Until then, we will continue to scroll. We will continue to click "Watch Later" on movies we will never watch. And we will sit, exhausted, in front of the endless firehose of content, wondering why we feel so empty.
The audience has caught on. We feel a strange fatigue when we see a "Previously On..." recap for a movie we haven't even seen yet. We are not excited. We are doing homework. However, there is a counter-current. As mainstream entertainment becomes louder, faster, and dumber, a quiet rebellion is growing. Look at the success of Past Lives . Look at the phenomenon of The Bear (a show where "plot" is secondary to vibes). Look at the unexpected box office of Oppenheimer —a three-hour movie about men talking in rooms. Gyno-X.13.08.31.Jenny.Gyno.Exam.XXX.720p.WMV-iaK
The audience is starving for media that trusts them. They are starving for entertainment content that isn't optimized for a scroll, a laugh track, or a post-credits scene. Until then, we will continue to scroll