A guest column argues studios are cooling on DEI and social-justice storylines, citing an “anti-woke” Basic Instinct reboot and Netflix’s The Hunting Wives.
On Saturday, The New York Times ran a guest essay by Sharon Waxman, editor in chief of TheWrap, arguing that Hollywood’s “progressive snowflake era” is over. She points to a sold “anti-woke” reboot of Paul Verhoeven’s 1992 film Basic Instinct, Netflix’s The Hunting Wives, and muted fallout from a Sydney Sweeney ad as signs of a shift away from DEI-driven choices.
Why the essay says Hollywood is shifting
The core claim: “Hollywood is rapidly shifting away from the socially conscious framework that for more than a decade has driven its narratives, casting and green lights,”
Waxman writes.Examples offered: She describes The Hunting Wives cast as “hot, horny and white,” and notes that backlash to Sydney Sweeney’s American Eagle ad “had no echo in Burbank or Beverly Hills,”
where she says a public apology once might have been expected.Industry mechanics: After years of DEI commitments spurred by #OscarsSoWhite and criticism of homogenous creators,
Waxman argues the pendulum is swinging back. “The new rules resulted in a strict if unspoken set of boundaries,” she writes, adding she has heard “quiet frustration” from white male writers who felt sidelined.Politics and timing:
Waxman says the shift predates President Donald Trump’s return to office but has accelerated. She links it to the administration’s fight against DEI and a cooling market for socially conscious content.
On agency demand: “At the talent agencies where Hollywood’s hustlers are out selling scripts and projects, no longer are queer writers of color, for example, so much in demand.
No longer are preferred pronouns expected on your email signature.”On a changing response to controversy: “It’s had no echo in Burbank or Beverly Hills, where not so long ago,
Ms. Sweeney might have had to apologize for her insensitivity and make a donation to the A.C.L.U.” For creators: Potential rebalancing of who gets meetings and green lights, with fewer formal or informal
DEI guardrails.For studios and streamers: Slates could tilt toward commercially familiar casts and genres, with fewer mandates around representation.
For audiences: Viewers may see less explicitly issues-led storytelling and more traditional star- or concept-driven projects.For agencies: Shifts in who is prioritized on staffing lists, if Waxman’s claims bear out.
The essay situates today’s moment against a decade of course corrections after #OscarsSoWhite, when studios and streamers funded inclusion programs and elevated more non-White directors, writers, and showrunners. Waxman contends some creatives felt “shunted to the side,” creating quiet backlash. Her column is opinion, but it taps a live debate as streamers hunt for hits in a tougher market.
What the essay cites and why it matters
| Claim or signal | Example cited | Why Waxman says it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Return to sex-forward thrillers | “Anti-woke” Basic Instinct reboot sold | Suggests comfort with material once seen as out of step with DEI-era norms |
| All-white ensemble in buzzy series | Netflix’s The Hunting Wives | Signals loosened expectations around on-screen representation |
| Backlash with little industry impact | Sydney Sweeney’s American Eagle ad | Implies less pressure for public contrition on culture-war flashpoints |
| Cooling demand for certain writers | Fewer asks for queer writers of color | Points to changing staffing priorities at agencies and rooms |
| Decline of visible DEI signals | Fewer pronouns in signatures | Suggests cultural cues are receding inside industry hubs |
Waxman’s column argues momentum is moving away from a DEI-first posture toward more conventional casting and themes. The coming season’s green lights, agency staffing, and any revisions to inclusion programs will test that thesis. For now, the essay has sharpened a wider conversation about how culture, politics, and market pressures are shaping what gets made in Hollywood.
0 Comments