3rd & Fairfax: The WGAW Podcast
3rd & Fairfax, the official podcast of the Writers Guild of America West, features information and updates about the Guild and interviews with top writers.
Want to listen to an episode on the go? Or start again where you left off? Subscribe to the podcast using the links below. Got a comment or question? Send an email to the podcast.
Executive Producers: Brian Gary and Steve Trautmann
Hosts: Aaron Fullerton, Brian Gary, Josephine Green Zhang, Hilliard Guess, Jon Gutierrez, Christopher Kubasik, Luciano Saber, David Sheftell, Monique Sorgen, Steve Trautmann, Moon Zappa
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JUNE 30, 2022
Ep. 320 – Justin Noble
Host Monique Sorgen speaks with The Sex Lives of College Girls co-creator-showrunner Justin Noble about HBO Max’s comedy series focused on four college roommates navigating their lives on campus.
JUNE 27, 2022
Ep. 319 – Chris Mundy
Host David Sheftell speaks with Ozark showrunner-writer Chris Mundy about mapping the path toward the Netflix drama series’ finale.
JUNE 24, 2022
Ep. 318 – Danny Strong
Host Brian Gary talks with Dopesick creator-showrunner Danny Strong about Hulu’s drama series that chronicles the personal cost and devastating impact of opioid addiction.
JUNE 22, 2022
Ep. 317 – Ashley Lyle & Bart Nickerson
Host Josephine Green Zhang talks with Yellowjackets creators-showrunners and married writing team Ashley Lyle & Bart Nickerson about their Showtime series that stings with a mix of horror, mystery, and pitch-black comedy.
JUNE 17, 2022
Ep. 316 – Molly Smith Metzler
Host Brian Gary speaks with Maid creator-showrunner Molly Smith Metzler about bringing Stephanie Land’s memoir to the screen for Netflix’s drama series that empathizes with everyday struggles of the working poor.
JUNE 13, 2022
Ep. 315 – Saladin K. Patterson
Host Hilliard Guess talks with The Wonder Years creator-showrunner Saladin K. Patterson about reimagining ABC’s series as a Black coming-of-age story set in the ’60s-era South.
JUNE 9, 2022
Ep. 314 – Kathleen Robertson
Host Brian Gary speaks with Swimming with Sharks creator-showrunner Kathleen Robertson about reimagining the ’90s movie for Roku’s drama series.
JUNE 6, 2022
Ep. 313 – Alec Berg & Bill Hader
Host Moon Zappa talks with Barry co-creators/co-showrunners Alec Berg & Bill Hader about exploring even darker places, while still finding the funny, on the latest season of HBO’s pitch-black comedy series.
JUNE 3, 2022
Ep. 312 – Robbie Pickering
Host Aaron Fullerton speaks with Gaslit creator-showrunner Robbie Pickering about Starz’s limited series that explores untold stories involving Watergate’s political scandal.
MAY 25, 2022
Ep. 311 – Aaron Cooley
Host Hilliard Guess talks with The First Lady creator-showrunner Aaron Cooley about reframing American leadership through the lens of the First Ladies in Showtime’s historical drama series that dives deep into these women’s personal and political lives.
MAY 23, 2022
Ep. 310 – Brendan Hunt and Brett Goldstein
Host David Sheftell speaks with Ted Lasso co-developer/co-star Brendan Hunt and writer/co-star Brett Goldstein about the game plan for Apple TV+’s sports comedy series.
MAY 19, 2022
Ep. 309 – Robin Veith
Host Aaron Fullerton talks with Candy co-creator/co-showrunner Robin Veith (The Expanse, The Act) about transforming an ’80s suburban murder case into Hulu’s true-crime limited series.
MAY 16, 2022
Ep. 308 – Jenny Lumet & Alex Kurtzman
Host Hilliard Guess speaks with The Man Who Fell to Earth creators-showrunners Jenny Lumet & Alex Kurtzman (Star Trek: Strange New Worlds) about reimagining the ’60s novel and ’70s film for Showtime’s sci-fi series involving a new alien who must confront his past to determine our future.
MAY 12, 2022
Ep. 307 – Michael Patrick King
Host Monique Sorgen speaks with …And Just Like That developer-showrunner Michael Patrick King (2 Broke Girls, The Comeback) about updating HBO’s culture-defining comedy series Sex and the City and more.
MAY 9, 2022
Ep. 306 – Jonathan Tropper
Host Brian Gary talks with creator-writer Jonathan Tropper (Warrior, Banshee) about co-screenwriting Netflix’s time-travel, sci-fi action-comedy The Adam Project.
MAY 5, 2022
Ep. 305 – Courtney Lilly
Monique Sorgen talks with writer-producer Courtney Lilly (black-ish, The Cleveland Show) about his rise from staff writer to showrunner.
MAY 2, 2022
Ep. 304 – Liz Hannah & Patrick Macmanus
Host Moon Zappa speaks with The Girl From Plainview creators-showunners Liz Hannah (The Post, Mindhunter) & Patrick Macmanus (Dr. Death, Homecoming) about the social responsibility of their Hulu drama limited series based on real-life tragedy that addresses mental health, toxic relationships, and teen suicide.
APRIL 29, 2022
Ep. 303 – Tom Gormican & Kevin Etten
Host Brian Gary talks with screenwriters Tom Gormican (director) & Kevin Etten about how art imitates life in the meta Nicolas Cage action-comedy The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent.
APRIL 27, 2022
Ep. 302 – Ali Schouten
Host Monique Sorgen speaks with iCARLY showrunner-EP-writer Ali Schouten about season two of Paramount+’s revival and taking a modern, inclusive approach to the comedy series.
APRIL 18, 2022
Ep. 301 – Krister Johnson
Host David Sheftell talks with Murderville developer-showrunner-EP-writer Krister Johnson (Medical Police, Children’s Hospital) about Netflix’s unique series that’s a hybrid of scripted and improv comedy.
APRIL 14, 2022
Ep. 300 – Dan Erickson
Host Aaron Fullerton speaks with Severance creator-showrunner Dan Erickson about his mind-bending AppleTV+ sci-fi series.
APRIL 11, 2022
WGA 101 – Meg LeFauve & Josh Cooley
Host Josephine Green Zhang speaks with screenwriters Meg LeFauve and Josh Cooley about writing Disney-Pixar’s acclaimed animated film Inside Out, one of WGA’s 101 Greatest Screenplays of the 21st Century (*so far).
APRIL 6, 2022
Ep. 299 – Jeb Stuart
Host Brian Gary speaks with screenwriter Jeb Stuart (Die Hard, The Fugitive) about creating Netflix’s epic historical drama series Vikings: Valhalla, his writing career, and more.
APRIL 4, 2022
Ep. 298 – Jordan Weiss
Host Monique Sorgen interviews Dollface creator-showrunner Jordan Weiss about her Hulu comedy series about a group of young women navigating work, love, and a deeper relationship with themselves.
MARCH 31, 2022
WGA 101 – Karen McCullah & Kirsten ‘Kiwi” Smith
Host Josephine Green Zhang speaks with screenwriters Karen McCullah & Kirsten ‘Kiwi” Smith (10 Things I Hate About You, The Ugly Truth) about writing hit comedy Legally Blonde, named one of WGA’s 101 Greatest Screenplays of the 21st Century (*so far).
MARCH 28, 2022
Ep. 297 – Matt Lopez
Host Luciano Saber speaks with Promised Land creator-showrunner Matt Lopez about his drama series centering on two Latinx families vying for wealth and power in Sonoma Valley’s wine country—and how representation matters onscreen and in the writers’ room.
MARCH 25, 2022
Ep. 296 – Matt Reeves
Host Brian Gary talks with screenwriter-director Matt Reeves (War for the Planet of the Apes, Let Me In) about his decidedly darker take on Gotham City’s iconic superhero in The Batman.
MARCH 22, 2022
Ep. 295 – Morgan Cooper
Host Hilliard Guess speaks with Bel Air co-developer-showrunner Morgan Cooper about reimagining ’90s sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air with a more dramatic vibe updated for 2022.
MARCH 17, 2022
Ep. 294 – Aaron Sorkin
Host Brian Gary talks with screenwriter Aaron Sorkin about writing and directing the recent Lucille Ball & Desi Arnaz behind-the-scenes biopic, Being the Ricardos, as well as The Social Network, ranked #3 on WGA’s 101 Greatest Screenplays of the 21st Century (*so far).
MARCH 14, 2022
WGA 101 – Seth Rogen & Evan Goldberg
Host David Sheftell speaks with Seth Rogen & Evan Goldberg about writing the hit teen comedy Superbad, named one of WGA’s 101 Greatest Screenplays of the 21st Century (*so far).
MARCH 10, 2022
Ep. 293 – Ann Slichter and Scott Saltzburg
Host Luciano Saber interviews Weakest Link head writer Ann Slichter and writer Scott Saltzburg about what it takes to put together a primetime game show.
MARCH 7, 2022
WGA 101 – Diana Ossana
Host Gary Goldstein talks with screenwriter Diana Ossana about the journey from page to screen and enduring impact of Brokeback Mountain, named one of WGA’s 101 Greatest Screenplays of the 21st Century (*so far), and her late writing partner Larry McMurtry.
MARCH 3, 2022
Ep. 292 – Yahlin Chang
Host Brian Gary speaks with The Handmaid’s Tale writer-executive producer Yahlin Chang about Hulu’s acclaimed dystopian drama.
MARCH 1, 2022
Ep. 291 – Kourtney Kang
Host Monique Sorgen talks with TV comedy writer Kourtney Kang (Fresh Off the Boat, How I Met Your Mother) about developing and showrunning Doogie Kamealoha, M.D., Disney+’s dramedy series about a 16-year-old prodigy juggling her medical career and life as a teenager.
FEBRUARY 25, 2022
Ep. 290 – Ben Cleary
Host Brian Gary speaks with filmmaker Ben Cleary about writing and directing sci-fi drama Swan Song, and how personal experience inspired the film’s exploration of love, loss, and hard choices.
FEBRUARY 23, 2022
Ep. 289 – Patrick Somerville
Host Aaron Fullerton talks with Station Eleven creator-showrunner Patrick Somerville (Made for Love, Maniac) about HBO Max’s post-apocalyptic limited series that’s eerily timely in our pandemic era.
FEBRUARY 17, 2022
WGA 101 – Barry Jenkins
Host Hilliard Guess speaks with filmmaker Barry Jenkins (If Beale Street Could Talk, The Underground Railroad) about writing and directing his breakthrough film, Moonlight, named one of WGA’s 101 Greatest Screenplays of the 21st Century (*so far).
FEBRUARY 14, 2022
Ep. 288 – Tony McNamara
Host Brian Gary talks with The Great creator-showrunner-writer Tony McNamara about season 2 of Hulu’s revisionist period piece comedy series—huzzah!
FEBRUARY 10, 2022
Ep. 287 – Marissa Jo Cerar
In honor of Black History Month, WGAW Committee of Black Writers Co-chair Hilliard Guess talks with Women of the Movement creator-showrunner Marissa Jo Cerar about bringing the true story of Mamie Till-Mobley, who sought justice for her slain son Emmett Till, to the screen for ABC’s limited series.
FEBRUARY 7, 2022
Ep. 286 – Susan Soon He Stanton
Host Josephine Green Zhang speaks with Susan Soon He Stanton about writing for HBO’s darkly comic drama series Succession.
FEBRUARY 3, 2022
Ep. 285 – Amy Koppelman
Host Moon Zappa talks with screenwriter-director-author Amy Koppelman about adapting her novel A Mouthful of Air for the recent film which explores postpartum depression.
JANUARY 31, 2022
Ep. 284 – Marvin Lemus & Linda Yvette Chavez
Host Josephine Green Zhang speaks with Gentefied creators-showrunners Marvin Lemus & Linda Yvette Chavez about Netflix’s Latinx dramedy series, which explores the impact of gentrification, immigration, and cross-cultural identities in an L.A. neighborhood.
JANUARY 27, 2022
Ep. 283 – Sterlin Harjo
Host Josephine Green Zhang speaks with Reservation Dogs co-creator/showrunner Sterlin Harjo about the ground-breaking Hulu comedy, why Native American/Indigenous inclusion is vital in the writers’ room, and how representation matters on both sides of the camera.
JANUARY 21, 2022
Ep. 282 – Virgil Williams
Host Hilliard Guess talks with screenwriter Virgil Williams (Mudbound) about the military drama/love story A Journal for Jordan.
JANUARY 19, 2022
WGA 101 – Lulu Wang
Host Josephine Green Zhang speaks with filmmaker Lulu Wang about writing and directing The Farewell, named one of WGA’s 101 Greatest Screenplays of the 21st Century (*so far).
JANUARY 18, 2022
Ep. 281 – Sian Heder
Host David Sheftell speaks with CODA screenwriter-director Sian Heder (Little America, Tallulah), about her recent film, which explores the coming-of-age of a teenage girl growing up as a CODA (Child of Deaf Adults), torn between family obligations and the pursuit of her own dreams.
JANUARY 14, 2022
Ep. 280 – Steven Knight
Host Moon Zappa speaks with screenwriter Steven Knight (Locked Down, Allied) about how he got inside the mind of Princess Diana for the royal drama Spencer.
JANUARY 11, 2022
Ep. 279 – Tracey Scott Wilson
Host Hilliard Guess talks with writer Tracey Scott Wilson (Fosse/Verdon, The Americans) about bringing the life and career of iconic singer Aretha Franklin to the screen for biopic Respect.