History Main / HorribleHollywood

Essentially, it's the entertainment industry depicted as a {{Crapsack World}} or CrapsaccharineWorld populated solely by horrible {{Jerkass}}es.

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* ''Series/TheLarrySandersShow'' mostly plays this trope straight, but it's nevertheless quite [[AffectionateParody affectionate]] all the same. The main characters (both on-screen and off) of Larry's talk-show and his guests are certainly far from being free of egotism, insecurity, scheming, backbiting, troubled personal lives or cynicism, but at the same time they're not really malevolent either; they're just people with frailties and weaknesses like anyone else.
* ''{{Series/Angel}}'' has a couple of episodes dealing with this, mostly with Cordelia's desire to become an actress. The antagonist of the first episode is a vampire who preys on wannabe starlets. A later episode revolves around an actress who's aware that her looks are starting to fade, and she considers becoming a vampire in order to maintain her youth (and by extension, her career) forever.

* This is the basic premise of ''WesternAnimation/BojackHorseman'', detailing the shattering life of a washed-up FunnyAnimal actor and his desperate attempts to be happy in a life he hates. Special attention is put to the damage done to child actors, which haunts Bojack in particular since he worked on a sitcom full of them.

** [[DefiedTrope Defied]] in the case of [[Creator/AshleyJohnson]], who started filming her first movie and TV series roles at age 7 and has been working in front of the camera or as voice actor every year since then, but who says that her childhood wasn't at all like "the horror stories you hear about child actors." (Possibly because her family moved from California to Michigan for stretches of her childhood, and because her older brother and older sister also worked as actors during their teens.)

* ''WebVideo/CriticalRole'' has some RealitySubtext in this regard as well, due to all of the players being steadily working actors living in L.A. - though in a milder form, since most of the cast are working as voice actors and voice directors (and largely got their start in video game production and/or anime dubbing), not directly in Hollywood. Still, they will occasionally mention how incredibly lucky they were to find such a close-knit, genuine and supportive group of friends not just in their adult work environment[[note]] (Most people don't make any more close friends after college.) [[/note]] but in L.A.'s cut-throat entertainment industry. Since the genre of the mothership show is high fantasy, the circumstances of the player's day jobs mostly just come up when they're speaking out-of-character (e.g. in the after-show ''Talks Machina'' or the indepth personal interviews titled ''Between the Sheets'') or in the psychological horror one-shot adventure ''Liam's Quest: Full Circle'' where the cast play child versions of themselves, traversing a post-apocalyptic nightmare version of the Hollywood area and their usual recording studios. While most of the cast just talk about being awkward/nerdy kids dealing with regular-type pubescent angst and loneliness, [[Creator/SamRiegel Sam]] mentions that he didn't have any friends as a young child because he was too busy working on Broadway to go to school. And [[Creator/TaliesinJaffe Taliesin]], [[FormerChildStar who was put in front of a camera (naked!) when he was 5 by his film-business parents and according to IMDB kept working steadily until he hit puberty]], speaks with a certain bitterness about the fact that he was a very small, cherubic and "marketable" child.[[note]] (One wonders if the "recovering teenage goth" thing may not have been his way of ensuring that he stopped being so cute and so could at least attend highschool like a normal kid...) [[/note]] In the end, during his love-letter to his friends, [[Creator/LiamOBrian Liam]] even congratulates Taliesin specifically on having survived a Hollywood childhood with his heart and spirit intact.

* ''WebVideo/CriticalRole'' has some RealitySubtext in this regard as well, due to all of the players being steadily working actors living in L.A. - though in a milder form, since most of the cast are working as voice actors and voice directors (and largely got their start in video game production and/or anime dubbing), not directly in Hollywood. Still, they will occasionally mention how incredibly lucky they were to find such a close-knit, genuine and supportive group of friends not just in their adult work environment[[note]] (Most people don't make any more close friends after college.) [[/note]] but in L.A.'s cut-throat entertainment industry. Since the genre of the mothership show is high fantasy, the circumstances of the player's day jobs mostly just come up when they're speaking out-of-character (e.g. in the after-show ''Talks Machina'' or the indepth personal interviews titled ''Between the Sheets'') or in the psychological horror one-shot adventure ''Liam's Quest: Full Circle'' where the cast play child versions of themselves. While most of the cast just talk about being awkward/nerdy kids dealing with regular-type pubescent angst and loneliness, [[creator/SamRiegel Sam]] mentions that he didn't have any friends as a young child because he was too busy working on Broadway to go to school. And [[creator/TaliesinJaffe Taliesin]], [[FormerChildStar who was put in front of a camera (naked!) when he was 5 by his film-business parents and according to IMDB kept working steadily until he hit puberty]], speaks with a certain bitterness about the fact that he was a very small, cherubic and "marketable" child.[[note]] (One wonders if the "recovering teenage goth" thing may not have been his way of ensuring that he stopped being so cute and so could at least attend highschool like a normal kid...) [[/note]] In the end, during his love-letter to his friends, [[creator/LiamO'Brian Liam]] even congratulates Taliesin specifically on having survived a Hollywood childhood with his heart and spirit intact.
--->'''Liam:''' Taliesin. My friend. At a time when I knew many fascinating people, you were easily the most fascinating of all. Somehow, a heart knocked around by the industry that birthed you came out a tender one. I was richer for having known you. Thank you, my friend.

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* ''Literature/TheShining'': Despite the novel taking place in the Rocky Mountains, this trope still plays a minor part in the backstory, specifically in the background of the Overlooks most infamous owner, the UsefulNotes/HowardHughes Expy Horace Derwent. One of Derwent's many poorly planned investments was an ailing movie studio that had once been successfull making sappy family films but hit hard times when their most beloved child star O.D.'d on heroin at a party, with the studio covering up her death as a "wasting sickness" she got while entertaining orphans at a children's hospital.

** Troy McClure is a washed-up movie star whose career [[IncrediblyLamePun tanked]] after he was [[NoodleIncident caught]] [[BestialityIsDepraved sleeping with the fishes.]] He is shown to be incredibly vain and self-centered, and incapable of normal adult relationships. It doesn't help that his agent had all but abandoned him. He dates and eventually marries Selma in an attempt to salvage his career, but then his agent tries to pressure him into having a baby with her. She doesn't want to bring a child into a sham marriage, and she leaves him. [[ResetButton And once again, his agent abandons him, leaving him to do "educational" films and infomercials]].

WRONG! In Horrible Hollywood, the actors and actresses are brain-dead, spoiled, have a tendency towards fighting the law, like to engage in occasional sexual deviancy, and are [[HookersAndBlow addicted to various illegal substances and/or sex workers]]. Marriages rarely last more than a few years (and sometimes just a few hours), and almost everyone has ''at least'' [[SerialSpouse two divorces and remarriages under their belts]], and usually more. Everyone fears [[WhiteDwarfStarlet growing old and losing their fame]], so plastic surgery and desperate attempts to seem young abound. The directors are [[PrimaDonnaDirector egomaniac control freaks]] who wear funny pants and throw [[HairTriggerTemper petty tantrums]] at the slightest provocation. The assistants are overworked, underpaid, and might be [[DeadpanSnarker snarky towards the talent]], but this won't stop them from ruthlessly trying to climb the ladder -- and in this depraved environment, climbing to the top tends to be a [[CastingCouch horizontal sort of activity]]. The fans are insane and you might gain some [[StalkerWithACrush stalkers]]. The executives are fond of [[ExecutiveMeddling excessive meddling]], [[UsefulNotes/HollywoodAccounting screwing artists out of their royalties]] or [[DirtyOldMan otherwise,]] and/or are just plain [[CorruptCorporateExecutive corrupt]], and have people fired on the spot for being insufficiently sycophantic or causing some minor inconvenience. [[WritersSuck Writers are second-class citizens]] and {{Butt Monkey}}s. [[MenGetOldWomenGetReplaced Women who age and lose their sex appeal have trouble finding work, while aging barely has any affect on the career prospects of their male counterparts.]] Child stars almost always go off the deep end in some way(s) [[FormerChildStar when they grow up]]. Absolutely everyone -- even those not actually ''in'' the entertainment industry -- is a StepfordSmiler [[SuchAPhony Phony]] who may be all smiles and charm and obsequiousness to your face, but only because they secretly hate you and can't wait for you to turn your back so they can stick a knife into it. Everywhere you look, crippling insecurities and neuroses are constantly being masked with bombastic, preening arrogance and ego.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheClevelandShow'': The Browns briefly relocate to Los Angeles, and Cleveland quickly discovers that most of Hollywood is just pollution, wildfires, MASSIVE traffic problems, homelessness, shallow celebrities, crime, and grifters. Then they visit one of Hollywoods legal marijuana shops, and Cleveland immediatley changes his mind, proclaiming the city to be amazing.

* ''Literature/TheShining'': Despite the novel taking place in the Rocky Mountains, this trope still plays a minor part in the backstory, specifically in the background of the Overlooks most infamous owner, the UsefulNotes/HowardHughes Expy Horace Derwent. One of Derwents many poorly planned investments was an ailing movie studio that had once been successfull making sappy family films but hit hard times when their most beloved child star O.D'd on heroin at a party, with the studio covering up her death as a "wasting sickness" she got while entertaining orphans at a childrens hospital.

WRONG! In Horrible Hollywood, the actors and actresses are brain-dead, spoiled, have a tendency towards fighting the law, like to engage in occasional sexual deviancy, and are [[HookersAndBlow addicted to various illegal substances and/or sex workers]]. Marriages rarely last more than a few years (and sometimes just a few hours), and almost everyone has ''at least'' [[SerialSpouse two divorces and remarriages under their belts]], and usually more. Everyone fears [[WhiteDwarfStarlet growing old and losing their fame]], so plastic surgery and desperate attempts to seem young abound. The directors are [[PrimaDonnaDirector egomaniac control freaks]] who wear funny pants and throw [[HairTriggerTemper petty tantrums]] at the slightest provocation. The assistants are overworked, underpaid, and might be [[DeadpanSnarker snarky towards the talent]], but this won't stop them from ruthlessly trying to climb the ladder -- and in this depraved environment, climbing to the top tends to be a [[CastingCouch horizontal sort of activity]]. The fans are insane and you might gain some [[StalkerWithACrush stalkers]]. The executives are fond of [[ExecutiveMeddling excessive meddling]], [[UsefulNotes/HollywoodAccounting screwing artists out of their royalties]] or [[DirtyOldMan otherwise,]] and/or are just plain [[CorruptCorporateExecutive corrupt]], and have people fired on the spot for being insufficiently sycophantic or causing some minor inconvenience. [[WritersSuck Writers are second-class citizens]] and {{Butt Monkey}}s. [[MenGetOldWomenGetReplaced Women who age and lose their sex appeal have trouble finding work, while aging barely has any affect on the career prospects of their male counterparts.]] Child star almost always go off the deep end in some way(s) [[FormerChildStar when they grow up]]. Absolutely everyone -- even those not actually ''in'' the entertainment industry -- is a StepfordSmiler [[SuchAPhony Phony]] who may be all smiles and charm and obsequiousness to your face, but only because they secretly hate you and can't wait for you to turn your back so they can stick a knife into it. Everywhere you look, crippling insecurities and neuroses are constantly being masked with bombastic, preening arrogance and ego.

WRONG! In Horrible Hollywood, the actors and actresses are brain-dead, spoiled, have a tendency towards fighting the law, like to engage in occasional sexual deviancy, and are [[HookersAndBlow addicted to various illegal substances and/or sex workers]]. Marriages rarely last more than a few years (and sometimes just a few hours), and almost everyone has ''at least'' [[SerialSpouse two divorces and remarriages under their belts]], and usually more. Everyone fears [[WhiteDwarfStarlet growing old and losing their fame]], so plastic surgery and desperate attempts to seem young abound. The directors are [[PrimaDonnaDirector egomaniac control freaks]] who wear funny pants and throw [[HairTriggerTemper petty tantrums]] at the slightest provocation. The assistants are overworked, underpaid, and might be [[DeadpanSnarker snarky towards the talent]], but this won't stop them from ruthlessly trying to climb the ladder -- and in this depraved environment, climbing to the top tends to be a [[CastingCouch horizontal sort of activity]]. The fans are insane and you might gain some [[StalkerWithACrush stalkers]]. The executives are fond of [[ExecutiveMeddling excessive meddling]], [[UsefulNotes/HollywoodAccounting screwing artists out of their royalties]] or [[DirtyOldMan otherwise,]] and/or are just plain [[CorruptCorporateExecutive corrupt]], and have people fired on the spot for being insufficiently sycophantic or causing some minor inconvenience. [[WritersSuck Writers are second-class citizens]] and {{Butt Monkey}}s. [[MenGetOldWomenGetReplaced Women who age and lose their sex appeal have trouble finding work, while aging barely has any affect on the career prospects of their male counterparts.]] Absolutely everyone -- even those not actually ''in'' the entertainment industry -- is a StepfordSmiler [[SuchAPhony Phony]] who may be all smiles and charm and obsequiousness to your face, but only because they secretly hate you and can't wait for you to turn your back so they can stick a knife into it. Everywhere you look, crippling insecurities and neuroses are constantly being masked with bombastic, preening arrogance and ego.

WRONG! In Horrible Hollywood, the actors and actresses are brain-dead, spoiled, have a tendency towards fighting the law, like to engage in occasional sexual deviancy, and are [[HookersAndBlow addicted to various illegal substances and/or sex workers]]. Marriages rarely last more than a few years (and sometimes just a few hours), and almost everyone has ''at least'' [[SerialSpouse two divorces and remarriages under their belts]], and usually more. Everyone fears [[WhiteDwarfStarlet growing old and losing their fame]], so plastic surgery and desperate attempts to seem young abound. The directors are [[PrimaDonnaDirector egomaniac control freaks]] who wear funny pants and throw [[HairTriggerTemper petty tantrums]] at the slightest provocation. The assistants are overworked, underpaid, and might be [[DeadpanSnarker snarky towards the talent]], but this won't stop them from ruthlessly trying to climb the ladder -- and in this depraved environment, climbing to the top tends to be a [[CastingCouch horizontal sort of activity]]. The fans are insane and you might gain some [[StalkerWithACrush stalkers]]. The executives are fond of [[ExecutiveMeddling excessive meddling]], [[UsefulNotes/HollywoodAccounting screwing artists out of their royalties]] or [[DirtyOldMan otherwise,]] and/or are just plain [[CorruptCorporateExecutive corrupt]], and have people fired on the spot for being insufficiently sycophantic or causing some minor inconvenience. [[WritersSuck Writers are second-class citizens]] and {{Butt Monkey}}s. Absolutely everyone -- even those not actually ''in'' the entertainment industry -- is a StepfordSmiler [[SuchAPhony Phony]] who may be all smiles and charm and obsequiousness to your face, but only because they secretly hate you and can't wait for you to turn your back so they can stick a knife into it. Everywhere you look, crippling insecurities and neuroses are constantly being masked with bombastic, preening arrogance and ego.

WRONG! In Horrible Hollywood, the actors and actresses are brain-dead, spoiled, have a tendency towards fighting the law, like to engage in occasional sexual deviancy, and are [[HookersAndBlow addicted to various illegal substances and/or sex workers]]. Marriages rarely last more than a few years, and almost everyone has ''at least'' [[SerialSpouse two divorces and remarriages under their belts]], and usually more. Everyone fears [[WhiteDwarfStarlet growing old and losing their fame]], so plastic surgery and desperate attempts to seem young abound. The directors are [[PrimaDonnaDirector egomaniac control freaks]] who wear funny pants and throw [[HairTriggerTemper petty tantrums]] at the slightest provocation. The assistants are overworked, underpaid, and might be [[DeadpanSnarker snarky towards the talent]], but this won't stop them from ruthlessly trying to climb the ladder -- and in this depraved environment, climbing to the top tends to be a [[CastingCouch horizontal sort of activity]]. The fans are insane and you might gain some [[StalkerWithACrush stalkers]]. The executives are fond of [[ExecutiveMeddling excessive meddling]], [[UsefulNotes/HollywoodAccounting screwing artists out of their royalties]] or [[DirtyOldMan otherwise,]] and/or are just plain [[CorruptCorporateExecutive corrupt]], and have people fired on the spot for being insufficiently sycophantic or causing some minor inconvenience. [[WritersSuck Writers are second-class citizens]] and {{Butt Monkey}}s. Absolutely everyone -- even those not actually ''in'' the entertainment industry -- is a StepfordSmiler [[SuchAPhony Phony]] who may be all smiles and charm and obsequiousness to your face, but only because they secretly hate you and can't wait for you to turn your back so they can stick a knife into it. Everywhere you look, crippling insecurities and neuroses are constantly being masked with bombastic, preening arrogance and ego.

WRONG! In Horrible Hollywood, the actors and actresses are brain-dead, spoiled, have a tendency towards fighting the law, like to engage in occasional sexual deviancy, and are [[HookersAndBlow addicted to various illegal substances and/or sex workers]]. Everyone fears [[WhiteDwarfStarlet growing old and losing their fame]], so plastic surgery and desperate attempts to seem young abound. The directors are [[PrimaDonnaDirector egomaniac control freaks]] who wear funny pants and throw [[HairTriggerTemper petty tantrums]] at the slightest provocation. The assistants are overworked, underpaid, and might be [[DeadpanSnarker snarky towards the talent]], but this won't stop them from ruthlessly trying to climb the ladder -- and in this depraved environment, climbing to the top tends to be a [[CastingCouch horizontal sort of activity]]. The fans are insane and you might gain some [[StalkerWithACrush stalkers]]. The executives are fond of [[ExecutiveMeddling excessive meddling]], [[UsefulNotes/HollywoodAccounting screwing artists out of their royalties]] or [[DirtyOldMan otherwise,]] and/or are just plain [[CorruptCorporateExecutive corrupt]], and have people fired on the spot for being insufficiently sycophantic or causing some minor inconvenience. [[WritersSuck Writers are second-class citizens]] and {{Butt Monkey}}s. Absolutely everyone -- even those not actually ''in'' the entertainment industry -- is a StepfordSmiler [[SuchAPhony Phony]] who may be all smiles and charm and obsequiousness to your face, but only because they secretly hate you and can't wait for you to turn your back so they can stick a knife into it. Everywhere you look, crippling insecurities and neuroses are constantly being masked with bombastic, preening arrogance and ego.

%% Administrivia/ZeroContextExample entries are not allowed on wiki pages. All such entries have been commented out. Add context to the entries before uncommenting them.

* In the Creator/NeilGaiman story "The Goldfish Pool and Other Stories," a young British writer is invited to Hollywood to adapt a novel he wrote into a movie. He's immediately thrust into a Kafkaesque cycle of meetings with people he never sees again, while ExectutiveMeddling mutates his story into several different scripts (a horror story called ''Sons Of Man'' gradually becomes a feel-good comedy called ''I Knew The Bride When She Used To Rock And Roll''). Throughout, he ponders the story of a silent-film starlet who committed suicide in his hotel.

[[quoteright:360:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Hollywood_Sign_1970s_9194.jpg]]

* ''WesternAnimation/{{Duckman}}'': Downplayed in "Dammit Hollywood". All the usual negative aspects are there, showing an industry run by rich morons who couldn't find their butts with both hands, populated by self-absorbed egomaniac actors and sleazy directors, all wrapped up in a shallow culture of glitz and lies. That said, it's shown that as scummy as many of them are, a lot of them do want to bring joy and magic through movies, even if it doesn't always work out that way due to the misguided attempts of appealing to a broad audience. They're also shown to care about eachother, in their own way.

WRONG! In Horrible Hollywood, the actors and actresses are brain-dead, spoiled, have a tendency towards fighting the law, like to engage in occasional sexual deviancy, and are [[HookersAndBlow addicted to various illegal substances and/or sex workers]]. Everyone fears [[WhiteDwarfStarlet growing old and losing their fame]], so plastic surgery and desperate attempts to seem young abound. The directors are [[PrimaDonnaDirector egomaniac control freaks]] who wear funny pants and throw [[HairTriggerTemper petty tantrums]] at the slightest provocation. The assistants are overworked, underpaid, and might be [[DeadpanSnarker snarky towards the talent]], but this won't stop them from ruthlessly trying to climb the ladder -- and in this depraved environment, climbing to the top tends to be a [[CastingCouch horizontal sort of activity]]. The fans are insane and you might gain some [[StalkerWithACrush stalkers]]. The executives are fond of [[ExecutiveMeddling excessive meddling]], [[UsefulNotes/HollywoodAccounting screwing artists out of their royalties]] [[DirtyOldMan or otherwise,]] and/or are just plain [[CorruptCorporateExecutive corrupt]], and have people fired on the spot for being insufficiently sycophantic or causing some minor inconvenience. [[WritersSuck Writers are second-class citizens]] and {{Butt Monkey}}s. Absolutely everyone -- even those not actually ''in'' the entertainment industry -- is a StepfordSmiler [[SuchAPhony Phony]] who may be all smiles and charm and obsequiousness to your face, but only because they secretly hate you and can't wait for you to turn your back so they can stick a knife into it. Everywhere you look, crippling insecurities and neuroses are constantly being masked with bombastic, preening arrogance and ego.

* The Manga/TokyoMewMew fanfic [[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/8902209/1/Masquerade Masquerade]] plays it in a very [[TearJerker realistic and creepy way]], main character Zakuro feeling [[AloneInACrowd isolated]] and reflecting how her dreams of being a model turned into this and how she is [[DespairEventHorizon unable to go back to her old life]] and how she always has to be [[StepfordSmiler careful because of]] [[MaliciousSlander rumors]] and {{paparazzi}}. It is so much that she seems to be building to a major [[FreakOut breakdown]] or [[LossOfIdentity identity crisis]].

* ''Literature/LittleStar'' portrays the Swedish music industry as this. It starts with Lennart Cederstrom, a retired pop singer who was part of a duo with his wife Laila in TheSeventies, discovering an infant girl in the woods, naming her Theres, and becoming a [[StageMom Stage Dad]] as he tries to raise her into a great singer without letting her have any contact with the outside world. [[spoiler:He never teaches her basic empathy or understanding of metaphor, however, and Theres brutally murders him and Laila over a tragic misunderstanding. (You see, Theres was told that love is something found inside the mind, and so [[LiteralMetaphor she went looking]] [[YourHeadASplode for that love]].)]] From there, we get Max Hansen, a sleazy and perverted talent agent who attempts to take advantage of the young Theres in more ways than one. Theres, on the other hand, still as emotionally detached as ever, violently attacks him when he tries to rape her, causing him to develop masochistic tendencies. And finally, as Theres becomes famous, she transforms her [[LoonyFan devoted fan club]] into a {{cult}}.