This year’s Academy Awards will include the first-ever Oscar for Achievement in Casting. It’s the first new category in 25 years, since Best Animated Feature was added in 2001 (which inaugural award was won by Shrek).

Casting, though, is seen as kind of an illusive, inscrutable art form. We feel like we can separate out the writing and the editing and the costuming and the directing from a thing. But the cast kind of IS the thing a lot of the time, right? It’s kind of inextricable from the thing, it feels like.

This hour: a look at the art of casting.

GUESTS:
Mellini Kantayya: An actor and writer and the author of Actor. Writer. Whatever. (essays on my rise to the top of the bottom of the entertainment industry)
John Frank Levey: A four-time Emmy Award-winning casting director and the author of Right for the Role: Breakdowns, Breakups and Breakthroughs from 35 Years of Casting Iconic TV Shows
Connor Ratliff: An actor, writer, and comedian and the creator and host of Dead Eyes
Michael Schulman: A staff writer at The New Yorker and the author of Oscar Wars: A History of Hollywood in Gold, Sweat, and Tears

This year&rsquo;s Academy Awards will include the first-ever Oscar for Achievement in Casting. It&rsquo;s the first new category in 25 years, since Best Animated Feature was added in 2001 (which inaugural award was won by&nbsp;Shrek).
Casting, though, is seen as kind of an illusive, inscrutable art form. We feel like we can separate out the writing and the editing and the costuming and the directing from a thing. But the cast kind of IS the thing a lot of the time, right? It&rsquo;s kind of inextricable from the thing, it feels like.
This hour: a look at the art of casting.
GUESTS:
<ul>
<li>Mellini Kantayya:&nbsp;An actor and writer and the author of&nbsp;Actor. Writer. Whatever. (essays on my rise to the top of the bottom of the entertainment industry)</li>
<li>John Frank Levey:&nbsp;A four-time Emmy Award-winning casting director and the author of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.johnfranklevey.com/book">Right for the Role: Breakdowns, Breakups and Breakthroughs from 35 Years of Casting Iconic TV Shows</a></li>
<li>Connor Ratliff:&nbsp;An actor, writer, and comedian and the creator and host of&nbsp;<a href="https://headgum.com/dead-eyes">Dead Eyes</a></li>
<li>Michael Schulman:&nbsp;A staff writer at&nbsp;The New Yorker&nbsp;and the author of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.harpercollins.com/products/oscar-wars-michael-schulman">Oscar Wars: A History of Hollywood in Gold, Sweat, and Tears</a></li>
</ul>

The Colin McEnroe Show is public radio’s most eclectic, eccentric weekday program. The best way to understand us is through the subjects we tackle: Neanderthals, tambourines, handshakes, the Iliad, snacks, ringtones, punk rock, Occam’s razor, Rasputin, houseflies, zippers. Are you sensing a pattern? If so, you should probably be in treatment. On Fridays, we try to stop thinking about what kind of ringtones Neanderthals would want to have and convene a panel called The Nose for an informal roundtable about the week in culture.

<a href="https://www.ctpublic.org/show/the-colin-mcenroe-show/about">The Colin McEnroe Show</a> is public radio’s most eclectic, eccentric weekday program. The best way to understand us is through the subjects we tackle: Neanderthals, tambourines, handshakes, the Iliad, snacks, ringtones, punk rock, Occam’s razor, Rasputin, houseflies, zippers. Are you sensing a pattern? If so, you should probably be in treatment. On Fridays, we try to stop thinking about what kind of ringtones Neanderthals would want to have and convene a panel called <a href="https://www.ctpublic.org/tags/the-nose">The Nose</a> for an informal roundtable about the week in culture.

The Colin McEnroe Show

A look at the art of casting

We’ve been doing these shows where we don’t book any guests, where we fill the hour with your calls. And your calls have been interesting and surprising and amusing.

This hour, the conversation winds around to sneezing, the state of the union address, losers and losing, consciousness, Michael Pollan, local radio, possible conflict with Iran, the A.I. Brad Pitt fighting Tom Cruise video … Anything. (Seemingly) everything.

These shows are fun for us, and they seem to be fun for you, too. So we did another one.

MUSIC FEATURED (in order):
Don’t Let The World Pass You By – Jean-Luc Ponty
S’posin’ – Champian Fulton, Bria Skonberg
Easy to Love – Jordan Rakei, Tom McFarland
Beat Yourself Up – Charlie Puth
Hard to Say – Chris Morrissey, Norah Jones
Oh Qué Será? – Willie Colon
We’re Still Here – Alan Doyle

We&rsquo;ve been doing these shows where we don&rsquo;t book any guests, where we fill the hour with your calls. And your calls have been interesting and surprising and amusing.
This hour, the conversation winds around to sneezing, the state of the union address,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ctpublic.org/arts-and-culture/2021-04-30/a-long-look-at-losing-and-lovable-and-loathsome-losers">losers and losing</a>, consciousness, Michael Pollan, local radio, possible conflict with Iran, the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/02/16/movies/tom-cruise-brad-pitt-artificial-intelligence-seedance.html">A.I. Brad Pitt fighting Tom Cruise video</a>&nbsp;&hellip; Anything. (Seemingly) everything.
These shows are fun for us, and they seem to be fun for you, too. So we did another one.
MUSIC FEATURED (in order):
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SXWSdErCajg">Don&rsquo;t Let The World Pass You By</a>&nbsp;&ndash; Jean-Luc Ponty</li>
<li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k_eihzrlAKU">S&rsquo;posin&rsquo;</a>&nbsp;&ndash; Champian Fulton, Bria Skonberg</li>
<li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GBFx2JpiiBI">Easy to Love</a>&nbsp;&ndash; Jordan Rakei, Tom McFarland</li>
<li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4tmW_JSXHII">Beat Yourself Up</a>&nbsp;&ndash; Charlie Puth</li>
<li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SevOOzFAtjk">Hard to Say</a>&nbsp;&ndash; Chris Morrissey, Norah Jones</li>
<li><a href="https://youtu.be/FQweWAOKt0g">Oh Qu&eacute; Ser&aacute;?</a>&nbsp;&ndash; Willie Colon</li>
<li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9UmqpBwKUk4">We&rsquo;re Still Here</a>&nbsp;&ndash; Alan Doyle</li>
</ul>

All Calls: You had me at consciousness.

This hour, we look at what rights individuals and protesters have. And we ask: are our rights changing? And what can we do about that?

Plus, we take a look at what rights we have online, and what we should know about digital surveillance and privacy.

GUESTS:
Dan Barrett: American Civil Liberties Union of Connecticut's legal director
Dahlia Lithwick: Writes about the courts and the law for Slate and hosts the podcast "Amicus". She is the author of Lady Justice: Women, the Law, and the Battle to Save America
Cindy Cohn: Executive Director of the Electronic Frontier Foundation. Her forthcoming book is Privacy's Defender: My Thirty-Year Fight Against Digital Surveillance

MUSIC FEATURED (in order):
Cálice – Chico Buarque & Milton Nascimento
Student Demonstration Time – The Beach Boys
Is It Because I’m Black – Syl Johnson
What’s Goin’ On – Marvin Gaye
The People Have the Power – Patti Smith
The Veil – Peter Gabriel

This hour, we look at what rights individuals and protesters have. And we ask: are our rights changing? And what can we do about that?
Plus, we take a look at what rights we have online, and what we should know about digital surveillance and privacy.
GUESTS:
<ul>
<li>Dan Barrett:&nbsp;American Civil Liberties Union of Connecticut's legal director</li>
<li>Dahlia Lithwick:&nbsp;Writes about the courts and the law for&nbsp;<a href="https://slate.com/author/dahlia-lithwick">Slate</a>&nbsp;and hosts the podcast "<a href="https://slate.com/podcasts/amicus">Amicus</a>". She is the author of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/598207/lady-justice-by-dahlia-lithwick/">Lady Justice: Women, the Law, and the Battle to Save America</a></li>
<li>Cindy Cohn:&nbsp;Executive Director of the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.eff.org/about/staff/cindy-cohn">Electronic Frontier Foundation</a>. Her forthcoming book is&nbsp;<a href="https://mitpress.mit.edu/9780262051248/privacys-defender/">Privacy's Defender: My Thirty-Year Fight Against Digital Surveillance</a></li>
</ul>
MUSIC FEATURED (in order):
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RzlniinsBeY">C&aacute;lice</a>&nbsp;&ndash; Chico Buarque &amp; Milton Nascimento</li>
<li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8gX_KAXT_60">Student Demonstration Time</a>&nbsp;&ndash; The Beach Boys</li>
<li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uZXNg4Z72f0">Is It Because I&rsquo;m Black</a>&nbsp;&ndash; Syl Johnson</li>
<li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xBvnBzjLJsc">What&rsquo;s Goin&rsquo; On</a>&nbsp;&ndash; Marvin Gaye</li>
<li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y6Wz3i_BYUc">The People Have the Power</a>&nbsp;&ndash; Patti Smith</li>
<li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nqFKjz4l9u0">The Veil</a>&nbsp;&ndash; Peter Gabriel</li>
</ul>

A refresher on your rights and why they’re worth fighting for

This hour, author and film critic Alissa Wilkinson joins us to talk about Joan Didion, Hollywood, and how we make sense of our politics.

GUEST: 


Alissa Wilkinson: Movie critic at The New York Times. Her latest book is We Tell Ourselves Stories: Joan Didion and the American Dream Machine

The Colin McEnroe Show is available as a podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, TuneIn, Listen Notes, or wherever you get your podcasts. Subscribe and never miss an episode!

Subscribe to The Noseletter, an email compendium of merriment, secrets, and ancient wisdom brought to you by The Colin McEnroe Show.

Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter.

Colin McEnroe and Dylan Reyes contributed to this show, which originally aired on July 10, 2025.

This hour, author and film critic Alissa Wilkinson joins us to talk about Joan Didion, Hollywood, and how we make sense of our politics.
GUEST:&nbsp;
<ul>
<li>
Alissa Wilkinson: Movie critic at <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/by/alissa-wilkinson">The New York Times</a>. Her latest book is <a href="https://www.alissawilkinson.com/didion-we-tell-ourselves-stories">We Tell Ourselves Stories: Joan Didion and the American Dream Machine</a>
</li>
</ul>
The Colin McEnroe Show is available as a podcast on&nbsp;<a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-colin-mcenroe-show/id714179884">Apple Podcasts</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/0AXtqrzWounIoJyIqz003p">Spotify</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/9b6b3cee-f69b-4729-a78b-181f851d80e8/the-colin-mcenroe-show">Amazon Music</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://tunein.com/podcasts/News--Politics-Podcasts/The-Colin-McEnroe-Show-p1208473/">TuneIn</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.listennotes.com/podcasts/the-colin-mcenroe-show-connecticut-public-lXR08dxQSM5/">Listen Notes</a>, or wherever you get your podcasts. Subscribe and never miss an episode!
<a href="https://www.ctpublic.org/newsletters">Subscribe to&nbsp;The Noseletter</a>, an email compendium of merriment, secrets, and ancient wisdom brought to you by&nbsp;The Colin McEnroe Show.
Join the conversation on&nbsp;<a href="https://facebook.com/ColinMcShow">Facebook</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/colinmcshow">Twitter</a>.
Colin McEnroe and Dylan Reyes contributed to this show, which originally aired on July 10, 2025.

A look at the art of casting

In 1 playlist(s)

The Colin McEnroe Show

Social links

Follow podcast

Recent clips