THE COMPLETE INTERVIEWS

Upgrade for The Complete Interviews.

$2.99/month or $29.99/year

Blacklisted

Chris Hill
  • 4.9 (10)
  • TV & FILM
  • UPDATED WEEKLY

Blacklisted is a podcast where we delve into the minds of the talented writers who have been featured on the annual Black List - a prestigious list of the best unproduced scripts in Hollywood, as voted on by industry professionals. Each episode, we talk to a screenwriter about their first screenplay that placed on the coveted list; the journey it took to get there, and the subsequent impact the achievement had on their career.

  1. Franklin Leonard

    12/09/2025 · BONUS

    Franklin Leonard

    To celebrate the #BlackList2025 release, we're dropping a loaded bonus episode with Black List founder Franklin Leonard. Twenty-one years after its inception, the Black List has become Hollywood's most influential survey of unproduced screenplays - launching careers, reshaping industry gatekeeping, and proving that meritocracy can be an engine for diversity. As the 2025 list drops, we sit down with founder Franklin Leonard for an unflinching conversation about what's changed, what hasn't, and what comes next. Guest: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Franklin Leonard⁠⁠ on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠BlueSky⁠ and ⁠⁠X⁠⁠ Host: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Chris Hill⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠I⁠nstagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, ⁠X⁠, ⁠TikTok ⁠and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠BlueSky⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Useful Links: ⁠Franklin on Substack⁠ ⁠The Black List on Substack⁠ ⁠The Annual Black List Archives⁠ Episode Sponsor: Hit the link ⁠⁠here⁠⁠ for 10% off Story and Plot's pro digital screenwriting courses, MASTERING STRUCTURE and IDEA TO OUTLINE.

    1h 9m
  2. Trevor White

    10/20/2025 · BONUS

    Trevor White

    Trevor White of Star Thrower Productions talks about how he and his brother Tim have built their producing careers by working hands-on with screenwriters to develop their scripts, then using the Black List as a spotlight tool to get the industry buzzing and help package projects with the right talent - a strategy that's led to some serious hits including King Richard (2021), where Zach Baylin's script about Venus and Serena Williams' father landed Will Smith his Oscar, The Post (2017), teaming Liz Hannah's Pentagon Papers script with Steven Spielberg, Meryl Streep, and Tom Hanks, and their latest Black List project, the rom-dramedy Eternity (2025), which just premiered at TIFF. White breaks down their writer-first approach, explaining how Star Thrower digs into the development trenches with screenwriters before strategically using the Black List to create buzz and attract directors and actors, turning promising scripts into actual movies that get made, while offering practical advice to aspiring writers about nailing character work, finding fresh takes on stories, and understanding how the right relationships and platforms can get your script from your laptop to the big screen. Useful links: Star Thrower Entertainment Website Trailer for rom-dramedy Eternity THR Interview with Tim and Trevor Deadline Article about 'With the 8th Pick' Film Courage Video Interview with Trevor

    44 min
  3. John Yorke

    10/06/2025 · BONUS

    John Yorke

    Get your copy of John's exceptional book here. What if every story you've ever loved - from ancient myths to Marvel blockbusters, from Shakespeare to The Sopranos - follows the exact same blueprint? Today we dive deep into John Yorke's revolutionary book "Into the Woods: How Stories Work and Why We Tell Them," the UK's bestselling screenwriting text that's required reading for story enthusiasts and professionals alike. Find this and other interviews on our new YouTube Channel. Yorke, the mastermind behind British TV hits like Shameless, Life on Mars, and EastEnders, argues that storytelling isn't just an art - it's hardwired into human perception itself. We explore his groundbreaking five-act structure, the neurological basis of narrative, and why understanding story structure can transform your writing from good to great. Whether you're a seasoned screenwriter or just starting your storytelling journey, this episode will change how you see every story around you. Guest Bio: John Yorke is one of the most influential figures in British television drama.  Former MD of Company Pictures where he Exec Produced Wolf Hall, he’s worked as both Head of Channel Four Drama and Controller of BBC Drama Production, where he was responsible for commissioning and producing some of the most beloved shows in British TV history, including Hustle, Spooks, Casualty, Holby City, Bodies, and Sex Traffic. His career began story-lining EastEnders during its first BAFTA-winning year, leading to a 14-year association that produced some of the biggest audiences in British television history. As a commissioning editor and executive producer, he championed defining works like Life On Mars, The Street, Shameless, and Waterloo Road. In 2005, he created the BBC Writers Academy, a year-long intensive training program that has produced a generation of successful television writers. John Yorke is now Managing Director of both Angel Station and John Yorke Story,  where he works as a drama producer, consultant and lecturer on all forms of storytelling.  He consults on narrative advertising across all broadcasting platforms including podcasting, presents his own weekly radio show Opening Lines about classic books on BBC Radio 4, and is also Visiting Professor of English Language and Literature at the University of Newcastle-upon-Tyne.  He lives in London but works as a story consultant worldwide. Useful links: BBC Writersroom Interview - John Yorke

    47 min
  4. Tom Vaughan

    09/22/2025 · BONUS

    Tom Vaughan

    Hit the link here for 10% off Story and Plot's pro digital screenwriting courses, MASTERING STRUCTURE and IDEA TO OUTLINE. There you can sign up for Tom's weekly newsletter - it's a free screenwriting lesson in your inbox every Tuesday morning. It's also where you can find his FREE email course, SCREENWRITING FOR BEGINNERS, for those at the beginning of their journey. Discover why 90% of screenplay sales hinge on two crucial elements - and it's not what most writers think. Professional screenwriter Tom Vaughan exposes the industry's best-kept structural secrets, including the game-changing 8-sequence method that outperforms traditional 3-act structure. Learn why the story-vs-plot distinction separates amateur scripts from professional ones, and discover how proper structure actually unleashes creativity instead of constraining it. Tom Vaughan has written screenplays professionally for 28 years and taught the subject for 22. He has written for, among others, Phoenix Pictures, TNT, MTV Films, Castle Rock Entertainment, ABC, NBC, CBS, Warner Brothers, Sony Pictures, Disney, and others. He has also developed screenplays for Matthew McConaughey, Nicolas Cage, Barry Sonnenfeld, Chow-Yun Fat, Ruben Fleischer, David Gordon Green, and many more. WINCHESTER, the film he co-wrote starring Helen Mirren and Sarah Snook, about the infamous Winchester Mystery House, opened nationwide in 2018 and his eighth film, THE HAUNTING OF THE QUEEN MARY was released in 2023. One of his big life goals was to teach screenwriting at my beloved alma mater, The University of Houston. Which he now does. Check out the video of this interview on our new YouTube Channel. Useful links: Michael Arndt's incredible screenwriting videos Trailer to Tom's recent film, WINCHESTER Interview with playwright Edward Albee - Tom's teacher

    1h 1m

  5. 08/18/2025

    Justin Kremer

    In our season two finale, we speak to screenwriter Justin Kremer, who made history as the first writer to be signed via The Black List website just six weeks after its launch. Six weeks later, he landed on the annual Black List for his historical political biopic McCarthy, which chronicles the rise and fall of 1950s Senator Joseph R. McCarthy. The script explores McCarthy's tenure as the most visible face of Cold War-era fears about communist subversion in America, culminating in the televised Army-McCarthy hearings of spring 1954, where the senator's claims of communist infiltration in the U.S. Army ultimately led to his downfall. Guest: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Justin Kremer on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠, Letterbox⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠d and X Host: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Chris Hill⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠BlueSky⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠storyandplot.com/blacklisted⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ for a 10% discount on Tom Vaughan's fantastic screenwriting courses. Useful links: Wall Street Journal Article Interview w/The Bitter Script Reader Black List Blog - Go Into The Story Interview Deadline Article on First Website Discovery

    51 min
  6. Justin Kremer (Extended)

    08/17/2025 • SUBSCRIBERS ONLY

    Justin Kremer (Extended)

    The full complete, ad-free interview with Justin Kremer about his 2012 Black List script, McCarthy. For those who like to get into the weeds of writing, and the industry.

    1h 44m

  7. 08/11/2025

    Shea Mayo

    This week on Blacklisted, we sit down with screenwriter Shea Mayo to dive into the bloody good journey of their spec script Crush on You - a love letter to '80s slasher films and ‘90s teen horror that caught Hollywood's attention and landed on the prestigious Black List in 2020. Mayo breaks down how she channeled the iconic terror of Nightmare on Elm Street and other genre classics into a fresh, contemporary horror story. Whether you're a screenwriter looking to break through, a horror fan curious about the genre's evolution, or just want to know what it takes to get Sydney Sweeney's attention, this episode delivers the goods. Plus, we'll discuss why the '80s slasher aesthetic continues to captivate modern audiences and how to write horror that bleeds off the page. Guest: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Shea Mayo⁠⁠ on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Host: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Chris Hill⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠BlueSky⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠storyandplot.com/blacklisted⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ for a 10% discount on Tom Vaughan's fantastic screenwriting courses.

    1h 1m
  8. Shea Mayo (Extended)

    08/09/2025 • SUBSCRIBERS ONLY

    Shea Mayo (Extended)

    The full complete, ad-free interview with Shea Mayo about her 2020 Black List script, Crush on You. For those who like to get into the weeds of writing, and the industry.

    1h 42m
See All (50)

Trailer

Hosts & Guests

4.9
out of 5
10 Ratings

About

Blacklisted is a podcast where we delve into the minds of the talented writers who have been featured on the annual Black List - a prestigious list of the best unproduced scripts in Hollywood, as voted on by industry professionals. Each episode, we talk to a screenwriter about their first screenplay that placed on the coveted list; the journey it took to get there, and the subsequent impact the achievement had on their career.

Information

  • Creator
    Chris Hill
  • Years Active
    2024 - 2025
  • Episodes
    50
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Chris Hill
  • Show Website
    Blacklisted
  • Provider
    XR Entertainment Inc

You Might Also Like