PaleyFest 2026: TV’s Biggest Stars Take Over Hollywood

PaleyFest is back at the iconic Dolby Theatre, bringing together the biggest names in television for exclusive panels, behind-the-scenes stories, and fan-favorite moments. Rene Reyes, Vice President, Programming & Festivals, The Paley Center for Media joins Hearther to break down what to expect, which stars are showing up, and why this annual festival is a must for TV lovers in Southern California.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:03):
Welcome to entertainment. This is a show where we cover
all things entertainment from SoCal to the silver screen. If
you're a fan of TV like I am, you don't
want to miss this. Pailey Fest returns to Hollywood this weekend,
bringing some of television's biggest stars and most talked about
shows to the stage at the Dolby Theater. Joining me
now is Renee Reyes, vice President of Programming and Festivals

(00:24):
for the Pailey Center for Media, to talk about what
audiences can expect from this year's lineup. Hello Renee, Hello Heather.

Speaker 2 (00:31):
It's such a pleasure to get a chance to speak
with you today.

Speaker 1 (00:34):
Thank you well. I am a big fan of television,
as are a lot of our listeners, and this is
always such a special event. And for people who may
not know what Pailey Fest is, tell us what is
it and what makes it such a unique experience for
TV fans.

Speaker 2 (00:49):
Well, if you're a big fan of television, then this
is the place to be from April fourth through twelfth
at the Dolby Theater because we're hosting our annual Television Fest,
books first television festival that was established honoring the medium
of television and We'll be welcoming the cast and creative
teams with shows from Apple TV's Pluribus to reuniting the

(01:12):
cast of Charlie's Angels on their fiftieth anniversary, to the
Pit and everything in between for screenings and conversations that
connect fans with the stars of the shows and the
creatives of the shows that they love.

Speaker 1 (01:25):
Now, why are these types of conversations and these types
of events important, you know, in a time where we
can see our favorite casts, you know, members on TikTok
or on social media, why are these conversations important in
this type of format.

Speaker 2 (01:42):
I think these conversations are important because you're actually together
in the room. You know. So much of the way
we experience television is voluntary or with a loved one,
or watching on our screen, watching on our phones. But
we don't have the chance to be in the room
watching the shows we love with the stars that we love.

(02:06):
And I think that personal connection is something that we
all crave right now, and so much of our life
lives are spent in front of a screen, and I
think Pailey Fesk gives TV fans the experience of connecting
and in person with the shows they love.

Speaker 1 (02:21):
I love that there is a special connection with watching
somebody speak live as opposed to just on your phone
or on social media. You know, there is a certainly
it draws you in more to the actors and the creators,
and I love that you all do that. So I'm
a big fan of television and I need to know
how do you decide what shows and casts make it

(02:43):
into the Paileyfest lineup?

Speaker 2 (02:45):
You know, the process of designing the shows that we
want to honor is always challenging because there is so
much incredible television out there right now. But thankfully, we're
a membership based organization, the Payley Center that produces that
the festival, and we hear from our members and we
hear from the general public all throughout the year about

(03:06):
the shows that they love and they would like to
see at the festival. We also take a look at,
you know, what's happening in television, what special anniversaries there
are that we want to celebrate, and also the shows
that we want to have these cast conversations with so
that we can preserve those conversations as a record of
television at the Paley Archive. It's a number of things,

(03:29):
and it starts basically right after. It takes that a year,
right starting right after the festival that we have to do.

Speaker 1 (03:36):
How long has Paileyfest been happening?

Speaker 2 (03:38):
This is a Pailey Fest forty third anniversary.

Speaker 1 (03:42):
Yeah, I was going to say it's been quite a while.

Speaker 2 (03:44):
Huh, yes, but we only look twenty.

Speaker 1 (03:49):
Me too, me too, exactly. Well, so that's so interesting
to me because this particular festival has been happening for
so long. You know, a lot has changed in the
television landscape over the last four decades. How is PaleyFest
and the Paie Center for Media adapting to reflect the
changes between streaming and digital content and the way people

(04:11):
watch TV.

Speaker 2 (04:12):
You're exactly exactly right that Censuccessible started four decades ago.
We've had a complete change in media and the way
that we consume it. I mean, it's involved just in
the last few years, and before we had all these
you know, just three broadcast networks and some local affiliates
that brought us what we what we watched on television,

(04:32):
and so we have this communal experience of TV, these
water cooler, cooler moments that everybody watched. That's harder to
come by in this day and age because we're all
so segmented in our audiences. We watch the shows we love,
we can watch them whenever we want, there's no point.
There's not as much appointment TV. So that's been the

(04:54):
biggest change, that you're speaking to audiences that are more segmented.
So we try at the festival to have the broadest
range of shows possible, the shows that are on big
streaming hits, shows that are classic, regular broadcast TV hits
that have those water cooler moments and special surprises throughout.

(05:16):
But I think the thing that never changes is the
connection people have to the shows that they love, and
great shows tend to rise to the.

Speaker 1 (05:25):
Top absolutely well. I have been telling everybody lately. The
show I'm really obsessed with right now is The Pit.
My husband and I both love Plural of Us. I
also absolutely adore Emily in Paris. There's so many great
shows and of course the LA shows. Nobody wants this
and shrinking. There's just so much to choose from during

(05:46):
the I guess about week and a half long event,
And can you tell everybody where they can get tickets
and get more information about Payleyfest.

Speaker 2 (05:55):
Absolutely all the festival details are at Paileyfest dot org
our website. You can buy tickets right there. That's payleafest
dot org. Get your directions, get the show times. But
basically we'll be at the Dolby Theater in Hollywood, Home
of the Oscars, from April four through twelve, and we'd
love to see you there.

Speaker 1 (06:15):
Rene, thank you so much. I appreciate your time.

Speaker 2 (06:17):
Heather, it's a pleasure talking to you. Thank you.

Speaker 1 (06:20):
Paileyfast really is a good time if you get a
chance to go out there and check it out. I
am obsessed with the pit right now. My family and
I are watching it. Probably shouldn't be letting my daughter
watch it with us. There are definitely some parts that
are graphic, but man, that's a great TV show. Also,
quick reminder, I would love to see you. I have
a couple of upcoming stand up comedy shows at the

(06:40):
Ice House in Pasadena. Tickets are still available. There's one
coming up on April twenty fifth, it's the Home by
nine Comedy Show. I would love to see you there.
Also May third, the Bleep Comedy Show is a clean show.
If you'd like your comedy clean, come out to that
one and then coming up way out in the distance.
May twenty second, at the Ice House Renegade. That's gonna

(07:01):
be wild, fun, good time. We'd love to see you
any of those shows. You can go to my website
Heatherbroker dot com for more information on tickets. Hope to
see you. Then, please take a minute to subscribe to
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