Actor Zachary Levi seems to be growing more outspoken after witnessing his last film, “Shazam! Fury of the Gods,” tank at the box office. Levi recently went on a tirade against Hollywood for doing nothing but popping out “garbage” before chastising audiences, saying they need to “actively not choose the garbage.”
I mean, he’s not wrong. Over the course of the last decade, everything that comes out of the film and television industry is either a remake, reboot, or woke reimagining, rather than an original piece of content. On top of that, instead of crafting excellent stories with thematic elements woven beneath the fabric of the narrative, major studies are pushing out propaganda with the intent to spread the progressive agenda.
What they should be doing is focusing on storytelling to connect people together through the shared experiences of life and letting those experiences be seen through different perspectives. Allow the audiences to mine the movies and shows they watch for themes; make them think instead of being mindless consumers; and let them come to their own conclusions about the meaning of a work of art, and share their thoughts and feelings.
Alas, it seems Hollywood abandoned that concept long ago.
Levi was attending Fan Expo Chicago over the weekend when he started to open up and share his thoughts about the current condition of Hollywood, according to a report published by Entertainment Weekly. “I personally feel like the amount of content that comes out of Hollywood that is garbage — they don’t care enough to actually make it great for you guys,” Levi said, a statement that apparently got enthusiastic applause from the audience.
“They don’t. How many times do you watch a trailer and go, ‘Oh my God, this looks so cool!’ Then you go to the movie and it’s like, ‘This was what I get?’” the actor continued. “They know that once you’ve already bought the ticket and you’re in the seat, they’ve got your money. And the only way for us to change any of it is to not go to the garbage. We have to actively not choose the garbage. It’ll help. It’ll help a lot.”
Related: ‘Wee Man’ Blasts Hollywood for Yanking Roles for Dwarf Actors in ‘Snow White’
Levi recently upset a lot of his fellow SAG-AFTRA friends in Hollywood with another comment about not being able to discuss past screen work with his fans because of the guild’s strike rules. On Friday, the actor put out a statement that addressed the blowback he received from the remark.
“It’s come to my attention that an offhand remark I made in jest last weekend is being taken out of context,” Levi started off.
“So let me be very clear. I fully support my union, the WGA, and the strike … But we also cannot forget our fans during this strike. Fans that spend their money and energy traveling far distances to talk with us about our work that means so much to them, we should be able to engage,” he concluded his statement.
As previously noted, part of the problem with the current state of Hollywood is that storytelling and making good art have been tossed to the side in favor of politicization. Every part of our lives has been politicized, unfortunately, leaving people constantly bombarded with divisive messages as certain factions work to keep people apart.
Stories, especially movies, are supposed to provide us with an escape from the mundane madness of everyday life while presenting us with scenarios that teach us a little something about ourselves through the lens of fantasy. This provides us with some distance from the real world, which in turn, ironically, makes reality more clear.
Maybe one day, this will shift back to the way it ought to be, and movies will be fun again.
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