GERWIG: I think that having this conversation is essential and that we, as a culture, are just figuring out how to have it with nuance and sensitivity. As an artist I want to be able to be inclusive and tell all different kinds of stories, but I also don’t want to tell a story that would be better told by another author.

SORKIN: Greta, unsurprisingly, just said it better than I did.

BRUNI: Let me get one last hot-button issue out of the way before we move back to your specific movies and … the upcoming Oscars! Will Kevin Spacey work again? Should he? This question came up with Roman Polanski, it comes up with Woody Allen. Should we care about, reward or punish what artists do beyond the parameters of their art? Should it affect their opportunities? Their reception?

GERWIG: I would like to speak specifically to the Woody Allen question, which I have been asked about a couple of times recently, as I worked for him on a film that came out in 2012. It is something that I take very seriously and have been thinking deeply about, and it has taken me time to gather my thoughts and say what I mean to say. I can only speak for myself and what I’ve come to is this: If I had known then what I know now, I would not have acted in the film. I have not worked for him again, and I will not work for him again. Dylan Farrow’s two different pieces made me realize that I increased another woman’s pain, and I was heartbroken by that realization. I grew up on his movies, and they have informed me as an artist, and I cannot change that fact now, but I can make different decisions moving forward.

SORKIN: I don’t like seeing anyone get disappeared. Personally, I don’t think Kevin’s going to be able to find his way back, but I’m still rooting for a miraculous transformation.

BRUNI: Thank you both for your candor. In reward: a happier topic! We’re in the midst right now of people casting votes for the Oscar nominations, which will be announced on Jan. 23 and may well include both of your names. From a cultural standpoint, how much does who and what gets nominated — and who and what wins — really matter? Can you think of a nominee or victor that really changed America by dint of that recognition?

SORKIN: It’s sort of a two-part question, so I’ll answer in two parts. Most of the films in the awards conversation this year are lower-budget films (“Dunkirk” and a few others notwithstanding). High-profile award nominations give films like “Lady Bird” and “Molly’s Game” a reach they wouldn’t otherwise have. As for a nomination or a win that changed the culture? I’ll go with Hattie McDaniel.