The Bret Easton Ellis Podcast

S8E6: A Very Special Episode

Bret shares his reason for not releasing a podcast last week, discusses the highs and lows that led to a personal tipping point and complicated clarity revealed as he responds to questions from Platinum listeners on the air.

This Week…

Hello Platinum Posse, Golden Gangsters and Silver Stallions. As you know, movies, books, television and music are crucial distractions from life’s bleak dungheap. You also know that sometimes the dung piles so high that you can’t outrun the stench. This week is that stench. We can’t give you a...

S8E5: Mr. Lonelyhearts Returns

As Valentine's Day rapidly approaches, Bret recalls traveling his own rocky romantic road before fielding questions of love from Platinum listeners on the air.

S8E4: Boyish Enthusiasm

Bret mysteriously vanishes from a party at the Chateau, reveals the secret to dismantling ideology in art and recalls Emilio Estevez carrying a film for the first time as he responds to questions from Platinum listeners on the air.

S8E3: I Am Become Convinced

Bret reappraises one of 2023's biggest movies after a second viewing and discusses other hits and misses from last year as he turns the page to 2024 with some help from Platinum listeners.

S8E2: Pure Wave with Roy Price

Film/TV executive Roy Price and Bret discuss Amazon Studios clipping its own tail, the convenient centrality of Hong Kong and the dangers of making art in the middle of the road. Part 2 of 2.

S8E1: Digital Dawn with Roy Price

Film/TV executive Roy Price and Bret discuss soaking in rare generational wisdom, avoiding Candy Cane Lane at all costs and crafting Amazon's maiden slate of original shows as television changed its form forever. Part 1 of 2. Patreon Season 8 premiere.

S7E47: Bad Dream Scenario with Brandon Graham

Comic book writer/illustrator Brandon Graham and Bret discuss awkward pinup calendars, getting lost on the unmapped road to redemption and the dangers of becoming someone's online project. Patreon Season 7 finale.

S7E46: The Baron of Marylou's with Drea de Matteo

Actress Drea de Matteo and Bret discuss winning an Emmy for The Sopranos, venturing out late at night to Save the Robots and the challenge of raising curious children in a world of unquestioned belief.

S7E45: Elective Affinities with Sam Wasson

Author Sam Wasson and Bret examine Francis Ford Coppola's relentless pursuit of a dangerous dream and how he won and lost his new utopia gambling on the chase. Part 2 of 2.

S7E44: Method Director with Sam Wasson

Author Sam Wasson returns to the show and talks with Bret about a movie legend's perilous path to paradise, why Harvey Keitel fled Apocalypse Now and chasing the dream of working within the Hollywood studio system as an outsider. Part 1 of 2.

S7E43: Cinema Speculating with Quentin Tarantino

Quentin Tarantino and Bret discuss the frightening Legend of Boggy Creek, the elements of a perfect movie and the motivation behind Brian De Palma's desire to thrill. Part 2 of 2.

S7E42: Point of Departure with Quentin Tarantino

Quentin Tarantino returns to the show and talks with Bret about generating Cinema Speculation, the pleasures of reading an ominous movie novelization and grappling with Deliverance at a tender age. Part 1 of 2.

S7E41: Moby Disc

Bret discusses a fallen angel's treacherous trip, an illuminating new documentary about a legendary rock band and finding his own DVD machine out of commission as he fields questions from Platinum listeners on the air.

S7E40: Flipping The Bird

Back in Los Angeles after his latest European tour promoting The Shards, Bret discusses two different Roberts tackling the same famous role, his one degree of separation from Kevin Bacon and making sure the white meat is moist on Thanksgiving as he answers questions from Platinum listeners on the ai...

S7E39: Bruce Wagner and Beverly D'Angelo, Part 2

Guest host Bruce Wagner talks with actress/singer Beverly D'Angelo about changing seats on a fateful flight and the unexpected journey that followed as they continue their conversation from last week. Part 2 of 2.

S7E38: Bruce Wagner Guest Hosts

As Bret Easton Ellis nears the end of his latest tour promoting The Shards overseas, Bruce Wagner guest hosts and talks with actress/singer Beverly D'Angelo about altering time and space through self-expression and navigating the consequences of her love. Part 1 of 2.

S7E37: Sam Wasson Guest Hosts

With Bret Easton Ellis far away in Europe promoting The Shards, author Sam Wasson covers this week's hosting duties and talks to actress/producer Colleen Camp about the human elements of the Hollywood machine and how she came to be the industry's prime party maven.

S7E36: Survival Tactics with Kat Timpf

Comedian/Author Kat Timpf and Bret Easton Ellis discuss the perils of paying attention, humor as a reliable healer and whipping a whole lot of science fiction fans into a fierce online frenzy.

S7E35: Hotel Oregon with Max Lawton

Writer/Translator Max Lawton and Bret Easton Ellis discuss foreign fiction as a sanctuary for experimentation, sparking fierce debate in the Turkish tabloids and drowning stage fright in noise as they continue their conversation from last week. Part 2 of 2.

S7E34: Graphomaniacs with Max Lawton

Writer/Translator Max Lawton and Bret Easton Ellis discuss collaborating with Vladimir Sorokin, publishing fiction in contemporary Russia and the crucial part diligence can play in creating genius. Part 1 of 2.

S7E33: Rapture

Bret Easton Ellis rejoices in the glow of the recently resolved WGA strike, recognizes genius for the first time in a very familiar movie and reveals life's true meaning as he answers questions from Platinum listeners on the air.

S7E32: Authentic Evasion

Bret Easton Ellis discusses reports of an imminent end to the WGA strike, the horror of Magic Mike's Last Dance and the joy of watching Gene Wilder as he answers questions from Platinum listeners on the air.

S7E31: State of Surveillance with Alex Kazemi

Novelist Alex Kazemi and Bret Easton Ellis discuss early home video cameras igniting the future explosion of social media, giving up a piece of the authentic self for financial gain and the black and white beauty of Leonardo DiCaprio's forbidden fruit. Part 2 of 2.

S7E30: Algorithm Hellhole with Alex Kazemi

Novelist Alex Kazemi and Bret Easton Ellis discuss keeping the internet from contaminating your fiction, losing interest in the boring culture war and ruffling feathers with Marilyn Manson. Part 1 of 2.

S7E29: Otter Things

Bret Easton Ellis shares a festive Labor Day gift he received, talks about a terrible TV show he cannot look away from and recalls enjoying an unexpected treat at an unlikely location as he answers questions from Platinum listeners on the air.

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S7E28: Dance of Scorpions with Robert Asahina

Fiction editor Robert Asahina and Bret Easton Ellis discuss unexpectedly entering an unreliable mind, American Psycho running into corporate complications and the end of editing literature without external interference. Part 2 of 2.

S7E27: Image of an Artist with Robert Asahina

Fiction editor Robert Asahina and Bret Easton Ellis discuss surrendering to the magnetic pull of literary life in New York City, writing film criticism before it became tarnished by publicists and cultivating a marketable myth at a fateful photo shoot. Part 1 of 2.