Unabridged: Let’s Never Talk About These Oscars Again with Saeed Jones and Zach Stafford

The 98th Academy Awards ceremony was this past Sunday, and we’ve got a lot to talk about. Today, I’m joined by Vibe Check co-hosts and friends of the pod, Saeed Jones and Zach Stafford, to recap all things Oscars, discussing everything from our Timothée Chalamet burnout to why people pitted Sinners and One Battle After Another against each other, and a whole lot more. This is a follow-up to my pre-Oscars chat with Saeed and Zach last week on Vibe Check—you can listen to that episode here.

*This episode is exclusive to members of The Stacks Pack on Patreon and our Substack subscribers. To join a community, get inside access to the show, and listen now, click the link below.

JOIN PATREON OR SUBSTACK TO LISTEN

Everything we talk about on today’s episode can be found below in the show notes. You can also find what we talked about on Bookshop.org and Amazon.

• Vibe Check (SiriusXM Podcasts)

• The 98th Oscars (Hulu)

• One Battle After Another (Paul Thomas Anderson, 2025)

• Timothée Chalamet

• Heated Rivalry (HBO)

• Dune (Denis Villeneuve, 2021)

• A Complete Unknown (James Mangold, 2024)

• “Why Timothée Chalamet Lost the Oscar for Best Actor” (Nate Jones, Vulture)

• Marty Supreme (Josh Safdie, 2025)

• Sinners (Ryan Coogler, 2025)

• Harvard University (Cambridge, MA)

• Everything Everywhere All at Once (Dan Kwan, 2022)

• “BAFTA apologizes to Michael B. Jordan, Delroy Lindo over racist slur outburst amid backlash” (Alexandra Del Rosario, The Los Angeles Angeles Times)

• Michael B. Jordan

• Ryan Coogler

• Barbara Streisand

• Robert Redford

• “One Oscar Battle After Another with Traci Thomas” (Vibe Check)

• Teyana Taylor

• Amy Madigan

• Vibe Check x The Stacks Oscars Predictions (Instagram)

• Sam Sanders

• The Wire (HBO)

• Creed (Ryan Coogler, 2015)

• Delroy Lindo

• Sean Penn

• Ruth E. Carter

• The Art of Ruth E. Carter by Ruth E. Carter

• Frankenstein (Guillermo del Toro, 2025)

• Mia Goth

• Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

• Frankenstein (James Whale, 1931)

• Guillermo del Toro

• Alexander McQueen

• Wes Anderson

• Friday Night Lights (NBC)

• All My Children (ABC)

• Emma Stone

• Easy A (Will Gluck, 2010)

• Kirsten Dunst

• Interview with the Vampire (Neil Jordan, 1994)

• Bring it On (Peyton Reed, 2000)

• Nicole Kidman

• Fruitvale Station (Ryan Coogler, 2013)

• “Leonardo DiCaprio and Michael B. Jordan Share a Long, Loving Hug Moments After Sinners Star Won Best Actor at 2026 Oscars” (Tommy McArdle, People)

• Leonardo DiCaprio

• Benicio del Toro

• Angela Bassett

• Timothée Chalamet’s 2025 SAG Awards Speech

• Michael Jordan

• “Mr. Nobody Against Putin Accepts the Oscar for Documentary Feature Film”

• Mr Nobody Against Putin (David Borenstein, Pavel Talankin, 2026)

• Inside the Actor’s Studio (Bravo)

• Autumn Durald Arkapaw

• Jack O’Connell

• Marlon James

• Prelude to Bruise by Saeed Jones

• A Brief History of Seven Killings by Marlon James

• Steven Spielberg

• “Steven Spielberg shades Timothée Chalamet in scathing comments about ballet and opera ahead of Oscars 2026” (Alexandra Bellusci, Page Six)

• Wunmi Mosaku

• The Kardashian Family

• “Beyoncé & Jay Z Ultra-Exclusive Oscars After-Party Draws Stars!!!” (TMZ Staff, TMZ)

• Vineland by Thomas Pynchon

• “Sinners Accepts the Oscar for Writing (Original Screenplay)” (ABC)

• Zinzi Coogler

• “One Battle After Another Accepts the Oscar for Writing (Adapted Screenplay)” (ABC)

• Maya Rudolph

• Jericho Brown

• Camonghne Felix

• “LADY GAGA Wins BEST POP VOCAL ALBUM For 'MAYHEM' | 2026 GRAMMYs Acceptance Speech” (Recording Academy / GRAMMYs)

• “HARRY STYLES wins Album of the Year for ‘HARRY’S HOUSE’ | 2023 GRAMMYs Acceptance Speech” (Recording Academy, GRAMMYs)

• “One Battle After Another Accepts the Oscar for Best Picture” (ABC)

• Chase Infiniti

• “American Girl” by Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers

• Regina Hall

• “Teyana Taylor Slams “Sore Losers” After Being Criticized for Celebrating Amy Madigan’s Oscars Win” (Carly Thomas, The Hollywood Reporter)

• Sula by Toni Morrison

• Coda (Siân Heder, 2021)

• Hamnet (Chloé Zhao, 2025)

• Barbie (Greta Gerwig, 2023)

• Oppenheimer (Christopher Nolan, 2023)

• King Richard (Reinaldo Green, 2021)

• Slumdog Millionaire (Danny Boyle, 2008)

• Chicago (Rob Marshall, 2003)

• The Departed (Martin Scorsese, 2006)

• Parasite (Bong Joon Ho, 2019)

• Sentimental Value (Joachim Trier, 2025)

• Black Bag (Steven Soderbergh, 2025)

• Michael Fassbender

• Cate Blanchett

• Naomie Harris

• Marisa Abela

• Industry (HBO)

• Heated Rivalry by Rachel Reid

• Christiana Mbakwe Medina

• Pop Syllabus

• “Ep. 406 A Consumer of Pop Culture First with Christiana Mbakwe Medina” (The Stacks)

Connect with Saeed: Instagram | BlueSky | Website
Connect with Zach: Instagram | Threads
Connect with The Stacks: Instagram | Twitter | Shop | Patreon | Goodreads | Subscribe

To contribute to The Stacks, join The Stacks Pack, and get exclusive perks, check out our Patreon page. If you prefer to support the show with a one-time contribution go to paypal.me/thestackspod.

---

The Stacks participates in affiliate programs. We receive a small commission when products are purchased through links on this website, and this comes at no cost to you. This in no way effects opinions on books and products reviewed here. For more information click here.