This is Nancy Hower, the excellent director of this week’s CUPERTINO. In the thick of battle, she’s discussing shots with Fred Murphy, our DP, and camerawoman, Kate Larose. Watch it. It’s beautifully shot and moves like the wind.

A wonderful photo of one of our DPs on CUPERTINO, Fred Murphy. This will be the 17th year we’ve been working with him. If you’ve seen his credits you’ll know why. Shot John Huston’s last movie and Mazursky’s best movie. An artist.

Me bowing at the altar of (ie.—directing) Busy and Rene. The results will be shown this Thursday. Watch and judge for yourself. It’s not in b/w.

This Thursday on CUPERTINO a Girls2Eva reunion. They box. Worth the price of admission.

YOU CAN SEE EVERYTHING is just a stunning movie. The best of the year. So much to say about it, so probably best to say nothing. Incredible to release the best movie and tv show in a two year period. There must be some kind of EGOT acronym for that.

There is another episode of CUPERTINO tonight. Thrill to the continuing adventures of Michael, Olivia, Christy, Natalia, and now two new additions: Nichole and Bo. There will be a quiz.

This is very nice. I also have some report cards from high school that were pretty impressive. I’ll post those later, but meanwhile, watch CUPERTINO tonight.

A quick postscript on CUPERTINO: there was no product placement in it. We scripted in TGIFridays because I worked there in college and we thought the bumblebee costumes would be funny. And when I was a struggling writer I wrote in a corner booth at IHOPs. Both are still good for struggling writers.

CUPERTINO. Ex-drug-lord, one time priest, now lawyer and occasional superhero, Mike Colter. Who said America has no second acts?

Tomorrow. Cupertino. 10 pm on something called a TV.

Cupertino. Our show. Starting October 8th.

COLIN FROM ACCOUNTS and ADULTS are the two funniest shows of the year. Patrick Brammall (who we had on EVIL) and Harriet Dyer are amazing, starring as well as writing. Both shows succeed by going for real laughs, not just smiles or “how true” nods.

Our show. It’s coming the start of October. We like it, and you don’t have to see it in IMAX

We’ve always been blessed with great casts. We think CUPERTINO is no different. Mike Colter, Rachel Keller, and Busy Philpps have been amazing for us. Also Ella Stiller, not pictured.

Busy on the set of CUPERTINO, ready to start fighting.

For what it’s worth: Speaking as a showrunner with two writers rooms going on now, this article from Ankler is insane. I don’t know who the insider is, but the reporter should call bullshit. This is a GPT press release.

The Ankler@theankler.bsky.social · last yr.

The “GPT-5 pass” has gone from curiosity to mandate. Scripts, trailers, pitch decks are all being filtered through an AI model that remembers every draft and forgets what originality looks like. @erikbarmack.bsky.social on Hollywood’s uneasy reset: theankler.com/p/run-it-thr...

COLOR THEORIES. Funniest play I’ve seen in a long time. Julio Torres is wonderful. His play is about the personality of colors and how they describe and influence us. That sounds pretentious, but the play is anything but. Every line gets a laugh. See it. Julio’s funniest work yet.

The second season of ENGLISH TEACHER is here and it’s very funny. It continues to deal with current issues: censorship, tech domination, COVID, but it uses them all as comic fodder. The funniest show of the year, and it’s got a lot of competition.

‘Rack’s Rules” is an excellent short story by Jeremy Larner (THE CANDIDATE) in the collection, “Sex, Death, and God in LA.” It’s about the crude power rules of a Mike Ovitz type. It’s still incredibly pertinent today. You’ll find the same thoughts flowing through Trump and Musk. Look for it.

K-POP DEMON HUNTERS. Funny. I understand why people are watching it over and over. It moves fast and the songs are catchy. I love the scene with the mystical cat knocking over a flower pot. A lot of wit in the animation. Great work from the director/writers, Maggie Kang and Chris Applehans.

WEAPONS. A very entertaining movie. It starts with a Twilight Zone premise, but then keeps turning over new cards. A surprising number of laughs. Beautifully shot. Great writing. From the brilliant writer/director, Zach Cregger. See it.

Proudly sleazy, HUNTING WIVES is BIG LITTLE LIES with guns. The show’s amorality is to be admired. Everybody is happily sleeping with everyone; just don’t call it an “open marriage” because that’s a liberal thing. The subculture of performative Christianity is well-observed.

Jerry Adler died last Saturday. The intent was only to have him for one episode of THE GOOD WIFE, but he was so funny in a diner scene, yelling “I said ice cream, you stupid bitch” we had him back for six years of Good Wife and three years of Good Fight. One of our favorite collaborators.

ALIEN: EARTH. There’s a lot to like about this series—modernist sculptures, Marie Antoinette parties—but what I like best is the portrayal of the children’s minds in adult synthetic bodies. It’s charming. Well-performed and well-written. It also offers some much-needed comedy.

THE NAKED GUN. It’s very funny. Very self-confident. Great visual and verbal gags throughout. Non-stop. Some great absurd detours—one involving a snowman is blissfully funny. See it. It’s worth seeing in the theaters.

HEADS OF STATE. Surprisingly witty script by Applebaum, Neman, Query. And funny direction from Naishuller. A lot of great lines and filmic creativity. It’s an intentionally dumb movie that doesn’t take itself too seriously, or even seriously at all. On Amazon Prime.

More about SISTER MIDNIGHT. You can really see the influence of Buster Keaton on the writer/director, Karan Kandhari. Very rarely do so many uninflected images in a movie make you laugh. He always knows where to put the camera for comedy.

SISTER MIDNIGHT. A bit like a Christopher Durang play: comically bizarre, wild, always surprising. It’s an Indian movie about a wife in an arranged marriage going crazy, and possibly becoming a witch. Radhika Apte is fantastic, as is the first time wr/director, Karan Kandhari. See it.

FAMILIES LIKE OURS is a fascinating series about the evacuation of Denmark as it sinks underwater from global warming. No tidal wave visual effects, it’s more a slow-moving bureaucratic disaster. What’s more interesting is flipping the usual immigration debate: the most advantaged become the least.

If you missed LOVE AND MERCY today is a good day to see it. A great tribute to Brian Wilson who just died. Great artist.