Will AI Kill Copywriters? Or Is Hollywood the Real Victim?

Who Really Owns the Future of Creativity?

Mar 25, 2025

The Gentleman in the Parlor

This Saturday at a tea party surrounded by teacups, floral dresses, and scones, a kindly gentleman in dapper attire posed a perplexing question of me.

“Caroline do you think we will still have copywriters now that we have AI?”

I swished my tea around my teacup as I pondered the query. It was an unusual question for a tea party to say the least, but then again, everything is unusual these days.

I responded with what can eloquently be described as “word vomit.”

Something about AI making writing more generic, how great copywriting is about novelty and surprise, and how the future of the field belongs to those who master AI rather than fear it. Also, Hollywood. And then I said, “Man I could talk about this all day! Does this mean I should write about this for my email newsletter?”

The kindly gentleman was bewildered but agreed. Indeed: this would be a good topic for a scandalous newsletter. And also, had I tried the crumpets yet? “They are divine.”

Will We Still Have Copywriters?

This question has followed me for years. I first spoke about AI and creativity at Twin Cities Startup Week in September of 2022, just two months before ChatGPT upended everything. Back then, the focus was about visual art. Would AI replace artists? Had it stolen from them? (Yes.) Were they going to lose their jobs? (Yes and no?)

By December, I was at a dinner where copywriters and founders debated the same existential AI question. Today, nearly three years later, it persists. But my answer remains the same:

AI can accelerate writing, but it struggles with originality. The best copy is fresh and unexpected—two things AI inherently struggles with.
Copywriters may shrink in number, but those who adapt will thrive, using AI for ideation, drafting, and refining.
Writing is about more than typing words; it’s about thinking and ideas. And AI, despite its best efforts, can’t truly think.

But even this question feels like a distraction. The real issue isn’t whether AI will replace writers. It’s about what happens to creative industries when the economics of content change entirely.

The Hollywood Problem: It’s Not Just AI

Many assume Hollywood’s AI panic is about banning technology. But last year’s massive SAG-AFTRA and WGA strikes weren’t about stopping AI; they were about ensuring fair pay and protection against AI being used to replace or exploit workers.

Writers wanted guarantees that AI wouldn’t replace them or more specifically be used to rewrite scripts without credit or compensation.

Actors, meanwhile, wanted to prevent studios from using AI to scan, replicate, or replace them without their consent and fair compensation.

But even before AI entered the conversation, Hollywood was imploding. The numbers tell the story:

U.S. box office revenue peaked in the early 2000s and has been declining since. While record-breaking openings still happen, ticket sales have been on a downward slump while prices have more than tripled in the last 30 years.
Cable TV lost 33% of its subscribers in the last decade, and network TV viewership has cratered. The MASH* finale in 1983 had 106 million viewers; Succession’s 2023 finale had 2.9 million.

But even then, whether AI is going to destroy Hollywood isn’t the right question either. Hollywood has already imploding in slow motion for years.

But it’s not because of AI. It’s not even because of the pandemic.

It’s because of Youtube and TikTok.

Creatives are the New Hollywood

While Hollywood studios are slashing budgets and struggling with profitability, independent creators are thriving. A single YouTuber with a cell phone can reach millions of viewers—without the overhead of a studio, production team, or marketing department.

This is the real future of creative work: not massive institutions churning out content while short changing their creative employees, but individuals and small teams creating compelling, high-quality work for dramatically less money while reaching larger audiences. Platforms like YouTube, TikTok, and Patreon allow creators to bypass traditional gatekeepers and monetize their work directly.

That said, the ecosystem is still shifting. One of my favorite podcasts, The Colin and Samir Show, recently hosted YouTuber and Patreon founder Jack Conte to discuss how platforms are moving away from creator-led content and instead prioritizing algorithm-driven, content-first models.

Their argument? It’s not enough to have millions of subscribers anymore. Creators now need every piece of content to be a slam dunk in order to maintain their reach.

Ironically, this makes it easier for anyone to score a viral hit but harder to build long-term communities and brands.

So, the better question isn’t will AI replace copywriters? or will AI destroy Hollywood?—it’s how will individuals adapt to and thrive in this new creative landscape, and what systems will support or help them?

What do you think—are we entering the golden age of independent creators? Hit reply and let me know!

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Quick Bytes:

If you are in Minnesota and would like to do me a small favor, I would really appreciate it if you voted for my talk at Minnebar - Minnestar 🙏🏻
Claude can FINALLY search the internet. Let the Anthropic superfans rejoice! - Anthropic
How to teach your employees to embrace the growth of AI - Fast Company
This is expensive but it looks like a very cool AI Pitch Competition for female founders 👀 🚀
Norwegian robot startup will test humanoid robots in ‘a few hundred’ homes in 2025 - TechCrunch
Reid Hoffman: ‘Start using AI deeply. It is a huge intelligence amplifier’ - The Guardian
I don’t mean to be too negative in this newsletter, but I had heard rumors about AI enthusiasts and hyper religious folks starting to converge but this video from one of the only female AI content creators I know of was genuinely shocking to me. No hate but hadn’t heard of people claiming that AI / Quantum was going to “unlock spiritual realms.” Thoughts??? 👀 😳

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In case you missed it:

🚀 New Podcast Episode: AI & The Future of Marketing with Andrew Eklund 🎙️

I had an absolute blast chatting with Andrew Eklund, founder of Ciceron, about how AI is transforming digital marketing, sales, and business strategy.

I also maybe RUINED this episode by somehow messing up our recording settings and didn’t successfully film it which has resulted in way less views than normal even though it’s a GREAT episode.

If you can do me a favor and listen to it AND share it, I would really appreciate it!

Catch the full episode on Youtube here or on Substack.

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