Biden Anxieties, Koch Zero, and Hollywood’s Star Factory

Happy Friday and welcome back to The Daily Courant, your afternoon brochure of Puck’s best new reporting.

Today, we lead with Matt Belloni’s inside look at how Disney is countenancing the persistent “go woke, go broke” narrative surrounding its filmic output. Does Bob Iger believe the company’s progressive messaging has become a problem?

Plus, below the fold: Lauren Sherman annotates the latest round of executive musical chairs in the Arnault-LVMH empire. Tara Palmeri digs into the simmering complexities between the Obama and Biden camps. On The Town, Matt and longtime casting director Denise Chamian reveal how Hollywood’s star-making process has evolved. And on The Powers That Be, Peter Hamby and Teddy Schleifer wonder if the Koch Network’s support for Nikki Haley will move the needle for her campaign, or if it’s just another case of throwing good money after bad.

MATTHEW BELLONI

The “go woke, go broke” narrative persists, despite its origins as social media and Fox News noise. And now it’s clear that Disney C.E.O. Bob Iger himself believes that, whether it’s B.S. or not, the company’s progressive “messaging” has become a problem.

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LAUREN SHERMAN

Some fresh reporting and insight into the Arnault family horse race to be the heir apparent.

TARA PALMERI

As the White House confronts a Gen Z backlash, calls for an Obama intervention have been tempered by fresh anxiety over the party’s generational deficit and the president’s messaging strategy.

MATTHEW BELLONI

Matt is joined by longtime casting director Denise Chamian to provide her perspective on some of the industry’s most pressing topics, including Hollywood’s lack of young movie stars, A.I. replacing actors, and the effectiveness of the SAG-AFTRA strike, as well as misconceptions about the casting process and how it has changed.