You're Wrong About
Episode: The Worst Movie Ever Made? with Paul Scheer and Amy Nicholson
Host: Sarah Marshall
Guests: Paul Scheer & Amy Nicholson (Unspooled Podcast)
Date: March 13, 2026
Overview
In this rich, lively episode, Sarah Marshall is joined by Paul Scheer and Amy Nicholson of the “Unspooled” podcast to tackle the notorious legacy of Ishtar (1987)—the film long (and perhaps unfairly) derided as “the worst movie ever made.” The trio explores why some movies carry the “worst ever” stigma, questions who gets to decide such things, and uses Ishtar’s chaotic production history to unravel broader truths about film culture, criticism, failure, and the weird communal joy of both loving and hating movies together.
Main Themes
- The Mythology of Flops: How “Ishtar” became a punchline and why we need things to be "the worst."
- Elaine May’s Troubled Genius: The complicated legacy of director Elaine May and her unique way of working.
- Hollywood Power Dynamics: Big egos, studio politics, money, and who is set up to succeed (or fail).
- Passion, Failure, & Cultural Memory: Why some “bad” movies are more memorable than forgettable mediocrities.
- The Role of Critics: How criticism, review culture, and audience expectations shape reputations.
- Making and Loving Movies—Good or Bad: Embracing the imperfect, human element in art and entertainment.
Key Discussion Points and Insights
1. Is “Ishtar” Really the Worst Film Ever Made?
-
[02:39] Ishtar became such a cultural punchline, even cartoonists (like Gary Larson in The Far Side) referenced it without having seen it. “It is such a treat to get into a movie that the culture at large has deemed God awful, absolute trash. The punchline for everything bad.” (Amy, 02:24)
-
[03:36] Most people who joke about Ishtar never saw it. The film’s infamy exceeded its audience. “It becomes this thing, this kind of rallying cry. And I think that’s a lot of times... we just kind of gang up or we heard it was bad.” (Paul, 03:36)
2. Elaine May: Genius, Perfectionist, Pariah
- [05:14] “Elaine May is known as a difficult filmmaker... at one point when she was going to lose Final Cut on a film, she stole her own movie to keep it away from the studio.” (Paul, 05:14)
- May fought institutional barriers, perfectionism, and, in Ishtar, immense pressure as the first woman given such a blockbuster budget.
3. Hollywood Egos and Production Chaos
- [07:31] “This is kind of like the Avengers of neurotic comedy.” (Paul on Warren Beatty, Dustin Hoffman, and Elaine May, 07:31)
- Ishtar’s creation involved clashing visions, giant egos, and three key people (May, Beatty, Hoffman) each trying to run the show.
- [13:52] “All three of them hiring their own editing team and being like, this is my cut of the movie.” (Amy)
4. On Set Nightmares and the Role of Studios
- [16:41] Columbia Pictures (then owned by Coca Cola) forced the shoot to Morocco for business reasons, despite regional unrest and landmines.
- Hilarious/tragic micro-detail: the infamous blue-eyed camel search—“They spend tons of time, money on this camel quest. They never find a camel as good as that first camel. They have to go back... ‘We ate it.’” (Amy & Paul, 19:00)
- Toxic gossip, crew inefficiencies (two parallel camera teams due to union rules), and tension multiplied on US soil.
5. Why Do We Need Cultural Disasters?
- Both the media and the public seem eager for spectacular flops, a phenomenon discussed with warmth and a little exasperation.
- [32:30] “We want to watch people fail... We raise people up and we want to tear them down.” (Paul)
- The group draws interesting parallels to modern flop discourse (“Morbius” and beyond).
6. The Anatomy of a "Bad" Movie
-
[43:58] “Maybe it would be easier to analyze Ishtar if it was either extremely good or extremely bad. But I would say the final project is fine. If something is fine, then it’s harder to take a stance on it, so you just go with whatever the extreme opinion is.” (Amy)
-
[44:06] Paul argues that “bad” movies with passion (like “The Room”) deserve study as much as canonized classics. “Most failures are based in that idea: this is something I needed to get out.” (Paul, 44:36)
-
[46:23] Amy adds that the truly bad films are the cynical ones: “It's when a film smacks of that cynicism... that sense that the people involved... are like, ‘eh, the audience will take what we give them.’ That’s when I really think a film is bad.” (Amy)
7. Why Did Ishtar Truly Fail?
- Budget was epic for the era ($51M, [59:21]), but not as astronomical as legend suggests—perception mattered more than reality.
- “...it became a joke. It became the only Farside cartoon where Gary Larson apologized because he didn’t see it.” (Paul, 80:44)
- Underlying lesson: the culture needs scapegoats and scapegoat movies—some films become “the worst” as a communal ritual more than for their content.
8. Criticism, Culture, and Moving Forward
- Thoughtful discussion of today's review culture, dunking for clicks, and the value of passionate, nuanced critics.
- [69:48] “...because as everyone becomes a content creator, there’s... this interesting sort of cannibalism... It’s probably... more difficult to think of things that you enjoy as opposed to describing things as if they’re worse than they are... But you do have the option, as a critic... to try and share things... that you think deserve to be enjoyed more.” (Sarah)
- Film as communal, imperfect art: “Better to have movies that feel human and fall short of expectations, maybe even hugely, than movies that feel like they were made by nobody.” (Sarah, 82:39)
Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments
- [08:08] Paul: “It’s a goofy buddy musical spy caper about two terrible lounge singers who stumble into a Middle Eastern coup... it’s the Avengers of neurotic comedy.”
- [14:55] Amy (on Beatty/Hoffman): “They are bad, but they are very impassioned about being bad. Right. And I think that’s a funny thing. Like, they work hard, but the result is bad.”
- [18:54] Amy (on camel chaos): “But they did it. They go hunting for more camels. They interview a whole bunch of camels... never find a camel as good as that first camel... ‘We ate it.’”
- [32:30] Paul: “We want to watch people fail. I think that’s a part of... We raise people up and we want to tear them down.”
- [44:36] Paul: “Film at its core is a passion... And I think most failures are based in that idea.”
- [46:41] Amy: “If you feel like, oh, give them something, they’re going to be holding a phone in their hands anyways, it doesn’t matter... That’s when I absolutely check out.”
- [82:39] Sarah: “Better to have movies that feel human and fall short of expectations, maybe even hugely, than movies that feel like they were made by nobody.”
- [83:20] Amy: “Go see a movie for yourself. Don’t be Gary Larson having to apologize later. You know, figure out what you think about a movie before you just abide by the buzz.”
- [84:55] Sarah: “You can’t really control how people are going to receive what you do. So you just kind of have to do the thing that you care about most and hopefully people will pay you for it.”
Timestamps for Key Segments
- 02:45 — Introduction of Ishtar and its infamous reputation
- 07:31 — Elaine May, Beatty, and Hoffman: ensemble of “neurotic comedy”
- 13:52 — The three-way power struggle in post-production
- 16:41 — Coca Cola, Morocco, landmines, and production disasters
- 18:54 — The saga of the blue-eyed camel
- 32:30 — Why we delight in public creative failure
- 44:36 — What makes a “bad” movie worth talking about
- 69:48 — The evolving purpose of critics
- 80:36 — Reimagining moviegoing, the cinema as event and community
- 83:20 — Takeaway: Don’t listen to the mob—see movies yourself
Final Thoughts and Takeaways
- Ishtar is not “the worst movie ever made,” just one of the best-known “bad” movies—a role every era seems to need.
- Cultural myth-making shapes reputations more than reality; passion projects, even failures, are more memorable than calculated mediocrity.
- Critics and audiences should champion genuine effort and original voice, even when it misses.
- The communal experience of films, even flops, is precious and human—maybe that’s the point.
Further Listening
Paul and Amy recommend starting with Unspooled’s “Waterworld” episode for another deep dive into an infamous flop, or simply picking a favorite film from their vast back catalog to get acquainted with their brand of thoughtful, lively movie discussion.