• by Melynda Fuller , March 2, 2018

This week, ahead of Sunday’s 90^th annual Academy Awards, Variety and iHeartMedia announced a new film-focused podcast series called PLAYBACK, hosted by Variety awards editor Chris Tapley.

The podcast, which will feature 40 episodes in its first season, showcases interviews with Hollywood luminaries. The first episode highlights this year’s Oscar crop with Greta Gerwig, Jordan Peele, Gary Oldman, Willem Dafoe, and more. Upcoming guests include Ava DuVernay, director of the upcoming Wrinkle in Time, and actor David Oyelowo.

This announcement comes as rumors swirl about iHeartMedia’s impending declaration of bankruptcy. According to Bloomberg News, the media company, reported to be $20 billion in debt, missed a February 1 interest payment, with the 30-day grace period up, and also failed to complete two bond payments.

Reportedly, some of iHeartMedia’s senior creditors have seen bankruptcy papers prepared for the company’s first day in court. In recent weeks, iHeartMedia and its creditors have been sharing proposals for needed restructuring.

Liberty Media’s John Malone offered a last-minute infusion of cash to save the company, but reports say it wasn’t enough. Presently, Liberty owns a significant portion of iHeart’s debt.

iHeartMedia, which offers free digital music, podcasting and live streaming radio on over 230 device platforms, enjoys the largest reach in the U.S. of any media outlet. It will broadcast custom vignettes to introduce the podcast to its network of more than one-quarter billion monthly listeners. 

Host Tapley is a veteran of entertainment media, having covered the film industry and entertainment awards since 2001. His work has appeared in The New York Times, The Times of London and Los Angeles Magazine. He surveys the Oscar and Emmy seasons at “In Contention” at Variety.

Liberty Media also owns SiriusXM, and billionaire Malone sees crossover potential between the two companies. According to Bloomberg, negotiations are ongoing, but an announcement could come as early as the weekend.