The Treatment

<p>This week on The Treatment, Elvis sits down with Jaime and Gilbert Hernandez, also known as the Hernandez brothers, who created the Love and Rockets comics, now out in a special boxed set commemorating the 40th anniversary of the first issue. Next, Jeremy Dauber, author of “American Comics: A History” joins to give historical perspective and round out the comics conversation. And finally on The Treat, actor and director Clea DuVall explains how ‘90s alternative female rock made her feel less alone as a struggling teenager and still inspires her in her work.</p>

<p>This week on The Treatment, Elvis sits down with comedian Chris Redd, whose new special on HBO MAX is “Chris Redd: Why Am I Like This?” Then, Olivier Award winning actress Sharon D Clarke talks about her role in the Broadway revival of Arthur Miller’s “Death of a Salesman.” And on The Treat, actor, director and producer Tyler Perry tells us about his friendship with another media powerhouse that’s a treat for him.</p>

<p>This week on The Treatment, Elvis sits down with comedian and Golden Globe winning actor Ramy Youssef, whose Hulu series “Ramy” is currently in its third season. Next, writer and director Rebecca Miller stops by to talk about her new collection of short stories called “Total.” And on The Treat, actor Jon Hamm tells us about an author whose books he can’t stop recommending.</p>

<p>This week on The Treatment, Elvis sits down with director and actor Robert Townsend, whose groundbreaking film “Hollywood Shuffle” turned 35 this year. Next, photographer Carell Augustus talks about his book “Black Hollywood: Reimagining Iconic Hollywood Moments.” And on The Treat, filmmaker Brett Morgen talks about a 1990s David Bowie album that marked a new chapter for the late artist.</p>

<p>This week on The Treatment, Elvis sits down with Peabody Award winning comedian Hasan Minhaj, whose newest special is Netflix’s “The King’s Jester.” Then, actor and director Clea DuVall tells us about “High School,” the new Freevee series she’s helming, based on the memoir by indie pop duo Tegan and Sara. And finally on The Treat, writer-director John Hamburg tells us why FX’s “The Bear” makes him want to challenge himself.</p>

<p>This week on The Treatment, Elvis sits down with Emmy winning actor Jon Hamm, who is currently starring in the mystery comedy “Confess, Fletch.” Next, director Brett Morgen discusses his latest documentary “Moonage Daydream” about the late David Bowie. And on The Treat, “The Woman King” director Gina Prince-Bythewood reveals the Lauryn Hill song that’s on repeat when she’s working. </p>

<p>This week on The Treatment, Elvis sits down with multi-hyphenate Tyler Perry, whose latest film “A Jazzman’s Blues’ may be his most personal. Next, director Walter Hill talks about his fresh take on the western with his new film “Dead for a Dollar.” And on The Treat: Australian director George Miller talks about a seemingly simple children’s story that contains multitudes.</p>

<p>This week on The Treatment, Elvis sits down with Gina Prince-Bythewood to dive into her new historically based epic, “The Woman King,” starring Viola Davis. Next, first time director Owen Kline goes deep into the comic world with his debut film “Funny Pages.” And finally, on The Treat, New York Times theater critic Jesse Green tells us about the iconic Broadway composer who ignited his lifelong passion for language.</p>

<p>This week on The Treatment, Elvis sits down with longtime friend of the show and multi-faceted artist David Alan Grier, who is currently appearing on FX’s “The Patient.” And we revisit two of our favorite segments: a conversation with “The Wire” co-creator David Simon, and The Treat with “Late Night with Seth Meyers” host, Seth Meyers.</p>

<p>This week on The Treatment, Elvis talks all things Emmys with Lorraine Ali of The LA Times and Clayton Davis from Variety. Next, New York Times theater critic Jesse Green discusses his new unconventional biography of and co-written with the late Broadway composer Mary Rodgers “Shy.” And for The Treat, musician and writer Nabil Ayers talks about the surprise Stevie Wonder album that was his masterpiece.</p>

<p>This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes menswear designer Emily Bode, whose work showcases vintage materials and techniques. Next, MUBI Podcast host Rico Gagliano talks about the second season of his podcast and its focus on old movie theaters. And finally, for The Treat, writer-director Ron Shelton talks about a Sam Peckinpah film he first watched as a young baseball player, whose themes have resonated in his work as a filmmaker.</p>

<p>This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes Oscar-winning director George Miller, whose newest film is “Three Thousand Years of Longing,” starring Tilda Swinton and Idris Elba. Next, “Me Time” director John Hamburg talks about why he keeps coming back to notions of masculinity in his films. And finally, for The Treat, “The Good Fight” creators Michelle and Robert King each pick a film that inspires them. </p>

<p>This week on The Treatment, Elvis sits down for the first time with Emmy nominee Trevor Noah, host of Comedy Central’s “The Daily Show with Trevor Noah.” Next, actor and director (and Emmy winner) Jason Bateman returns to The Treatment to talk about the choices he made for the final season of the Netflix series “Ozark,” as both actor and director. And finally on The Treat, actress Maya Rudolph talks about a Gene Wilder film that showed one of the many sides of one of her idols.</p>

<p>This week on The Treatment, Elvis sits down with actor and director Ethan Hawke to talk about Hawke’s newest project, the HBO Max documentary series “The Last Movie Stars” about actors Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward. Next, writer and musician Nabil Ayers joins to discuss his memoir “My Life in the Sunshine.” And on The Treat, LA chef Neal Fraser explains why a lobster dinner showed him food could be more than just fuel. </p>

<p>This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes Seth Meyers, host of NBC’s “Late Night with Seth Meyers.” Meyers talks about how the show has changed for the better since the pandemic began. Next, “We Own This City” writer and producer David Simon explains how we’re continuing to lose the drug war. And finally, on The Treat, menswear designer Emily Bode talks about the vintage clothing items that inspire her.</p>

<p>This week on The Treatment, Elvis sits down with Emmy-winning actress Maya Rudolph, who currently stars in the Apple TV+ series “Loot.” Next, writer and director Ron Shelton joins us to talk about what really went on behind the scenes of the 1988 baseball classic “Bull Durham.” And finally, on The Treat, actor and director Ethan Hawke tells about a stage performance he witnessed that was life affirming.</p>

<p>This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes back director and novelist John Waters, whose latest tasteless and delightful work is the novel “Liarmouth: A Feel-Bad Romance.” Next, ZMF Headphones founder Zach Mehrbach joins us to talk about bringing the experience of being in an old movie theater to his headphone design. And finally, Morning Becomes Eclectic co-host Anthony Valadez talks about the song he heard as a kid in LA that still moves him.</p>

<p>This week on The Treatment, Elvis sits down for a conversation with graphic novelist Adrian Tomine, whose recent work inspired the film “Paris, 13th District.” Next, a conversation with TV creators, writing partners, and partners in life, Michelle and Robert King, whose current TV dramas include “The Good Fight” and “Evil.” And finally for The Treat, MUBI podcast host Rico Gagliano talks about why the, at times, bleak Wim Wenders film “Wings of Desire” gives him hope.</p>

<p>This week on The Treatment, Elvis sits down with New York Times columnist Frank Bruni to discuss Bruni’s memoir, “The Beauty of Dusk: On Vision Lost and Found” and how he approaches writing. Next chef and restaurateur Neal Fraser tells about his immersive dinner-theater experience “Revive: Los Angeles” currently at the downtown LA event space Vibiana. And finally on The Treat, graphic novelist Adrian Tomine explains how Mike Leigh has helped his storytelling.</p>

<p>This week on The Treatment, Elvis sits down with music journalist Danyel Smith, whose newest book is “Shine Bright: A Very Personal History of Black Women in Pop.” Next, director Simon Curtis talks about his most recent film, currently on Peacock, “Downton Abbey: A New Era,” a continuation of the beloved TV series. And finally, “Late Night with Seth Meyers” host Seth Meyers tells us why a short story by George Saunders keeps his writing honest. </p>

<p>This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes actor and director Ben Stiller, whose newest project as director is the Apple TV+ series "Severance." Then actress Chloë Sevigny speaks about her latest role as a mother in crisis in the Hulu true crime series “The Girl from Plainville.” And finally on The Treat, music journalist and author of “Shine Bright: A Very Personal History of Black Women in Pop,” Danyel Smith tells us about the Midnight Star album that brings it all back.</p>

<p>This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes Seth Meyers, host of NBC’s “Late Night with Seth Meyers.” Meyers talks about how the show has changed for the better since the pandemic began. Next, “We Own This City” writer and producer David Simon explains how we’re continuing to lose the drug war. And finally, on The Treat, menswear designer Emily Bode talks about the vintage clothing items that inspire her.</p>

<p>This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes actor Bob Odenkirk, star of “Better Call Saul,” which is in its final season on AMC. Odenkirk also wrote the memoir “Comedy Comedy Comedy Drama” about his long and ultimately satisfying career in television. Next, Bomani Jones, host of HBO’s “Game Theory with Bomani Jones,” talks about the challenge in having nuanced conversations about the intersection of sports and culture. And finally, on The Treat, “Rutherford Falls” co-creator Sierra Teller Ornelas talks about the impact of the film “The Godfather” on her as a storyteller.</p>

<p>This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes comedian and director Jerrod Carmichael, who explores truth and honesty in his HBO special “Rothaniel” and his feature directorial debut “On the Count of Three.” Next, Paula Pell, one of the stars of Peacock’s “Girls5eva” talks about coming into her prime as a performer in her fifties. And finally, on The Treat, director John Waters reveals the 1940s film that set him on his unique and outrageous career path.</p>

<p>This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes Robin Thede, creator and star of HBO’s “A Black Lady Sketch Show” to talk about the groundbreaking show’s cinematic look and multi-layered approach to comedy. Then “Rutherford Falls” co-creator Sierra Teller Ornelas joins us to discuss some of the absurd situations she has found herself in as a Native American that have found their way into the show. And finally, for The Treat, culture critic Gerrick Kennedy talks about the impact of Whitney Houston’s 1998 album “My Love is Your Love.”</p>

<p>This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes back Academy Award winning screenwriter Dustin Lance Black. Black’s newest project is as executive producer and showrunner of the FX limited series “Under the Banner of Heaven,” streaming on Hulu. The series is adapted from Jon Krakauer’s book of the same name. Black won the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay for “Milk” in 2009. Black, a former member of the Mormon church, tells The Treatment about his own complicated relationship to the church and why he was drawn to the story. He says while he originally tried to adapt the book into a screenplay, the story was too complex to be condensed into two hours. And he says the series is a warning for people who don’t question documents written hundreds or even thousands of years ago.</p>

<p>This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes back Alex Kurtzman, co-creator, along with Jenny Lumet, of the adaptation of “The Man Who Fell to Earth” on Showtime. Kurtzman directed the film “People Like Us” and is the co-writer of several films, including “Transformers” and “The Amazing Spider-Man 2.” “The Man Who Fell to Earth” is an adaptation of the 1976 film starring David Bowie, which was an adaptation of the Walter Tevis novel by the same name. Kurtzman tells the Treatment that while he had reservations about adapting the cult favorite, he believed he and Lumet could bring something new to the story. He says star Chiwetel Ejiofor was an ideal actor to collaborate with because of their similarly cerebral approaches to the text. And he says the pandemic afforded him the time to deepen the music choices in the series. </p>

<p>This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes back actress Molly Shannon, who is currently starring in the Showtime series “I Love That for You” and has written a memoir “Hello, Molly!” Shannon, a “Saturday Night Live” alum, has also recently appeared in the HBO series “The White Lotus” and “The Other Two.” Shannon, who lost her mother and sister in a car accident as a young girl, tells The Treatment she began her memoir with the accident because it deeply impacted the direction of her life. She talks about the genesis of her SNL Catholic school girl character Mary Katherine Gallagher. And she says her father was her biggest cheerleader and her first acting teacher. </p>

<p>This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes back Emmy-winning actor Bill Hader, who is also the co-creator of the HBO series “Barry,” which has just returned for its third season. Hader also was a cast member on “Saturday Night Live” for eight seasons. Hader tells The Treatment one of the keys to the distinctive tone of “Barry” is taking away the idea of genre. He says the third season deals more directly with the consequences of several of the characters’ actions. And he explains why when writing the show, Barry is often the last character he thinks about.</p>

<p>This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes director Maureen Bharoocha whose newest film is “The Prank,” starring Rita Moreno. Bharoocha is also the director of “Golden Arm,” an arm wrestling comedy. Bharoocha tells The Treatment she wanted to transcend movie genres with “The Prank” and not just stay in the comedy or thriller category. She says part of the fun of featuring the legendary Moreno in the film was having the actress play a strict teacher, a character she never played before. And Bharoocha says her characters may have been inspired by her stubborn and strong grandmothers. </p>

<p>This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes back the showrunners of Prime Video's “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,” Amy Sherman-Palladino and Dan Palladino to discuss season 4 of the comedy series. The Emmy-winning comedy is currently in production for its fifth and final season. The duo discuss the contrast between night and day in season 4 and talk about reclaiming the glamor of nighttime from the earlier days of film and television. They talk about why this season is all about consequences. And they explain the difference between real friends and show business friends.</p>

<p>This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes back director, writer and actress Sarah Polley, whose new collection of essays is “Run Towards the Danger: Confrontations with a Body of Memory.” Polley’s films as a director include “Stories We Tell,” “Away from Her” and “Take this Waltz.” Polley tells The Treatment about her traumatic experiences as a child actor on the film set of “The Adventures of Baron Munchausen” and how those experiences still reverberate now as an adult director. She says she is averse to finding a rigid, inflexible narrative about one’s personality or experiences, but is open to revision and evolution over time. And Polley says it took a decades-long journey of health challenges to get her to a place of gratitude about her body.</p>

<p>This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes director Matt Reeves, whose latest project is “The Batman” starring Robert Pattinson. Reeves also helmed two of the “Planet of the Apes” films as well as “The Pallbearer.” Reeves tells The Treatment the only way he can make large genre films is to make them personal. He says he didn’t want to make another origin story for his iteration of Batman, but wanted to cover the early years of the superhero, where he was still trying to put himself together. And he discusses the similarities between Bruce Wayne and Tom, his protagonist from “The Pallbearer,” his earliest film. </p>

<p>This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes back actress Regina Hall who’s currently starring in Mariama Diallo’s “Master,” a horror film about the first Black master of an elite fictional New England university. Hall’s other films include “Support the Girls” and “Girls Trip.” Hall is also co-hosting the 2022 Academy Awards on March 27 along with Wanda Sykes and Amy Schumer. Hall tells The Treatment she was struck by how many people have said they see themselves in one of the characters in “Master.” She says her mother passed away during filming, which gave her portrayal a sadness and gravity that came from her grief. And she says her upcoming co-hosting gig is both exciting and terrifying.</p>

<p>This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes Academy Award nominated actor Benedict Cumberbatch, who is up for Best Actor for his portrayal of Phil Burbank in Jane Campion’s “The Power of the Dog.” Cumberbatch is also currently reprising his role as Dr. Strange in “Spiderman: No Way Home.” Cumberbatch talks about the superhero’s evolution while trying not to reveal plot spoilers for the upcoming “Dr. Strange” film. He discusses the central role physicality plays in his portrayals of both real life and fictional characters. And he talks about the two hardest days filming “The Power of the Dog.”</p>

<p>This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes “BEL AIR” creator and director, Morgan Cooper. The series, which was inspired by “The Fresh Prince of Bel Air,” is streaming on Peacock. Cooper tells The Treatment he wants to tell everyday stories of “Black normalcy” in his work. He says his influences, which include hip-hop artists and producers J Dilla and MF Doom along with photographer Gordon Parks and Roy DeCarava, find their way into “BEL AIR.” And Cooper says, if not every viewer understands the specific choices and references he made in the series, that's OK with him.</p>

<p>This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes playwright Jeremy O. Harris, whose play “Slave Play” is at the Mark Taper Forum until March 13. The play received 12 Tony nominations, the most ever for a play. Harris also co-wrote the screenplay for the 2021 film “Zola.” Harris tells The Treatment that some of his inspiration for “Slave Play” came from two controversial films he watched as a child. He says he wants the play to make audience members feel uncomfortable and have tough conversations about race. But Harris also says going to the theater shouldn’t feel like someone is making you eat your vegetables.</p>

<p>This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes back director Denis Villeneuve, whose latest film is the adaptation of Frank Herbert’s “Dune,” which is nominated for nine Academy Awards, including Best Adapted Screenplay, which Villeneuve co-wrote. His other films as director include “Arrival,” “Sicario,” and “Blade Runner 2049.” Villeneuve tells The Treatment how fear weaves its way through many of his films. He talks about why his films often focus on the impact and aftermath of violence rather than the violence itself. And he says, in spite of the darkness of many of his films, he does believe that humans can evolve, and there is hope for the future. </p>

<p>This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes back writer Gerrick Kennedy whose newest book is “Didn’t We Almost Have it All: In Defense of Whitney Houston.” Kennedy is also the author of “Parental Discretion is Advised: The Rise of N.W.A. and the Dawn of Gangsta Rap.” His writing has appeared in Vanity Fair, GQ, and The Los Angeles Times. Kennedy tells The Treatment that one of the misconceptions about Whitney Houston is that she didn’t have agency in creating her music and her image because of Clive Davis’ heavy influence. He says Houston was subjected to near constant and deeply invasive questioning about her personal life by a mostly white press in a way that few other celebrities have experienced. And he says he was deeply moved by her return to her gospel roots in the last years of her life.</p>

<p>This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes Academy Award winning director and writer Joel Coen, whose latest film is “The Tragedy of Macbeth,” currently streaming on Apple TV+. This is Coen’s solo directorial debut. He shared the Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay Oscars with his brother Ethan for their 2010 adaptation of “No Country for Old Men.” Coen talks about playing with the line between theater and cinema for the adaptation of “Macbeth.” He says watching previous film adaptations of the play was helpful in determining what he did and did not want his film to be. And he talks about how casting his wife Frances McDormand and Denzel Washington as the leads led to a small but significant change in the story.</p>

<p>This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes SAG Supporting Actress nominee Kirsten Dunst, nominated for her role in Netflix’s “The Power of the Dog,” directed by Jane Campion. Dunst has appeared in many films including “The Virgin Suicides,” “Melancholia” and “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.” Dunst tells The Treatment her entire approach to acting has changed in recent years, including incorporating dreamwork into her preparation. She says acting opposite her partner in real life, Jesse Plemons, in “The Power of the Dog” helped her both on and off set. And after acting in so many different roles, Dunst talks about the dream project she has yet to do: a musical.</p>

<p>This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes back Academy Award winning director Guillermo del Toro, whose latest film is an adaption of the novel “Nightmare Alley” by William Lindsay Gresham. Del Toro’s 2017 film “The Shape of Water” won Oscars for both Best Director and Best Picture. Del Toro tells The Treatment about the recurring theme of monsters in human form in his films. He discusses how dreams and nightmares weave their way into the storytelling of “Nightmare Alley.” And he talks about how cell phones and the internet have made it difficult for him to set his films in the present day.</p>

<p>This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes Tabitha Jackson, Director of the Sundance Film Festival. This year’s festival has shifted to an online format because of the pandemic. Jackson tells The Treatment this shift will make the festival’s offerings even more inclusive than in years past. She talks about why she is worried about the “tyranny of story,” and says we have to move away from the traditional western three-act story structure to allow for a more transcendent movie-watching experience. And she recommends festival goers seek out the films they don’t think they will like.</p>

<p>Writer Noah Hawley on how fiction can create empathy.</p>

<p>This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes director Reinaldo Marcus Green, whose latest film is “King Richard,” which takes a closer look at Richard Williams, father of tennis greats Venus and Serena. Green’s other films include “Monsters and Men” and “Joe Bell.” Green tells The Treatment about the personal connection he felt to the story, growing up with an eye on playing major league baseball. He says it was important that the film show the pride the Williams family felt in their home in Compton, California. And Green says he believes Richard Williams was ahead of his time in his approach to not pushing his daughters to the edge of burning out.</p>

<p>This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes Lin-Manuel Miranda, the multi-talented director, actor and songwriter, who has two projects premiering at the end of 2021. The Pulitzer Prize winner for “Hamilton” directed his first feature, “tick, tick…Boom!” on Netflix, and he wrote the songs for Disney’s new film “Encanto.” The film “tick, tick…Boom!” tells the story of the late playwright and composer Jonathan Larson, and Miranda says seeing a production of “tick, tick…Boom!” off-Broadway after Larson’s death solidified his desire to create his own art, even if no one would ever see it. Miranda says he was inspired by the “Golden Age” of Disney musicals in writing the songs for “Encanto.” And he says both the late Stephen Sondheim and rapper Jay-Z show the importance of making music reflect the way people speak. </p>

<p dir="ltr">This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes Oscar-winning actress and first time director Halle Berry. Berry’s directorial debut is “Bruised” on Netflix, which is about a disgraced MMA fighter who is battling her own personal demons. Berry also plays the lead in the film. She won the Oscar for her leading role in “Monster’s Ball” in 2001. Berry tells The Treatment that she is often drawn to characters who are broken down and searching. She says she actually shot one of her most challenging scenes on the first day of filming. And she says she wanted the look of the film to reflect the harsh, worn down world of the characters. </p>

<p>This week on The Treatment, Elvis welcomes writer Laurie Woolever, whose new book is ‘Bourdain: The Definitive Oral Biography’ about the late writer and television host Anthony Bourdain. Woolever was Bourdain’s assistant and collaborator before he died in 2018. She is also the co-host of the podcast ‘Carbface for Radio.” Woolever tells The Treatment that Bourdain wasn’t always the brash, outgoing person people saw on television. She says he was both deeply cynical and yet romantic. And she says that as open as he was about his flaws and his addictions, there were parts of himself that he held back from the public.</p>

<p>Writer Kelefa Sanneh on music’s relentless boundary blurring.</p>

<p>Writer and director Amy Koppelman on the same question all of her work attempts to answer.</p>