Cannonball with Wesley Morris

The New York Times
The New York Times

Conversations about the culture that moves us – the good, the bad and whatever’s in between. Every week, critic Wesley Morris talks with writers and artists about the moment we’re in. Surprisingly personal and never obvious, new episodes drop Thursdays. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

  1. 2d ago

    The Bicentennial Was Better!

    What did we get for our country’s 250th birthday, a.k.a. the semi-quincentennial? An Ultimate Fighting Championship cage match on the White House lawn? A sparsely attended Great American State Fair? An underwhelming logo? The last time we had an anniversary this massive, it was 1976 — the bicentennial — and the celebration was everywhere: in our movies, in our books, in our Saturday morning cartoons. What happened this year? Wesley Morris is perplexed. Jennifer Schuessler, a Times reporter who covers intellectual life and ideas, has talked to state planners and historians alike, and attended semi-quincentennial events across the country. Together, she and Wesley mull over the circumstances that led this year’s birthday bash to fall flat, and they celebrate the bicentennial gifts that keep on giving, 50 years later. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher.  Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

  2. Aug 6

    Madonna Returns as Queen of the Club

    When Madonna’s new album, “Confessions II,” dropped in early July, it went straight to the top of the Billboard 200 (her 10th No. 1 album). Many of the 16 tracks plumb her own history for lessons learned along the way. On “Bizarre,” the blue Shelby Cobra she gave her first husband, Sean Penn, “wasn’t meant to last.” On “The Test,” she tells her daughter Lola Leon, with whom she sings: “I wish I knew the pain I’ve caused.” And on “Danceteria,” she takes us to the New York City clubs of the 1980s and the moment when a D.J. “played my tape ‘Everybody’ ” and launched her career. Wesley Morris describes the album as “post-nostalgia,” with Madonna using an idea of her past as a slingshot into some kind of future. “Confessions II” is also a dance record that reminds us of the impact she has had on club culture and gay culture. Wesley sits down with one of the biggest Madonna fans he knows — Jacob Bernstein, a writer for The Times’s Styles section and a former club kid in New York City — to talk about her new record and the immense influence Madonna has had on their lives. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher.  Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

  3. Jul 23

    Nolan’s Been Making ‘The Odyssey’ All Along

    If you haven’t seen Christopher Nolan’s “The Odyssey” yet, good luck. The hit of the summer is selling out showtimes around the country. Wesley Morris initially thought he didn’t need this adaptation. Then, Matt Damon was cast as Odysseus. Curiosity piqued. Fast forward to him in a packed theater (IMAX 70mm, of course) excited by the prospect of an old-fashioned all-star-cast movie. But with Nolan’s filmmaking, it’s never that simple. There’s a lot going on within the nearly three-hour epic that’s fascinated moviegoers and critics alike. And so, whenever there’s a big movie that everybody is talking about, Wesley wants to hear from his pal, Sean Fennessey. Fennessey is head of content at The Ringer and a co-host of the podcast “The Big Picture.” Together, Wesley and Sean go deep on the “The Odyssey” and the evolution of Nolan’s career. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher.  Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

  4. Jul 16

    The World Cup Is This Summer’s Blockbuster

    After five weeks of action, the World Cup is finally coming to an end, a tournament that will be remembered as much for its feats of athleticism — the precision passes and laserlike goals — as for the passionate fans and spirited team rivalries. No wonder soccer is called the beautiful game. Wesley and his guest, Pablo Torre, host of the podcast “Pablo Torre Finds Out,” also see the action on the pitch as something more: pure cinema. They tick down a list of reasons the matches — and the culture surrounding them — are theatrical. Cue the lights, the cameras and the Viking score. These games have proved more than ready for their Oscar-worthy close-up. Don’t forget the pomade! Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher.  Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

  5. Jul 9

    Olivia Rodrigo Makes Heartbreak Pop

    Olivia Rodrigo’s third record, “You Seem Pretty Sad for a Girl So in Love,” is a 13-song concept album that imagines the arc of a young relationship from desperate yearning, to domestic coupling, to eventual dissolution and heartbreak. It might be Album of the Year. To Wesley Morris, the dating world has only sharpened the 23-year-old’s song craft. Sure, she’s talented and can write a ballad like no other. But musically and lyrically, she’s evolved. She’s both an old soul and very 2026. Which, when compared to other current pop stars like Taylor Swift, Bruno Mars and Ariana Grande, makes her really intriguing. All things considered, Wesley has thoughts. And he couldn’t think of a better conversation partner than pop music journalist Caryn Ganz,  who profiled Rodrigo in 2023 and has continued to follow her career closely. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher.  Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

  6. Jul 2

    In Potato Salad We Trust

    Forget the hot dogs and apple pie. Wesley has one thing on his mind this Fourth of July — potato salad! The moment has stirred up some really strong feelings for this classic summer staple and how it lives up to the country’s ideals of what it is and could be. Wesley takes to the streets of New York City and back to The Times’s Cooking Kitchen to test out his theory against his family’s recipe for potato salad. Is it the beacon of hope and possibility that he thinks it is? Along the way, he’s joined by a two-time James Beard Award winner and food historian, Jessica B. Harris, to answer this essential question: Does potato salad belong on the Mount Rushmore of national dishes? Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher.  Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

  7. Jun 25

    The Grit and Glamour of New York Movies

    A few weeks ago, “Cannonball” hosted its first live show at the 2026 Tribeca Festival. Wesley Morris thought to himself, “What could we talk about in front of a bunch of New Yorkers that would be interesting to them?” And then the answer came to him: New York movies! Movies about New York City. Joining him for the conversation is Cynthia Nixon, one of our great New Yorkers. She’s made iconic work in the city (like, of course, “Sex and the City”) and is a fierce advocate for the TV and film industry to continue making work here. Also, no big deal, she ran for governor in 2018. Together, Wesley and Cynthia chat about three N.Y.C. movies of their choice: “Breakfast at Tiffany’s,” “The Taking of Pelham 123" and “The Wiz.” Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher.  Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

  8. Jun 18

    Spielberg Phones Home in ‘Disclosure Day’

    It’s no secret that Steven Spielberg is fascinated with the cosmos. His latest aliens-are-among-us action thriller, “Disclosure Day,” follows a TV weatherperson (Emily Blunt) and an encryption specialist (Josh O’Connor) as they attempt to understand their connection to life beyond this planet. In doing so, they get entangled in a government cover-up. Ahead of the movie’s release, Wesley Morris spent time with Spielberg and wrote a profile of him for The New York Times Magazine. The 79-year-old director’s appetite for telling stories on the big screen is undiminished — he’s preparing to make his first western — but Wesley writes that as Hollywood adapts to the streaming era, “the idea of a Steven Spielberg has felt endangered.” And so, there’s only one person for Wesley to call when a new Spielberg drops: Eric Hynes, Wesley’s pal and former co-worker from Kim’s Video in New York City. They started their Spielberg conversation over 25 years ago as young cinephiles. On today’s episode, it continues. Together, they consider the evolution of aliens in Spielberg’s work, relive memorable onscreen sequences and think about the strength of the filmmaker’s more-than-half-century canon. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher.  Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

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4.7
out of 5
9,123 Ratings

About

Conversations about the culture that moves us – the good, the bad and whatever’s in between. Every week, critic Wesley Morris talks with writers and artists about the moment we’re in. Surprisingly personal and never obvious, new episodes drop Thursdays. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

Information

  • Channel
    The New York Times
  • Creator
    The New York Times
  • Years Active
    2016 - 2026
  • Episodes
    62
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2018-2019 THE NEW YORK TIMES COMPANY; The New York Times encourages the use of RSS feeds for personal use in a news reader or as part of a non-commercial blog, subject to your agreement to our Terms of Service.
  • Show Website
    Cannonball with Wesley Morris
  • Provider
    The New York Times Company

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