Get ready for ”A TAKE ON THE ACADEMY!” The podcast that plunges headfirst into the Oscar snubs that have everyone buzzing! Ever wondered who truly deserves the spotlight? While the world shouts, “This person/film was snubbed for an Academy Award!” we dive into the juicy question: who genuinely deserved that prestigious nomination? With only five slots available, each snub tells an electrifying story—unveiling the shortcomings of the competition! Join our passionate host and Academy aficionado, Matthew Sprosty, alongside whoever dares to join him on this thrilling ride as they confront the uncomfortable truths of Hollywood. They’re determined to spotlight the overlooked talent that truly deserves your adoration! Don’t miss your opportunity to experience awards season through a fresh and exhilarating lens!
John Hemphill joins A Take on the Academy to talk about his time playing Donald Cheney in David Fincher’s Zodiac—and to set the record straight about one of Hollywood’s most famously demanding directors. According to John, Fincher was an absolute delight to work with.
John also shares stories about growing up in Tacoma, Washington, building a career in Los Angeles, and eventually heading to New York, where he found Broadway (and met his beautiful wife.) Along the way, he has plenty of kind things to say about actors such as Anthony Edwards and Josh Duhamel, because that is simply who John is: successful, deeply humble, and one of the nicest people you could ever hope to meet.
This is a conversation about Zodiac, acting, Broadway, persistence, and a career built without losing the positivity that makes John so special.
22 Oct 2026
Did Jack Lemmon Deserve His Oscar for "Save the Tiger"? (W/ Kael Your Idols)
We invited Sam Ludwig and Alana Gibson from Kael Your Idols to help us reconsider Jack Lemmon’s Oscar winning performance in Save the Tiger. We did not expect to discuss nearly all 26 films we watched along the way, but once we started talking about New Hollywood, nobody wanted to stop.
Together, we dig into an extraordinary year of performances from Al Pacino, Jack Nicholson, Elliott Gould, Marlon Brando, Lee Marvin, Gene Hackman, Ryan O’Neal, Joe Don Baker, Robert Blake, Walter Matthau, and many more. Some are iconic. Some are overlooked. Some come with baggage that is impossible to ignore.
Did Jack Lemmon deserve the Oscar? Should it have gone to one of his fellow nominees? Or did the best performance of 1973 come from somewhere else entirely?
Listen to find out who survived our final vote, then subscribe to Kael Your Idols for more journeys through the strange, exciting, occasionally exhausting world of New Hollywood.
8 Oct 2026
The First Film To Sweep The Big 5 Oscars (Courtesy of I Know Movies and You Don't)
This week, A Take on the Academy is borrowing an episode from our friend Kyle Bruehl and his terrific film-history podcast, I Know Movies and You Don’t. Our conversation about It Happened One Night was simply too good not to share with our listeners!
We discuss Frank Capra’s enduring 1934 romantic comedy, Robert Riskin’s Oscar-winning screenplay, the unexpected comic brilliance of Clark Gable and Claudette Colbert, and the Depression-era class divide hiding beneath all that romance and banter. It is a movie about two people falling in love—but also about wealth, survival, community, and what happens when an heiress finally gets outside the walls built around her.
Reach and audience
Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.
Apple Podcasts (US)
5.0 / 5
17 ratings
Spotify
5.0 / 5
46 ratings
Podcast Authority Score: 32 / 100
A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.
Quality
37
Social presence
0
YouTube
0
Engagement
71
Contact Spro and Lee Take on the Academy
Guest appearances
Does not typically book guests
Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.
Host of Spro and Lee Take on the Academy?
Claim your podcast to manage its listing and keep your show details accurate.
Pod Engine is an independent podcast discovery and analytics service and is not affiliated with or endorsed by this podcast. Artwork and show content belong to their owners. Full legal notice.
Explore this show Podcast research with Pod Engine
