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David Daut

@davidmdaut.com
680 followers 266 following 2.6K posts

Movie fan. Animation enthusiast. One-time pretend cowboy. Features writer & producer for the SOC’s Camera Operator magazine and co-creator of Hollow Medium. (He/him) davidmdaut.com

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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 28/09/2026
This pretty much tracks with what I’ve always believed: Starcruiser’s financial performance was about in line with what was expected (huge projects like that take years to earn back their initial investment), but Iger had a chance to get a tax break and a dig at Chapek by killing it.
The whole concept was a great idea, and we were figuring out the economics. It's a known fact that no hotel is ever profitable in the first year. But when my time as CEO came to an end, so, too, did the Galactic Starcruiser.

While I was proud to give birth to the entirely new galaxy, Bob Iger saw things differently. When he resumed control of the company, the hotel closed. There is no doubt that the resort and experience were not profitable at that moment.I believed in the idea and its potential.
Bob Iger saw things differently and, in my opinion, also saw it as something connected to my time in charge. As a result, in my opinion, it went away.

Like the sign on the cruise ship
destination island, any memory or symbol of my time in charge was seemingly systematically removed.

Ultimately, like most things with my name behind them, that sign, and that galaxy, went far, far away.
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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 28/09/2026
Heartbreaking: The Worst Person You Know Just Made a Great Point
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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 26/09/2026
As for The Hanging, the show has always sucked, but it’s especially tiresome now that the last five iterations of it have centered on bitching about the two years they were forced to go dark. A thrice nightly, thirty minute show that’s basically just this dril tweet.
“and another thing: im not mad. please dont put in the newspaper that i got mad.”
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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 20/09/2026
Yet again, Apple weirdly burying essential features inside of options menus. In iOS 27, Apple Maps no longer automatically surfaces the “leave by/arrive by” buttons. Instead, they’re hidden behind a non-obvious route options button.
Apple Maps driving directions with a blue options button that doesn’t actually say options. Instead, it reads, “Avoid Tolls”.Inside the options menu are buttons for “Leave Now”, “Leave At”, “Arrive By”, and avoid tolls or highways.
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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 06/09/2026
Some photos from last night’s Lucas Museum Founding Member Opening Party.
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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 06/09/2026
I found Nancy at the Lucas Museum.
Comic illustration from Art Spiegelman, 1974
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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 05/09/2026
After missing the last two years of his annual Hollywood Bowl concert, John Williams made an appearance tonight during the encore to conduct “The Imperial March” at 94.
John Williams on stage at the Hollywood Bowl.
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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 27/08/2026
Effectively sitting inside the screen at the COYOTE VS. ACME premiere.
Wide angle photo of a movie screen featuring a graphic for the world premiere of “Coyote vs. Acme”, taken from the third row in the Directors Village theater in Westwood, California.
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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 19/08/2026
This year’s Scary Farm line up seems pretty exciting, but it’s enormously disappointing to see Knott’s go full AI slop for one of their new maze logo treatments. Feels like an insult to all the artists who work hard to bring this event to life.
Sign featuring the logo for Knott’s Scary Farm’s new “Unearthed” maze featuring a lot of the hallmarks of generative AI slop.
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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 03/07/2026
Homer Simpson leaning out his car window, hairs blowing in the wind, gazing gleefully up towards the heavens.

The caption reads, “It must be the first of the month. New Bluesky think piece day!”
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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 28/06/2026
Caught I CONFESS at the Academy Museum with a guest lecture by Guillermo del Toro. What struck me this time is how much this would make for a great double bill with WAKE UP DEAD MAN.
Guillermo del Toro on stage at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures David Geffen theatre.
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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 19/06/2026
Updated Pixar rankings:
1. Toy Story 2
2. Up
3. Turning Red
4. Ratatouille
5. WALL•E
6. Soul
7. Inside Out
8. Coco
9. Monsters, Inc.
10. Finding Nemo
11. The Incredibles
12. Luca
13. A Bug’s Life
14. Toy Story
15. Hoppers
16. Insider Out 217. Elemental
18. Toy Story 3
19. Cars
20. Toy Story 5
21. Elio
22. Monsters University
23. Onward
24. Cars 3
25. Brave
26. Toy Story 4
27. The Good Dinosaur
28. Lightyear
29. Incredibles 2
30. Finding Dory
31. Cars 2
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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 08/06/2026
Spare a thought for Karen Bass, who might actually be having a worse night than Spencer Pratt right now.
Bass campaign spokesman Alex Stack said that if Raman maintains that position, the mayor would "look forward to winning a contest against an opponent who allows encampments near schools and fights against hiring more cops, yet is MIA on saving Hollywood jobs and fighting back when ICE invades L.A."
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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 08/06/2026
Nithya now officially ahead of Spencer Pratt in the La Mayor race!
AP vote counts showing Karen Bass with 250,871 votes and 34.7%, Nithya Raman at 196,198 votes and 27.1%, and Spencer Pratt at 193,085 votes and 26.7%.
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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 07/06/2026
“Nithya’s benchmark is +10.” Kids, that’s a +23!
Latest batch of vote counts from Los Angeles showing Nithya Raman with 40.155% of the vote share while Spencer Pratt only has 17.651%.
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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 02/06/2026
Get outta here with this nonsense. Trump is gonna crow about rigged elections no matter what. Hilton getting locked out of the general can only be a good thing for California.
Los Angeles time article headlined, “Why a loss for Hilton would be a win for Trump,” by Anita Chabria. The subhead reads, “Democrats finishing 1-2 would give Trump more fuel to fire up his MAGA base with false claims of rigged elections. Voter fraud claims could test a new California law meant to protect real election integrity and trust.”
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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 01/06/2026
Every time!
Email from Amazon informing me that my pre-order shipment of “Hoppers” on 4K Blu-ray has been delayed to Friday, June 12.
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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 26/05/2026
Amazon and Walmart are basically the last retailers standing for selling movies on Blu-ray, and Amazon now routinely can't even deliver pre-orders on time.
Order confirmation for "Nirvana, The Band, The Show, The Movie" on Blu-ray. Now scheduled to arrive on June 8, previously expected May 26.
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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 26/05/2026
Boots Riley forever.
I know writers who use subtext and they’re all cowards.
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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 23/05/2026
I’m sure someone else must have done this already, but I’m not digging through 5,000 quote posts.
Episode title card reminiscent of “Star Trek: The Original Series”. The episode title reads “What Yonder Soul Doth Go Hence… A Brother?”
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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 23/05/2026
Thanks, cops, for sending me this handy list of everyone I definitely will not be voting for! (There is actually one candidate here I was planning on voting for and now I’m having serious second thoughts!)
An election mailer that reads “Cops Voter Guide. Public safety recommendations 2026 Primary Election.”
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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 22/05/2026
“They don’t want victory, they don’t want power, they want to endlessly ‘critique’ power.”
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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 20/05/2026
Given the entrance to the tunnel, they should have recreated this mess of signage:
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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 07/05/2026
“Epic handshake” meme with one arm labeled with the logo for the LA 2028 Olympics, and the other with the Star Wars Celebration Los Angeles 2027 logo. Where the hands meet is superimposed with the text, “ticketing fiascos for L.A.-based events.”
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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 04/05/2026
Hey kids, you’re now looking at a Lucas Museum founding member.
Digital membership card for the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art.
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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 04/05/2026
Caught up with LEE CRONIN’S THE MUMMY
Still of Nathan Fielder in “The Rehearsal”. Subtitles read, “Split diopter city over here.”
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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 03/05/2026
NORMS now serves pie. GOOD LUCK, HAVE FUN, DON’T DIE vindicated!
The dessert section of the NORMS menu. In the bottom left corner of the page is a slice of apple pie for $4.99.
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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 27/04/2026
Ready for what’s certain to be a wild screening.
A standee of Adam Driver as Ben Solo in front of a theater marquee reading “The Last Jedi” at the Frida Cinema.A theater seat covered with a printed note reading, “Reserved for Disney CEO Josh D’Amaro.”The movie screen in the theater displaying a graphic that reads, “The Hunt for Ben Solo fan campaign presents ‘Star Wars: The Last Jedi’”.
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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 15/04/2026
Name another theme park that prominently features Nancy and Sluggo. I’ll wait.
Me, sitting at a table in Toon Lagoon at Universal’s Islands of Adventure. The table has a painted backdrop featuring comic strip characters Nancy and Sluggo sipping a milkshake. A word balloon behind them reads “SLURP”.
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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 02/04/2026
Underrated dril exchange, imo
dril says, “in real life yoda would get eaten by a dog”.

Someone replies, “You don’t know shit about Yoda”

dril fires back, “an crocodile would get him”
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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 19/03/2026
Krusty the Clown crying, “They drove a dump truck full of money to my house. I’m not made of stone.”
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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 16/03/2026
Now that this year’s Oscar’s are done, I’m going all-in with my prediction for next year’s Best Picture
Poster for “Nirvana the Band, the Show, the Movie”.
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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 27/02/2026
“Somehow Palpatine returned” meme.
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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 25/02/2026
“Hey babe, what‘s on your mind?”
Nancy pondering the mysteries of woims.
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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 21/02/2026
THE LAST JEDI played today at the Academy Museum. Still just the greatest. Hopefully we get more screenings before the 10th anniversary next year.
Poster for “Star Wars: The Last Jedi”.
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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 21/02/2026
Presidents’ Day, Oscar catch up, and stuff I missed last weekend.
Nirvana the Band the Show the Movie, Crime 101, Jurassic World Rebirth, and All the President’s Men.
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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 16/02/2026
Loser nerds reacted to the end of MASS EFFECT by harassing devs. Meanwhile, Gore Verbinski shows the correct response to art you find frustrating: wait 14 years then make a weirdo movie starring Sam Rockwell that wrestles with similar ideas but arrives at a different, more hopeful conclusion.
Poster for “Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die”.
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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 15/02/2026
Channeling my inner @mattsinger.bsky.social by indulging in the GOOD LUCK, HAVE FUN, DON’T DIE tie-in menu at NORMS.
NORMS Restaurant on La Cienega with a poster for “Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die” in the window.NORMS “Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die” tie in menu featuring Sno Balls Hotcakes and a Sno Balls Milkshake.A plate with pancakes topped with strawberries, cheesecake batter, chocolate syrup and a Hostess Sno Ball stabbed through with a steak knife. Next to it is a vanilla milkshake topped with a Sno Ball.
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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 02/02/2026
Paging @mattsinger.bsky.social
Ad for a NORMS tie-in menu for “Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die” featuring Sno Balls Hotcakes and a Sno Balls milkshake.
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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 02/02/2026
Catching up with the Oscar nominated documentaries. Was not expecting to find the Russian @hbomberguy.bsky.social in MR. NOBODY AGAINST PUTIN.
Still from “Mr. Nobody Against Putin” featuring a man framed in a medium close-up sitting in front of a floral print wallpaper.
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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 30/01/2026
Look, the news isn’t ALL bad today.
Instagram post from NORMS featuring Gore Verbinski sitting at a table in front of an empty plate and a NORMS mug, reading the NORMS menu.
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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 29/01/2026
I’ll do you one better: I own it!
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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 26/01/2026
Crixmas came early (late?) this year.
General Crix Madine with his famously fake beard in "Return of the Jedi".
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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 21/01/2026
Sickos meme with a guy peering in a window saying "Yes… Ha ha ha… YES!"
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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 20/01/2026
Finally cleared out my 2025 watch list, so here’s my Top 10 movies for last year. (Honorable mentions: Avatar: Fire and Ash, Black Phone 2, Bring Her Back, Marty Supreme, and The Testament of Ann Lee)
1. Sinners
2. Wake Up Dead Man
3. One Battle After Another
4. Little Amélie or the Character of Rain
5. Weapons
6. 28 Years Later
7. If I Had Legs I’d Kick You
8. No Other Choice
9. Materialists
10. The Naked Gun
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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 16/01/2026
Kennedy also effectively calls Iger and Bergman cowards who are too chickenshit to greenlight any Star Wars projects that are not safe, cookie cutter choices (referring to HUNT FOR BEN SOLO as well as projects from Mangold, Waititi, an Glover).
I remember when I came into this job, the first thing Bob Iger said to me was, "Be bold." I've always liked that because I think you have to be bold and you have to be willing to take risks with people and with ideas.
Otherwise you are just doing the same thing. Right now we're in an era where companies are so risk-averse, and I get it. I hear all the conversations. They've got Wall Street to please, and I get it, but I also believe that that's what contributes to things disappearing, ultimately. I just think you have to take those chances.

Everything I just reeled off to you is taking a bit of a chance because none of those filmmakers are just walking in trying to do same old, same old. I'm excited by that, but the studio's nervous about that, and that's kind of where it sits at the moment.
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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 16/01/2026
As is my solemn duty to report, here is the latest news on Rian Johnson’s long-dormant STAR WARS trilogy from Kathleen Kennedy via Deadline. deadline.com/2026/01/kath...
DEADLINE: What about Rian Johnson returning? After Star Wars: Episode VIII - The Last Jedi grossed $1.3 billion globally, we expected him to return.

KENNEDY: Once he made the Netflix deal and went off to start doing the Knives Out films, that has occupied a huge amount of his time. That's the other thing that happens here. After Shawn and I started talking about Star Wars, Stranger Things kicks in and he was completely consumed for a while by that. That's what happened with Rian. And then I do believe he got spooked by the online negativity. I think Rian made one of the best Star Wars movies. He's a brilliant filmmaker and he got spooked. This is the rough part. When people come into this space, I have every filmmaker and actors say to me, "What's going to happen?" They're a little scared.
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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 09/01/2026
I did. I believe Los Angeles was one of these test markets based on my experience.
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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 09/01/2026
Yeah, people should get out of Hakeem Jeffries’ Bluesky mentions and go do something useful instead, but also why are you intent on being this guy?
“Apu jumping in front of a bullet” meme, where Apu is labeled as “weird nerds” saving Chuck Schumer and Hakeem Jeffries from valid criticism.
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David Daut @davidmdaut.com · 02/01/2026
Letterboxd year in review. Most watched actor: Sigourney Weaver. Most watched director: Hayao Miyazaki.
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