Thursday, March 28, 2024
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More Proof That Audiences Don’t Want Woke ‘Entertainment’



There has been an increasing proliferation of trying to incorporate woke storylines into entertainment. But those attempts usually lead to the product bombing in the marketplace.

We have yet more proof of this. A survey that looked into the entertainment offerings of Amazon show that audiences don’t want woke storylines.

From The Blaze:

Amazon audiences still prefer traditional story lines featuring “straight, white, male leads” and often steer clear of woke programming, a new report says.

According to Bounding Into Comics, the shows that audiences have consistently panned are those with “queer” story lines. Perhaps the most notable example is “A League of Their Own,” a series reboot of the beloved movie of the same name released in 1992. While the original follows Dottie Hinson and her sister, Kit Keller — played by Geena Davis and Lori Petty, respectively — as they try to make their way in a women’s professional baseball league, the reboot stars a black woman who must constantly overcome racial obstacles to play.

There is also a strong lesbian subplot to “A League of Their Own,” as some members of the Rockford Peaches — still wearing their iconic pink and red skirted baseball uniforms by day — engage in same-sex relationships off the field. Rosie O’Donnell, who acts as a playful and humorous sidekick to Madonna in the movie, guest-stars on the new show as a cross-dressing owner of an underground gay bar.

This sexualized mangling of a cherished film about feminine athleticism has been a big swing and a miss with viewers. In fact, the Hollywood Reporter called it one of the most “expensive disappointments” of Jen Salke’s time as head of Amazon Studios. The outlet claimed that audiences found the “queer stories” in the show “off-putting,” prompting executives to encourage “downplaying those themes” in show promotions.

The Hollywood Reporter also reports that focus groups have consistently panned Amazon’s woke offerings. The focus groups even ranked the highest in their preferences shows that have “straight white male” leads above all others.

The ones who are pushing more woke storylines are those in the industry. They continue to push woke storylines and then they wonder their entertainment offerings crash and burn with actual audiences and don’t make any money.

Want more proof? Another focus group, this time reported by the website That Park Place had a choice between a cop show starring a lesbian woman who is a racial minority who battles the racism and sexism of her new colleagues or a show starring white, male cops who take on bad guys. The focus group picked the second show.

There is a major disconnect between what audiences want and what Hollywood elites want. The average American viewer just wants to be entertained. Meanwhile, much of Hollywood want to use their art in order to promote a woke message that is clearly not being received well by viewers.

If Hollywood wants to get back in the good graces of viewers and movie goers, it should focus more on entertainment and less on wokery.