Parasite earned $258 million on an $11 million funds. One in 5 South Koreans noticed it in theaters. In america alone, People paid $53 million to observe the movie totally in Korean with English subtitles. It turned the primary non-English language movie to win Finest Image, the primary Korean movie to win the Palme d’Or, and some of the talked-about films of the last decade in any language.
In accordance with Sen. Ted Cruz, no one noticed it.
Hours after the 98th Academy Awards wrapped on Sunday evening, Cruz took to X with a publish that racked up over 756,000 views earlier than most of Hollywood had completed their after-parties. He listed each Finest Image winner from the previous decade — Parasite, Nomadland, CODA, Every thing In every single place All at As soon as, Oppenheimer, and this yr’s winner One Battle After One other — and supplied his verdict.
“Oscars used to go to nice films, watched by hundreds of thousands,” Cruz wrote. “Film-makers used to LIKE their clients. This previous decade, apart from Oppenheimer, no one noticed any of those films, made to advantage sign to left-wing elites.”
He adopted up by responding to the account @EndWokeness, which had posted the Academy’s variety and inclusion requirements for Finest Image eligibility. Cruz referred to as it “utter madness” and listed The Godfather, Casablanca, Schindler’s Record, and Gladiator as classics that might now not qualify. “None of those prior winners would qualify,” he wrote.
Two claims. Each checkable. Each lifeless incorrect.
The movies converse for themselves
Examine the final 10 greatest image winners to the record beneath.
Oscars used to go to nice films, watched by hundreds of thousands. Film-makers used to LIKE their clients.
This previous decade, apart from Oppenheimer, no one noticed any of those films, made to advantage sign to left-wing elites. https://t.co/6jFou4BpRS pic.twitter.com/fz9lzKbuNw
— Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) March 16, 2026
Cruz gave Oppenheimer a go — $976 million worldwide, third-highest-grossing R-rated movie ever. No argument there.
However he didn’t lengthen the identical courtesy to Every thing In every single place All at As soon as, which earned $143 million on a $25 million funds, turned A24’s greatest launch within the studio’s historical past, and spent 16 consecutive weekends within the home field workplace prime ten. It swept seven Academy Awards. Michelle Yeoh turned the primary Asian lady to win Finest Actress — a second that made hundreds of thousands of individuals really feel seen for the primary time on that stage.
No person noticed that, apparently.
Nomadland and CODA have been launched through the peak of COVID, when the complete theatrical trade was on life assist. One hit theaters and Hulu concurrently, the opposite was an Apple TV+ launch. Holding pandemic-era streaming releases to the field workplace requirements of Titanic requires ignoring that almost all theaters have been closed.
And the ceremony Cruz was reacting to? It had simply handed Finest Image to One Battle After One other, a Paul Thomas Anderson movie starring Leonardo DiCaprio. The evening’s different massive story was Sinners — Ryan Coogler’s vampire epic that set a document with 16 Oscar nominations and gained 4, together with Finest Actor for Michael B. Jordan, who thanked the Black actors “who got here earlier than me” in his acceptance speech. Autumn Durald Arkapaw turned the primary lady in historical past to win Finest Cinematography. Warner Bros., the studio behind each movies, additionally put out Superman, A Minecraft Film, and Weapons in the identical yr.
These will not be the marks of an trade ignoring its viewers.
The classics that “wouldn’t qualify”
So as to compete on the Oscars for Finest Image, all movies should meet the “variety inclusion” quota.
Listed here are these guidelines. Sure, that is actual. pic.twitter.com/2FQR5Kh4zx
— Finish Wokeness (@EndWokeness) March 16, 2026
Cruz’s second declare — that The Godfather and Casablanca couldn’t compete beneath immediately’s guidelines — sounds alarming till you have a look at what the principles really say. The Academy requires Finest Image contenders to fulfill two out of 4 requirements. The @EndWokeness publish confirmed the on-screen casting standards. It didn’t point out the opposite three.
Two of these requirements don’t have anything to do with who’s on display. They cowl issues like whether or not the studio runs internship applications for underrepresented teams and whether or not the advertising and marketing workforce displays some variety. Any main studio immediately checks these packing containers by means of current company applications.
Oppenheimer had an nearly totally white most important solid. It certified with out challenge.
If Paramount launched The Godfather tomorrow, it could very seemingly qualify the identical approach — with out altering a body.
The remark part was predictable. The numbers weren’t.
Cruz’s posts pulled in over 685 feedback within the first few hours. Half the replies cheered him on. The opposite half began posting receipts.
The concept the Oscars have drifted from mainstream style isn’t baseless — ceremony scores have been sliding for years and a few current winners have been smaller movies. That’s an actual dialog price having.
However “no one noticed these films” is a declare that solely works in case you don’t examine. And “the classics wouldn’t qualify” solely holds up in case you cease studying after the primary commonplace.
The movies had their evening. The numbers are already public. The remaining is simply feedback.
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