March Madness is an annual NCAA style bracket tournament. Starting in 2018, the tournament has determined a fan-selected director #TheTwoFriends would cover. In 2020, a supplemental bracket was added on the Blank Check: Special Features Patreon to determine a franchise for special features commentaries.
Summary
March Madness is an annually recurring event for the show, in which listeners get to vote on a subject for the show to cover in an upcoming miniseries.
Subjects of Blank Check miniseries' have long been a popular topic of speculation by fans of the show. Over the course of the podcast's history many potential blank check directors, film franchises, and even star actors have been bandied about. Mailbag episodes have often featured a number of questions about them, the Blankies subreddit often has message threads about them, and on the podcast itself #TheTwoFriends will themselves sometimes entertain various notions of who or what would be fun to discuss. March Madness is one way for listeners to make their voices heard in a collective action.
The March Madness event pits 32 different miniseries options against each other in head to head matchups until just one winner remains. Over a period of weeks during the month of March, each individual matchup is voted on by fans to determine the winners. Griffin and David also emphasize that every one of the 32 contenders is one that they would enjoy doing a miniseries on -- there are no Whammies in this bunch, no patsies, no fall guys, so vote freely wherever your own conscience leads you!
The winning miniseries is then slotted into the upcoming schedule.
March Madness Rules
- Polls post on the Blank Check website blankcheckpod.com at or around the same time each day. Prior to 2022 the polls were posted on Twitter @blankcheckpod. In the 2024 tournament the main feed voting begins daily at 10AM ET and the Special Features tournament at 12PM ET.
- Polls are open for 24 hours, new poll daily from 3/1 through 3/31
- Winner = covered at the next available opportunity!
- Loser ≠ they never cover them
Tournament History
The tournaments began in 2018 and have grown steadily since then. Generally the winner of the tournament is covered in the fall of that year. After the launch of the Blank Check: Special Features, a corresponding franchise bracket has been part of the tournament available to Patreon subscribers.
| Votes cast per round | Total | Results | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | |||
| 2018 | 34,652 | 20,209 | 10,970 | 6,692 | 3,810 | 76,333 | 1. Nancy Meyers 2. David Fincher |
| 2019 | 54,420 | 30,557 | 15,680 | 9,870 | 6,240 | 116,767 | 1. Jonathan Demme 2. George Miller |
| 2020 Oscars vs. the Razzies |
100,747 | 56,491 | 39,173 | 20,801 | 8,995 | 226,207 | 1. Robert Zemeckis 2. Barry Sonnenfeld |
| 2021 Host v. Host v. Producer v. Guests |
190,246 | 86,182 | 50,579 | 53,469 | 35,221 | 415,697 | 1. John Carpenter 2. Gore Verbinski |
| 2022 20th Century |
122,554 | 69,021 (nice) |
35,470 | 23,542 | 15,635 | 266,222 | 1. Stanley Kubrick 2. Orson Welles |
| 2023 World Cup |
161,589 | 84,283 | 49,170 | 25,895 | 20,687 | 341,624 | 1. Park Chan-wook 2. Bong Joon-ho |
| 2024 The New Blood |
192,229 | 105,735 | 62,769 | 30,816 | 25,607 | 417,156 | 1. David Lynch 2. Spike Lee |
Special Features Tournament
- Main article: Special Features March Madness.
Beginning in 2020 after the first full year of the Patreon, a corresponding tournament was launched to determine a franchise that would be covered as a commentary series. As with the main bracket, losing franchises still often get covered. Participation in tournament voting has increased over the years, but not at the same rate as with the main bracket. As of 2022, the tournament will remain on Patreon as it did not experience the same controversy as the twitter polls.
March Madness Episodes
Recaps of the tournament have been appeared on the main feed and the patreon.
| # | Title | Audio | Guest(s) | Length | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 152 | March Madness 2018 Recap - Round 1 | 🔊 | 0:26 | 3/15/2018 | |
| 155 | March Madness 2018 Recap - Round 3 | 🔊 | 0:17 | 3/29/2018 | |
| -- | SPECIAL BLANK CHECK MARCH MADNESS ANNOUNCEMENT! | 🔇 | 0:03 | 2/26/2022 | |
| Special Features | |||||
| SF008 | March Madness 2019 Recap - Round 1 | 🔊 | 0:26 | 3/10/2019 | |
| SF010 | March Madness 2019 Recap - Round 2 | 🔊 | Chip Smith | 0:18 | 3/19/2019 |
| SF012 | March Madness 2019 Recap - Round 3 | 🔊 | Alex Ross Perry | 0:32 | 3/29/2019 |
| SF048 | March Madness 2020 Recap - Round 1 | 🔊 | Chip Smith Ben Hosley Angela Ferraguto |
0:34 | 3/9/2020 |
| SF050 | March Madness 2020 Recap - Round 2 | 🔊 | 0:58 | 3/18/2020 | |
| SF052 | March Madness 2020 Recap - Round 3 | 🔊 | 0:49 | 3/26/2020 | |
| SF054 | March Madness 2020 Recap - Round 4 | 🔊 | Chip Smith | 0:38 | 4/2/2020 |
| SF088 | March Madness 2021 Recap - Round 1 | 🔊 | Chip Smith Ben Hosley Marie Bardi |
1:23 | 3/10/2021 |
| SF090 | March Madness 2021 Recap - Round 2 | 🔊 | Ben Hosley Marie Bardi |
54:36 | 3/17/2021 |
| SF092 | March Madness 2021 Recap - Round 3 | 🔊 | Ben Hosley Marie Bardi ChipBot |
0:50 | 3/29/2021 |
| SF126 | 2022 MARCH MADNESS PREVIEW | 🔊 | Ben Hosley Marie Bardi |
1:03 | 2/25/2022 |
| SF129 | 2022 MARCH MADNESS UPDATE 1 PRESENTED BY THE CHIP REPORT | 🌜🔊 | Chip Smith Ben Hosley Marie Bardi |
1:02 | 3/21/2022 |
| SF131 | 2022 MARCH MADNESS UPDATE 2 PRESENTED BY THE CHIP REPORT | 🔊🌛 | Chip Smith Ben Hosley Marie Bardi |
0:51 | 3/29/2022 |
| SF165 | 2023 MARCH MADNESS PREVIEW | 🔊 | Chip Smith Ben Hosley Marie Bardi |
0:48 | 2/28/2023 |
| SF168 | 2023 March Madness Update 1 | 🔊 | Chip Smith Ben Hosley Marie Bardi |
1:00 | 3/20/2023 |
| SF170 | 2023 March Madness Update 2 | 🔊 | Ben Hosley Marie Bardi |
0:35 | 3/25/2023 |
| SF171 | 2023 March Madness Update 3 | 🔊 | Ben Hosley Marie Bardi |
0:38 | 3/31/2023 |
| SF205 | 2024 MARCH MADNESS PREVIEW | 🔊 | Chip Smith Ben Hosley Marie Bardi |
1:07 | 2/29/2024 |
| SF208 | 2024 March Madness Update 1 | 🔊 | Chip Smith Ben Hosley Marie Bardi |
0:57 | 3/19/2024 |
| SF210 | 2024 March Madness Update 2 | 🔊 | Chip Smith Ben Hosley Marie Bardi |
0:45 | 3/29/2024 |
Director Statistics
Legend
- 🏆 - A trophy indicates the bracket winner.
- 🥈 - A medal indicates they lost in the Finals and were the runner-up.
- 4️⃣ - A 4 indicates a Final Four appearance.
- 8️⃣ - An 8 indicates they advanced to the Elite Eight.
- 2️⃣ - A 2 indicates they advanced to the second round.
- ☑️ - A white/blue check mark indicates they were included in that year's bracket but did not advance beyond the first round.
- ✅ - A green check mark and gray square both indicate they were covered on the podcast and therefore ineligible for the bracket.
Statistics
| Director | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | Covered |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Abbas Kiarastomi | ☑️ | |||||||
| Agnès Varda | ☑️ | |||||||
| Alan J. Pakula | ☑️ | |||||||
| Albert Brooks | 2️⃣ | |||||||
| Alex Garland | 2️⃣ | |||||||
| Alex Proyas | ☑️ | |||||||
| Alfonso Cuarón | ☑️ | 2️⃣ | 8️⃣ | 8️⃣ | ||||
| Alfred Hitchcock (1929-1941) | ☑️ | |||||||
| Alfred Hitchcock (1942-1976) | 2️⃣ | |||||||
| Amy Heckerling | 8️⃣ | 2️⃣ | ||||||
| Andrei Tarkovsky | ☑️ | ☑️ | ||||||
| Andrew Stanton | 2️⃣ | |||||||
| Anthony Minghella | ☑️ | |||||||
| The Archers (Powell & Pressburger) | ☑️ | 2️⃣ | ||||||
| Barbra Streisand | ☑️ | ✅ | ||||||
| Barry Levinson | ☑️ | |||||||
| Barry Sonnenfeld | 🥈 | |||||||
| Baz Luhrmann | ☑️ | 8️⃣ | ||||||
| Bill Condon | 2️⃣ | |||||||
| Bill Duke | ☑️ | |||||||
| Blake Edwards | ☑️ | |||||||
| Bob Fosse[1] | ☑️ | ☑️ | ✅ | |||||
| Bong Joon-ho | 4️⃣ | 🥈 | ||||||
| Buster Keaton[1] | ☑️ | ☑️ | 2️⃣ | ✅ | ||||
| Carl Th. Dreyer | ☑️ | |||||||
| Céline Sciamma | ☑️ | |||||||
| Charlie Chaplin | 8️⃣ | |||||||
| Chris Columbus | ☑️ | |||||||
| Claire Denis | 2️⃣ | |||||||
| Coen Brothers | 8️⃣ | |||||||
| Curtis Hanson | ☑️ | |||||||
| Danny Boyle | ☑️ | 2️⃣ | 2️⃣ | ✅ | ||||
| Danny Devito | 2️⃣ | |||||||
| Darren Aronofsky | ☑️ | |||||||
| David Cronenberg | ☑️ | 8️⃣ | ||||||
| David Fincher | 🥈 | ✅ | ||||||
| David Lean | ☑️ | 8️⃣ | ☑️ | |||||
| David Lynch | 🏆 | |||||||
| David S. Ward | ☑️ | |||||||
| Denis Villeneuve | 8️⃣ | |||||||
| Dennis Dugan | ☑️ | |||||||
| Don Bluth | ☑️ | 2️⃣ | ||||||
| Dorothy Arzner | 2️⃣ | |||||||
| Edgar Wright | 8️⃣ | |||||||
| Edward Yang | ☑️ | 2️⃣ | ||||||
| Elaine May | 2️⃣ | ☑️ | 2️⃣ | ✅ | ||||
| Ernest Dickerson | 8️⃣ | |||||||
| Ernst Lubitsch | ☑️ | |||||||
| F. Gary Gray | ☑️ | |||||||
| F.W. Murnau | ☑️ | |||||||
| Francis Ford Coppola | 8️⃣ | 2️⃣ | ||||||
| François Truffaut | ☑️ | ☑️ | ||||||
| Frank Oz | 2️⃣ | |||||||
| Fritz Lang | 4️⃣ | ☑️ | ||||||
| George Miller | 4️⃣ | 🥈 | ✅ | |||||
| Gore Verbinski | 2️⃣ | 2️⃣ | 🥈 | |||||
| Guillermo del Toro | 8️⃣ | 8️⃣ | 8️⃣ | 4️⃣ | ||||
| Gus Van Sant | ☑️ | |||||||
| Guy Ritchie | ☑️ | |||||||
| Hal Ashby | ☑️ | |||||||
| Harmony Korine | ☑️ | |||||||
| Harold Ramis | 2️⃣ | |||||||
| Ida Lupino | ☑️ | |||||||
| Isao Takahata | 2️⃣ | |||||||
| Jackie Chan | 2️⃣ | |||||||
| Jacques Tati | ☑️ | ☑️ | ||||||
| James Gray | ☑️ | |||||||
| James Mangold | ☑️ | |||||||
| James Wan | ☑️ | |||||||
| Jane Campion | 8️⃣ | ✅ | ||||||
| Jean Cocteau | ☑️ | |||||||
| Jia Zhangke | ☑️ | |||||||
| Jim Henson | 2️⃣ | |||||||
| Jim Jarmusch | ☑️ | |||||||
| Joan Micklin Silver | ☑️ | |||||||
| Joe Dante | 2️⃣ | 2️⃣ | 2️⃣ | |||||
| Joe Johnston | ☑️ | |||||||
| Joe Wright | ☑️ | |||||||
| John Carpenter | 4️⃣ | 🏆 | ✅ | |||||
| John Cassavetes | ☑️ | 2️⃣ | ||||||
| John Hughes | 2️⃣ | |||||||
| John McTiernan | ☑️ | 2️⃣ | ✅ | |||||
| John Singleton | ☑️ | ☑️ | ✅ | |||||
| Jonathan Demme | 🏆 | ✅ | ||||||
| Jonathan Glazer | ☑️ | |||||||
| Judd Apatow | ☑️ | |||||||
| Karyn Kusama | 2️⃣ | |||||||
| Kelly Reichardt | ☑️ | |||||||
| Kevin Costner | ☑️ | |||||||
| Lars von Trier | ☑️ | |||||||
| Leos Carax | ☑️ | |||||||
| Luc Besson | 2️⃣ | |||||||
| Luca Guadagnino | ☑️ | |||||||
| Luchino Visconti | ☑️ | |||||||
| Lucrecia Martel | ☑️ | |||||||
| Lynne Ramsay | ☑️ | 2️⃣ | ||||||
| Martin Brest[1] | 2️⃣ | ☑️ | 8️⃣ | 2️⃣ | ||||
| Martin Scorsese | ☑️ | |||||||
| Mel Brooks | 2️⃣ | 8️⃣ | ||||||
| Melvin Van Peebles | 2️⃣ | |||||||
| Michael Bay | ☑️ | 2️⃣ | 4️⃣ | |||||
| Michael Cimino | 2️⃣ | ☑️ | ||||||
| Michael Mann | 4️⃣ | ✅ | ||||||
| Mike Judge | ☑️ | |||||||
| Mike Leigh | ☑️ | ☑️ | ||||||
| Mike Nichols | 2️⃣ | |||||||
| Miloš Forman | ☑️ | ☑️ | ||||||
| Mira Nair | ☑️ | |||||||
| Nancy Meyers | 🏆 | ✅ | ||||||
| Nicole Holofcener | 2️⃣ | |||||||
| Nora Ephron | ☑️ | ☑️ | ✅ | |||||
| Oliver Stone | ☑️ | |||||||
| Orson Welles | 🥈 | |||||||
| Ousmane Sembène | ☑️ | |||||||
| Pablo Larraín | ☑️ | |||||||
| Park Chan-wook | 🏆 | ✅ | ||||||
| Paul Thomas Anderson | 2️⃣ | 8️⃣ | ||||||
| Paul Verhoeven (Dutch) | ☑️ | ☑️ | ||||||
| Paul W.S. Anderson | ☑️ | |||||||
| Pedro Almodóvar | 2️⃣ | |||||||
| Penelope Spheeris | ☑️ | |||||||
| Penny Marshall | 2️⃣ | |||||||
| Peter Farrelly | ☑️ | |||||||
| Peter Jackson | 2️⃣ | 8️⃣ | ☑️ | 2️⃣ | ||||
| Peter Weir | ☑️ | ☑️ | 8️⃣ | |||||
| Preston Sturges | ☑️ | ☑️ | ☑️ | |||||
| Prince | 8️⃣ | |||||||
| Richard Kelly | ☑️ | |||||||
| Richard Linklater | 8️⃣ | |||||||
| Ridley Scott | 4️⃣ | |||||||
| Robert Altman (1970's)[1] | 2️⃣ | ☑️ | 4️⃣ | 8️⃣ | ||||
| Robert Zemeckis | 🏆 | ✅ | ||||||
| Sam Raimi | 8️⃣ | 4️⃣ | ✅ | |||||
| Satoshi Kon | 2️⃣ | ✅ | ||||||
| Sergei Eisenstein | ☑️ | |||||||
| Sergio Leone | 2️⃣ | |||||||
| Sofia Coppola | 8️⃣ | |||||||
| Spike Jonze | 8️⃣ | |||||||
| Spike Lee | 🥈 | |||||||
| Stanley Kubrick | 🏆 | ✅ | ||||||
| Stephen Chow | 2️⃣ | |||||||
| Steve McQueen | ☑️ | ☑️ | ||||||
| Steven Soderbergh | 4️⃣ | |||||||
| Steven Spielberg (pre-Oscar) | ☑️ | 4️⃣ | ||||||
| Sylvester Stallone | ☑️ | |||||||
| Terrence Malick | ☑️ | ☑️ | 8️⃣ | |||||
| Terry Gilliam | ☑️ | |||||||
| Todd Haynes | 8️⃣ | |||||||
| Tom Green | ☑️ | |||||||
| Tom Hooper | 2️⃣ | |||||||
| Tony Scott | ☑️ | |||||||
| Warren Beatty[1] | ☑️ | ☑️ | ☑️ | |||||
| Wes Anderson | ☑️ | |||||||
| Wes Craven | 2️⃣ | |||||||
| William Friedkin | 2️⃣ | ☑️ | ||||||
| Wolfgang Petersen | 2️⃣ | |||||||
| Wong Kar-wai | 4️⃣ | 4️⃣ |
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Fosse, Beatty and Brest were all said to be retired from March Madness after 2021 during the 2022 March Madness Update 1 Presented by The Chip Report. Keaton and 70's Altman were retired after they were eliminated in 2022 in the 2022 March Madness Update 2 Presented by The Chip Report.