What Harrison Ford, Sylvester Stallone's enduring popularity tell us about men in 2023
Hollywood is still dominated by aging men of action
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Forget that toxic masculinity nonsense. Hollywood is still dominated by aging men of action. They define being a man in ways that pop culture no longer approves of – wooing women and killing bad guys.
New movies and TV shows prove they can still deliver – from Harrison Ford and Sylvester Stallone to Arnold Schwarzenegger and Samuel L. Jackson. They have appeared in almost countless movies and every one of the stars is iconic. Ours is a culture that reveres youth, yet they are, and I’m being kind … not young.
Combined they are more than three centuries old. And Ford, the oldest of the quartet, was born just after Pearl Harbor, around the time Indiana Jones was fighting Nazis. These aging actors have played everything from American soldiers to a Jedi master. (Mace Windu. No nasty emails, please.)
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Retirement? Heck, no. They are all going strong. Even "Dirty Harry" star Clint Eastwood is working on the movie "Juror #2." And he both directs and co-stars at the age of 92. (He turns 93 May 31. Happy birthday. Go ahead and make your day for a change.) Ford and other aging action stars even fought their way through the competition to wow the crowd at Cannes.
So why are they still such big stars?
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}That’s easy. They have audience appeal – which means they do more than just act. They represent an America that Hollywood and much of our current wussified culture hates. They play heroes. And America is still holding out for a hero.
Just not the press.
The media have been carping about so-called "toxic masculinity" for years. Washington Post contributing columnist Brian Broome recently wrote how, "The Bud Light controversy reminds us how toxic masculinity can be." Yes, how dare men criticize a beer company for partnering with a "trans influencer" instead of, you know, women.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}WebMD has a page devoted to "What Is Toxic Masculinity" that includes eight different signs, many quite familiar to our heroes. They include: risk-taking," "stoicism" and "violence." Now, random violence or domestic violence don’t deserve defense. Still, violence itself is an essential trait. Ask any action star or the many millions of men and women who have served or are serving in our military.
Masculinity still upsets the press, which has been whining that Sen Josh Hawley, R-MO, wrote a book called "Manhood: The Masculine Virtues America Needs." Most of the stories were just attacks on Hawley. Washington Monthly, Slate and the Washington Post all chose that path. The Post remarkably called it, "Sen. Josh Hawley’s accidentally gender-neutral book about manhood."
New York Times columnist David French, RINO-NY, just declared, "The Right Is All Wrong About Masculinity." In it, he wrote a quintessential Times take, "Indeed, the very definition of ‘masculinity’ is up for grabs."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}No, it’s not. No normal American thinks it is.
Moviegoers or watchers understand. Men, women and kids across the political spectrum still love their tough guy heroes. Not anti-heroes from pay cable who do almost as much bad as they do good. We want to watch Indy whip the Nazis, literally. Or Dutch squash the alien Predator like a bug.
I know, I know. Movies are full of heroes – "Avengers," "Guardians of the Galaxy," "Star Wars," etc. Those are mostly good movies, but those stars are still normal sized, not larger than life. And, to make matters worse, they have become increasingly woke.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Forget what critics think about movies. (Really, that’s a good policy.) When Americans go to the theater or sit at home to watch a flick, they want to see Schwarzenegger delivering one of his signature catchphrases with a campy smile: "I’ll be back" or "Hasta la vista, baby."
They want to see "Rocky," a hero so popular with audiences that he spawned five direct "Rocky sequels" and three "Creed" spin-offs.
Rocky was so beloved that we cheered him fighting the Russian villain Ivan Drago right at the height of the Cold War. Then watched as he turned that victory into a uniting force, wearing an American flag after the fight and telling the Soviet audience that two men killing each other in the ring was better than "20 million."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}He won the crowd both in the movie and in the audience.
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In addition to the Planet Hollywood collaboration, Arnold, Bruce and Sylvester starred in "The Expendables" together. (Kevin Winter)
None of this is new. We’re the same nation that loved John Wayne as a Western star or as Davy Crockett at "The Alamo." Chuck Norris, Charles Bronson … the list is practically endless.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Hollywood still churns out some younger (sort of) action heroes. Sixty-year-old Tom Cruise built a career as half stuntman, half hero. When he popped back in the pilot’s seat as Capt. Pete 'Maverick' Mitchell in "Top Gun: Maverick," the movie took off to the No. 1 spot for the entire year. Maverick shot down his nearest competition by more than a quarter billion dollars.
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John Wick himself, Keanu Reeves, is technically 58 even if he looks and acts like he’s a couple decades younger. He’s done four movies avenging the puppy his late wife gave him, and a fifth is reportedly in the works.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"Fast & Furious" star Vin Diesel is a young 55, defeating bad guys and defending his "family." I think the F&F universe has produced about 100 movies or so. (Editor’s Note: There are only 10 … so far.)
They all rose to prominence even when the media were telling us the time of heroes was long gone. But, as long as movie audiences listen to our hearts and not the silly critics, we will stay devoted to our heroes.
No matter what the calendar or might tell us.
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