Cannonball with Wesley Morris
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.
Episodes
What’s Love Got to Do with ‘Obsession’?
“Obsession” is about a guy who makes a wish for a girl to love him “more than anyone in the entire world.” What follows is a classic horror movie trope: the girlfriend from hell. One of the movie’s tag lines is “be careful who you wish for.” And younger audiences are flocking to see “Obsession,” making it a genuine Gen Z phenomenon.
The film’s writer-director-editor, Curry Barker, is also part of
Is Broadway Going Easy On Us?
Each spring, in the months leading up to the Tony Awards, Wesley Morris tries to see as many Broadway shows as he can. And this season’s spree (including “Ragtime,” “Cats: The Jellicle Ball,” “Proof,” “Dog Day Afternoon” and “Giant") left him with the question: Where are the challenging shows?
There were some great performances, but the productions seemed designed to reflect his values and make hi
Over 20,000 Restaurants in New York City. Only One List
A list, according to The Times’s co-chief restaurant critic Ligaya Mishan, can be a way “to make sense of chaos” and to also “destabilize the current order.”
Her list of “the 100 Best Restaurants in New York City in 2026” takes that spirit to heart. A taco truck in Queens (Birria-Landia) serving $5 consommé sits alongside a Caribbean fine dining spot in Manhattan (Kabawa) with a $145 tasting menu.
Is 'Colbert' the Wrong Late Show to Cancel?
The “Late Show with Stephen Colbert” ends this week. When CBS announced the show’s cancellation last summer, the network said in a statement that it was “purely a financial decision against a challenging backdrop in late night.” There’s still some debate around what happened and why, but for Wesley Morris, the demise of the long-running franchise brought up feelings about another late-night show:
The Devil Wears Prada, Workers Get Nada
Wesley Morris liked “The Devil Wears Prada 2” more than he thought he would. He didn’t need this sequel, but it captures the spirit of the original well enough.
Miranda and Andy, played by Meryl Streep and Anne Hathaway, are the same. Miranda still queen and Andy still a grunt. But this time around Andy is a grunt with a staff and a little bit power. She moved on up!
This got Wesley to thinking:
In Defense of the NYT's 'Greatest Songwriters' List
The public outrage was inevitable. The New York Times Magazine published a list of the 30 greatest living American songwriters. Two hundred and fifty music insiders submitted ballots. Six Times music critics and writers sorted through it all to get to 30.
For Wesley Morris, it was both daunting and thrilling. Luminaries like Bonnie Raitt, George Clinton, Lin-Manuel Miranda and Mariah Carey submitt
‘Michael’ Is Pure Propaganda
“Michael,” the new Michael Jackson biopic, knows what it’s doing. That’s clear from the opening shot: high-water pants and white socks pushed down to a pair of black penny loafers. It’s appealing to a very specific version of our memories of Michael Jackson. The version some of us prefer to hold onto. But in doing so, it avoids the truth.
Our qualms with the King of Pop? Forget about that. Be horr
Does 'The Drama' Know Zendaya Is Black?
Wesley loves Zendaya. The actress caught his eye as the charming but drug addled Rue in HBO’s “Euphoria.” But he thinks Hollywood hasn’t cast her in roles worthy of her considerable gifts. So when Zendaya showed up in the movie “The Drama” as a young Black woman with a secret from her past that threatens to derail her engagement to Robert Pattinson’s character, Wesley was cautiously optimistic. He
‘Popcast’: Jack Harlow Talks Race and Ego
“Cannonball” is on its last week of spring break, so we’re sharing an episode of “Popcast” that features Jack Harlow discussing his pivot to R&B. In a viral clip from this episode, Harlow, a white musician, says, “I got Blacker.” Wesley was struck by Harlow's honesty and the questions raised by the full conversation.
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You ca
‘Modern Love’: Zendaya and Robert Pattinson on Marriage and Secrets
While the “Cannonball” team is on a short break, Wesley is recommending some notable conversations he’s listened to lately from other New York Times shows. This week, it’s an episode of “Modern Love,” featuring host Anna Martin talking with Zendaya and Robert Pattinson. They dig into the complicated relationship at the core of their new film, “The Drama,” and consider how much they actually want t
Harry Styles Is the Sound of Spring
Every spring, Wesley Morris finds himself searching for music that captures the light and breezy feeling that comes with the end of winter. This year, there’s an obvious soundtrack to the season: Harry Styles’s new album, “Kiss All the Time. Disco, Occasionally.”
“These songs are like 12 beautiful little flowers,” Wesley says. “They’re not supposed to last forever. They’re just supposed to last f
'Love Story' Is Actually a Horror Story
The latest from the Ryan Murphy television fun house is an unquestionable hit. It’s also a ’90s nostalgia bomb. People are trying to eat, shop and dress like John F. Kennedy Jr. and Carolyn Bessette. They’re obsessed.
But with what, exactly? Because at first, “Love Story” has all the hallmarks of a ’90s sitcom — a young working woman in the city, enjoying her freedom till a meet-cute with the one
What the Oscars Got Right
Wesley Morris is an unabashed believer in the Oscars. That they genuinely matter.
Every year, he has to re-convince his friend, Sasha Weiss, the culture editor for The New York Times Magazine. This year, of course, there’s the “One Battle After Another” versus “Sinners” of it all. And there’s a lot there. But also, what happened to “Marty Supreme” and poor Timothée Chalamet? And is it possible th
The Complicated Oscars Night Feelings Over ‘One Battle After Another’
This is one of those “who knows what’s going to happen” years at the Oscars. And maybe the biggest question of the night is which movie will dominate: “Sinners,” with its record 16 nominations, or “One Battle After Another,” which is right behind with 13.
One is a vampire movie set in the Jim Crow South, featuring not one but two Michael B. Jordans. The other imagines a leftist revolutionary outf
Tyra Banks Is (Kinda) Sorry
Back in 2003, a new reality TV show hosted and co-created by Tyra Banks convinced an entire generation that they too might have what it takes to become America’s next top model. Now, a new Netflix docu-series wants us to know just how badly the contestants were treated — by the show and sometimes by Banks herself.
To Wesley’s surprise, Tyra Banks agreed to be interviewed for the series, “Reality
Don't Make a Saint Out of Toni Morrison
Seven years after Toni Morrison’s death, we’re experiencing what the critic Parul Sehgal describes as a “wave of Morrisonia.” Eleven of her novels are being reissued by her publisher. There’s a new book of criticism about her novels. You can feel the effort to shore up her legacy.
It’s an understandable impulse. This is the woman who wrote “Beloved,” the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel that, as Parul
There’s Nothing Sexy About ‘Wuthering Heights’
Valentine’s Day weekend is over, and we’re left with a new film adaptation of Emily Brontë’s “Wuthering Heights.” Audiences are hot, bothered and swooning. Can you blame them?
The trailer had promised — and the film delivers — a stunning Margot Robbie, a seductive Jacob Elordi and a lot of sticky substances (like, a lot.) Wesley Morris knows sex and shock to be the director Emerald Fennell’s spec
Bad Bunny and the Art of Protest
“We’re living in protest-y times! Where are all the protest songs?”That was a question that Wesley Morris was asking in the time leading up to Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl LX halftime show. He thinks the scarcity of direct protest art in this moment contributed to the intense speculation and anticipation about what Bad Bunny would do on that stage. Would it be a protest? And if so, what kind of protest?
‘The Pitt’ Is Giving a Dose of Humanity
“The Pitt” is back for a second season, and it’s appointment viewing for Wesley Morris. Every Thursday at 9 p.m., the show serves up an emergency room’s worth of maladies and realities — sparing us none of the naked truths about being a human in a vulnerable body.
Sasha Weiss, the culture editor at The New York Times Magazine, joins Wesley to talk about how the show is making an old-school televi
Dear Haters of 'Marty Supreme'...
“Marty Supreme” is a box office and critical hit. The film just received nominations in many of the most coveted Oscar categories — best picture, director and actor. And Wesley is glad about all of it. He loved the movie and its shameless protagonist, Marty Mauser.But it turns out that a lot of people going to see this movie don’t share his feelings. In fact, a lot of them hate it. And much of tha
My Evening With Michelle Obama
Cannonball is taking a short break and will be back very soon. In the meantime, listen to this special conversation:Last November, Wesley spent an evening with Michelle Obama to celebrate the release of “The Look,” her new book about fashion and the power of style. It’s a heavy text – weighing in at about 4.12 pounds (Wesley checked). That makes it great for coffee tables. But it also reflects the
The Sexy, Multi-Dimensional Genius of Roberta Flack
Wesley has a practice as a new year begins of saying goodbye to those who won’t be coming with us. He could have easily done an episode on any number of household names. He could have done the same with people who weren’t the biggest names, yet still loomed large for many.But out of all the artists who passed in 2025, Wesley decides to dedicate time to Roberta Flack.The critic and scholar Daphne A
Our Last Chance to Talk ‘Gatsby’
When a book publisher asked Wesley to write an introduction for a new edition of “The Great Gatsby,” he was confused. So many people had already written about F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel since it was first published in 1925. What could he add? And why him?But eventually, he realized he does in fact have a special relationship with this book. He has read it in three different phases of life, and ea
Rob Reiner Made Your Favorite Movie
Wesley has been thinking a lot this week about what Rob Reiner gave us. Not the best movies. But our favorite ones. He wanted us to feel good. And for Wesley, no movie hit that pleasure center more than “When Harry Met Sally.” He watched it over and over as a teenager. It’s probably why he moved to New York. He wanted what they were having.
This week, Wesley reflects on the impact Reiner had on
My Favorite Performances of the Year
On today’s show, Wesley reveals his favorite film performances of the year — but his list is not an ordinary best-of list. He zeroes in on the specific details that make a performance great. Like, who did the best acting in a helmet this year? Who were the most convincing on-screen best friends? And who refused to play it safe? Find out in our first annual Cannonball Great Performers special.
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D’Angelo and the Power of Last Albums
The world is different once an artist dies. The same goes for their music. Since D’Angelo’s death, Wesley keeps returning to “Black Messiah” — to him, a perfect final album. What makes an artist’s last record resonate with us long after they’re gone? Wesley invites his friend Alex Pappademas, a senior culture editor at GQ Magazine, to listen back to some last albums that have haunted them both. Su
I Love This Eddie Murphy Interview
Cannonball is off this week for the holiday. But I wanted to share something with you from our friends over at The Interview. It’s a conversation that my colleague David Marchese had awhile back with one of our biggest stars, Eddie Murphy. I've been thinking about it recently because there's a new documentary about Murphy that just came out on Netflix -- and I highly recommend this conversation as
'The Perfect Neighbor' Is an American Nightmare
Netflix has a hit in “The Perfect Neighbor,” a documentary attracting a lot of attention for both its subject and its form. Using police camera footage, the film shows the events leading up to the killing of a Black mother of four by her white neighbor. It’s unquestionably powerful and difficult viewing. But for Wesley and his fellow Times critic Parul Sehgal, it raises all kinds of moral and ethi
Where Have All the Covers Gone?
Every December, Wesley’s hometown radio station, 88.5 WXPN, does some kind of end-of-year countdown, as voted on by listeners. This year, it’s the 885 greatest cover songs. This was exciting news for Wesley, who loves himself a good cover — and considers their near disappearance from pop music to be a kind of national tragedy.
He talks all things covers with one of his favorite reinterpreters of
When Did Music Critics Get So Nice?
For Wesley, the most interesting thing about Taylor Swift’s latest album didn’t have much to do with the music. It was the critical response. Sure, there was plenty of enthusiasm. But there was also some exasperation and weariness. And to Wesley, that felt like a needed shift in pop music criticism. Which has gotten awfully nice lately. A little too nice.That idea — that pop music criticism has lo
Dwayne ‘the Rock’ Johnson Is Finally Going There
Dwayne “the Rock” Johnson’s new movie, “The Smashing Machine,” sends him back to his natural habitat: the ring. But for the first time ever, Johnson finds himself in a role that grapples with what it means to move through the world in a body like his.Wesley talks to Sam Anderson, who recently spent a day with Johnson for a Times Magazine profile. They think about the line between artifice and real
A Horror Movie Halloween Special: The Dread Under the Bed
Wesley Morris doesn’t go for cheap jump scares or gratuitous gore. Instead, his favorite horror movies fill him with a sense of dread. This Halloween, he invites film curator Eric Hynes to rewatch scenes from some of the scariest movies they’ve ever seen — some you’ll find in the horror section and some you won’t.
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can al
I Thought Lady Gaga Was Over. I Was Wrong.
Wesley Morris didn’t love Lady Gaga’s new album “Mayhem.” Then Caryn Ganz, The Times’s pop music editor, took him to see Mayhem — the tour — on its final night at Madison Square Garden. It totally changed the way both of them think about Gaga and what she’s been up to all this time. In short: All hail Mother Monster. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and
Spotify. You can
Robert Redford Was a True Movie Star. Are There Any Left?
Wesley Morris has been talking about movie stardom with Bill Simmons of The Ringer for as long as they’ve known each other. The actor and director Robert Redford is often invoked in their conversations as the definition of a movie star. In today’s episode, Wesley invites Bill to remember the roles that made Redford a household name and to ruminate on the state of the movie star in 2025. Do we have
Is 'One Battle After Another' the Best Movie of the Year?
Paul Thomas Anderson is a very rare figure in Hollywood — he’s widely considered to be one of the very best directors of his generation, but he’s never really had a hit when it comes to making money. One Battle After Another might change that. It’s a big budget action movie with a bankable star. And to Wesley’s relief, that didn’t come with any compromises.Wesley invites The Ringer’s Sean Fennesse
Is 'South Park' Trump-Proof?
This season, “South Park” is taking on the Trump administration the only way it knows how: with stop-motion, expletives and jokes about the size of the president’s penis. But how is the show getting away with it? Wesley Morris and the comedian Wyatt Cenac discuss the special sauce that is allowing "South Park" creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone to survive the political pressure that’s come for th
Nikole Hannah-Jones Knows Why History Feels Dangerous
Six years ago, with the publication of The 1619 Project, Nikole Hannah-Jones argued that slavery was a foundational institution upon which the United States was built. President Trump called the project a crusade against American history — ideological poison that, “if not removed,” would “dissolve the civic bonds that tie us together.” Now, his administration is making a similar argument to attack
Cannonball Will Be Back Next Week!
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The V.M.A.s Are This Weekend. Does Anybody Care?
It’s been a long time since MTV was appointment viewing. And yet, billions of people are still watching music videos on the regular — on YouTube. Where does that leave a decades-old awards show dedicated to the craft? Wesley invites Niela Orr, a culture critic, on the show to discuss what makes an unforgettable video and to review this year’s nominees to see which ones should go home with the moon
The Summer Movies That Made Us
Wesley was formed in the glory days of the summer movie: “Total Recall.” “Ghost.” “Pretty Woman.” All from the same epic summer of 1990. He found this year’s slate disappointing by comparison. So in this episode, Wesley invites his friend, the New York Times Magazine writer Sam Anderson, to travel back in time with him — to reimmerse themselves in the movies that shaped their adolescences, and may
Is the New Spike Lee Joint Serving Pound Cake?
“Highest 2 Lowest” is an over-the-top, bougie and unapologetically New York movie. It might also be Spike Lee’s most conservative offering to date. Wesley invites critic Vinson Cunningham to discuss whether the 68-year-old director is picking up an old refrain, and telling young Black men to pull up their pants.Thoughts? Email us at cannonball@nytimes.comWatch our show on YouTube: youtube.com/@Can
‘And Just Like That …’ Is Over Too Soon
Wesley is joined by another unapologetic fan of the “Sex and the City” reboot, Taffy Brodesser-Akner. Together, they celebrate a show about old friendships and middle age. And blame you for its untimely end.Thoughts? Email us at cannonball@nytimes.comWatch our show on YouTube: youtube.com/@CannonballPodcastFor transcripts and more, visit: nytimes.com/cannonball
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Beyoncé Isn’t Giving Up on America
Wesley went to the final stop of the Cowboy Carter Tour. He talks through what he saw — the genre of it all, and the quietly powerful politics — with Salamishah Tillet, Times contributing critic and the professor behind an entire class about Beyoncé.Thoughts? Email us at cannonball@nytimes.comWatch our show on YouTube: youtube.com/@CannonballPodcastFor transcripts and more, visit: nytimes.com/cann
Don't Let the Vampires In
What does Ryan Coogler’s vampire movie “Sinners” have in common with the Drake-Kendrick beef? Wesley has a theory that he’s been sitting with for weeks. He shares it with the writer Rembert Browne, and together they consider the vampiric threats facing Black art in America right now.Thoughts? Email us at cannonball@nytimes.comWatch our show on YouTube: youtube.com/@CannonballPodcastFor transcripts
What NYT’s Top 100 Movies Missed: 2 Former Video Store Clerks Get Real
Twenty-four years ago, Wesley Morris and the film curator Eric Hynes were just a couple of “cooler-than-you” cinephiles working at Kim’s Video, the beloved New York City video store. They recently got together to dissect the trends, snubs and outliers on the Times’s 100 Best Movies of the 21st Century list and to shed a few tears over their own top 10s, which we've shared below. FROM WESLEY MORRIS
Has Dining Gotten Too Fine on ‘The Bear’?
Wesley Morris talks with Samin Nosrat, a chef and food writer, about her love-hate relationship with “The Bear,” a show that’s always racing against the clock. She says the best moments, in the show and in our own kitchens, happen when things slow down.Thoughts? Email us at cannonball@nytimes.comWatch our show on YouTube: youtube.com/@CannonballPodcastFor transcripts and more, visit: nytimes.com/c
The Closet in Pee-wee’s Playhouse
In the new HBO documentary “Pee-wee as Himself,” Paul Reubens, the creator of the iconic character Pee-wee Herman, comes out as gay. Reubens, who spent most of his career in the closet, had already come out years before but then returned to the closet during his time as the popular Saturday morning children’s show host.On today’s episode of “Cannonball,” Wesley Morris talks with the writer Mark Ha
The Diddy Trial Is Over, but My Mind Is Still Racing
The trial of Sean “Diddy” Combs ended on Wednesday when he was convicted of two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution but was acquitted of the most serious charges against him: racketeering and sex trafficking. Wesley Morris, our critic at large, attended some of the court proceedings over the past couple months, and he walked away with deep and complicated feelings about witnessing t
Me and Bruno Mars — a Love Story
Host Wesley Morris has a confession to make: He loves Bruno Mars. Nothing wrong with that, right? With the help of the culture writer Niela Orr, Wesley untangles his crush from his discomfort with the pop star’s cozy relationship to Blackness.Thoughts? Email us at cannonball@nytimes.comWatch our show on YouTube: youtube.com/@CannonballPodcastFor transcripts and more, visit: nytimes.com/cannonball
Introducing: ‘Cannonball’ With Wesley Morris
A new weekly podcast, hosted by the critic Wesley Morris. Come on in, the culture’s fine.
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
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