Fandom’s Obsession With Winning Has Made Pop Culture Boring

Header Image Source: Warner Bros.

In the weeks preceding the release of One Battle After Another , the latest film by director Paul Thomas Anderson, the entertainment press headlines were full of speculation over its financial future. How would this big, expensive, and apparently niche film fare with general audiences? Could it ever hope to make back its reported budget of $130 to 175 million? Would Leonardo DiCaprio’s star power be enough to entice hesitant viewers? A lot of column inches were dedicated to the fears of CEOs and profit margins of Warner Bros. Discovery.

This is standard stuff for entertainment reporting, and it’s something I talk about a lot in my own work. What was less expected but increasingly familiar

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