The Rise of Cinema’s Sad, Searching Stoner Dad

Art often imitates life, and onscreen, male-character archetypes often mirror the offscreen evolution of masculinity. First came the Gen Z fuckboys of 2022, Pete Davidson types ripping from their vape in a Supreme hoodie. Then the onscreen himbos emerged, lending their pretty boy charm to Barbie and Saltburn, thanks to Ryan Gosling and Jacob Elordi, respectively. As 2025 draws to a close, another male archetype is trending: the sad stoner dad—always a step behind, perpetually paranoid, but perhaps more attuned to his inner life than the average American male.

In Paul Thomas Anderson ’s One Battle After Another , Leonardo DiCaprio stars as Bob, a stoned-silly retired political activist. He’s both a far cry from the suave womanizer slithering out of a building on qua