It seems Elon Musk has earned himself another fanboy in the form of Netflix's co-CEO Reed Hastings.
The South-African native finalized his takeover of Twitter on October 27, around six months after first starting the process. In the time since the takeover, the 51-year-old has implemented a range of controversial policies - including eliminating working from home and pushing an "extremely hardcore" work environment, as previously reported.
In fact, following these changes the head of Twitter France handed in his resignation, updating his followers with a Tweet that read: "It's over. Pride, honor, and mission accomplished. Goodbye #twitterfrance. What an adventure! What a team! What encounters! Thank you to all for these 7 amazing and intense years."
Though evidently Musk still has some fans over at Netflix - Hastings included. The Netflix co-founder was appearing at The New York Times' DealBook Summit on Wednesday, where he called the new Twitter CEO "the bravest, most creative person on the planet."
He also added, per Deadline: "What he's done in multiple areas is phenomenal. His style is different. I'm trying to be, like, a steady, respectable leader up here and he's just out there," much to the delight of the laughing audience.
Hastings went on to add that the $44 billion that Musk spent on his Twitter takeover "could have built a mile-long yacht," and that he should be praised for instead choosing to do "good for the planet," via CNBC.
Andrew Ross Sorokin - who moderated the event - then asked Hastings whether he believed Musk was genuinely making a positive contribution to the planet, with Hastings replying that he was "100% convinced that he is trying to help the world in all of his endeavors." He also added that it was clear that Musk "believes in free speech and the powers of democracy."
Hastings said he was "deeply respectful" of Musk, before going on to say: "People are sooo picky on, the blue check mark, and yes he's making a mess of some things. Can you give the guy a break? This guy just spent all this money trying to make things better for democracy and society, to have a more open platform, and I am sympathetic to that agenda."
Netflix - akin to Twitter - has been embroiled in its own controversies, especially after it chose not to remove comedian Dave Chappelle's 2021 comedy special The Closer, which has been labeled as transphobic by many critics.
When asked about this, Hastings stated: "Our brand is trying to be the most exciting entertainment brand in the world and Chappelle is dead-center for us. He is the best, or one of the best and that special was one of the most entertaining and watched specials we've ever had. We would do it again and again."
Musk has since tweeted about Hastings' words of praise, writing: "Wow, thank you for the kind words [Reed Hastings]."
He has continued to maintain his desire to make Twitter a platform promoting the freedom of speech, calling himself a "free speech absolutist," via Insider.
