The Ex Talk

Shay Goldstein, a 29-year-old senior producer at Seattle's Pacific Public Radio (PPR), has devoted the past decade to the station. Her career is rooted in the love of radio she shared with her late father, Dan, who owned an electronics repair shop. They spent her childhood pretending to host shows together, and his sudden death from cardiac arrest during her senior year of high school shattered her. The internship she landed at PPR became the anchor that pulled her through grief.

When Dominic Yun, a 24-year-old reporter fresh from a master's program at Northwestern, joins the station, Shay finds him arrogant and frustratingly talented. Dominic breaks a story about the mayor's misuse of campaign funds, and the segment overtakes Puget Sounds, the show Shay produces and Paloma Powers hosts. Dominic proves to be a natural on live radio, and Shay's grudging recognition of his skill only deepens her resentment.

Shay's personal life is also unsettled. Her mother, Leanna, a Seattle Symphony violinist, surprises everyone by proposing to her boyfriend Phil Adeleke, also a violinist. Her best friend, Ameena Chaudhry, is interviewing for a dream job in Virginia. Shay herself is on a dating app hiatus after a pattern of saying "I love you" too soon, and she owns a house in the Wallingford neighborhood that feels too quiet for one person.

PPR's program director, Kent O'Grady, calls a staff meeting to address declining listenership and imminent layoffs. Shay pitches a dating show hosted by exes; Dominic dismisses the idea, and they argue publicly. Afterward, Kent proposes something startling: He wants them to cohost the show together, pretending they are former lovers and leveraging their natural on-air friction. He reveals that Puget Sounds will be canceled and that the show is the only way to save their jobs and that of Shay's assistant producer, Ruthie Liao. Dominic refuses at first, but Shay persuades him over dinner by appealing to his ambitions, and they agree to a six-month commitment.

They spend a late evening crafting their fake relationship history: a first date, a Halloween anniversary, and a breakup caused by the pressures of working together. Ruthie suggests the name The Ex Talk. Shay adopts a small, anxious Chihuahua mix she names Steve Rogers and tells her mother she dated Dominic, feeling guilty about the deception.

The show premieres, and despite nerves, Shay and Dominic find a natural rhythm trading scripted banter and fielding listener calls. Social media response is enthusiastic, with listeners rallying around "Shayminic." A tweet from actress Saffron Shaw propels the podcast into the Apple Podcasts Top 100, and sponsors sign on. However, a hostile caller questions the show's legitimacy by citing gaps in their social media history. Dominic shuts him down and passionately defends Shay, but the incident rattles them. Kent responds by ordering them to spend a weekend at an Airbnb on Orcas Island to deepen their knowledge of each other.

Physical tension has been building alongside the show's success. During a taping at a dark restaurant, feeding each other chocolate truffles becomes unexpectedly intimate. After a night of celebratory drinking, Dominic kisses Shay outside his apartment; they agree to forget it happened.

The Orcas Island weekend becomes a turning point. Dominic calms Shay's terrified dog during a thunderstorm by wrapping him in a T-shirt, a gesture that moves Shay deeply. Over late-night conversations, they share vulnerable truths: Dominic reveals that his ex-girlfriend Mia, his only relationship, left after he spent a year caring for her through a serious skiing injury. Shay tells him about her father and the loneliness that has followed. When Shay brings up the kiss, Dominic says that if he kissed her again, it would be because he wanted to, not for the show. They sleep together, and the rest of the weekend is spent hiking and growing closer.

Back in Seattle, they agree to keep things casual to protect the show, but Shay's feelings quickly exceed that label. During one episode, Dominic mentions being interested in someone without naming the person. When Ameena accepts the Virginia job and accuses Shay of clinging to her father's memory and using her career as her whole identity, Shay is devastated. She texts Dominic, who comes over with Thai food and stays the night, breaking their no-sleepover rule. After meeting Dominic's warm parents, Shay realizes she wants to be his girlfriend, not just his cohost, and abruptly ends the arrangement, citing the show but knowing she is too invested to keep pretending.

Shay channels her energy into promoting The Ex Talk. She pitches an episode about finding love after loss, featuring her mother and Phil. Kent dismisses the idea until Dominic advocates for it, a pattern of favoritism Shay has long noticed. The grief episode, simulcast nationally on NPR, features Leanna and Phil sharing their stories and playing violin together. The show climbs the charts, and PodCon invites them to Austin for a live taping.

At Green Lake, Dominic confesses that things never felt casual to him and that the unnamed person he mentioned on air was Shay. She admits she ended things because she was falling for him. They kiss and agree to become a real couple, planning to announce their reconciliation at PodCon.

In Austin, everything collapses. Before the live taping, tweets appear on The Ex Talk's official account revealing that the relationship was fabricated. The audience turns hostile. Shay tries to salvage the situation by admitting the lie and explaining that they genuinely fell for each other, but Dominic, paralyzed by stage fright, whispers "I'm sorry" and rushes offstage, leaving her alone.

Kent later admits he posted the tweets: The board wanted to cut the show, and Kent, fearing a distributor would poach Shay and Dominic, sabotaged them instead. He offers Dominic a researcher position but tells Shay and Ruthie there is only one part-time slot between them. Shay quits. She confronts Dominic, furious that he abandoned her onstage and devastated that he seems willing to stay. She tells him she was falling in love with him and leaves.

Shay retreats into isolation, disabling social media and listening to old recordings she made with her father. She slowly recognizes some relief at no longer carrying the lie. She reconnects with Ameena at her mother's wedding to Phil, where they reconcile. Ameena gives Shay a bracelet engraved with "WWAMWMD," their shorthand for "What Would a Mediocre White Man Do?", a self-advocacy mantra they coined years earlier to push themselves to ask for things without second-guessing. A lunch with Paloma helps Shay see that her skills extend beyond radio.

While at a café with Ruthie, Shay learns that Dominic has been broadcasting a live apology during PPR's pledge drive for over two hours, describing how he fell in love with Shay on air. She drives to the station. In the studio, Dominic explains his stage fright and apologizes for failing her in Austin. He unplugs their headphones to tell Shay privately that he is in love with her. Shay confesses her love in return, and they kiss. After plugging back in, Dominic announces he quits, and Shay adds a profanity-laced farewell to Kent.

In the epilogue, Dominic moves into Shay's house, and they launch a new independent podcast called Relationship Goals with Ruthie producing. The show covers all kinds of relationships and opens with a genuine apology to former listeners. Shay explores storytelling in new mediums while Dominic works for a nonprofit startup. Together, in a home studio, they build something honest from the wreckage of their lie.