The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz

Best of SBS: 2025 (ft. Patton Oswalt, Tony Reali, Hasan Piker, Josh Johnson, & William Shatner)

Date: December 25, 2025
Location: Elser Hotel, Downtown Miami

Overview

This special "Best of SBS" episode features a rich, moving, and often humorous set of conversations with a remarkable lineup of guests: Patton Oswalt, Tony Reali, Hasan Piker, Josh Johnson, and William Shatner. The roundtable explores personal growth, grief, the making of modern media, social responsibility, therapy, and profound life changes — all through the hosts’ signature blend of authentic storytelling, humor, and incisive cultural and social commentary.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Legacy, Grief & True Crime – (Tony Reali & Patton Oswalt on Michelle McNamara)

Segment Start: 02:49

• Honoring Michelle’s Work: Tony Reali and Patton Oswalt reflect on the impact of Michelle McNamara’s investigative journalism in reopening the Golden State Killer case.

  • Tony Reali: "There’s something very evocative and weird and creepy about that name that she came up with…that did help reopen the case." (03:19)
  • Michelle coined the name “Golden State Killer,” which played a pivotal role in reviving public and official interest in the investigation.

• The Problem with Glorifying Killers: Patton critiques true crime for glorifying killers and pushes for focus on victims and investigators.

  • Patton Oswalt: "Serial killers are zilches. The reason they're killing people is because they're zilch in life." (04:55)

• Justice in an Unjust World: They dissect society’s comfort in mystery shows because, unlike real life, stories can end with clear justice.

  • Tony Reali: "People need that. Even though evil’s done, evil gets punished. People need that." (06:53)

• Healing After Loss: Patton details the nonlinear path from overwhelming grief to eventual healing and new love.

  • Patton Oswalt: "You’re not grieving to make them comfortable. You have to live whatever life is being put in front of you." (07:51)
  • His eventual relationship with Meredith Salenger, blossoming out of shared grief and honest connection, is re-told with both candor and warmth.

2. Media, Identity & Evolution – (Tony Reali & Chris Cillizza on ESPN and Growth)

Segment Start: 13:49

• On Losing & Reinventing a Platform: Tony Reali shares feelings about the shuttering of "Around the Horn," wrestling with identity and self-worth tied to legacy media.

  • Tony Reali: "As much work as I had done on myself, I was still harboring feelings of what is it that I do, what is my skill?" (15:26)

• Handling Criticism & Maturing On-Air: Both hosts discuss shifting from reactive, arrogant youth to intentional, mature creators.

  • Chris Cillizza: "That's not the person I met. Not the referee who’s telling me I had a traveling violation…" (18:54)
  • Tony Reali: "For me, life has become about intention, not habit." (21:09)

3. The Cost of Influence – (Hasan Piker on Streaming, Freedom, and Responsibility)

Segment Start: 22:31

• Relentless Work Culture: Hasan sees barely any true time off due to streaming and podcast commitments.

  • Hasan Piker: "I never don't work." (23:34)

• Privacy and Safety: He reveals the price of online fame — privacy erosion, constant vigilance, and real-world risks to self and family.

  • Hasan Piker: "I also don't talk about that too much... the government has very few ways of dealing with cybercrime in general. They're not very good at it." (24:45)

• Mental Toll vs. Freedom: He weighs the psychological costs of content creation against the privilege of personal autonomy.

  • Hasan Piker: "The real privilege that I have... comes from the freedom... I know the incredible freedom that you have when you set your own time." (25:46)
  • Chris Cillizza: "The cost of it has enough restrictions that you can’t take a day off. So yes, you’re making the choices on it, but it can also be a prison that you like." (26:30)

• Impact & Purpose: Hasan values his influence for social change above money or clout.

  • Hasan Piker: "When I hear about Chipotle unionizing and... they met over and bonded over their mutual appreciation for myself... that’s it. My goal isn’t just to yell in a room and have hundreds of thousands of people watch." (28:43)
  • He likens modern streaming to teaching, especially during COVID (29:37).

• Addictive Personality & Work Ethic: Hasan channels his compulsions into positive outlets, underpinning his success.

  • Hasan Piker: “I have an incredibly addictive personality… if I focus my addictions not on vices… then I will be very successful and happy.” (30:33)

4. Grief, Therapy & Loneliness – (Dan Soder & Chris Cillizza on Emotional Health)

Segment Start: 32:28

• Losing a Parent: Dan Soder gets personal about mourning his father and its effect on his approach to relationships and gratitude.

  • Dan Soder: "You never want to lose somebody and not have them know exactly how much you… care about them." (33:35)
  • He expresses regret his dad didn’t see his success but acknowledges the experience shaped his compassion.

• Therapy as Community: Dan champions therapy but emphasizes that healing comes from both professional help and intentional action.

  • Dan Soder: “…you tell your therapist how you were terrible to everybody and then you don't change the behavior. Feels like therapy's not really working for you.” (36:27)
  • He notes therapy shouldn’t replace genuine community, and that progress requires actual change outside of sessions.

• Modern Loneliness: They talk about the “epidemic of loneliness” exacerbated by the pandemic and social media’s empty connections.

  • Chris Cillizza: “…I read the other day a stat like 74% of adult American men feel moderate to high levels of loneliness. The epidemic of loneliness. It's new, isn't it?" (40:04)
  • Dan Soder: "You could feel like you had had a bunch of little interactions with people all day while not having a single intimate conversation with anyone." (41:12)

• Tech Addiction: Soder mentions the "phantom reach" — the urge to check your phone even when it’s unusable, as an illustration of modern dependency.

  • Dan Soder: “There's that phantom reach... you'll reach for your phone... and then be like, oh, wait, yeah, I can't do anything with this.” (42:11)

5. Space, Awe, and the Wordless Unknown – (William Shatner on Traveling to Space)

Segment Start: 43:00

• Expecting Adventure, Finding Profound Sadness: Shatner reflects on his trip to space with Blue Origin, contrasting his expectations of thrill with the overwhelming emotion he actually experienced.

  • William Shatner: “You get to about T minus 10... And this is what he says... Anybody who wants to get off should get off now. Can you imagine? Can you imagine being an astronaut... and the guy says, if you want to get off, you get off. 10 seconds." (47:17)

• Ineffable Experience of Weightlessness: Shatner describes weightlessness as beyond language — lacking any truly comparable words or reference in human experience.

  • William Shatner: “There are no words for weightless in our language. There's no comparable experience... 600 people have experienced it. There will come a time when Agadudu is weightless. Okay. Oh, my God. Agadudu happened in 2025.” (50:54)

• Perspective Shift: Looking out at the blackness of space, Shatner expresses awe at the universe's scale and the insignificance and fragility of human life — a feeling both freeing and humbling.

  • William Shatner: “I've been fascinated, as I'm sure every human being to one degree or another... the more incomprehensible, the more awe of not just the forces on earth, but the incomprehensible forces in the universe.” (53:23)

Notable Quotes by Segment

| Timestamp | Speaker | Quote | |-----------|---------|-------| | 03:19 | Tony Reali | "There’s something very evocative and weird and creepy about that name that she came up with…that did help reopen the case." | | 04:55 | Patton Oswalt | "Serial killers are zilches. The reason they're killing people is because they're zilch in life." | | 06:53 | Tony Reali | "People need that. Even though evil’s done, evil gets punished. People need that." | | 07:51 | Patton Oswalt | "You’re not grieving to make them comfortable. You have to live whatever life is being put in front of you." | | 15:26 | Tony Reali | "As much work as I had done on myself, I was still harboring feelings of what is it that I do, what is my skill?" | | 21:09 | Tony Reali | "For me, life has become about intention, not habit." | | 23:34 | Hasan Piker | "I never don't work." | | 25:46 | Hasan Piker | "The real privilege that I have... comes from the freedom... I know the incredible freedom that you have when you set your own time." | | 26:30 | Chris Cillizza | "The cost of it has enough restrictions that you can’t take a day off. So yes, you’re making the choices on it, but it can also be a prison that you like." | | 28:43 | Hasan Piker | "When I hear about Chipotle unionizing and... they met over and bonded over their mutual appreciation for myself... that’s it. My goal isn’t just to yell in a room and have hundreds of thousands of people watch." | | 30:33 | Hasan Piker | “I have an incredibly addictive personality… if I focus my addictions not on vices… then I will be very successful and happy.” | | 33:35 | Dan Soder | "You never want to lose somebody and not have them know exactly how much you… care about them." | | 36:27 | Dan Soder | "...you tell your therapist how you were terrible to everybody and then you don't change the behavior. Feels like therapy's not really working for you." | | 41:12 | Dan Soder | "You could feel like you had had a bunch of little interactions with people all day while not having a single intimate conversation with anyone." | | 47:17 | William Shatner | "Anybody who wants to get off should get off now. Can you imagine? ...if you want to get off, you get off. 10 seconds." | | 50:54 | William Shatner | “There are no words for weightless in our language. There's no comparable experience..." | | 53:23 | William Shatner | "The more incomprehensible, the more awe of not just the forces on earth, but the incomprehensible forces in the universe." |

Memorable Moments & Humor

• Shatner’s deadpan retelling of pre-launch anxieties, including the "anomaly" and the infamous "last chance to get off" warning (47:17).
• The repeated ribbing among the panel about anger management in youth sports and outgrowing a "referee problem".
• Hasan’s candid yet wry comments about "prison you like" when describing the grind of content creation.
• Patton and Tony’s bittersweet but humorous recollections around true crime naming conventions and the absurdity of media focus.

Segment Timestamps

• 02:49 – Michelle McNamara & True Crime Legacy (Reali, Oswalt)
• 13:49 – ESPN, Identity, and Career Growth (Reali, Cillizza)
• 22:31 – Streaming, Freedom, Purpose (Hasan Piker)
• 32:28 – Loss, Therapy, and Loneliness (Dan Soder)
• 43:00 – William Shatner on Space, Language, and Awe (Shatner)

Conclusion

This episode interweaves personal revelation, dark humor, and cultural critique with thoughtful candor. Whether unpacking grief, redefining the role of media creators, handling the "epidemic of loneliness," or gazing wordlessly at the void of space, the participants show the power of vulnerability, intention, and connection — both on air and off.

Recommended for listeners who appreciate: honest storytelling, intelligent debate on modern issues, and a blend of wisdom, wit, and curiosity about the world and ourselves.