Pod Force One: "Entertainment's Year of Woke"

Host: Miranda Devine (New York Post)
Guest: Johnny Oleksinski, NYP Entertainment Critic
Date: December 31, 2025

Overview

In this reflective and lively episode, Miranda Devine sits down with renowned New York Post entertainment critic Johnny Oleksinski to dissect the tumultuous state of Hollywood and Broadway in 2025. They explore why mainstream entertainment increasingly fails to connect with audiences, the pervasive influence of “wokeness,” plummeting box office figures, the stratospheric rise of ticket prices on Broadway, and cultural scandals that captivated the headlines. Oleksinski, known for his unfiltered, audience-first criticism, offers candid takes on what ails the industry—and where real hope for change may come from.

Key Themes & Discussion Points

1. Broadway & West End: Spying for the Next Hit [00:18–02:00]

• Location: Oleksinski joins from London to scout potential Broadway imports.
  • Paddington the Musical: Features animatronic technology and a heartfelt performance. “They have a little person in a bear suit…there’s an animatronic head that’s operated off-stage. It sounds cold and Disney, but it’s so warm and cool, really.” (Johnny Oleksinski, [01:00])
  • All My Sons: Highlighting a must-see performance from Bryan Cranston.
  • Role as a critic: His honest reviews can “kill shows out of town.”
  • “I don’t write for the people that put on Broadway shows or make movies. I write for readers.” (Johnny, [02:27])

2. Honest Criticism vs. Industry Politics [02:00–03:00]

• Oleksinski emphasizes that honest reviews serve audiences, not industry egos.
• He’s proud of his reputation for transparency, refusing to “write around” his true opinions.

3. Hollywood’s Disconnect: “One Battle After the Other” Flop [03:00–07:45]

• Devine recounts watching a major Leo DiCaprio film (“One Battle After the Other”) that critics loved, but she and many viewers “hated.”
• Johnny enjoyed it but admits it’s overrated, attributing Oscar buzz to political currents:
  • “People are writing about it like it’s the second coming, and that…I don't get.” (Johnny, [05:00])
  • On the content: “It sympathizes with domestic terrorists. And you tell 80% of people that and they go, I, you know, they don’t say pass the popcorn.” (Johnny, [05:52])
  • Vulgarity and swearing are barriers for mainstream audiences.

4. The Year of Hollywood Flops: Hits, Misses & Family Fare [07:45–11:04]

• 2025 marked by big-budget failures and audience apathy for adult, “serious” films.
  • Kiss of the Spider Woman (J.Lo) and The Smashing Machine (Dwayne Johnson): Expensive, unsalvageable flops.
  • Superhero fatigue: “Captain Brave New World…was a war crime. It was tantamount to torture.” (Johnny, [10:10])
  • Kids’ movies are the only consistent box office draws: “Lilo & Stitch,” “Zootopia 2,” “Minecraft.”

5. Is Wokeness to Blame? [11:04–13:04]

• Devine questions if box office woes stem from woke, formulaic filmmaking.
  • “They did just start churning out films to check a box rather than to entertain or delight or move.” (Johnny, [11:44])
  • Audiences want entertainment, not “admonishing.”
  • “Hollywood has been turning on a lot of woke stuff, and they’re just so behind the population that really has lost all interest.” (Johnny, [12:30])

6. A Movie Critic Face-off: “J. Kelly,” “F1,” and “Happy Gilmore 2” [13:04–14:59]

• Devine and Oleksinski spar over recent films:
  • “J. Kelly”: Devine found it pleasant; Johnny thought it was “celebrity navel-gazing.”
  • “F1” (Brad Pitt): “Even if you didn’t like it, it’s very well made…big, appealing…not challenging, but it’s also not stupid.” (Johnny, [15:49])
  • “Happy Gilmore 2”: Derided by critics, but audiences still ask about it more than the Oscar contenders.

7. Hollywood vs. Foreign Films at Awards Shows [14:59–18:27]

• Golden Globe nominations trend foreign; few Americans have seen the nominees.
  • “They'd rather shove Hollywood aside at these shows designed to promote…Hollywood.” (Johnny, [15:24])
  • Barriers to access: Limited releases mean many American audiences can’t even see top nominees.

8. Financial Excess, Rising Costs & Creative Decline [18:27–21:21]

• Hollywood’s out-of-control budgets: “The Electric State” cost $320 million, became an unknown flop.
• Special effects that look cheap despite massive spending.
• Oleksinski urges studios to rein in budgets and “spend money on writers” for fresh plots and dialogue.

9. Broadway’s Bubble: Pricey Celebrity Vanity Projects [21:21–24:43]

• 2025 defined by astronomical ticket prices driven by celebrity casts.
  • Denzel Washington in “Othello”: Balcony seats for $900 ([21:36]).
  • Producers chasing “safe” star vehicles, risking long-term decline of the artform.
  • “Now we’re watching Keanu Reeves…that’s where Broadway is.” (Johnny, [24:10])

10. COVID Fallout, Labor, and Wokeness on Broadway [24:43–25:50]

• Post-pandemic reopening led to rushed, “unappealing and so bad” shows.
• Rising union demands and costs make mounting shows financially perilous.
  • “An ailing business…You’re pretty much watching a bonfire of money.” (Johnny, [23:18])

11. Nutzi-gate: Journalism Scandal of the Year [27:05–31:45]

• Discussion of Olivia Nuzzi’s scandal and book “American Canto.”
  • “It has media intrigue, politics, those awful, awful Kennedys. It has everything in it—sex, glamour, characters you love to hate.” (Johnny, [28:02])
  • Concerns about the erosion of public trust in media due to personal entanglements and ethical lapses.
  • On Michael Wolff: “He hears [a rumor] from somebody and then he will write dialogue…and it turns it into a kind of novel, a loosely, loosely, loosely based on semi-facts novel.” (Johnny, [33:27])

12. Death of Late Night TV [34:49–41:09]

• The decline of once-iconic American institution:
  • “Now these guys are so political and unpleasant and unfunny that I can’t stomach it anymore.” (Johnny, [34:51])
  • Gen Z/Alpha has no connection to the format.
  • “The people online are gonna be funnier than Stephen Colbert and Jimmy Kimmel.” (Johnny, [35:23])
  • Gutfeld’s Fox show fills the vacuum by being “all about the audience.”
  • “They think they’re journalists when they’re just clowns that we pay to make us laugh.” (Johnny, [40:16])

13. The Path Forward & 2026 Outlook [42:22–54:03]

• Can the industry listen to the audience again?
  • “If they’re smart and they want to make money…and ensure an audience of the future, they need to start making more…They need to listen to the audience and learn from what’s doing well.” (Johnny, [42:43])
  • Discusses the Barbenheimer moment and how it failed to inspire real change.
  • Disney’s woes: Emphasis on wokeness in family content backfires, alienating traditional audiences.
  • “People want great things…Not just familiar brands and just repeated ad nauseam.” (Johnny, [47:17])
  • Concerns about the Netflix-Warner/Paramount consolidation: Could spell doom for movie theaters if streaming dominates.

14. Broadway's Slim Hopes & Johnny’s Optimism [51:54–54:03]

• Anticipating potentially promising Broadway imports, especially family-centered productions like “Paddington.”
• “Often just when things look the bleakest is when the clouds part.” (Johnny, [53:57])

15. Johnny O’s Path: Critic by Calling, Not by Failure [54:03–59:30]

• Shares his origin story from a theater-loving, “nerdy” kid in Libertyville, IL (hometown of Marlon Brando).
• Pivoted from acting school to criticism after an encouraging professor suggested writing reviews.
• “I just loved it…despite my winning complexion, I’m one of the more experienced critics, certainly…the most of my generation.” (Johnny, [55:00])

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Criticism:
  “I don’t write for the people that put on Broadway shows or make movies. I write for readers. And the real people that are coming to see them.” — Johnny Oleksinski ([02:27])

• On “One Battle After the Other”:
  “It sympathizes with domestic terrorists. And you tell 80% of people that…they don’t say pass the popcorn.” — Johnny ([05:52])

• On Hollywood’s Creative Bankruptcy:
  “They did just start churning out films to check a box rather than to entertain or delight or move.” — Johnny ([11:44])

• On Late Night TV:
  “Everyone started to copy [The Daily Show]… the whole idea of late night was you’re getting into bed and you’re ending your day with something light and watching a few stars chat…not, you know, MSNBC.” — Johnny ([38:26–39:51])

• On Broadway Ticket Prices:
  “A balcony seat for $900 to sit in the balcony of a Shakespeare play.” — Johnny ([21:36])

• On Industry Self-Destruction:
  “It kind of needs to be burnt down and emerge from the ashes.” — Johnny, on Broadway ([25:55])

• On Netflixification:
  “For every golden gem, there are about 100 turds on Netflix.” — Johnny ([48:14])

• On Career Philosophy:
  “I am a kid… I have to stress, I’m turning 36. So I’ve been a critic since I was 20…despite my winning complexion, I’m one of the more experienced critics, certainly…probably the most of my generation.” ([54:45], [55:00])

Timestamps of Key Segments

• [00:18] Johnny in London scouting West End hits for Broadway
• [03:00] Devine and Johnny debate “One Battle After the Other”
• [08:10] 2025’s “Year of the Flops”
• [11:44] Wokeness and audience alienation
• [14:59] The “foreign film” phenomenon at awards shows
• [18:27] Hollywood’s bloated budgets
• [21:21] Broadway’s $900 ticket problem
• [27:05] Nutzi-gate and the state of journalism
• [34:49] Late night TV’s death spiral
• [42:22] Will 2026 be the year the industry wakes up?
• [51:54] Broadway hopes for family fare
• [54:03] Johnny O’s path to criticism

Tone & Language

• Highly conversational, occasionally irreverent, with direct and sometimes scathing humor from both host and guest.
• Johnny’s voice: sharp, witty, sometimes curmudgeonly but passionate about the value of art and the need to serve audiences.
• Miranda is candid, populist, poking fun at elite tastes and championing the “regular moviegoer.”

Takeaway

This episode offers a scathing yet affectionate autopsy of the entertainment industry’s 2025 missteps. The core critique: Hollywood and Broadway have lost touch with ordinary audiences, turning out politically motivated, creatively bankrupt, and overpriced content. Both Devine and Oleksinski see hope only if the creative elite start listening to audiences’ hunger for genuine entertainment. Until then, the brightest lights may come not from screens or stages, but from the candid reporting and criticism that dares to call out the emperor’s lack of clothes.

For anyone who missed the episode, this summary captures the robust debates, sharp critiques, and real affection for the craft of entertainment at the heart of this Pod Force One installment.