Blank Check Podcast: Inside Llewyn Davis (with Rachel Zegler)

Podcast: Blank Check with Griffin & David
Episode: Inside Llewyn Davis with Rachel Zegler
Date: November 2, 2025
Guest: Rachel Zegler
Theme: Coen Brothers Miniseries (“No Country Pod, Country for Old Cast”)

Episode Overview

This episode features hosts Griffin Newman, David Sims, and producer Ben Hosley joined by actor and singer Rachel Zegler (plus her dog, Lenny, aka Leonard Bernstein Zegler) to discuss the Coen Brothers’ 2013 film Inside Llewyn Davis, which holds a special place as Rachel’s all-time favorite movie. The episode is rich in both analytical insight and personal reflection, covering everything from Oscar Isaac’s performance, the film’s cyclical narrative and musical soul, and the ways it resonates differently over time.

Zegler brings firsthand perspective as both a lifelong fan of the film and a working musician/actor, igniting a vibrant, personal, and frequently hilarious conversation.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

The Allure of Oscar Isaac and Musical Authenticity

Timestamps: 01:39–06:11

• Oscar Isaac’s singing talent: The hosts and Zegler are in awe of Isaac’s vocals, noting how his rare decision to sing on film gives Inside Llewyn Davis unique “proprietary” power:
  • “It is disgusting.” – Rachel Zegler (01:41)
  • “I kind of respect it... once you’re known for singing, it’s all they want you to do.” – Rachel (03:28)
• The panel discusses other rare occasions Isaac sang on screen (Ten Years, theater work, but not Moon Knight) and muses on his versatility, singing and dancing (cf. Ex Machina’s dance).

Rachel Zegler’s Relationship with the Film

Timestamps: 11:15–23:07

• Zegler recounts seeing the movie as a young teen, relating viscerally as a “struggling musician… at 13” (19:54).
• She reveals re-watching it multiple times yearly, even ushering in a new year with it as comfort—sometimes “watching my favorite movie and crying” during emotional storms:
  • “It is a damp blanket of a movie.” – Griffin (23:07)
  • Rachel: “I watch it an embarrassing amount of times per year.” (22:25)

The Bleak Comfort of Cyclical Struggle

Timestamps: 23:30–24:50, 81:12–84:42

• The film’s “web of mistakes” and rhythms are likened to real-life creative loops; the feeling is comfort mixed with cringe as the viewer anticipates Llewyn’s next blunder.
  • “I would, like, grab my skull... Oh, fudge. He’s about to do the dumbest thing.” – Ben (23:43)
• They discuss the cyclical structure (film both opens and closes on Llewyn getting beaten), and if it’s a literal loop or echoes of repetitive struggle.
  • “Whether it’s God or the universe, you’re handed the same situation over and over again to see how much you’ve learned... the first step was not letting the cat out.” – Rachel (83:53)

“The Cat” and the Need for a Narrative Engine

Timestamps: 42:07–44:41

• The Coens added the cat because they feared the story had no plot drive; the animal becomes both literal and metaphorical:
  • “The cat is the only thing bigger than him... the only thing that supersedes his impulses.” – Ben (43:33)
  • “People think that it’s Mike, his departed grief.” – Rachel (43:29)
• The panel playfully debates what the cat “means,” ultimately noting it’s both textural and thematically relevant.

Casting & Oscar Isaac’s Road to Llewyn

Timestamps: 44:41–51:39

• The casting journey is recounted: real musicians auditioned, but only Isaac (a Juilliard grad and former ska band member) embodied both sides.
• Audition stories (Ryan Reynolds, Casey Affleck) illustrate the tricky tonal requirements of “the right kind of loser whose talent makes his failure believable.”
  • “Is it easier to teach a musician to act or an actor to sing?” – Ben (46:06)
• Isaac’s obsessive preparation (consulting movement coach Moni Yakim, learning specific “Travis picking” guitar style) is praised.

Llewyn’s Character – Talented, Unhappy, Stuck

Timestamps: 87:03–91:37, 94:18–99:48

• The conversation pivots to what Llewyn truly wants: not fame per se, but “just enough money to survive” doing what he’s doing, without life getting any harder.
  • “He never rants about the industry… all he wants is for someone to let him do what he does with less struggle.” – Ben (87:15)
  • “He’s fundamentally an unhappy person.” – Ben (98:57)
• The bleak, unsolvable grief over his lost partner Mike is identified as the unspoken barrier blocking progress or reinvention.

The Supporting World – Homes, Patronage, and Frustration

Timestamps: 91:37–97:42

• Rachel highlights the meaning of “homes” in the film—each home Llewyn visits is fractured, joyless, or conditional, except for the well-intentioned but performatively liberal Gorfines.
  • “They will give him the free home... but the expectation is you belong to the kingdom now.” – Ben (97:10)
• The hosts discuss the awkwardness (and pain) of being a “charity case” as an artist among supportive but slightly patronizing benefactors.

Music, Industry, and Creative Authenticity

Timestamps: 111:14–113:12

• The “purity” of folk music and Llewyn’s hostility toward commercial paths (yet scorned by the industry for not having a hook) is a recurring theme:
  • “Bud Grossman says… you are talented, but what makes you different from these other 800 guys I see?” – Ben (112:49)
  • “He can’t have a partner again... that emotional contract, he can’t do it.” – Rachel (113:12)
• The contrast between Llewyn and Bob Dylan (who “rewrites the rules”) is sharply drawn both in the movie and in the real folk movement.

Inside Llewyn Davis as “Comfort Film” & Pop Culture Legacy

Timestamps: 122:53–125:55, 135:14–137:50

• The hosts reflect on the odd comfort found in repeatedly watching a film about failure, routine, and small disappointments.
  • “Everything is the thing... you learn the same lesson over and over again until you learn it.” – Rachel (134:02)
• It’s noted that to some, the movie’s melancholy is unwatchable (“the Trader Joe’s cashier warning customers not to see it”), but for the panel, its empathy, humor, and beauty keep it irresistible.

Notable Quotes & Moments

• On Oscar Isaac’s Performance:
  “Why not sing more, Oscar? …I'm just so darn good at it.” – Rachel Zegler (03:42)
• On Rewatching as Comfort:
  “I was alone on New Year's... I went, I'm just going to go home, I'm going to watch my favorite movie, and I'm going to cry.” – Rachel (22:38)
• On Llewyn’s Fate:
  “The idea of this film is... weirdly hopeful, despite how depressing it is, that he's going to figure it out at some point because the first step was not letting the cat out.” – Rachel (83:53)
• On the Coens’ Intent:
  “When it came out, people asked us, how did you decide to make a movie about an unsuccessful folk singer? …We’d never considered making a movie about a successful folk singer.” – Ben, quoting Coens via Del Toro interview (25:02)
• On Meaninglessness of Success:
  “He doesn’t want to be a performing monkey. He just wants to survive.” – Ben (97:42)
• On Creative Striving:
  “The worst thing you can do is trying to fight the ‘why can’t I get it together’ thing, versus trying to absorb lessons from everything that happens to you.” – Ben (133:12)

Other Highlights

Fun Tangents & Running Jokes

• Dog chaos: Lenny the dog interrupts frequently, prompting dog puns and jokes about leashes (“Two dogs off the leash” 01:20).
• Ska Band Lore: Oscar Isaac’s ska punk band, “Blinking Underdogs,” and the absurdity of a third-wave ska Llewyn Davis sequel.
• Guest banter: Zegler jokes about her roles, her “depressing music movie” typecasting on the podcast, and receiving a handwritten note from Judi Dench (151:35).

Connections to Musical Life

• Rachel describes performing “Don’t Cry for Me Argentina” on the Palladium’s balcony as Evita, paralleling the film’s outsider-performer anguish; Zegler also relates learning guitar for The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes to Isaac’s learning for the film (37:20).

Timestamps for Major Segments

• Oscar Isaac’s singing/musicality: 01:39–06:11
• Why this film matters to Rachel: 11:01–24:26
• The cyclical structure and comfort viewing: 81:12–84:42, 135:14–137:50
• The “cat” motif & narrative engine: 42:07–44:41
• Casting history & Oscar Isaac’s preparation: 44:41–51:39
• Llewyn Davis’s core misery & self-sabotage: 87:03–99:48
• Patronage/the Gorfines and artist’s pride: 91:37–97:42
• Climactic Bud Grossman audition: 125:43–128:21
• Connections to real folk singers/Dylan: 111:14–113:12

Conclusion

The episode ultimately frames Inside Llewyn Davis as a film whose cyclical, ambiguous melancholia is both uniquely comforting and perpetually relevant to anyone navigating creative self-doubt, life’s unpredictability, or the endless “loops” of adulthood and art. The conversation sparkles with personal anecdotes, “inside baseball” about artistic life, and deeply felt admiration for the Coens’ most quietly devastating movie.

Closing Thought:
“Everything is the thing. …Until you learn the lesson, you will learn the same lesson over and over again until you actually, actually learn it.” – Rachel Zegler (134:02)