The Rolling Tape

Heartstopper Forever is a new Netflix film that concludes the three-season TV series Heartstopper, which was adapted from Alice Oseman's graphic novels. Set in the UK, the story follows a gay high school romance and the friendships that surround it. We're joined by Todd Downing, editor of the film, to discuss bringing the beloved coming-of-age romance to its emotional conclusion. 
Todd shares what it was like collaborating closely with creator Alice Oseman to preserve the characters fans have grown to love, how transitioning from a three-season series to a feature film created new opportunities for emotional depth and visual storytelling, and why subtle character moments are so essential to the film's impact. In conversation with Risa Bolash, they discuss everything from exploring authentic queer representation to the lasting legacy of Heartstopper as one of the defining LGBTQ+ coming-of-age stories of its generation.
Follow our interviewee online:
Todd Downing IMDb
Follow our interview host online:
Risa Bolash
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Credits:
Theme music: Eugene Rocco Utley & Karl Vincent
Artwork: Danny Jarabek
Editor: Danny Jarabek
Assistant Producer: Evan Miller

We read it. We watched it. It’s time for the receipts. For this month’s Read Receipts, we are going on an Odyssey. Or should we say a Pod-yssey? Welcome back to your favorite podcast for readers and watchers alike. If you’re new here, this is Read Receipts: A Big Screen Book Club from The Rolling Tape.
Every month, we read a book, watch its onscreen adaptation, then share our receipts. I am your Read Receipts host Kasey Dunifer. And this month we read none other than The Odyssey, the epic poem from Ancient Greece attributed to Homer, dating back to 8th century BC, and is widely considered one of the oldest surviving works of literature. First derived from generations of oral tradition. We then of course watched the new film adaptation, which everyone is talking about, including all of us here at the Rolling Tape. We watched Christopher Nolan’s 2026 The Odyssey. Starring Matt Damon as Odysseus, alongside a very star-studded cast.
On this episode:
Kasey Dunifer
Red Broadwell
Our guests:
Arnold Woods
Ezra Bebop
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Subscribe for Early Access and Video:
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Website & Publications: www.therollingtape.com
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Credits:
Theme music: Eugene Rocco Utley & Karl Vincent
Artwork: Danny Jarabek
Editor: Danny Jarabek
Assistant Producer: Evan Miller

Ten years on this fucking podcast. Let's go home! Today, our destiny comes to a close. We add The Odyssey to our collaborative rankings that we've been building for weeks. Call it the Trojan horse of RETRO//RANKED, but where will it end up?
RETRO//RANKED is a Rolling Tape network series ranking the individual entries of beloved franchises and filmographies, timed to major new releases. For season 7, we're diving into the complete filmography of Christopher Nolan, building episode by episode, two films at a time, toward the release of his latest film, The Odyssey.
The Odyssey is the 13th film from Christopher Nolan. He wrote and directed the film, which is of course based on Homer’s epic poem. It was released on July 17, 2026. Nolan has long been a prominent filmmaker in advancing the use of IMAX technology in mainstream cinema, beginning with The Dark Knight in 2008. For this film, Nolan challenged IMAX to develop new 70 mm film cameras that are lighter and up to 30% quieter than the previous standard. In response, IMAX provided new cameras that met the requirements, and Nolan is the first person to use them, shooting the entire film with them from start to finish.
Enjoy all VIDEO episodes of SEASON 7 one week ahead of their public audio-only release.
Our current collaborative ranking so far:
Oppenheimer
The Dark Knight
Interstellar
The Prestige
Inception
Tenet
Memento
Dunkirk
The Dark Knight Rises
Batman Begins
Following
Insomnia
On this episode:
Evan Miller
Danny Jarabek
Timmy Lee
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Subscribe for Early Access and Video:
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Have questions? Email info@therollingtape.com
Podcast Website Link
Website & Publications: www.therollingtape.com
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Credits:
Theme music: Eugene Rocco Utley & Karl Vincent
Artwork: Danny Jarabek
Editor: Danny Jarabek
Assistant Producer: Evan Miller

Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey is quite possibly the most anticipated film of the year. It marks Nolan's first feature since Oppenheimer, which won seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Director, along with Actor, Supporting Actor, Film Editing, Cinematography, and Original Score. The film grossed more than $970 million worldwide, and in the wake of that success, Nolan was essentially handed a $250 million blank check to bring to life the passion project he's been developing for more than two decades: an old-school Hollywood epic adapting one of the most celebrated and enduring works of literature in human history.
The Odyssey is currently tracking for a global opening weekend approaching $250 million, including approximately $125 million domestically. At the time of this recording, the film holds a 95% on Rotten Tomatoes, an 89 on Metacritic, and a 4.3 average rating on Letterboxd.
Our team has already released a full review of the film on The Rolling Tape, but here on The Awards Tape, we break down The Odyssey's Oscar prospects, starting with our overall impressions before diving into category-by-category predictions. Then, we'll wrap things up with a conversation on Christopher Nolan's past awards success.
On this episode:
Paul Rai
Danny Jarabek
Support the show
Subscribe for Early Access and Video:
The Rolling Tape Patreon
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Have questions? Email info@therollingtape.com
Podcast Website Link
Website & Publications: www.therollingtape.com
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Credits:
Theme music: Eugene Rocco Utley & Karl Vincent
Artwork: Danny Jarabek
Editor: Danny Jarabek
Assistant Producer: Evan Miller

Call it our (p)odyssey weekend here at The Rolling Tape as we’ll have not one, not two, not three, but FOUR podcasts across our network of shows discussing Christopher Nolan’s 13th feature film in various capacities. 
The Odyssey is, of course, written and directed by Christopher Nolan. We have taken the long journey home to our closest IMAX theaters to see the film. An adaptation of Homer's ancient Greek epic poem, Matt Damon stars as Odysseus, the Greek king of Ithaca, and it chronicles his long and perilous journey home after the Trojan War and his encounters with mythical beings as he attempts to reunite with his wife, Penelope, portrayed by Anne Hathaway. The ensemble cast includes Tom Holland, Robert Pattinson, Lupita Nyong'o, Samantha Morton, Zendaya, and Charlize Theron. Universal released the film in wide theatrical exhibition this weekend July 17.
We review the film and play a mini-game attempting to guess the the order and percentages of Christopher Nolan's filmography on Rotten Tomatoes.
For more discussion on The Odyssey, our upcoming shows include:
The Awards Tape: The Odyssey Awards Assessment
Read Receipts: The Odyssey (comparing the epic poem to the movie)
RETRO//RANKED: The Odyssey & Season 8 Announcement (placing the film in our current collaborative ranking list)
Our pre-episode Patreon exclusive conversation features:
Digger trailer
Behemoth! trailer
Ink Opening Venice Film Festival
On this episode:
Danny Jarabek
Joshua Mbonu
Mariana Fabian
Adam Patla
Support the show
Subscribe for Early Access and Video:
The Rolling Tape Patreon
Listen Here:
Spotify
Apple Podcasts
All Listening Platforms
Have questions? Email info@therollingtape.com
Podcast Website Link
Website & Publications: www.therollingtape.com
Social Platforms on Linktree
Credits:
Theme music: Eugene Rocco Utley & Karl Vincent
Artwork: Danny Jarabek
Editor: Danny Jarabek
Assistant Producer: Evan Miller