Newcomers

with Nicole Byer and Lauren Lapkus

In Newcomers, Lauren Lapkus and Nicole Byer take a deep dive into cultural staples they haven’t gotten around to just yet. So far, they have covered Star Wars, The Lord of the Rings, Tyler Perry's body of work, the Fast & Furious Franchise, the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the many interpretations of Batman, and the filmography of Martin Scorsese. Next up, Lauren and Nicole get into legendary sports movies!

FINAL DESTINATION 3 with Lauren Lapkus 8/13/2025

Enjoy this throwback to Lauren's appearance on fellow Headgum podcast Too Scary; Didn't Watch where she and the hosts recapped Final Destination 3! And if you want to hear more, listen to their recent Final Destination: Bloodlines episode with Lisa Gilroy here!

Best Friends with Nicole Byer & Sasheer Zamata is back! 7/30/2025

Exciting news from Nicole: Best Friends is BACK and 1) now on Headgum, 2) with FULL VIDEO EPISODES! Enter the pantheon of best friendship and check out Nicole and Sasheer's first episode back, available now on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. And Subscribe to the Best Friends YouTube channel (@NicoleandSasheer) for video episodes. New episodes every Wednesday.

Introducing: Thanks Dad with Ego Nwodim 9/17/2024

Have a listen to Thanks Dad with Ego Nwodim, a new Headgum podcast! Raised by a single mom, Ego Nwodim may have daddy issues, but she suspects you might, too. On Thanks Dad, she invites guests like Bill Burr, Kenan Thompson, Adam Pally, Hasan Minaj, Tim Meadows, Andy Cohen, and many more to be her “Dad for the Day” and has funny, heartfelt conversations with them about their experiences with their own dads and as parents themselves. Each episode wraps up with her getting practical advice from her guests such as how to get the best deal when buying a house, how to know you’ve found “the one,” and how to perfect your jump shot.

Bull Durham (Livestream Finale!) w/ Rob Huebel & Paul Scheer 9/10/2024

It’s the extra special livestream finale of Newcomers: Sports! Lauren and Nicole are called up to the show to discuss Bull Durham with very special guests Rob Huebel and Paul Scheer. Along with celebrating the alluring powerhouse that is Susan Sarandon, the group also gets into the range of Tim Robbins, the strangeness of A Big Romantic Speech, and improvise the plot to Bull Durham 2. You can hear six seasons of Newcomers theme music composed by Newcomer’s editor/composer extraordinaire Faris Monshi now streaming everywhere: bit.ly/ThemesFromNewcomers

Field of Dreams (w/ Paul F. Tompkins) 9/3/2024

Lauren and Nicole take a trip to the Field of Dreams with very special guest Paul F. Tompkins (Threedom)! Together, the group gets into what hypothetical players they’d like to recruit for their own ghost team, the oddity of hearing voices telling you to build a baseball field, and take a slight detour to discuss a completely different film, The Whale.

Challengers (w/ Margaret Cho) 8/27/2024

Lauren and Nicole head to the front row of the New Rochelle Challenger with very special guest Margaret Cho to chat all things Challengers! Our trio examines the film’s trio of Zendaya, Mike Faist, and Josh O’Connor, share their expectations versus reality of one of 2024’s sexiest films, reminisce about early aughts fashion, and muse about the similarities between pursuing a career in sports and comedy.

Bend It Like Beckham (w/ E.R. Fightmaster, Katie Kershaw, & Tien Tran) 8/20/2024

Lauren and Nicole hop over the pond with very special guests E.R. Fightmaster, Katie Kershaw, & Tien Tran (Jockular) to get into all things women’s football with the early aughts film Bend It Like Beckham. We also discuss the icon and living legend Ilona Maher, the beyond obvious queer storyline that refuses to come to fruition, and the movie trope of an injured man becoming the coach for a women’s team.

The Karate Kid (w/ Bill Hader) 8/13/2024

This week, Lauren and Nicole take a trip to the Cobra Kai dojo to get into all things The Karate Kid with very special guest Bill Hader (Barry, SNL)! The group waxes (on and off, of course) about the in-depth backstories of Daniel LaRusso (Ralph Macchio) and Mr. Miyagi (Pat Morita), the incredibly high expectations this movie set for both dating and martial arts training, and where Joe Pesci might possibly fit into this cinematic universe.

Miracle (w/ Gareth Reynolds) 8/6/2024

This week, Lauren and Nicole are joined by very special guest Gareth Reynolds (The Dollop, We’re Here to Help) to debrief the Kurt Russell-led hockey film, Miracle, just in time for the (summer) Olympics. The stakes are high, the character introductions are long, and the hockey stops are as satisfyingly crisp as ever.

Rocky (w/ Rekha Shankar) 7/30/2024

Lauren and Nicole enter the world of boxing with very special guest, comedian and Philadelphia native Rekha Shankar! The group gets into the interesting social dynamics that come with Rocky’s quirky pet ownership, the cultural obsession with impersonating Sylvester Stallone, and the lasting impact of yelling “Adrian!”.

A League of Their Own (w/ Molly Kearney and Melanie Field) 7/23/2024

Lauren and Nicole are back covering the baseball classic A League of Their Own with very special guests from the eponymous Amazon series, Molly Kearney and Melanie Field! We discuss BTS tea from the fan-beloved series, the intricacies and hurdles of women’s sports in the 20th century, and shine a deserving light on Rosie O’Donnell’s hit-after-hit acting career in the 90s.

Rudy (w/ Emily Hampshire) 7/16/2024

Lauren and Nicole are joined by very special guest Emily Hampshire (Schitt’s Creek) to debrief the classic football film, Rudy. No conversational stone is left unturned, from Rudy’s older brother stealing his girlfriend (rude!) to Rudy having the impulse to read every single rejection letter out loud (funny!).

White Men Can't Jump (w/ Amir Blumenfeld) 7/9/2024

Lauren and Nicole are back with an epic new season of Newcomers covering legendary sports movies. This week, they discuss White Men Can’t Jump (1992) with Headgum founder Amir Blumenfeld, getting into personal experiences playing sports and clear up misconceptions about the film's sequel.