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MOVIE

To Die For (1995)

Directed by Gus Van Sant•1h 46m•Published Oct 7, 2025•Episode length 3h 10m
Episode 299 - To Die For
DramaComedyCrime

Top cast

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Nicole Kidman
Nicole Kidman
Suzanne Stone
Matt Dillon
Matt Dillon
Larry Maretto
Joaquin Phoenix
Joaquin Phoenix
Jimmy Emmett
Casey Affleck
Casey Affleck
Russel Hines
Illeana Douglas
Illeana Douglas
Janice Maretto
Alison Folland
Alison Folland
Lydia Mertz
Dan Hedaya
Dan Hedaya
Joe Maretto
Wayne Knight
Wayne Knight
Ed Grant
Kurtwood Smith
Kurtwood Smith
Earl Stone
Holland Taylor
Holland Taylor
Carol Stone

Director

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Gus Van Sant
Gus Van Sant
Director
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Overview

Suzanne Stone wants to be a world-famous news anchor and she is willing to do anything to get what she wants. What she lacks in intelligence, she makes up for in cold determination and diabolical wiles. As she pursues her goal with relentless focus, she is forced to destroy anything and anyone that may stand in her way, regardless of the ultimate cost or means necessary.

Show notes

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You're not anyone unless you're on a podcast - It’s a full house this week as Ian, Liam, Megs & Kev are all actually in studio together for our 299th episode, sinking our teeth into Gus Van Sant’s razor-sharp media satire To Die For (1995). That’s right—no Zoom delays; no apologies, best wishes or excuses, just fou…

Read full show notes

You're not anyone unless you're on a podcast - It’s a full house this week as Ian, Liam, Megs & Kev are all actually in studio together for our 299th episode, sinking our teeth into Gus Van Sant’s razor-sharp media satire To Die For (1995). That’s right—no Zoom delays; no apologies, best wishes or excuses, just four podcasters, four microphones, and an unhealthy fascination with fame.  We're skating on thin ice in our 299th episode as we discuss:

  • We learn the name under which Joaquin Phoenix’s early films were classified—and why it might surprise you.
  • There’s a lot of talk about what day of the week the podcast actually comes out on (and whether any of us even know).
  • We all want to enter the alternate casting universe to see who the producers wanted to play Suzanne—and whether that version of the film would’ve worked at all.
  • Is Suzanne Stone one of Nicole Kidman’s greatest performances—or is she just too good at being awful?
  • How the film predicted the age of reality TV and social media fame years before they existed.
  • What’s the line between ambition and sociopathy—and where does Suzanne fall on that spectrum?
  • How Van Sant uses tone to walk the line between dark comedy and true crime tragedy.
  • Why To Die For feels both 1990s and frighteningly current in 2025.
  • Which scene left us most uncomfortable—and which line still gets a nervous laugh.
  • And finally, whether To Die For is the Best Film Ever—or just the most chillingly relevant film you’ve never revisited.

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