A 2025 Rewatchables Mailbag

January 21, 2025

102 min episode · 2 min read

Episode

102 min

Read time

2 min

AI-Generated Summary

Published Dec 25, 2025

Key Takeaways

✓Smoking Categories: Listeners propose the Sean Penn "I Brought My Own Pack" award for excellence in onscreen smoking and the Tom Cruise "Which End Do I Light" award for terrible smoking performances, with hosts agreeing to track cigarette authenticity and add smoking-related categories as flex spots in future episodes.
✓Female Actor Comparison: To complement the existing Cruise versus Hanks category, hosts consider adding Julia Roberts, Sandra Bullock, Michelle Pfeiffer, and Nicole Kidman as a four-person comparison group, though they struggle to find a perfect two-person equivalent that matches Cruise-Hanks' iconic status and humor.
✓Dan Campbell Scale: New category rates moments where filmmakers take audacious creative risks, measured like football fourth-down attempts (fourth-and-two versus fourth-and-twelve), with examples including the Illuminati orgy in Eyes Wide Shut and Gerard Butler eating a donut off the ground in Den of Thieves.
✓Philip Seymour Hoffman Casting: Hosts adopt a recurring segment asking which role Philip Seymour Hoffman could have played in every movie discussed, acknowledging his ability to improve virtually any film marginally, positioning this question immediately after the Cruise versus Hanks category in episode structure.
✓Guest Host Month: Listeners suggest "Much to Bill's Chagrin" month where rotating cohosts Chris Ryan, Sean Fennessey, or Van Lathan select movies without Bill's veto power, forcing him to watch films outside his comfort zone like Lord of the Rings while still participating as cohost.

What It Covers

The Rewatchables podcast hosts Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan, and producer Craig Horlbeck review listener-submitted mailbag questions proposing new category ideas, theme months, and format changes for their movie podcast's ninth year.

Key Questions Answered

•Smoking Categories: Listeners propose the Sean Penn "I Brought My Own Pack" award for excellence in onscreen smoking and the Tom Cruise "Which End Do I Light" award for terrible smoking performances, with hosts agreeing to track cigarette authenticity and add smoking-related categories as flex spots in future episodes.
•Female Actor Comparison: To complement the existing Cruise versus Hanks category, hosts consider adding Julia Roberts, Sandra Bullock, Michelle Pfeiffer, and Nicole Kidman as a four-person comparison group, though they struggle to find a perfect two-person equivalent that matches Cruise-Hanks' iconic status and humor.
•Dan Campbell Scale: New category rates moments where filmmakers take audacious creative risks, measured like football fourth-down attempts (fourth-and-two versus fourth-and-twelve), with examples including the Illuminati orgy in Eyes Wide Shut and Gerard Butler eating a donut off the ground in Den of Thieves.
•Philip Seymour Hoffman Casting: Hosts adopt a recurring segment asking which role Philip Seymour Hoffman could have played in every movie discussed, acknowledging his ability to improve virtually any film marginally, positioning this question immediately after the Cruise versus Hanks category in episode structure.
•Guest Host Month: Listeners suggest "Much to Bill's Chagrin" month where rotating cohosts Chris Ryan, Sean Fennessey, or Van Lathan select movies without Bill's veto power, forcing him to watch films outside his comfort zone like Lord of the Rings while still participating as cohost.

Notable Moment

The hosts reveal they've avoided doing The Hunt for Red October because Chris Ryan refuses to watch it until Bill Simmons watches Inside Moves, creating a years-long standoff where both films remain hostage to this mutual stubbornness despite significant listener demand for the submarine thriller.

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