A culture expert has pointed out the obvious signs that Donald Trump was going to win the 2024 US election, including the meteoric success of Tom Cruise’s blockbuster Top Gun: Maverick.
Days after it was confirmed that former President Trump had defeated Democratic candidate Kamala Harris for the White House, a Minneapolis-based author Paul Anleitner shared how a cultural shift “has been brewing for years” in the United States.
Anleitner noted that the achievement of Top Gun: Maverick served as an important clue about where the election was headed because the film championed traditional American values ”aimed at establishing a new inverted aristocracy” when the world was grappling with systemic racial issues in the wake of the George’s presidency. Floyd’s death.
“After the murder of George Floyd and the subsequent protests and riots in 2020, it seemed to many intellectuals that ‘culturally relevant’ films needed to directly address DEI or systemic racial issues in order to find broad appeal,” said the ‘theologian of culture’. he said in a thread posted on X.
‘Top Gun: Maverick instead leaned heavily on classic themes of modernist heroism, embodied by a white male protagonist (Tom Cruise as Maverick) who is a traditional figure who breaks the rules and is dedicated to honor, duty and meritocracy.
The meteoric success of Tom Cruise’s blockbuster film Top Gun: Maverick should have been a clue as to who was going to win the US election, a cultural expert has claimed.
Cruise starred alongside Jennifer Connelly in the 2022 sequel
“Maverick represented the most traditional American values of meritocracy over aristocracy in the midst of what was supposed to be a cultural revolution aimed at establishing a new inverted aristocracy.”
Cruise’s Top Gun: Maverick, the sequel to the 1986 film Top Gun, hit theaters in May 2022, two years after Floyd’s death at the hands of police officer Derek Chauvin.
The film was a box office success and took home a staggering $1.496 million, making it the highest-grossing film of Cruise’s career.
Many social media users agreed with Anleitner’s opinion.
“You’re right,” said one. “It was amazing to see this movie because most movies pushed disgusting agendas.
‘This film celebrated honor, heroism, love of country and brotherhood and was truly exciting to watch. I left the theater feeling happy and empowered.”
Echoing a similar sentiment, another wrote: ‘You hit the nail on the head. We left that movie thinking specifically about how refreshing it was to not be completely assaulted by awakening. We just wanted to entertain ourselves for a couple of hours and we got it.”
A third added: “This isn’t a surprise to anyone.” Top Gun was one of the all-time greats.
Donald Trump, now president-elect of the United States, defeated Kamala Harris in the 2024 US elections
Minneapolis-based author Paul Anleitner said Maverick “represented the most traditional American values of meritocracy in the midst of what was supposed to be a cultural revolution.”
Anleitner also pointed out the online culture wars sparked by the release of Star Wars: The Acolyte, which was canceled after just one season.
“Since Disney’s release of its divisive Star Wars: The Last Jedi in 2017, Star Wars has been embroiled in an online culture war,” Anleitner said.
‘As silly as it may seem to some, Star Wars has become an important myth in our culture and challenges to myths mean challenges to power and cultural influence.
‘A Star Wars faction wanted the narrative to reflect more progressive, postmodern and postcolonial values.
‘The most representative version of this vision of Star Wars was the recent series The Acolyte.
‘The divide between professional critics and average fans was emblematic of the cultural divide between America’s intelligentsia and middle class.
‘The Acolyte was canceled and all of its merchandise was removed from Disney’s online store. It seemed like this particular faction had lost Star Wars.
The Acolyte premiered on Disney+ in June, but divided fans of the franchise and quickly faced a campaign of negative reviews.
After having lower ratings than previous Star Wars series, it was canceled in August 2024.
The cancellation of the Star Wars prequel series The Acolyte was “emblematic of the cultural divide between middlebrow and middle America,” Anleitner says.
In his viral Twitter thread, Anleitner also focused his attention on the rise of “anti-woke” comedians and podcasters like Tony Hinchcliffe and Joe Rogan, who he says have a huge influence on “everyday Americans.”
“His complete disdain for what became known as ‘wokism’ and his complete disregard for any sense of politically correct language appeals to many working-class men,” he said.
In addition, it recognizes that several large corporations have cut their diversity, equality and inclusion programs, which had been introduced after the Black Lives Matter and George Floyd protests.
“By 2024, we start to see corporations making cuts to those same programs,” Anleitner said.
‘Only one candidate and one party ran as the anti-DEI option. If people started rejecting these initiatives, it would make sense that their opinions would also be expressed at the ballot box.’
Anleitner also noted that the increase in parents enrolling their children in Christian schools should also not go unnoticed, describing the increase as “unprecedented.”
Trump broke his silence on social media after his historic election victory on Friday by dismissing claims that he will sell shares of his Truth Social platform.
The president-elect, 78, said suggestions he would dump the stockpile were “illegal” and demanded an investigation.
He had been unusually silent on social media for 72 hours before posting a blistering statement.
‘There are false, false and probably illegal rumors and/or statements made, perhaps, by market manipulators or short sellers, that I am interested in selling shares of Truth.
‘THOSE RUMORS OR STATEMENTS ARE FALSE. I HAVE NO INTENTION TO SELL!
‘I hereby request that persons who have sparked these rumors or false statements, and who may have done so in the past, be immediately investigated by the appropriate authorities.
‘The truth is an important part of our historic victory and I deeply believe in it. Thank you for your attention to this matter. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!’
