Secrets to Commercial Filmmaking With 'The Housemaid' Director Paul Feig

Summary

Podcast Summary:

The Town with Matthew Belloni
Episode: Secrets to Commercial Filmmaking With 'The Housemaid' Director Paul Feig
Release Date: March 20, 2026
Host: Matthew Belloni
Guest: Paul Feig (Director, Writer, Producer)

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Episode Overview

Matthew Belloni sits down with renowned filmmaker Paul Feig to dissect the unexpected box office success of “The Housemaid,” a $35 million thriller that grossed nearly $400 million globally. Belloni and Feig explore the intricacies of commercial filmmaking, why certain movies still draw theatrical audiences, the importance of audience-testing and marketing, the fading theatrical viability of comedies, and why sequels aren’t always a good idea—even for beloved hits like "Bridesmaids." The episode closes with a wider industry discussion about the possibility (or impossibility) of new studios breaking into Hollywood’s upper echelons.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Art and Science of Commercial Hits

• Success of ‘The Housemaid’:
  Feig attributes the film’s massive success to a combination of solid source material, careful casting, and a precise focus on delivering a collective theatrical experience.
  • “It’s all about A, the material you pick and B, the people you put in it. And C, the experience you...bring to an audience in a theater that you promise them and what you deliver to them.” (Paul Feig, 04:08)
• Making Films for Theaters:
  The film’s status as a communal event—designed for shared gasps, tension, and delight—helped differentiate it from typical streaming fare.
  • “It was a true group experience... I make all my movies as if they're comedies...even with the streaming ones I did. I do a lot of test screenings...” (Paul Feig, 04:37)

2. Data-Driven Filmmaking—Test Screenings and Audience Feedback

• Audience Testing:
  Feig is methodical and openly data-driven, using test audiences (not friends/family) early and often, tracking engagement with cameras, even polling specific demographics.
  • “I hate [test screenings] when I'm in them, but if I don't do them, you're insane... I am anti friends and family screenings because they don't tell you anything and they will lead you down the wrong path.” (Paul Feig, 05:17)
• Collaboration with Marketing:
  After earlier missteps, Feig emphasizes the value of close collaboration with marketing departments, sharing footage early and seeking input on audience appeal.
  • “My biggest mistake...was somehow thinking the marketing department was my enemy when I was in post production... That's the dumbest thing in the world you can do.” (Paul Feig, 07:21)

3. The “Female Instinct”—Polling Women for Creative Choices

• Authenticity in Female-Centric Films:
  Feig routinely seeks input from his actresses, producers, and women on set to ensure authenticity in female-driven stories.
  • “Anybody, you know on the set who's female, basically, it's like, just call me. I'm still a guy. You know, I make movies about women, but I'm still a dude. I'm still gonna, like, pitch something that they're like, we wouldn't do that... Tell me what you would do, how we make this more honest.” (Paul Feig, 09:27)
• Music Choices Reflect the Target Audience:
  He polls female cast, crew, and studio execs for soundtrack moments, such as choosing Kelly Clarkson over Bob Seger for a pivotal scene.
  • “All the women working on this project...like, what is your celebration song? And Kelly Clarkson kind of went to the top...” (Paul Feig, 10:12)

4. Theatricality, Genre-Bending & Psychological Thrills

• Building to a Twist:
  Adapting psychological thrillers with unexpected twists is key for luring and then surprising audiences in a communal way.
  • “What I loved about the book and the script was that I realized it gave me the chance to make an audience root for everything in the first hour that they should not be rooting for in the second.” (Paul Feig, 11:19)
• Mixed-Genre Necessity:
  Pure comedies are rarely greenlit for theaters now; mixing genres (comedy with thriller elements) is more theatrical and marketable.
  • “It's tough. I think you need the mixed genre. And...we're not even telling them it's supposed to be fun... That's why horror movie, by so many of these horror movies, I mean, you know, Weapons is the classic example...” (Paul Feig, 15:34)

5. The Role of Stars & Audience Expectations

• Casting with Strategic Awareness:
  Feig values recognizable, well-liked stars who fit what audiences want to see them do, specifically referencing Sydney Sweeney in “The Housemaid.”
  • “I just need to make sure a. They're really great. And I always check to make sure they're good to work with...” (Paul Feig, 16:08)
  • Belloni: “People like Sydney Sweeney in this kind of movie. They don't like her as a boxer where she's unrecognizable in a, you know, small indie movie. This is how they want to see her.” (17:17)

6. Marketing Innovations and Viral Engagement

• Viral Moviegoing Among Young Audiences:
  Success owes much to young women making video content with friends attending screenings—cozying up with blankets, snacks, and reactions—and Sydney Sweeney’s amplification on social.
  • “So you see them, they're doing videos of themselves getting all these snacks...and then going in and sitting under these blankets, having fun, filming each other, watching the movie, reacting to stuff. And it's fantastic. That's how you get people back into movie theaters.” (Paul Feig, 18:27)
• Participatory Screening Events:
  Lionsgate’s marketing stunts (smashing plates at screenings, capturing night vision footage of audience reactions) boosted word of mouth online.
  • “We gave out plates, these breakable plates...When Millie says, 'I fucking love gravy,' everybody break your plates...It went everywhere...” (Paul Feig, 19:42)

7. The Limits of Streaming-First Movies

• Diminished Impact at Home:
  Feig’s films falter on streaming because they’re designed for audience energy. Critics and viewers at home don’t get swept up in the communal spirit, which can harm critical reception.
  • “...When we got released on streaming, the whole second round of critics who watched it at home came in and shit all over it and knocked us down to a 60%...they're not having the experience.” (Paul Feig, 14:20)
• Differences in Directing for Streaming:
  If making something for streaming, he worries about early drop-off and suggests it requires a faster start, though he doesn’t fundamentally change his approach:
  • “The one thing you do think about, though, is...how quickly people can turn it off. So I think you want [a faster start]...” (Paul Feig, 27:06)

8. On Sequels and Awards Movies

• Unlikelihood of 'Bridesmaids 2':
  Despite audience and studio interest, the emotional arc that made the original a hit is tough to replicate—sequels often disappoint.
  • “Sequels are just the thing that everybody thinks they want, and yet very rarely do they go, oh, I'm so glad that happened...You usually walk away like, no, the first one was better.” (Paul Feig, 25:14)
• Commercial vs. Awards Films:
  Feig underscores the creative divide between making movies for audiences versus for awards attention.
  • “There is just this thing of...either I've got to make a commercial movie or I've got to make an awards movie...How many movies have we seen that are awards movies that you just kind of go, okay, whatever. You're not in service of the audience, you know?” (Paul Feig, 22:56)

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Notable Quotes & Moments (with Timestamps)

• On test screenings versus friends-and-family:

  • “I am anti friends and family screenings because they don't tell you anything and they will lead you down the wrong path.” (Paul Feig, 05:17)

• On embracing commercial instincts:

  • “If you're going to make a studio film, love the politics. Don't, like, just hold on to your, you know, your baby and not let [anyone] see it.” (Paul Feig, 08:17)

• On mixed genres and audience energy:

  • “All good comedies are dramas that are funny. They have to have that emotional core...Otherwise...it's not going to have the emotional resonance that the first one had.” (Paul Feig, 26:15)

• On tracking online reactions:

  • “I'm very, very into feedback... There's something happening here. But I gotta really credit the Lionsgate marketing team. They did so many brilliant stunts.” (Paul Feig, 19:27)

• On the streaming/awards movie dilemma:

  • “It just makes filmmakers like myself feel like shit. Because it makes filmmakers feel like, either I've got to make a commercial movie or I've got to make an awards movie.” (Paul Feig, 22:52)

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Industry Side Note: Can New Major Studios Break Through? (29:42–34:56)

Belloni (and guest producer Craig) explore whether a new major studio can realistically emerge, especially with the likely Warner Bros-Paramount merger reducing the number of legacy studios:

• Barriers to Entry:
  It's nearly impossible because of the importance of back-catalog IP and global distribution infrastructure.
  • “It's very difficult to start a new studio because of the library question... The only companies that have been able to do it...have other businesses (streaming/tech giants).” (Belloni, 30:07)
• Mini-majors Can Grow, But:
  Studios like A24 or Lionsgate operate at a smaller scale, but without a library, breaking into the major ranks is virtually impossible.

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Timestamps for Important Segments

• [04:08] – How Paul Feig builds a theatrical hit: material, casting, audience experience
• [05:11–06:41] – Test screenings, data-driven filmmaking, collaboration with marketing
• [09:09–10:38] – Polling and collaborative feedback, music choices
• [11:19–12:50] – Genre twists and the necessity of rooting interest
• [13:26–14:20] – Streaming movies vs. theatrical experience, critical reception challenges
• [16:03–17:45] – The importance of stars and delivering audience expectations
• [18:27–19:42] – The power of viral marketing, young women groups, and theatrical stunts
• [22:52–23:32] – Awards movies vs. movies for the audience, commercial/awards divide
• [25:14–26:33] – The perils of comedy sequels and what makes them work
• [27:03–29:22] – How (and whether) directing changes for streaming platforms
• [29:42–34:56] – Segment on the possibility of new studios entering the Hollywood major leagues

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Conclusion

Paul Feig’s recipe for big-screen commercial triumphs lies at the intersection of sharp audience understanding, humility about feedback, and an unashamed embrace of commercial and marketing realities—always with the audience’s entertainment at the core. His willingness to poll collaborators, test content, and lean into nostalgia (with a modern twist) has kept his films relevant in an era when theatrical releases are a rarity for mid-budget pictures. His skepticism towards sequels and concern for streaming's impact on communal storytelling paint a layered, practical portrait of Hollywood’s current climate—one that prizes both creativity and commerce, but rarely allows for both in equal measure.

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For those curious about the secrets of making a low-budget theatrical blockbuster—or interested in the broader state of studio moviemaking—this episode is a must-listen.

Transcript

[A]

This episode is brought to you by AMC. The critically acclaimed series Dark Winds returns for a fourth season from executive producers Robert Redford and George R.R. martin. When a young girl disappears, the Navajo tribal police are pushed beyond their limits, forced to confront unfamiliar land, twisted obsessions and a trail of grisly murders. This season, one thing becomes clear. Justice has no boundaries. Watch Dark Winds Season 4 Sundays at 9pm or on AMC or stream anytime on AMC. Plus. This episode of the Town is brought to you by the Madison, the new original series on Paramount. Plus it's Academy Award nominee Taylor Sheridan's most intimate story yet. A New York City family is uprooted to Montana after an unexpected tragedy. In the quiet majesty of the Madison Valley, they confront love and loss, discovering resilience and the transformative power of family and the land that grounds them. Led by a powerhouse cast, Academy Award nominee Michelle Pfeiffer and Golden Globe nominee Kurt Russell. Don't miss the Madison, the highly anticipated new series streaming now only on Paramount. It is Friday, March 20th. The media covering Hollywood loves to analyze failures certainly do our share on the Town, but there's less introspection about the outsized hits, even the out of nowhere blockbusters. The Housemaid, a thriller starring Sydney Sweeney and Amanda Seiffried based on the book by Freda McFadden that was made for about $35 million and released in December by Lionsgate. It's now grossed nearly 400 million worldwide, including 270 million outside the US and Canada. Pretty incredible. Lionsgate's already announced the sequel, of course. So why and how did this happen? What lessons are there, if any, for filmmakers and producers or studio executives? That's what we're talking about today with the film's director, Paul Feig. If you don't know Paul, he's one of the smartest and savviest filmmakers in town, in addition to one of the best dressed. Lucas could take some notes. He's got a pretty high hit rate, including Bridesmaids, the Heat Spy, A Simple Favor. He created the TV show Freaks and Geeks with Judd Apatow. He's directed a ton of classic TV shows. He's got a very specific process and he is not afraid of explicitly directing from a commercial perspective. We're going to talk about the place for lower budgeted movies in theaters and what makes a comedy or thriller theatrical. The Star question Much more. Today it's how to make a low budget blockbuster with Paul Feig from the Ringer and Puck. I'm Matt Bellany and this is the Town. Okay, we are here with Paul Feig, director, writer, producer. Am I missing anything?

[B]

Bon vivant, cocktail enthusiast. Yes. Gin maker. There you go.

[A]

You're a gin make.

[B]

Yes, I have my own brand of gin. Artist, dolls. Brilliant. London dry gin. Yeah, it's been my obsession for years.

[A]

Oh, wow. I didn't know that. That's great. Okay, so by the way, I saw you at the Oscars across the way. You were wearing a lovely pink suit.

[B]

Thank you.

[A]

Were you there for the Bridesmaids reunion?

[B]

Yeah, yeah, exactly. Which was really cool.

[A]

So I wanted to have you on because the. The Housemaid is a great Hollywood success story. I mean, this. The fact that this movie is. Is going to do 400 million worldwide is kind of amazing. I mean, I would ask you if you're shocked, but I was looking back at some of the numbers for your other films and like bridesmaids, almost $300 million. Spy 235, the Heat, 230. A Simple Favor did 100 million worldwide. You've done some streaming movies too, and they're not all hits, but you have seemed like you are uniquely able to take the lower budget movie and find a theatrical audience. And that is a goal. That is a needle in a haystack these days. So how did you do it? Why is this movie so successful?

[B]

You know, I mean, it's all about A, the material you pick and B, the people you put in it. And C, the experience you put bring to an audience in a theater that you promise them and what you deliver to them.

[A]

Well, let's talk about that, because I am very interested in what makes a movie theatrical these days. And I think the industry is obsessed with what makes a movie theatrical. So what about the Housemaid Made it not only theatrical, but a blockbuster because

[B]

it was a true group experience. I mean, first of all, look, we had. We had a book, a very popular book behind us. So kind of in that Gone Girl way, we had that. So that was a plus. But then it was make. You know, I make all my movies as if they're comedies, you know, and definitely the Housemaid is one of my darker films.

[A]

Sure, yeah.

[B]

You know, because it's about abuse and everything else. So I engineer all these movies, even with the streaming ones I did. I do a lot of test screenings. So like starting five weeks into my director's cut, I do the first test screening with a recruited audience, not a friends and family audience.

[A]

Yeah, you love test screenings. It's amazing. Most filmmakers cringe and hate them.

[B]

I mean, look, I hate them when I'M in them, but if I don't do them, you're insane. And, and I really am anti friends and family screenings because they don't tell you anything and they will lead you down the wrong path.

[A]

Yes, they, they, they're butt kissers.

[B]

Yeah, exactly. So, so you have. Basically, you're structuring it, making sure, always keeping the audience in mind, recording them not only on audio but on video. So I can actually so a movie like this that doesn't have a laugh a minute I'm watching to see are they engaged, are they sitting back? Are they just chewing on popcorn? You know, is, are they, are they with me?

[A]

I've heard that you use infrared goggles to watch the audience. Is that true?

[B]

Well, not me personally.

[A]

You do not. Okay. You're not standing there with a head apparatus on, like, scoping people out like,

[B]

like an ant or a bug. Exactly. No, we let the cameras do that. We just set them up at the front. We get, you know, get the whole theater, including myself and my editor, which is always terrifying to see us watch a movie. But, you know, so it's that. So we're, by the time we lock picture, you know, we've gone through a million different things. Like, let's trade that out. That's too slow. That joke doesn't work. That moment is not building correctly. We know we have a movie that works for about 90% of most audiences at least to get a, a response. So then that, that in turn will key the word of mouth that we need of people go, oh my gosh, you have to go. That's really fun. So we kind of rely on that. Outside of having the great cast and

[A]

the great script, I mean, it's very methodical and dare I say, data driven to do that. I mean, there are filmmakers that will listen to this and be like, well, that's antithetical to the art of movie making.

[B]

Yes, exactly. You know, and I, you get accused of that all the time. But at the same time, I'm not making independent films. I'm not making art films. I'm making commercial movies. Look, I want them to be great. I don't want them to be, you know, just product. But at the same time, I, I, if, Look, I was in movie jail once, Matt, so.

[A]

Oh, you were? Where was that, the mid, the mid 2000s?

[B]

Yes, exactly.

[A]

After what got you put there?

[B]

It was a movie called Unaccompanied Minors, which was for Warner Brothers. Yeah, it was a Christmas movie. It was kind of my weight, my first studio film. So Like, I'm just going to take a chance. I thought the material was really fun, and it just. When it didn't work, you're like, oh, shoot. And look, I went through test screenings on that, but I made a lot of mistakes on that movie, too. My biggest mistake that I did on that film was somehow thinking that the marketing department was my enemy when I was in post production. So I was like, don't send them anything. I don't want them to have dailies. I don't want them to see any of our cuts until I say it's ready. And that's the dumbest thing in the world you can do. They don't get invested. And then you're cutting yourself off. Now I literally, after that, it was just like, I want my dailies to go directly from the set to the marketing department.

[A]

Right.

[B]

Because I want them to see it all, because they'll start cutting stuff. And then as they're cutting stuff, I go, that's a really good idea. I never would have thought to make that joke, like, editing room joke.

[A]

They have very commercial instincts. Marketing group.

[B]

So if you're fighting against. And I lecture to film students all the time is like, if you're going to make a studio film, love the politics. Don't, like, just hold on to your, you know, your baby and not let me see it.

[A]

So you learned a lesson having been in director jail, and when you had success with Bridesmaids, you said, okay, let's. Let's hone in on this and let's figure out what works and doesn't work in every moment of a film.

[B]

Yeah. Because also, it's really. It's great to have a movie that works for an audience. You know, it's really fun. There's that scene at the end of that. One of those movies they made about Hitchcock, I think the one with Anthony Hopkins, and it's for Psycho, and he's in the back watching through the door. And as people are screaming during the shower scene, he's dancing around and in the lobby. That. I mean, that's exactly how you feel when you have a movie. And it's just an audience is buying everything that you're doing. So it. It's. It's fun. And then you get a hit and then you got to keep making movies.

[A]

Right? Exactly. And I, And I also read that you pull women. You specifically pull women, because you make a lot of female centric movies and you trust your instincts, but you also want the female instinct on a movie. And you will literally pull women and say, what do you like about this? And what do you not.

[B]

Yeah, well, I mean, all the way through the process, you know, the actor. Actors that I hire, I tell them all, please call me on anything. And my producing partner, Laura Fisher is amazing at that. And my former producing partner, Jesse Henderson was great at that. And then I. Anybody, you know on the set who's female, basically, it's like, just call me. I'm still a guy. You know, I make movies about women, but I'm still a dude. I'm still gonna, like, pitch something that they're like, we wouldn't do that. But I'm not like, well, just do it. It's like, oh, good. Tell me what you would do, how we make this more honest. Right.

[A]

And in the movie. I know spoilers, but there's a. A Kelly Clarkson song that is used in the movie, and your instinct was to use the Bob Seger song from Risky Business, and your polling suggested no younger women are into Kelly Clarkson.

[B]

Yeah, it was just like, all the women working on this project, the studio, everything, like, what is your celebration song? And Kelly Clarkson kind of went to the top, which is exactly how we got hold on for Bridesmaids. Yeah, we knew we had this scene about, like, Helen was going to hire a famous group, but it was like, what's. So we literally pulled all the women on the set, like, what is your song? And it just came back, hold On. So I was like, cool. I never heard hold on before that move.

[A]

Well, I am. I am a Gen X male, and I love hold on as well. Well, there you go. It's universal, really. So I want to talk a little bit. So. So just to. To put a button on Housemade, there is a twist in the movie, and it is a twist that I think is very central to the appeal of this movie, where it's sort of the man you thought he was is not the man. And is that a. Is that something that in your mind, when you read this, you thought, okay, that is theatrical. That is something that you can. You can hook an audience and build around to make a piece of material feel theatrical for the communal experience?

[B]

I thought it was really going to be a really big part of it. But what I loved about the book and the script was that I realized it gave me the chance to make an audience root for everything in the first hour that they should not be rooting for in the second. But I knew it was also a struggle that was dangerous, because if you fool them too much, you don't want them to Go fuck you to you. You want them to go fuck you to the character and then can enjoy the retribution that happens to him. And so definitely felt like that was gonna be fun. And also I knew I was almost had two different movies because the first hour is this kind of like, you know, standard in a great way. You know, interloper comes in the house. Oh, my goodness. There's sexual tension and the wife's crazy. So I knew it kind of had this kind of pot boiler melodrama up front that then was luring everybody in in kind of a way that an audience is used to. And then you just pull the rug and then I know, oh, good, now they're going to have fun. But look, here's the thing that though it would. The scariest thing about this movie was it's a movie about abuse, you know.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

So I always. I'm trying to get a reaction and I want to get, you know, a fun reaction out of an audience and make a movie fun at the end of the day. So knew we could go for it melodramatically. The first hour when we start to learn the real backstory of the wife that is dead serious. Like, you do not take any fun with that. You make that and then, you know, then the fun is, now we so want to kill that guy.

[A]

Right.

[B]

Let's just have a great time just torturing the shit out of him.

[A]

Do you think Bridesmaids would get greenlit today by a big studio?

[B]

I've talked to people who were involved and there's been a lot of talk about it might only go to streaming.

[A]

Right.

[B]

Which I was like, oh, God, I was really horrified by that.

[A]

Yeah. And we're just not in that era. I mean, Apatow had some juice at the time and Kristen Wiig was hot off SNL in a way that I don't think the SNL people have that same kind of juice today. I agree with you. I think it'd be really difficult.

[B]

Yeah, it's. But it's funny because all that feedback I got was sort of right after the pandemic when everybody. When everybody was trying to launch their streaming service, which I call the dark ages.

[A]

Right.

[B]

Because suddenly, like, you just couldn't. Anything that was in the world of what I do, I couldn't get into a theatrical thing, you know, and it carried over. I mean, you know, I made a movie for. For two movies for. For Amazon Jackpot and another simple favor that both tested huge and played huge with audiences. But we just, you know, they. They went to Streaming. Here's an interesting story for you though, Matt, is when we, you know, I kind of learned my lesson on Jackpot because we just let the reviewers kind of review it off of links and stuff and so they all over it. So I said with. With another simple favor, like, we have to have all the reviewers have to watch it in a theater. You know, we'll recruit audiences. Not fake audiences, just like word of mouth audiences.

[A]

Real people.

[B]

Yeah, exactly. And so. So in the run up to coming out, we were like 85% on Rotten Tomatoes. Then what happens is we got released on streaming. The whole second round of critics who watched it at home came in and shit all over it and knocked us down to a 60% and we lost our certified fresh rating. Okay. And you go, like. Cause they're not having the experience. And the problem with the movies that I make is that you have to have other people around, I think, to let you know it's okay to have fun in it, you know, because they present as dramas sort of. I mean, you know, a very loosest sense of the form. But if you're home, you're like, oh, like there's nothing worse than they think, oh, I'm laughing at this because I'm not supposed to, because it's bad. It's like, no, anything you're laughing at, I want you to laugh.

[A]

Yeah, no, I saw a simple favor in the theater and it was exactly that. I would not have had the same experience at home.

[B]

Yeah, no, totally. So it's, you know, it's the line you walk when you're. It's why studios always classically want to do. Comedies are comedies, dramas are dramas. No, mixed genre. And now everything great is mixed genre.

[A]

But do you need that mixed genre to get a movie to theaters? What is the market right now for a straight comedy in theaters?

[B]

It's tough. It's tough. I think you need the mixed genre. And honestly, almost in the way that we're not even telling them it's supposed to be fun, you know, like, that's why horror movie, by so many of these horror movies, I mean, you know, Weapons is the classic example. And I love that movie. It was my favorite movie last year because that did exactly what I like to do, which is you come in, oh, my God, it's gonna be so scary. And then is it just. You start going like, oh, I think this is really fun and whacked out. And by the end you're like, okay, that was just nuts and great. A great time.

[A]

Right? What about the star Question. Where do you fall on stars and the theatricality?

[B]

I always want to have people in my movies that people know they don't need to be the biggest stars in the world. I just need to make sure a. They're really great. And I always check to make sure they're good to work with because I don't want to go through a bad experience.

[A]

Who do you call? How do you find that out?

[C]

You.

[B]

You call around. You call around?

[A]

You call around.

[B]

Oh, yeah.

[A]

Oh, you call me anytime.

[B]

Okay, man, you're my new source. Yeah, but I also cross check, though, because sometimes somebody will tell you somebody's an asshole.

[A]

Right.

[B]

And then you'll call somebody else and find out the person who told them you they were an is actually the asshole.

[A]

Right. Well. And I'm not a good source because people act differently around media. People.

[B]

I know that's how it is as a director, too. People sometimes, you know, put their best foot forward for me. But Matt, of course they do that because you're the king of Hollywood, so.

[A]

Oh, stop.

[B]

They better be nice to you.

[A]

I also think the product market fit is a big deal because as much as stars and actors like to defy expectations and do things maybe a little bit outside the bounds, if the audience wants to see a particular star in a particular type of movie.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

I think that can be super additive. And there that's. You know, we've talked about this before. People like Sydney Sweeney in this kind of movie. They don't like her as a boxer where she's unrecognizable in a, you know, small indie movie. This is how they want to see her.

[B]

Yeah, very much so. And it's also. But also it depends on what time, what period we're in, you know, because, you know, there was a lot of these kind of movies being made in the 90s.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

And then they just went away. Because what happens with all these genres is a genre gets big and then a bunch of bad ones come out and it kills the genre. So the genre is dead for 10 or 20 years and then you come back with it. So, I mean, so much of the response we were getting from people loving the Housemaid was like, it's like one of those 90s thrillers. It's like, you know, Single White Female and what Lies Beneath.

[A]

Sleeping with the Enemy.

[B]

Yeah, totally. And I like. But that's fun because I like. I like maximalist kind of storytelling.

[A]

Yeah. These are the Friday night movies you take your significant other to. Those have sort of gone away as people don't just go to the movies on Friday night.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

They have to know what they want to see to get tickets in advance.

[B]

Yeah. So. So what was really exciting about this was going online and seeing all these videos that these groups of young women were making. They were going to the theater. They're taking blankets with them. Who knew that people watch with blankets now, but because of the. The new kind of seating that's more comfortable, they can really cozy in there. So you see them, they're doing videos of themselves getting all these snacks and mixing. Mixing sodas together and then going in and sitting under these blankets, having fun, filming each other, watching the movie, reacting to stuff. And it's fantastic. That's how you get people back into movie theaters. And then Sydney Sweeney was brilliant because she started reposting on her feed all of these videos. So all these young women were seeing, oh, my God, look how fun that is. And it just became this thing of, like, having this is the fun night out to have with your friends. And, you know, that's how we get people back into theaters.

[A]

Do you monitor web comments and Internet chatter as closely as you do the screening process? It would seem to me like you would probably take a lot of that stuff in.

[B]

Yeah, yeah. I'm very, very into feedback. You know, it's. Again, I'm a commercial filmmaker, and if you don't listen, and it's very tempting, you know, because you get all this great stuff and you hit one woman, like, doing a. You know, doing a review, she's like, worst movie ever. Saw you. Fuck you. You know.

[A]

Right?

[B]

But. But you go past that and you just start to feel like, wow, there's something happening here. But I gotta really credit the Lionsgate marketing team because they did so many brilliant stunts. We did this one stunt at the Grove that went everywhere where we gave out plates, these breakable plates. And I made an announcement beginning like, you know, you can scream when. You know, scream when Nina screams. And then when. When Millie says, I fucking love gravy. Everybody break your plates. And so we had this crazy screening. They filmed it all with night vision of all these people breaking plates, screaming, having the greatest time. And this stuff went everywhere. And I. You know, growing up in the 70s, I remember, I think it was When a Stranger Calls, seeing the. For the first time, an ad where they filmed the audience and these people, like, gasping and all this stuff. And I was like, that. That makes me want to see that movie, right? So I was like, can we bring that back? And they were so great about that. And then they just did a great Internet campaign, too.

[A]

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[B]

Sip. Find them at your local Kroger in the creamer aisle.

[A]

When people say to you, I would like to make the kinds of movies that you make and I would like them to be in theaters, what advice do you give to filmmakers?

[B]

The biggest advice I give is because it's all about picking the project. You know, whether you're going to write it, if you have an idea that you love, whatever it is. I always say the litmus test for me is if I was sitting in a theater and I didn't know me and I saw a trailer for that movie, would I say, I gotta go see that? And it sounds like an easy thing, but it's also really hard to run that through your head. But if you're really honest with yourself, and this is why I always credit Jordan Peele. I say, like, he is just so smart, like, get out us. You know, those movies, I didn't know what they were about. I just like, I have to go see that. And there was just something he found that was undeniable in the way that was presented, the way that he put it together. Just the story, something we hadn't seen. So it's really, it's a very undefinable thing of what's undeniable. What do we think people would want to see? But you have to trust yourself. All you have is yourself. Here's the thing, Matt, having just been at the Oscars, I hate Oscars. I hate awards season so much because it just makes. Because it makes filmmakers like myself feel like shit.

[A]

Oh, no. I hate to be Don Draper here, but that's what the money's for.

[B]

Oh, yeah. No, trust me. So I'm very happy about that. There's just something about, like, you know, look, and I love Oscar movies. I think they're really fun to watch and everything, but there is just this thing of, like, this feeling of like, either I've got to make a commercial movie or I've got to make an awards movie. And my problem with that is how many movies have we seen that are awards movies that you just kind of go, okay, whatever. You're not in service of the audience, you know? And I always go back to Bridesmaids. Do you think we've thought we were going to get nominated for two Oscars about a movie with a woman shitting in a sink and another shitting in her wedding dress in the middle of the street? No, it was all about entertaining people. So.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

So that's. I just feel like.

[A]

Speaking of that scene, by the way, though, is it. Is it true that you guys added these diarrheas in the street scene because of test audiences? You felt like you needed a set piece there?

[B]

No, it was in the writing. It was the one we were.

[A]

It was.

[B]

Yeah. When we were doing the rewrites with. With Kristen and Annie, it was just like, we. We need. We need a bigger set piece to show that. That Kristen really screwed up.

[A]

Okay. All right. But I get what you're saying. I mean, we can go on and on about the movies the Academy should nominate and doesn't, but. And you've made several of them. But it's just never going to change. Like, I don't. I just. I'm done with that. I mean, even though I feel like Amy Madigan won for Weapons and that's a movie that you would never think would get nominated.

[B]

I mean, that was. That was kind of akin to when Melissa McCarthy got nominated for Bridesmaids. I felt that was so happy that Amy won because that's just a brilliant performance.

[A]

Right. What are the odds if you were betting on one of the prediction markets of the Bridesmaid sequel ever happening?

[B]

Very low.

[A]

Very low.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Well, you know what, though? It'll happen. I would say at some point that maybe they'll get old enough where it'll be their daughters. Maybe there'll be something. I don't know. But. But it's such a beloved title that Universal, like, it's almost fiscally irresponsible for them not to pursue it. At some point.

[B]

They want it.

[A]

No, I know they want it. Yeah.

[B]

Trust me.

[A]

But at some point, I mean. So what's holding it up?

[B]

Yeah, look, it's Tristan and Annie's baby, definitely. You know, the things sprouted from them. But look. And I used to be much better to be on the Soapbox because I hadn't made any sequels, but now I've made one and about to make a second one.

[A]

Right.

[B]

But sequels are just the thing that everybody thinks they want, and yet very rarely do they go, oh, I'm so glad that happened. You know, you usually walk away like, no, the first one was better. Like, oh, shoot, I thought that'd be better because the expectation's so high. And the other thing with Bridesmaids is, you know, we all remember shitting in the street and all the wacky stuff on the plane. The reason that movie works is because Kristen Wiig was a mess. When we meet her, she's got this great friendship. It falls apart, and we're just like, please, get that back together. She sorts herself out. And then you were like, oh, thank God. You know, it's. The people latch into that movie emotionally because of that story of that love story between these two friends. And so they can't break up again in the second one, and she can't be a mess again, can she? So maybe.

[A]

I don't know.

[B]

I know. But that's. There's an audience. You're like, oh, I know.

[A]

The comedy. Most comedies are fueled by a premise that is very difficult to replicate in a sequel. And the sequel always sucks.

[B]

Yeah, all good comedies. All good comedies are dramas that are funny.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

They have to have that emotional core, you know, and if you don't have that, you know, it's just gonna be a wacky wedding where everything goes nuts. Well, okay, it could be funny, but it's not going to have the emotional resonance that the first one had. Look, never say never. Somebody can come up.

[A]

Well, we will definitely play this interview back when Netflix announces that it has greenlit the Bridesmaid sequel. Universal has pawned it off, and you're

[B]

all making $200 million direct to streaming.

[A]

Yes. And it'll be happy Gilmore 2, just with every female star you've ever seen all showing up in the bridesmaid seque.

[B]

Oh, Matt. Oh, Matt. Are you Nostradamus? Are you evil Nostradamus?

[A]

Yes. Yes.

[C]

Paul, can I ask one question?

[B]

Yes.

[C]

Would. Would you direct a. A movie for streaming differently than you would direct a movie coming out in theaters?

[B]

Do.

[C]

Would you prioritize different things?

[B]

No, I wouldn't. But, you know, the pressures are on it. The one thing you do think about, though, is the how quickly people can turn it off. So I think you want, like, you know, the housemaid is a pretty slow burn.

[A]

Yeah. You know, and you've said that you. Some. You think of your movies as, like shooting them out of a cannon, but you couldn't on this one because you had to set it all up.

[B]

No. Well, interestingly enough, we had an opening for this one that was like, you're coming down these stairs and you see there's blood and there's, like, brain matter on the. You know, when you come down, you watch this cop's feet come down, and then they're looking at this body going like, wow, that's a shitty way to die. And then the one cop picks up a tooth and goes like, wow, is that a tooth? And then you cut to, you know, because that's how most of these thriller books are written now. They give that little thing. But we found that audience. It was more fun for an audience to go, oh, I'm just going to watch this happy go. Lucky thing of like, this young woman goes to a house. They didn't want. It didn't. It didn't help us to go, oh, shit, something bad's going to happen.

[C]

Once they're trapped in the movie theater, it doesn't matter, because they're there for two hours and they're going to finish the.

[A]

The film.

[B]

Exactly. Nobody walks out before 15 minutes.

[A]

You know, but maybe if it was a streaming movie, you would have had to have that. Like, you'd have to have the white lotus floating body.

[C]

Is that something you're instructed to do when making a streaming movie?

[B]

They don't say it directly, but, you know, if. If. If you're smart, you go, I think we got to do something like that.

[C]

Because there's a lot of chatter now about, you know, you have to restate the plot multiple times so that people who are.

[A]

Netflix says they don't do that.

[B]

I love that they're so. They, like, horrified by that.

[A]

I know. How dare you suggest that we want people to continue to be engaged.

[B]

Well, I guess one of the worst experiences I ever had was when I did for Netflix, we did the School for Good and Evil. And, you know, I was testing that in theaters, and they said, well, we want to do one of our online tests. So, like, oh, God. So it's basically like a big zoom screen, you know, with a million different boxes in it, and you watch people at home watch the movie from the, you know, camera in the tv, and it makes you want to kill yourself because literally somebody's making a sandwich, the cat they Walk away to the bathroom for five minutes and then that person's like, well, I didn't understand. It's like, yeah, you missed the whole thing.

[A]

It's not. Yeah, it's not us, it's you. And you know your crossword puzzle that you're doing?

[B]

Oh, my God. I'm telling you down the phone and like, you know, terrible.

[A]

Oh, amazing. All right, thank you for coming on. Congratulations on the success. It's a great story.

[B]

Thanks, Matt. Really appreciate it.

[A]

We are back with a call sheet instead of a prediction today. Craig, you can ask me a question. I know we wanted to do this for a while, so you get the open floor to ask anything you'd like. Within reason.

[C]

Yeah, within reason. Yeah. It's Friday. We already did the box office prediction. So I wanted to ask you. I feel like now, you know, with the Warner Brothers Paramount merger, we're losing one of the major studios and everyone's talking about how we're losing a studio. Is it possible that a new major studio can ever be created? Is it. Are we just limited to the ones we currently have? Or can a 24 eventually become a major studio? Can a new major studio and a new competitor enter the market? Is that ever possible?

[A]

Good question. Well, I'd argue that a 24 is sort of on its way by releasing more commercial style movies. But this is a good question because it gets to the heart of why Warner Brothers was sold for so much money. It's very difficult to start a new studio because of the library question. These studios are what they are because they can lean on their decades of library titles. And DreamWorks tried it in the 90s. Spielberg, Geffen Katzenberg came together, said, we are launching a new studio. We're going to have animation, we're going to have live action. We're going to compete with the big majors. And 10, 15 years later, they couldn't do it because you have to have a very high hit rate to justify the cost of releasing movies. And most studios don't have a high hit rate. So you have to be able to lean on the revenue that you get from exploiting all of those past titles to fund the continued operations of making new movies. And if you look at the only companies that have been able to do it over the past 25, 30 years, they have other businesses. So Netflix, how are they able to do it? Not because they are so good at being a studio. It's because they had distribution, they had a global streaming service that they created a business out of. And then, yes, the studio Attached to that global streaming business is now a very fully functioning studio. Amazon makes money in other ways. Apple makes money in other ways. They are the new studio entrance. If you wanted to create a new studio and just rely on being a distributor, that's extremely difficult. If you don't have a library. And there is a graveyard of companies over the past 20 years that have tried to do that. I'm thinking like Open Road, even Summit, that had the Twilight movies they ended up selling. It's just, it's really difficult.

[C]

So because basically Hollywood has been around for so long, there's so much ip. If you weren't there in the beginning to have all of that great ip, you have no shot.

[A]

But like, not just that, not just having the IP, but for 70, 80 years out of those hundred years. The exclusive ability to distribute around the world is what made the traditional legacy studios an oligopoly. No one else could had the, had the mechanism set up around the world to distribute movies now via the Internet. You can do it like Netflix does via their service. And that upended everything. But that's why they had that exclusive oligopoly.

[C]

Would you not consider Amazon acquiring MGM and making a commitment to theaters as them becoming a new major studio?

[A]

Yeah, they are.

[C]

So they're counted in this. Like, like, like Lionsgate is a company that could be acquired by somebody. If a 24 gets the library of Lionsgate, could they become a new competitor in that space as a major studio?

[A]

First of all, Lionsgate is a studio. It's a small studio. They like to call themselves a mini major, but it is, it is able to distribute around the world. Now they use a lot of partners in foreign territories where they will sell off international rights and stuff, but if they really wanted to, they could distribute a movie globally. It's just often a better business to sell those rights. The, the A24 situation is like they do the same. They often will sell off rights around the world, but they could distribute a movie around the world.

[C]

They just don't have the library.

[A]

Well, they have. However long they've been in business, what is it, 10, 15 years, and they have a decent library. That's why they are valued at what they are valued in the billions of dollars is because they are building up that library. It's not huge, but it's got some great titles in it, some Oscar winners. So like, it's just not what the traditional studios have. Those major studios, like look at what Sony did with Netflix and ability to get a $7 billion pay one deal out of Netflix because of that library and the fact that they're making original new movies.

[C]

There's nothing you can do then to create a new major competitor because the library is obviously limited to the IP that already exists and is owned by the remaining current studios.

[A]

Create a streaming service and get people to pay, and that's how you create a new studio. I mean, it's. It's global distribution, using the Internet to create the revenue stream that funds the movies.

[C]

But I'm talking about a studio that competes theatrically.

[A]

Oh, yeah. No, it's really difficult. And it's getting harder and harder because that business is so challenged. Sorry. Craig Company. Craig Studio. Not happening. I know you're looking at. You're looking at real estate right now to buy up in Playa Vista or somewhere to create Craig. Craig Co. Studio. Not going to happen.

[C]

Not going to. I'm not going to buy a piece of the Paramount lot. Well, all right. Thank you for letting me ask you a question. This is the question of the week, so thanks.

[A]

All right, that's the show for today. I want to thank my guest, Paul Feig, producer Craig Horbeck, Art Jon Jones. And I want to thank you. We'll see you next week.