LIZ PEEK: Hollywood trashes Trump again — and proves just how out of touch it is

Hollywood elites conscionable cannot assistance themselves. There they were, sailing done Oscar nighttime with Conan O’Brien doing his amusing and mostly inoffensive emcee bit, and actors similar Amy Madigan (Best Supporting Actress) happily gushing astir their awards, erstwhile on comes washed-up comic Jimmy Kimmel the proverbial ant astatine the picnic, blasting President Donald Trump. Thank heavens Trump professional Sean Penn, who besides won an Oscar, was incapable to attend.

It could person been worse. Yes, determination were the accustomed acheronian hints astir what a troubled satellite we unrecorded successful and astatine slightest 1 notation to Palestine, but mostly the amusement was upbeat and tolerable.

That was gravely disappointing to some. Hours earlier Hollywood’s large night, The New York Times ran an sentiment portion titled "Oscar Winners, Will You Be Complicit?" In his column, German writer Daniel Kehlmann exhorted Oscar stars to lash retired against Donald Trump. He whined that past year’s lawsuit was "profoundly disheartening" due to the fact that the participants’ attacks connected the medication were "muted," dissimilar Hollywood’s "open defiance" during Trump’s archetypal term.

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His piece, which assumes (as galore Oscar participants evidently do) that the occupation of movie stars is not to entertain america and marque profitable films but alternatively to amended us, neatly sums up wherefore truthful galore radical dislike Hollywood. (A fewer years ago, an NBC canvass showed the movie manufacture had little support ratings than the NRA.)

Jimmy Kimmel speaks onstage during the 98th Oscars astatine Dolby Theatre connected March 15, 2026, successful Hollywood, California. (Kevin Winter/Getty Images)

It besides shows wherefore less Americans ticker the Oscars contiguous than successful the past. About 20 cardinal radical apt tuned successful for a glimpse of the reddish carpet oregon to drawback the opening monologue connected Sunday; 55 cardinal watched successful 1998, erstwhile "Titanic" won Best Picture.

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The writer speculates that actors (or their studios) fearfulness retaliation from the president, oregon possibly they consciousness the nationalist views them arsenic "frivolous, out-of-touch elites." He recalls then-host Ricky Gervais’ informing to Golden Globes participants successful 2020: "If you bash triumph an grant tonight, don’t usage it arsenic a level to marque a governmental speech. You’re successful nary presumption to lecture the nationalist astir anything. You cognize thing astir the existent world."

Kehlmann says that’s wrong, asserting that Hollywood icons are known astir the world, adjacent successful acheronian places similar North Korea; therefore, they person a work to lambaste our state and uncover however the U.S. is becoming a "dictatorship" nether the enactment of a "mad king." He goes connected to liken existent events to those of the 1930s, erstwhile immoderate of Germany’s astir celebrated actors collaborated with the Nazi regime. You tin ideate the rest.

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There is simply a batch to unpack here, but let’s commencement with the obvious. Half the state voted for Donald Trump successful 2024. Those folks don’t privation to perceive from immoderate privileged Hollywood histrion that Trump is wrecking our nation. Open borders, crime, failing nationalist schools, and absurd clime policies that thrust vigor prices higher — the problems Trump is trying to hole — whitethorn not substance to affluent movie stars surviving down gates, but they substance to astir of us.

Second, actors who bemoan income inequality, racism, and different purported shortcomings of our nine person go affluent and celebrated due to the fact that of our capitalist system. They are escaped to basal connected that Oscar signifier and accidental immoderate they choose. They are besides escaped to station vicious and adjacent dishonest claims astir our president online — and galore do.

Kehlmann cannot accidental the aforesaid astir his location country. In Germany, radical tin beryllium arrested oregon jailed for spreading malicious gossip oregon reposting lies online. Truly, we bash not request guidance from Europe.

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Meanwhile, Hollywood is successful trouble. It is nary coincidence that the Times ran different op-ed the time earlier titled "Why I Love the Movies — and How to Save Them," by Tom Rothman, CEO of Sony Pictures’ movie studio. Rothman notes that "in 2019, determination were 1.24 cardinal movie tickets sold successful North America. In 2025, determination were 780 cardinal — a diminution of 37 percent." He says the industry’s gloom has been exacerbated by "the coming extremity of Warner Bros. — erstwhile the mightiest of each studios — arsenic a stand-alone entity aft much than 100 years."

Rothman notes assorted challenges facing Hollywood, including the menace of AI, and offers thoughtful ideas astir however to negociate the existent upheaval.

Not surprisingly, helium does not code what galore Americans deliberation is the existent occupation — the declining prime of movies showing up successful theaters. Hollywood needs to marque movies radical privation to see: movies that are entertaining, original, exciting, amusive for kids — and not political. This year’s harvest of Oscar nominees follows respective years of celebrating films that attracted pitiful audiences and made small oregon nary money. That’s not a look for success.

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The highest-grossing films of each clip (excluding "Gone With the Wind," mostly considered the biggest victor ever) are "Avatar" (2009), "Avengers: Endgame" (2019), "Avatar: The Way of Water" (2022), Titanic (1997), and "Star Wars: The Force Awakens" (2015). 

Three of these movies were directed by James Cameron, who has moved to New Zealand due to the fact that helium dislikes Donald Trump and our governmental climate. I find that reprehensible, but that is his right. What is admirable is that Cameron’s films whitethorn incorporate allegorical themes astir colonialism oregon women’s rights, but the messaging is truthful subtle that the movies entreaty to a wide audience.

Suzy Amis Cameron and James Cameron be the European Premiere of 20th Century Studios "Avatar: Fire and Ash" connected December 5, 2025, successful Boulogne-Billancourt, France.  (Lyvans Boolaky)

Of course, radical are escaped to marque immoderate kinds of movies they like, but they cannot marque radical wage to spot them. In 2020, Hollywood elites awarded Best Picture to "Parasite," a South Korean movie — the archetypal non-English-language winner. Variety’s Jessica Kiang described the communicative astir societal inequality arsenic "a tick abdominous with the bitter humor of people rage." I cannot ideate however I missed it.

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This year’s Best Picture, "One Battle After Another," carried a beardown wide message. Maybe that’s why, contempt bully reviews, it bombed astatine the container office. People are bushed of being force-fed left-wing dogma.

Last month, Gervais reposted his connection connected X, adding, "They’re inactive not listening." 

He’s right.

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