John Logan

Made films the shows talk about.

Counted as writer. The films the hosts said they wrote, which the two lists below run through too: Gladiator (2000); Rango (2011); Skyfall (2012); Genius (2016); Alien: Covenant (2017).

Draws on

What the speakers say they, or a film of theirs, drew on. Each is a speaker's account: “the maker said so” when they report the maker's own words, “the host's read” when the read is theirs.

Spartacus (1960): 3 lines

  1. lineage (riff / imitation) · through Gladiator (2000), which they wrote: Spartacus ⇒ Gladiator (the host's read). Richard, seeing Spartacus for the first time, says it is the main thing Gladiator riffs on.
    “this is really the main thing the gladiators are riffing on.”
    Blank Check — Patreon · Spartacus with Richard Lawson (Ad-Free) · 1:03:34 · Richard Lawson (0.60 sure it was them)
  2. people (casting approach) · through Gladiator (2000), which they wrote: Spartacus ⇒ Gladiator (the host's read). Gladiator, like Spartacus, is loaded with supporting actors who are thespian gems, which the speaker says Scott recognized.
    “as Ridley Scott recognized about this movie, is like loaded up with supporting actors who are like just thespian gems.”
    Blank Check — Patreon · Spartacus with Richard Lawson (Ad-Free) · 1:33:49 · unknown (0.40 sure it was them)
  3. unmapped (scene reused) · through Gladiator (2000), which they wrote: Spartacus ⇒ Gladiator (the host's read). The trident thrown into the stands in Spartacus is in Gladiator too, with Russell Crowe doing it.
    “that's literally in Gladiator.”
    Blank Check — Patreon · Spartacus with Richard Lawson (Ad-Free) · 1:14:49 · unknown (0.35 sure it was them)

Aliens (1986): 2 lines

  1. lineage (lineage) · through Alien: Covenant (2017), which they wrote: Aliens ⇒ Alien: Covenant (the host's read). The shoulder-mounted GoPro cameras are carried over from the Marines in Aliens.
    “which the Marines all have in aliens”
    Blank Check — Patreon · Alien: Covenant · 0:40:52 · unknown (0.40 sure it was them)
  2. lineage (lineage) · through Alien: Covenant (2017), which they wrote: Aliens ⇒ Alien: Covenant (the host's read). The loader and airlock set piece homages the power loader fight in Aliens.
    “But something about this feels closer to the power loader fight.”
    Blank Check — Patreon · Alien: Covenant · 1:55:53 · unknown (0.40 sure it was them)

Back to the Future Part II (1989): 1 line

  1. craft (craft) · through Alien: Covenant (2017), which they wrote: Back to the Future Part II ⇒ Alien: Covenant (the host's read). The double-Fassbender effect is an old trick established by Zemeckis in Back to the Future II.
    “once again, shit established by Zameckis and back to the future too.”
    Blank Check — Patreon · Alien: Covenant · 1:09:38 · unknown (0.40 sure it was them)

Casino Royale (2006): 1 line

  1. lineage (lineage) · through Skyfall (2012), which they wrote: Casino Royale ⇒ Skyfall (the host's read). Skyfall is the payoff of the first Craig movie, where Vesper's betrayal shows Bond can feel.
    “it's also the ultimate payoff of what starts in the 1st Craig movie”
    The Rewatchables · ‘Skyfall’ With Chris Ryan, Sean Fennessey, and Amanda Dobbins · 0:12:29 · Sean Fennessey (0.45 sure it was them)

Christopher Nolan: 1 line

  1. industry (industry) · through Skyfall (2012), which they wrote: Christopher Nolan ⇒ Skyfall (the host's read). Bond producers wanted their own critically acclaimed thriller since Nolan was having all the fun with Bond-esque movies.
    “Let's do it ourselves.”
    The Rewatchables · ‘Skyfall’ With Chris Ryan, Sean Fennessey, and Amanda Dobbins · 0:02:35 · Chris Ryan (0.80 sure it was them)

Prometheus (2012): 1 line

  1. lineage (lineage) · through Alien: Covenant (2017), which they wrote: Prometheus ⇒ Alien: Covenant (the host's read). Covenant is half the Prometheus sequel Scott wanted and half a concession to a more normal Alien movie.
    “this is half, like Ridley Scott doing the Prometheus sequel he wanted to do and half”
    Blank Check — Patreon · Alien: Covenant · 0:06:57 · Griffin Newman (0.40 sure it was them)

The Dark Knight (2008): 1 line

  1. lineage (lineage) · through Skyfall (2012), which they wrote: The Dark Knight ⇒ Skyfall (the host's read). Mendes openly lifted the Dark Knight aesthetic and the orphan-avenging-sins idea.
    “Mendy's just very openly lifted a lot of the Dark Knight aesthetic for these movies.”
    The Rewatchables · ‘Skyfall’ With Chris Ryan, Sean Fennessey, and Amanda Dobbins · 0:46:30 · Chris Ryan (0.60 sure it was them)

The Martian (2015): 1 line

  1. industry (industry) · through Alien: Covenant (2017), which they wrote: The Martian ⇒ Alien: Covenant (the host's read). The Martian's success gave Scott leverage to make an odder Alien film.
    “I forgot that the previous film to this is the Martian”
    Blank Check — Patreon · Alien: Covenant · 1:19:20 · unknown (0.40 sure it was them)

Drawn on by

What the speakers say drew on them or a film of theirs, marked the same way.

Gladiator II: 6 lines

  1. lineage (lineage) · through Gladiator (2000), which they wrote: Gladiator ⇒ Gladiator II (the host's read). The sequel is very similar in structure and story to the original.
    “it's pretty well known that this movie is very similar in structure and story to the original.”
    The Big Picture · ‘Gladiator II’ Is Here. Are We Not Entertained? · 0:06:45 · Sean Fennessey (0.80 sure it was them)
  2. lineage (lineage) · through Gladiator (2000), which they wrote: Gladiator ⇒ Gladiator II (the host's read). The sequel's plot, structure, approach and pacing mirror the first, forcing a one-to-one comparison.
    “it's just the movie is so similar to the 1st one in terms of plot, structure, approach, focus, pacing.”
    The Big Picture · ‘Gladiator II’ Is Here. Are We Not Entertained? · 0:15:52 · Mallory Rubin (0.60 sure it was them)
  3. contrast (contrast) · through Gladiator (2000), which they wrote: Gladiator ⇒ Gladiator II (the host's read). The sequel tries to feel new by flipping the first film's premise: Marcus Aurelius's dream of Rome becomes its failure.
    “Instead of here's Marcus Aurelius's dream of what Rome can be, it's a bastardization and a compromise and a failure to execute against that promise.”
    The Big Picture · ‘Gladiator II’ Is Here. Are We Not Entertained? · 0:21:30 · Mallory Rubin (0.50 sure it was them)
  4. lineage (lineage) · through Gladiator (2000), which they wrote: Gladiator ⇒ Gladiator II (the host's read). Because it mirrors the first film, outcomes for characters become predictable by inversion.
    “I almost felt like it became impossible not to know what was going to happen to certain people”
    The Big Picture · ‘Gladiator II’ Is Here. Are We Not Entertained? · 0:21:39 · Mallory Rubin (0.50 sure it was them)
  5. lineage (lineage) · through Gladiator (2000), which they wrote: Gladiator ⇒ Gladiator II (the host's read). Lucius's hand in the grain is a callback to Maximus's hand in the wheat.
    “And it's an obvious callback to Maximus walking through the kind of afterlife feeling the wheat.”
    The Big Picture · ‘Gladiator II’ Is Here. Are We Not Entertained? · 0:52:34 · Sean Fennessey (0.40 sure it was them)
  6. craft (craft) · through Gladiator (2000), which they wrote: Gladiator ⇒ Gladiator II (the host's read). Lucius as Maximus's son is a classic retcon not in the first film's text.
    “it is, is a classic case of reconning.”
    The Big Picture · ‘Gladiator II’ Is Here. Are We Not Entertained? · 0:53:58 · Chris Ryan (0.40 sure it was them)

Creed (2015): 1 line

  1. industry (industry) · through Skyfall (2012), which they wrote: Skyfall ⇒ Creed (the host's read). Bringing a prestige director to a franchise leads to Coogler doing Creed and Black Panther.
    “It leads to things like Ryan Kugler does Creed in Black Panther”
    The Rewatchables · ‘Skyfall’ With Chris Ryan, Sean Fennessey, and Amanda Dobbins · 0:45:54 · Chris Ryan (0.40 sure it was them)

Kingdom of Heaven (2005): 1 line

  1. unmapped (followed) · through Gladiator (2000), which they wrote: Gladiator ⇒ Kingdom of Heaven (the host's read). Ridley tried to repeat Gladiator with Kingdom of Heaven and again later.
    “And even Ridley tried to do it. Kingdom of Heaven. Two more times.”
    Blank Check — Patreon · Spartacus with Richard Lawson (Ad-Free) · 2:06:08 · unknown (0.40 sure it was them)

Troy (2004): 1 line

  1. unmapped (followed) · through Gladiator (2000), which they wrote: Gladiator ⇒ Troy (the host's read). Troy coasts off the goodwill from Gladiator.
    “Troy is the one that coasts off of the Goodwill from Gladiator”
    Blank Check — Patreon · Spartacus with Richard Lawson (Ad-Free) · 2:06:43 · unknown (0.40 sure it was them)

What the speakers said they did

Writing (8) everyone in writing

What was said about them, by kind

career (1)

  1. career (career): John Logan → Rango. Logan wrote one of the speaker's favorite movies, Rango, and Gladiator.
    “He wrote one of my favorite movies ever, Rango.”
    The Rewatchables · ‘Skyfall’ With Chris Ryan, Sean Fennessey, and Amanda Dobbins · 0:10:02 · Sean Fennessey (0.40 sure it was them)

people (1)

  1. people (people): Genius → John Logan. Written by John Logan, writer of Gladiator and Skyfall.
    “This movie's written by John Logan, who wrote Gladiator and Skyfall and many, many good movies.”
    The Big Picture · The Nicole Kidman Hall of Fame, and ‘Babygirl’ · 1:40:20 · unknown (0.35 sure it was them)

Fun items about them

None.