Dakota Johnson isn’t holding back when it comes to how she feels about the current state of Hollywood. In a candid conversation on the popular YouTube show ‘Hot Ones’, the actress described the industry as “a bit of a mess,” pointing out that studios seem stuck in a cycle of recycling the same stories.
When host Sean Evans asked why Hollywood seems so afraid to take risks, Dakota Johnson didn’t mince words. She explained that many of the big creative decisions today aren’t being made by people who actually love or even understand films.
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“It’s hard when creative decisions are made by committee, and it’s even harder when those decisions are made by people who don’t really watch movies or know anything about them,” Johnson said.
According to Johnson, studios tend to cling to familiar formulas, believing that if something worked once, it should work again. But that’s not what audiences truly want.
“Humans want fresh. They want to feel new things, experience new things, see new things,” she said. “But Hollywood just keeps remaking the same things. Honestly, it’s all a bit of a mess right now, isn’t it?”
Beyond her professional takes, Dakota’s personal life has also been making headlines. Reports suggest that she and Coldplay frontman Chris Martin have called it quits after nearly eight years together.
However, the actress chose not to address the breakup directly when she appeared on ‘Late Night With Seth Meyers’ recently.
Instead, she steered the conversation toward her upcoming project, ‘Materialists’, and her excitement about working with director Celine Song.
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Johnson gushed about Song, calling herself “obsessed” with the filmmaker ever since watching her Oscar-nominated debut, ‘Past Lives’. Song’s ‘Materialists’ is a romantic comedy that centers around a young New York matchmaker (played by Johnson) who finds herself caught between an ideal new partner and a complicated ex.
The film is going to release on June 13, 2025, with A24 confirming the premiere date on social media by posting a quirky image of a heart-shaped cake with the movie’s title.
The cast of ‘Materialists’ includes Zoe Winters, Marin Ireland, ‘Succession’ star Dasha Nekrasova, and Louisa Jacobson. Filming began in New York in April 2024 and wrapped by June.
The movie is production of Christine Vachon and Pamela Koffler of Killer Films, along with David Hinojosa of 2AM.
Celine Song, who made a powerful entry into the film world with ‘Past Lives’—a film that earned Academy Award nominations for Best Picture and Best Original Screenplay—is quickly becoming a name to watch.
Reflecting on her journey as a filmmaker, Song shared, “I didn’t know I knew how to make a movie until I was doing it. And then once I was doing it, I was like, ‘Oh my God, I’m going to do this until I die.’”
Meanwhile, Johnson continues to stay busy. She last appeared in ‘Madame Web’ and will soon appear alongside Chris Evans and Pedro Pascal in an upcoming project, according to ‘The Hollywood Reporter’.
