Sequels, Reboots, Franchises, Oh My! Why Does Pop Culture Feel So Unoriginal?

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“Lilo & Stitch,” “Snow White,” and “Superman” are all blockbusters from 2025 – and from 2002, 1937 and 1978. It seems like old media is new all over again. But why? Andrew deWaard, an associate professor of communication in the UC San Diego School of Social Sciences, thinks he knows the reasons. He lays them out in his new book, “Derivative Media: How Wall Street Devours Culture," which demonstrates how “hedge funds, asset managers, venture capitalists, private equity firms, and derivatives traders are harming our media landscape.”

deWaard co-directs UC San Diego’s MACRO Lab with communication professor Shawna Kidman, where they collect data to show how media and media ownership have changed over time. Mergers, acquisitions and a number of other financial tactics have resulted, deWaard says, in “what we have now – a very dreary, homogenized, non-diverse media ecosystem.”

We sat down with deWaard to learn more about his book and the future of media and pop culture.

Your book argues that pop culture is so saturated with derivative content – movies, TV shows and music that are based on or repurpose older works – because of financial incentives. In today's media landscape, is there any room for originality?

We are drowning in reboots, repurposed songs, sequels and franchises because of the growing influence of financial firms in the cultural industries. Over time, the media landscape has been consolidated and monopolized by a handful of companies. There are just three record companies that own the copyright to most popular music. There are only four or five studios left creating movies and TV shows. Our media is distributed through the big three tech companies. These companies are backed by financial firms that prioritize profit above all else. So, we end up with less creative risk-taking and more media that’s created to make a quick buck.

We often hear that audiences want to see the same stories over and over again. They love these characters and want to spend more time in these cinematic universes. I don’t think that’s the case. These are really crass business decisions. It’s easier to make money off of a few huge blockbuster movies than produce a range of diverse content. But this is unhealthy for us because we need new and challenging stories and ideas to keep our society vibrant.

I am endlessly hopeful about the future of our media landscape because there is, in fact, a huge desire for original film, music and television. Every time a “Sinners” comes out, every time a “Parasite” wins Oscars, every time a “Get Out” is a huge phenomenon, it’s reassuring to see that audiences will always be looking for fresh stories and creative people will always be producing fresh stories.

I tell my students, don’t let an algorithm choose what media you spend your time with. Be proactive. We get to make that choice for ourselves. 

Culture should not be consumption – it should be community and shared meaning-making. 

deWaard’s research has been funded in part by the Yankelovich Center for Social Science Research and the University of California Humanities Research Institute. 

If you’re interested in learning more, check out the data from the MACRO Lab. If you’re a student interested in a media-making career, consider exploring the new Media Industries and Communication major.