The Culture Shift w_ Brad and Ordy_ It_s a Zoo!

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:01):
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(00:21):
dot com. The following program may contain course, language and adultees,
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Speaker 2 (00:57):
And Mary. Thursday. To everybody out of kal RN Land.
It's Thursday night. It's your early introduction to the weekend.
This is the culture shift. How's everybody doing? I'm Brad
Slager getting ready to guide you through all the back
alleys and studio backed lots of Hollywood with important information
from the entertainment room. But I'm not doing it alone.

(01:18):
Always on this guided tour with me is America's most
laser focused and digitized amagh individual Alorty Packard. How is
everything out in California?

Speaker 3 (01:28):
You know? The seventy degree weather really SAPs out my
Christmas spirit. It's like we had snow three weeks ago.
Now I'm in shorts. Just everything about the status schizophrenic everything.

Speaker 2 (01:44):
Well, there you go. The weather is appropos.

Speaker 3 (01:48):
Yes it is. How about you? How's everything out in
America's wang all?

Speaker 2 (01:52):
We're doing good here we're probably hotter than you, but
we are also extremely busy. Jetted over from Dallas or
so ago, and now we're back here in the tropics
getting ready for the holidays somehow with all the company,
mayhem and such to go with it. So we're doing well.
We're doing well, and surprisingly Hollywood's doing well, I think,

(02:17):
to a surprise of a lot of people, including us.

Speaker 3 (02:21):
Yeah, in some very niche areas. But uh yeah, the
holiday season is afoot.

Speaker 2 (02:30):
Indeed, indeed, I mean we're gonna be probably hitting one
of the common topics these days, of course, which is Ai.
But we'll get to that in a bit. There's a man,
it just seemed like we finally purged ourselves of the
entertainment conglomerate hookups after a couple of years sky das

(02:52):
a paramount good okay, finally done out the door. And
then all of a sudden, the Titans reared up and
wanted to start eating each other once again.

Speaker 3 (03:03):
Well you know, there was blood in the water. For
whatever reason, h Zaslov decided that you know, paramunt kind
of did the opening shots saying, hey, you know, we'd
buy Warner Brothers from you, and went eh, And then
everybody went, oh, yeah, no, totally, we buy fucking Warner
Brothers from you, and he's like, okay, let's talk about that. Yeah.

Speaker 2 (03:26):
I almost get the sense that he got tired of
what he acquired, because it really it just it strikes
me as baffling, because it was not all that long
ago when Warner's Discovery had their big marriage media conglomer
built there, and you figure, okay, cool, they're cooking with gas,

(03:47):
they got everything going, they got to prove let's go
and grow this thing. And now within a matter of years,
let's bust this up and sell ourselves off like whores. Yeah.

Speaker 3 (03:57):
Well, I mean, you know, it's when that whole deal
was going, made it known pretty clearly, in no uncertain terms,
that he didn't fancy himself the owner of a brothel,
and he was going to write the ship at CNN
and you know, various other things. And when he realized
that was next to him possible without setting the whole

(04:19):
thing on fire, the uh, the lipstick on that pig
wore off, and he suddenly just, you know, I I'm
tired of this whorehouse. And by that he met all
of Warner Brothers, not just those properties. Once owned by

(04:39):
Ted Turner.

Speaker 2 (04:41):
Yeah, I get the feeling, honestly that when they did
that merger, they were looking to build up the streaming
side of things and then maybe they could sell off
the parts that really aggravated CNN is I'm looking at
you right now, and found out there were really no takers.
People were like, I see the for sale sign, but

(05:04):
there's not a four buy sign anywhere.

Speaker 3 (05:07):
To be found. It's like that old thing on Pond Stars.
Is that what they're asking or is that what they're getting?

Speaker 2 (05:15):
And so he found himself saddled with a problem that
he had his own person brought in there, and minor
rebellion took place at CNN after they fired a bunch
of people and his boy got bounced and had to
bring in a new CEO for CNN from the New

(05:36):
York Times. And he's just watching his thing bleed out.
I mean, their ratings just continue cratering, like they haven't
hit a bottom or anything yet.

Speaker 3 (05:47):
No they haven't. And that's what's amazing. You would think
that there would be a four of those people who
are just diehard CNN fans, and apparently there isn't. But
when you're talking about selling off CNN. I mean I
could hear this, like, you know, I don't know if
I want CNN, but if you all got any of
those NFTs left over from they're streaming thing, I'll buy

(06:11):
some of those.

Speaker 2 (06:14):
Well, just just maybe an indicator of how poor things
are going over there. Let's recall what was it a
month or so ago where they rolled out their latest
streaming incarnation. Yeah, I haven't heard a single thing about
that since.

Speaker 3 (06:31):
Not one. It's just like CNN.

Speaker 2 (06:33):
Plus, I mean, I'm in the news business. I mean
I cover the news. I cover the media, and they
made the big announcement, Yeah, we're doing it, We're doing it.
It's coming subscription service, it's here, and everyone's like okay,
and and literally I'm not like therefore, ergo, where are

(06:55):
the follow up reports like how well they're doing, how
nice this is? Oh man? All the benefits on that
side of the things you can't get on the normal
I haven't heard zip.

Speaker 3 (07:04):
The stories they've broken anything, well anything at all.

Speaker 2 (07:10):
I think broken is more of the term to use
as part of the breaking the news. You know that
it's broken over there, and yeah they're not They're not
impressing anybody, So I think Zaslov is like, I gotta
settled with this, and then I gotta deal with a
theatrical side of things that's not doing anything. I mean

(07:31):
they are in possession of DC Universe and big rollout
of Superman this summer. Not a big result of that.

Speaker 3 (07:41):
Nope. Uh, I should be fair. He probably didn't sign
off on that one.

Speaker 2 (07:47):
No, but it's still something that's yoked on him. I
mean he's got a deal with Yeah, So yeah, I
believe all these things are part of the motivation for
him to say, ye, we should cash out guys because
it ain't getting better. And what's kind of amazing is
there is a demand. So while Paramount sky Dance basically

(08:13):
came out and said, oh, hell yeah, we'll take you guys,
and so what we did over here at CBS, we'll
snap this up on a heartbeat, all of a sudden,
Netflix is like, yeah, we want in on that, and
they did. Just when sky Dance thought they had something,
Netflix came in with the paychecks and said, yeah, we're

(08:35):
gonna do this. We'll correct the check book out and
here you go.

Speaker 3 (08:39):
Yeah, eighty seven point two billion or eighty two point
seven billion dollars. Netflix is offered for Warner Brothers. And
you know, I've been thinking about this all day since
we started talking about this story. The only thing of
value Warner Brothers really has aside from the IP is

(08:59):
their actual physical property, their studios. There's sound stages. That's
what Netflix wants.

Speaker 2 (09:08):
I yeah, because I've been thinking about this, It's like,
where is the attraction? Because I mean you could say, sure,
they've got the archives Warner Brothers, it's deep and voluminous. Sure,
but yeah, that kind of stuff can be bought and
I mean licensed because Netflix has been doing that for
quite a while.

Speaker 3 (09:29):
Right, I mean half the properties that they're acquiring in
the deal have already been on Netflix. I mean friends,
that was like, you know, number one for two years.

Speaker 2 (09:41):
And you know, the streaming service is not any kind
of enticement because it's Netflix. Oh, they invented it, so
unlike CNN, they're still ruling the very thing that they created.
And h yeah that's the mystery.

Speaker 3 (10:02):
So what I like on this is not to be
outdone because the Ellisons don't like to be told. No.
Sky Dans has come back and they've they're doing a
trying to do a hostel takeover offering the shareholders thirty
dollars a share, where in this Netflix deal they're only

(10:22):
getting like twenty seven and change plus stock.

Speaker 2 (10:26):
Yeah. This guy. Dan's reaction to this has been kind
of amusing, Like, wait, a damn second. It's rather the
opposite of what takes place, you know, where the government
has to go out there and put contracts out and
shop for the lowest bidder. Hollywood goes the opposite way.

(10:48):
They're closing a deal and all of a sudden, it's like, oh,
wait a second, do you realize we left off a
zero on our offer?

Speaker 3 (10:55):
Right? I'm sorry that I put the decimal's point in
the wrong spot. Yeah, I mean, SHOT's the right one.

Speaker 2 (11:04):
But the uh, the interesting thing is this isn't a
total takeover. You know, It's not like they're getting Warner Discovery.
They are literally only getting Warner Yeah. So the very
thing that they did in the merger they now are
going to undid again. I say this frequently on the show.

(11:26):
This is why Hollywood economics just amuses me to no end,
because what it never makes sense.

Speaker 3 (11:34):
They could totally remake that gift of joke from Arrested Development.
I've made a huge mistake and just put Zazov's face
on that.

Speaker 2 (11:48):
Except he's getting bailed out, which is amazing.

Speaker 3 (11:51):
Yeah. Yeah. For ultimately, between Netflix and Sky, they're offering
more than he paid for Warner Brothers by a tune
of I think at least fifteen billion.

Speaker 2 (12:04):
Amazing.

Speaker 3 (12:05):
That's like property flipping is yes, exactly.

Speaker 2 (12:09):
It's like they hung a bunch of ship lap on
the studios or something and turned it around.

Speaker 3 (12:14):
For a property. Wow.

Speaker 2 (12:16):
Okay, paint. I mean, I'm don't get me wrong, I'm
applauding the guy, well done on his part. But it's
just amazing to me that there's this much ardent fervor
to acquire this thing by two companies that already have
the thing they're acquiring. And I'm trying to figure out

(12:37):
beyond expanding your catalog to like two major studios, Now,
what are you doing and why? Because they both have
a streaming service, they both have catalogs of stuff, and.

Speaker 3 (12:51):
And and you know, in Ellison's case, he's got paramount studios.
He doesn't need the lots. Reflex needs the lots.

Speaker 2 (13:00):
I suppose that's generally the one area I would have
to default to. It's like, okay, they just want the
land but and we're gonna touch on this in a
little bit, how much value is in that even these
days because how much product flight is taking place.

Speaker 3 (13:18):
With Los Angeles these days.

Speaker 2 (13:21):
So yeah, I mean, I guess Netflix needs, you know,
sound stages and then physical property to cut their original content,
of which they continue to grow making.

Speaker 3 (13:34):
It's just.

Speaker 2 (13:37):
It's kind of funny when you look at the other streamers.
Anytime they have an original movie or series comes out,
it's like big fanfare. Hey original Prime. Netflix is like,
oh it's Tuesday.

Speaker 3 (13:50):
Yeah there's another offering.

Speaker 2 (13:56):
Yeah, I didn't even know she was making that series.

Speaker 4 (13:58):
You know.

Speaker 2 (13:59):
They're just constantly churning out the new stuff. So yeah,
that makes sense at least on their side. But what
the hell is sky Dance Paramount so hungry.

Speaker 3 (14:08):
For I I don't know. I mean, okay, both sides
of this, both both of these bidders have got some
serious problems ahead of them. When sky Dance, you have
the image that this is that they're just the middleman

(14:28):
for Saudi and the UAE, because they're the big they're
the ones, even though they're not asked, even though they
don't want to be voting members of the board, they're
putting up a lot of money for it. And then
on the other end of it, you have Netflix that
if they do acquire this, and they're going to get
into a lot of trouble with the EU and their
digital streaming laws and you know they're the anti monopoly

(14:52):
laws and the EU, so they may lose I mean,
given how they retarded the EU is regarding anything regarding tech,
Netflix may lose you know, the rights to pump into
Europe from this. Yeah, and neither the neither of these

(15:15):
are neither of these have anything to do with China,
so that's completely off the board too. You know, whatever
Disney makes a movie, you can go, well, how does
this affect in China? Right, But China has no barrier
aside from you know, getting Warner Brothers to be able
to you know, in the uh, you know, in the
movie Pipeline. I hope to be one of the twenty
movies that are let in there a year. But yeah,

(15:39):
this deal makes no sense anywhere.

Speaker 2 (15:43):
And yeah, you would think that sky Dance would be
a little strap since they only just closed the merger deal.
I mean normally.

Speaker 3 (15:53):
About that.

Speaker 2 (15:55):
You know, you got to recoup that money before you
can start looking but here it was like, okay, they
signed all find out what's the next one. It's almost
like the real estate market in two thousand and eight appropri.

Speaker 3 (16:08):
I was reading also Allison's dad's putting a lot of
money into too. So you got Saudi, you got u
a in, you got Cisco putting a lot ex Cisco
putting a lot of money into it.

Speaker 2 (16:17):
And the Saudi's are just they're gonna be silent partners.
They're pure investment only, yeah, because they don't have any
input on the product. Because of their culture. Most of
the stuff Hollywood puts out is not even allowed to
be shown in Saudi Arabia. But at the same time,
they are trying to expand their entertainment culture in that country,

(16:41):
so they're building more movie theaters. They just open a
Disney Park. They're doing things to create their version of
American entertainment just with their culture. So they have really
nothing to say about what gets made or how it's
just did it make money, that's it. And they be

(17:02):
in the Saudi's they're not all that concerned. Oh, your
one hundred million dollar movie didn't make a profit. Turned
the oil well on for another couple hours, and that's it,
So there's you know, they're cash flow and that's it.
I mean, they're they're just venture capitalists at this point

(17:24):
with no say.

Speaker 3 (17:26):
So.

Speaker 2 (17:26):
I guess yes, Skydance maybe just wants the power. They
want to be the biggest studio now.

Speaker 3 (17:34):
Because I see really nothing else coming out of this
for Skydance.

Speaker 2 (17:40):
But how does this get approved?

Speaker 3 (17:41):
Just has other than IP. There's nothing Warner Brothers has
that paramount needs.

Speaker 2 (17:48):
Yeah, and I don't even think they need that much IP. Basically,
they're just doubling their catalog and yeah, granted it's extensive
and expansive and all that, but do they really need it?
And I'm surprised that regulators are going to approve of
this because this is major. This is significant fusion of

(18:10):
major studios. I mean, not quite approaching monopoly. But at
the same time, it's the kind of size that usually
scares the government away.

Speaker 3 (18:20):
See in this case, I'm actually pulling for Netflix because
with them being involved in it, it's pissing all the
right people off. SAG is pissed, all the unions are pissed,
European theater chains are pissed. Everybody's pissed. And I'm thinking,

(18:41):
you know, what that may be the winning strategy exactly.

Speaker 2 (18:45):
If you piss off everybody, then you must be doing
something right. Yeah, because the only people that are gonna
say nice job are the ones that want to be
a part of it. So right, he low Saudislo system.
But yeah, and I mean, this will cut into one
of the side stories that I threw at you, and
it's an older one. But it's just surprised the hell

(19:06):
out of me. I happen to be listening to the
podcast this week. Rob Low has one and he has
usually a guest every week that's, you know, somewhere in Hollywood.
And I've heard him talk to Jonathan Price and others,
and he was talking with Adam Scott from Parks and Rec.
I was like, oh, those two together, it's got to
be a good show. And they're talking about Severance and

(19:27):
the making of Severance and they're doing an episode where
they have to film in Ireland for plot reasons. Now,
Rob Low, for the last three years has been the
host of a game show on Fox. The Floor right
to a few people surprised, but this thing's been successful
enough that it's still going. And he's a game you know,

(19:52):
they're they're just shooting the breeze, you know, talking shop,
and he's like, you know what city is shooting in
double He's like, oh yeah, we do the floor in Dublin.
And Adam's like, what your game show is shot in Ireland?
And Rob He's like you can see him shaking his
head practically. He's like, it's cheaper, you're it's a game show.

Speaker 3 (20:15):
And he's like, I know, but.

Speaker 2 (20:19):
You know, once you factor in tax breaks and all
that and union costs and everything else, they're every episode
where at the start of it, you know, they run successes.
They start with one hundred contestants on a floor, all
of them get flown to Ireland to shoot the game
show and he's like, the studio a lot is like

(20:39):
right there on Hollywood, and it makes more sense to
fly a contingent of people out to Ireland and the
production team and him for an extended stay for a
game show. I mean, and.

Speaker 3 (21:00):
Especially when it's been going for three years. You could see, Okay,
we're gonna try that one. So that shit didn't work.
I go, shit, this chock off. Okay, we're gonna keep
doing it. We're making money off of it.

Speaker 2 (21:10):
Because and they were even talking like yeah, because, like
Adam said, he's like, you know, so, you know what
about the studio where we filmed and stuff like that.
He's like, yeah, it's empty. He's like half that lot.
He's like remember back in the day when that place
was bustling. He's like, nothing's going on over there. He's
like all the studios around the one we shot in,
He's like, this should be right there. It's not for

(21:31):
lack of space. I was like, wait, what So I
looked it up and sure as hell, a production team
one hundred contestants are flown to Ireland for a game show.
That should tell you how dire things are.

Speaker 3 (21:53):
In Los Angeles. Yeah, I mean, damn.

Speaker 2 (21:57):
Game shows are basically the cheapest thing you could do.

Speaker 3 (22:01):
It's cheaper than reality TV. It really is. I mean,
I mean it is.

Speaker 2 (22:06):
The show doesn't have a complex set. You know, they
got a surround sound background. They have the stage where
the two contestants and him are at and the rest
of them are sitting out on a big floor that
lights up. Done. There's nothing to this and.

Speaker 3 (22:23):
Yeah, and this is like seventies you know, dance floor tech.
It's not like they're doing some creative you know.

Speaker 2 (22:29):
And I mean, to fly to another continent for a
game show makes more sense than you're shooting in Los
Angeles staggered. So this is a real issue that I
mean it if Netflix just needs the real estate, okay,
but again, then it only compounds the mystery of why

(22:50):
would Skydance want this when they're not even using a
lot they have. I'm amazed by a lot of this. Amazing, Yeah,
amazed because it happened.

Speaker 3 (23:02):
Mean I'm being in California, I'm not. I mean, it's
just so stupid expensive that you know, I can see why.
You know, from a cost benefit analysis, it's cheaper to
fly one hundred people to Ireland for a couple of
weeks than it is to run a studio in LA.

Speaker 2 (23:23):
I mean, okay, because you know it's their money. I
always harken back to my you know, saw this come
in twenty twenty five years ago when I was writing
about film exclusively, when Harvey Weinstein campaigned for Barack Obama
and it was pro union, anti moving jobs overseas, and

(23:47):
anti corporate welfare. And then as soon as he got elected,
the first thing Weinstein did was go to Sacramento and
ask to get tax breaks for the studios to get
the unions to back off and take some money, and
in the process, they were shipping jobs overseas because it's
so damn expensive. Like everything he wanted he's against in

(24:08):
his own industry.

Speaker 3 (24:10):
I mean, you know, thinking about it, it's probably cheaper
to fire everybody to Ireland than it is just to
turn the fucking studio lights on.

Speaker 2 (24:20):
I'm not kidding, no, I'm and I believe. And this
is why it's so amazing.

Speaker 3 (24:25):
When we're lit up seventies dance for you know, game
show four board like that one you can just you know,
Power Company doesn't come out to read the meta. They
come out to grease it.

Speaker 2 (24:40):
Yeah, I mean, like the effects are minimal. They could
probably even just put light bulbons underneath and just digitize
the you know, animate the light up if they do.
And they can't even do that cheaply, so they go
to Ireland. Amazing, but we have at the same time,
Hollywood actors and actress is putting on videos in favor

(25:01):
of Gavin Newsom, who's killing their industry, right. I mean
everything he passes costs more money, and it's just like
he's got his hands around their throat and they just
say choke me, daddy.

Speaker 3 (25:19):
Yeah, you know, I mean pretty soon, the only actors
who will be able to afford to live in LA
or the AI ones.

Speaker 2 (25:29):
Yeah. That's the other thing I was going to segue into,
is that the power because you mentioned the unions were
pissed off, and it's like, so what They're not going
to have any power soon because of AI. Yeah, there's
I don't think it was playing here. I think it

(25:50):
was showing in Europe. But McDonald's put out a holiday commercial.

Speaker 3 (25:54):
Yes that was Yeah, it didn't Sean America. That was
for Denmark McDonald's.

Speaker 2 (26:05):
And it's I guess it was supposed to be a dark,
tongue in cheek portrayal of the holiday. You know, they
took one of the Carrolls, they bastardized the lyrics and
for like thirty seconds just show people in various forms
of holiday distress. You know, guy hanging lights and falls
off the ladder and things of this nature.

Speaker 3 (26:26):
Dude blowing up all over his Christmas sweater and you know,
the flowers everywhere.

Speaker 2 (26:34):
Took about ten seconds of looking at this to say,
holy crap, is this some AI slop? And the entire
commercial was that. Yes, and it was upsetting and disturbing because,
holy hell, you guys really went there. This is a
major corporation going strictly AI.

Speaker 3 (26:59):
Well, and you know, their whole message was, you know,
it's madness out there, hiden McDonald's until January, but.

Speaker 2 (27:09):
We know the holidays are hellish. Won't a big MAX
solve your problems? Pretty much? The message and the reaction
to this was instantaneously negative.

Speaker 3 (27:22):
It was visceral.

Speaker 2 (27:24):
I mean the people were like, Okay, one, your commercial sucks,
but two, holy hell with the AI.

Speaker 3 (27:31):
Right.

Speaker 2 (27:32):
And the backlash was so bad that the programmers even said, no,
don't give us grief. We spent a lot of time
with our inputs on this. Really yeah, you know, I'm
going out fields for the computer to do your work. Well.

Speaker 3 (27:51):
Even then, there's a couple YouTube AI saw channels that
I kind of enjoy, you know, one of thoms t
K four two Greg, which is you know, Star Wars
Stormtrooper thing, and then the Sasquatch one too. They're fun
and you know it's like, yeah, they're AI, but it's
not obvious, and it's not it it's at the uncanny valley.

(28:15):
This thing was like rock generated schluck.

Speaker 2 (28:20):
Yeah. It is just I mean it's almost unwatchable really
because and it happens with all AI. I mean, the
second that you pick up on it being AI, it
ruins it for the rest of whatever you're watching.

Speaker 3 (28:37):
Yeah, you know.

Speaker 2 (28:38):
I mean even if I'm watching like cat videos or
something online, you know, a thirty second something or other.
I mean the closest I got to being tripped up
by AI with like somebody put out a video of
its like a two or three year old girl chastising
a dog that ate or snacks, and I was only

(28:59):
hand watching it because oh it's got to get you know,
she's berating him or something, you know, And I just
turned and caught out side of it and I was like,
wait a second, then, ain't real okay, but thirty seconds
were shot and ruined, I mean the whole thing. It's
like I went back and started at the beginning. It
was like wait a second, what uh there? You okay?

Speaker 3 (29:17):
How did I miss this from the first time because.

Speaker 2 (29:20):
I wasn't paying attention. It was like you hit play
and start jotting something down as you listen to it,
and then it's like wait, what, oh, oh.

Speaker 3 (29:28):
That's why.

Speaker 2 (29:30):
And this commercial mull just ask her or I just
don't pay attention, but sure, that's what it is. So
McDonald's got so much shit for this commercial. They've already
pulled it. Yeah, get out like two days and they
were like okay, okay, okay, we're done. We're sorry.

Speaker 3 (29:50):
And we guess some people do like the holiday season.

Speaker 2 (29:55):
And they like.

Speaker 3 (29:58):
And yeah, they like real people. You know, it probably
wouldn't have been a bad commercial if it was actual
people doing pratt falls. You know.

Speaker 2 (30:07):
Well I also watched it and got a complete feeling
of the ben af Flack holiday disaster. That whole thing
the opening montage is that, you know, like you see
your grandmother making cookies and she opens the oven instead
of putting the cookies, and she crawls in it. Well,

(30:30):
happy jingle carols are playing in the background.

Speaker 3 (30:34):
Oh that's funny.

Speaker 2 (30:35):
Grandma's killing herself, right, But yeah, this was not good,
and it's it's a sign, I mean, when when McDonald's
now has crossed the threshold that AI is acceptable, we're
going down the slope, aren't we.

Speaker 3 (30:56):
Well you know what we called that during the strike.
But yeah, even you and I were a maze of
how quickly the studios went fuck you and your strike.

Speaker 2 (31:08):
Well, speaking of fuck you and your strike, Disney is
ramping up the AI acceptance.

Speaker 3 (31:18):
They are.

Speaker 2 (31:22):
A billion dollars a billion.

Speaker 3 (31:26):
Yeah, they just bought into u GPT, you know, Open
AI for a billion dollars to license Disney IP for
three years through Sora.

Speaker 2 (31:39):
Now, I'm going to give him a little bit of
credit because this has to be a move in order
for them to retain control of their property in the
AI realm.

Speaker 3 (31:50):
Well that's one, but.

Speaker 2 (31:55):
You know they're not going to be able to help
themself now. And that's why I bring up the McDonald's
commercial because, oh.

Speaker 3 (32:04):
Shit, we got one of the best you're gonna have
AI generating video creating softwares under our belt. I'm gonna
start farting out frozen movies like It's Taco Bell Night.

Speaker 2 (32:18):
They're going to do a hard analysis when when you
look at what it costs to put out a Pixar film,
mm hmm. I'm pretty sure they're gonna start firing up
those generators and saying, what's the AI? Can it do
anything comparable?

Speaker 3 (32:37):
And it will? And well, you know how it's like
all the sequels like Aladdin and stuff, they'd get their
beatier artists like, you know, mm hmm, you know, cut
their teeth on an animation gig, and you know, so
they'd be like, Okay, we need a sequel to The Laddin,
but we're not going to spend a lot of money
on it. Get all the interns and you know, background

(33:01):
artists in on this one, and let's see what they
can do and see if we can get anybody to
rise to the top.

Speaker 2 (33:06):
Well, that's the thing is, we've already gotten to the
stage where we don't really have hand drawn animation anymore. No,
even stuff that looks like sell animation is done on computer.

Speaker 3 (33:19):
Right, So is it really that far of a stretch
to just have AI do it?

Speaker 2 (33:25):
Well, that's the thing is, I'm thinking Pixar's got to
be threatened right now. Yeah, outside of of course making
their own I mean they've got the juice. They could
probably get their own rock fired up over there, Yes,
stay ahead of the curve or such. But yeah, this
is this is a distinctive threat to Hollywood, not to

(33:45):
the studios, but to the operations of Hollywood because artists, performers,
voice artists, technicians, all of these jobs now are gonna
be threatened because this stuff can just be pumped out,
yeah by AI.

Speaker 3 (34:05):
But I mean, really, when was the last time you
saw anything ground We'll just take it from the animated standpoint,
when was the last time you sign anything really groundbreaking
and animation done? Since picks are which everybody's sick of,
the picks are smile now, so you know the luster
has left that diamond.

Speaker 2 (34:21):
Well that's yeah, that's that depends on who the artists are.
Because the Pixar Smile or what do they call it,
the UC Berkeley or the usc U c l A
something like that. There's a there's one animation class at
one of the major colleges and they taught their students
basically the same type of animation where they got a

(34:44):
wide mouth, cartoonish eyes. And there's like I think three
or four Pixar movies that have this. Yeah, they're like wow, yeah,
once you pointed out, it's like I can't stop seeing it.

Speaker 3 (34:58):
I can unsee it now. It's every I mean it
seems to be an all Pixar Now.

Speaker 2 (35:03):
Yeah, I mean not the Incredibles or Toy Story or such,
but you know the Fish movie where yeah, Luna no
yea Luna It came out I think during the pandemic,
but it was a bunch of It was all set
in Italy and one of the kids was a sea
creature would come on land and become human.

Speaker 3 (35:22):
You know. They were friends and buddies and such.

Speaker 2 (35:25):
They all looked the same and you're like, holy crup. Yeah,
that's that's what we're talking about. So it's you know,
they can get away from that. Yeah, AI is going
to take a crep ton of jobs and it's going
to happen fast.

Speaker 3 (35:40):
And yeah, I mean, I don't want to say I'm
glad for it, because I'm not. I don't like to
see people lose their jobs. But she all became so
fucking insufferable it was inevitable. That's why half a production
is gone shipped to Pollywood.

Speaker 2 (36:03):
Well that's the thing is I'm, if anything, I'm laying
basing this from the artistic standpoint, not the jobs, because yeah,
I have a hard time fostering sympathy for people just
because I know for a fact they resent the living
hell out of me.

Speaker 3 (36:22):
Yeah, yeah, they hate they hate us, so it's fair.

Speaker 2 (36:26):
At the same time, the product is what's going to
be the issue, and that.

Speaker 3 (36:31):
Comes back to my point, is it really though, When
was the last time you saw anything remotely broundbreaking, groundbreaking
and animation?

Speaker 2 (36:44):
Yeah, that's me pondering. No, But I mean I look
at stuff like The Incredibles or even some of the
ways of toy story movies. They weren't necessarily revolutionary.

Speaker 3 (36:56):
But they were still very impressive and years ago.

Speaker 2 (37:02):
True. I mean, and we're talking again.

Speaker 3 (37:08):
We're not talking sell animation what you have your limitations.
We're talking in computer generated animation, where there is no
I've seen more groundbreaking shit in like lower decks than
I've seen come out of Pixar Futurama.

Speaker 2 (37:28):
And that's the thing is you're you're looking at you know,
that's the reason you like those is because of the
creativity involved, maybe not necessarily on the animation itself, but
what they do with the product overall. They still deliver
the goods, you know, through animation and writing and voice
work and all of that collectively, You've got a good

(37:48):
quality coming out of that, right. I just don't see
the practice of entering prompts leading to better product.

Speaker 3 (38:00):
You know, it's well as long as the story's good
and the VA is good. But even then you don't
need them for the VA either.

Speaker 2 (38:09):
I just probably this is a bias, but I just
have in my head an image of some corpulent guy
two hundred and seventy pounds with a triple X Hawaiian
shirt and chips all over the front of them, typing
stuff in with one hand while he's sipping on the
mountain dew, and just like see number three hundred and twelve,

(38:32):
robot froze. No, no, robot catches them.

Speaker 3 (38:37):
Now.

Speaker 2 (38:37):
I don't like that, throws with his other hand. No,
I don't like that either. Rolls are both fans out there.
That's a good effect. That's what I see movie making becoming.

Speaker 3 (38:48):
Yeah, Jeff brought up a good point in our back
chat with K Pop Demon Hunters. But again as computer generated, yeah,
not even.

Speaker 2 (38:59):
I mean I solved significant portions of it because I
got a kid in the house at the time. I
don't know there was groundbreaking. It was just I think
it was more of the music than anything else that
made that a hit. That's fair because I mean, honestly,
the drawings weren't really captivating, the animation wasn't really different

(39:20):
or anything like that either, So it's like, yeah, the
kids loved the music. I can tell you that much.
Boy that went to a Halloween party with a bunch
of three and four year old you know, huge family party.
They put that on in the living room filled up
and they were screaming the lyrics. Yeah, I mean it

(39:41):
wasn't hit you don't get me wrong.

Speaker 3 (39:43):
But getting back to the Disney's partnership with chat GPT,
and you know this completely goes with them suing everybody else.
I mean they just filed suit against Google and uh
yeah we dude, Yeah.

Speaker 2 (40:01):
We pretty much called it last time we discussed this
that this was all about. You know, they were getting
They were even at the point of allowing fans to
use AI for fan fiction of their property, which they
used to rail against, but it would take place on
their approved platform, right you know, so they were basically

(40:22):
putting fences out there.

Speaker 3 (40:25):
Yeah, I to use AI terminology that we're putting up guardrails.

Speaker 2 (40:29):
M perfect. See, And that's what this is all about.
So they're trying to buy their way into control a
platform with their product and keep everybody out. And there
you go suing Google for protection. Again, not a bad
move on Disney's part, but we had that lawsuit we

(40:54):
discussed where was it Disney or somebody else that had
their original product. They didn't want AI users with the
companies using their product as a basis to train their AI,
and that came back basically, Yeah, the courts basically said,

(41:14):
it's no different than buying a book. You know, they
own the physical book. That's theirs now to do with
and you already got your your royalties from it. That right,
there's a that's the barn door being torn off the hinges.
I'm sorry, but I know you want to go out

(41:35):
in the field and put your fences.

Speaker 3 (41:36):
Up, but.

Speaker 2 (41:38):
I think some of them cows are already on the horizon.
If you really forced the metaphor here, it's yeah, I.

Speaker 3 (41:46):
Mean, how do you keep the cow down on the
farm after they've seen Perry?

Speaker 2 (41:53):
I'm uh, I'm yeah. I'm very cynical about this. If
you could tell, I didn't see a lot of positivity
coming up out of this crap, I know.

Speaker 3 (42:02):
I mean, you got to be in a mood for it, sure,
And you know, I do appreciate you know, the general user,
you know, firing up rock or sore or whatever to
make their you know, fun little thing because you know,
that's they're not professionals, you know, it's they're just they're
just having fun with prompts. When you get that on

(42:23):
the corporate level and then you expect me to pay
twenty dollars for a ticket to go see it, I
could have made this at home better.

Speaker 2 (42:34):
Well, even when Disney put that out there that they
were going to allow this, I almost got the impression
that what they were doing was kind of seeding the landscape.
Let them go out there and put this stuff out there.
If we find something compelling, you know, because we're just
old people don't understand computers. So if these twenty year
olds can do something mills here like that right there,

(42:56):
can we do that? Can we make that bigger? Better?

Speaker 3 (42:58):
Louder, I'm just a cave man who's frozen in the ice.
Your new prompts and video cards they scared and confuse me.

Speaker 2 (43:08):
Yeah, I mean I really had the feeling that they
were looking to see if these people out there with
that AI can do something compelling, and then they're like, there,
that's what we have to start doing and then or poaching.

Speaker 3 (43:23):
Or even that that's our property because you did it
on our platform. Thank you. This gave us our next blockbuster.

Speaker 2 (43:29):
It's our platform, it's our intellectual property. You're just here
to use it. And it's almost like the NFL twenty
thirty years ago. They have a free minor league with
the college system. Disney would have a free minor league
for their product with this. Somebody can make something compelling,
they'll just yanke.

Speaker 3 (43:48):
It from them. Yeah, which I mean when if you
read your terms and conditions in using Twitter, it's your
tweets are the property Twitter. Yeah.

Speaker 2 (44:00):
Yeah, But then you're almost to the point where that
favorite story of ours that when you agree to the
terms on Hulu it means you can't sue Disney if
your kid falls off.

Speaker 3 (44:13):
Right, Yeah, God, I forgot I yeah.

Speaker 2 (44:17):
I mean this is the way the company operates and thinks.
So I'm not shocked if that's going to play out.

Speaker 3 (44:23):
Well, you know, and when they started handing out lawsuits
to Google and everybody else. I remember I commented on
the show, We're talking about a company that will sue
your family if you have somebody impersonating Goofy at your
kid's birthday. They've done it. Oh yeah.

Speaker 2 (44:42):
They are just relentless when it comes to that crap.

Speaker 3 (44:44):
So I think they hire more attorneys than they do imagineers, more.

Speaker 2 (44:52):
Lawyers on retainers than they do animators, right, And.

Speaker 3 (44:58):
This is our animation department. So it's a little studio,
like a one room studio with a guy at a computer,
and this is our legal department. It's an entire fucking
sound stage.

Speaker 2 (45:09):
And I guess I'll tell you what probably got me
going down the cynical route. I mean, I'm not saying
that AI is gonna be useless and such. I mean
we're gonna see some good things come out. I'm positive
it's like that. I'm just talking overall the blanket effect.
In five years, it's gonna be kind of dire. But
I think what sent me down this spiral a little bit.

(45:31):
Have you seen the uprising of Disney adults, Like you mean.

Speaker 3 (45:42):
The people who go to the parks? Yeah, like they are.

Speaker 2 (45:48):
It's something of a trend, I guess. More like, I
think these are people just like coming out in the open,
But these are adults that go to the theme park.
And I'm not talking like, you know, go enjoy the
rise and such, like they immerse themselves in this at
a level of a five year old while they're in
their thirties. So like, I saw somebody put out a

(46:13):
video was examples of it. It was like, I it
already sounded harsh, but then watching it, I needed to
take a shower. So there's some girl walking right in
the middle of the park, hands over her eyes, you know,
and somebody else, of course, is filming her from ten
feet away, and then she takes her hands away and
she falls down on her knees in tears, wailing happily

(46:35):
because she saw the castle for the first time. Shut
the hell up, you walked in the front gate. Okay,
you can see the castle after you pay your ticket,
your performative bullshit.

Speaker 3 (46:46):
But it gets worse. So maybe I'm just jaded. I've
been to Disneyland so many times it doesn't impress me anymore.
But you know, even in my thirties.

Speaker 2 (46:53):
So but then there was a guy adorned with a
lot of Disney gear, including like he's wearing character slippers
and such, and a hat and a bright shirt and everything,
and he's like giddily talking to the carrier. Do you
know why it smells so great?

Speaker 3 (47:13):
Here?

Speaker 2 (47:14):
They pump vanilla into the He's talking like an excited
twelve year.

Speaker 3 (47:19):
Old with a beard Okay, so they're furries pretty much.

Speaker 2 (47:24):
And then there's a girl again, somebody's already in this
place where Winnie the Pooh meeting is taking place, and
she walks in and almost collapses in tears. I've been
waiting to meet you for thirty years and these are
all grown adults acting this way. Yeah, I'm just I

(47:45):
think it's just the overall malaise of this country and
where we're going mentally, I think is what it is.
It's like, really, this, this is where we're at this,
we're celebrating this really. So yeah, like Gisney adults is
a thing, okay, you.

Speaker 3 (48:04):
Know, and that just gives a bad name to like. Okay,
so when I was in my thirties, and I'd probably
still do it if I was living down there. Disneyland
is a great second date, it really is, you know.
And uh so you have these people doing that and
ruining it for the rest of us.

Speaker 2 (48:22):
Yeah, I mean, I'm look, I've been to the park
a ton of times too with my kids and the grandkids,
and you know, and I can enjoy stuff because I
you know, the movies and stuff goes on, or you
can go in the shops and get some cool triggs
that are tied into the movies I've seen. You know,
I'm not sitting there losing my shit in public and
just dressing up in cosplays so I could perform for

(48:43):
my Instagram audience.

Speaker 3 (48:48):
I mean, I get it with the Galaxy's Edge thing,
because you're you're hitting two niches at once and you're
doing the you know, slutty Jedi fighting the Stormtrooper things,
and you know, and yeah, that's okay.

Speaker 2 (49:01):
Again, I'm not saying not, you know, don't enjoy it,
because I've enjoyed it. I'm just talking about this effusive
reaction and how your life has just become something and oh,
my fantastic word choice, Brad. I'm I'm just watching these
people and I'm amazed that they exist.

Speaker 3 (49:22):
I guess is what it comes. Yeah, I'm really not.
I mean the infantilization of two whole generations after.

Speaker 2 (49:33):
Us, maybe that's it. Maybe maybe it's because I'm gen
X and I'm just like, yeah.

Speaker 3 (49:43):
Look, go to Ava time we went to Disneyland.

Speaker 2 (49:48):
Yeah, it's like I didn't act that way when I
was four, right, not forty, And yeah, so I think
that's what's got me in this little bit of a
his new torpor right now really but uh not a problem,
not a problem, We'll get over it. You you want

(50:08):
to do a break here? Uh yeah, I'm low on
te I just got a peek at the time and
I noticed we've been we've been cooking here, so uh,
why don't we do that. Let's give you a refill.
Everybody listening now can go hit the lobby, get your
free refills, load up up popcorn for round two. We'll
be back here in about thirty minutes with the more

(50:30):
on the culture shift.

Speaker 3 (50:50):
I'm standing in the shade about then a call he
came about a message I gotta says, all sounded how
a contention?

Speaker 2 (51:07):
Plodromic ray.

Speaker 3 (51:10):
Oll, that's what I should sound?

Speaker 5 (51:12):
Powery that a TV conviction before you go, you don't
be the can were crep masters were creepy, unsure of

(51:40):
Will's never held out? How we got for Darwin and
selection takes toos on.

Speaker 3 (51:54):
A little kick in the pool.

Speaker 5 (51:56):
Shouldn't do a roll last event that whatever name, but
that's themation bus a variety thing, so well say in gray.

Speaker 2 (52:21):
Were that's.

Speaker 5 (52:33):
We create I'm going to start, so.

Speaker 1 (52:53):
Get me back.

Speaker 2 (53:27):
Oh all right, we are bad here on the culture
shift solemn throw it to you already? Where do you
want to steer from here?

Speaker 3 (53:36):
Real quick? Was that one of yours, Jeff Negative that
was creating God by seven of Vengefold? Yeah, you know
it sounded like uh yeah, even sevenfold, but it's like,
I'm not familiar with that song, so all right, cool, Yeah,
it's actually about AI taking over the world. Well and

(53:58):
there you have it, so timely y uh you know, well,
we got a lot of weirdness. Still, let's talk about that,
uh Johnny Depp's producers of his new movie thing. That's uh,
I'm still trying to make sense it is.

Speaker 2 (54:17):
It's very weird. Well, just starting with the fact that
Johnny Depp made a movie in Russia.

Speaker 3 (54:24):
Yeah, again, probably still blacklisted in Hollywood.

Speaker 2 (54:31):
So is he though?

Speaker 3 (54:34):
There you go.

Speaker 2 (54:35):
I thought he actually had gotten to the point where
he was beyond that.

Speaker 3 (54:38):
Now, well, you know, for for an industry that moves
so fast, they kind of moved slow on a lot
of things too, So who knows.

Speaker 2 (54:52):
Yeah, I thought he came out on the good side
of that court case, to be honest, No, he came out.

Speaker 3 (54:56):
He came out on the good side of that. But
you know, there's still a lot of people who slept
with them or heard, so you know, they're gonna take
her side because she's got ship on them too, in
their bed or wherever else.

Speaker 2 (55:08):
I mean, he's still making those obtuse cologne commercials that
come out this time of year, so.

Speaker 3 (55:15):
Too.

Speaker 2 (55:16):
But yeah, he he made a movie in Russia. And
I don't mean, you know, film there for tax purposes
or something. No, this was a Russian movie. Yeah, a
blockbuster in Russia.

Speaker 3 (55:30):
No less. Yeah, and it's a it's an apt it's
an adaptation of a famous Russian dissident author's book, The
Master in Margarita.

Speaker 2 (55:45):
But as successful as it was apparently banned at one point,
and then the critics and the cultists got hold of
it and it just, you know, basically escaped.

Speaker 3 (55:58):
That's the Russian languae. Which version of it? Well, this
is he's doing the English language version of it in
Russia and yeah, so it's like a remake, but only
a few years after the original came out. It's weird.

Speaker 2 (56:18):
Yeah, and it almost sounded like they may have shot
him back to back.

Speaker 3 (56:23):
Well okay, so yeah, well the first one was shot
in twenty twenty one, but didn't get released until twenty
twenty four because of the war with Ukraine. And this
one's in production now and it's the same story, but.

Speaker 2 (56:44):
Yeah, but without all those subtitles with that fucking alphabet.

Speaker 3 (56:50):
Yeah yeah, with that backwards are everywhere.

Speaker 2 (56:54):
And apparently there were some you we'll talk about this,
that they they some fighting going on between the production
team and the director apart from the movie, but to
the point that there was still enough animosity that now

(57:15):
the movie will not be released outside of Russia.

Speaker 3 (57:19):
Right, And and in that too, they are actively blocking
the release of the Russian language version one in the
United States.

Speaker 2 (57:33):
Not that there's going to be that much of a
clamoring for it, but right, I mean, like.

Speaker 3 (57:42):
Yeah, they tried to block it everywhere outside of Russia,
and then your word got out about it. And this
is this is the producers of the new one who
are doing this. It's not like Putin's doing it or
Russia is doing this. Is the what producers of the
new one are actively blocking the Russian language. You're not
even competing, you don't have the same actors. The only

(58:02):
thing you have in common is an adaptation from a book,
one hundred year old book.

Speaker 2 (58:10):
Yeah, I think the story's out there, so it's not
like they're going to ruin the ending if the Russian
version comes out, I'm sorry, and I'm I can tell
you with complete confidence, the American audience is going to
want to see the American version. You're going to have

(58:30):
your you know, criterion people that get a heart on
that kind of stuff. Sure, but they conprive you know,
as loud as they are two percent of the ticket
buying audience. They don't reside in, say Dallas and such.
But no, no, there, If anything, I would say, releasing

(58:52):
the Russian version, would you know, people say, man, that's compelling.
I wish I knew what the hell they were saying. Hey,
conveniently enough have an English version on the way.

Speaker 3 (59:02):
Yeah, wow cool. You know what, I really liked it
in Russian. I bet I'm gonna fucking love it in
America where I don't have to read subtitles.

Speaker 2 (59:09):
Now I'll understand what's going on. You know, that's that's
all positive, you know, so teaser your your generating interest.

Speaker 1 (59:17):
So just I.

Speaker 2 (59:21):
Was just gripped by the by the headline of Johnny
Depp Russian film won't be released. Hold on what the
hell's he doing shooting in Moscow again? That's why I
love this industry so much.

Speaker 3 (59:35):
Yeah, I mean, you would think you would want the
Russian version out there. Like I said, there are two
totally different productions. One was filmed five years ago, one's
actively being filmed. Nothing to do with each other, aside
from the fact they're both based on this one hundred
year old book.

Speaker 2 (59:52):
And see, they should just come to us, because right
here we got do this release the Russian version on
Criterion and let those guys get a heart on for
it and talk about on the internet and like what
the hell? And then the Johnny Depp production finishes releasing.
So remember when all the excitement was about that Russian
here you go and boom, you'll make your money back.

Speaker 3 (01:00:14):
Right, Yeah, I mean, and you filmed in Russia? How
much did it actually cost? Exactly? What did you just
car from? It? No longer exists?

Speaker 2 (01:00:26):
Put it an h it gets seventeen hectores to a
leader a Keroseney's.

Speaker 3 (01:00:37):
Reference, you get. That's fantastic.

Speaker 2 (01:00:39):
Yeah, it's back when I was watching it. But I'm
almost positive the film is going to be a cast
of mostly women, since all the guys are out on
the front lines, fighting but nonetheless dead. More reason too much,
But I just love the fact that there's this kind
of Hollywood soap opera. I'm in a Russian movie with Depp.

Speaker 3 (01:01:05):
Just it's like when we got copyright struck. Did you
hear that story, Project, Charles Project? We got the Kailoren
channel on YouTube with a copyright strike from a country
that no longer exists. Were we were watching, uh the

(01:01:28):
we were watching the Russian Lord of the Rings at
one and a half speed and doing like M. S.
T three K on it and they got a copyright strike.
This was filmed in the eighties. It had the Leningrad
People's ballet in it.

Speaker 2 (01:01:52):
Huh So that's something Sony Union.

Speaker 3 (01:01:56):
I thought you guys split up. Yes, that's what we
wanted you to think. Two Sensus references back to back.

Speaker 2 (01:02:03):
Anyway, the country does not exist, but the lawyers still do.

Speaker 3 (01:02:07):
Right anyway, Well, we were talking to the Lusters.

Speaker 2 (01:02:16):
Warners in DC a while ago and how they kind
of screwed the pooch with Superman this summer. Yeah, maybe
they should have gone back to the source material. And
I'll tell you why. Recently, family was clearing out a

(01:02:37):
home from some of their extended family up in the
attic going through stuff and came upon a discovery. They
found a copy of Superman number one from nineteen thirty nine.

Speaker 3 (01:02:57):
And even as rare ones go, this one was rare
because the the original the action comics Superman one. Inside
it told hey boys and girls, cut along the perfolated
line in the back, and the picture suitable for framing.

(01:03:18):
So most of the copies of Superman one is missing
the back page. This one is not.

Speaker 2 (01:03:26):
Yes, a rare intech. Now, this isn't the debut of Superman.
That's the action comics that's where he was first introduced.

Speaker 3 (01:03:34):
But this is the first Oh this is Superman one,
you're right, yeah, okay, yeah.

Speaker 2 (01:03:38):
This is the first Superman dedicated comic. Basically, the detective
stories was he became a hit and they're like, whoa, damn,
we got something. We should do a series, and they did.
So this is number one and.

Speaker 3 (01:03:56):
Ten cents.

Speaker 2 (01:04:00):
For it looks slightly higher than that. They got this
thing grated. Actually nine point oh out of ten. I mean, damn,
that's near.

Speaker 4 (01:04:11):
Mint right there. Yeah, And as a result, this thing
went over nine million, yeah, nine million in change. This
was uh and this was founded in attic in San Francisco.

Speaker 2 (01:04:29):
Because I think, uh, you know that the the original
Detective Comics that he debuted, and that was always the
high point of auction. I think Nick Cage is famous
for having a copy of it and such. You know,
that's that's the true one. This went for more, and
probably for the very reason you said, because so many
people have mangled the back of it, and this one

(01:04:51):
wasn't that a nine point oh on Superman number one
is near impossible to find?

Speaker 3 (01:04:58):
So yeah, well, you know, in researching this too, you
know the three brothers who founded up there, you know,
they made a comment of yeah, you know, my our
grandmother always used to talk about the comics that her
and her brother would buy, and that they were all
up in the attic, but we never bothered to look

(01:05:18):
at them. I'm like, what else do you have up there?
You got Detective Comics fourteen.

Speaker 2 (01:05:25):
In condition. If my grandmother's talking about comics she had
as a kid, I'm pretty damn sure i'd be stampeding
up into that attic.

Speaker 3 (01:05:35):
Yeah no, you keeping cookies. I'm gonna go see what
she got up there.

Speaker 2 (01:05:39):
I mean I would probably be taking copies of these
and sliding them under. It was like, oh, hey, Graham,
you got like a number thirty, little Lulu. That's pretty good.
And meanwhile you're walking out the door with.

Speaker 3 (01:05:51):
Original Batman and Superman Superman one and yeah.

Speaker 2 (01:05:55):
But the fact that they never went looking for them,
huh just.

Speaker 3 (01:06:01):
Yeah, Oh I got them all up in the attic.

Speaker 2 (01:06:05):
Interesting, nice story, Nana, Do you have any more corn bread?
You understand Marvel movies are like the most important thing
in entertainment for decades.

Speaker 3 (01:06:19):
Yeah, get up there and see what else is it?
So yeah, you'll get a new hip.

Speaker 2 (01:06:29):
Move Jimmy Hoffa's coffin. Let's see what's behind it? What
the hell else is in this house?

Speaker 3 (01:06:35):
Lindbergh baby floating around up there?

Speaker 2 (01:06:38):
Yeah, I mean, but yeah, nine million for one comic book.
That's all three of them podcasting talking about Nick Cage
having it.

Speaker 3 (01:06:49):
Boy, he spent his money, well didn't he. I can't
imagine why he had so much trouble with the irs.

Speaker 2 (01:06:55):
I wonder which of his islands he keeps it on.

Speaker 3 (01:06:58):
Right, you wouldn't put it on, not only humanity, thank you.

Speaker 2 (01:07:05):
Now he's got one of those uh negative airspace crips
that they keep them in soaks out.

Speaker 3 (01:07:14):
That just uh.

Speaker 2 (01:07:17):
Cracks me up though. It's like, how long did you
know that she had these and you didn't go explore that?
Just I'm trying to wrap my head around that.

Speaker 3 (01:07:26):
I probably decades.

Speaker 2 (01:07:28):
I mean that's just Oh, there she goes again with
her comic book stories.

Speaker 3 (01:07:33):
Yeah, yeah, Nana, let's get you to bed. Sure, Nanna, dumbasses.
Well then.

Speaker 2 (01:07:45):
Actually we forgot one of the AI stories.

Speaker 3 (01:07:48):
Oh shit, Yeah, and I closed that hand. I just
uh had.

Speaker 2 (01:07:54):
Glossed over it earlier. But New York is enacting a
landmark AI law that it acquires the disclosure of synthetic
performers in commercials.

Speaker 3 (01:08:06):
Yeah, really been good before the McDonald's thing, As if
you couldn't tell.

Speaker 2 (01:08:14):
As soon as they saw New York, I just chuckled
at the headline and then reading the story, I was
confirmed of the idiocy. Okay, honey, we don't need help
with AI right now.

Speaker 3 (01:08:27):
Yeah.

Speaker 2 (01:08:27):
Like the beer commercial where people are in the backyard
and have seven fingers, I could pick up on.

Speaker 3 (01:08:33):
That, Yeah I can. Yeah, yeah, I mean it's like
they want that, uh you know, like when they're doing
yeah paid actor kind they have to have that disclaimer
on commercials right when you know they're endorsing a product
or whatever. Yeah, not a national doctor paid actor you

(01:08:57):
know for like you know, change you went worth or
some ship when they're not singing. Yeah, so this one
artificial people. No ship wouldn't have known.

Speaker 2 (01:09:12):
I mean, if it's an actor portraying a doctor or
it's a computer portraying a doctor, is there a difference
because you're lying out your ass in the way.

Speaker 3 (01:09:24):
Well, I'm pretty sure the AI would understand medicine a
little bit better than Travago teeth.

Speaker 2 (01:09:31):
Guy, I'm not a doctor, but I've played one in
numerous television shows. Ergo take my advice on important medical information.
I mean it, come, do we need this is when
I first read this, though, I thought it was gonna
springboard off of Gavin Newsom's idiotcy in California. Yeah, with

(01:09:58):
he tried banning ai U that was making fun of politicians, right,
Hello strissand effect.

Speaker 3 (01:10:09):
Right, do you want more AI generating people making fun
of politicians? Because that's how you get more AI generated
people making fun of politicians.

Speaker 2 (01:10:19):
I mean, this is the level of intellect of Gavin Newsom.
He passes this law in California, and it doesn't occur
to him that people have AI elsewhere.

Speaker 3 (01:10:30):
Well, and then my favorite thing is that he goes
and breaks his own law making with his governor knews
account making AI of Trump.

Speaker 2 (01:10:40):
Yeah, it was like you told us this was illegal, Gavin.

Speaker 3 (01:10:44):
Yeah, you even signed this law, Gab Grissolini.

Speaker 2 (01:10:49):
I mean, Governor Burl Cream, You're you're violating yourself here.
And I just now as I said that put that
image in my head and I wish I had not.

Speaker 3 (01:10:59):
Well, it all go with his you know, democracy requires
flexibility thing.

Speaker 2 (01:11:07):
Let's stop. Yeah, the New York policy is based on commercials,
and I guess wanting to be forthcoming with the buying audience.
Who are they protecting because people know commercials lie their

(01:11:29):
ass off.

Speaker 3 (01:11:31):
See either either they think Americans are absolutely dumber than
they actually are, or there is a segment of Americans
that is so dumb they need that disclaimer. And I'm
going to embrace the power of and on that one.

Speaker 2 (01:11:49):
I would even add a third quotient, which is the
politicians are the dumb ones and think everybody's as dumb
as they are, Because really, you could only make this
legislation if at some point in time, you yourself were
fooled by AI and damn it, I don't want this
to help on a gun.

Speaker 3 (01:12:08):
Yeah, and they fall for it, so fucking always that. Yeah.

Speaker 2 (01:12:12):
I mean, this is on par with that California politician
years ago that banned happy meals because he couldn't tell
his kids no every time they drove by McDonald's.

Speaker 3 (01:12:24):
Yeah, that's a U problem sport, and so he.

Speaker 2 (01:12:29):
Had to pass a law so that he would then
turn over in the back seat and say, sorry, there's
a lad children. They don't have it anymore. Well yeah,
and then, as always happens in politics, they did have
the toys, they just charge exture and people were like,
all right, the hell with the food, I'll just buy
the toy, And they ended up moving more toys, yeah,

(01:12:51):
which caused them less than the food. So the McDonald's
was happy.

Speaker 3 (01:12:55):
God, I love the hell of unintended consequences.

Speaker 2 (01:12:58):
I mean, this is you gotta sometimes just embrace it
from the idiocy that it is, because it's not like
when you're yeah, you're always away.

Speaker 3 (01:13:10):
Yeah. I was gonna say, it's not like when you're
a kid, you're like, oh, I absolutely fucking have to
have McDonald's. And then I realize when you're a kid,
that's pretty much the only time it's palatable.

Speaker 2 (01:13:19):
Well, I mean, what's the conversation that always takes place.
You hand a kid to have me meal toy, I
want the toy, eat your food first, right, So yeah,
the kid's not hopping up and down in the counter.

Speaker 3 (01:13:34):
Offer. Mom, I can eat my food while playing with
the toy.

Speaker 2 (01:13:40):
Now we know how that works. And then you're gonna
get ketchup all over it, and then you eat half
eating and will throw out most of it away. And
I'm not wasting my money on Yes, I've had this conversation.

Speaker 3 (01:13:49):
Or it is strangely uh, strangely specific.

Speaker 2 (01:13:56):
Not reading from a script either, folks. But yeah, so
New York is trying to protect us from fake people,
and of course somebody sag sag aftra is involved.

Speaker 3 (01:14:10):
In this little shot. Austin was all over that, you
know what, I love the byline or the uh the
parenthetical at the end was that in front of a
very small group of reporters, this wasn't even interesting to
the people who tongue bath hochel.

Speaker 2 (01:14:34):
And just to maybe send a chill down everybody's spine,
sag after, a national executive director and chief negotiator, has
been advocating for tougher protections against AI for the past
several years. The issue is certain to be central to
negotiations with studios and streamers for a new contract in

(01:14:55):
twenty twenty six.

Speaker 3 (01:14:58):
Oh, we get it a contract season already. We just
finished the last one.

Speaker 2 (01:15:04):
Is the ink even dry? And we're talking at.

Speaker 3 (01:15:12):
What I love is that? I mean, we talk about
it every time we bring up AI. But that strike,
that last strike with the Riders and Sagafro was extended
because they were holding out for protection against AI and
the studios didn't even let the ink drive before went
a fuck you were buying AI.

Speaker 2 (01:15:35):
I mean again, we called this during the strike, told
them the studios are gonna fuck you. We just don't
know when.

Speaker 3 (01:15:52):
We didn't think it was gonna happen as fast as
it did. We figured it would take a year. It
was done within six months, but still it happened.

Speaker 2 (01:15:59):
Full admission. We completely jiggered the timeframe on that, I
mean year and a half, two years. It's probably gonna
what already.

Speaker 3 (01:16:07):
It was like that, Yeah, yes, well we recovered from
talking about the strike for a year for six months before.

Speaker 2 (01:16:18):
Oh oh no, it was I think we've done in
what month or two is when we started to see
well that I think that's when the first indication that
they were doing voiceover coverage in AI.

Speaker 3 (01:16:29):
And then we saw the we're not doing today for
anything but voiceover. Oh and post production. Oh and pre production.
Oh and actors and writers and cinematographers.

Speaker 2 (01:16:42):
I mean they were shooting pickup scenes for Roadhouse with AI.

Speaker 3 (01:16:46):
Yeah. God, I love it.

Speaker 2 (01:16:49):
Well show we're talking about, uh, you know, the quality
of movies going down, Pixar and Disney Animation as well.
But uh, maybe this, this is a touchdown. This is
what we can point to wh and say, don't go there,
do this. Zutopia two, the sequel, finally came out.

Speaker 3 (01:17:08):
It took a long ass time, but we knew it
was going to be a monster. But yeah, because this.

Speaker 2 (01:17:13):
Was Disney's annual animation rollout on the Thanksgiving weekend, they
just they own that. Now that's their thing.

Speaker 3 (01:17:21):
Yeah, that's their thing.

Speaker 2 (01:17:24):
No, everybody gets out of the way, you know, they
try to either spit their stuff out ahead of time
or wait until after Thanksgiving. Because this frame is Disney's
no change Zuotopia two came out over one hundred million
opening weekend.

Speaker 3 (01:17:36):
About one fifteen. Yeah, did great, and.

Speaker 2 (01:17:42):
Let Up didn't. Didn't get surprised by that. However, this
movie has not been out for a full month yet.
Global gross on this film nine hundred and seventy two million.

Speaker 3 (01:17:57):
Yeah, and this thing only coused a buck fifty to massay,
only cost a buck fifty to make. Yeah, it cost
one hundred and fifty million to make, plus promotion. You're
looking around two and a half to three trounced that
before the second weekend. It made all of its money
back before last weekend.

Speaker 2 (01:18:17):
To this point two hundred and thirty million domestic, which
again would almost put it in the black alone. Like
they're starting to approach a level of feeling comfortable. Throw
in another seven hundred and fifty overseas. Yeah, this movie's
going to clear a billion before is out a month

(01:18:38):
in theaters.

Speaker 3 (01:18:39):
That's just I mean, we are coming into the weekend
and look tracking the weekend numbers. Opening weekend, it was
averaging thirty six million on Wednesday, Fridays and Saturday, because
you know, Thursday, It's still made twenty million dollars on

(01:19:01):
Thanksgiving Day, domestic. So this last weekend it's only dropped
a third. You know, it's averaging fifteen million on Friday, Saturday, Sunday.
So yeah, and it's averaging just this is just domestic numbers,
and it's averaging five million a day in the middle

(01:19:22):
of the week.

Speaker 2 (01:19:25):
The just amazing stuff right there. I mean, again, I
knew this was going to be a hit, but holy hell,
I mean, this is frozen level right here. A billion dollars.
You'll see it.

Speaker 3 (01:19:39):
Usually you'll see like it'll hit X number of theaters
the opening weekend and then that'll get dropped by twenty
to thirty. You know, by the next weekend. You know,
everybody got their hit. It was on multiple screens and
multiple theaters, and it starts to contract. No, it's still
on four thousand screens globally as of today.

Speaker 2 (01:20:00):
Yeah. It's kind of funny. The wife is making plays
with the kid for Christmas and such, and it's like, oh,
you know, I think the next day, I don't think
it'll be in theaters anymore. We'll have the stream. It's like,
trust me, this will be in theater out a month.
By then. It's like that's the whole thing they want
this ahead of Christmas. It's gonna run through Christmas. You're cool,

(01:20:21):
You're going to the theater to relax on. Yeah, I
do this for a living, take my word for it.

Speaker 3 (01:20:30):
But where course she can't, right, well, I mean the rules.

Speaker 2 (01:20:36):
I don't care if that. You've been talking about entertainment
on podcasts for four years. You don't know what you're saying.

Speaker 3 (01:20:42):
You know, we've been doing this almost seven now, really.

Speaker 2 (01:20:45):
Now how about that? Yeah, I'm gonna have to get
her comfortable with preciens. Bring that word to her, Explain
to her how frequently that comes in play on this
broadcast on we are.

Speaker 3 (01:21:03):
So very rarely wrong.

Speaker 2 (01:21:07):
Just back and let me tell you how wonderful we are.

Speaker 3 (01:21:10):
Please please, Yeah, yeah, you should listen to the show
because then you'll know exactly how Yeah, well we we
we are. One of our balls are crystal. I just.

Speaker 2 (01:21:24):
I'm gonna I'm gonna have to try dropping that one
on her. Have you know? I have a crystal ball?
And there comes the pot thrown at the head, right,
all right, Well, we got gender bricking beyond deck circles
that we probably ought to uh get into the streaming
side of things.

Speaker 3 (01:21:44):
Huh Yeah, So.

Speaker 2 (01:21:50):
Stranger Things is topping off here. Uh the date is
November ten. Did the new season come out with then?
I don't it. Did it was out yet.

Speaker 3 (01:21:59):
By that point?

Speaker 2 (01:21:59):
Did it?

Speaker 3 (01:22:01):
I think it? Well, you know, let me fire up
the Google machine.

Speaker 2 (01:22:03):
Because uh, I mean it came in at number one,
no chakr air. But I'm a little surprised that it
was only one point three billion minutes viewed.

Speaker 3 (01:22:17):
No, didn't start until November twenty six, So this is
the uh, the preview.

Speaker 2 (01:22:22):
So these are the people gearing up for the release,
as I thought, again, appreciants, that's why people tune into
this show. We know what the hell we're talking about.
So yeah, Stranger Thing was number one as people were
watching the previous years to refresh at the new release.
Number two The Beast in Me. Three is all her fault?

(01:22:43):
The Secret Lives of Mormon.

Speaker 3 (01:22:44):
Wives for that, thanks just a monster.

Speaker 2 (01:22:49):
Well put number five, Landman, Good to see that. How
about this for a mixture though in the top six
we got two Netflix, a Peacock, a Hulu. In a
paramount we got three netfliks. But yeah, no, that's a
nice mixture. Don't usually see that kind of mixing. The
top five. But then yeah, number six, you got squid

(01:23:12):
Games still hanging on, but.

Speaker 3 (01:23:14):
Here's still hanging on. But this it never hit the
way that the first season did.

Speaker 2 (01:23:19):
No, And I I'm wondering if this isn't maybe I
think that was more of a worldwide hit anyway. I mean,
it wasn't monster here in America, don't get me wrong, but.

Speaker 3 (01:23:31):
I you know, I think it percolated late. It was
a monster globally and then we caught onto it. But
people have knowledge of it now, so it should This
should be number two. I'm surprised it's number six.

Speaker 2 (01:23:49):
Well, I think the one aspect that made it so
popular was the shock value that doesn't really retain in
a sequel.

Speaker 3 (01:23:57):
Yeah, it's rare. I mean, Dexter was able to do it,
but that's because they kind of changed the thing every year.
You know.

Speaker 2 (01:24:06):
It was a similar kind of thing that you saw
with The Hangover, where you know, the plot twists and
that were just so jaw dropping that they had to
match it in a sequel. Tried mightily, came close, did good,
but not fantastic like the first one. The same kind
of effect.

Speaker 3 (01:24:23):
Uh.

Speaker 2 (01:24:24):
Number seven, they got the Witcher, the dou version of
that is that.

Speaker 3 (01:24:31):
I want to say, yes, let me fire after the machine, because.

Speaker 2 (01:24:37):
They've been talking about it for quite a while.

Speaker 3 (01:24:40):
Yeah, we've been talking about it for two years.

Speaker 2 (01:24:42):
But yeah, I thought, I want to say it came
out in the fall, but don't hold me to that.
Tulsa King is at eight, Miss Rachel is nine.

Speaker 3 (01:24:52):
Okay, Yeah, dropped October thirtieth, and.

Speaker 2 (01:24:55):
Then you got Death by Lightning ten. That's the uh
historical drama of the presidency back in eighteen hundreds. I've
yet to watch it, though it's supposed to be really
good over in the Yeah, but it was a good
mixing there. I'm surprised by that. Yeah amount Hulu, Yeah,

(01:25:20):
come on Prime, get off your asscock. It's almost like
a Christmas Carol, And I know I'm not going to
sing an the acquired side of things. All the replays
were for Gray's Anatomy, n Cis Bluey of course, gun
Smoke on Barah Mountain, Peacock, and Pluto.

Speaker 3 (01:25:39):
Bob's Burger is still up there. Can't wrap my brain
around that one. I mean, I love Bob's Burgers, Don't
get me wrong.

Speaker 2 (01:25:47):
Now you know what the kids watching on repeat?

Speaker 3 (01:25:49):
I've seen watching on Benjamin Watch Archer not anyway.

Speaker 2 (01:25:54):
Well, I'm saying the kids like literally like this summer
dual was staying with us, and she said, I just
put Bob Vergers on the background. It's my comfort show.

Speaker 3 (01:26:11):
How much experienced.

Speaker 2 (01:26:15):
Lord, you're not even in school right now, so right,
your stress levels, I'm sorry, have got to be barely measurable,
but don't hold me that. And then we got Big
Bang Theory, Law and Order, Paw Patrol, and then Law
and Order.

Speaker 3 (01:26:32):
But the Special Victims you did not the original Victims
Special all right.

Speaker 2 (01:26:39):
On the movie side, I'm sorry. Frankenstein on Netflix, the
the Irmal del Toro version of it pretty good. I
gotta say, very well done. It's worth the while. I'll
say that U K. Pok Demon Hunters were uses to

(01:27:00):
go away and then you got over. I guess with
John Cena retiring, Prime is now going to have two
John Cena movies a year. As my guess, I think
he's an exclusive contract with them.

Speaker 3 (01:27:18):
But uh, you know what, it's been a long time
since we've had actors that had studio contracts, So I'm
here for you. That was the golden age of.

Speaker 2 (01:27:25):
It's kind of great he's always on Prime Now it's like, okay, okay,
I got him. Number four is The Marksman Freaky or
Friday from Disney Plus. That was the sequel that I've
not heard good things about it. I don't know. I
haven't heard much about it. Everybody wanted to see it,
and I don't know if anybody has. Then there's being any.

Speaker 3 (01:27:44):
You know, that's gonna be like fucking Avatar. It's going
to be there for months. Nobody will know why, nobody
will talk about it, just it's there, just an ATM.
Nobody knows why.

Speaker 2 (01:27:55):
It's gonna be that movie that people will put on
and then they'll get a phone call and walk away
and forget about it, so it'll compile the minutes that way. Yeah,
Fantastic four actually landed for Disney plus Merry Little Smiths
on Netflix. That's their version of a Hallmark movie. Apparently
How the Grin Stole Christmas on Peacock, the two thousand

(01:28:18):
Jim Carrey version.

Speaker 3 (01:28:19):
And then I hate that, you know, we talked about
that on Avintion Charles Project this weekend. I hate that
movie so many It's just terrible. Secondly to elf.

Speaker 2 (01:28:36):
M, I'm actually fond of the Illumination Animated one just
because it is different. Illumination did one about five years ago,
six years ago.

Speaker 3 (01:28:50):
Oh right, right, right, right, right right. It's pretty good.

Speaker 2 (01:28:55):
I can watch it.

Speaker 3 (01:28:55):
It's not too bad.

Speaker 2 (01:28:56):
The kids love it, so it's not all the time.
And on the overall charts, Stranger Things rules the roost.
I can't wait to see what the numbers are gonna
be when the Thanksgiving figures roll in.

Speaker 3 (01:29:09):
Right, Yeah, it's gonna be big, gonna be big. Next show,
we'll be doing the uh the twenty fourth or the
thirtieth and uh.

Speaker 2 (01:29:19):
Yeah, I'm thinking uh two point five to three bill easy,
that's my prediction. And then number two is Frankenstein, followed
by beast in Me All Her Fault, Gray's Anatomy, and
cis Blueye guns. Wow. Most of it is the repeats,
with the exception the Secret Lives and Warmer Wives at
ten cutting.

Speaker 3 (01:29:40):
In you know, I'm sorry, but the monster's name is
Frankenstein because his wife's his name is literally the bride
of Frankenstein. Yeah, it should have been the past.

Speaker 2 (01:29:54):
It couldn't be the bride of doctor Frankenstein because he
wasn't married to her either.

Speaker 3 (01:29:57):
Huh right, the bride of the Monster. Frankenstein is just
a little too much of a mouth.

Speaker 2 (01:30:03):
Doctor Frankenstein's monster, right, double positive, Yeah, franken Stein monsters. Yeah, okay,
too many apostrophes. Yes, sprow it, bride, go for it
all right, Well that's gonna do it for different I

(01:30:25):
don't think we're gonna do the next show because that
would be Christmas Day.

Speaker 3 (01:30:29):
Is that Christmas Day? It is Christmas Day? Ship. We
will not be back until after the New year.

Speaker 2 (01:30:34):
You do land on that, so it'll be uh so
it be j E.

Speaker 3 (01:30:40):
Can I talk about how bummed I am You're not
going to be in our Christmas play. We're talking about
oh never mind knows ge sure.

Speaker 2 (01:30:51):
I've been cast you you well, I have, I have.

Speaker 3 (01:30:55):
I got bad news to break to you. Bread you
are now and then study No, no, sorry, yeah, yeah,
so we took break a leg literally, No, I'm looking
forward to it. Next week is our holiday play, our
kal or End players will be putting on the Wizard

(01:31:16):
of Oz.

Speaker 2 (01:31:17):
Indeed we are. We're taking on the classic. We're not
shying away from the big time here.

Speaker 3 (01:31:22):
We're going for it.

Speaker 2 (01:31:23):
Swinging for defenses and every other metaphor of that nature.
But now we're gonna have fun with that one. That's
gonna be on Friday, the nineteenth k are Inn Ensemble production,
So current and also voices of the past will be
joining us, yes, and.

Speaker 3 (01:31:44):
A guest or two.

Speaker 2 (01:31:47):
Yeah. We usually have a couple other talented individuals we
could tap to join in with us. So that's uh,
it's gonna be a fun one. Promise you that. Definitely
tune in And as it were, yeah, you're gonna hear
from me Orty, but officially on the show at least,
can you have yourself a merry holiday.

Speaker 3 (01:32:08):
I will definitely have a fantastic Christmas. You do the same,
and of course our producer Jeff, you have a fantastic
Christmas as well.

Speaker 2 (01:32:18):
Indeed, we'll be hearing more from Jeff because he'll be
the force behind next Friday's mass production of course. So yeah,
definitely tuned in for that. And as for us here
at the Culture Shift, we'll be back after New Year's
it looks like, but nonetheless we'll be compiling and tabulating
everything going on in the entertainment realm for you right

(01:32:42):
here on the Culture Shift.

Speaker 3 (01:32:45):
Hel Heider o Day