REVIEW: Glen Powell and Nicholas Braun’s Audible Original Podcast, ‘The Best Man’s Ghostwriter’ is Well Worth the Listen
Glen Powell and Nicholas Braun are taking their acting chops to the podcast world in the Audible Original podcast, The Best Man’s Ghostwriter. Written and directed by Matthew Starr, the 10-episode podcast follows Nate (voiced by Glen Powell). Nate seems to have the perfect life. He is about to marry the love of his life, Ash (voiced by Ashley Park), has a great career helping men write their Best Man speech, and has no friends. After experiencing a traumatizing break-up with his former best friend, Xavier, Nate has decided to keep everyone, but Ash, at arm’s length. When Nate is assigned to help the awkward Dan (voiced by Nicholas Braun), with his best man speech, Nate will find the line between client and friendship become blurred. Now, Nate must decide if he can be vulnerable enough to let friends like Dan into his life, or continue to push everyone away. Oh, and at the same time, he also has to find a best man for his own wedding.
Written and directed by Matthew Starr, this series’ focus is on the ins and outs of male friendship, but that’s not entirely true. The series focus is on all friendship, regardless of the gender. Beautifully paced, each episode explores a lesson Nate is attempting to teach Dan. From remembering that the best man is in control to never talking about exes in the speech, listeners are gifted examples to these lessons in the form of past clients of Nate. While these lessons are unfolding, you are slowly learning about Nate’s past with Xavier. These moments are brief, and reveal very little about what happened between the pair, just that they had a falling out. It is not until almost the end of the series that you finally learn what happened between the two, and it is worth the wait.
Powell and Braun are perfect as Nate and Dan. The two’s performances make it easy for the listener to imagine what is unfolding on screen without constantly being reminded that it is Glen Powell and Nicholas Braun voicing the characters. The pair is joined in the series by a slew of other amazing vocal talent including Park, D’Arcy Carden, Lance Bass, Lukas Gage, Alex Wolff, Debra Messing, Zach Braff, and Neil Flynn, who all knock it out of the park.
Whether listening in your car, during a workout, or while relaxing at home, Audible Original, The Best Man’s Ghostwriter is a must listen. As someone who only really listens to true crime podcasts, this series has me hooked from start to finish, and left me wanting more. Streaming only on Audible, you will not be disappointed tuning in for this one. You can check the series out here! Enjoy!