Listen: https://pod.link/1855097197

The Junos came and went… but where were Canada’s biggest stars?

In this episode of Entertainment Is Broken, Richard Crouse and Sarah Hanlon dig into the growing debate around Canadian identity in entertainment… and whether artists like Justin Bieber, Drake, and Tate McRae are still “Canadian” when it counts.

Is it about where you’re born… or where your career is built?

They break down:

• Why so many major artists skipped the Juno Awards

• Whether success in the U.S. changes an artist’s identity

• The idea of being “Canadian when convenient”

• Why artists like Joni Mitchell and Rush still feel deeply connected to Canada

• And whether Canada needs to rethink how it supports its own talent

It’s a funny, sharp, and surprisingly real conversation about culture, success, and what we actually mean when we say “Canadian.”

If you’ve ever wondered why Canada’s biggest stars don’t always come home… this one’s for you.

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Listen: https://pod.link/1855097197

Buffy is cancelled… again.

After years of development, a filmed pilot, and serious creative talent behind it, the Buffy the Vampire Slayer reboot is suddenly dead — and the timing couldn’t be worse.

So what happened?

This week, we start with Buffy… and zoom out to the bigger question: why does Hollywood keep going back?

From The X-Files to a growing list of revivals, reboots and “reimaginings,” the industry seems stuck in a loop — mining the past instead of building something new.

Is it nostalgia?
Is it fear?
Or is it just good business?

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Listen: https://pod.link/1855097197

BTS is back from military service — and their comeback show in Seoul is expected to draw 260,000 fans.

Yes. A quarter of a million.

Meanwhile, most bands can’t afford gas for the tour van.

In this episode of Entertainment Is Broken, Richard Crouse and Sarah Hanlon dive into the bizarre economics of live music:

• Why mega-concerts are getting bigger than ever

• Why the middle of the music industry is disappearing

• Why touring now costs so much artists sometimes lose money on the road

• And whether the future of music is stadium spectacles… or livestreams from someone’s living room

The music industry isn’t dead.

But it might be… broken.

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Listen: https://pod.link/1855097197

The internet spent a week asking a very serious question:

Was that actually Jim Carrey… or someone wearing Jim Carrey?

When the comedy legend appeared at the César Awards in Paris, conspiracy theories exploded online. People compared eye colour, hand dominance, and facial features, trying to prove that the man on the red carpet couldn’t possibly be the real Jim Carrey.

Because obviously the most logical explanation is… a clone.

This week on Entertainment Is Broken, Richard Crouse and Sarah Hanlon unpack the strange online reaction and what it reveals about celebrity culture. Why do fans feel betrayed when stars change their appearance? Why did Jennifer Grey’s nose job derail her career? And why does Hollywood still pressure actors to look permanently 30 years old?

Along the way, Richard shares stories from meeting Jim Carrey before he was famous, interviewing Jennifer Lawrence early in her career, and why the new film Sweetness might be one of the year’s most interesting indie surprises.

What starts as a celebrity conspiracy theory quickly turns into something bigger:

A conversation about beauty standards, fame, identity… and why the internet thinks it owns your face once you’re famous.

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Listen: https://pod.link/1855097197

Why do we travel just to stand where a movie scene was filmed?

This week on Entertainment Is Broken, Richard Crouse and Sarah Hanlon explore the booming $73 Billion world of film and TV tourism — from Twin Peaks and Ghostbusters to Hollywood landmarks and Ontario’s suddenly famous Heated Rivalry cottage. They unpack the nostalgia, escapism, and surprising economics behind visiting fictional worlds in real life… and ask whether renting a famous filming location is pure fan magic or brilliant marketing.

Because sometimes the real destination isn’t the place — it’s the story.

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Canadians are proudly buying local, waving the maple leaf, and rallying behind homegrown culture — so why are Canadian movie theaters suddenly empty?

This week on Entertainment Is Broken, Richard and Sarah unpack the surprising 40% drop in Canadian film attendance and ask a big question: if we love Canadian creators, why aren’t we showing up for Canadian movies?

From Mike Myers’ cultural rallying cry to the legacy of comedy icons like John Candy, plus a heartfelt tribute to the late Robert Duvall, the conversation dives into movie-going habits, streaming culture, national identity, and whether Canadian storytelling needs a reinvention… or just a bigger audience.

Are Canadian films overlooked, misunderstood, or simply waiting for their moment? Grab your popcorn — this one gets personal.

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Watch: https://www.youtube.com/@EntertainmentIsBroken

Listen: https://pod.link/1855097197

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As the Oscars loom, the hosts can’t help but compare this lavish production to multiple nominated films that were made for a fraction of the cost, raising uncomfortable questions about access, influence, and what gets financed in today’s entertainment landscape.

Along the way, Sarah offers a clear-eyed — and deeply reluctant — reaction to the concept of a Melania-fronted lifestyle empire, while Richard unpacks the industry mechanics behind attention farming, prestige positioning, and why this “documentary” may be less about storytelling and more about market testing.

It’s a sharp, funny, and slightly horrified look at the intersection of politics, celebrity, streaming economics, and the ever-blurrier line between content and commerce.

Spoiler alert: no one is asking for this… but someone is definitely funding it.

Watch: https://www.youtube.com/@EntertainmentIsBroken

Listen: https://pod.link/1855097197

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In this episode of Entertainment Is Broken, film critic Richard Crouse and reality-TV scholar and Big Brother Canada winner Sarah Hanlon dive deep into the past, present, and future of reality television — just as Canada Shore lands in Kelowna, BC and The Traitors …

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Listen: https://pod.link/1855097197

On this episode of Entertainment Is Broken, Richard Crouse and Sarah Hanlon break down the newly announced Oscar nominations, including surprise snubs, unexpected front-runners, and why horror films are finally getting serious Academy attention.

The episode opens with a sharp review of Mercy, a futuristic thriller built around an AI judge, total surveillance, and a ticking clock. Is it anti-AI, pro-AI, or just a confusing sci-fi experiment? Richard explains why it may be the ultimate hate watch… and a “seatbelt movie” in the worst way.

From there, they dig into this year’s major Best Picture contenders, including Sinners, Hamnet, Sentimental Value, Train Dreams, Frankenstein, and One Battle After Another. The conversation covers Oscar predictions, blockbuster fatigue, genre bias, and what actually makes a great film.

Also discussed:

• Oscar snubs (Wicked, Ariana Grande, and more)

• Blockbusters vs critical darlings

• The rise of “smart horror”

• Casting as the Academy’s newest awards category

• Why modern movies are too long…and why 90 minutes still matters

Smart, opinionated, and funny, this episode is for anyone who loves movies, film criticism, Oscar season, and debating why some films deserve awards…and others deserve mercy.

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Listen: https://pod.link/1855097197

This week on Entertainment Is Broken, Richard Crouse and Sarah Hanlon ask a question that feels both philosophical and deeply unhinged:

Do celebrities even die anymore… or do they just get converted into downloadable content?

The conversation starts with Kevin Hart sel…

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Watch: https://www.youtube.com/@EntertainmentIsBroken

Listen: https://pod.link/1855097197

Every once in a while, a conversation about entertainment turns into a conversation about… everything else.

This week’s episode of Entertainment Is Broken starts with something we don’t usually talk about when we’re arguing over movies and algorithms… losing control of your own face.

Richard opens the show by talking about recovering from Bell’s palsy. Not in a dramatic, TED Talk way. In a practical, unsettling way. One side of your face just… stops cooperating. Smiling becomes a project. Cheeks go on strike. Eyebrows refuse to negotiate.

And suddenly you realize how much of your life is built on things you never once thanked for showing up.

Which, weirdly, turns out to be a pretty good place to talk about culture.

Because when something stops working… whether it’s your face, a touring model, or the entire concept of “television” … you don’t immediately panic. First, you notice. Then you reassess. Then you start asking uncomfortable questions like: Why did we think this was the only way it could work?

From there, the conversation widens… into legacy. Into the idea that some people don’t really leave when they go. They stick around as flickering images. As lines of dialogue you’ve accidentally memorized. As catchphrases that have fully moved into your brain without paying rent.

Pop culture has always done that. It sneaks past your defenses. You think you’re just watching a sitcom… and twenty years later you realize it taught you how not to be a terrible person.

Which is why the timing of all this disruption feels… loaded.

The Oscars are heading to YouTube. Podcasts are becoming television. Instagram wants to live on your TV. Netflix is flirting with radio. Everything is blending, collapsing, remixing itself into something that doesn’t have a clean name yet.

And the reflex reaction is to say, Well that’s the end of old media.

Maybe it is.

Or maybe it’s just the end of pretending there was ever a clean line between “serious culture” and “new platforms.” People didn’t stop caring about stories… they just changed how they find them. The audience didn’t disappear. It moved to the couch. Then the phone. Then the TV again… somehow.

We also talk about aging artists. Musicians whose bodies are quietly filing HR complaints. Performers who still love the stage but maybe not the buses, the schedules, or the expectation that passion should hurt.

There’s a real tension there. Between can I still do this? and should I still do this the same way?

And maybe the answer isn’t bigger stages or louder speakers. Maybe it’s smaller rooms. Concert films. New formats. Intimacy over spectacle. Art that adapts instead of insisting on reenactment.

Because nothing meaningful stays frozen.

Fans want comfort food. Artists want evolution. Platforms want your attention. Bodies want rest. Culture wants to keep going… just not like it used to.

Which brings us back to where the episode starts.

Loss doesn’t always announce itself with sirens. Sometimes it shows up quietly, makes you rethink what you assumed was permanent, and then hands you a strange gift… perspective.

Entertainment is broken.

But maybe it’s not broken in the way we think.

Maybe it’s just changing shape… again.

🎧 Listen to the full episode of Entertainment Is Broken wherever you get your podcasts
📺 Watch on YouTube if you want to see our faces (one of which is healing nicely, thank you)
💬 And as always… tell us what’s breaking next

~

Entertainment Is Broken is a weekly podcast produced by Brittlestar.

In this episode of ‘Entertainment is Broken’, Richard Crouse and Sarah Hanlon delve into the complexities of award season, discussing the Golden Globe nominations, notable snubs, and the evolving role of hosts. They explore the significance of the Golden Globes in the current entertainment landscape, the impact of streaming on theatrical releases, and the emotional weight of personal stories in music. The conversation also touches on Quentin Tarantino’s controversial remarks about actors and the irreplaceable experience of watching films in theatres. The episode concludes with reflections on the importance of shared experiences in cinema and the ongoing dialogue about entertainment.

Watch: https://www.youtube.com/@EntertainmentIsBroken

Listen: https://pod.link/1855097197

Entertainment Is Broken is a Brittlestar production. Enjoy!

Subscribe now

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How much would you actually pay to see your favourite artist… and how much is too much?

In this episode of Entertainment Is Broken, Richard and Sarah start with a simple question about concert tickets and end up wandering through Bell’s Palsy pirate chic, David Bowie devotion, reality TV divorce drama, and whether Die Hard is officially a Christmas movie now that the Willis family says so (spoiler: it is).

Listen here: https://pod.link/1855097197

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Listen for Free here: https://pod.link/1855097197

In this week’s episode of Entertainment Is Broken, Richard Crouse and Sarah Hanlon head back to Oz to poke at Hollywood’s favourite security blanket... the sequel. Are follow-ups actually good for storytelling, or just very good for spreadsheets?

Along the way, Richard also shares something a lot more personal than box office numbers: a major health scare that hit in the middle of recording last week’s episode. From there, the show pivots from billion-dollar franchises to the simple fact that none of this matters much if your health falls apart.

Inside the episode

Richard and Sarah dig into:

• Wicked: For Good’s billion-dollar moment
  Why Universal is already quietly building the “Wicked Cinematic Universe”... and whether that’s exciting, inevitable, or just exhausting.

• Sequels vs storytelling
  Are follow-ups expanding worlds or just recycling IP until the wheels fall off?

  • When sequels work: Incredibles 2, Finding Dory, Zootopia 2, Star Trek’s new shows, the King of the Hill revival.

  • When they absolutely don’t: from Jaws 3D to remakes like the new Hand That Rocks The Cradle that bring nothing new to the table.

• Comfort food culture
  Richard makes the case that sequels and remakes are the entertainment equivalent of meatloaf: familiar, comforting… and maybe crowding out anything that asks us to try a new flavour.
  If the internet promised we’d all get giant “Martians from Mars Attacks” brains, why do we keep using it to find more of the same thing we already like?

• Nostalgia vs originality
  Is Hollywood just giving people what they want, or training us to stop wanting anything else?
  Sarah defends sequels that evolve with the times, while Richard worries about the space they take up on the cultural shelf.

This week’s headlines

Before they dive fully into sequel madness, Richard and Sarah run through a packed slate of entertainment stories:

• Jimmy Cliff remembered
  From The Harder They Come to a soundtrack that helped make reggae a global force, Richard looks back at a genuine titan and what it meant that his film ran for over a year in one New York theatre.

• Donald Glover’s health scare
  A stroke, heart surgery, and a reminder that behind every “tour cancelled” headline is a human being whose body just called time out. Richard connects it with his own Bell’s palsy diagnosis mid-podcast last week… and why health really is the only non-negotiable.

• Guns N’ Roses back on the road (again)
  Axl, Slash, Duff and co are returning with Canadian dates, some new music, and, apparently, shows that actually start on time now. Miracles happen.

• Farewell to Udo Kier
  The ultimate “I know that guy” actor, popping up in everything from art-house classics to Armageddon. Richard and Sarah unpack why he made bad movies better and good movies unforgettable.

• Joni Mitchell & Nelly Furtado get their flowers
  Lifetime honours at the Junos for two Canadian icons, plus Richard’s story about Joni, a cigarette, and a very polite attempt at enforcing no-smoking rules that did not go as planned.

• Graham Linehan’s harassment case
  A British comedy figure cleared of one charge, found guilty on another… and a frank conversation about harassment, hate, and how hard it is to separate “beloved creator” from the harm they cause.

• Richard Branson’s loss
  The death of his wife, Joan Templeman, and what it means to be the public face of an empire while someone else is holding your life together offstage.

• Michael Cera & Pamela Anderson in small-town Ontario
  Cera’s directorial debut, Love Is Not The Answer, is shooting in Carleton Place with Pamela Anderson in a leading role. Richard shares what it was like to host her onstage post-documentary, and why her current reinvention feels a lot like a long-overdue course correction.

• Jay Kelly, streaming vs cinema, and James Cameron’s line in the sand
  A discussion of the George Clooney/Adam Sandler/Laura Dern dramedy Jay Kelly, why it feels like a throwback to mid-2000s grown-up movies… and whether streaming-first releases should be chasing Oscars in the same way theatrical films do.

So… do we really need another one?

By the time Richard and Sarah circle back to sequels, they’ve landed on a pretty simple tension:

• Sequels can absolutely be great.
  They can deepen characters, speak to the moment they’re released in, and give artists a second (or seventh) swing at a world they love.

• But when they’re treated as a safety net instead of a creative choice…
  They become a way to avoid risk, to feed nostalgia on loop, and to crowd out smaller, stranger, more empathetic stories that don’t come pre-branded.

Or as Sarah puts it: the problem isn’t that we get another one… it’s when “another one” is the only thing we’re allowed to get.

Listen to the episode

In this episode of Entertainment Is Broken, you’ll get:

• Smart, funny, slightly exasperated sequel chat

• Deep-cut film and TV references you can steal for your next argument

• A reminder to go see something without a number in the title

• And a host doing the show with half his face temporarily offline because… show must go on

🎧 Listen now: https://pod.link/1855097197
Wherever you get your podcasts… and let us know in the comments: which sequel do you love, which one broke your heart, and which franchise needs to be humanely retired?

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Awhile ago I realized that there are lots of Canadian pop-culture shows but precious few CANADIAN entertainment shows.

Not shows that deal only with Canada’s entertainment industry but rather shows that don’t exclude Canada’s entertainment industry.

So, we created Entertainment Is Broken.

Produced by the same team that brings you Politics Is Broken, Entertainment Is Broken is a weekly podcast hosted by entertainment news icon Richard Crouse and co-hosted by reality show and pop culture queen Sarah Hanlon.

Join them as they cover everything entertainment from around the world through a Canadian lens.
Movies, Television, Streaming, Music, Social, Books, Whatever.

This inaugural episode delivers a full run through the entertainment landscape as entertainment insiders Richard Crouse and Sarah Hanlon break down the latest headlines, rule on cultural controversies in Pop Culture Courtroom, and highlight the movies, shows, music, books, and games you shouldn’t miss. Insightful, entertaining, and very them.

Enjoy it. I can’t wait for them to start fighting.

Podcast available here

Clip below!