This is Pastor Tim’s article which appeared in the Evening Leader on Tuesday, Feb 27, 2024
I would like to share an observation with you. On Sunday, Feb 18, Susan and I went to the Celina movie theater after church to watch episode 4-6 of The Chosen. Susan and I are big fans of the series depicting the life of Jesus. However, the purpose of this article is not to talk about the series itself. I would like to write to you about the fact that I paid to go to a movie theater to watch a TV show. I must admit, that is something I never thought I would do and I have done it twice in the past 3 weeks.
What is more, the previews before the episodes were mostly from the same company who released the Chosen. We also saw a preview that they are about to start showing Broadway plays in the movie theater as well. They would show some behind the scenes of the production about the actors getting into character and then the play itself would be shown on the big screen.
They also showed a preview for a concert series they will be showing on the big screen. They will be going to Taylor Swift or Beyonce concerts where you would see behind the scenes of the concert and then see the concert shot in big budget production value.
I was intrigued by this thought because it is something new. If you were a fan of these musicians or if you were curious about the behind the scenes production of famous stage plays or musicals, this would be perfect for you. Obviously, there is belief that there is money to be made in these productions or else they would not be attempting them.
The part of this I find most interesting is not that they are trying something new, which I applaud and wish them all the luck in the world, the part I find most interesting is that this is positive proof that Hollywood is dying. If movie theaters were making enough money off Hollywood, then there would not be room in movie theaters for TV shows, concerts, or stage plays.
I compare this to my own life and I am not sure that I have been to the theater to watch a big budget new release movie since Top Gun: Maverick, which is itself riding the wave of Gen X nostalgia and the good will of Tom Cruise, the last still working actual movie star. He has some strange things going on in his personal life but his movies are a blast.
I can speculate all day as to why mainstream movies goers like you and I are not going to the movies as much anymore. The recent Marvel movies are all terrible. I have not even seen probably the last half dozen Marvel new releases where years ago, I would see them multiple times in the movie theater. The last Marvel movie I was excited to see what Spider-man: No Way Home and the thing I was most excited about was Toby McGuire and Andrew Garfield coming back to play the Spider-Man characters we all remember from previous trilogies.
When was the last time a big comedy came out in movie theaters? When was the last time there was a big movie that was not a part of an existing property came out that everyone went to see? Hollywood seems to be creatively bankrupt to the point that even my beloved superhero properties do not interest me anymore.
My guess is the slow demise of Hollywood is based on three factors.
- People quit going to theaters during the COVID overreaction. During that time when we were all illegally locked away from public life, TVs and streaming services rose to power and movies were paired down to fit into a TV budget and be shown on the giant TV that most movies fans already had in their house.
- In the years prior to the COVID overreaction, the years 2017-2019, most of the movies that were coming out were dominated by the huge production companies and the biggest of these was Disney. Everything was being brought under control of Disney, the prime examples being Marvel and Star Wars. That means that anything not underwritten by one of these enormous studios would be choked out.
- The content being produced by the few remaining studios since 2020 has been terrible. There are a very few exceptions, but most of it is such low quality of production, acting and special effects that people have lost interest. The message was more important than the story and I have seen no signs that Hollywood is interested in changing that priority. People got sick of it, which means that theater seats were empty.
The result is that movie theaters are going to other avenues to make people want to come back to the theater and I wish them all the luck in the world. Susan and I truly enjoyed our time watching a TV show in a movie theater and the popcorn was delicious too. You can’t replicate that at home.