Oil tankers are again passing through the Strait of Hormuz this week as President Donald Trump ratchets up the pressure on Iran to stay away from the ships that transport around 20% of the world’s oil every day.

The number of tankers passing through the strait ticked up to 20% of its normal level on Monday, according to an analysis from Goldman Sachs. Some tankers have braved the strait by turning off their transponders. The increase in tanker traffic in the strait comes after nearly a week of oil flow had been effectively shut down due to the ongoing war in Iran.

Goldman Sachs: some oil is moving through the Strait of Hormuz pic.twitter.com/G396UEgdSj

— Brian Sozzi (@BrianSozzi) March 10, 2026

In an interview with CBS News on Monday afternoon, President Trump said he is considering taking control of the Strait of Hormuz and warned that the Iranian regime would be completely obliterated if it continued to threaten maritime traffic. Trump also suggested that the U.S. military is close to achieving its goals in “Operation Epic Fury” and added that the United States is “very far ahead of schedule” after initially predicting a four-to-five-week operation.

After Trump gave his optimistic update, the price of Brent crude plummeted, and stock prices ticked up. Later on Monday, Trump warned, “If Iran does anything that stops the flow of Oil within the Strait of Hormuz, they will be hit by the United States of America TWENTY TIMES HARDER than they have been hit thus far.”

“Additionally, we will take out easily destroyable targets that will make it virtually impossible for Iran to ever be built back, as a Nation, again — Death, Fire, and Fury will reign upon them — But I hope, and pray, that it does not happen!” Trump added.

Ali Larijani, a top Iranian official, shot back at Trump with a direct threat of his own aimed at the U.S. president.

“The Ashura-loving nation of Iran does not fear your paper threats,” Larijani said. “Even those greater than you could not eliminate the Iranian nation. Watch out for yourself—lest you be eliminated!”

FOLLOW THE DAILY WIRE’S LIVE UPDATES ON IRAN WAR

U.S. War Secretary Pete Hegsesth said during a press briefing that Tuesday would mark the most intense day of U.S. strikes yet, while Iran’s military capabilities continue to dwindle. Since the beginning of “Operation Epic Fury,” U.S. forces have hit over 5,000 targets in Iran, according to Adm. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

Americans are beginning to feel the effects of the ongoing war in Iran as gas prices jumped to their highest national average since 2022, with the conflict disrupting global oil flow. Brent crude reached nearly $120 per barrel on Monday — its highest price in nearly four years — before dropping late in the afternoon. President Trump promised on Sunday that oil prices “will drop rapidly when the destruction of the Iran nuclear threat is over.” He argued that the “short term” increase in prices “is a very small price to pay for U.S.A., and World, Safety and Peace.”

“ONLY FOOLS WOULD THINK DIFFERENTLY!” he added.

Just before Pixar celebrated their first big win of the year at the box office with “Hoppers,” Chief Creative Officer Pete Docter explained why the company decided to cut the gay storyline in the original film “Elio” last year.

“Hoppers” is being lauded because it doesn’t push any inkling of LGBT themes that have become quite common in animated films recently. “Elio,” meanwhile, flirted with the idea, and it was widely considered to be a box office flop.

The original narrative included tidbits about former director Adrian Molina’s experience growing up gay, as reported by The Wall Street Journal. But Docter said the studio opted to change it up because parents weren’t necessarily ready to have those discussions with their young children watching the film.

“We’re making a movie, not hundreds of millions of dollars of therapy,” the Pixar exec said. “As time’s gone on, I realized my job is to make sure the films appeal to everybody.”

The film tells the tale of an 11-year-old boy, Elio, who bonds with aliens. The outlet noted that the original storyline showed Elio raising a child in the future with a same sex partner.

Upon its release, The Hollywood Reporter described Elio as a “queer-coded character” whose “characterization gradually faded away throughout the production process.”

LGBT activists who worked on the film blamed these edits for its poor performance. “Suddenly, you remove this big, key piece, which is all about identity, and Elio just becomes about totally nothing,” one former Pixar artist told THR. “The Elio that is in theaters right now is far worse than Adrian’s best version of the original.” Another said the final character version was “generic.”

Meanwhile, there was speculation that “Elio” never took off because those “queer coded” themes were leaked to the media and parents were avoiding it.

After being understood as a hitmaker for years with beloved projects such as the “Toy Story” franchise beginning in 1995, “Monsters Inc” (2001), “Finding Nemo” (2003), “The Incredibles” (2004), “Up” (2009), “Inside Out,” (2015), and a slew of others, Pixar, which was acquired by Disney in 2006, seemed to lose its way by going too niche. It produced sequels to some of its most popular titles, but also came up with out-of-the-box concepts like the controversial “Turning Red” (2022), a movie about puberty.

Then there was that whole “Lightyear” same sex kiss fiasco in 2022, which proved that even Pixar films based on treasured IP weren’t guaranteed to hit, especially if they included topics parents didn’t want their kids to see.