Hollywood is at a breaking point—and audiences can feel it.

On In the Tank Podcast #522, Linnea Lueken, Jim Lakely, Chris Talgo, S.T. Karnick, and Donald Kendal dig into what’s reshaping movies and TV right now: DEI-era gatekeeping, studios quietly changing course, shrinking opportunities for creators, and the growing role of AI in entertainment.

They’re joined by Christian Toto, returning for his fifth annual appearance, to break down how Hollywood’s incentives filtered out creative voices—and why so many films now feel safe, preachy, and lifeless.

The panel also tackles Disney’s new AI deal involving OpenAI’s Sora platform and what it means for writers, actors, and storytelling itself. Plus: the crew runs through their “Unhinged” list of the worst movies and TV of 2025—and what might actually be worth watching next.

If Hollywood has lost its edge, this episode explores why—and what comes next.

Join us LIVE at 1 p.m. ET every Friday on YouTube, Rumble, X, and Facebook.

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Chapters:
00:33 Intro
01:57 Special Guest Introduction
03:55 Support Our Sponsor!
05:50 Unhinged: Worst Movies of 2025
22:08 Film Affected By DEI
49:15 AI in Movies? Good or Bad?
1:19:25 The Future of Movies: Embracing The Experience

STORIES COVERED ON THE SHOW:

DEI To Blame? - Writers and other roles in movie companies are being filtered by DEI politics in Hollywood. Does this have an effect on the quality of films?

https://www.compactmag.com/article/the-lost-generation/

https://variety.com/2025/film/news/hollywood-drops-dei-programs-donald-trump-disney-paramount-amazon-1236327202/

AI in Movies - Where is it good, and Where does it suck?

https://thewaltdisneycompany.com/disney-openai-sora-agreement/
https://archive.ph/2xtns

Optimism for the Future: the best films of 2025, what to look forward to in 2026 and beyond.

https://x.com/vegasstarfish/status/1961588349799731453
https://www.imdb.com/calendar/

"Woke" and its pushers continues to be exposed for the ugliness, fraud and tyranny their policies unleash on the rest of us, all over the world. We'll cover how the architect of Jaguar’s disastrous rebrand has finally been canned, and Rep. Aftyn Behn’s loss to Matt Van Epps in Tennessee reveals her and her party as very sore losers indeed.

We'll also take a look at the years of widespread fraud inside Minnesota’s social services system, and discuss how Governor Walz not only buried the problem but may be setting the stage for even more abuse through a new program.

And on UNHINGED: Multiple-time violent criminals are being released to attack people again, and other craziness.

The Heartland Institute's Linnea Lueken, Jim Lakely, and S.T. Karnick will talk about all of this and more on Episode #521 of the In The Tank Podcast.

Join us LIVE at 1 p.m. ET on YouTube, Rumble, X, and Facebook.

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Thanksgiving is approaching, but grocery prices seem to just keep getting higher. We will discuss what causes food costs to rise, and how it can be stopped.

A new exclusive from the Free Beacon reports that George Soros gave a quarter million dollars to the Center for Countering Digital Hate, which works with advertisers for Big Tech trying to deplatform conservative voices and destroy X.com. Plus, Rasmussen polling found that a worrying chunk of young voters would be willing to hand functions of government over to AI, including policymaking decisions and our very rights.

And on UNHINGED: Trump Derangement Syndrome increasingly appears to be a genuine pathology, with sufferers totally unable to cope.

The Heartland Institute's Linnea Lueken, S.T. Karnick, Jim Lakely, and Chris Talgo will talk about all of this and more on Episode #520 of the In The Tank Podcast. Join us LIVE at 1 p.m. ET on YouTube, Rumble, X, and Facebook.

Visit our sponsor, Advisor Metals: https://climaterealismshow.com/metals

Interesting and recommended video on AI: We Are Not Ready for Super Intelligence:

Chapters:
00:38 Intro
02:17 Panel Introduction
06:47 UNHINGED: Trump Derangement Syndrome Continues
20:57 Real Reason Food Cost is High
43:30 Advisory Metals
45:33 Soros continues to control the media
54:31 AI OVERLORDS?

America’s great exodus from major cities and entire states keeps accelerating — and the election of socialist Mayor Mamdani in New York City is only speeding things up. Yet polls show young Americans becoming more favorable toward socialism, even embracing ideas like government-run grocery stores. What does that say about our culture, our education system, and the nation’s future?

On the education side, things are just as alarming. UC San Diego reports that incoming students can’t meet basic math expectations — not just at grade level, but far below it. How did we get here, and how can states and the federal government fix this before it truly spirals out of control?

PLUS on UNHINGED:
An AI-generated country song has charted in online music sales. Is this a sign of an unhinged future — or has mainstream music been formulaic and awful for years anyway?

The Heartland Institute’s Linnea Lueken, S.T. Karnick, Jim Lakely, and Chris Talgo break it all down on Episode #519 of the In the Tank Podcast.

Tune in LIVE at 1 p.m. ET and join us in the live chat!
Streaming on YouTube, Rumble, X, and Facebook.

Support our sponsor, Advisor Metals:
https://climaterealismshow.com/metals

Chapter:
02:08 Intro
5:48 TOP Country song is AI????
24:36 Exodus of NYC and other Blue States
36:11 Most Young Voters Embrace Socialism
1:10:43 How Do We Fix Our Education System?

On Tuesday, New York City elected a trust-fund communist as mayor. New Jersey, which seemed to be trending red, put a scandal-ridden Democrat in the governor's mansion. In Virginia, voters rejected a black Republican conservative woman over a woke former CIA spook who pledged to force girls and women to endure biological men in their private spaces again. Oh, and Dems in the Old Dominion also elected a man who wished a political opponent and his children would be murdered so his grieving wife would finally agree with him on policy as she held her family in her arms.

The weird part is that all these results were expected for weeks. What happened? On Episode #518 of the In the Tank Podcast, the Heartland Institute's Linnea Lueken, S.T. Karnick, Jim Lakely, and Chris Talgo will break it all down. It seems that the rise of socialism has not been arrested after all. Is this an outlier, or a sign that the midterm elections in 2026 will be a bloodbath for Trump and the MAGA movement.

Join us LIVE at 1 p.m. ET on YouTube, Rumble, X, and Facebook.
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Are Democrats holding SNAP funding hostage to keep the Schumer Shutdown alive? The In the Tank crew dives into the latest Washington tricks — and whether major reforms are long overdue.

As the Democratic Party embraces openly socialist candidates, we ask: are there any moderates left?

On UNHINGED, the team rants about Christmas displays popping up before Halloween 🎃 — and then wraps up with a lighter segment on our favorite spooky-season books and movies.

Featuring Linnea Lueken, Jim Lakely, S.T. Karnick, and Chris Talgo of The Heartland Institute.

🕐 Tune in LIVE at 1 p.m. ET on YouTube, Rumble, Facebook, and X — and join us in the live chat!

Visit our sponsor, ADVISOR METALS: https://climaterealismshow.com/metals

The AI Revolution is happening at an incredible speed. New AI products, like OpenAI's Sora 2, continue to push the envelope and blur the lines between reality and fabrication. And as this revolutionary technology continues to advance and integrate deeper into our daily lives, serious questions are emerging about power, control, and human rights in the digital age. Should there be a framework—an “AI Bill of Rights”—to protect individuals from algorithmic abuse, data manipulation, and government or corporate overreach? The ITT crew discusses how real this future is becoming, the potential threats to privacy and autonomy, and whether society is prepared for the moral and political challenges AI is bringing to the surface.

The Heartland Institute’s Donald Kendal, Jim Lakely, S.T. Karnick, and Justin Haskins will discuss all of this and more on Episode #516 of the In The Tank Podcast. Watch LIVE at 1 p.m. ET and join us in the live chat!

Chapters:
0:37 Intro
2:06 Start
6:41 Debate on the role of AI in education
26:05 The Radical Normalization of AI Tech
43:12 AI Game: Is it real?
58:30 AI Bill of rights?

The government is still shut down, and Democrats are warning that the expiration of Obamacare subsidies at the end of this year will make healthcare unaffordable for millions. But that’s not true. While the system certainly needs reform, the real problem lies deeper than temporary subsidies. The Heartland crew will break down what needs to change to make healthcare work for everyone.

Meanwhile, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has floated the idea that the United States may need to “decouple” from China if they continue to play unfairly in global markets. What would that mean for essential materials and the broader economy—and has America waited too long to act?

And on this week’s UNHINGED segment, CNN revives an old feminist slogan that claims men who find women attractive are a societal problem. The panel will discuss why this narrative keeps failing and what it says about modern media culture.
The Heartland Institute’s Linnea Lueken, Jim Lakely, S.T. Karnick, Chris Talgo, and special guest AnneMarie Schieber will discuss all of this and more on Episode #515 of the In The Tank Podcast. Watch LIVE at 1 p.m. ET and join us in the live chat!

VISIT our sponsor: https://climaterealismshow.com/metals

SHOW NOTES:

CNN, After years of progress on gender, the male gaze is back:
https://www.cnn.com/2025/10/11/health/male-gaze-wellness

The Epoch Times: US May Decouple From China If Rare Earths Dispute Persists: Bessent
https://www.theepochtimes.com/us/bessent-says-if-china-refuses-to-be-a-reliable-partner-us-and-allies-will-have-to-decouple-5929817

The Federalist: No, Obamacare Premiums Are Not Doubling
https://thefederalist.com/2025/10/08/no-obamacare-premiums-are-not-doubling/

The Federalist: Here’s How Republicans Should Fix Health Care Rather Than Bailing Out Obamacare
https://thefederalist.com/2025/10/07/heres-how-republicans-should-fix-health-care-rather-than-bailing-out-obamacare/

Forbes: How Obamacare Set In Motion Today’s Premium Crisis
https://www.forbes.com/sites/sallypipes/2025/10/14/how-obamacare-set-in-motion-todays-premium-crisis/