‘The Blacklist Was a Plague’ — Locarno Retrospective Curator Ehsan Khoshbakht Talks About What We Can Learn From the Intolerance of the Past

Aug 4, 2026 11:00pm PT ‘The Blacklist Was a Plague’ — Locarno Retrospective Curator Ehsan Khoshbakht Talks About What We Can Learn From the Intolerance of the Past

By John Bleasdale

Plus Icon

John Bleasdale

Guest Contributor

Latest

• Lucca Comics and Games, Europe’s Answer to Comic-Con, Sees 3% Rise in Attendees 9 months ago
• Hideo Kojima Talks ‘Death Stranding 2’ and the Importance of Connection: ‘It’s Not Connection With Headshots and Shooting Each Other’ 9 months ago
• Matilda De Angelis on Playing a Vampire in Luc Besson’s ‘Dracula’ and How Her Cat Inspired Her Character: ‘They’re Cuddling, and Then the Next Moment They Bite You’ 9 months ago

See All

Dalton Trumbo in '10 Hollywood Commie Writers Arraigned' Courtesy of UCLA

One of the most shameful episodes in Hollywood’s history is being examined in a new retrospective to screen at the Locarno Film Festival: Red & Black: Hollywood Left and the Blacklist. Speaking to Variety, the retrospective’s curator, Ehsan Khoshbakht, speaks about the inspiration for the program, which features the work of directors, writers and stars such as John Garfield, Joseph Losey, Dalton Trumbo, Dorothy Parker, Richard Wright and Charles Chaplin.

Related Stories

Anya Taylor-Joy Says 'Women Don't Method Act Because We Have Things to Take Care of and Can't Lose Our Minds' or Be 'Assholes' on Set