Glen Weldon
Glen Weldon is a host of NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast. He reviews books, movies, comics and more for the NPR Arts Desk.
Over the course of his career, he has spent time as a theater critic, a science writer, an oral historian, a writing teacher, a bookstore clerk, a PR flack, a completely inept marine biologist and a slightly better-ept competitive swimmer.
Weldon is the author of two cultural histories: Superman: The Unauthorized Biography and The Caped Crusade: Batman and the Rise of Nerd Culture. He has written for The New York Times, The Washington Post, The New Republic, The Atlantic, Slate, McSweeney's and more; his fiction has appeared in several anthologies and other publications. He is the recipient of an NEA Arts Journalism Fellowship, an Amtrak Writers' Residency, a Ragdale Writing Fellowship and a Pew Fellowship in the Arts for Fiction.
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The team at Cineplexity debate the current state of Hollywood epics with the release of Christopher Nolan's 'The Odyssey.'
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It's old-school, swords-and-sandals cinema, yet still modern and richly satisfying. -
One of the most anticipated releases of the summer, Christopher Nolan's "The Odyssey" brings the epic to IMAX screens and beyond. Pop Culture Happy Hour's Glen Weldon has thoughts.
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NPR's Star Wars nerds talk about whether the franchise still has the juice, as 'Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu' hits the cinemas.
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Glitter, vocal gymnastics, on-stage flames — the show goes on on the Eurovision stage in Vienna, even though five countries are boycotting this year's contest due to Israel's participation. -
NPR critics share their hopes and predictions for the 2026 Academy Awards, which air on Sunday. -
An Academy Award in Best Casting will be the newest prize at the Oscars in March. An NPR panel examines what an achievement in casting might mean.
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Actor Robert Duvall died Sunday at 95. Critic Glen Weldon looks back at his career playing icons of American masculinity.
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Duvall appeared in over 90 films over the course of his career, imbuing stock Hollywood types — cowboys, cops, soldiers — with a nuanced sense of vulnerability.
