The Rewatchables — ‘The Truman Show’

Host: Bill Simmons | Guests: Glen Powell, Mallory Rubin, Craig Horbock
Date: November 4, 2025
Film Discussed: The Truman Show (1998)

Overview:

This episode dives deep into The Truman Show, analyzing its prescience, emotional power, and how it has aged in a world obsessed with reality TV and social media. Actor Glen Powell joins regular Rewatchables hosts Bill Simmons, Mallory Rubin, and Craig Horbock to discuss the creative vision, uncanny predictions, Jim Carrey’s performance, and the film’s lasting legacy. The conversation weaves personal insights (Powell’s movie night rituals, his acting career) with a thorough dissection of the movie’s craft, themes, and cultural impact.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

Why ‘The Truman Show’? [05:04]

• Glen Powell chose The Truman Show for its "collective universal emotion", describing how it taps into manipulation, surveillance, and our desire for meaning in modern life.

  "For being kind of like a really messed up premise... it's a movie that has so much joy for people... We've all had that feeling of being manipulated, the idea that like being watched, like that same sort of feeling... it's kind of built into humans." [05:04]

• The conversation explores the film's flexibility as genre—how it can read as sci-fi, drama, horror, or even religion, depending on the viewer.

Jim Carrey’s Career-Defining Performance [07:14]

• The hosts marvel at Carrey’s shift from "goofy" 90s comedy to layered, dramatic acting.

• Carrey’s “tightrope walk” in the role is praised:

  "This movie could be played as a horror movie... The fact that he lives in this blissful, silly world... until something drops out of the sky and shakes him out of it—Jim Carrey, the way he plays it, is probably the strongest way." – Glen Powell [07:25]

• Carrey's run from 1994-2000 is considered among the strongest of any comedian-turned-actor, rivaling even Robin Williams.

The Film’s Development & Casting ‘What Ifs’ [08:20, 72:07]

• Peter Weir’s unique, measured approach—waiting a year for Carrey to be available, deep-diving on character backstories.
• Alternative leads and directors discussed: Robin Williams, Tom Hanks, Dennis Hopper, Brian De Palma, Terry Gilliam—highlighting how crucial Weir & Carrey were to the film’s final tone.

Prescience: Predicting Reality TV & Social Media [12:22, 29:03, 31:27]

• The hosts recall how ‘Truman’ pre-dated the explosion of reality TV (Survivor, Big Brother), and EdTV’s similar plot but lesser impact.
• Mallory Rubin: "Reality television being a novel idea... when you would have seen this movie in 1998, this would've seemed incredibly far-fetched. And now it seems like, oh yeah, isn’t there a Truman Show on Channel 236?" [43:03]
• Modern equivalents like Jury Duty and social media “life streamers” are compared to The Truman Show's core premise.

The Nature of Surveillance, Manipulation, and Fame [31:09]

• Powell connects his own celebrity experience with Truman’s constant observation.
• The group discusses society’s relationship with watching others vs. living authentically—then and now.
• Glen Powell: "It's been an interesting adjustment... you have these moments where you look up and you're like, oh, this is... everybody... it is a little bit of a paranoid thriller sometimes." [31:27]

Production Details, Easter Eggs, and Direction [11:27, 20:00–23:51]

• Praise for Weir’s production design—hidden Latin quotes, subtle background details.
• The deliberate pacing and structure, keeping emotional focus and giving satisfying narrative reveals (revealing the show to the audience 50 minutes in).
• The nuanced direction, with Powell comparing Weir to Linklater as a master at drawing performances rather than deploying “director’s tricks”.

Oscar Snubs & Reception [32:49]

• Only 3 Oscar nominations (Weir, Ed Harris, screenplay)—a point of passionate disbelief for all.
• Jim Carrey’s lack of recognition is laid at the feet of Academy bias against comedians in dramatic roles.
• Discussion of the fiercely competitive 1998 Oscars.

The Ending & Legacy [48:03]

• The ending is lauded as "one of the greatest"—the wish-fulfillment/laugh-cry moment that leaves audiences both elated and aching.
• The film’s final shot and its philosophical parting words (“You never had a camera in my head”) highlighted as one of its iconic takeaways.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Carrey’s Performance:
  “He became Andy Kaufman for like four months... Cr, is he the most talented comedian we’ve ever had for... to cross over?” — Bill Simmons [28:02]
  “Between him and Robin Williams.” — Mallory Rubin [28:21]

• Glen Powell on Genre & Wish Fulfillment:
  “Whenever I try to choose a movie, I always try to think about what the universal emotion is... and I feel like with Truman Show, we've all had that feeling of being manipulated.” [05:04]

• On the Movie’s Prescience:
  “It’s crazy—Truman show comes in 98 and it’s like, this whole world is coming...” — Bill Simmons [12:30]
  “That’s modern Truman Show… the idea that everybody’s in on except one guy.” — Glenn Powell on Jury Duty [14:25]

• On Peter Weir’s Process:
  “Waited for Carrey for a year... spent a year thinking about the movie, storyboarding, writing character backstories for every cast member.” — Bill Simmons [24:50]

• On the Impact of Reality TV & Fame:
  “I would argue, though, like you're legitimately famous. Your life is a little Truman Showish every day…” — Simmons to Powell [31:09] “I think that's been an interesting adjustment—you still walk through the world the same, then sometimes you look up and you're like, oh...” — Powell [31:27]

• On Oscars (Jim Carrey’s Snub):
  “In my opinion, it's a little bias... Robert Downey Jr got a nom for Tropic Thunder. Johnny Depp for Pirates is kind of a comedy role. But those are dramatic actors doing a comedic thing and are sort of honored. I think it's different for someone who's a true comedian...” — Powell [33:16]

• On the Ending:
  “Perfect. Perfect. I think the bow at the end, the wish fulfillment of it, you get that thing I love in movies, which is like the laugh cry…” — Glen Powell [48:14]

Timestamps for Significant Segments

| Segment | Timestamp | |---------|-----------| | Intro & Glen Powell's Movie Choice | 02:22–05:04 | | What makes The Truman Show resonate | 05:04–07:14 | | Jim Carrey's role & approach to acting | 07:14–08:20 | | Casting & film’s origins | 08:20–10:23 | | Preceding reality TV trend | 12:22–14:59 | | Being watched, fame, and social media | 31:09–31:44 | | Oscars discussion (snubs & context) | 32:49–34:34 | | Most Rewatchable Scene discussion | 38:17–42:41 | | Most 1998 Thing / What Aged Best | 42:41–48:14 | | Screenwriting structure / pacing | 48:43–51:11 | | Nitpicks & Suspension of Disbelief | 76:02–87:03 | | Unanswerable Questions & Legacy | 92:01–98:37 | | Who Won the Movie? | 95:06–95:45 | | The Truman Show’s influence on influencers and reality TV | 96:11–98:37 |

The Legendary Scenes and Structure

Most Rewatchable Scenes

• Opening with Kristoff’s reality-show meta monologue [38:17]
• Truman’s flashback to “Lauren” [38:38]
• Radio frequency scene when Truman starts to figure it out [38:53]
• Bus escape, Truman with Meryl, culminating in his attempted escape over water [39:16]
• Hospital and Fiji ticket sequence [39:16]
• Secret ‘set’ discovery and camera reveals [39:45]
• Truman’s reunion with his dad [40:01]
• Sailboat adventure and climactic escape – "one of the most iconic endings" [40:45–41:19]

Flex Categories, Nitpicks, and Awards

1998 Essence & What’s Aged Best

• Travel agent scene, product placement, young Paul Giamatti, causal product/recap show synergy [42:41–44:24]
• Accurate predictions about social media, surveillance, and personalized content [44:47–45:24]

Weak Links & Pacing

• Marlon and Truman’s dad considered underdeveloped [56:57–58:11]
• Some wish for more real-world consequences/context or longer runtime [84:16–84:41]

Hypothetical/‘What Ifs’

• Hanks as Truman?

  “I do think this movie could have potentially been really good with Tom Hanks.” – Glen Powell [63:28]

• Brian De Palma, Terry Gilliam, etc., as directors [72:07]
• Sequel ideas: Truman’s child born after he escapes; 'Return to Seahaven' with the next generation [87:50]

Enduring Legacy & Final Thoughts

• The Truman Show stands as a canny, funny, emotionally stirring warning about surveillance, manipulation, and the boundaries between authenticity and artificiality.
• The film’s template has only become more relevant in the age of streaming, influencers, and 24/7 content creation.
• “We all have our things...” – Bill Simmons, tying in his own “Truman Show” of watching 14 hours of football every Sunday [98:37]

Who Won the Movie?

• Jim Carrey receives unanimous votes as the “winner”—for the career-defining, transformative performance that married comedy with poignant drama and positioned him in the “most powerful actor” tier of the late 1990s.

  “I think Carrey wins.” – Glen Powell [95:24]

Memorable Final Word

"You never had a camera in my head." – Truman [54:38, as cited by Mallory Rubin]