Superheroes, Movies, and the State How the U.S. Government Shapes Cinematic Universes

Description

Tricia Jenkins and Tom Secker deliver a highly original exploration of how the government-entertainment complex has influenced the world’s most popular movie genre—superhero films. Superheroes, Movies, and the State sets a new standard for exploring the government-Hollywood relationship as it persuasively documents the critical role different government agencies have played in shaping characters, stories, and even the ideas behind the hottest entertainment products. Jenkins and Secker cover a wide range of US government and quasi-governmental agencies who act to influence the content of superhero movies, including the Department of Defense, the National Academy of Sciences’ Science and Entertainment Exchange and, to a lesser extent, the FBI and the CIA. Introduction. Holy Box Office, Batman: Understanding the Rise of the Superhero Genre and Its Ties to the Government-Entertainment Complex Chapter One. “If You Get Killed, Walk It Off”: Promoting Clean Wars and US Benevolence Chapter Two. “I Told You, I Don’t Want to Join Your Super-Secret Boy Band”: Superheroes and the Anti-Establishment Narrative Chapter Three. “Hi. I’m from the Military. Space Is the Next Frontier”: NASA, Space Force, and the Future of the Galaxy Chapter Four. You Can’t Just Fall Off a Planet: Assembling the Science and Entertainment Exchange Chapter Five. All New, but Not That Different? Diversity, Politics, and the Superhero Conclusion. The American Way, The Boys, and the Wrong Message?