Film Stories with Simon Brew

In a Film Stories podcast special, producers Lucy Fisher and Douglas Wick - the latter an Oscar-winner for the original Gladiator - join Simon to talk about their work. A lot of the chat is taken up with Gladiator II, working with Ridley Scott, and trying to get an epic production off the ground. There is a very odd left turn when Stuart Little comes into the conversation, and a cat's bottom is discussed... Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Two twisty behind the scenes stories here. Originally, 1980's Superman II was being shot alongside the original Superman, with Richard Donner directing both. But frictions behind the scenes led to an eventual parting of the ways, a retooling of Superman II, and an eventual emergence of a second cut of the film. Toys meanwhile? From the director of Rain Man and starring Robin Williams? It should have been huge, not least because its script had been revered for over a decade. In fact, the film was supposed to have been made nearly a decade before. And when it did eventually happen? The challenge turned out to be how to sell it... The behind the scenes stories of both are told in this episode... Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The new film from director Jake Kasdan is Red One, now playing in cinemas, and itself a massive, expensive Christmas blockbuster film. On the flip side, he started his directorial career with a microbudget indie by the name of Zero Effect back in 1998. In this special episode of Film Stories, he takes his through his work. He and Simon talk about his blockbuster movies (Jake's, not Simon's), but also the indie film that got lost a little, The TV Set. Plus there's chat about the physical side of filmmaking, and a whole lot more... Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ah, Tombstone. The 1993 western with a cast led by Kurt Russell, and basically co-starring everyone else who wasn't in the rival project - Wyatt Earp - telling a similar story. But heck, behind the scenes, there were all sorts of problems. Examples? A director who got fired. A release date that couldn't move. A script that needed urgently hacking to hit the production deadline. A star who was rumoured to be ghost directing the movie. Meanwhile, following the success of 1992's The Muppet Christmas Carol, director Brian Henson liked the idea of taking another classic tale and adding The Muppets to it. But the first announced version of what became Muppet Treasure Island would slightly differ from the actual movie... Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices