HOLLYWOOD’S INABILITY TO MOVE FORWARD Algorithms may indeed be corrupting what we interact with, creating a feedback loop of surfacing things we already enjoy. But I don’t believe – as some have argued – that the love of nostalgia is a sickness, brought on by the infantilisation of society, “extended adolescence”, or too much time spent online (for one thing, Asian societies are just as online, if not more so). And of course, Japan loves its familiar series, too – this year alone has seen the 28th Detective Conan movie about a sleuth trapped in the body of a schoolboy, and a series in the long-running military sci-fi Gundam property. The hit Godzilla Minus One shows that Japan also loves going back to the well. But these are balanced out by new ideas. Hollywood’s inability to move forward seems more like a function of business, in particular the frenetic pace of studio consolidation. That continues with the recently approved merger of Paramount Global and Skydance Media; Marvel and DC, the creators of almost all mainstream American superhero properties, have both been subsumed into these studios. The “creative destruction” that Western-style capitalism promises doesn’t seem to be inventing much besides shareholder value. Instead, it rewards a risk-averse management approach that likes the predictable ticket. Ironically, the “production committee” approach to most Japanese animated movies, with multiple companies splitting the risks and revenues of original projects, might be bad for artists but seems good for creativity. There’s nothing wrong with the familiar. While I’m not sold on the attempts to make Fantastic Four a hit, I’ll still be first in line for The Batman Part Two. But we can’t live on nostalgia alone. Give us some fresh stories.