The Flop House

Astronaut movies. What are they? Is "astronaut movie" even a genre? Elliott poses the question, and it leads to a mini that... OUT OF THIS WOOOOORLD.Our show at Whirling Tiger is less than a week away! If you live near Louisville, KY, come see us at 7pm on Friday, 9/18!Tickets for FLOP TV SEASON FOUR are now live! Go pick up a pass for individual episodes or the whole dang season! And if you live in the Louisville area and want to see us live NOT through your computer screen, Subscribe to our NEWSLETTER, “Flop Secrets! It’s the best way to keep up on all things Flop House! And please leave us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts (or wherever you listen). It helps us keep the podcast healthy! Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinflop

Smalltember winds are blowing in, and this year the currents brought us a doozy. SURFER: TEEN CONFRONTS FEARhas already become a new bad movie classic, and we had a lot of fun(?) confronting this strange object that arrived at Flop House central like a beached whale. It's a metaphysical monologue! It's a stealth religious film! It's a military thriller! It's a surfing movie! It's a dad wasting his kid's time! It's a way to use up old home movies by sneaking them into your narrative film! It's all this and much more!FLOP TV SEASON FOUR'S BIG PREMIERE is tomorrow, 9/5! Go pick up a pass for individual episodes or the whole dang season! And if you live in the Louisville area and want to see us live NOT through your computer screen, come to our show at Whirling Tiger in September!Stay updated on all things Flop House, plus a little extra, with our NEWSLETTER, “Flop Secrets! And please give us a FIVE STAR REVIEW. For an aging show like ours, all the attention truly helps us keep and grow our au

We welcome Ian Grant, who -- in addition to having two Jurassic Park scientist names -- is the owner and proprietor of The Gremlins Museum! We discuss the 3-hour(ish) rough cut he unearthed and cleaned up, gremlin preservation, and all things Gremlins in general. Tickets for FLOP TV SEASON FOUR are now live! Go pick up a pass for individual episodes or the whole dang season! And if you live in the Louisville area and want to see us live NOT through your computer screen, come to our show at Whirling Tiger in September! Subscribe to our NEWSLETTER, “Flop Secrets! It’s the best way to keep up on all things Flop House! And please leave us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts (or wherever you listen). It helps us keep the podcast healthy! Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinflop

Charli XCX is a huge pop star, seems cool, and is a genuine film lover -- but when she decided to make her own movie, were the results any good? That's what we were wondering about THE MOMENT, and we invited star of the show (and bigger Charli XCX-pert than any of us) Hallie Haglund back to the show to help us decide. Tickets for FLOP TV SEASON FOUR are now live! Go pick up a pass for individual episodes or the whole dang season!  And if you live in the Louisville area and want to see us live NOT through your computer screen, come to our show at Whirling Tiger in September! Stay updated on all things Flop House, plus a little extra, with our NEWSLETTER, “Flop Secrets! Wikipedia page for The Moment Recommended in this episode: Dan: Dr. Goldfoot and the Bikini Machine (1965) Stu: The Furious (2025) Elliott: Last Temptation of Christ (1988) Hallie: The Proposal (2009) Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinflop

Stuart brings back the world's most popular Flop House after-show, hosted by one of the hosts of The Flop House, and this time Hallie's here (her presence makes more sense when you realize that we taped next week's full episode with her first, but this one was the first to release). This time, Stu asks The Flop House gang about their experiences with live shows, with some diversions into Dan, Elliott, and Hallie's tenure as writers for The Daily Show! Tickets for FLOP TV SEASON FOUR are now live! Go pick up a pass for individual episodes or the whole dang season! And if you live in the Louisville area and want to see us live NOT through your computer screen, come to our show at Whirling Tiger in September! Subscribe to our NEWSLETTER, “Flop Secrets! It’s the best way to keep up on all things Flop House! Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinflop

Shocktober threatens to break the bounds of the fall, with this unexpected incursion into August. This aggression will not stand! Watch yourself, Shocktober! Anyway, on this episode we discuss The Mummy. The one with Brendan Fraser? No. The one with Tom Cruise? No. The one with Boris Karloff? No, silly, LEE CRONIN'S THE MUMMY. He wrote his name on it with Sharpie before putting it in the fridge! Tickets for FLOP TV SEASON FOUR are now live! Go pick up a pass for individual episodes or the whole dang season! And if you live in the Louisville area and want to see us live NOT through your computer screen, come to our show at Whirling Tiger in September! Stay updated on all things Flop House, plus a little extra, with our NEWSLETTER, “Flop Secrets! Paste https://feeds.simplecast.com/EOAFriME into iTunes (or your favorite podcatching software) to have new episodes of The Flop House delivered to you directly, as they’re released. Wikipedia page for Lee Cronin's The Mummy Recommended in this episode: Dan: Stalker (1

Elliott guides us through an overview of movies with "summer" in the title, and asks us to evaluate them based on our own summertime experiences. Tickets for FLOP TV SEASON FOUR are now live! Go pick up a pass for individual episodes or the whole dang season! And if you live in the Louisville area and want to see us live NOT through your computer screen, come to our show at Whirling Tiger in September! Subscribe to our NEWSLETTER, “Flop Secrets! It’s the best way to keep up on all things Flop House! Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinflop

Way back in the winter we stopped by SF Sketchfest to discuss the film that gave us the mental image of Dana Carvey in a turtle suit, solemnly remembering the victims of 9/11 -- THE MASTER OF DISGUISE. Join us as we discuss the astounding/sometimes racist adventures of Pistachio Disguisey! And thank you to the wonderful folks at Cobb's Comedy Club for hosting us yet again! Paste https://feeds.simplecast.com/EOAFriME into iTunes (or your favorite podcatching software) to have new episodes of The Flop House delivered to you directly, as they’re released. Wikipedia page for Master of Disguise Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinflop

Proving that Stuart's not the only one who can do a lore deep dive, Dan takes us on a tour of one of his more oddball obsessions, the 1985 cartoon series Jem, and it's one of our longest minis ever. Truly, truly, truly outrageous! Subscribe to our NEWSLETTER, “Flop Secrets! It’s the best way to keep up on all things Flop House! Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinflop

Oftentimes on The Flop House we wind up watching Hollywood movies that are just kind of dull or mediocre or unimaginative. The Bride!... is not one of those. For all its flaws, it's at least a bona fide personal vision that also happens to be a fiasco. And you know what? That's kind of heartwarming. We're joined by Kenice Mobley to dissect (ha) the many parts that make up The Bride! And if you like Kenice, check out The Hot Guy Draft in August! Stay updated on all things Flop House, plus a little extra, with our NEWSLETTER, “Flop Secrets! Wikipedia page for The Bride! Recommended in this episode: Dan: Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977) Stu: Exit 8 (2025) Elliott: The Straight Story (1999) Kenice: Lisa Frankenstein (2024) Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinflop

Stuart takes us on a tour of several significant movie directors, asking Dan and Elliott to guess which of their works are top rated on IMDb and which ones take the bottom slot, and discussing whether the rankings are justified. Subscribe to our NEWSLETTER, “Flop Secrets! It’s the best way to keep up on all things Flop House! Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinflop

Emerald Fennell took one of the classic works of literature most beloved by horny youth and said, "But what if I took out the subtlety?" It actually made quite a lot of money at the box office, but did it work for the Flop House? Guess you'll have to listen to find out. (See, Emerald? That's how you TEASE.) Stay updated on all things Flop House, plus a little extra, with our NEWSLETTER, “Flop Secrets! Wikipedia page for Wuthering Heights Recommended in this episode: Dan: Communion (1989) Stu: Obsession (2026) Elliott: 52 Pickup (1986) Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinflop

Our old friend Alonso Duralde, who literally wrote the book on LGBTQ+ representation in the movies, stops by to the Flop House to ask three cis hetero guys, "Hey, what was the first queer representation YOU remember seeing on film?" Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinflop

It's a rare "Flop House in the Aisles," as we took to the theater to see the tepidly-received (though still wildly successful) latest Star Wars thing, THE MANDALORIAN AND GROGU. It's got a li'l green guy in it! How bad could it be? And for a very special episode, we needed a special guest -- the talented actor and improvisor Will Hines, returning to the show after a seventeen year absence! See you in another 17 Will! (JK, why would we do that?) Stay updated on all things Flop House, plus a little extra, with our NEWSLETTER, “Flop Secrets! Wikipedia page for The Mandalorian and Grogu Recommended in this episode: Dan: The Sheep Detectives (2026) Stu: The Devil Wears Prada 2 (2026) Elliott: The Mysterious Castle in the Carpathians (1981) Will Hines: 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple (2025) Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinflop

It's established lore that, growing up, Dan mostly got to see movies in the theater on his birthday, as a special treat. But what were those movies? And if you had limited birthday bucks (TM) to spend, were those movies BIRTHDAY-WORTHY? Subscribe to our NEWSLETTER, “Flop Secrets! It’s the best way to keep up on all things Flop House! Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinflop

Back in 2009 a movie trailer set the internet aflame. Not because it was for some long-awaited adaptation or giant blockbuster, but because it was so odd people assumed it had to be a prank. Now in 2026, we welcome the wonderful J.D. Amato to discuss this oddball (?)thriller(?) AFTER LAST SEASON! In addition to be a respected TV showrunner/comedy writer, J.D. has written a new graphic novel for young readers, THE ENDLESS GAME, about a game of capture the flag that's been going on for 80 years. Consider picking one up for the young reader or comics enthusiast in your life! Stay updated on all things Flop House, plus a little extra, with our NEWSLETTER, “Flop Secrets! Paste https://feeds.simplecast.com/EOAFriME into iTunes (or your favorite podcatching software) to have new episodes of The Flop House delivered to you directly, as they’re released. Wikipedia page for After Last Season Recommended in this episode: Dan: Thief (1981) Stu: Faces of Death (2026) Elliott: Adela Has Not Had Supper Yet (1979) J.D. Amato

Stuart helps us winnow down the 80+ movies where Stephen King gets a writing credit, to discover the ten best, and which film is the true "king of King's." Subscribe to our NEWSLETTER, “Flop Secrets! It’s the best way to keep up on all things Flop House! Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinflop

In 2003, legendary director Lawrence Kasdan teamed with legendary screenwriter William Goldman, for a big-budget adaptation of a novel by legendary horror novelist Stephen King. And the result was... also legendary. But for different reasons than they might have hoped. On this episode, legendary (at least to us!) comics artist and writer Evan Dorkin joins us to discuss one of the most inexplicable flops of the 2000's -- DREAMCATCHER! If you've never checked out Evan's work, he's just released an omnibus of his humor comix under the name NERD INFERNO, a FH-endorsed way to spend your nerd bucks! Stay updated on all things Flop House, plus a little extra, with our NEWSLETTER, “Flop Secrets! Wikipedia page for Dreamcatcher Recommended in this episode: Dan: The Movie Orgy (1968) Stu: Song Sung Blue (2025) Elliott: Apocalypse Pooh (1987), November (1917) Evan Dorkin: One Cut of the Dead (2017) Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinflop

Max Fun Drive 2026 is over, and normally we'd be back to our "one full ep one mini" schedule, but we had too many good guests lined up, so you're getting another maxi this week AND next. That's why they call us Peaches. (Editor's note: there's no particularly good reason we're called The Peaches.) First up, our pal/amazing movie director/special effects wizard Steven Kostanski joins us to discuss a movie he kinda liked: RETURN TO SILENT HILL. Will the rest of us agree? Stay updated on all things Flop House, plus a little extra, with our NEWSLETTER, “Flop Secrets! Wikipedia page for Return to Silent Hill Recommended in this episode: Dan: Body Double (1984) Stu: Cure (1997) Elliott: House of the Devil (2009) Steve Kostanski: The Last Detail (1973) Thanks to everyone who participated in this year's MaxFunDrive! Still want to get in on the action? Follow this link to support this show (and get in on our limited-time keychain sale to benefit the Center for Constitutional Rights): https://maximumfun.org/joinflop

We close out Max Fun Drive 2026 with some true pain. Stuart's proclaimed "least favorite movie," 40 DAYS AND 40 NIGHTS, a supposed "sexy romcom" that's actually a melange of unfunny shenanigans, poisonous attitudes, nothing that resembles actual human behavior, and (trigger warning) some unacknowledged sexual assault. It's... a lot. But at least it led to a funny episode -- like a flower, blooming from a pile of shit. One last time for 2026 -- the Max Fun Drive is literally what keeps this show going. If you love listening and want to support creators, please consider becoming a member (or upgrading/boosting) at maximumfun.org/join! Stay updated on all things Flop House, plus a little extra, with our NEWSLETTER, “Flop Secrets! Wikipedia page for 40 Days and 40 Nights Recommended in this episode: Dan: Strange Brew (1983) Stu: Primate (2025) Elliott: Losing Ground (1982) Happy MaxFunDrive! Right now is the best time to start a membership to support your favorite shows. Learn more and join at https://maximumfun.