About this episode
The episode discusses the portrayal of romantic relationships in Hollywood films, particularly the trend of women choosing subpar men over better partners.
On Christmas Eve 2025, a women’s magazine called Evie Magazine published an article titled, “ Why Does Hollywood Keep Telling Women To Pick Broke Men ?” The author of the article was Carmen Schober. Schober’s general thesis was that modern Hollywood movies often show women choosing subpar men over better men, with female characters “following their hearts” and pursing a “man-child-turned-hero-fantasy.” Schober argued that modern movies often show women passing on men who would make better longer-term partners – men, who, in the movies, “dressed well, worked hard, [and] did not need to ‘grow up’.” According to Schober, the alternative presented to women in these movies are men who are incompetent, unkempt, and financially insecure. Abstract examples of subpar men given by Schober included “a broke poet with commitment issues, a boyish drifter with no plans for the future, or an eccentric loner obsessed with escaping convention at all costs.” Schober concluded that movies that depict women choosing subpar men over better man are propaganda because research and polling data show that women desire the traits embodied by the men who the women are rejecting in the movies. I agree with…
People in this episode
Host: James L. Nuzzo
Topics covered
- Hollywood representation
- romantic love
- gender roles
- media analysis
- cultural critique
Keywords
- Hollywood
- romantic love
- Carmen Schober
- gender roles
- media critique
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Evie Magazine, Fox News
Books & works: The Notebook
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