Hollywood: “It’s clear that audiences want movies with female heroes.”

No, dammit, we just want good movies. When will you learn?

For years you said, “Audiences don’t want science fiction movies” and you pointed to how they never made any money. Then Star Wars came along, and you said, “Aha! I guess audiences changed their minds!”

Animated films? “No one goes to see them.” Then Little Mermaid is a huge hit. Aha! People want animated films!

Pirate movies? “Nobody wants to see pirate movies, they always bomb.” Pirates of the Caribbean is a hit? It’s so nice how people have adjusted their views on pirate movies.

“Audiences don’t want movies with female superheroes!” was Hollywood’s call until this weekend. “Look at how Catwoman and Elektra bombed!” Somehow the concept that the reason those earlier movies didn’t do well was because they sucked never crossed their minds.

Hollywood’s stupidity is most apparent when it comes to using main characters who aren’t white. “White audiences won’t go to see a movie with an ‘urban’ sensibility!” they say.  (“Urban” is their code word for “black” — as if there are no white people living in cities.) Seriously, Hollywood, this may come as a shock to you, but I can relate better to a story set in an “urban” environment than I can with a story about a bunch of rich, white people in an English countryside in the Victorian days, but for some reason Hollywood never considers that.

So I am also anxiously awaiting the release of Black Panther next year, and if it’s any good, I predict that Hollywood will respond by saying, “You mean people want to see movies with black heroes?”

No, you dimwits.  We want to see good movies.