According to several eye-opening reports, 2022 was a rough year for Tinseltown.

Many entertainment-based companies lost mountains of money, and some critics maintain that constant catering to the far left is hurting them financially — “go woke, go broke.”

These same critics point to the massive success of one decidedly non-woke movie: “Top Gun: Maverick.”

The mega box office smash has grossed over $1.48 billion worldwide since releasing in May of last year, which makes it the second-biggest film of the entire year (“Avatar: The Way of Water” was #1).

For the most part, though, it was a very lean year for Hollywood. And entertainment goliaths like Disney and Netflix had tough years as well.

That’s why legendary director Steven Spielberg had to thank “Maverick” star Tom Cruise for “saving Hollywood’s ass”:

steven spielberg telling tom cruise to his face, “you saved hollywood’s ass. and, you might have saved theatrical distribution. seriously. MAVERICK might have saved the entire theatrical industry.” i have to lie down. pic.twitter.com/nYbWbgadM7

— amanda (@marisatomay) February 14, 2023

Said Spielberg in the encounter:

You saved Hollywood’s ass, and you might have saved theatrical distribution.

Seriously, ’Maverick’ might have saved the entire theatrical industry.

Streaming services exploded during the pandemic and traditional movie theaters have been feeling the strain ever since.

However, Cruise insisted that the long-anticipated “Top Gun” sequel get a regular theater release, which turned out to be the right move. It seemed to resonate with a great many Americans.

It’s now nominated for Best Picture, though many believe the ultra-woke Hollywood wouldn’t dare reward such a non-political and patriotic film.

As for the mammoth shift in how people ingest entertainment, here’s what Spielberg said in an interview with the New York Times:

The pandemic created an opportunity for streaming platforms to raise their subscriptions to record-breaking levels and also throw some of my best filmmaker friends under the bus as their movies were unceremoniously not given theatrical releases.

They were paid off and the films were suddenly relegated to, in this case, HBO Max. The case I’m talking about. And then everything started to change.

The veteran director added that while “certain movies are perfectly suitable to the iPad or living room,” others still need a big theater.

And for “Top Gun: Maverick,” most would agree that it absolutely needed the big screen, and millions responded. That’s exactly what Spielberg meant when he said the film might’ve “saved Hollywood’s ass.”

Key Takeaways:

• Director Steven Spielberg personally congratulated Tom Cruise on the success of “Top Gun: Maverick.”
• He told Cruise the movie might’ve “saved Hollywood’s ass” and even “might’ve saved the entire theatrical industry.”
• Spielberg spoke out about the rise of streaming services and the decline of traditional theater houses last year.

Source: The Daily Wire