Donald Trump’s narrower than prognosticated defeat has, against expectations of a Democratic landslide, raised the likelihood that his political shibboleths will remain extant in American democracy for decades to come. Throughout Trump’s single term, Hollywood filmmakers have played a role in exploring the prevalence of Trumpism through Rustbelt dramas such as Hillbilly Elegy (2020) and comic book adaptations as disparate in tone as Black Panther (2018) and Joker (2019). A retrospective analysis of Hollywood productions which incorporate themes salient to Trump’s presidency raises questions over their framing of Trumpism’s dominance. To what extent did these films offer repudiations of Trump’s mercurial governing philosophy? What facets of Trumpism, a medley of economic protectionism and populist nationalism, were most explored? Did Hollywood filmmakers negotiate the contradictions of Trump’s political mores and offer propositions for a new political settlement in their place or frame contemporaneous politics as a Manichean war against all?
Next April, guest editor Thomas Cobb will be running a special series focused on Hollywood film’s role in the Trump era. Thomas invites contributions from postgraduate students and ECRs on any aspect of the intersection between Trumpism and Hollywood pictures and is open to a range of proposals. Final articles will be between 900-1500 words following the guidelines on our website. We are looking for well-informed, concise analysis that is accessible to a wide readership.
All articles will be published in April 2020.
Topics of interest may include but are certainly not limited to:
– The Administration in Hollywood
– Allegories of other administrations etc.
– Documentaries
– Racial representation in cinema
– Superhero cinema in the age of Trump
– Satire and parody
Abstracts of 250w should be sent by Friday 5th March.
All questions should be directed to Dr Thomas Cobb at ad2355@coventry.ac.uk.