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The military-entertainment complex -

Hollywood is a multibillion dollar industry and an unquestionable pillar of American culture. Whether it is noticed or not, the big-budget movies that come out of Tinseltown are frequently either a reflection of contemporary public opinion, or a suggestion of what we as a society should consider in the future. With countless films about war, conflict, the American dream, and American heroes, it simply makes sense that the government would want a hand and a watchful eye in Hollywood.

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The Hollywood propaganda machine -

Ever since World War II, the United States military has played a very real role in the production of many Hollywood flicks. The Bureau of Motion Pictures, active throughout the duration of the war, reviewed over 1,600 Hollywood scripts, revising or removing any scenes, dialogues, or characters that weren't in line with the government's ideal image of America during wartime.

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The Office of War Information -

The Bureau of Motion Pictures operated under the umbrella of the Office of War Information (OWI), established in 1942. Elmer Davis (pictured), the CBS journalist-turned-government employee put at the head of the OWI, was quoted as saying: "The easiest way to inject a propaganda idea into most people's minds is to let it go through the medium of an entertainment picture when they do not realize they're being propagandized."

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Men and machines for hire -

Since the days of the OWI's Bureau of Motion Pictures, the US military and the Department of Defense (DoD) have found other, less noticeable, ways of buying a share in the stories Hollywood tells. Most commonly, relevant government agencies and military branches rent out locations, vehicles, and even troops on the cheap to films of all genres, from sci-fi to historical biopics. In return, all they ask is a final say on the contents of the script.

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CIA scriptwriters -

Even the CIA concerns itself with Hollywood showbiz from time to time. Producers, screenwriters, and actors involved with military or espionage flicks are often "invited" to the CIA headquarters in Langley, Virginia, to consult with agents and directors and receive "suggestions" regarding how to ensure their projects echo the agency's versions of history as accurately as possible.

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The Film Liaison Unit -

Since at least the 1980s, the Department of Defense has assigned agents to the highly secretive project known as the Film Liaison Unit. These agents are frequently based in Los Angeles and are assigned to film projects that are of interest to the DoD and the military at large. Their job is to provide assistance to production teams and oversee both the scriptwriting and filmmaking process. Philip Strub, once the head of the Film Liaison Unit, was responsible for developing "Dara," the DoD's database of every film, past and present, that has requested or received assistance or consultations from the government.

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The adulteration of 'Animal Farm' -

Perhaps the most nefarious instance of government intervention in filmmaking occurred during the production of 1954's 'Animal Farm,' an animated adaptation of George Orwell's seminal 1945 novella of the same name, a scathing social satire and critique of totalitarianism.

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The adulteration of 'Animal Farm' -

George Orwell, a well-known pessimist, ended his novella with the farm animals' revolt against their human despots being betrayed by a pig named Napoleon who establishes his own, equally grim, dictatorship. The filmmakers of the 1954 film had every intention of staying true to Orwell's ending, until the CIA secretly purchased the film rights out from underneath them. In the hands of the CIA, the film's ending went through drastic changes. The ending written by the CIA had the farm animals receive help from outside saviors, leading them to successfully topple the despotic regime of the Soviet communist-coded pigs. Almost 10 years into the Cold War, it's easy to see why the CIA would want to turn Orwell's story into an optimistic piece of propaganda extolling the evils of communism and the liberating power of the United States.

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The post-Vietnam makeover -

It's no secret that the Vietnam War painted the United States in a less-than-flattering light for countless young Americans. After the war, the DoD considered it paramount that popular mass media depicted members of the military, particularly those involved in Vietnam, as positively as possible. The dissent amongst the people following the hugely unpopular Vietnam War couldn't continue, lest the military was left short-staffed in the next and inevitable post-draft conflict.

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'Top Gun' (1986) -

The shining star of the post-Vietnam makeover effort was the 1986 dogfighting classic 'Top Gun.' The film starred a young Tom Cruise as a charming, patriotic, and quintessentially heroic Navy pilot. The 'Top Gun' filmmakers partnered with the DoD with the express purpose of encouraging young Americans to enlist in the military. In theaters across the country, military recruitment booths were set up outside the film's screening rooms. Recruitment rates rose by 8% during 1986.

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The DoD's greatest hits -

The military's intervention in the film industry goes far beyond old cartoons and one action flick from the 1980s. Over the decades, there have been numerous big budget and widely seen films made with the help and direction of the United States government.

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'The Green Berets' (1968) -

Western movie star John Wayne, an enthusiastic anti-communist and supporter of the Vietnam War, received comprehensive help from the Department of Justice during the production of 1968's 'The Green Berets.' Real military troops and vehicles were given to the production team as they put the cameras to work filming a staunchly pro-military screenplay written by George Goodman, an ex-military intelligence officer. In preparation for the film, Wayne bought the rights to Robin Moore's novel of the same name, but the final product had exceedingly little in common with its source material.

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'Jurassic Park III' (2001) -

The critically panned conclusion to the original Jurassic Park trilogy, 2001's 'Jurassic Park III,' might sound like an unusual film for the military to meddle in. While it's unlikely that the DoD would have proactively sought out involvement, once the filmmakers reached out to the Pentagon for access to military aircraft, they began to meddle nonetheless.

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'Jurassic Park III' (2001) -

A military character in the film was rewritten, at the DoD's request, as a presidential advisor in order to reconcile the unprecedented access and political sway that the character wielded in the fight against the dinosaurs. Additionally, the film ends with a brave and heroic rescue mission carried out by the US military—an ending suggested by the DoD.

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'Zero Dark Thirty' (2012) -

Kathryn Bigelow's 2012 film 'Zero Dark Thirty' is unquestionably one of the most controversial military flicks of the 21st century. The film is based on the events surrounding the Navy Seal Team Six operation that led to the capture and killing of Osama bin Laden in 2011.

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'Zero Dark Thirty' (2012) -

Kathryn Bigelow and her team spent years consulting with various agencies, particularly the CIA and the DoD, requesting and usually receiving unprecedented access to senior intelligence officials and classified documents. In 2011, screenwriter Mark Boal even attended a confidential meeting at the CIA headquarters in Langley, where virtually all of the major agents and officials involved in the hunt for bin Laden were present. According to CIA spokesperson Marie E. Harf, the CIA and the Pentagon were eager to collaborate with Bigelow and Boal, since they correctly believed that their film would reach the widest audience.

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Manufacturing consent -

While this level of military intervention is alarmingly suspect on its own, one particular aspect of the film sparked intense outrage across the country: the use of torture. Torture, or "enhanced interrogation" as it has been carefully labeled, was utilized with infamous abandon during the hunt for bin Laden and was widely condemned across the globe. Not only was the use of torture seen as explicitly cruel and inhumane, it also was simply an ineffective method of gathering intel. Studies have shown time and time again that victims of torture will tell authorities whatever it is they want to hear, regardless of whether it's true or not. In defiance of these facts and others that prove the contrary, 'Zero Dark Thirty' insinuates on multiple occasions that vital information regarding the whereabouts of Osama bin Laden was obtained through the necessary use of torture. Many critics, journalists, and military experts have called this a blatant and falsified attempt to justify the US government's inhumane torture practices.

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The Transformers franchise -

Michael Bay's revamp of the classic Transformers franchise is a masterclass in explosive action and special effects. It is also a shining example of how big-budget movies can turn to the DoD for help. The first two films of Bay's franchise, which debuted in 2007 and 2009, were supported with locations, troops, and equipment from every branch of the military. What's more, in the closing credits, both films include a special thanks dedication to the aforementioned Philip Strub, who served as the Pentagon's chief film liaison officer in Hollywood from 1989 to 2018.

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Enter Chase Brandon -

The CIA has their own Hollywood liaison: Chase Brandon, a former undercover operative who spent over two decades in South America during the Cold War, an era during which the CIA has become infamous for meddling in regional politics and revolutions. While the DoD oversees all things military, Brandon's job in Hollywood is to vet and support films that can be used as a vehicle for the CIA's worldview and paint the intelligence community in a positive light.

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The Jack Ryan complex -

The name Jack Ryan might not be as well known as James Bond, but Tom Clancy's fictional CIA agent is arguably even more ubiquitous in the media than Ian Fleming's 007 agent. One of the greatest collaborations fostered by the CIA's Chase Brandon and Hollywood is the "Ryanverse," a wide-reaching TV and film franchise world centered on the titular Ryan, a history analyst turned CIA agent with unshakable principles and a passionate love for God, man, and country. Portrayed over the years by stalwart figures of American masculinity from Harrison Ford to Ben Affleck and John Krasinski, the various filmmakers and actors involved in the series have in their own times been regular visitors to Langley.

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Langley's frequent visitors -

From Kathryn Bigelow to Ben Affleck, the list of Hollywood big shots who were at one point or another familiar faces within the protective walls of Langley is expansive. It's become all but common courtesy for Brandon to invite Hollywood professionals working on relevant projects to meetings and consultations behind closed doors. In the case of 'Zero Dark Thirty' (2012), the seemingly uninhibited access granted to the filmmakers even surpassed that of the country's premier national security reporters. Speaking on PBS' 'Frontline' program, Washington Post journalist Greg Miller claimed that longtime reporters on the hunt for bin Laden weren't ever able to "get close to that kind of cooperation from the agency on telling the inside story."

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'The Americans' -

Considered one of the greatest television dramas of the 21st century, it should come as no surprise that 'The Americans,' a series set during the Cold War centered around two KBG sleeper agents, had close ties to the CIA from the start. In fact, the show's creator and showrunner, Joe Weisberg, is a former CIA agent himself. However, it wasn't just Weisberg's professional history that tied the CIA to the Cold War-era show; the CIA also retained final script approval rights for every episode of the show's six seasons.

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'Argo' (2012) -

Ever since first brushing shoulders with the CIA during the making of 2002's 'The Sum of All Fears,' in which he starred as Jack Ryan, Ben Affleck has maintained a close relationship with Langley. When Affleck set out on a project that would become 2012's Oscar-winning drama 'Argo,' he found himself in the middle of a massively mutually-beneficial deal with the agency.

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'Argo' (2012) -

The film claims to tell the truly incredible story of Canadian agents, with the help of CIA personnel, infiltrating Iran posing as a film crew, in order to rescue six diplomats who were being held hostage by Iranian revolutionaries during the 1979-1981 hostage crisis. Much to the chagrin of Canadians and historians, the film was dramatically rewritten by Affleck and co., with the help of the CIA, to make the agency look like the valiant heroes and masterminds of the operation. In reality, the rescue mission was an almost entirely Canadian-conceived and executed plan, with nominal help from the CIA.

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'Argo' (2012) -

Affleck has come under fire for his historical inaccuracies, and former CIA officer Robert Baer has said that the film "had nothing to do with reality. Anybody involved in that operation knows that." Regardless of historical accuracy, 'Argo' was undeniably a victory of public opinion. In an article for The Atlantic, Nicholas Shou called the film "arguably . . . the agency's most successful propaganda coup in Hollywood." 'Argo' was awarded three Academy Awards and grossed over US$230 million worldwide.

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The Marvel Cinematic Universe -

The Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) is undoubtedly the largest and most influential intellectual property behemoth in history. Consisting of 31 films as of February 2023, it is hard to name a media franchise that has had an impact as historic as the MCU.

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The Marvel Cinematic Universe -

It's no secret that the Marvel Universe and its heroic inhabitants are almost invariably in support of the United States, its government, and its military. Of course, this didn't start with the movies, as the comics have historically upheld American values with patriotism and enthusiasm. However, while basking in the righteous destruction, violence, and unchecked authority of the Avengers and their military allies, it's worth keeping in mind that the Department of Justice has retained final script approval rights for the majority of Marvel's blockbusters.

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'Captain Marvel' (2019) -

As recently as 2019, the collaboration of Marvel and the military stretched far beyond the writers' room and the film set. In 2019's 'Captain Marvel,' Brie Larson plays the titular superhero who was once in the Air Force. Leading up to the film's premiere, numerous pieces of pro-military and pro-Hollywood propaganda were produced, including behind-the-scenes videos with the film crew, Air Force pilots, and even generals fawning over each other with equal zeal.

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'Captain Marvel' (2019) -

Remember the recruitment booth that was set up outside of theaters showing 'Top Gun' (1986)? 'Captain Marvel' stepped it up a notch. Not only did the Air Force fly over the film's premiere, countless showings in its broader theater run played a brand new Air Force recruitment video before the film began. While no Marvel characters were present in the ad, terms like "superhero" and "origin story" were heavily leaned on.

Sources: (The Atlantic) (The Guardian) (CBR)

See also: The most sinister declassified CIA operations 

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