Moral Authorities: The Roles Actors Should Not Play

American Enterprise Institute fellow Jonah Goldberg on why actors's opinions are glorified.

Meryl Streep
Meryl Streep speaks onstage during American Film Institute's 45th Life Achievement Award Gala Tribute to Diane Keaton. (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images)

Amid the increasingly high profile afforded by both celebrity culture and social media, actors are now the most visible purveyors of moral thought. On a platform like last Sunday’s Golden Globe Awards, an industry that allowed Harvey Weinstein and Kevin Spacey to flourish stepped up on a soapbox to tout the #metoo movement. So in a thought-provoking op-ed for The National Review, American Enterprise Institute fellow Jonah Goldberg examines why a profession historically dismissed as seedy has in recent times been elevated to almost messianic status… and why it doesn’t deserve that promotion.

“I mean, I like Tom Hanks, too,” writes Goldberg. “But I’m not sure starring in Turner & Hooch (one of my favorite movies) bestows oracular moral authority.”

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