I can’t imagine anything that could be more right for the time'
– Alison Brie interview: 'As a woman you want to play meaty roles, but no one wants to be out of work'
– Josh Safdie talks Robert Pattison, Uncut Gems, and turning down a superhero movie
– Zoe Saldana interview: ‘I live in space, nobody wants me here on Earth’
– 120 BPM director Robin Campillo: 'We were too young to die but young enough to survive'
– Ricky Gervais interview: 'I don’t court controversy – I try to deal with truth'
– Mahershala Ali interview: 'Moonlight is going to impact our culture'
– Everything Everything interview: A Fever Dream, personal lyrics, and Radiohead comparisons
– Kate Nash interview: I’ve been called 'too fat' and 'too ugly' to be a popstar
– Domhnall Gleeson does not compromise
– Mads Mikkelsen interview: ‘You can be a big star and still be insecure’
– Rose Byrne talks Peter Rabbit, Beatrix Potter, and working with CGI
– Anya Taylor-Joy interview: ‘If I thought about things, I’d freak the f**k out’
– Shane Black interview: 'No one takes risks in Hollywood'
– Josh O'Connor interview: 'Everything I could ever possibly dream of, I’ve done it'
– Lesley Manville interview: Oscar nominee talks Phantom Thread, Daniel Day-Lewis, and the Kardashians
– JJ Abrams on The Cloverfield Paradox, Star Wars 9, and going to the movies
– Mudbound's Dee Rees interview on Mary J. Blige, racism and women in Hollywood
– Brian Cox interview: 'Winston would be pretty horrified at what’s going on at the moment'
– Rogue One and Suicide Squad editor talks reshoots, deleted scenes and Star Wars spin-off expectations
– Nicolas Winding Refn interview on The Neon Demon: ‘Creativity breeds on fear of failure’
– Bastille interview at Glastonbury
– Chvrches interview: Lauren Mayberry tells Boris - 'Check your facts before you slap them on the side of a bus'
– Natalie Dormer interview: 'The tide is turning, just slower than we would like'
– David Tennant interview on Marvel's Jessica Jones and the Golden Age of TV
– Michael Douglas: 'Social media obsession is to blame for crisis in young American actors'
– Hunt for the Wilderpeople review: The charming tale of a terrible twosome