
What Role Will Trump’s Hollywood ‘Envoys’ Play In Industry?
By Movieguide® Contributor
President Trump’s announcement that Mel Gibson, Sylvester Stallone and Jon Voight will be his “special envoys” in Hollywood marks a shift in the entertainment industry, experts say.
“It is my honor to announce Jon Voight, Mel Gibson, and Sylvester Stallone, to be Special Ambassadors to a great but very troubled place, Hollywood, California,” Trump posted on his Truth Social platform. “They will serve as Special Envoys to me for the purpose of bringing Hollywood, which has lost much business over the last four years to Foreign Countries, BACK—BIGGER, BETTER, AND STRONGER THAN EVER BEFORE!”
He added, “These three very talented people will be my eyes and ears, and I will get done what they suggest. It will again be, like The United States of America itself, The Golden Age of Hollywood!”
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“As of right now, the special ambassadors’ specific duties are ambiguous,” Travis Knox, associate professor at Chapman University, told Fox News. “Either curbing runaway production or convincing China, the 2nd largest film market in the world, to expand its quota of imported Hollywood films would be a win for the American film industry.”
Jason Cherubini, executive in residence at Loyola University, Maryland and co-founder of Dawn’s Light Media, hypothesized that the actors’ roles will be more “symbolic” and will concern building bridges between Hollywood and conservatives.
“Because you’ve seen so much of the entertainment industry on the left, the support of the Democratic Party, of [former Vice President Kamala] Harris,” he continued. “And in this last election, seeing a little bit more of a shift that it was OK to announce or talk about being on the right or center right. I think this is, if anything, Trump trying to push a little bit of support and continue that growth of the media industry and establishment not being solely to the left, but at least if not for further right, at least center right.”
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Voight and Stallone haven’t publicly responded directly, but both have been vocal in their support of Trump.
Voight spoke at President Trump’s recent inauguration, saying, “[Trump] will make [America] thrive again, and he will save the greatest country, America the Beautiful. I’m proud to call the president of the United States my friend, our friend. My hero, our hero.”