Hollywood becomes Harriswood: The stars are not necessarily doing Kamala Harris a favor.
Fundraising galas in Hollywood work: For $500,000, for example, you could get a photo with Biden and Obama. Julia Roberts and George Clooney secured a souvenir here.
juliaroberts / Instagram
It was not only the TV debate that sealed Joe Biden’s fate, but also a Saturday evening two weeks earlier at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles.
June 15th was supposed to be an entertaining evening in the best company. Hollywood had invited everyone. Jimmy Kimmel, who regularly presents the Oscars, hosted, Julia Roberts was there, then Barbra Streisand, and of course Clooney.
The hall was sold out in no time. The worst seats were available for $250. For $500,000 you sat at the front, had a ticket to the after-party and were allowed to take a photo with the President and Barack Obama.
The wallet was looser than ever. Even by Hollywood standards, the fundraising gala was a box office hit; hardly any blockbuster makes so much in just one evening: a record-breaking 30 million dollars were raised. But Joe Biden literally paid the bill.
Because his performance was obviously embarrassing. The following Sunday morning, the approximately 7,000 rich and beautiful people who were present at the Peacock Theater probably woke up with frowns. Because they knew: Joe Biden will not be their next president.
After all, anyone who pays a five- or six-figure sum for a Saturday evening wants to get something in return. But Biden sometimes spoke with a “barely audible voice,” recalls one donor in the Washington Post. Another noted that compared to previous meetings with the president, “the speed and volume had been reduced – to an alarming level.”
Hollywood, where men feel eternally young, was shocked by the realization: Joe Biden, born in 1942, had grown old.
Blind celebrities
George Clooney, who has aged extremely well so far in his life, wrote a guest article for the New York Times after the failed TV debate. “I love Joe Biden,” he began. But as devastating as it was, Biden did not seem like his old self, not only during the TV debate, but also at the fundraising gala. On behalf of Hollywood, George Clooney gave Joe Biden the boot.
It didn’t take long for the Republicans to show their malice. Were the Hollywood celebrities so blind: showering the man with millions of dollars one day, only to oust him the next? Like other Democrats, Clooney and Co. had obviously not wanted to acknowledge the state of Joe Biden.
Two weeks before the fundraising gala, in early June, “Star Wars” star Mark Hamill paid a surprise visit to the White House press room. He excitedly told reporters that he had just met with Joe Biden in the Oval Office. Then he proudly showed off his aviator sunglasses, which the commander in chief had given him. There is no more fitting symbolic image for a Biden supporter wearing fan glasses.
The force is strong: Star Wars star Mark Hamill received a pair of aviator glasses from the President!
Kick USA / Imago
In this presidential election campaign, Hollywood has once again made it clear where it stands: united behind the Democrats. There were many more film stars who tried to support Joe Biden. Notably Robert De Niro, who regularly insults Trump like a trooper. And also made himself useful as the narrator of a Biden commercial. Jane Fonda and Jack Black also spoke out loudly for the incumbent president.
And since Kamala Harris is now running for the highest office in the world for the Democrats instead of Biden, there is no stopping Hollywood. As a former senator, the Californian is well connected in the entertainment industry and is now attracting even more stars.
Calls from Hollywood
Harris’ campaign has caused a “welcome problem,” CNN says: “Too many celebrities are calling.” One person close to the candidate doesn’t know what to do: “My phone is exploding.”
It is probably only a matter of time before the portmanteau word “Harriswood” becomes established. Hollywood stars who have spoken out in support of Harris include: Jessica Alba, Spike Lee, Viola Davis, Amy Schumer, Kerry Washington.
And Trump? He has the wrestler Hulk Hogan.
Now, it is no bad thing that Hollywood has no Trump fans there. The former president can be a threat to American democracy, as he demonstrated with the heated storming of the Capitol.
Nevertheless, the American film industry’s pompous support for the Democrats arouses suspicion. It does not help to overcome polarization. Film stars who are far removed from the people do not reach Trump voters. George Clooney does not need to explain the world to ordinary Americans. They have other worries.
The Trumpist feels ignored by the establishment, and entertainment is no help either: the American film industry is not interested in his fate. The reason for this, however, is not that Hollywood is too woke. The slogan is too simplistic.
The cinema ignores the Trump voter
American film is more industry than ideology. There are woke films, but there are also less woke ones. One time the diversity-policy freak show “Everything Everywhere All at Once” wins the Oscars, the next time a comparatively classic men’s film like “Oppenheimer” wins.
The problem is different. “Write what you know” is an old saying among writers. American cinema only knows a part of America. Filmmaking ignores the heartland. Hardly any film material deals with life in the flyover countries – those states that the typical east or west coast American (or Hollywood director) only sees from a bird’s eye view.
There is a Clint Eastwood who is not ashamed of being an old white man and who takes up the feeling of foreign infiltration in a film like “Gran Torino”. But Eastwood is 94 years old. In addition, Jeff Nichols, with “Take Shelter” and “Mud”, is one of the few younger filmmakers who deal with the disillusioned interior of the country. But his films are the exception, which makes the shortcoming all the more apparent.
Hollywood has said goodbye to a part of its audience. A good fifteen years ago there was a comedy like “Juno,” which progressives celebrated as a feel-good movie, while conservatives saw it as food for thought for stronger abortion laws. American filmmakers hardly dare to deal with such ambivalences anymore.
Hollywood cinema has never liked to make things complicated. But now it has made things too simple. The political nuances are missing. That applies to the films, and it applies to the political activism that the exponents practice. If you are so obviously not interested in the people, you don’t need to come to them with voting recommendations.
There is a nice expression in English: “preaching to the choir”. Hollywood stars who support Harris are knocking on open doors. Of course, they should not be underestimated as fundraisers. They help with mobilization and their commitment may bring one or two more apolitical citizens to the polls in addition to dozing Democratic voters. But the boastful Hollywood stars also have a counterproductive effect: they incite protest voters on the other side even more.
Hollywood used to be right-wing
Instead of going into total opposition to everything Republican, Hollywood would benefit more if it opened up to conservative America. Trumpeting against Trump now is of little use. Because Trump is like Godzilla: If you shoot at him proverbially (or even literally), you only make him bigger.
Hollywood was not always just left-wing. Film historian Steven J. Ross has worked this out in “Hollywood Left and Right”: While Hollywood’s left, starting with Charlie Chaplin, was always “louder and more visible,” the right had a stronger influence on politics. This was expressed in an actor with a Senate seat (George Murphy), a governorship (Schwarzenegger) and even a presidency (Reagan).
The fact that the American film industry has recently become more and more vehemently behind the Democrats is hardly just due to Trump. It would be naive to believe that the industry is only concerned about democracy. Solid interest politics will also play a role. Hollywood is fighting for state funds. America does not have traditional film funding. But in recent years, the states have started bidding wars to recommend themselves for film shoots. Tax credits attract productions.
In addition to California and New York, Georgia is currently a major location for filming. The state in the southeast of the country offers tax credits of up to 30 percent. Georgia releases the equivalent of over a billion dollars annually for film projects. Marvel productions such as “Black Panther” and series such as “Stranger Things” and “The Walking Dead” were produced here.
This is being sold as a way to promote the region. But whether it makes economic sense is rarely questioned. Every media-savvy politician appreciates glamour. A political initiative that would have capped subsidies for film productions was recently rejected in Georgia. It is safe to assume that the film industry is interested in politicians who are friendly, generous and therefore more democratic.
It is difficult to determine exactly how Hollywood influences decision-makers. One thing is clear: Georgia is a swing state. The presidential election will be decided here. And there is a lot at stake for Hollywood.
