Smug Celebrities Like Ethan Hawke and Ellen DeGeneres Whine About America, with Emily Jashinsky

What this episode is about

Ethan Hawke expresses concerns about feeling fearful to speak his mind in the current political climate, prompting a discussion on the perceived limitations on artistic expression in America under recent administrations. The conversation critiques his past statements and reflects on the ongoing challenges artists face regarding freedom of speech.

Key takeaways

• Ethan Hawke's 'new fear' sounds a lot like Hollywood's historic hush—where's the courage, really?
• Is Hawke’s tension a call for artistic freedom, or merely selective amnesia about Hollywood's actual cancel culture?
• Trump's 'lesson on oligarchy' may reveal more about Hawke's privilege than the political landscape—who’s really scared?
• If fear lurks under the spotlight, is it the artists or the audience feeling the pressure to conform?
• Hollywood's progressive elite has forgotten history is littered with the canceled—ironic coming from an outspoken actor.

Who speaks in this episode?

• Megyn Kelly (Guest) · 12 min speaking
• Emily Jashinsky (Guest) · 5 min speaking

What is discussed, and when

1. 0:00 – 3:00: Sundance Film Festival, Ethan Hawk
2. 3:00 – 6:00: Trump administration, Ethan Hawk, Donald Trump, Zach Levi
3. 6:00 – 9:00: Joe Biden, Trump administration, Donald Trump
4. 9:00 – 12:00: Molly Ringwald, Ice King
5. 12:00 – 15:00: Ethan Hawk, Chelsea Hotel
6. 15:00 – 17:18: Ethan Hawk, Molly Ringwald, Sundance Film Festival

Notable quotes from "Smug Celebrities Like Ethan Hawke and Ellen DeGeneres Whine About America, with Emily Jashinsky"

• You don't know what's happened to Ethan Hawk, I'm gonna let him tell it to you, but it's very, very sad. He spoke out Monday from the Sundance Film Festival.

  about Sundance Film Festival · at 0:04

• Okay. So, he's feeling really scared to speak his mind under Trump 2.0. we looked back just to see if there was evidence of him shying away from controversial topics out of his fear. I totally take him at his word.

  about Ethan Hawk · at 0:55

• It's entirely possible that Trump is doing us a great favor by teaching America what oligarchy means. I think a lot of young people like myself included didn't even know what it meant.

  about Donald Trump · at 3:08

• Fear. we just had Zach Levi on a month ago who said he's convinced he's been greylisted as a result of not even being a conservative. He's a libertarian who's maha. He kind of…

  about Zach Levi · at 5:08

• Not one drop of blood that has been shed did not originate with Joe Biden. It's all Joe Biden's fault. That's the reason Trump got elected. That's the reason Trump surged Homeman and Gnome and.

  about Joe Biden · at 7:11

• And I've always been so proud to be an American. But right now, this is a fascist government. It's not becoming a fascist government. It is a fascist government. And ICE is brutalizing people. if you look at what.

  about Molly Ringwald · at 10:18

• When I first moved to New York in 2007, the second time, I lived down in Chelsea and there's this great place called the Chelsea Hotel, which is very cool. It's got all his…

  about Chelsea Hotel · at 13:13

Who and what is mentioned in this episode?

People

• Ethan Hawk — Person · Referenced celebrity speaker (quoted/interview subject) · 5 mentions · first at 0:00
  His Sundance/Variety comments about fear of speaking freely are the main springboard for the hosts' critique of Hollywood political rhetoric and claims of repression.
• Donald Trump — Person · Referenced political figure / target of commentary · 2 mentions · first at 3:08
  Central political reference point; discussed as the cause of alleged fear/censorship in Hollywood and as the subject of criticism by Ethan Hawke and others.
• Molly Ringwald — Person · Referenced celebrity commentator · 5 mentions · first at 9:25
  Presented as another example of a Hollywood figure making extreme political analogies (fascism/Nazis) about ICE and the U.S., reinforcing the segment’s theme.
• Joe Biden — Person · Referenced political figure / comparison point · 3 mentions · first at 6:46
  Used as a counterexample in the discussion: hosts argue censorship/government pressure occurred under Biden (e.g., IRS visit to Taibbi) and blame him for border/ICE-related issues.
• Zach Levi — Person · Referenced prior guest / example case · 1 mention · first at 5:08
  Cited as a recent guest who claimed he was 'greylisted' in Hollywood for heterodox politics, used to rebut claims that only Trump creates fear for artists.
• Bernie Sanders — Person · Referenced political figure (used as rhetorical anchor) · 1 mention · first at 3:11
  Mentioned as part of the 'top 1%' / oligarchy discourse; invoked to frame what 'oligarchy' means in U.S. politics.
  Bernie Sanders and people top 1%. We all like roll our eyes and everything.
• Freddy Krueger — Person · Cultural reference · 1 mention
  The name 'Freddy' likely refers to Freddy Krueger, a well-known character from the horror film franchise 'A Nightmare on Elm Street'.

Concepts & topics

• Trump administration — Concept · Key argument · 4 mentions · first at 3:52
  Discussed as a source of fear and oppression by Hollywood celebrities, particularly in relation to freedom of speech and artistic expression.
  Okay. So, he's feeling really scared to speak his mind under Trump 2.0. we looked back just to see if there was evidence of him shying away from controversial topics out of his fear. I.
• Ice King — Concept · Core topic · 2 mentions · first at 10:03
  Criticized by celebrities as a symbol of government oppression and fascism, particularly in relation to immigration policies.
  In any event, Molly Ringwald, she's got thoughts on ICE, and she this is she really leans in. Let's watch. She did not phone this in. Watch.

Places & events

• Sundance Film Festival — Event · Setting · 3 mentions · first at 0:08
  Mentioned as the location where Ethan Hawk expressed his fears about speaking out under the Trump administration.
• Chelsea Hotel — Place · Setting · 1 mention · first at 13:19
  Mentioned as a place where Ethan Hawk was seen, adding context to his public persona.

Full transcript with timestamps

0:00 I know we're all feeling really sad about what's happened to Ethan Hawk. If you don't know what's happened to Ethan Hawk, I'm gonna let him tell it to you, but it's very, very sad. He he spoke out Monday from the Sundance Film Festival. You're feeling yourself well up already, aren't you? Um, speaking to variety s 14,

0:23 I never felt scared about what I was going to say until the last couple years where you have feel like, oh, I have to be careful or or what. I don't know, but there's a kind of fear in the air that I've never felt before. And it's not America. To get to be an artist in a free country, that's I'm I've had enough of an education to know what a privilege that is. and um and I don't feel that way anymore.

0:50 And that's something that has to change. Okay. So, he's feeling really scared to speak his mind under Trump 2.0. I mean, we looked back just to see if there was evidence of him shying away from controversial topics out of his fear. I mean, I totally take him at his word. I'm sure he is really fearful of Trump. We didn't have to go far. We went to January 5th and found the following. Let's take a listen to S 16. See how fearful he is.

1:18 I'm a little in shock about that. You know, I I was already upset about the Kennedy Center honor and now we're bombing of some

1:25 Oh. Um, could you make sense of any of it? No, I I can make sense out of it in that,

1:38 you know, I've done enough Shakespeare plays to know that power corrupts. Shakespeare right next to

1:43 I know. I know. Exactly. But you know, it's a common theme of mankind is that, you know, nothing that's happening to us as Americans or civilians isn't anything that hasn't happened to humanity. I mean, we're surrounded, history is littered with death spots and selfish people and greedy people and they make the rules for the kind people.

2:06 Well, you didn't see him that shy. But maybe when he says the past couple years, he's he's going back to like, oh, it's like right before Trump got elected and everybody was calling him Hitler and he knew Hitler might get elected and he was scared. Let's go back to his appearance on The View, October 2025, S.

2:23 We were talking about Trump wanting $230 million from the Department of Justice for investigating him for Yes, he wants that money.

2:31 Yeah. Is anybody here old enough to remember when Jimmy Carter gave up his family farm to make sure he didn't have conflict of interest

2:40 because he wanted to protect the farmers but didn't want to see it. It's called integrity. Yeah.

2:46 And it's starting to show the lack of it. It's pretty obvious. Okay. I'm not exactly sure when the newfound fear started. Maybe it was just at Sundance, Emily. It just came upon him in the wake of what's happened in Minneapolis that you can no longer say how you really feel. Let's take a look at more of the interview to see if he was, you know, shy about expressing his reservations on Trump. S 15.

3:08 It's entirely possible that Trump is doing us a great favor by teaching America what oligarchy means. Um I I think a lot of young people like myself included didn't even know what it meant. Bernie Sanders and people top 1%. We all like roll our eyes and everything. YOU'RE LIKE, "OH, I see what they mean." Oh, and so sometimes you need to have your freedoms taken away to know what they mean and what's worth fighting for. We all know what greed and oppression are. And we all know what to we feel the truth in our stomachs. And so we we got to figure out how to take care of one another everybody.

3:49 Uh just for the are we clear on what Trump's oligarchy has taken away from Ethan Hawk? Like I I kind of have a feeling he he's miss mixing his favorite issues there, Emily. But I would say the jury is in and they do not find Ethan Hawk in any way reluctant to share his obnoxious, uninformed Hollywood baseless opinions. I am stunned by the brazeness with which he said it is a new thing for people to have to worry in Hollywood about what they say. He mentioned that quote history is littered with death spots. Dude, recent history in Hollywood is littered with examples of people who were cancelled, lost their jobs, lost parts of their career. Many of them have been on this show. Maybe you should tune in. uh because they said something that wasn't even conservative, but it was just like moderately critical of cultural progressivism. Maybe BLM, maybe transing children there. That is what is littering Hollywood's recent history.

4:53 That is like such a brazen and insane thing to say given the last 10 years. Yeah. I talk about having zero clue how the other side lives, meaning the conservative side. I mean, none whatsoever that they continue to live in fear. I mean, we just had Zach Levi on a month ago who said he's convinced he's been greylisted as a result of not even being a conservative. He's a libertarian who's maha. He he kind of likes what what Kennedy's doing. But you're not allowed to like Kennedy, who up until 2 minutes ago was a Democrat, but he's a bad Democrat, you see, because he's the kind who doesn't vaccinate everybody with everything and mandates. And also, he had the nerve to go work for the Trump administration. So, that's just for that. Zachary Levi has been quote greylisted. Um, but we could be here all day talking about how true conservatives aren't allowed to exist in Hollywood.

5:48 They have to hide it. All of them have to hide it. or even moderates like you were saying Zachary Levi cr left critics of progressivism. I mean it's just the last 10 years of Hollywood history have been completely uh like there were people who are actually comparing it to Red Scare Joseph Joseph McCarthy era in dead seriousness. And I think listen uh one of my little bugaboos is the uh concerns that people have about Joe McCarthy who I think has been largely vindicated. But we don't need to go down that rabbit hole to say people were genuinely scared of the progressive left for the last 10 years in Hollywood. So to have the audacity right now to say under Trump he's afraid even though Hollywood stars are constantly saying all of this stuff without being criticized and or without being penalized by the Trump administration.

6:36 Find one example. Find one example of the government going after someone criticizing Donald Trump. Matt Taibbe had the IRS show up at his house under Joe Biden. They showed up at his house on like Christmas Eve while he was working on Biden era censorship stories. I mean, who Give me one example of that happening to somebody in Hollywood because they were critical of Trump.

7:00 It's ridiculous. Oh, and by the way, speaking of Joe Biden, he's actually out there posting on X right now about how terrible ICE is and how they murdered two American citizens. Not one drop of blood that has been shed did not originate with Joe Biden. It's all Joe Biden's fault. That's the reason Trump got elected. That's the reason Trump surged Homeman and Gnome and everybody else to these cities to try to crack down on the illegals that he led in. There's not a problem we're dealing with right now that doesn't originate with his open border policies. Even the arrests we're making of people who got here before Joe Biden are as a result of Joe Biden because those people probably would have been left alone. We weren't actively doing a great job of deporting illegals here until Joe Biden threw all caution to the wind and opened the borders for anyone and everyone who wanted in for those four years so he can

7:52 sit this one out. Um, okay. On the subject of Hollywood celebrities who really they're very disturbed by what's what's going on here. I mean, I just like Ellen too. She's upset, Emily. She's she's very upset. And she she she tweeted out over the weekend, you know, after after uh Freddy was killed, "It's a tough day to feel like celebrating a birthday. I'm holding space for what's happening in our world and holding close what I'm grateful for." Like my wife and cookies. That's literally what her post reads. And cookies. She's having real trouble processing um her birthday overseas, but not really. She's fine. She's got hundreds of millions of you don't. And she's having cookies. So, Alex Freddy.

8:41 She's also having trouble remaining overseas because as the Daily Mail has reported recently, uh they want to come back to LA. They want to be back in like Monteceto because who wouldn't want to be back in Monteceto to be honest? Uh, so we'll see if she see if she even stays overseas after making such a big point over the Trump administration.

8:59 That's true. That's true. That might be what it is. I mean, they're out in the country. Nobody cares that you're Ellen Degenerous.

9:07 No one cares. You've lost your fame, which is your only thing that matters to you, and your cookies. I mean, who the hell would be like, "It's a tough day to celebrate, you know, thoughts and prayers, and I have cookies." Like what the f that just like she clearly has abandoned all PR help because that that is tonedeaf. Um Molly Ringwald is another one. She was the it girl when I was growing up. 16 Candles, Breakfast Club, Pretty and Pink. She's spent the rest of her adult life ripping poor John Hughes, the man who made her a star and a multi-millionaire, to shreds, suggesting he was somehow part of the Me Too movement for his inappropriate 80s body humor, which I think we all miss.

9:54 It was funny, and it made us laugh. Um, in any event, Molly Ringwald, she's got thoughts on ICE, and I mean, she this is she really leans in. Let's watch. She did not phone this in. Watch.

10:07 There's something horrible horrible going on in our country right now. Got the beanie.

10:12 And we have one of the greatest countries had one of the greatest countries in the world.

10:18 And I've always been so proud to be an American. But right now, this is a fascist government. It's not becoming a fascist government. It is a fascist government. And ICE is brutalizing people. You know, if you look at what happened in France, you know, they were taken over by the Nazis. A lot of people, a lot of people uh collaborated and then there were people that did not collaborate and were part of the resistance. Um eventually they got their country back and those people who collaborated were found to be criminal and that is what's going to happen. If you only care about yourself, then realize that you are going to be seen as a collaborationist.

11:08 So, please, please use your voice and protest. These are children who are being taken away from their parents. These are mothers.

11:17 No, they're not. Who are being killed. Please do the right thing and stand up and use your voice.

11:26 Okay. Um, we're back to the Nazi situ. Hello, Holocaust Museum. Hello. Hello. You have a lot of tweeting to do. There's there's another person who is using the Holocaust and Nazis to make a point about what's happening with ICE. I think we object, do we not? Holocaust Museum, Molly Ringwald, should be on the front of your agenda today. Going to how France was taken over by the Nazis. We We had one of the greatest countries, but it's now fascist. It's not becoming. It is fascist. She knows all of this because she points out in the video she lived in France for a couple of years in her 20s, Emily. So, she knows fascism when she sees it.

12:14 Okay. Oh my gosh. It's like the girl who studied abroad like sophomore year and came back and was like, "These are not real. This is not a real baguette." That's what she's doing. She's like, "This is fascism. I lived in France, so I'm a little bit of an authority.

12:30 Yeah, I'm a little bit authority. Oh, I didn't even think about that. I wonder if she planned that. Actually, I would not put it past her, Megan. But she's sitting there, by the way, in the comfort of her own bed. That in a fascist regime, in a truly fascist regime, the idea of you just comfortably sitting in your own bed and using your massive platform as a celebrity to call the president a fascist and have no consequences. Yes. No. The government's not even for them.

12:57 You're at Sundance. You're talking into a microphone on the red carpet to Variety.

13:04 You You're like a $10,000. Whatever the hell you want, right? Yes. And the thing, let me tell you something else about about Ethan. When when I first moved to New York in 2007,

13:16 the second time, um I lived down in Chelsea and there's this great place called the Chelsea Hotel, which is very cool. It's got all his murals inside. I don't know if it's still there, but Ethan Hawk used to sit right in the front where there were like these little It was like a counter just waiting for someone to see him. It was like, "Hello, hello." There was that place and there was this little diner right on the corner of where we lived. He was in either place. He was right in the window. Most actual celebrities, you know, like you're talking about like a Julia Roberts, she she probably wouldn't even go to a place like that, but if you ever see them, they're always in the back in a corner with their back to the people who are passing by. They are not Hello, it's me, Ethan Hawk. Hi.

14:00 No one gives a what he has to say anymore. As a major celebrity, Megan, I'm always taking the booth in the back. Uh if I go to a a subway, the local subway, always at the booth uh with my my turkey sub. But this is also so infuriating because we were just talking about how

14:15 I forgot to tell you how afterparty has changed your life. You know, it's made it has made it more difficult for me to get the turkey sub without having to uh also respond to all of the well-wishers and the people who are asking for autographs of their turkey sub. So,

14:31 thank you for recognizing that. It has been hard. You were saying Molly Ringald. Sorry, I interrupted.

14:37 No, no, no. Ringwald like talking about mothers and children and this is so maddening because again during the Biden administration on a daily basis there were mothers and children being trafficked partially with money that was flowing to NOS's from the United States government from taxpayers who were for example making it easier for folks to go and cross the daring gap where women were getting raped. They were sending them in with condoms uh because it was so dangerous and they were doing that because of the Biden administration's policies. They said it over and over again said we are being let in. So, we are coming. And those people deserved a whole lot of tears. You and I talked about it. They deserved a lot of like they were going through hell um to get up to the United States because the Biden administration was like, "Hey, you can you could come in." And all of that was empowering the cartels to hurt more

15:23 and more people. Lots of people died. Lots of people were sexually assaulted and raped. And none of these guys cared about that. And partially the reason is because they and their rich friends benefited from all of the cheap labor that was flooding into the United States. So, it wasn't even on their radar.

15:40 Okay. So, it the irony of like these incredible celebrities with their millions making their comments like Ethan Hawk from Sundance. Oh, and Molly Ringwald, I'm told by my team, just got back from Sundance. Okay. Soon as she got back, she wanted us to know that this is a fascist country. Immediately after getting back, she wanted us to know is it is now fascist right now. Okay, this second a new year means new financial goals like making sure your savings are secure and diversified. Will this be the year you decide to talk to someone from Birch Gold Group? They use an educational approach with a deep understanding of macroeconomics. There are forces pushing the dollar lower and gold higher, which is why they believe every American should own physical gold.

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Questions about this episode

Who speaks in "Smug Celebrities Like Ethan Hawke and Ellen DeGeneres Whine About America, with Emily Jashinsky"?

Megyn Kelly (Guest), Emily Jashinsky (Guest).

What is "Smug Celebrities Like Ethan Hawke and Ellen DeGeneres Whine About America, with Emily Jashinsky" about?

Ethan Hawke expresses concerns about feeling fearful to speak his mind in the current political climate, prompting a discussion on the perceived limitations on artistic expression in America under recent administrations. The conversation critiques his past statements and reflects on the ongoing challenges artists face regarding freedom of speech.

What is mentioned in this Megyn Kelly episode?

11 people, works and ideas are mentioned, including Ethan Hawk, Donald Trump, Trump administration, Molly Ringwald, Joe Biden, Ice King. Each one on this page links to its own page with every episode that mentions it.

How long is "Smug Celebrities Like Ethan Hawke and Ellen DeGeneres Whine About America, with Emily Jashinsky"?

The episode runs 17 min; the transcript is about 3,078 words in 42 timestamped sections.

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