Creator ‘Kindred’ on the challenges of merging time travel and trauma – The Hollywood Reporter

Welcome to the 195th episode of Top 5 TVs, The Hollywood Reportertv podcast.

Each week, the hosts Lesley Goldberg (editor of West Coast TV) and Daniel Fienberg (chief television critic) breaks down the latest TV news with context from the business and critical side, welcomes showrunners, executives and other guests, and provides a critical guide to what to watch (or skip, depending on the case).

This week, we’re joined by playwright-turned-showrunner Branden Jacobs-Jenkins to discuss his FX series on Hulu Kinship and feature the return of the Mailbag segment. Here’s how the episode unfolds:

1. Titles

The Dark Tower, Taylor Kitch, Jake Gyllenhaal, monarch, surface, HBO Max, AMC and The daily show lead the headlines of the week.

2. The Golden Globes are back

Jerrod Carmichael has signed on to host the 80th annual awards ceremony, which returns after a chaotic 18 months in which the HFPA faced criticism. Can rewards bounce back?

3. Mailbag

In this segment, we answer questions from listeners. This week, we take a look at the future of television broadcasting and the final seasons of Fantastic race and Survivor. Have a question or topic you’d like to hear from us in an upcoming episode? Email us at [email protected].

4. Spotlight on the showrunner

Playwright and two-time Pulitzer Prize finalist Branden Jacobs-Jenkins joins the show this week to discuss her transition from stage to TV and adapting Octavia Butler’s beloved novel Kinship. In the wide-ranging interview, Jacobs-Jenkins opens up about the “profound impact” Butler’s work had on him and the path to Kinship which began in 2010. To hear the first showrunner say, “Obama helped” the show sell as the writer says the success of get out “reinvigorated the industry’s appetite” to make gender a fare for people of color. The first season of Kinship, only covers a third of Butler’s book, he says, and the showrunner hopes the series will run for multiple seasons.

5. Critics Corner

As usual, each episode ends with Dan’s thoughts on what to watch (or skip) this weekend. This week he weighs in on Apple Little America, FX/Hulu Kinship and those of Netflix Harry and Meghan doc.

Listen to it all now on Top 5 TVs. Make sure you subscribe to the podcast so you never miss an episode. (Comments welcome!) You can also email us with any Mailbag topics or questions you want to address in future episodes at [email protected].