Late last year I made 5 predictions for the year 2024. I score myself 3.5 out of 5.
- Dune 2 will persuade the last hold-outs that both movies are classics
- AI (LLMs) will be generally recognised as a nothingburger
- Full collapse of Chinese economy
- The Rings of Power season 2 will be so bad that the shade of Tolkien will rise from his barrow and demand the scalp of Jeff Bezos
- UFOs will continue to not exist
Dune 2 destroyed all opposition. Tolkien span so hard in his grave it generated energy to power a small city. And UFOs do continue to not exist.
The LLM nothingburger is still waiting to be eaten. So no point for me…yet.
And the Chinese economy has effectively collapsed, but authoritarian states can ignore reality much longer. Giving myself a half point.
Here are my PREDICTIONS FOR 2025
- Welcome Back To The 1950s
The “Woke Backlash” won the day and Hollywood is in full reverse. Expect a LOT of films and tv with aggressively mediocre All American men taking their Hero’s Journey and “traditional” American values. Expect at least one major Hollywood movie to have a non-ironic shot of a President Trump poster hanging on the bedroom wall of the All American boy protagonist. The angry nerdbros will be jubilant, until they realise that doesn’t get clicks… - But Superman Will Do This The Right Way
I rate James Gunn very highly, and I think his plans for Superman were already going towards a retro return to the archetype. As we discussed elsewhere, I expect Superman to achieve the “metamodern” synthesis we’ve been waiting for in mainstream cinema. - Andor Will Still Be Marxist. But.
Tony Gilroy will also manage to land the plane on his subversive Star Wars show. But as I’ve said before, I don’t believe Gilroy based Andor on the life of Stalin as an endorsement. I expect season 2 to be a brutal depiction of the reality of revolutionary movements against authoritarian states. - The Scifi Future Will Not Begin Until Late Stage Capitalism Collapses
My China prediction of last year was too narrow. I think we, basically the entire planet, is caught in a period of stasis as the contradictions of our capitalist global economy plunge towards catastrophe. Until that process plays out, I see no way for our civilisation to truly advance. More on this in a video essay soon. - The Future Might Be Solarpunk
While I have criticisms, I’m increasingly won over by the possibilities of Solarpunk as the shape of an Actual Viable Story for our near(ish) future. I think we might see some major Solarpunk storytelling begin to appear in 2025, fingers crossed, and I want to dedicate at least one major video essay to Solarpunk in the year ahead.
Damien Walter 