Restoring the Hero: Where to Find Them in the Modern World

Published on June 29, 2024

In the early years of Hollywood, there was a standard: movies filled with wholesome families, and people of good character who would step up in difficult times and become a hero—someone audiences could root for and wanted to emulate. We loved to celebrate our heroes—soldiers, astronauts, Olympic champions. We’d even throw them parades. We looked up to religious leaders, scientists, doctors, artists, builders, and civil rights leaders. And we honored mom and dad, teachers, firefighters, and police—common people who sometimes changed the course of history. What about today, who are propped up as heroes? Hollywood gangsters? Drug-addicted pop stars? Radical internet influencers? Opportunist politicians? Surely we can do better than that....