Hollywood, a town known for many things, not among them being intellectual diversity. A communications arm of the Democratic Party for decades, it is nearly impossible to turn on the television or go to a cinema without being bombarded by leftist talking points. However, Trevor Noah seemed to suggest otherwise on Thursday’s The Daily Show with guest John Lithgow.
On to discuss his new movie, Bombshell, which chronicles the downfall of Fox News founder Roger Ailes, Lithgow commented on the ‘monumentally high stakes’ the film is up against. Noah then proceeded to make the erroneous statement below that makes one question if he has been living under a rock:
…you are somebody who people have known and loved for a very long time and, like many performers, you have kept your politics to yourself for the most part.
Which performers is he referring to exactly? Certainly not the likes of Kathy Griffin, Robert De Niro, or even Lithgow himself.
Although hard to believe, that sentiment was part of a larger question, which went on to mention Lithgow’s vicious anti-Trump poetry book:
But in the age of Donald Trump, you have become outspoken about what you don't like about him and why you don't appreciate this Administration. In fact, you even wrote a book, you know. You illustrated this book called "Dumpty," right...Was it how you processed the world we are living in?
How is that for ‘keeping politics to yourself?’ Lithgow expounded upon the inspiration to write his ‘masterpiece’:
Well, it is true, the age of Trump has drawn me out politically as it has done a lot of people, but I'm an entertainer. How do I respond to this? By just finding the funny. The way you do. Making it into something that is both an entertainment and exposing the truth. This is my version of that. There are 33 poems in it. Each one of -- the subject of each one is one of the amazing cast of characters from the Trump Administration.
Of all the late-night hosts, none vilify Fox News more than Noah himself. It comes as no surprise that he was eager to discuss Lithgow’s role as Roger Ailes in a movie that appears to be nothing more than a hit piece on the Fox News founder:
This is one of those films where I think a lot of people are going to be shaken up. A lot of people- most people know Fox News even around the world. A lot of people don't know the man behind Fox News, Roger Ailes. A lot of people have referred to him as a genius of television but then, over time, we learned that he was also a sexual predator in the workplace. You're playing this character who is charismatic by many accounts but at the same time extremely evil. Is that difficult to convey to people?
Lithgow seemed to confirm this assumption:
The movie is a 16-day period in which karma just caught up with Roger Ailes and washed him away. So you had to -- I had to sort of figure a way to present all these sides of this man. He was -- he had a volatile temper, he had a raucous sense of humor, he was deeply insecure, and yet he was very scary and tyrannized his people.
Without a sense of irony, Noah claimed many performers keep their political opinions to themselves while an actor appeared on his show with the purpose of espousing leftist ideology.
Transcript below:
The Daily Show With Trevor Noah
12/5/19
11:27:02 PM
TREVOR NOAH: And congratulations on what many people are just describing as a stellar performance in the new movie "Bombshell." This is one of those films where I think a lot of people are going to be shaken up. A lot of people- most people know Fox News even around the world. A lot of people don't know the man behind Fox News, Roger Ailes. A lot of people have referred to him as a genius of television but then, over time, we learned that he was also a sexual predator in the workplace. You're playing this character who is charismatic by many accounts but at the same time extremely evil. Is that difficult to convey to people?
JOHN LITHGOW: Well, it was wonderfully written. Charles Randolph created this amazing character. He didn't create it. Roger Ailes created the character. But he presents it in an extraordinary way. The movie is a 16-day period in which karma just caught up with Roger Ailes and washed him away. So you had to -- I had to sort of figure a way to present all these sides of this man. He was -- he had a volatile temper, he had a raucous sense of humor, he was deeply insecure, and yet he was very scary and tyrannized his people.
(...)
LITHGOW: I mean, these are big, high-stakes, emotional stories of sort of Shakespearean scope, and because it's about a gigantic institution like Fox News, which has a lot to do with our entire culture -- As I say, the stakes are monumentally high.
NOAH: It's interesting that you say that, you know, because you are somebody who people have known and loved for a very long time and, like many performers, you have kept your politics to yourself for the most part. A lot of people have chosen to say, hey, the articles speak for itself and I will privately vote and cast my ballots. But in the age of Donald Trump, you have become outspoken about what you don't like about him and why you don't appreciate this Administration. In fact, you even wrote a book, you know. You illustrated this book called "Dumpty," right? And that over there- It's interesting because it's verse as well. Why did you choose to write it in that way? Is it to mock? Was it how you processed the world we are living in?
LITHGOW: Well, it is true, the age of Trump has drawn me out politically as it has done a lot of people, but I'm an entertainer. How do I respond to this? By just finding the funny. The way you do. Making it into something that is both an entertainment and exposing the truth. This is my version of that. There are 33 poems in it. Each one of -- the subject of each one is one of the amazing cast of characters from the Trump administration.
