February 28, 2022

The Hopecast S2 E13: Adam McKay

by the Hopecast Team

In this special first ever LIVE episode of the Jane Goodall Hopecast, Dr. Jane Goodall speaks with Adam McKay, Academy-Award winning writer/director/producer. Adam most recently created the satirical Netflix comedy ‘Don’t Look Up,’ starring Jennifer Lawrence and Leonardo DiCaprio. In this wonderful conversation, they discuss the power of storytelling to drive climate action, the importance of humor in inspiring change, and whether the movie could have ended differently than it did.

As two people with both very similar and different approaches to storytelling, and certainly different subject matters, the pair explore what it means to connect audiences with the narratives that are both relatable and spark the imagination. Goodall and McKay also contemplate what is necessary to rewrite the current story of human history, and what audiences can do if they felt moved by the core message of the film. As climate films of the recent past have centered on the weight of the crises’ realities, this film and their conversation examine what it means to face the darkness through humor, and how film can help us all see the light, before it’s too late.

At the End of the Rainbow: Stay to the end of the episode to hear an archival clip of Dr. Goodall discussing the initial resistance she faced from the scientific community in the 1960s and how science, as a peer reviewed process, can evolve new thinking, and did – thanks to Jane.

Subscribe anywhere you get your podcasts. Read the full transcript here.