Friends,
You’ve seen the pattern by now. Hollywood takes a beloved, male-driven action franchise that millions of people actually enjoyed — and decides it needs a “modern” makeover. Swap the guys for women, inject some lectures, and hope the audience shows up out of sheer gratitude for the “representation.”
It rarely works.
The latest example making the rounds: the Expendables series — those over-the-top, muscle-packed action movies with Stallone, Statham, Schwarzenegger, and crew — reportedly being reimagined as Expendabelles.
Yes, really.
This follows the same playbook as the 2016 Ghostbusters reboot that famously lost tens of millions, along with other high-profile attempts that underperformed or flopped. Audiences (including plenty of women) aren’t showing up in the numbers Hollywood expects when the primary selling point is “Now with more estrogen and fewer explosions.”
I turned the frustration and the data points from that trend into a song.
Here’s “Woke Hollywood (Expendabelles Lament)”
The point isn’t that women can’t star in great action movies. They absolutely can — when the story, character, and execution are strong. The problem is the lazy hijacking of proven male franchises, the preaching, and the refusal to accept that audiences vote with their wallets.
What do you think? Is Hollywood finally learning, or are more expensive ghosts on the way?
h/t Matt Osborne for the inspiration.
Today’s song brought to you by:
