I can’t stop thinking about what Vince Gilligan is saying here because it feels like it’s a question we storytellers need to ask ourselves more - what responsibility do we have for the impact our stories have on society and the wider world?
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For the record, I think Gilligan is wrong about Walter White from Breaking Bad which was for my money an exquisitely subtle tragic exploration of how a good man can lose his soul for all the ‘right’ reasons… I can’t find anything ‘aspirational’ in his story…
But in a time of polarisation, glorification of the bully, dismissal of kindness and empathy, and celebration of ignorance and selfishness, can we - should we - be telling different stories? More positive visions of humanity?
In a time when those who seek to dominate also seek to censor and control the stories we tell, all in the name of ‘free speech’, don’t we have a responsibility to fight back by telling stories that fly in the face of all they stand for?
To quote Gilligan - “I say we write more good guys… who give more than they take.” I’ve always tried to do that in my writing and I always will. But commissioners will tell you - goodness isn’t ’sexy’, it isn’t ‘cool’, it isn’t seen to be ‘dramatic’.
And yet, I don’t know about you, but the majority of interactions I have in the real world every day are with decent, kind people trying to do good. So, why don’t we see more of that on our screens?
For me, Detectorists is a prime example of what Gilligan’s asking for - kind, decent people trying to do good. No one dies brutally. No one murders anyone, screams at anyone and yet it’s as ‘dramatic’ and delightful.
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