Exactly 250 years ago this summer, a group of men gathered in Philadelphia and put their necks on the line by signing the Declaration of Independence.
Last weekend, about six weeks after the country’s official 250th birthday, a group gathered near the same spot to celebrate another landmark American moment — Nicolas Cage’s decision to steal it.
National Treasure Weekend was a three-day celebration of Disney’s “National Treasure” franchise, which features Cage as Benjamin Franklin Gates, a swashbuckling cryptologist, historian and treasure hunter. On offer were a walking tour, escape-room style game nights, two free outdoor film screenings in front of Independence Hall and an appearance by Jon Turteltaub, the franchise’s director, who dropped hints about the long-awaited third movie.
But at the center of the festivities were two former college roommates who have turned their shared enthusiasm for all things “National Treasure” into a real-life history-meets-Hollywood caper.
When Aubrey Paris and Emily Black started the “National Treasure Hunt” podcast six years ago, they thought it would last maybe 10 episodes. So far, they have recorded more than 190 installments, which mix explorations of history, science and ethics with deep, even obsessive fan service.
They have also published two books, released a short film and scored invitations to appear at venues including the National Archives (home to the real parchment Declaration) and the Library of Congress.
Underneath it all runs their conviction that “National Treasure” holds, if not clues to a priceless hidden hoard, then a bedrock of old-fashioned civic decency that can help bring a divided America together.
“These movies really seem to speak to people across generations, demographic and political lines, you name it,” Paris said in an interview before the event. “I find that to be incredibly powerful in 2026.”
“National Treasure” might seem like an unlikely candidate for cultural canonization. When the first movie came out in 2004, its mix of earnest speechifying and absurd plot twists was mostly panned by critics.
But it became a blockbuster, grossing more than $350 million internationally. And it inspired a Civil War-themed 2007 sequel, “National Treasure: Book of Secrets,” along with an enduring, and seemingly growing, fan culture.
The films’ famous moments — like Cage’s deadpan announcement “I’m gonna to steal the Declaration of Independence” — have spawned a continuing stream of memes, including ones just after the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, which inserted Cage clutching the stolen document into news photographs of the mob.
Last year, Matt Strahm, a relief pitcher then with the Philadelphia Phillies who had been hailed on the internet for a vague resemblance to Cage, unveiled a novelty “National Treasure”-themed glove. In February, the film was spoofed on the 800th episode of “The Simpsons,” titled “Irrational Treasure.”
The fandom was on abundant view over the weekend, whose events drew nearly 2,000 preregistered attendees, including parents with young children along with millennials who grew up with the films.
Deejay Ramundo, who was at one of the “Heist Night” escape-room style game nights, said he and his wife, Susan Kruth, watch the original movie several times a year.
“It’s one of those movies that never gets old,” Ramundo said. “We put it on in the background, and occasionally talk along with it. We can just spit out quotes.”
One favorite: “The secret lies with Charlotte,” the movie’s first clue. Kruth said she and her sister have incorporated it into their tradition of making “National Treasure”-style treasure hunts for each other, mixing family history with lore from the films.
Paris and Black, both 33, were roommates at Ursinus College outside Philadelphia. They didn’t initially think they had much in common, so they started keeping a running list of shared enthusiasms taped to the door. No: 17: “National Treasure!”
They watched the movie a bunch of times, and during their senior year took field trips to Valley Forge and movie locations in Washington. They stayed in touch only intermittently after graduation, when they each pursued Ph.D.s (neuroscience for Black, chemistry for Paris).
Then in 2020, during the first months of the coronavirus pandemic, Paris, who was working at the State Department, heard about a podcast dedicated to “Back to the Future” and contacted Black with an idea: Why not do something similar with “National Treasure?”
“In terms of the movie, she’s like Ben and I’m Riley,” Black recalled, referring to Riley Poole, Gates’s skeptical, wisecracking tech-nerd sidekick, played by Justin Bartha. “She comes to me with an idea — let’s make a podcast. I turn into Riley — let me tell you all the reasons this is not going to work.”
Black added: “I will say that have never been more pleased to be proven wrong.”
A few episodes in, there was a plot twist: messages on LinkedIn and Twitter from Charles Segars, the franchise’s story writer, thanking them. After getting over their shock, they booked him as a guest — their first — on a bonus episode.
Since then, they have interviewed more than 30 members of the cast, crew and the creative team, from Turteltaub and the screenwriters Cormac and Marianne Wibberley, to more obscure figures like Lisa Hoyle, the stunt double for Diane Kruger (who plays the archivist Abigail Chase).
Paris and Black first met Turteltaub in 2022 when Disney invited them to the red carpet for “National Treasure: Edge of History,” the widely panned Disney+ television spinoff that was canceled after 10 episodes. He was charmed and impressed. (One of their questions: Why does Ben Gates’s father have so many lemons in his fridge?)
“These weren’t creepy stalker fans,” Turteltaub said. “They were phenomenal and smart. And from a filmmaker’s perspective, they really got the movie.”
Paris and Black also get high marks from historians and archivists, who have a surprising soft spot for a movie that shows the nation’s founding document being blasted with a hair dryer.
“They are great, and the podcast is very creative,” Colleen Shogan, the former Archivist of the United States, who hosted them at the National Archives, said. “What they’re doing is exactly what we need to reach younger audiences and get them excited to learn about American history.”
On air, and in person, Black (who handles the audio editing and music) is wry and sardonic, while the more voluble Paris (who runs the social media accounts) exudes hyper-organized enthusiasm.
“We are not the same degree of enthusiastic about every single piece of the franchise,” as Black put it delicately when asked about “Edge of History.” But they are staunch defenders of the original movies, and what they see as the depth and intentionality of the franchise’s approach to props, settings and historical background.
“We are always trying to give the creative team its flowers,” Paris said. “We think they created a masterpiece.” She added: “You can’t have all these conversations if you don’t have a rich back story to pull from.”
The podcast digs deep into both real and fictional arcana. (Hungry for an hourlong analysis of Riley’s storage unit? Or Trinity Church in Manhattan? They got you.)
They also do periodic “National Treasure Hunt Lab” episodes featuring try-this-at-home explorations of scientific questions, like whether it’s really possible to set cobwebs on fire, or use a metal detector effectively through a block of Arctic ice.
They also take on the big questions. One of their favorite episodes, they said, was about ethics. When is it morally justified to do something that seems wrong — like, say, stealing one of history’s most precious documents — in order to prevent something worse?
At last weekend’s outdoor screening of the first movie, huge cheers went up when Ben Gates toasted the signers of the Declaration, who “did what was considered wrong, in order to do what they knew was right.” During a chase scene filmed near Independence Hall, a young man in the crowd got up and dashed toward the building, carrying the same cylindrical satchel as Gates. (It could not be confirmed whether the Declaration was inside.)
Before the screening, Turtletaub was the guest at a live-taping of the podcast, for an episode set to air this week. When he revealed that “National Treasure 3” was finally happening, the crowd gasped and then burst into applause.
That morning, Turteltaub said in an interview that shooting should begin next year. Pressed for plot hints, he suggested that the back story would relate to … the War of 1812.
Would it include the British burning down the White House? And Dolley Madison fleeing with a portrait of George Washington? His eyes widened. “It’s very possible,” he said.
Paris (who directs a career development center for science students at Ursinus) and Black (who teaches at two area universities) aren’t quitting their day jobs. But their side quest is keeping them increasingly busy.
Even without a third movie, they have ideas for at least 60 additional podcast episodes. And they are hoping a “National Treasure 3” could help them score them something as elusive as the lost trove of the Knights Templar: an interview with Ben Gates himself.
They first reached out to Cage’s team in early 2024, and have followed up several times a year. They have also been lobbying Turteltaub for a cameo in the next film — say, as a duo of intrepid podcasters who interview Ben and Riley?
“We’d gladly accept just being extras,” Paris said. “But that could be a fun Easter egg.”
