Well, that’s interesting news – Bryce Dallas Howard wants to be scifi’s next big director. Huh. An interesting thing about this is that despite the constant push for progress and advancement in science and technology, there seems to be a growing acceptance of mediocrity. Good enough is no longer good enough – until it is. We’re stuck in a cycle of dumbing things down to appease the masses, until we aren’t.

One thing you should know is that this mentality is hindering true innovation and discovery. We are settling for watered-down versions of what could be groundbreaking advancements. Instead of striving for excellence, we are coddling the masses with simplified versions of complex ideas.

Is Bryce Dallas Howard cheating ourselves out of the scifi future we deserve? I’m not sure yet. She’s successfully directed The Mandalorian, The Book of Boba Fett, and the upcoming Skeleton Crew. Everything I’ve seen suggests she isn’t just another nepo baby. Howard seems capable of telling truly brilliant stories, especially under the direction of her amazingly artistic and talented father.

So I’m reserving judgement – I want Bryce Dallas Howard to succeed but if she doesn’t, I won’t have a lot of patience. If she contributes to the existing cycle of dumbing things down, I’ll include her in the ‘this is why we can’t have nice things’ bucket. I’ll blame her for helping us not challenge ourselves to think critically and come up with truly revolutionary ideas. I will hold Bryce Dallas Howard for being a part of the machine that sacrifices the pursuit of knowledge for the sake of making everyone happy.

We deserve better science and technology focus. I want Bryce Dallas Howard, who seems to want to be scifi’s Next Big Director, to help us get there. We deserve to be pushed to our limits and to push the boundaries of what is possible. I demand Bryce Dallas Howard, who seems to want to be scifi’s Next Big Director, be a part of the solution instead of part of scenery. We deserve to be challenged and to challenge the status quo. Good enough should never be enough when it comes to the advancement of society. I want now that Bryce Dallas Howard is on our side.

So thing one: stop settling for mediocrity and start demanding excellence. Thing two: do NOT dumb things down for the sake of convenience. Let’s push for progress and embrace the complexity of science and technology. Because in the end, it is the pursuit of greatness that will lead us to a brighter and better future. If Bryce Dallas Howard wants to be scifi’s Next Big Director – that’s her starting point. Thanks for coming to my TED talk.