Frotcast

'Death By Lightning' Creator Mike Makowsky

Added 2025-12-03 17:43:02 +0000 UTC

This past week (actually, the week before Thanksgiving, if we want to get technical) I got to interview Mike Makowsky, creator of Netflix’s Death By Lightning, for GQ. You can check out that GQ piece here.

I was a big fan of the show, and it seems like I’m not alone in this (it is the beau ideal of a “dad show”). When I read the book a few years back (Candice Millard’s Destiny of the Republic) it seemed like the kind I’d love to see as a movie or show, even though those kinds of adaptations often don’t turn out that well. To my surprise, Makowsky’s adaptation seemed to capture most of what I loved about the book, without trying to cover everything in it. It had a take on the book, which is what any great adaptation needs. And then, of course, the cast brought a little something special and surprising to every role. In fact, I this bluesky post by Klungar kind of sums it up.

Anyway, check out the GQ piece (in which I go into much greater detail about the historical background of the show and its parallels), listen to the interview here, and stay tuned for your regularly-scheduled Frotcast.