History Film / TropicThunder

** Before his ArmoredClosetGay reveal, Alpa was also something of a straight man, pardon the pun. The Director's Cut adds a few more scenes of unprofessionalism on his part though.

'''Sandusky:''' What does that even ''mean!?''

** When the explosives expert realizes Cockburn and the Actors are missing and they'll have to go into the jungle, he has an absolute look of horror on his face. [[spoiler:It's not PTSD - it's the fact he's NEVER been outside of the states.]]

* ArmorPiercingQuestion: "Or are you a dude who has no idea what dude he is, and claims to know what dude he is, by playing other dudes?" Basically, Speedman is pointing out that Kirk [[MethodActing method acts]] so hard that he loses his true self. During their conversation Kirk stays in character because he can't remember who he is any more and breaks down in dramatic tears, [[ShapeshifterSwanSong going through all the people he's gotten in-character as]] before declaring he's a nobody.

* ShapeShifterSwanSong: Near the end of the movie, Lazarus briefly cycles through some of his previous roles before finally breaking character and assuming his own identity.

* ArmorPiercingQuestion: "Or are you a dude who has no idea what dude he is, and claims to know what dude he is, by playing other dudes?" Basically, Speedman is pointing out that Kirk [[MethodActing method acts]] so hard that he loses his true self. During their conversation Kirk stays in character because he can't remember who he is any more and breaks down, declaring he's a nobody.

* ArmorPiercingQuestion: "Or are you a dude who has no idea what dude he is, and claims to know what dude he is, by playing other dudes?" Basically, Speedman is pointing out that Kirk [[MethodActing method acts]] so hard that he loses his true self. During their conversation Kirk stays in character because he can't remember who he is any more and breaks down crying saying that he's a nobody.

Naturally, nothing goes as planned, much to Cockburn's frustration. In a matter of days, ''Tropic Thunder'' is way over budget and the actors won't cooperate. Having finally become fed up with the actors, and following the suggestions of Four Leaf, who's on the set serving as the film's consultant, he decides to drop the actors in the jungle and simulate realistic warfare, hoping to get real emotions from them. This plan drives production even further off the rails when the cast runs afoul of a Laotian drug ring known as Flaming Dragon, and the actors end up having to become the soldiers they're playing, despite not knowing how to use their weapons or navigate through the jungle.

* PlotArmor: Unless you're Damien Cockburn, pretty much ''everybody'' including the bad guys are hit with this.

** Creator/RobertDowneyJr as Kirk Lazarus as Lincoln Osiris. A black guy acting stereotypically black? Not funny. A white guy acting stereotypically black? Really not funny. A white guy who's dedicated enough to convince himself that he actually ''is'' a black guy, to the point that ''he lectures an actual black guy who uses [[NWordPrivileges the n word]]?'' So ridiculous it can't be taken seriously.

'''Kevin:''' I was talking to whoever was listening.

** Tugg dropping to his knees with his arms out in a [[CrucifiedHeroShot crucifixion pose]], is a reference to Creator/WillemDafoe in ''Film/{{Platoon}}''. And then looking ridiculous as he overacts getting shot.
*** Although the movie is mainly an exaggerated spoof on ''Film/HeartsOfDarknessAFilmmakersApocalypse'', Damnien's [[EnforcedMethodActing Enforced]] and accidentally FatalMethodActing he subjects Tugg's group to in order to get better performances seems heavily based on the TroubledProduction of ''Platoon'': Creator/OliverStone infamously subjected the actors to very stressful boot camp and sent them off into a trip through the jungle in which Dafoe got very sick, and during filming Creator/KeithDavid saved Creator/CharlieSheen from falling off an unstable helicopter.

** When Tugg is [[OutrunTheFireball outrunning the exploding bridge]], Tugg is knocked in a similar way that Creator/TomCruise was knocked into a car in ''Film/MissionImpossibleIII''. See also OutrunTheFireball.

* StunnedSilence: of the stunned horror variety from the Flaming Dragon henchman on phone with Les Grossman after his "[[ClusterFBomb fuck your own face]]" tirade.

** After much idiocy, tears, sadness, and patheticness, all of the cast does this.
** Hats off to the much-beleagured OnlySaneMan Kevin Sandusky in particular, though. He [[spoiler: devises the plan to rescue Speedman, takes charge whilst Speedman, Lazarus, and Portnoy have their breakdowns, leads the escape from the heroin processing plant, survives being hit by an RPG whilst driving away in a truck.]]
* TroubledProduction: A massive InUniverse example. The movie proper starts off with the crew of Tropic Thunder wasting $4 millions dollars worth of explosives after the [[PoorCommunicationKills explosives man mistakes Cockburn's ranting as the signal to set them off]]. As a whole, the film parodies the problems that plagued ''Film/ApocalypseNow''.
* TrouserSpace: with [[FanDisservice Jack Black's pistol]], implied to have been up his ass. Played with, as it takes him until the end of the gunfight he's standing in the midst of to actually retrieve it.

-->'''Kevin:''' Now, if you recall that whole hullabaloo where Hollywood was split into schisms, some studios backing Blu-ray disc, others backing HD DVD. People thought it would come down to pixel rate or refresh rate, and they're pretty much the same. What it came down to was a combination between gamers and porn. Now, whichever format porno backs is usually the one that becomes the uh most successful. But, you know, Sony, every UsefulNotes/PlayStation3 has a Blu-ray in it.\\

* ArmorPiercingQuestion: "Or are you a dude who has no idea what dude he is, and claims to know what dude he is, by playing other dudes?" Basically, Speedman is pointing out that Kirk [[MethodActing method acts]] so hard that he loses his true self. During their conversation Kirk stays in character because he can't remember who he is any more and breaks down crying saying that he's a no body.