November 17, 2025 • 50 mins
Welcome to the Actor's Guide to the End of the World Podcast, Episode 55! The week we're pulling back the curtain on the maybe not-so-quiet retreat. The numbers are in for 2025, and they're brutal in terms of women directors, and in some ways, non-white directors over all. E-Kan and Rían break down to what might be driving that, and what that means for us performers and creators moving forward and some bright spots.
Michael Caine announced he will be licensing his voice to an AI-startup backed up by Matthew McConaughey while Morgan Freeman fires shots, saying his lawyers are busy hunting all those out there stealing his voice without his consent. Welcome to the Wild, Wild, West, and the guys try to make sense of it. Also, we talk more about Abba, as you know we love here at the podcast.
There are some bright spots, including Paramount and Disney commit to putting in more money aimed towards content, and the one thing we know-if you want it, you have to go out there and make it.
Follow us @actorsguidepodcast wherever you find your podcasts, and on all social media, including TIkTok, Instagram, YouTube, and Substack.
@ekansoong @riansheehykelly
Gene Wilder story TikTok- https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZP8DoMtej/
https://www.digitalmusicnews.com/2025/10/01/abba-voyage-ticket-sales-revenue-2024/
https://theankler.com/p/female-directors-and-hollywoods-grim
https://theankler.com/p/hollywoods-backslide-into-white-male
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/paramount-plans-price-increase-1-095028265.html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAL-kpmkYFLUqK_wWZM9Ynkn0Kdk7rYTqVusPhPQ5u5TYinbShkDVVavLpugzh6Lgzpb8NdbE1iEmN1_XVKROop_1e9NUlqty01zULXk2ldKrNVEKuIXx3PeLAOp9kOa3xvTCho0pTkFcv5BLQ3vk9jHqB_BLaXlJnJFMOVr8Kar0
https://wdwnt.com/2025/11/disney-increasing-content-spending-1-billion/
https://deadline.com/2025/11/nearly-half-lgbtq-tv-characters-canceled-glaad-1236608720/
Chad Sanders “Black Art Bubble” https://www.instagram.com/reel/DP6hJ-KDZQt/?igsh=MWJsbXBrODV2N21tcw==
Paramount racial layoff? - https://www.instagram.com/reel/DQclLZ9Eo6-/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
Hidden Gems:
Turn off "Access When Locked" on Iphone - "General", "Face ID & Passcode", Allow Access When Locked- Turn Off Control Center
Petit Salons Monday Screening Nights at Petit Ermitage Hotel
Time Stamps:
(0:00) Intro
(3:00) Great CD Patrick Rush appearance at Lesly Kahn
(6:25) Michael Caine licenses his voice at AI startup
(11:45) AI chatbots are causing psychosis
(17:33) Abba's virtual show sells a million tickets
(24:40) Hollywood migration to Nevada and AFM
(29:20) Women filmmakers drastically down in 2025
(31:20) How scared is Hollywood?
(36:50) Paramount and Disney commit billions of dollars to new content
(39:10) If you believe in it, make it
(40:53) The genius of Chad Sanders and the black art bubble
(45:27) Hidden Gems
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
Michael Caine is
licensing his voice to
this AI startup.
Little context
on that though,
Michael Caine is
92 years old, so.
So are you saying that
he's not gonna be around
to see all the
detrimental effects?
More or less, I don't
wanna be brutal.
Talking about ABBA,
they've been putting on a
virtual show
(00:20):
for years, do you know
any of this?
What is this?
You don't
know any of this?
No, tell me.
ABBA, that has,
they've played a--
You think I'm a
massive ABBA fan,
because I'm European.
Well, I mean, here's--
How do you not know who
the Beatles are,
but you know that ABBA
have a virtual show?
All right, welcome to the
Actors Guide
to the End of
the World Podcast,
where we talk about
acting in Hollywood
(00:41):
and the way people
understand,
I'm E-Kan Soong
And I am Rían Sheehy Kelly
as you well know.
As we all well know.
Follow us wherever you
find your podcasts,
we're on video, we're on
YouTube and Substack,
we're on all social
media, Actors
Guide Podcast.
If you're not
following our TikTok,
(01:01):
guys, some of our things
are blowing up on TikTok.
Brian Stepanek's story
about Gene Wilder,
who knew?
Major Gene
Wilder fans on TikTok.
Anyway, follow us
wherever you get your
social media,
at Actors Guide Podcast.
On today's show, we talk
about how Michael Caine
(01:23):
just licensed his voice
to an AI startup
that Matthew
McConaughey has backed.
Meanwhile,
also this week,
Morgan Freeman has stated
that he has lawyers
suing people left and
right for
stealing his voice.
Do you know what just
occurred to me?
It's very funny that
Matthew McConaughey and
Michael Caine
are probably two of the
most imitated
actors out there.
(01:45):
(laughing)
And they're the ones
lending their
voices to AI.
See, that's smart.
We talk about the massive
decline in
women filmmakers
in 2025, as well as
non-white filmmakers.
Honest look at the
current landscape,
some silver linings, and
some bright spots.
And we also talk
about a lovely chat
that was given at Leslie
(02:05):
Kahn and Co.
with the fantastic
casting
director Patrick Rush.
And there you go.
Enjoy the
episode, everyone.
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conversations a breeze,
one relative at a time.
So what have you been
doing for the
last few months?
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Well, I just
wanna give a shout out
to this month's
conversation.
And for those of you who
aren't aware,
at Leslie Khan Studios,
(03:06):
every month,
they invite
somebody in for a chat
and it's free to anybody
who's in class.
I think there's a fee if
you're not in class,
but basically
it'll be, you know,
this month it was a
casting
director, Patrick Rush,
and what a chat.
Last month it
was David Nutter,
TV director David Nutter.
So like it's showrunners,
(03:27):
it's casting directors,
it's people in the
industry, it's directors.
Patrick Rush came
in to talk to us
and it was so great to
talk to a
casting director
and hear him speak about
his experience with it.
And he's been
casting a long time.
He cast the OC and a
bunch of
different things.
He's got a
really great resume,
but his
(03:47):
approach to casting
and how much he loves
actors was palpable.
I mean, it was really
just, it was so,
it was so comforting to
hear that from a
casting director,
you know, and how he,
what he looks
for in actors
and how he
approaches his job.
And it was just a
(04:07):
brilliant talk.
And the more of these
things I go to,
the more I appreciate
just hearing someone
else's experience
and getting that
perspective,
you don't get to
see that very often.
You don't get access to
it in that way.
And we're also doing a
lot of self-tapes.
We don't see casting
directors in
person these days
so that you're
completely right.
(04:28):
Exactly, and he was
thrilled to be in a room
full of actors, like he
really enjoyed it.
But one of the things
that stood out to me
was someone asked, how
important is
the social media
following to you?
And he's like,
I don't care.
He's like, I don't care
how many
followers you have.
You know, if you're great
and you're
right for the part
and you have a ton of
followers, you
know, all the better,
but it's not a
(04:49):
consideration for him.
But I loved it.
And I just, you know, for
anybody who's
in Los Angeles,
these, and particularly
at Leslie Kahn,
if you're listening to
this and
you're, you know,
you take classes at
Leslie Kahn,
you should absolutely go
to these things
because they are so cool.
And Leslie gets all these
(05:09):
wonderful people in
and it's phenomenal.
So, yeah, I just want to
give a shout out
to the studio for that.
And it's free
for students.
So that's incredible
opportunity.
Yeah.
And it's a chance to talk
to these people
and meet them.
And, you know, it's every
one that I've been to
has been phenomenal.
It's just been really
enjoyable and insightful
and inspiring,
(05:30):
I think as well.
Because when you hear the
way people talk
about their jobs,
you're like, yeah, we're
all doing this together.
You know, it's a real,
it's given me
a greater sense
of the community at large
and how everybody's,
everybody faces
the same struggles.
Everybody's pushing for
the same thing,
essentially,
you know?
So, yeah, big shout out
to Leslie Kahn Studios
(05:51):
and Leslie Kahn for
bringing these people in.
And I just
wanted to say that.
No, that's amazing.
Patrick Rush is awesome.
Did you know,
have you met him?
I have met him
back in the day.
He used to come in and
kind of sit
in on classes.
He used to do a
couple of our classes
and Patrick Rush has been
a friend of Leslie Kahn
and also all of her
actors for a while.
(06:12):
So a lot of us have
worked on his shows
and he's brought
a lot of us in.
So, you know, he's been
an ally of Leslie Kahn's
for a long time.
So he's
great, he's great.
Love it, love it.
So let's start
off with this.
Michael Kane is licensing
his voice to
this AI startup.
Matthew McConaughey also
backed the AI
(06:34):
audio company.
He states innovation is
not to replace humanity
but to celebrate it.
Anyway, this is just kind
of the landscape
of people who are kind of
a little proactive,
a little more open to
what technology is.
Little context
on that though.
Michael Kane
is 92 years old.
(06:54):
So I mean, the
implications of that for
him are not,
I would say far reaching
in terms of, you know,
he's doing it at this age
is what I'm saying.
Well, that's the only
part of the conversation
but I'm curious.
So are you saying that
he's not gonna be around
to see all the
detrimental effects?
(07:16):
More or less, I don't
wanna be brutal.
No, it's just funny
because I never actually,
it's the first time
anyone's
actually brought up
that point that, hey, I
mean, come on,
if you're ready, you
know, if you're ready,
leave something behind.
Is that kind of?
No, it's just
interesting that like,
it's for a game, right?
If you're in a
position of power
(07:38):
and you have a lot of
success, why not?
And it kind of goes in
line with last week
we talked about how CAA,
CAA clients,
CAA has a vault of
digital
replicas that are,
you know, that the CAA is
very much
ahead of the game.
(07:58):
They have all
their eyes dotted.
And I kind of look at
that as far as
if you're established and
say, you know,
most of them are
actually older,
then sure, license
yourself and
make that money.
But like, I don't know
beyond that.
(08:19):
I will say for him,
it doesn't seem like he's
doing it for money.
Yeah.
I'm gonna give
you the quote here.
"For years, I've lent my
voice to stories
that moved people,
tales of courage,
of wit, of the
human spirit."
This is in a statement.
"Now I'm helping others
find theirs.
With 11 Labs we can
preserve and
share voices,
not just mine,
but anyone's."
It's very aspirational
(08:40):
kind of a statement.
I don't know.
I don't know if that is
what it will be used for.
I agree, Ryan.
So I'm trying not to be
completely
skeptical here.
It helps that Matthew
McConaughey has invested
in under closed
sum in 11 Labs
after being impressed by
the company.
So there's
credibility there.
That being said, we know
nothing about
(09:00):
what this studio
is going to be,
what type of products
that they're gonna be,
projects they're going to
be producing,
have no idea
what this could be.
It's a very aspirational,
articulate statement
for what it is.
It's basically
licensing your voice.
It's no
different than CAA Vault.
Just because Michael
Caine is very articulate
(09:22):
and writes a
nice statement,
I'm kind of waiting to
see what this is.
Matthew McConaughey, are
these bedtime stories?
Are they going
to be creating,
narrating audio books for
the rest of eternity?
I don't really know.
You know what I mean?
(09:42):
That's a valid point.
That's what I don't
understand
about this stuff.
Because once
you license it,
I mean, what say do you
have over how it's used?
You've been conditioned
to be scared
of this stuff.
And we'll wait and see.
Matthew McConaughey is
putting their
name on this.
Sir Michael Caine is.
And by the way, this is a
storefront for,
(10:05):
this is the launch of 11
Labs Iconic Voices
Marketplace,
a storefront for
celebrity voices
that brands can
pay to reproduce.
These are brands, these
are more
advertising deals.
This includes deceased
actors such
as Judy Garland
and historical figures
such as J. Robert
Oppenheimer.
Just in time for the
holidays, everyone.
(10:26):
So this is kind of like
my point where,
you can dole this up real
nice, but I
think it's fair.
We are a
little skeptical.
Now, the flip
side of this.
Also this week,
Morgan Freeman.
You can imagine
how many people
are trying to
rip off his voice.
Slams
unauthorized AI voice use,
saying his
lawyers are very busy.
(10:48):
I'm like any other actor,
don't mimic me
with falseness.
It says it right here.
I'm like any other actor.
Don't mimic me
with falseness.
I don't appreciate it.
And I get paid for doing
stuff like that.
So if you're gonna do it
without me,
you're robbing me.
If you pay him, if he
signs a contract
to be the voice of a
celebrity, he will
happily do it.
(11:09):
But, and with this whole
Morgan Freeman as a
juxtaposition,
I kind of don't blame
Michael Caine.
90 some years
old, he's like,
hey, I don't wanna schlep
to a voiceover booth.
You know my voice, my
voice is very iconic.
And hey, get me a decent
cut and I'll
(11:29):
sign off on this.
I kind of, I
mean, here we are.
And actors do commercials
all the time.
It's like, I think it's
kind of
splitting hairs a bit.
So I don't even
know if I blame him.
It's just we have no idea
what they're
going to pump out
with possibly his voice.
Slightly off topic, or
not off topic,
but it's a bit
of a tangent.
I was talking to a friend
(11:51):
of mine who's an actress,
she's a brilliant
actress, but
she's now a therapist
and has, you know, got
her certification.
And now she's practicing,
but she was
talking about AI
and chat GPT and that,
and the instances
of it causing
psychosis in people.
(12:11):
Because people use it as
a sort of a
confidant and a,
they use it in lieu of
somebody to talk to,
as if it were a partner
or a
confidant or somebody
and share
everything with it.
But in people who are
susceptible to it,
(12:32):
it can trigger psychosis,
which is terrifying.
That that's a common
enough usage of it.
You know what I mean?
That people are sort of
depending on it for that.
Yeah.
But--
No, I just
want to make sure.
So she's certified, she's
been hearing
(12:52):
those stories.
I heard stories and
reports of that, but has
she, she's--
I don't know if she's
dealt with somebody
that that has
happened to.
I mean, she deals in the
sort of mental
health arena,
but I don't know if, I
don't think,
or I don't know if she's
had direct
experience with it,
but it's obviously in her
orbit because,
(13:13):
this is a phenomenon
that's happening.
And again, there are
obviously
helpful uses of AI.
I mean, I'm sure there's
tons of them
that we're not
even aware of,
but the kind of at the
sort of consumer level,
the way people are using
it now, people are
depending on.
I saw somebody try to
(13:35):
rearrange a,
instead of like try to
rearrange a cabinet,
they took a
picture of the cabinet
and then put it into chat
GPT and said,
what's the most
aesthetically
pleasing way
to arrange
these ornaments?
So like--
I don't doubt
that for a second.
I've seen that
myself, 100%.
The more you give up your
(13:56):
sort of autonomy
and turn it over
to this service,
I think the more
trouble we're in.
It's a slippery
slope for sure.
About that psychosis idea
or concept that
you brought up,
I need to do
more research.
I have seen
reports about that
and I knew that we would
eventually
(14:16):
talk about that,
but the fact that AI chat
bots are being used,
especially by people with
mental health concerns
as well as young
children, it's tricky.
I mean, there's
tons of reports.
Children, high school
kids, teenagers,
their best
friend is AI chat bot.
(14:37):
And you could say on
many, many levels,
that can be a great thing
because hey,
loneliness is real and
especially
this day and age
with kids in
the digital age.
That being said, if that
AI chat bot goes,
hey, Wire, oh, you got
some problems.
So there's
major, major things
that they're
uncovering with that.
And like I said, I mean,
(14:58):
no different
than last week
is we're trying to find
regulations.
We're trying to find a
proper way to
coexist like that.
And possibly, is Michael
Caine licensing studio
partnership?
That very well might be
the next step,
but that's a contract,
that's legislated,
that's not Morgan Freeman
(15:20):
getting ripped
off left and right.
Yeah, I agree.
And the obvious
implications of confiding
all your personal
information
into a service
that actively collects
and stores it
and then uses it for
whatever purpose.
That's a great point.
Seems quite
dangerous to me.
(15:40):
From a privacy
standpoint, you know?
So anyway, there's my
anti AI rant.
(laughing) My weekly, my
weekly anti AI rant.
Actually, that's
not a bad idea.
We'll give you
five minutes.
We'll give you five
minutes for a
rant anti AI rant.
(laughing) And I don't wanna be
like, I don't
wanna be a doomsday,
(16:00):
you know, I don't wanna
be banging the
doomsday drum,
running
around the village,
screaming that
this guy is falling.
But it's just the more I
hear about this stuff,
the more I'm like, what
are we doing, guys?
What are we doing?
I mean, this
is actually--
I will say,
with that in mind,
I still have a very
optimistic outlook
on where I don't think
(16:21):
actors are
going to be replaced
by AI.
I know I've said that a
number of times
because I
just don't think,
I think they're
fundamentally
different, you know?
AI performance and actual
performance,
like a good performance,
are worlds apart.
I think there's a total
(16:41):
incongruity there
where they can't exist in
the same place.
No.
How that plays out
remains to be seen,
but I'm
confident, I'm confident.
I'm cocky
even, I would say.
(laughing)
Yeah, yeah.
Anyway, this week's
Reince anti AI rant
(17:02):
brought to you by.
And luckily,
nothing bad ever came
from being overconfident.
(laughing) Yeah, you ever heard the
common phrase,
"Pride comes
before a win"?
We're fine.
Yeah, famous last words.
But no, seriously though,
we need to give you a
(17:22):
proper segment.
We'll come up
with a name.
I think every week you
are averaging
around five,
seven minutes.
So yeah, this
is a good bit.
Last bit, I am
very curious,
and it's actually gonna
come up a lot
in this episode.
We are seeing where the
marketplace is,
and this didn't get in
our last episode.
(17:44):
I don't know if this was
two episodes ago,
but when we
talked about ABBA,
lovely, lovely ABBA.
I know.
Well, ABBA didn't make it in?
Yeah, exactly.
No, when we talked about
our big ABBA Beatles
retrospective,
if you missed it, our
music episode
was jam-packed.
That got some attention
to the music.
(18:04):
A few people mentioned
that to me, the music.
Oh, I can't wait.
You're specifically
related to your
musical taste.
Oh, if you missed it,
check out that episode.
David Bowie, you were
talking about
Rocco and the Boys.
Yeah, Rocco
and the Beaters.
Rocco and the
Beastly Boys.
So yeah, we dive deep
(18:27):
into music
history last episode,
so check that out.
But we did not get into,
the whole reason why we
even started
talking about that,
we were
talking about ABBA.
They've been putting on a
virtual show.
Now, we got sidetracked
in the conversation
because I wanted
to bring this up.
But when we talked about,
is there a market for
virtual performers?
(18:49):
Now, to be fair, ABBA, I
mean, to your point,
they've been
around for a long time.
They've been performing,
well, they've been
playing their virtual
show for years.
Do you know any of this?
What is this?
You don't
know any of this?
No, tell me.
ABBA has,
they've played a-
You think I'm a
(19:10):
massive ABBA fan
because I'm European.
Well, I mean,
here's the thing.
That's what
transpired last week.
Well, I mean,
here's the thing.
No, I'm not an ABBA fan,
but I'm aware that they
had a virtual show.
They had a virtual show
for the last
two, three years.
And it is-
How do you not know who
the Beatles are,
but you know that ABBA
have a virtual show?
I don't know,
to be honest,
(19:30):
it might've
been on my AI,
because I'm in
the AI world now,
as AI research, I'm kind
of surprised
that you didn't know, but
anyway, for
those listening,
ABBA has a virtual show
and they did
CGI, the band.
So this is
the difference,
because I'm not
gonna call it AI,
because that
might be unfair.
(19:50):
Every year they're
selling a
million tickets.
They sold a million
tickets last year.
It was
building off of 2023.
There's still demand.
I don't know, Rhianne,
I know that you're not a
big ABBA fan,
but apparently there are
some ABBA fans out there.
I don't dislike ABBA, I
think they're good.
I mean, to be fair, I
never heard a song,
but either
way, I trust it.
Anyway, my point is, is
(20:12):
ABBA performed with
motion capture
and they
recreated them performing,
I don't know, 30 some
years ago in their prime.
You go there and these
audiences love it.
They sold a
million tickets.
Now my point is, is
that's not AI.
And that being said, Yeah, that's very good.
(20:32):
I am very curious because
if I went to
that concert,
at that point, I'm not
sure exactly what the
difference is.
Do you know what I mean?
You could use AI to
create those,
I don't wanna
call it a hologram
because it's
not a hologram,
but it's from
the naked eye,
it sounds like a hologram
(20:53):
concert that
everyone loved.
So in the
future, in four years,
if you have Tupac Prince
and all these people
doing those
concerts, why would I,
like how would I measure
one versus the other?
Well, here's a
key difference.
The way you've
described it,
it sounds like ABBA, the
band, did performance
capture with,
(21:14):
and then they essentially
just de-aged them
and they did this
performance, right?
That's kind of what it
sounds like.
So that is the band.
It's basically like ABBA
wearing heavy makeup.
You know what I mean,
doing a performance.
Now, I don't know if they
sang the whole thing
or if they
generated it digitally,
but that's very different
than an AI rendering
(21:36):
of these people.
Also, if you're
talking about Tupac
and people
like that, Prince,
they're not gonna do
performance capture.
You know what I mean?
Then it would be an
entirely digital
performance.
Okay, okay.
No, I mean, that's fair.
Or a recording of a
previous
performance and project.
Okay, okay,
so that's fair.
This is all rhetorical.
So Michael Caine going
(21:58):
into the VO booth,
so you're saying that's a
line kind of
crossed maybe
if he's not doing the
original voice
and then they're kind of
generating more stories
from his voice.
Is that a line
crossed for you?
I don't know if it's a
line crossed,
but it's the
implications.
I think it's a very
different
type of a thing.
(22:20):
There's one thing between
ABBA doing a performance
that's going to be,
where their appearance
will be slightly altered
and they'll be projected
digitally or whatever,
then Michael
Caine going in going,
"Here's my voice,
whatever you do with it
is up to you."
That's a very
different thing
because it's
artificially generated.
He could be talking about
selling crackers
or he could be
giving a speech
or they could stick them
(22:40):
in a movie,
whatever that is.
That's a very different
thing, I think,
to like a performance
capture of a band
whose job is to sing
and there they are
singing their songs.
And they were involved in
the creation of that.
I just, I
don't think it's,
because one is AI and one
is not AI, basically.
Okay, that's fair.
I do think that they're
(23:01):
very similar
to kind of like your
point where,
hey, Michael
Caine's pretty old.
So yeah, I
mean, lock it down.
I mean, in a lot of
similar ways,
ABBA is very forward
thinking saying,
"Hey, we can
leave on this legacy
and our fans can enjoy it
as they're
much older now."
So I see a lot of
(23:23):
similarities,
but yeah, that's fair.
This is the divide.
If you're not
Michael Caine
and if you're
not signed by CAA,
it's going to be a little
more of a knife fight
trying to protect
property and
likeness for us.
So I think these are all
just kind of
shades of the
(23:43):
same problem.
You know what I mean?
In some ways, yeah.
I think just for actors,
like the protections that
we have at the moment
really only
come from the union
and in our case,
California law.
Outside of that, for
non-union actors
and performers,
there isn't a
ton of protection.
They have to be very,
(24:04):
very careful
about what's contained in
contracts, I think.
And I think that's the
takeaway from
it for me is,
and I don't know
how far reaching
even the union
protections go.
I think they
could be stronger.
So this is kind of,
I don't know if you ever
heard of this,
(24:24):
American film market.
So we're gonna talk just
a little check in
on this Hollywood
migration out to Nevada.
Nevada was essentially a
migration the
past couple years.
Studios are trying to be
built out there
and they were kind of
calling it Hollywood 2.0.
Obviously it's close
enough to California,
similar enough weather.
It makes all the
(24:44):
sense in the world.
So let's just check in
how that's going.
First off, if people
didn't know,
Mark Wahlberg moved out
there, his
entire compound,
all of his team, and then
also trying to
build a studio.
We haven't seen anything
going on with that yet,
but more recently, the
American film market
(25:05):
is happening
right now back in LA.
I didn't realize--
Yeah, it's usually in
Santa Monica.
Yeah, exactly,
there you go.
But it's not this year.
Yeah, this is
the first year.
Yeah, they moved to
Century City, right?
They moved,
yeah, exactly.
For anybody
who doesn't know,
this is where people go
to sell movies.
This is where people buy
and sell movies.
So this is the premier
destination event
for studios,
(25:25):
distributors.
They mingle, they bid on
the hottest new films.
So when you see films
coming out of Cannes,
they go to
sell their movie
and get to sell rights
for distributions.
So I didn't realize that
AFM actually
was held in
Vegas last year.
So last year was
the big experiment.
(25:46):
Hey, Nevada, it's the
film and TV,
it's the future.
That's kind
of a big deal,
the fact that
AFM even left LA.
I mean, let's be honest,
that's not a great look.
AFM moved to Vegas.
I think their center
location was
the Palms Casino.
Let's just say it
did not go well.
(26:08):
It was dead on arrival.
Let's say, I mean, right
off the bat,
I'm just reading some of
these comments.
Long lines at the
elevators,
poor food options,
lack of atmosphere.
It was just not exactly
the Hollywood,
like, I don't know.
Why was that?
I mean, what's the, I
(26:29):
mean, you
think like Vegas
is set up to handle
conventions better than
anywhere else.
It's true, you're sure
you would think that.
You would think that.
Interesting.
It left a lot
to be desired.
I don't know, if you've
been to the Palms,
I'm like, yeah,
this does not feel
like the upper
crust of Hollywood.
I don't know, it is kind
of funny if you
think about it.
(26:50):
Anyway, so it
did not go well.
They said immediately,
we're not
coming back to Vegas.
So they came to LA.
Yeah, I know, a more
familiar territory.
The last thing I will say
about Nevada,
and here's the thing, AFM
is literally
going on right now.
(27:11):
We'll see, this is
literally the pulse
of the
independent film market.
Obviously one of the
bigger titles is Passion
of the Christ.
I don't even know, is it
Passion of the Christ 2?
Whatever that sequence.
Mel Gibson is doing--
Oh, I didn't
know there was--
Oh, oh, oh,
oh, Mel Gibson.
Oh, this is the other
interesting bit.
Mel Gibson is literally
shopping his
next Jesus movie,
(27:31):
and he's not letting them
read the script.
He's not letting them
read the script,
which I wanna say
is kind of rare.
But that's
happening right now,
and we'll see, we'll see.
This is the lifeblood of
our film market,
and they're back in LA.
They're back in Century
City this year.
So we'll see
how that goes.
Wow, we should do that.
We should go
to it next year,
(27:52):
and just sell a movie
that we don't
have a script for,
and just be like, yeah,
it's like Die Hard,
but out of Denny's.
And just, can we say,
nope, can't
see the script.
And then we'll just write
the script if
they buy it.
Easy.
I think I have seen many
people
imprisoned for just that,
but that is a fun idea.
(28:12):
(laughing) It's like people who
pitch a show,
but they haven't written
the end yet.
They don't know
where it's gone.
Just like Lost.
Yeah, that was the one I
was thinking
of, it's Lost.
I know.
The last thing I will say
about the Nevada film,
Hollywood Migration.
Now, for those
paying attention,
because I have been
paying attention,
I know a lot of people
who actually
moved to Nevada
from California, they
weren't in the industry,
(28:33):
but they were very
bullish on the future.
To be fair,
Nevada is fighting
for an increased
film TV tax credit.
So they had a whopping
film TV tax credit
that they've been trying
to pass for the past
couple years
that would go to say,
building studios.
They just passed
to the next level.
Now, whether it gets
(28:53):
passed, there is a
lot of opposition.
People were
saying that that thing
wasn't even
gonna get this far.
Not returning.
It's closer than Atlanta.
I agree.
All right,
well there you go.
That's your Nevada film
TV pulse, everyone.
We'll keep an
eye on that.
The migration out.
Tune in next week.
See how Mark Wahlberg is
doing out there
with all of his
(29:14):
burger franchises.
So moving on, the
Angler.com,
there's a blog.
There've been a handful,
but they did a decent
article about this.
They just kind of looked
at the numbers.
Women
filmmakers for this year,
this might
not be a shock,
but I think it's just
depending on how much it
has declined.
(29:35):
Women filmmakers for 2025
are drastically down.
Now, how you gauge this,
I'll try to make it
straightforward.
In 2025, they kind of
compiled the
top 100 films
by box office.
So most studio movies,
some independent,
specific movies would
(29:56):
make it in there.
But let's just say the
top 100 films,
and you go back the past
six, seven years.
That's pre-pandemic,
that's going back to,
the Me Too movement
obviously is a
good benchmark.
Then you also have George
Floyd in 2020.
So just keep in mind that
these are
waves and trends
(30:16):
that we have
seen in Hollywood
for the type of TV and
film that has
been produced.
Anyway, these are
specifically looking at
women filmmakers.
Out of the top 100, we
have four, four films.
One is a co-directed
film, so that is
technically three.
That was director, one
was co-directed.
And to be fair, we're not
(30:37):
done with 2025.
So there's a couple more
that might
squeak in there.
Okay, so the year before
in 2024, we have 13.
We have more in 2023, 14.
So there's a million
factors why
this might be.
I mean, one possible
reason it mentions in
this is executives.
(31:00):
There aren't enough
female executives.
And that would give rise
to more female directors
being given a chance.
I don't think people are
being given a shot.
And I think that the more
fearful the industry is,
the less people are being
given a shot.
You see it
with actors too.
You see it
even in terms of
newer actors or less
(31:22):
experienced actors being
given a shot.
Maybe this is a
poor parallel,
but series regulars are
taking guests
to our jobs.
And everything is kind of
moving down.
And to get
those roles now,
you have to have
significant credits.
I think there is
to some degree,
when
everybody's running scared
(31:42):
and nobody knows
how to make money,
there's a
retreat back to,
oh, well, we knowwhat works.
It's male directors or
people run to
what they know,
which has been a very
unfairly skewed arena,
(32:04):
where
traditionally it's men,
it's white men have been
in charge of
this whole thing.
And I don't know- That's
a great point.
There's a speculation on
my part as well.
But it feels like people are getting a shot. And I think that's a great point. But it feels like people
are not being
given a chance,
I would say.
That's a great point
because the ones with
more experience
would naturally be the
white male director.
On that note,
this is anecdotal,
but this was a video that
(32:26):
was circling on
Cruise Stories.
A producer that was
working for CBS TV,
put on his social media,
he got laid off.
And long story short, he
confronted his boss
because he thought it was
a department-wide layoff.
What happened in
fact was he realized
the ethnic
people got laid off.
He was black,
(32:46):
he looked around,
he asked all of
his white coworkers,
and for whatever reason,
they weren't laid off.
Now, I'll put a
link into that video,
but it does say, whether
it's a
coincidence or not,
but it brings up a lot of
these deeper issues
that maybe we see
happening more often
with these
massive layoffs.
(33:07):
That was CBS, we know
that Paramount laid off
1,600 people.
If you're in any of these
other industries
and you heard any of
these things,
email us at
ActorsGuidePodcast
at gmail.com,
hit us up on
social media.
I'm just wondering how
widespread this might be.
The caption was, is CBS
doing racial layoffs?
(33:28):
So moving on, so this is,
they did a follow-up.
So now let's look at the
non-white directors.
Basically, there's a
retreat, a backslide,
two white male
directors overall.
So let's just
look at the numbers.
They did similar numbers
for directors
from marginalized or
diverse communities.
(33:49):
And to be fair, this was
not nearly as big a drop.
It was a peak in 2023,
kind of a cutback, 2024.
I mean, numbers are
similar to 2025,
in 2025 as 2024.
And then also we have the
new "Wicked" movie,
which is
directed by John Chiu.
So we have a
couple numbers
that are gonna be
(34:09):
boosting up that.
The one takeaway that
they had was,
out of all of them, there
was three
black directors,
three black directors
this entire year.
So a lot of people can
talk about
the huge success
that "Sinners" was, and
that might
overshadow the fact
that there are only three
black directors
(34:30):
in all the top
100 films this year.
And "Lactino
Filmmakers" won, won.
So, you know, these are
just numbers,
but I think you're onto
it as far as what this
might be about
because there is a lot of
fear to go around.
There is a lot of, you
know, needless to say,
(34:50):
there's a lot of layoffs,
there's a lot of
contraction.
Now, this whole idea as
far as new blood,
we know that CEOs are,
the people making
decisions are
mostly white.
We have talked about, you
know, in recent months,
DEI programs, you know,
diversity, equity,
(35:12):
and inclusion programs,
they're coming to an end
or they're kind
of being paused.
If you look at the
numbers for
new WGA, new DGA,
all those applicants are
diverse and ethnic.
And so it's just
interesting how a lot of
our new blood
is diverse.
Yeah, and I think it kind
(35:32):
of speaks to
a wider issue
in the
industry is that like,
it's not sustainable for
a lot of people now.
Because it's
so risk averse
and because people are
running into the walls
and nobody seems to want
to take a risk.
I don't know, I think
that goes two ways, one
of two ways.
It goes, it retreats back
to big studio movies
(35:53):
and, you know, mergers
and sort of monopolies
and making a lot of the
same type of movies
or, you know, there's a
massive uptick
in independent movies.
But I think no matter
what, because just
anecdotally,
like I know a number of
female filmmakers
(36:13):
who are brilliant
and are producing their
own work or
writing their own work
or directing
their own work.
I've worked with a few
female directors
that are phenomenal.
But I do see around me,
well, one more people
making their own work,
more people
writing their own work,
directing their own work,
producing their own work.
Cause it's easier now
than it's ever
been to do that
(36:34):
in terms of the access we
have to the
technology to do it
and the resources.
But a lot of them are
female, you know,
and you know some of
those women too
that are just writing and
producing their own work.
So I have to feel that
down the line
that's gonna
have an effect.
Now on a brighter note, I
don't wanna forget this.
When we talk about the
(36:54):
current landscape
and this is what the
industry is looking like,
we do have a
bright spot here.
Paramount just announced
despite their
1600 layoffs,
they're going to commit a
$1.5 billion
towards
making new content.
That very well could be a
PR statement
to make its
layoffs sound better.
But that is promising.
(37:16):
That's great for us
actors, great
for writers.
Let's see if they make
good on that promise.
$1.5 billion
on new content.
And Disney announced that
they're going to commit
another, an extra billion
dollars for next year.
So this year
was 23 billion,
next year is
gonna be 24 billion.
So these are
promising things.
The question is, is what
is the type of content
(37:37):
that they're
going to make?
You know, whether there's
trends that are happening
or kind of waning, I
think there's a lot of,
you know, I'm looking at
the bright side
of a lot of this.
This is not a friendly
environment to enter,
whether you're an actor,
writer, up and coming,
you're not a seller, it's
like Michael Caine
and Morgan Freeman and
what have you.
(37:58):
To know what the
marketplace looks like,
this in a way, this is
what the
chessboard looks like.
I think this is actually
a fair depiction.
We know that there is
massive
contractions happening.
The market might not
favor women
directed projects
and might not
favor diverse.
Oh, a little side note,
because of the
cancellations of
TV shows next year,
(38:18):
possibly half of
LGBT TV characters
that are on TV right now
will be gone from the TV.
Just because of TV shows
being canceled,
projected
cancellations next year.
So just throw that in
there, just to
paint the picture.
My point is-
Characters, you're
talking about
characters in shows.
Yeah, characters that are
currently on TV
that are going to be gone
because those shows
(38:38):
are planning to be
canceled or ending.
Okay.
So this is kind of where
entertainment might be,
where it might be going
for the next
couple of years.
Now, the way I
look at it is,
if you don't have the
benefit of the trends of,
hey, we want women driven
films, we want
diverse voices.
We knew that that was a
(38:59):
huge push in
2023 and so on.
My venture is, is, hey,
this industry
is really hard
as it is.
If you really
wanna tell that story,
those people who are
telling those stories
really believe in it.
It's not going to be a
quick cash payout.
And I'm not saying a lot
of those people were,
but this is kind of like
getting into
my bigger point,
(39:21):
is if you really
believe in a story,
you really
believe in it, push it,
regardless of the trends
of the marketplace
because you're never
going to be
able to time that.
And those people who are
really pushing
a black forward story or
a women driven story,
bold, passionate
filmmakers
make it anyway.
(39:41):
People who are really
going to push stories
that they
really believe in,
those are the ones who
are gonna do it.
And I think that's a
great lesson
for any of us.
I think it's a great
lesson if
you're going to push
a podcast when everyone
tells you that,
hey, podcasts are
oversaturated.
If you're starting a
YouTube channel.
Yeah, your voice is too annoying.
Yeah, exactly.
Exactly, "Rein, Rein."
(40:02):
Do I have to
hear you again?
The other point is,
this is what the
marketplace is
and your vote,
your vote is going to be
with your dollar.
If you want to push more
diverse films
and TV shows
and so on and so forth,
they're gonna
need your support
because they're gonna get
canned in five seconds
(40:23):
if they don't
have good numbers.
I will add the little
cherry on top,
rough
percentage, YouTube,
top 60 to 65 top
earners, roughly,
are ethnic
non-white creators.
And if you have a
problem with it,
(40:44):
create
something and change it.
Because if this is what
our Hollywood landscape
looks like for the next
couple years,
this is where
the trend is going.
And I'll be sparse.
If anyone's not following
Chad Sanders
on social media,
now I'm gonna hold back
my admiration
for Chad Sanders.
(41:04):
Chad Sanders is this guy,
he was in Hollywood,
he used to work for
YouTube and
Google and so on.
He was basically, and
he's also black,
which plays
into his story.
He's a guy who kind of
danced in the tech
and also Hollywood world,
and now is kind of solely
building his brand,
telling his stories,
(41:26):
and a lot of Hollywood
people can't handle
what he has to say.
He brought up
a great point.
When we talk about,
because this
also ties into AI,
a lot of people have been
talking about
the AI bubble,
AI bubble.
If you're outside looking
in, you're wondering,
am I going to miss
out on this money?
If you own the rise up,
when everyone is trying
to get a
(41:46):
piece of this pie,
you could make
a lot of money.
And if you're the last
one to join the party,
you're going to lose.
So everyone's kind of
jumping on this trend.
Kevin Hart, you have
actors, writers,
you have Aronofsky
opening up an AI studio.
So there's across the
board this AI bubble.
Anyway, he did a great
video saying that
(42:08):
there's also the
black art bubble.
Chad admitted, he goes, I
sold a TV show.
I was in this realm of
rubbing elbows
with the top creators and
talent of black
creators in media.
And then it's gone.
Nothing to be said of it.
(42:29):
I'm back to hustling,
figuring out
what I'm supposed to do
with my life.
And only years later is
he coming to this
new pivot
that he's doing.
But my point is,
is I was like, oh,
I never heard of black
art considered a bubble.
And I'm like,
that's crazy.
And he admits it's
unfortunate.
(42:50):
And then what if the
women filmmaker,
what if that
was a bubble too?
And so this is just a
interesting look at,
I don't see why
that's not true.
That bubble
might've popped.
And right now it's
getting back to possibly
where it was
five, six years ago.
(43:11):
And the question is, what
are you gonna
do about that?
Yeah, I think, I agree.
But I think what
it comes back to,
and this keeps
coming back around
in a lot of
conversations lately
that I've been having
with actors and people,
is like more and more and
more and more,
you just have to make
your own stuff, no matter
who you are.
(43:31):
It just, it seems, I'm
seeing it
with actors too.
And I'm seeing it really
work for actors.
A number of our friends
have really leaned
into making their own
stuff and it's getting
them attention.
They're getting
creatively fulfilled.
One of the guys that I'm
in class with
at Leslie Kahn,
just, he did a 48-hour
(43:51):
film festival thing
where you make a
movie in 48 hours.
And he won best actor,
best writer,
he won best film,
runner-up, best director.
And he did it all
himself, basically.
It was him and,
not all himself.
Obviously, there was a
lot of people
dived in and made the
film together.
But he wrote this thing
and he really
(44:11):
pushed through it.
And this is a guy that
has really leaned
into making his own work
because he's not getting
the opportunities that he
wants to get.
So he's started to just,
he kind of surrendered
to the fact that he's
just gonna
make his own stuff
and it's really
working for him.
And he's enjoying it.
And the more he does it,
the more he really finds
that he does love this
(44:32):
aspect of it.
So I think
that's, for all of us,
and it doesn't have to be
on a big scale,
it doesn't have
to be expensive.
It can be just, whatever
it is, social
media videos.
Brian Stepanek talks
about it and has
talked about it.
There's a bunch of actors
I know who are
brilliant actors
that are just now making
(44:52):
their own work
because they're not
getting the opportunities
that they want and need.
So they're creating them
for themselves.
And I think the ripple
effect of that is huge.
We've talked about it
before, but like the
Duplass brothers
talking about the
cavalry's not coming.
You are the cavalry, just
make it, make the film.
Completely agree.
I think that's more and
(45:12):
more the way it
just has to be.
You can't just kind of
sit back and
rely on your reps
to just get you
the best auditions.
For a lot of people.
Are me and Econ gonna go
to AFM and sell an
imaginary movie?
We'll see.
Let's go to hidden gems.
So I've a
good hidden gem.
Well actually,
yours is good.
Mine's kind of like,
(45:33):
should I start first?
Or it doesn't matter.
So I can't wait to hear
Rean's hidden gem
because he says this is a
good one, everyone.
So just buckle
your seat belts.
But mine, I know.
You fucking prick.
Now you're--
Wait to oversell mine and
make it look not as good.
Yeah, yeah.
Build up Rean's
(45:53):
everyone, get ready.
Anyway, mine's just okay,
but I thought it
was very useful.
This is a
common sales tactic.
I came across this blog
and I had no idea.
For most iPhones, the way
that people steal iPhones
is they can grab your
(46:13):
phone and they
could swipe down
from the top and flip on
airplane mode.
And essentially, anyone,
regardless if you have
the password or not, can
access the airplane mode
through their
control menu.
And so what's happening
is when people
try to steal an iPhone,
they swipe down the
(46:33):
airplane mode.
No one can track it.
You can't do the find my
iPhone because
it doesn't track
with the internet.
And they run off with it
and then they try to
break into it
later on.
So it's an easy access to
turn off the internet
where the owner
can't track it.
Anyway, so this is super
geeky, but I did think
it was actually
pretty useful.
(46:54):
I'm gonna briefly
describe it,
but I'm gonna put
the instructions in the
description
just so you can
kind of go through it.
And there was even a
little video.
But basically, if you go
down to settings,
if you go into the
settings and then
there's a section
called allow access when
locked, you go
into the control
center and then you can
(47:14):
switch off airplane mode
and not allow that to be
accessed when
it's locked.
So you don't want it to
be accessible
when it's locked
and that's it.
You could flip
it, it turns gray.
This is really good.
Tell me, talk
me through it.
So it's
general and then--
(47:35):
Go to face ID and
passcode, scroll down to
allow access
when locked section and
then click off
control center.
So you want control
center to be gray.
Okay.
There you go, everyone.
Fine, that's
good, that's good.
Yeah, a little tech.
Security.
A little tech tip from
your guys and
actor's guide
to the end of
(47:55):
the world podcast.
Just keeping you safe and
if you're an
Android user,
fuck you.
Up next, Rinz.
Here you go, Jim.
Yeah, all right, all
right, let's hear it.
Which is, okay, so the
reason I am aware of this
is I went to a screening
of a movie that I am in
(48:15):
which was made a number
of years ago,
2017, to be exact,
in Milwaukee, Wisconsin,
a movie called
Love and Irony
which is just about to be
released on streaming.
Oh.
Yeah, it's taking a while
for this
movie to come out.
But where they screened
it here in LA
was at the Petite
(48:37):
Ermitage Hotel
in West Hollywood
where they do this thing
every Monday
and it's
called Petite Salons
and it's a collaboration
between the Petite
Ermitage Hotel,
a company called Cheshire
Moon Productions
and Blackbird Films.
And what they do is every
Monday, I think at 7 p.m.
(48:58):
on the rooftop
of this hotel
which is a gorgeous
little hotel
with a pretty
wild side, I believe.
Someone was telling me
it's pretty famous
for our kind
of wild parties.
But they have a really
nice rooftop of the pool.
So at night, they put up
a projector screen
and they screen different
independent films
and they also do, I think
(49:20):
they do music some weeks.
You can sit down, you can
get a drink,
you can order food and
you sit down on couches
and you can listen to
live music or
watch the film.
Before you, sorry,
yeah, it's films.
They do have, I think
they have live music
up on the pool deck and
then you go to
the fire deck
where there's a fire pit
(49:40):
and you go and watch
these movies.
And then usually
afterwards there's a Q&A
with the filmmakers.
So every Monday for, I
think it's
pretty cheap to go,
you can get
tickets for this
and you can just go see
an independent movie
that they're screening.
You can chat to
the filmmakers,
you get to sort of build
a community and
yeah, it's great.
(50:02):
It's a really
lovely setting.
It's a really
nice setting.
They've like heat lamps
up and couches
and you can sit around
and watch
different movies
and chat to
people afterwards.
So I just thought I
wouldn't have known
except for this film.
We went to see
this film last Monday
and a bunch of
the cast made up.
So it was a
great reunion for us,
but it was also like a
really cool setting
to see how they do this.
(50:24):
And I met some of the
organizers and
they're like,
"Yeah, come back, we do
this every Monday."
So that's awesome.
There you go.
Petite Salons at the
Petite Armitage Hotel
in West Hollywood.
If you're in LA and
you're in the
entertainment industry,
if you're in the
business, if
you're an actor,
if you're a filmmaker,
it's a great place
to just kind of hang out,
see films and meet people
in a lovely setting.
There you go.
Look at that.
(50:44):
First set everyone, hope
you enjoyed it
and see you next time.
See you next time.
Michael Caine is
licensing his voice to
this AI startup.
Little context
on that though,
Michael Caine is
92 years old, so.
So are you saying that
he's not gonna be around
to see all the
detrimental effects?
More or less, I don't
wanna be brutal.
Talking about ABBA,
they've been putting on a
virtual show
(00:20):
for years, do you know
any of this?
What is this?
You don't
know any of this?
No, tell me.
ABBA, that has,
they've played a--
You think I'm a
massive ABBA fan,
because I'm European.
Well, I mean, here's--
How do you not know who
the Beatles are,
but you know that ABBA
have a virtual show?
All right, welcome to the
Actors Guide
to the End of
the World Podcast,
where we talk about
acting in Hollywood
(00:41):
and the way people
understand,
I'm E-Kan Soong
And I am Rían Sheehy Kelly
as you well know.
As we all well know.
Follow us wherever you
find your podcasts,
we're on video, we're on
YouTube and Substack,
we're on all social
media, Actors
Guide Podcast.
If you're not
following our TikTok,
(01:01):
guys, some of our things
are blowing up on TikTok.
Brian Stepanek's story
about Gene Wilder,
who knew?
Major Gene
Wilder fans on TikTok.
Anyway, follow us
wherever you get your
social media,
at Actors Guide Podcast.
On today's show, we talk
about how Michael Caine
(01:23):
just licensed his voice
to an AI startup
that Matthew
McConaughey has backed.
Meanwhile,
also this week,
Morgan Freeman has stated
that he has lawyers
suing people left and
right for
stealing his voice.
Do you know what just
occurred to me?
It's very funny that
Matthew McConaughey and
Michael Caine
are probably two of the
most imitated
actors out there.
(01:45):
(laughing)
And they're the ones
lending their
voices to AI.
See, that's smart.
We talk about the massive
decline in
women filmmakers
in 2025, as well as
non-white filmmakers.
Honest look at the
current landscape,
some silver linings, and
some bright spots.
And we also talk
about a lovely chat
that was given at Leslie
(02:05):
Kahn and Co.
with the fantastic
casting
director Patrick Rush.
And there you go.
Enjoy the
episode, everyone.
And now, a word
from our sponsor.
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I'm really working on my
work-life balance.
Well, you know, NDAs.
Making holiday
conversations a breeze,
one relative at a time.
So what have you been
doing for the
last few months?
Rehab.
Well, I just
wanna give a shout out
to this month's
conversation.
And for those of you who
aren't aware,
at Leslie Khan Studios,
(03:06):
every month,
they invite
somebody in for a chat
and it's free to anybody
who's in class.
I think there's a fee if
you're not in class,
but basically
it'll be, you know,
this month it was a
casting
director, Patrick Rush,
and what a chat.
Last month it
was David Nutter,
TV director David Nutter.
So like it's showrunners,
(03:27):
it's casting directors,
it's people in the
industry, it's directors.
Patrick Rush came
in to talk to us
and it was so great to
talk to a
casting director
and hear him speak about
his experience with it.
And he's been
casting a long time.
He cast the OC and a
bunch of
different things.
He's got a
really great resume,
but his
(03:47):
approach to casting
and how much he loves
actors was palpable.
I mean, it was really
just, it was so,
it was so comforting to
hear that from a
casting director,
you know, and how he,
what he looks
for in actors
and how he
approaches his job.
And it was just a
(04:07):
brilliant talk.
And the more of these
things I go to,
the more I appreciate
just hearing someone
else's experience
and getting that
perspective,
you don't get to
see that very often.
You don't get access to
it in that way.
And we're also doing a
lot of self-tapes.
We don't see casting
directors in
person these days
so that you're
completely right.
(04:28):
Exactly, and he was
thrilled to be in a room
full of actors, like he
really enjoyed it.
But one of the things
that stood out to me
was someone asked, how
important is
the social media
following to you?
And he's like,
I don't care.
He's like, I don't care
how many
followers you have.
You know, if you're great
and you're
right for the part
and you have a ton of
followers, you
know, all the better,
but it's not a
(04:49):
consideration for him.
But I loved it.
And I just, you know, for
anybody who's
in Los Angeles,
these, and particularly
at Leslie Kahn,
if you're listening to
this and
you're, you know,
you take classes at
Leslie Kahn,
you should absolutely go
to these things
because they are so cool.
And Leslie gets all these
(05:09):
wonderful people in
and it's phenomenal.
So, yeah, I just want to
give a shout out
to the studio for that.
And it's free
for students.
So that's incredible
opportunity.
Yeah.
And it's a chance to talk
to these people
and meet them.
And, you know, it's every
one that I've been to
has been phenomenal.
It's just been really
enjoyable and insightful
and inspiring,
(05:30):
I think as well.
Because when you hear the
way people talk
about their jobs,
you're like, yeah, we're
all doing this together.
You know, it's a real,
it's given me
a greater sense
of the community at large
and how everybody's,
everybody faces
the same struggles.
Everybody's pushing for
the same thing,
essentially,
you know?
So, yeah, big shout out
to Leslie Kahn Studios
(05:51):
and Leslie Kahn for
bringing these people in.
And I just
wanted to say that.
No, that's amazing.
Patrick Rush is awesome.
Did you know,
have you met him?
I have met him
back in the day.
He used to come in and
kind of sit
in on classes.
He used to do a
couple of our classes
and Patrick Rush has been
a friend of Leslie Kahn
and also all of her
actors for a while.
(06:12):
So a lot of us have
worked on his shows
and he's brought
a lot of us in.
So, you know, he's been
an ally of Leslie Kahn's
for a long time.
So he's
great, he's great.
Love it, love it.
So let's start
off with this.
Michael Kane is licensing
his voice to
this AI startup.
Matthew McConaughey also
backed the AI
(06:34):
audio company.
He states innovation is
not to replace humanity
but to celebrate it.
Anyway, this is just kind
of the landscape
of people who are kind of
a little proactive,
a little more open to
what technology is.
Little context
on that though.
Michael Kane
is 92 years old.
(06:54):
So I mean, the
implications of that for
him are not,
I would say far reaching
in terms of, you know,
he's doing it at this age
is what I'm saying.
Well, that's the only
part of the conversation
but I'm curious.
So are you saying that
he's not gonna be around
to see all the
detrimental effects?
(07:16):
More or less, I don't
wanna be brutal.
No, it's just funny
because I never actually,
it's the first time
anyone's
actually brought up
that point that, hey, I
mean, come on,
if you're ready, you
know, if you're ready,
leave something behind.
Is that kind of?
No, it's just
interesting that like,
it's for a game, right?
If you're in a
position of power
(07:38):
and you have a lot of
success, why not?
And it kind of goes in
line with last week
we talked about how CAA,
CAA clients,
CAA has a vault of
digital
replicas that are,
you know, that the CAA is
very much
ahead of the game.
(07:58):
They have all
their eyes dotted.
And I kind of look at
that as far as
if you're established and
say, you know,
most of them are
actually older,
then sure, license
yourself and
make that money.
But like, I don't know
beyond that.
(08:19):
I will say for him,
it doesn't seem like he's
doing it for money.
Yeah.
I'm gonna give
you the quote here.
"For years, I've lent my
voice to stories
that moved people,
tales of courage,
of wit, of the
human spirit."
This is in a statement.
"Now I'm helping others
find theirs.
With 11 Labs we can
preserve and
share voices,
not just mine,
but anyone's."
It's very aspirational
(08:40):
kind of a statement.
I don't know.
I don't know if that is
what it will be used for.
I agree, Ryan.
So I'm trying not to be
completely
skeptical here.
It helps that Matthew
McConaughey has invested
in under closed
sum in 11 Labs
after being impressed by
the company.
So there's
credibility there.
That being said, we know
nothing about
(09:00):
what this studio
is going to be,
what type of products
that they're gonna be,
projects they're going to
be producing,
have no idea
what this could be.
It's a very aspirational,
articulate statement
for what it is.
It's basically
licensing your voice.
It's no
different than CAA Vault.
Just because Michael
Caine is very articulate
(09:22):
and writes a
nice statement,
I'm kind of waiting to
see what this is.
Matthew McConaughey, are
these bedtime stories?
Are they going
to be creating,
narrating audio books for
the rest of eternity?
I don't really know.
You know what I mean?
(09:42):
That's a valid point.
That's what I don't
understand
about this stuff.
Because once
you license it,
I mean, what say do you
have over how it's used?
You've been conditioned
to be scared
of this stuff.
And we'll wait and see.
Matthew McConaughey is
putting their
name on this.
Sir Michael Caine is.
And by the way, this is a
storefront for,
(10:05):
this is the launch of 11
Labs Iconic Voices
Marketplace,
a storefront for
celebrity voices
that brands can
pay to reproduce.
These are brands, these
are more
advertising deals.
This includes deceased
actors such
as Judy Garland
and historical figures
such as J. Robert
Oppenheimer.
Just in time for the
holidays, everyone.
(10:26):
So this is kind of like
my point where,
you can dole this up real
nice, but I
think it's fair.
We are a
little skeptical.
Now, the flip
side of this.
Also this week,
Morgan Freeman.
You can imagine
how many people
are trying to
rip off his voice.
Slams
unauthorized AI voice use,
saying his
lawyers are very busy.
(10:48):
I'm like any other actor,
don't mimic me
with falseness.
It says it right here.
I'm like any other actor.
Don't mimic me
with falseness.
I don't appreciate it.
And I get paid for doing
stuff like that.
So if you're gonna do it
without me,
you're robbing me.
If you pay him, if he
signs a contract
to be the voice of a
celebrity, he will
happily do it.
(11:09):
But, and with this whole
Morgan Freeman as a
juxtaposition,
I kind of don't blame
Michael Caine.
90 some years
old, he's like,
hey, I don't wanna schlep
to a voiceover booth.
You know my voice, my
voice is very iconic.
And hey, get me a decent
cut and I'll
(11:29):
sign off on this.
I kind of, I
mean, here we are.
And actors do commercials
all the time.
It's like, I think it's
kind of
splitting hairs a bit.
So I don't even
know if I blame him.
It's just we have no idea
what they're
going to pump out
with possibly his voice.
Slightly off topic, or
not off topic,
but it's a bit
of a tangent.
I was talking to a friend
(11:51):
of mine who's an actress,
she's a brilliant
actress, but
she's now a therapist
and has, you know, got
her certification.
And now she's practicing,
but she was
talking about AI
and chat GPT and that,
and the instances
of it causing
psychosis in people.
(12:11):
Because people use it as
a sort of a
confidant and a,
they use it in lieu of
somebody to talk to,
as if it were a partner
or a
confidant or somebody
and share
everything with it.
But in people who are
susceptible to it,
(12:32):
it can trigger psychosis,
which is terrifying.
That that's a common
enough usage of it.
You know what I mean?
That people are sort of
depending on it for that.
Yeah.
But--
No, I just
want to make sure.
So she's certified, she's
been hearing
(12:52):
those stories.
I heard stories and
reports of that, but has
she, she's--
I don't know if she's
dealt with somebody
that that has
happened to.
I mean, she deals in the
sort of mental
health arena,
but I don't know if, I
don't think,
or I don't know if she's
had direct
experience with it,
but it's obviously in her
orbit because,
(13:13):
this is a phenomenon
that's happening.
And again, there are
obviously
helpful uses of AI.
I mean, I'm sure there's
tons of them
that we're not
even aware of,
but the kind of at the
sort of consumer level,
the way people are using
it now, people are
depending on.
I saw somebody try to
(13:35):
rearrange a,
instead of like try to
rearrange a cabinet,
they took a
picture of the cabinet
and then put it into chat
GPT and said,
what's the most
aesthetically
pleasing way
to arrange
these ornaments?
So like--
I don't doubt
that for a second.
I've seen that
myself, 100%.
The more you give up your
(13:56):
sort of autonomy
and turn it over
to this service,
I think the more
trouble we're in.
It's a slippery
slope for sure.
About that psychosis idea
or concept that
you brought up,
I need to do
more research.
I have seen
reports about that
and I knew that we would
eventually
(14:16):
talk about that,
but the fact that AI chat
bots are being used,
especially by people with
mental health concerns
as well as young
children, it's tricky.
I mean, there's
tons of reports.
Children, high school
kids, teenagers,
their best
friend is AI chat bot.
(14:37):
And you could say on
many, many levels,
that can be a great thing
because hey,
loneliness is real and
especially
this day and age
with kids in
the digital age.
That being said, if that
AI chat bot goes,
hey, Wire, oh, you got
some problems.
So there's
major, major things
that they're
uncovering with that.
And like I said, I mean,
(14:58):
no different
than last week
is we're trying to find
regulations.
We're trying to find a
proper way to
coexist like that.
And possibly, is Michael
Caine licensing studio
partnership?
That very well might be
the next step,
but that's a contract,
that's legislated,
that's not Morgan Freeman
(15:20):
getting ripped
off left and right.
Yeah, I agree.
And the obvious
implications of confiding
all your personal
information
into a service
that actively collects
and stores it
and then uses it for
whatever purpose.
That's a great point.
Seems quite
dangerous to me.
(15:40):
From a privacy
standpoint, you know?
So anyway, there's my
anti AI rant.
(laughing) My weekly, my
weekly anti AI rant.
Actually, that's
not a bad idea.
We'll give you
five minutes.
We'll give you five
minutes for a
rant anti AI rant.
(laughing) And I don't wanna be
like, I don't
wanna be a doomsday,
(16:00):
you know, I don't wanna
be banging the
doomsday drum,
running
around the village,
screaming that
this guy is falling.
But it's just the more I
hear about this stuff,
the more I'm like, what
are we doing, guys?
What are we doing?
I mean, this
is actually--
I will say,
with that in mind,
I still have a very
optimistic outlook
on where I don't think
(16:21):
actors are
going to be replaced
by AI.
I know I've said that a
number of times
because I
just don't think,
I think they're
fundamentally
different, you know?
AI performance and actual
performance,
like a good performance,
are worlds apart.
I think there's a total
(16:41):
incongruity there
where they can't exist in
the same place.
No.
How that plays out
remains to be seen,
but I'm
confident, I'm confident.
I'm cocky
even, I would say.
(laughing)
Yeah, yeah.
Anyway, this week's
Reince anti AI rant
(17:02):
brought to you by.
And luckily,
nothing bad ever came
from being overconfident.
(laughing) Yeah, you ever heard the
common phrase,
"Pride comes
before a win"?
We're fine.
Yeah, famous last words.
But no, seriously though,
we need to give you a
(17:22):
proper segment.
We'll come up
with a name.
I think every week you
are averaging
around five,
seven minutes.
So yeah, this
is a good bit.
Last bit, I am
very curious,
and it's actually gonna
come up a lot
in this episode.
We are seeing where the
marketplace is,
and this didn't get in
our last episode.
(17:44):
I don't know if this was
two episodes ago,
but when we
talked about ABBA,
lovely, lovely ABBA.
I know.
Well, ABBA didn't make it in?
Yeah, exactly.
No, when we talked about
our big ABBA Beatles
retrospective,
if you missed it, our
music episode
was jam-packed.
That got some attention
to the music.
(18:04):
A few people mentioned
that to me, the music.
Oh, I can't wait.
You're specifically
related to your
musical taste.
Oh, if you missed it,
check out that episode.
David Bowie, you were
talking about
Rocco and the Boys.
Yeah, Rocco
and the Beaters.
Rocco and the
Beastly Boys.
So yeah, we dive deep
(18:27):
into music
history last episode,
so check that out.
But we did not get into,
the whole reason why we
even started
talking about that,
we were
talking about ABBA.
They've been putting on a
virtual show.
Now, we got sidetracked
in the conversation
because I wanted
to bring this up.
But when we talked about,
is there a market for
virtual performers?
(18:49):
Now, to be fair, ABBA, I
mean, to your point,
they've been
around for a long time.
They've been performing,
well, they've been
playing their virtual
show for years.
Do you know any of this?
What is this?
You don't
know any of this?
No, tell me.
ABBA has,
they've played a-
You think I'm a
(19:10):
massive ABBA fan
because I'm European.
Well, I mean,
here's the thing.
That's what
transpired last week.
Well, I mean,
here's the thing.
No, I'm not an ABBA fan,
but I'm aware that they
had a virtual show.
They had a virtual show
for the last
two, three years.
And it is-
How do you not know who
the Beatles are,
but you know that ABBA
have a virtual show?
I don't know,
to be honest,
(19:30):
it might've
been on my AI,
because I'm in
the AI world now,
as AI research, I'm kind
of surprised
that you didn't know, but
anyway, for
those listening,
ABBA has a virtual show
and they did
CGI, the band.
So this is
the difference,
because I'm not
gonna call it AI,
because that
might be unfair.
(19:50):
Every year they're
selling a
million tickets.
They sold a million
tickets last year.
It was
building off of 2023.
There's still demand.
I don't know, Rhianne,
I know that you're not a
big ABBA fan,
but apparently there are
some ABBA fans out there.
I don't dislike ABBA, I
think they're good.
I mean, to be fair, I
never heard a song,
but either
way, I trust it.
Anyway, my point is, is
(20:12):
ABBA performed with
motion capture
and they
recreated them performing,
I don't know, 30 some
years ago in their prime.
You go there and these
audiences love it.
They sold a
million tickets.
Now my point is, is
that's not AI.
And that being said, Yeah, that's very good.
(20:32):
I am very curious because
if I went to
that concert,
at that point, I'm not
sure exactly what the
difference is.
Do you know what I mean?
You could use AI to
create those,
I don't wanna
call it a hologram
because it's
not a hologram,
but it's from
the naked eye,
it sounds like a hologram
(20:53):
concert that
everyone loved.
So in the
future, in four years,
if you have Tupac Prince
and all these people
doing those
concerts, why would I,
like how would I measure
one versus the other?
Well, here's a
key difference.
The way you've
described it,
it sounds like ABBA, the
band, did performance
capture with,
(21:14):
and then they essentially
just de-aged them
and they did this
performance, right?
That's kind of what it
sounds like.
So that is the band.
It's basically like ABBA
wearing heavy makeup.
You know what I mean,
doing a performance.
Now, I don't know if they
sang the whole thing
or if they
generated it digitally,
but that's very different
than an AI rendering
(21:36):
of these people.
Also, if you're
talking about Tupac
and people
like that, Prince,
they're not gonna do
performance capture.
You know what I mean?
Then it would be an
entirely digital
performance.
Okay, okay.
No, I mean, that's fair.
Or a recording of a
previous
performance and project.
Okay, okay,
so that's fair.
This is all rhetorical.
So Michael Caine going
(21:58):
into the VO booth,
so you're saying that's a
line kind of
crossed maybe
if he's not doing the
original voice
and then they're kind of
generating more stories
from his voice.
Is that a line
crossed for you?
I don't know if it's a
line crossed,
but it's the
implications.
I think it's a very
different
type of a thing.
(22:20):
There's one thing between
ABBA doing a performance
that's going to be,
where their appearance
will be slightly altered
and they'll be projected
digitally or whatever,
then Michael
Caine going in going,
"Here's my voice,
whatever you do with it
is up to you."
That's a very
different thing
because it's
artificially generated.
He could be talking about
selling crackers
or he could be
giving a speech
or they could stick them
(22:40):
in a movie,
whatever that is.
That's a very different
thing, I think,
to like a performance
capture of a band
whose job is to sing
and there they are
singing their songs.
And they were involved in
the creation of that.
I just, I
don't think it's,
because one is AI and one
is not AI, basically.
Okay, that's fair.
I do think that they're
(23:01):
very similar
to kind of like your
point where,
hey, Michael
Caine's pretty old.
So yeah, I
mean, lock it down.
I mean, in a lot of
similar ways,
ABBA is very forward
thinking saying,
"Hey, we can
leave on this legacy
and our fans can enjoy it
as they're
much older now."
So I see a lot of
(23:23):
similarities,
but yeah, that's fair.
This is the divide.
If you're not
Michael Caine
and if you're
not signed by CAA,
it's going to be a little
more of a knife fight
trying to protect
property and
likeness for us.
So I think these are all
just kind of
shades of the
(23:43):
same problem.
You know what I mean?
In some ways, yeah.
I think just for actors,
like the protections that
we have at the moment
really only
come from the union
and in our case,
California law.
Outside of that, for
non-union actors
and performers,
there isn't a
ton of protection.
They have to be very,
(24:04):
very careful
about what's contained in
contracts, I think.
And I think that's the
takeaway from
it for me is,
and I don't know
how far reaching
even the union
protections go.
I think they
could be stronger.
So this is kind of,
I don't know if you ever
heard of this,
(24:24):
American film market.
So we're gonna talk just
a little check in
on this Hollywood
migration out to Nevada.
Nevada was essentially a
migration the
past couple years.
Studios are trying to be
built out there
and they were kind of
calling it Hollywood 2.0.
Obviously it's close
enough to California,
similar enough weather.
It makes all the
(24:44):
sense in the world.
So let's just check in
how that's going.
First off, if people
didn't know,
Mark Wahlberg moved out
there, his
entire compound,
all of his team, and then
also trying to
build a studio.
We haven't seen anything
going on with that yet,
but more recently, the
American film market
(25:05):
is happening
right now back in LA.
I didn't realize--
Yeah, it's usually in
Santa Monica.
Yeah, exactly,
there you go.
But it's not this year.
Yeah, this is
the first year.
Yeah, they moved to
Century City, right?
They moved,
yeah, exactly.
For anybody
who doesn't know,
this is where people go
to sell movies.
This is where people buy
and sell movies.
So this is the premier
destination event
for studios,
(25:25):
distributors.
They mingle, they bid on
the hottest new films.
So when you see films
coming out of Cannes,
they go to
sell their movie
and get to sell rights
for distributions.
So I didn't realize that
AFM actually
was held in
Vegas last year.
So last year was
the big experiment.
(25:46):
Hey, Nevada, it's the
film and TV,
it's the future.
That's kind
of a big deal,
the fact that
AFM even left LA.
I mean, let's be honest,
that's not a great look.
AFM moved to Vegas.
I think their center
location was
the Palms Casino.
Let's just say it
did not go well.
(26:08):
It was dead on arrival.
Let's say, I mean, right
off the bat,
I'm just reading some of
these comments.
Long lines at the
elevators,
poor food options,
lack of atmosphere.
It was just not exactly
the Hollywood,
like, I don't know.
Why was that?
I mean, what's the, I
(26:29):
mean, you
think like Vegas
is set up to handle
conventions better than
anywhere else.
It's true, you're sure
you would think that.
You would think that.
Interesting.
It left a lot
to be desired.
I don't know, if you've
been to the Palms,
I'm like, yeah,
this does not feel
like the upper
crust of Hollywood.
I don't know, it is kind
of funny if you
think about it.
(26:50):
Anyway, so it
did not go well.
They said immediately,
we're not
coming back to Vegas.
So they came to LA.
Yeah, I know, a more
familiar territory.
The last thing I will say
about Nevada,
and here's the thing, AFM
is literally
going on right now.
(27:11):
We'll see, this is
literally the pulse
of the
independent film market.
Obviously one of the
bigger titles is Passion
of the Christ.
I don't even know, is it
Passion of the Christ 2?
Whatever that sequence.
Mel Gibson is doing--
Oh, I didn't
know there was--
Oh, oh, oh,
oh, Mel Gibson.
Oh, this is the other
interesting bit.
Mel Gibson is literally
shopping his
next Jesus movie,
(27:31):
and he's not letting them
read the script.
He's not letting them
read the script,
which I wanna say
is kind of rare.
But that's
happening right now,
and we'll see, we'll see.
This is the lifeblood of
our film market,
and they're back in LA.
They're back in Century
City this year.
So we'll see
how that goes.
Wow, we should do that.
We should go
to it next year,
(27:52):
and just sell a movie
that we don't
have a script for,
and just be like, yeah,
it's like Die Hard,
but out of Denny's.
And just, can we say,
nope, can't
see the script.
And then we'll just write
the script if
they buy it.
Easy.
I think I have seen many
people
imprisoned for just that,
but that is a fun idea.
(28:12):
(laughing) It's like people who
pitch a show,
but they haven't written
the end yet.
They don't know
where it's gone.
Just like Lost.
Yeah, that was the one I
was thinking
of, it's Lost.
I know.
The last thing I will say
about the Nevada film,
Hollywood Migration.
Now, for those
paying attention,
because I have been
paying attention,
I know a lot of people
who actually
moved to Nevada
from California, they
weren't in the industry,
(28:33):
but they were very
bullish on the future.
To be fair,
Nevada is fighting
for an increased
film TV tax credit.
So they had a whopping
film TV tax credit
that they've been trying
to pass for the past
couple years
that would go to say,
building studios.
They just passed
to the next level.
Now, whether it gets
(28:53):
passed, there is a
lot of opposition.
People were
saying that that thing
wasn't even
gonna get this far.
Not returning.
It's closer than Atlanta.
I agree.
All right,
well there you go.
That's your Nevada film
TV pulse, everyone.
We'll keep an
eye on that.
The migration out.
Tune in next week.
See how Mark Wahlberg is
doing out there
with all of his
(29:14):
burger franchises.
So moving on, the
Angler.com,
there's a blog.
There've been a handful,
but they did a decent
article about this.
They just kind of looked
at the numbers.
Women
filmmakers for this year,
this might
not be a shock,
but I think it's just
depending on how much it
has declined.
(29:35):
Women filmmakers for 2025
are drastically down.
Now, how you gauge this,
I'll try to make it
straightforward.
In 2025, they kind of
compiled the
top 100 films
by box office.
So most studio movies,
some independent,
specific movies would
(29:56):
make it in there.
But let's just say the
top 100 films,
and you go back the past
six, seven years.
That's pre-pandemic,
that's going back to,
the Me Too movement
obviously is a
good benchmark.
Then you also have George
Floyd in 2020.
So just keep in mind that
these are
waves and trends
(30:16):
that we have
seen in Hollywood
for the type of TV and
film that has
been produced.
Anyway, these are
specifically looking at
women filmmakers.
Out of the top 100, we
have four, four films.
One is a co-directed
film, so that is
technically three.
That was director, one
was co-directed.
And to be fair, we're not
(30:37):
done with 2025.
So there's a couple more
that might
squeak in there.
Okay, so the year before
in 2024, we have 13.
We have more in 2023, 14.
So there's a million
factors why
this might be.
I mean, one possible
reason it mentions in
this is executives.
(31:00):
There aren't enough
female executives.
And that would give rise
to more female directors
being given a chance.
I don't think people are
being given a shot.
And I think that the more
fearful the industry is,
the less people are being
given a shot.
You see it
with actors too.
You see it
even in terms of
newer actors or less
(31:22):
experienced actors being
given a shot.
Maybe this is a
poor parallel,
but series regulars are
taking guests
to our jobs.
And everything is kind of
moving down.
And to get
those roles now,
you have to have
significant credits.
I think there is
to some degree,
when
everybody's running scared
(31:42):
and nobody knows
how to make money,
there's a
retreat back to,
oh, well, we knowwhat works.
It's male directors or
people run to
what they know,
which has been a very
unfairly skewed arena,
(32:04):
where
traditionally it's men,
it's white men have been
in charge of
this whole thing.
And I don't know- That's
a great point.
There's a speculation on
my part as well.
But it feels like people are getting a shot. And I think that's a great point. But it feels like people
are not being
given a chance,
I would say.
That's a great point
because the ones with
more experience
would naturally be the
white male director.
On that note,
this is anecdotal,
but this was a video that
(32:26):
was circling on
Cruise Stories.
A producer that was
working for CBS TV,
put on his social media,
he got laid off.
And long story short, he
confronted his boss
because he thought it was
a department-wide layoff.
What happened in
fact was he realized
the ethnic
people got laid off.
He was black,
(32:46):
he looked around,
he asked all of
his white coworkers,
and for whatever reason,
they weren't laid off.
Now, I'll put a
link into that video,
but it does say, whether
it's a
coincidence or not,
but it brings up a lot of
these deeper issues
that maybe we see
happening more often
with these
massive layoffs.
(33:07):
That was CBS, we know
that Paramount laid off
1,600 people.
If you're in any of these
other industries
and you heard any of
these things,
email us at
ActorsGuidePodcast
at gmail.com,
hit us up on
social media.
I'm just wondering how
widespread this might be.
The caption was, is CBS
doing racial layoffs?
(33:28):
So moving on, so this is,
they did a follow-up.
So now let's look at the
non-white directors.
Basically, there's a
retreat, a backslide,
two white male
directors overall.
So let's just
look at the numbers.
They did similar numbers
for directors
from marginalized or
diverse communities.
(33:49):
And to be fair, this was
not nearly as big a drop.
It was a peak in 2023,
kind of a cutback, 2024.
I mean, numbers are
similar to 2025,
in 2025 as 2024.
And then also we have the
new "Wicked" movie,
which is
directed by John Chiu.
So we have a
couple numbers
that are gonna be
(34:09):
boosting up that.
The one takeaway that
they had was,
out of all of them, there
was three
black directors,
three black directors
this entire year.
So a lot of people can
talk about
the huge success
that "Sinners" was, and
that might
overshadow the fact
that there are only three
black directors
(34:30):
in all the top
100 films this year.
And "Lactino
Filmmakers" won, won.
So, you know, these are
just numbers,
but I think you're onto
it as far as what this
might be about
because there is a lot of
fear to go around.
There is a lot of, you
know, needless to say,
(34:50):
there's a lot of layoffs,
there's a lot of
contraction.
Now, this whole idea as
far as new blood,
we know that CEOs are,
the people making
decisions are
mostly white.
We have talked about, you
know, in recent months,
DEI programs, you know,
diversity, equity,
(35:12):
and inclusion programs,
they're coming to an end
or they're kind
of being paused.
If you look at the
numbers for
new WGA, new DGA,
all those applicants are
diverse and ethnic.
And so it's just
interesting how a lot of
our new blood
is diverse.
Yeah, and I think it kind
(35:32):
of speaks to
a wider issue
in the
industry is that like,
it's not sustainable for
a lot of people now.
Because it's
so risk averse
and because people are
running into the walls
and nobody seems to want
to take a risk.
I don't know, I think
that goes two ways, one
of two ways.
It goes, it retreats back
to big studio movies
(35:53):
and, you know, mergers
and sort of monopolies
and making a lot of the
same type of movies
or, you know, there's a
massive uptick
in independent movies.
But I think no matter
what, because just
anecdotally,
like I know a number of
female filmmakers
(36:13):
who are brilliant
and are producing their
own work or
writing their own work
or directing
their own work.
I've worked with a few
female directors
that are phenomenal.
But I do see around me,
well, one more people
making their own work,
more people
writing their own work,
directing their own work,
producing their own work.
Cause it's easier now
than it's ever
been to do that
(36:34):
in terms of the access we
have to the
technology to do it
and the resources.
But a lot of them are
female, you know,
and you know some of
those women too
that are just writing and
producing their own work.
So I have to feel that
down the line
that's gonna
have an effect.
Now on a brighter note, I
don't wanna forget this.
When we talk about the
(36:54):
current landscape
and this is what the
industry is looking like,
we do have a
bright spot here.
Paramount just announced
despite their
1600 layoffs,
they're going to commit a
$1.5 billion
towards
making new content.
That very well could be a
PR statement
to make its
layoffs sound better.
But that is promising.
(37:16):
That's great for us
actors, great
for writers.
Let's see if they make
good on that promise.
$1.5 billion
on new content.
And Disney announced that
they're going to commit
another, an extra billion
dollars for next year.
So this year
was 23 billion,
next year is
gonna be 24 billion.
So these are
promising things.
The question is, is what
is the type of content
(37:37):
that they're
going to make?
You know, whether there's
trends that are happening
or kind of waning, I
think there's a lot of,
you know, I'm looking at
the bright side
of a lot of this.
This is not a friendly
environment to enter,
whether you're an actor,
writer, up and coming,
you're not a seller, it's
like Michael Caine
and Morgan Freeman and
what have you.
(37:58):
To know what the
marketplace looks like,
this in a way, this is
what the
chessboard looks like.
I think this is actually
a fair depiction.
We know that there is
massive
contractions happening.
The market might not
favor women
directed projects
and might not
favor diverse.
Oh, a little side note,
because of the
cancellations of
TV shows next year,
(38:18):
possibly half of
LGBT TV characters
that are on TV right now
will be gone from the TV.
Just because of TV shows
being canceled,
projected
cancellations next year.
So just throw that in
there, just to
paint the picture.
My point is-
Characters, you're
talking about
characters in shows.
Yeah, characters that are
currently on TV
that are going to be gone
because those shows
(38:38):
are planning to be
canceled or ending.
Okay.
So this is kind of where
entertainment might be,
where it might be going
for the next
couple of years.
Now, the way I
look at it is,
if you don't have the
benefit of the trends of,
hey, we want women driven
films, we want
diverse voices.
We knew that that was a
(38:59):
huge push in
2023 and so on.
My venture is, is, hey,
this industry
is really hard
as it is.
If you really
wanna tell that story,
those people who are
telling those stories
really believe in it.
It's not going to be a
quick cash payout.
And I'm not saying a lot
of those people were,
but this is kind of like
getting into
my bigger point,
(39:21):
is if you really
believe in a story,
you really
believe in it, push it,
regardless of the trends
of the marketplace
because you're never
going to be
able to time that.
And those people who are
really pushing
a black forward story or
a women driven story,
bold, passionate
filmmakers
make it anyway.
(39:41):
People who are really
going to push stories
that they
really believe in,
those are the ones who
are gonna do it.
And I think that's a
great lesson
for any of us.
I think it's a great
lesson if
you're going to push
a podcast when everyone
tells you that,
hey, podcasts are
oversaturated.
If you're starting a
YouTube channel.
Yeah, your voice is too annoying.
Yeah, exactly.
Exactly, "Rein, Rein."
(40:02):
Do I have to
hear you again?
The other point is,
this is what the
marketplace is
and your vote,
your vote is going to be
with your dollar.
If you want to push more
diverse films
and TV shows
and so on and so forth,
they're gonna
need your support
because they're gonna get
canned in five seconds
(40:23):
if they don't
have good numbers.
I will add the little
cherry on top,
rough
percentage, YouTube,
top 60 to 65 top
earners, roughly,
are ethnic
non-white creators.
And if you have a
problem with it,
(40:44):
create
something and change it.
Because if this is what
our Hollywood landscape
looks like for the next
couple years,
this is where
the trend is going.
And I'll be sparse.
If anyone's not following
Chad Sanders
on social media,
now I'm gonna hold back
my admiration
for Chad Sanders.
(41:04):
Chad Sanders is this guy,
he was in Hollywood,
he used to work for
YouTube and
Google and so on.
He was basically, and
he's also black,
which plays
into his story.
He's a guy who kind of
danced in the tech
and also Hollywood world,
and now is kind of solely
building his brand,
telling his stories,
(41:26):
and a lot of Hollywood
people can't handle
what he has to say.
He brought up
a great point.
When we talk about,
because this
also ties into AI,
a lot of people have been
talking about
the AI bubble,
AI bubble.
If you're outside looking
in, you're wondering,
am I going to miss
out on this money?
If you own the rise up,
when everyone is trying
to get a
(41:46):
piece of this pie,
you could make
a lot of money.
And if you're the last
one to join the party,
you're going to lose.
So everyone's kind of
jumping on this trend.
Kevin Hart, you have
actors, writers,
you have Aronofsky
opening up an AI studio.
So there's across the
board this AI bubble.
Anyway, he did a great
video saying that
(42:08):
there's also the
black art bubble.
Chad admitted, he goes, I
sold a TV show.
I was in this realm of
rubbing elbows
with the top creators and
talent of black
creators in media.
And then it's gone.
Nothing to be said of it.
(42:29):
I'm back to hustling,
figuring out
what I'm supposed to do
with my life.
And only years later is
he coming to this
new pivot
that he's doing.
But my point is,
is I was like, oh,
I never heard of black
art considered a bubble.
And I'm like,
that's crazy.
And he admits it's
unfortunate.
(42:50):
And then what if the
women filmmaker,
what if that
was a bubble too?
And so this is just a
interesting look at,
I don't see why
that's not true.
That bubble
might've popped.
And right now it's
getting back to possibly
where it was
five, six years ago.
(43:11):
And the question is, what
are you gonna
do about that?
Yeah, I think, I agree.
But I think what
it comes back to,
and this keeps
coming back around
in a lot of
conversations lately
that I've been having
with actors and people,
is like more and more and
more and more,
you just have to make
your own stuff, no matter
who you are.
(43:31):
It just, it seems, I'm
seeing it
with actors too.
And I'm seeing it really
work for actors.
A number of our friends
have really leaned
into making their own
stuff and it's getting
them attention.
They're getting
creatively fulfilled.
One of the guys that I'm
in class with
at Leslie Kahn,
just, he did a 48-hour
(43:51):
film festival thing
where you make a
movie in 48 hours.
And he won best actor,
best writer,
he won best film,
runner-up, best director.
And he did it all
himself, basically.
It was him and,
not all himself.
Obviously, there was a
lot of people
dived in and made the
film together.
But he wrote this thing
and he really
(44:11):
pushed through it.
And this is a guy that
has really leaned
into making his own work
because he's not getting
the opportunities that he
wants to get.
So he's started to just,
he kind of surrendered
to the fact that he's
just gonna
make his own stuff
and it's really
working for him.
And he's enjoying it.
And the more he does it,
the more he really finds
that he does love this
(44:32):
aspect of it.
So I think
that's, for all of us,
and it doesn't have to be
on a big scale,
it doesn't have
to be expensive.
It can be just, whatever
it is, social
media videos.
Brian Stepanek talks
about it and has
talked about it.
There's a bunch of actors
I know who are
brilliant actors
that are just now making
(44:52):
their own work
because they're not
getting the opportunities
that they want and need.
So they're creating them
for themselves.
And I think the ripple
effect of that is huge.
We've talked about it
before, but like the
Duplass brothers
talking about the
cavalry's not coming.
You are the cavalry, just
make it, make the film.
Completely agree.
I think that's more and
(45:12):
more the way it
just has to be.
You can't just kind of
sit back and
rely on your reps
to just get you
the best auditions.
For a lot of people.
Are me and Econ gonna go
to AFM and sell an
imaginary movie?
We'll see.
Let's go to hidden gems.
So I've a
good hidden gem.
Well actually,
yours is good.
Mine's kind of like,
(45:33):
should I start first?
Or it doesn't matter.
So I can't wait to hear
Rean's hidden gem
because he says this is a
good one, everyone.
So just buckle
your seat belts.
But mine, I know.
You fucking prick.
Now you're--
Wait to oversell mine and
make it look not as good.
Yeah, yeah.
Build up Rean's
(45:53):
everyone, get ready.
Anyway, mine's just okay,
but I thought it
was very useful.
This is a
common sales tactic.
I came across this blog
and I had no idea.
For most iPhones, the way
that people steal iPhones
is they can grab your
(46:13):
phone and they
could swipe down
from the top and flip on
airplane mode.
And essentially, anyone,
regardless if you have
the password or not, can
access the airplane mode
through their
control menu.
And so what's happening
is when people
try to steal an iPhone,
they swipe down the
(46:33):
airplane mode.
No one can track it.
You can't do the find my
iPhone because
it doesn't track
with the internet.
And they run off with it
and then they try to
break into it
later on.
So it's an easy access to
turn off the internet
where the owner
can't track it.
Anyway, so this is super
geeky, but I did think
it was actually
pretty useful.
(46:54):
I'm gonna briefly
describe it,
but I'm gonna put
the instructions in the
description
just so you can
kind of go through it.
And there was even a
little video.
But basically, if you go
down to settings,
if you go into the
settings and then
there's a section
called allow access when
locked, you go
into the control
center and then you can
(47:14):
switch off airplane mode
and not allow that to be
accessed when
it's locked.
So you don't want it to
be accessible
when it's locked
and that's it.
You could flip
it, it turns gray.
This is really good.
Tell me, talk
me through it.
So it's
general and then--
(47:35):
Go to face ID and
passcode, scroll down to
allow access
when locked section and
then click off
control center.
So you want control
center to be gray.
Okay.
There you go, everyone.
Fine, that's
good, that's good.
Yeah, a little tech.
Security.
A little tech tip from
your guys and
actor's guide
to the end of
(47:55):
the world podcast.
Just keeping you safe and
if you're an
Android user,
fuck you.
Up next, Rinz.
Here you go, Jim.
Yeah, all right, all
right, let's hear it.
Which is, okay, so the
reason I am aware of this
is I went to a screening
of a movie that I am in
(48:15):
which was made a number
of years ago,
2017, to be exact,
in Milwaukee, Wisconsin,
a movie called
Love and Irony
which is just about to be
released on streaming.
Oh.
Yeah, it's taking a while
for this
movie to come out.
But where they screened
it here in LA
was at the Petite
(48:37):
Ermitage Hotel
in West Hollywood
where they do this thing
every Monday
and it's
called Petite Salons
and it's a collaboration
between the Petite
Ermitage Hotel,
a company called Cheshire
Moon Productions
and Blackbird Films.
And what they do is every
Monday, I think at 7 p.m.
(48:58):
on the rooftop
of this hotel
which is a gorgeous
little hotel
with a pretty
wild side, I believe.
Someone was telling me
it's pretty famous
for our kind
of wild parties.
But they have a really
nice rooftop of the pool.
So at night, they put up
a projector screen
and they screen different
independent films
and they also do, I think
(49:20):
they do music some weeks.
You can sit down, you can
get a drink,
you can order food and
you sit down on couches
and you can listen to
live music or
watch the film.
Before you, sorry,
yeah, it's films.
They do have, I think
they have live music
up on the pool deck and
then you go to
the fire deck
where there's a fire pit
(49:40):
and you go and watch
these movies.
And then usually
afterwards there's a Q&A
with the filmmakers.
So every Monday for, I
think it's
pretty cheap to go,
you can get
tickets for this
and you can just go see
an independent movie
that they're screening.
You can chat to
the filmmakers,
you get to sort of build
a community and
yeah, it's great.
(50:02):
It's a really
lovely setting.
It's a really
nice setting.
They've like heat lamps
up and couches
and you can sit around
and watch
different movies
and chat to
people afterwards.
So I just thought I
wouldn't have known
except for this film.
We went to see
this film last Monday
and a bunch of
the cast made up.
So it was a
great reunion for us,
but it was also like a
really cool setting
to see how they do this.
(50:24):
And I met some of the
organizers and
they're like,
"Yeah, come back, we do
this every Monday."
So that's awesome.
There you go.
Petite Salons at the
Petite Armitage Hotel
in West Hollywood.
If you're in LA and
you're in the
entertainment industry,
if you're in the
business, if
you're an actor,
if you're a filmmaker,
it's a great place
to just kind of hang out,
see films and meet people
in a lovely setting.
There you go.
Look at that.
(50:44):
First set everyone, hope
you enjoyed it
and see you next time.
See you next time.
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