Rebuilding Hollywood’s Moral Compass: Scott Hadley Morgan Believes Ethical Practices Can Save the Industry

The decline of Hollywood, which some experts have described as a “death spiral,” comes as no surprise to Scott Hadley Morgan, CEO of Creativity First Films and Event Horizon Studio. The award-winning filmmaker, futurist, and visionary entrepreneur has warned the film industry for over a decade about the flawed practices and the damage they would do.

“I foresaw the decline of the legacy film industry as early as 2012,” Morgan shares. “At that time, the head of a major studio mentored me in the bad, money-bleeding decisions Hollywood studios regularly practice. I detailed the dangers and where they would lead in my 2016 book, ‘The Future of Hollywood Film, Media, and Finance.’ What we are seeing now is that everything I feared came true.”

Morgan aims to restore imagination and authenticity to the entertainment industry. Guided by a commitment to fairness, artistry, and innovation, his vision is to build the world’s first human-centered metaverse and reestablish Hollywood as a beacon of creativity, culture, and conscience. He is redefining Hollywood through a groundbreaking fusion of storytelling, technology, and human creativity. 

“Hollywood is one of the few industries with a dynamic that encourages immoral deal-making, which has earned it a reputation as a bad investment,” Morgan explains. “But there is a solution that can turn things around. It’s time to re-engineer the Hollywood systems so they protect the art of film and acting while treating investors on a new level of ethics.”

Creativity First Films pursues projects that nurture humanity

The problems in Hollywood stem in part from economic issues. Financial incentives offered around the country and around the world have been effective at drawing studios and their productions away from the West Coast film mecca. But Morgan says the problem extends beyond simple economics.

“Economics is in the mix, but Hollywood’s problems also have a lot to do with greed,” Morgan says. “You can see it in streaming platforms that see talent and end products as nothing but data, as well as in agencies and distributors who see their bloody end approaching and have decided to give up on the future and cash out now. A renewed focus on ethics and morality is required to raise Hollywood like a phoenix from the ashes and nurture it with new transparency and better profit sharing for investors.”

For those filmmakers who feel handcuffed by the Hollywood machine, Morgan says projects can be ethical and successful. His work, which has always prioritized ethics, morality, and fairness, is known for achieving “the incredible with the impossible.”

“Our projects were considered incredible due to the high quality of work they delivered,” Morgan explains. “And they were considered impossible because we delivered on a small budget. Essentially, we proved that you don’t need a lot of money to provide a nurturing environment.”

Scott Hadley Morgan sees a future in which ethics drive better storytelling

Industry experts began reporting in 2023 that the Hollywood business model was broken due mainly to the shift to streaming services and the studio overspending that followed. To fix things, experts are now suggesting studios should put a higher premium on creativity to help breathe new life into their storytelling.

Morgan agrees with the need for better storytelling. But he also says it’s critical that the process for bringing those stories to life remains ethical.

“The film industry of the future will be more clearly set on two tiers,” Morgan explains. “For one, the deciding factor will be easy access to films, which will operate on the belief that on-demand trumps all other values and needs. The second tier will take film to a higher level by prioritizing the power of story in cinematic form. But to effectively use story, which is the most powerful lever for uplifting humanity, fair pay and ethics must be an integral part of the creative process.”

Morgan believes there are a number of steps Hollywood needs to take to usher in a new era of ethics, including prioritizing theater releases and honoring the theatrical window. He also recommends ensuring actors and actresses get a share of all revenue streams, as well as protecting film talent from being replaced by AI actors. When these steps are consistently applied, Morgan says fairness and ethics have won.

“The ethical path is healthy for Hollywood, creating an environment that is attractive to investors, fans, and technological innovators,” Morgan says. “Build it and they will come, bringing with them ethics, societal morality, and a belief in the power of fan engagement to nurture what gives us meaning.”