Jerry Seinfeld believes the movie business is ‘over’

Jerry Seinfeld believes the movie business is “over”.

The 69-year-old comic has made his feature directorial debut with Netflix’s Unfrosted and he admitted he was amazed by how “dead serious” people in the world of film take their careers because he doesn’t think the medium is as revered as it once was.

Reflecting on his filmmaking experience, he told America’s GQ magazine: “It was totally new to me. I thought I had done some cool stuff, but it was nothing like the way these people work.

“They’re so dead serious! They don’t have any idea that the movie business is over. They have no idea.

“Film doesn’t occupy the pinnacle in the social, cultural hierarchy that it did for most of our lives. When a movie came out, if it was good, we all went to see it. We all discussed it. We quoted lines and scenes we liked. Now we’re walking through a fire hose of water, just trying to see.”

Jerry thinks the shift has led to a lot of “confusion” in the showbiz world.

He said: “Depression? Malaise? I would say confusion. Disorientation replaced the movie business. Everyone I know in show business, every day, is going, ‘What’s going on? How do you do this? What are we supposed to do now?'”

When it comes to his own career, the Seinfeld actor is thankful for stand-up comedy because he knows it will always stand the test of time.

He said: “I’ve done enough stuff that I have my own thing, which is more valuable than it’s ever been. Stand-up is like you’re a cabinetmaker, and everybody needs a guy who’s good with wood.

“There’s trees everywhere, but to make a nice table, it’s not so easy. So, the metaphor is that if you have good craft and craftsmanship, you’re kind of impervious to the whims of the industry. Audiences are now flocking to stand-up because it’s something you can’t fake. It’s like platform diving.

“You could say you’re a platform diver, but in two seconds we can see if you are or you aren’t. That’s what people like about stand-up. They can trust it. Everything else is fake.”