Issa Rae and Denis Villeneuve sure think so
This week, Issa Rae and Denis Villeneuve spoke to Time about how creativity is in crisis in Hollywood. Rae – who was on the cover of the magazine this month to promote her latest film, American Fiction – spoke about the cancellation of her hit show Rap Sh!t after two seasons by Warner Bros Discovery. After witnessing how much Hollywood has broken its promises to increase representation and diversity, Rae unapologetically remarked that she’s “never seen Hollywood this scared and clueless, and at the mercy of Wall Street”. She also spoke about the mistreatment of Black shows and creators to PORTER last month, stating, “You’re seeing so many Black shows get cancelled, you’re seeing so many executives, especially on the diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) side, get canned. You’re seeing very clearly now that our stories are less of a priority. It’s made me take more steps to try to be independent down the line if I have to.”
Director Denis Villeneuve shared this same sentiment in his interview with Time to promote Dune: Part Two. “We’re in a very conservative time; creativity is restricted,” he said. “Everything’s about Wall Street. What will save cinema is freedom and taking risks. And you feel the audience is excited when they see something they haven’t seen before.”
Villeneuve previously spoke about the crisis in cinema and creativity back in 2020, in an essay he wrote for Variety. The letter was prompted by Warner Bros’ decision to release its entire 2021 film slate (which included Dune) in theatres and on HBO Max. “There is absolutely no love for cinema, nor for the audience here,” Villeneuve wrote for Variety. “It is all about the survival of a telecom mammoth, one that is currently bearing an astronomical debt of more than $150 billion. Therefore, even though Dune is about cinema and audiences, AT&T is about its own survival on Wall Street.”
It may feel odd to hear Rae and Villeneuve lament about a creativity crisis in Hollywood when we were all just declaring that cinema and creativity are back, after the cultural phenomenon that was Barbenheimer. But even Barbie was a glorified ad for Mattel, highlighting the constraints on art by capitalists.
This is what Villeneuve is most concerned about. While everyone worries about AI, he’s more worried about “the fact that we behave like algorithms, as filmmakers”. In her interview with Time, Rae similarly commented on how filmmakers and writers have to bend to the algorithms of different streaming services. “When you have all of these streaming services that are competing with each other, it means they’re also moving the goalposts of what success looks like and what their brand is. It’s all mush,” she said. “I know my brand identity and what I want to make. But if that doesn’t align with who’s paying me to make stuff, then that’s complex. We are malleable, but only to an extent.”
As Mattel plans on developing 45 more adverts, I mean movies, creatives like Rae plan on becoming more independent to remove themselves from Hollywood’s view of business. It’s easy to view Rae and Villeneuve’s comments pessimistically, but they might actually be a call to action. Now more than ever, we must back independent projects that empower marginalised people who are denied opportunities in Hollywood and genuinely want to create bold, creative art.