In recent years, the film industry has experienced a significant transformation due to the rise of streaming platforms, with the hundreds of projects released every year becoming a major source of entertainment worldwide.

This sweeping transformation has been met with criticism, as people have made clear that the industry prioritizes quantity over quality, opting for simplistic and profit-driven projects rather than impactful films that focus on quality storytelling and convey messages of significance.

The main reason modern movies are not as good as older ones is due to oversaturation. With the rise of streaming platforms, there has been a strong emphasis on producing as many projects as possible, generating pressure on filmmakers to meet deadlines and fulfill content quotas, often leading to rushed production and mediocre content.

On prominent example is the success of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). While the MCU has produced some excellent films like Endgame or Iron Man, the sheer number of releases in the last decade has led to fatigue among audiences seeking different content.

Since the turn of the millennium, there have been a total of 55 live-action superhero movies, with a significant portion of that number, 31 films to be exact, belonging to the MCU. Nine of those were released in the last 3 years.

Another tiring thing about new releases is the endless supply of TV series. Streaming services like Disney Plus have taken over the entertainment industry by dropping new movies on their platform and churning out a ton of bad series and movies, such as Eternals or Thor Love and Thunder, all of which are rated below 2.5 stars out of 5 on rotten tomatoes.

Similar ideas were published by critic Julia Balot in an article published last year in Nique, where she argued that in order to prevent losses from offering a free trial period, Disney devised a strategy to retain subscribers through weekly episode releases. Initially intended to maintain fan excitement between episodes, this approach evolved into a profit-maximizing model for Disney, regardless of its impact on content quality.

It’s important to note that even though many feel over-saturated by content from MCU and other movie franchises, studios continue to make profits off their sorry offerings with terrible character development, bad CGI, and a horrible storyline. In the last 15 years, MCU alone has made a total of 26.6 billion dollars on its superhero movies.

Another factor contributing to the decline of modern film is the lack of originality. It seems that many most studios prefer to “play it safe” by recycling the same ideas and formulas over and over again, rather than taking creative risks and producing genuinely captivating content.

Companies such as MCU are increasingly relying on remakes of successful movies such as the mediocre Iron Man franchise to generate revenue without significant effort or investment. While this strategy may seem attractive to companies, it often fails to audiences the novelty and inventiveness of traditional cinema.

Disney is a prime example. The company has produced numerous live-action remakes of its popular films from the 20th century, releasing 19 live-action remakes. Where is the innovation and creativity? Nowhere.

It is all about the money. Disney, Universal, Warner Brothers, Sony, Fox, etc. are all publicly owned companies. Investors want their money to go towards less risky investments. A studio head that takes a lot of risks on new ideas is going to be out of a job if enough of those projects fail.

Some examples of this phenomenon are the cases of Carolco Pictures, a movie studio that went bankrupt after its flagship movie Cutthroat Island tanked all the way back in 1995, and more recently the movie Mars Needs Moms released in 2011 generated huge losses for Disney Studios, setting off many alarms at the movie giant, after the film failed to recoup even 1/3 of what it cost to make.

Another reason modern film is failing is political correctness. New movies are too preoccupied with being politically correct and therefore lack the edge and controversial themes that characterized older movies. For example the Marvel series, Ms. Marvel, one of the worst Marvel series ever, focused on showing the life of an Indian heritage adolescent in the USA. However, by focusing so much being inclusive, they end up giving us a superhero series that doesn’t focus on superheroes at all.

The notion of being politically correct has unintended consequences for movie studios. While the intention behind being politically correct may be to bring in more diverse audiences and increase profits, this approach can sometimes backfire. Some countries choose to ban movies that are perceived as too politically correct and approach aspects that to some are not meant for kids.

For example, The Buzz Lightyear Movie provides a clear example of a politically correct film that aimed to promote inclusivity by featuring a lesbian couple. This led to the film being banned in 14 nations, resulting in decreased profits for the studio.

Excessive focus on being politically correct can distract from the overall theme of the films, this results in less screen time given to the central story, as more attention is placed on demonstrating the inclusion of minority groups. Creating discomfort for many people who feel that original stories should not be altered to include minorities.

This phenomenon is a common thread among both many Reddit and Quora users. One Reddit user summed it up writing, “Take real characters, turn their stories into inspiring movies or shows, and have each character be played by an actor of that particular group, and you will get a meaningful movie or TV show that people can relate to.”

It is crucial to acknowledge that the inclusion of minorities in cinema is not only valuable but necessary. However, it is equally important not to overemphasize diversity or to use actors from minority groups solely to prove a studio’s inclusivity.

Overall modern cinema stands at a critical crossroads where it must choose to either address its current problems and confront the concerns of its audience, or face the inevitable outcome of being reinvented due to the monotonous and forgettable nature of its current films.