THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER 27 OCTOBER 30, 2019
TRUMP COLOR: SPENCER PLATT/GETTY IMAGES. TRUMP BLACK AND WHITE: WIN MCNAMEE/GETTY IMAGES. DEBATE: NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP VIA GETTY I
MAGES.
Why Hollywood Still
Doesn’t Have a
Consensus Candidate
A
fter four televised
debates, dozens of
fundraisers and
thousands of dashed-
off checks, the entertainment
industry seems no closer to
settling on a consensus presi-
dential candidate to challenge
President Trump than it was a
year ago. “No clue yet,” says Ava
DuVernay of whom she’ll be sup-
porting in the primary. “Haven’t
decided,” seconds Disney’s Alan
Horn. “Anyone but Trump,” says
Kenya Barris. Those featured
on this year’s THR 100 — the
annual ranking of Hollywood’s
most powerful — mostly echoed
the Black-ish creator’s response
when asked for their 2020 pick.
There’s no shortage of eagerness
to get behind the right candidate,
but even with the Iowa caucuses
a mere three months away, it’s
just that no one knows who that
should be. (An Oct. 21 Suffolk
University/USA Today poll of IowaPOLITICS
‘No clue yet,’ says Ava DuVernay as the industry
refrains from going all-in on a contender
and California’s early primary raises the stakes
for voters — and showbiz donors
By Peter Kiefer and Chris Gardnershowed former Vice President
Joe Biden leading at 18 per-
cent, followed by Sen. Elizabeth
Warren, with South Bend,
Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg
in third.)
“It’s too early to be able to name
any one,” says J.J. Abrams, one
of Hollywood’s top Democratic
bundlers who has hosted events
for Sen. Kamala Harris, adding
that he’ll support “anyone who
will restore dignity to the office
and who will treat the job and
the country and its citizens with
the respect they deserve.” A more
pessimistic take on the indus-
try’s splintered support points to
possible — and reported — dis-
satisfaction with the Democratic
field. Some candidates with
early heat, like Beto O’Rourke,
have failed to launch (then
again, he wasn’t exactly courting
Hollywood; he hasn’t held any
major L.A. fundraisers during
the primar y).With California’s primary
moved from June to March’s
Super Tuesday, the state’s impact
on the primary overall will be
greater than in previous years,
so voters may be weighing
their choice with even greater
care. By this point in the 2008
cycle, Hollywood may still have
been divided — between Hillary
Clinton and Barack Obama — but
one heavy hitter had placed her
bet. Oprah Winfrey had not only
endorsed Obama, she’d also held
several fundraisers for him,
including one at her Montecito
home that raised millions. This
time around, Winfrey hasn’t
gotten behind any one candi-
date — and has reportedly asked
Disney CEO Bob Iger to jump in.
Even during a packed event at
L.A.’s Saban Theatre on Oct. 21
— a live reading of the MuellerReport titled You Can’t Make This
Shit Up, with Debra Messing as
Trump and Larry David narrat-
ing — organizer and retired Sen.
Barbara Boxer made it clear to
the 1,000-plus audience that the
only clear imperative is to remove
Trump and “bring sanity to the
Oval Office.”
Not every Hollywood executive
is holding out: Jon Feltheimer,
Charles D. King, Donna Langley,
Ron Meyer and Dana Walden
all tell THR they’re supporting
Harris (for now); Sean Bailey says
he’s backing Sen. Cory Booker. “I
wanted to focus where I thought I
could have the most impact,” says
manager Ellen Goldsmith-Vein,
who announced months ago that
she was going all-in on Harris.
“She could go toe-to-toe with
Trump any day of the week. But
there are a number of amazingTwelve candidates took the stage for the most recent Democratic debate Oct. 15. Pete Buttigieg
(fifth from right), surged in the polls after buttonholing Elizabeth Warren (sixth from right).