Hollywood sucks so hard that only 900,000 people tuned into the Critics Choice Awards on Sunday night.

That’s right, 900,000 in a country of 330 million.

Last year, the Critics Choice Awards drew 1.1 million. That was so awful TBS decided not to simulcast it this year. Instead, this year’s three-hour show aired only on something called the CW:

The Critics Choice Awards aired Sunday night without much fanfare. The CW’s broadcast of the 28th annual ceremony drew 900,000 viewers, according to early Nielsen numbers.

That’s a slight dip from last year when the ceremony, which was simulcast across The CW and TBS, took home an audience of 1.1M. TBS didn’t simulcast the ceremony this year, so technically this year’s viewership is larger than the CW’s portion a year ago, however the overall audience declined to a low for an in-person ceremony. (The virtual 2021 edition of Critics Choice Awards drew just 365,000 total viewers.)

How bad do things need to get before Hollywood either changes its ways and returns to the business of entertainment and pleasing the customer or an alternative Hollywood blossoms manned by talented people who want to return to the business of free expression and entertainment?

People who believe they know the truth split into two different species. The first is the insufferable authoritarian willing to oppress, bully, and launch wars to impose their ideal on others. The second are those who seek to share and spread that truth through art, creation and the building of something. Hollywood used to be the latter. Now it’s the former. As a result, the industry has become stale, exhausting, pedantic, mean-spirited, smug, and conformist.

Henry Winkler, left, accepts the award for best supporting actor in a comedy series for “Barry,” and Sheryl Lee Ralph accepts the award for best supporting actress in a comedy series for “Abbott Elementary” at the 28th annual Critics Choice Awards at The Fairmont Century Plaza Hotel on Sunday, Jan. 15, 2023, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)

Throughout the history of the entertainment industry, it has always been a clique of sorts, a world where people had to conform to some degree as a means to fit in. The problem is that that same clique has shrunk to such a small size today; its demand for conformity is smothering creativity.

There’s nothing new, nothing exciting, no coloring outside the lines, nothing brave, no pushing of the envelope. It’s all so oppressive and boring, so expected and repetitive.

What is the point of tuning into a three-hour award show when there’s no magic, no fun, no laughs, no stars, and no entertainment?

What happened to the Movie Star?

Because they are all so boorish and constantly in our faces through the media-media and social media, why tune in just to look at them again? Plus, they’re all pretty awful, aren’t they? They hate us. That much they make clear. We certainly do not like them. What’s to like? They’re almost all a bunch of spoiled, entitled, ungrateful crybabies who like to push other people around.

Something’s gotta give, right?

Daniel Kwan reacts in the audience as “Everything Everywhere All at Once” is announced the winner of the award for best picture at the 28th annual Critics Choice Awards. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)

I understand that the siren song to belong to the so-called “entertainment community” is alluring. Still, we have to hope that at some time, the desire to create, to express, to dazzle an audience will eventually overcome this need to belong, and some talented people will break away, will say, Okay, enough of this. Let’s put on a show!

Is Tom Cruise all we got?

And how much longer can he hold out?

Follow John Nolte on Twitter @NolteNC. Follow his Facebook Page here.