Hollywood Week: Hollywood and September 11, 2001
- Details
- Category: Haute This Issue
- Published on Saturday, 12 September 2026 08:41
- Written by Janet Walker
The 25th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks were memorialized this week with social media overflowing with images, pictures, and the newspapers of the day, as the mourners and the nation, still attempt to understand this tragedy.
Not to be left out of the swell of renewed interest, entertainment magazines approached the idea of where is Hollywood? And why hasn't a "good" movie, representing 9/11 been made? How does one create a "good" box office grossing film, and does this means capitalizing on another's sorrow, without offending those who would call this type of exploitation insensitive and crass? And does a life have any value against corporate profits?
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After watching the reading of the names, which was the culmination of this week's ceremonies, perhaps what the people want is a reckoning. Not simply the few stories of survival, or the CIA's determined effort to capture and kill Osama bin Laden. As the survivors said during remarks, they want the truth.
No one understand the immense power of the media more than Washington. Brainwashing the public on an acceptable 9/11 theory is part and parcel of the government's job and convincing themselves it is in the public's best interest. Osama bin Laden was a bad man, without doubt or question, and for his terror actions his death was deserved.
In recent months we have seen how the government operates, and it is not unlike industry when there is a crisis; offer the public something in the name of good faith. The recent revelations of a long held public myth was confirmed by the release of the Top Secret UAP files. Shocking? Or not so shocking.
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The former Unidentified Flying Objects files, held in top secret vaults for nearly 75 years, were released this year after a makeover of sorts, a new unrecognizable name, no longer UFOs, which leads to public hysteria, and flashes of memories from filmmakers like Steven Spielberg's Close Encounters of the Third Kind, and E.T. The Extra Terrestrial, and Roland Emmerich's Independence Day.
When mentioning the "deep state," this term leads many who deem themselves intellectuals to laugh in mockery, as if a cabal somewhere controlled the world. For those of a certain age, 9/11 has become this generation JFK assassination, another government cover-up in the public best interest.
The 1991 film JFK from Director Oliver Stone has stood the test of time and routinely ranks as one of the best films covering the assassination of the president, and as Stone is known as a conspiracy theorist, it does expose government corruption is silencing the truth for the public's sake.
Over the past 25 years I have discovered that the common citizen seems to have a deeper understanding of the actions the government would take to cover up any scandal that would lead up to the events of September 11, 2001.
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September 11, 2001 was the culmination of years of planning, just like World War II's D-Day was not pulled together in 24 hours. These military strategies take years. With the extent of our capabilities, and the far-reaching Middle East contacts, and yes, partners in the region, the United States still had no inkling, no warning? It seems implausible.
On the ground 9/11 began September 4, 2001 with the destruction of the Constitution, a small band of junior associates at a Wall Street law firm found a way, a fool proof way, they believed, to violate the core tenants of the Constitution and make themselves rich along the way. Disasters are always good for commerce.
And Hollywood has inched closer to exposing modern U.S. actions on foreign soil, as if somehow the veiled has been pulled back and not simply in films, but in streaming, "The Agency" from Jez Butterworth, and "Lioness" from Taylor Sheridan, and an effort is underway to feed just enough truth for the public to understand the inner workings of the government as filmmakers and industry leaders tip toe closer to creating that definitive 9/11 film.
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In the 25 years since, 9/11 there have been a handful of films focusing on September 11, 2001 United 93 (2006) from Director Paul Greengrass, World Trade Center, (2006) from Oliver Stone, 9/11 (2017) from Director Martin Guigui. Also Spike Lee's "25th Hour" in 2002, and Stephen Daldry's "Extremely Loud & Incredible Close" in (2011).
PBS.org presents the 25 documentaries created about 9/11. "The Man Who Knew," introduces FBI Counterterrorism Agent John O'Neill. "Among those who died when the twin towers fell on 9/11 was a former FBI counterterrorism agent who may have known more about Osama bin Laden than any other person in America. John O'Neill had led a six-year fight to track down and prosecute Al Qaeda operatives around the world, but he was a controversial figure inside the agency. Filmmakers Michael Kirk and Jim Gilmore chronicled O'Neill's warnings about the threat posed by Al Qaeda before he died in an attack carried out by that very organization," PBS.org reported.
The documentary Fahrenheit 9/11 (2004) from director Michael Moore, which at $222.4 million worldwide would be considered a box office success. Why? It questioned the government's line, and the conclusions the public was spoon-fed in the immediate aftermath.
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So, why hasn't Hollywood been able to tap the pulse of the people and create a high grossing honorable film about one of the darkest days in modern American history? Because the subject is vast, it is not simple about the Twin Towers, the Pentagon, or the courage of so many, the whole story, the days before, the government lies, and those who pledge loyalty even unto death to fight against American ideals; it is about each of us, our way of life, freedom.
For now, that film is an investment those in the entertainment industry, with its vast influence, do not want to make.
We are a resilient people. Understanding the whole truth, not just the strained bits with enough information to comfort, spoon-fed through both the government and media, has increased throughout the years, and for those seeking truth, the strained bits are now spat out with strength.
Historians will document the day, and possibly even moments leading up to the attacks, politicians will pledge to work to uncover the entire truth, past leaders protective of their legacies will stand on the decisions of the day, and mothers, fathers, sons and daughters, and every person that knew one who died, will demand action now. They will be placated, comforted in their renewed grief, and once again walk the lonely year, missing the companion, laughter, love and friendship, until the next year's ceremonies arrive, and again, hope arrives, like spring in September, than maybe this year, the truth we need, the truth we need to satisfy the unending ache will finally be presented.
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Janet Walker is the publisher, founder, and sole owner of Haute-Lifestyle.com. A graduate of New York University, she has been covering international news through the Beltway Insider, a weekly review of the nation's top stories, for more than a decade. A general beat writer/reporter and entertainment/film critic, she is also an accomplished news/investigative news/crime reporter and submitted for Pulitzer Prize consideration "Cops Conspire to Deep Six Sex Assaults" in the Breaking News Category and was persuaded to withdraw the submission. Ms. Walker has completed five award-winning screenplays "The Six Sides of Truth," "The Assassins of Fifth Avenue," "The Wednesday Killer," "The Manhattan Project," and the sci-fi thriller "Project 13: The Last Day." She has also published "Unholy Alliances: A True Crime Story," a non-fiction narrative, "Days, Times, Seasons, and Events: A Collection of Poetry & Prose," and "Songs of Freedom: A Collection of Biblical Teachings," which can be purchased here. She is a member of the Authors Guild, the Los Angeles Press Club, the National Writers Union, and a member of the International Federation of Journalists.
