Burn It Down: Power, Complicity, and a Call for Change in Hollywood

by Maureen Ryan, Samara Naeymi (Reader)

MP3 CD Format An exposé of patterns of harassment and bias in Hollywood, the grassroots reforms under way, and the labor and activist revolutions that recent scandals have ignited. It is never just One Bad Man. Abuse and exploitation of workers is baked into the very foundations of the entertainment industry. To break the cycle and make change that sticks, it's important to stop looking at headline-making stories as individual events. Instead, one must look closely at the bigger picture, to see how abusers are created, fed, rewarded, allowed to persist, and, with the right tools, how they can be excised. In  Burn It Down , veteran reporter Maureen Ryan does just that. She draws on decades of experience to connect the dots and illuminate the deeper forces sustaining Hollywood's corrosive culture. Fresh reporting sheds light on problematic situations at companies like Lucasfilm and shows like Saturday Night Live, The Goldbergs, Lost, Sleepy Hollow, Curb Your Enthusiasm and more. Interviews with actors and famous creatives like Evan Rachel Wood, Harold Perrineau, Damon Lindelof, and Orlando Jones abound. Ryan dismantles, one by one, the myths that the entertainment industry promotes about itself, which have allowed abusers to thrive and the industry to avoid accountability--myths about Hollywood as a meritocracy, what it takes to be creative, the value of human dignity, and more. Weaving together insights from industry insiders, historical context, and pop-culture analysis,  Burn It Down  paints a groundbreaking and urgently necessary portrait of what's gone wrong in the entertainment world--and how we can fix it.

Genres: Nonfiction, Audiobook, Film, Pop Culture, Feminism, History, Tv

1 pages, Audio CD

First published June 6, 2023

About the author

Maureen “Mo” Ryan is a Contributing Editor at Vanity Fair and has written for EW, the New York Times, Salon, GQ, Vulture, Variety and the Chicago Tribune. Her reporting on bias in Hollywood is featured in the documentaries This Changes Everything and We Need to Talk About Cosby. She has served on the jury of the Peabody Awards, has won multiple Los Angeles Press Club Awards and in 2013, Complex magazine named her best TV writer in America. She is a graduate of Washington University in St. Louis and received her Masters from Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism.

She was also founding editor of The Official X-Files Magazine and can still remember Walter Skinner's middle name (Sergei!).

Reviews

[Rachel L · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read books like this and wonder why people still want to work in the entertainment industry.

My rating is more a reflection of my overall enjoyment of this book and not a reflection of the content of this book.

When I read the Vanity Fair article on Lost (which is an excerpt from this book) I was shocked and horrified at the treatment of the various cast and crew on the show. It made me said these people had these experiences on something I loved watching, but a lot of what was said made sense. Harold Perrineau leaving the show in the second season was always perplexing to me, and then reading the real reasons why everything clicked into place.

I also mostly wanted to read the chapters on Sleepy Hollow because I love actress Nicole Beharie and knew some sort of mistreatment of her went down on that show. And this book was proof of how she was treated badly on the show and how it blacklisted her for years after. Reading this was infuriating and enraging.

I do think the book was too dense and there was a lot of name dropping of people in the industry as if the reader is supposed to know who they are (spoiler, most of the time I did not). While covering tough subjects there was a bit of hope thrown in at the end but my main takeaway is there's terrible people everywhere and it is incredibly hard to hold them accountable for their bad behavior.

[Caroline · Rating 5 out of 5]

So much about the entertainment industry is unknown to us—and that’s just how Hollywood’s most powerful want it. Journalist Maureen Ryan, however, does not, and her Burn It Down is a jaw-dropping and damning portrait of a dysfunctional place. The dysfunction goes beyond the casting couch to all kinds of abuse from showrunners, directors, and executives. Their targets are too frequently assistants; writers; and sometimes, depending on amount of cachet, actors. These problems are systemic and in desperate need of being confronted head on, which Ryan has no trouble doing.

To be clear, not every workplace in Hollywood is abusive. However, many are, and the abuse exists on actual sets in addition to production companies, networks, and studios. Ryan says that every person she knows in the industry (and it’s a lot, as the entertainment industry has been her journalistic focus for years) has worked in a fear-driven workplace at least once. Victims have little to no recourse in part because of the unconventionality of show-business workplaces; these can be looser, tending toward an anything-goes cocktail-party environment. The situation presents a terrible dilemma: Victims must either tolerate mistreatment or give up and start over in another career unrelated to show business (which is impossible for celebrities who’ve reached a certain level of fame).

Burn It Down is a really aware, tuned-in nonfiction. Published in 2023, it’s also current, with references to incidents as late as 2022. Ryan interviewed more than one hundred people at all levels of the industry throughout 2021 and 2022, and she quoted them liberally. The topic is a heavy one, but the reading experience isn’t—this author has a likably casual and intelligent voice similar to that of Anne Helen Petersen and Jill Filipovic. Ryan’s commentary shows someone who’s perceptive and introspective, as revealed in occasional asides where she expresses regret for past erroneous beliefs.

She homes in on a few major problems: racism in casting and behind the scenes; rampant abuse of lower-tier employees (e.g., assistants and writers); sexism in the highest tiers; blacklisting of those who speak out; poor regulation of child acting; and the toxicity of comedy and of comedy shows, such as Saturday Night Live. She also discusses certain individuals at length. Too many executives and showrunners enjoy the protection that comes with being part of a good ol’ boys club.

Contrary to what readers may think, writing for TV and working as an assistant aren’t plum jobs. They’re far from lucrative and glamorous, and they aren’t as fun as they sound. At the same time, the line of people wanting these jobs is long, so employees are throw-aways, easily replaced if they quit or are fired. This reality feeds dysfunction: Assistants and writers are chronically undervalued, shamefully underpaid (many have to work a second job to afford rent), harassed, humiliated, and taken for granted. One assistant upgrades the label for what assistants endure: It’s not “abuse”; it’s “occupational hazing.” The trend of shorter seasons may be disappointing and frustrating for viewers, but it’s even more so for writers because they’re left with no salary for a greater part of the year. Plummeting residual pay is salt in the wound. Bigotry seeps into this aspect of the industry too, in who gets hired to write in the first place. It’s stunningly difficult for those from historically excluded groups to earn a seat at the writers’ table.

Unsurprisingly, the lack of diversity on writing teams reveals itself in the product. Although Hollywood is getting a tiny bit better about casting diversely, most shows and movies still default cisgender white, and when actors of color and other excluded groups are cast, they remain peripheral characters. Additionally, they tend to be slotted in carelessly, as if showrunners realized at the last minute that they forgot to tick the “diversity box” and so simply swapped out a white actor for an actor of color. This kind of afterthought casting means the storylines of nonwhite characters almost always lack complexity and an authentic portrayal of their lived experiences as members of a historically excluded group. Much about this problem could be solved with a team of writers that’s at least half diverse, and for stories centered entirely on a particular group, a team of writers that’s also entirely part of that group. The challenge is getting executives to care—there’s no incentive if shows are money-making hits despite flaws.

Where actors are concerned, Burn It Down discusses the wrongdoings of some, but it’s more concerned with the industry’s wrongdoings against them. In two prime examples, Ryan details astonishing instances of frequent racism (both in the storytelling and in how the actors were treated) that occurred on show sets Lost and Sleepy Hollow. If you watched Lost and wondered, as I did, why it devolved into the Jack, Kate, and Sawyer show, the information is here. If you watched Sleepy Hollow and wondered why the black female detective, despite being a fan favorite, soon ended up playing second fiddle to her white male co-star, that information is here too. Interestingly (and maybe karmically), after these things happened, both shows went straight down the drain.

The book later examines the lax regulation of child acting. Protections for underage actors are missing or at best, scarily weak:

Laws have been passed that regulate, among other things, how many hours kids can work and what should be done with their income. But here’s just one indication of how profoundly broken this part of the system can be: a 2012 California law designed to protect industry children from predators was, for years, disregarded, by both the industry and the criminal justice system.

Those working with minors are also required to get fingerprinted and pass an FBI background check, but this requirement is enforced inconsistently. A few former child actors have been vocal about the abuse of this young subset, but it’s notable that these vocal ones are a mere handful; like so much else in the industry, a culture of silence suppresses any problems in child acting. Lots of minors can’t successfully transition into adult acting because their casting as children largely depended on cuteness, but a great many are simply too traumatized to want to stay in show business.

Ryan risks making readers defensive in one of the best and most needed chapters: the dark side of comedy. In a world where comedians regularly get a pass to say whatever they want no matter how dangerous, she was brave to dissent. Saturday Night Live spends a long time in her spotlight. She explains how creator Lorne Michaels encourages everything problematic about the show but deftly enough that his actions fly under the radar, so everyone keeps loving him. Among Saturday Night Live cast members, drug abuse and sexual assault (in some cases of minors) has been a problem, and, as on so many other sets, writers are abused.

Ryan asserts that a major problem at the core of show business and of comedy—especially of stand-up—is the public perception of creatives as a different breed. The accepted belief is that comedians, as creatives, behave in certain ways because it’s “part of their process.” She calls it “Creative Guy behavior” (applied to both male and female performers). Audiences excuse their despicable jokes and comments because comedians are “truth tellers.” At the same time, comedians bank on people’s intense fear of being labeled “humorless” to avoid condemnation. She condemns their “truth-telling” but also the public’s support—and its short memory (as in the case of Louis C.K. who, after a short break to “contemplate his bad behavior,” made light of his abhorrent actions while performing to a cheering packed house).

Burn It Down is a powerful exposé, as much for regular readers as it is for Hollywood bigwigs. People need to care about the messages of the media that they consume, whether that be in stand-up comedy or something on the screen:

Hollywood tells us who we are—and who we can be. It may not be America’s biggest industry, but it’s surely one of the most influential. If abusers, clinical narcissists, and other awful or monstrous people control the stories that are told, that comes out in the work. Whether they’re good or bad, thoughtful or not, these stories reach billions of people all over the planet. What the industry churns out influences norms, cultures, and events that occur in reality all the time. And this goes way beyond millions of people adopting the haircuts, catchphrases, or styles of their favorite on-screen personalities.

For a specific example, Ryan follows this with a brief examination of how the show 24 amplifies offensive stereotypes about Muslims. It’s the nature of the psyche for problematic portrayals and images to sink into the subconscious, where they stick stubbornly.

On another level, this book removes people’s rose-colored glasses. It’ll kill any yearning readers might have to be rich and famous in glitzy Hollywood (an image Hollywood’s most powerful promote to obfuscate the truth). It’ll also compel readers to think about the power of their support as consumers and whether that support is to a fault.

The Hollywood of this book isn’t a happy, energetic theater troupe blown up. It’s a Hollywood where the rich, famous, and influential are as human as the next person, and they can, and do, commit crimes—and get away with it, over and over. Currently the success of the most powerful players shields them from consequences, but Ryan’s book lays out the toxicity of the industry so thoroughly that it’s impossible to rationalize this protection. “Burn it down” is right: A complete rebuild is needed.

Complementary viewing: Five-episode docu-series Quiet on Set.

[Alex · Rating 2 out of 5]

As a working professional in the film & TV industry who has been on the receiving end of some of its abuse, I was really excited about reading this book. Unfortunately, in the end I find it hard to recommend for anyone who is already well versed in the toxic and abusive practices that are still a daily reality for many people in the industry. If you are someone who thinks that the TV and film industry is mostly a good place with some bad apples, the book will likely be eye-opening. But for anyone looking for a comprehensive account of how institutions and systems–rather than individuals–protect and promote said abuse as well as paths toward change, I think this book will leave you wanting.

First, the good: there is a remarkable breadth of information here, including stories from eyewitnesses, statistics, and damning reports on the scale of abuse in the industry. The author has interviewed people from all levels of the industry and devotes attention not just to high-profile cases but also to the difficult working conditions of rank-and-file workers. Even if you have read a lot about abuse in the industry, there will be cases here that are probably new to you.

However, the book doesn't do a very good job of integrating these innumerable case studies into an over-arching structural analysis of the industry. There are occasional gestures at some of the factors which contribute to the structural reproduction of abusive practices, but they are few and far between. The author seems much more comfortable reaching for pop-psychological explanations for abusive dynamics rather than any sort of systemic analysis.

The most disappointing part of the book is "Part Two," the section on what should be done to fix the industry. Ryan begins the section by interviewing a rabbi, a psychologist, and a screenwriter and survivor of abuse who went through a transformative justice process after being abused. Although Maureen Ryan states in this section that the focus in these conversations is too often put on the perpetrators of harm rather than the victims, the structure of this section and the rest of the book shows that Ryan has perpetuated this focus.

The rabbi, Danya Guttenberg, is apparently the author of several books that sound suspiciously like pop "self-help" books to me. Admittedly, I don't know much about Rabbi Danya Guttenberg, but Maureen Ryan does not make a compelling argument within the book about why she is an expert worth quoting at length, not to mention leading off the entire second part of the book which is ostensibly about the big changes the industry requires. Both Danya Guttenberg and the psychologist Richard "Bo" Travis mostly discuss the psychology of abusers, and what abusers have to do in order to make amends with survivors. This narrow focus on individual solutions to systemic problems pervades the second part of the book.

The third interviewee in this chapter, screenwriter Kyra Jones, has gone through a transformative justice process led by legendary activist and prison abolitionist Mariame Kaba. I was initially excited to see that the author was referencing Kaba's work in this context; however, the short section about Kyra Jones leaves much to be desired. It is again narrowly focused on Jones' personal experience of the process (which is of course important!). But it only glancingly refers to the structural/institutional aspects that contribute to harm, and does not delve at all into the larger context of Kaba & other abolitionists' work, which is dedicated to dismantling systems of oppression while simultaneously building alternative systems of support. (A possible contributing factor to a less-than-thorough exploration of abolitionist frameworks emerges a few pages earlier, when Ryan mentions that she is the daughter of a police officer and now feels like she has become a "cop" trying to ferret out abuse in the industry...)

The next chapter of part two–for reasons that I am at a loss to explain–focuses entirely on advice for studio executives and other higher ups about how not to hire abusers and how to be a more effective manager. Throughout the book and especially this section, there is a naive assumption that if the people with power could just learn how to be better bosses, then abuse in the industry would be lessened. While it is heartening to learn about creators from formerly excluded communities who are running their shows differently than the abusers who came before them, Ryan's narrow focus at the beginning of Part Two on abusers, bosses and management betrays a strange lack of imagination about who has or should have the power to transform industries.

That lack of imagination extends to trade unions and guilds, which get only a relatively small mention as a section of the next chapter. There is very little information about the history of unions in Hollywood and no mention of the Red Scare, which helped to decimate worker power and set the stage for a decades-long union retreat which we are only now beginning to recover from. Ryan makes an off-hand comment in this section of the book that she has to often explain to angry media consumers that Hollywood companies are not democracies–but she does not seem interested in questioning why that is so, and she is certainly not interested in imagining the possibility of an actually democratic Hollywood workplace. Her example at the end of the book about the type of Hollywood she hopes will exist in the future is one that is run identically to today in terms of decision-making and entirely profit-driven resource allocation, but includes many more safeguards and regulations to allow those who are subject to abuse to report their abusers. While this would of course be a favorable outcome, the fact that it is the endpoint in Ryan's imagination is a troublingly un-radical conclusion for a book which purports to radicalism.

What, then, is Maureen Ryan advocating to "burn down"? By the end of the book, it is not at all clear. The title seems to promise an excoriation of an industry that has for too long been built on the backs of underpaid, overexploited, harassed and abused workers. But in the end, the author seems to favor technocratic reforms which leave the structure of the industry intact and do not reach to the root of the problem.

I applaud Maureen Ryan for her diligent research and reporting on the many, many abuses that have occurred in our industry. But I am still waiting for a book that draws on that research and reporting and utilizes a political economic framework to generate radical solutions.

[Brendan (History Nerds United) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Maureen Ryan had me at Killjoys. If you have not seen the wonderfully ridiculous sci-fi show then please do so once this review is finished. While this seems like a weird reason to be won over by a book, it actually makes perfect sense when you think about it. A book about burning down the Hollywood system would be an absolute slog if the person approached it from a place of anger. As soon as Ryan mentioned Killjoys, I knew she actually loved what Hollywood puts out. She just hates what it takes to get things made.

For anyone who reads the description of Burn It Down, you may initially think this is going to another long list of terrible events within the Hollywood system. You may also be the type who doesn't want to read about someone's "agenda." What I would tell you is that this is an in-depth look by someone who has spent significant time around show business, made the connections necessary to build a massive narrative, and then created a viewpoint which is not a witch hunt but a search for institutional change. This book is not about crucifying white men. It is about crucifying a system which routinely rewards bad behavior by giving people power they do not wield benevolently.

Guess what else this book has? Numbers! Yes, it is not all anecdotes of terrible behavior. There are numbers which bear out what Ryan is trying to say. And then, the coup de grace. A plan. Ryan has a plan with articulated ways to fix the system. I came for the gory details. I stayed for the well thought out action plan.

However, all of this could have been a much different book without Ryan's love for what Hollywood puts out. There are not many books where the author lets you know which Muppet she most identifies with. I won't spoil it. It's too good. You should definitely read this book and find out, though.

(This book was provided as an advance copy by Netgalley and Mariner Books.)

[Michelle]

DNF at 46%.

I'm trying this new thing where I don't force myself to finish reading books I'm not enjoying (or worse! kinda sorta hate!). Which is disappointing, because after reading the excerpt about Lost from this book I was very excited to read the rest. What I came to realize was that that excerpt was very much edited to be published in Vanity Fair whereas the actual book reads as if no editor has ever seen a copy of this before. This is like reading someone's unedited substack archive; the occasional interesting insight, but it is all over the goddamn place, and Ryan seems to believe that if she doesn't hit on every. single. instance. of abuse within the history of Hollywood (dating all the way back to Clara Bow), then she has not done her job here. This, unfortunately, makes for a maddening reading experience as she does a surface level speed-run through way! too! much! stuff! (including The Muppets?) that just makes you wish she'd dig into the actual meat and not just recap stuff other people have already covered. idk; this also wasn't helped by the overly familiar, conversational, blogspeak tone. Hence, DNF.

[Monte Price · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book appeared on my radar a few days before it was published and it was the kind of book that I knew I had to get my hands on as soon as humanly possible, and I'm not too mad about it.

At this point I've consumed what feels like a ton of books and podcasts and documentaries about behavior in Hollywood, the toxic culture that has thrived there or in various pockets over the past few years. And if She Said: Breaking the Sexual Harassment Story That Helped Ignite a Movement and Catch and Kill: Lies, Spies, and a Conspiracy to Protect Predators were looks at a Hollywood through the lens of the Weinstein scandal then this is a reminder that Weinstein was not the only person that created a hostile working environment and that there are other bad acts happening that can contribute to a system that aught to be burned down.

The first half tackles a lot of that; the parts of the industry that have made an environment that isn't necessary the best through looking at things that have happened on shows like Lost or SNL or Sleepy Hollow. The first half was easily the part of the book that I felt I was getting the most out of.

The second half continues to examine the various facets of Hollywood that should be changed, how that might happen, and it continues to use various incidents to show why that's the case. But part two is also the reform part of the book. The part that feels a little more uplifting, offering solutions to a broken system and at times felt repetitive in a way that I'm not sure was useful.

As a whole though I think that Ryan's career in the industry is evident, both in the clear connections they forged in order to write about the stories that are in the book. They also just clearly know what they're talking about. Even though the latter half of the book didn't feel as strong, it was still a necessary component of the narrative that Ryan was pulling together and so I don't entirely begrudge the fact that it exists. If you have some free time it's worth a read.

[donna backshall · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don't know what I was expecting, but THIS. This, Burn It Down: Power, Complicity, and a Call for Change in Hollywood, is eye-opening and remarkable.

Remember when, before all the #metoo and Harvey Weinstein uproar, we used to think working in the entertainment industry was so glamorous? Everyone dreamed of "making it" in Hollywood. Ladies and gents, I am here to tell you WE ALL DODGED A BIG, FAT BULLET.

I won't spoil it for you, but let's just say you're probably about to find out that at least one of your favorite TV shows was (or is) a steaming pile of abuse and racial/ethnic/gender disparities, all at the hands of power hungry "creative geniuses". Prepare to get pissed off.

[Heather M · Rating 3 out of 5]

mostly there's not much here that you haven't seen in the twitter threads promoting it. don't mistake me it's important, infuriating work and mo ryan is just. the bees knees and the kind of person you want covering hollywood. her priorities and her perspective have made her an awesome follow for as long as i've been actively engaged with television. absolutely nothing in this is wrong either, it's just that from a craft standpoint the book is fine, you can tell some of the higher profile stories were edited with more care (and an eye toward promoting the book) but most of it is a bit of a speedrun.

[Alan (on December semi-hiatus) Teder · Rating 4 out of 5]

Abusers, Assaulters, Creeps, Harassers, Homophobes and Racists
Review of the HarperAudio audiobook narrated by Samara Naeymi, released simultaneously with the Mariner Books hardcover (June 6, 2023).

I have a quirk about TV Show Finales or Final Seasons. Regardless of how much I may have loved the show to begin with, if I hate the endings, I will never watch them again, even if now available to binge on streaming. So it has been for several TV so-called 'major events', such as "Game of Thrones", "Lost", "Seinfeld" and "The Sopranos." Those shows are dead to me now. I especially hated the final season of "Lost," and wondered where it had all gone wrong for that show, which was a regular item of talk & speculation with friends when it first began.

Well, I happened across an excerpt (see link below) from Burn It Down in this month's Vanity Fair which explained quite a lot. Behind the scenes the showrunners and the atmosphere they instilled in the writers' room led to the plotlines of all of the diversity characters being sidelined and or killed off. This was after a beginning that seemed to promise a very global range of plotlines. Instead it became the Jack, Kate, Locke and Sawyer show.

That example was more the case of a toxic work environment, rather than those of the more higher profile cases of physical assault or harassment which have been coming to light ever more frequently in the #MeToo era. Several of those cases are discussed as well in this book, e.g. producer Scott Rudin, actor Jeff Garlin, comedian Louis C.K., musician Marilyn Manson, etc. What is telling however is the number of anonymous creeps which are described and the fact that many of the witnesses & victims here choose to remain anonymous under invented single-first names. They still fear for their jobs and future careers in the industry, regardless of the current gradual improvements.

It is not all dark however, journalist Maureen Ryan does provide a Part 2 section (the last 1/4th of the book in the audio) which discusses positive change in the industry, gives examples of current shows and showrunners who came up through the trenches and consciously work as leaders opposed to the bad examples which they themselves endured. She says in dramatic theatrical/movie terms we are only at the end of Act One. But we are at least headed in the right direction.

The narration reading by Samara Naeymi in the audiobook edition was excellent.

Book Excerpts
An excerpt from Burn It Down can be read at Lost Illusions: The Untold Story of the Hit Show’s Poisonous Culture by Maureen Ryan, Vanity Fair, June, 2023.

Another excerpt from Burn It Down can be read at ‘Burn It Down’ Explores ‘SNL’ and Its “Culture of Impunity” by Lesley Goldberg, Hollywood Reporter, June 5, 2023.

Other Reviews
With Hollywood Change Stagnating, a Call to "Burn It Down" by Alexandra Jacobs, New York Times, June 11, 2023.

[AndiReads · Rating 5 out of 5]

The title truly tells it all! I want to scream it from the rooftops!

I knew I would like this book, what I didn't know is that I would LOVE IT.
This is not a #metoo only story. Maureen Ryan, a well known entertainment reporter is diving deep into the structure of Hollywood and the entertainment industry to expose the treatment of women, of people of color and of all workers who are not at the top of the power pyramid.

Ryan interviews many, MANY well known and lesser known persons and provides many first hand accounts of abuse. SNL and Lucasfilm are at the forefront, along with a few shows that I am not that familiar with such as : The Goldbergs, Lost, Sleepy Hollow, Curb Your Enthusiasm and more.

If you are interested in the stars, here are a few: Evan Rachel Wood, Harold Perrineau, Damon Lindelof, Colin Jost and Orlando Jones. Ryan dispels myths and provides more information regarding rumors you have read about or snippets or stories you have heard.

Best yet, not only does she peel back the layers, but she provides solutions. I don't usually bookmark much on my kindle but there were countless sentences and paragraphs that I want to reread and requote in other contexts. A true work of a lifetime and fabulous. I would recommend this book HIGHLY for anyone interested in Hollywood, the infrastructure of power and systematic racism and sexism. It will truly blow you away!
. #MarinerBooks #BURNITDOWN #MaureenRyan

[Obsidian · Rating 4 out of 5]

I will say that this took me three times to get through because there was so much information Ryan was providing the reader. I am now going to side eye the crap out of a lot of shows I used to think were good (LOST) and shake my head at the messiness I saw evolving in real time about some others (Sleepy Hollow).

What I thought was great is that Ryan loops in history and power structure along with certain movements (i.e. #MeToo) to talk about the power structure in Hollywood and how it really is toxic to those who are not white and male. And even some of them didn't do very well swimming in that pool.

I was most interested in her chapters focusing on the racism of certain showrunners, writers, etc. and she cites the LOST and Sleepy Hollow sets as where conscious or unconscious bias was ruling the day with how certain stars like Harold Perrineau or Nicole Beharie got treated. What sticks in my craw is the backtracking a lot of people are doing about Beharie because after being "blacklisted" for a while in Hollywood she slam dunked the crap out of Ms. Juneeth and the Black Mirror episode, Striking Vipers. Full disclosure, I was a Sleepyhead fan and before Twitter went the way of the Nazis, it was my favorite thing to do to log on and tweet other fans as we watched that show. I got irate reading the passages when one of the showrunners acted like the fans were just not smart enough to get the show or his feelings were hurt to be accused of racism.

The other interesting parts of this book focused on sexism, sexual assault, and harassment in Hollywood. I felt very deeply for Evan Rachel Wood and how growing up in Hollywood comes with its own huge deep set up for failure.

That said, the main reason why I gave this 4 stars is that some parts don't really gel together to me. I get what Ryan was trying to do (and tell) but sometimes it just felt like a hodgepodge of stuff coming at me, especially towards the end when she's trying to spell out what people should do while swimming in Hollywood. It just felt a little too self helpy for me.

[TheMysteryMO (Mike O) · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was excited to read this book but it was definitely too long and detailed for me. Many will appreciate it but I was looking for more general info with some examples. It’ll be interesting to see how the industry evolves over time now knowing that there is alot going on behind the scenes.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity in exchange for an honest review.

[. · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is probably my own biases, but the book got confused somewhere around the middle. I guess it's because I was expecting it would be more about stories from certain sets so the rest of the chapters felt like tangents. Also, take a shot every time you read "historically excluded communities."

[Ruxandra Grrr · Rating 4 out of 5]

Been reading Mo Ryan for at least a decade, at first her TV recaps of shows such as Supernatural, and then her investigations of abuses in Hollywood. This book kind of brings all of it together, with rage and compassion. I particularly liked the second part of the book which covers possible solutions for the systemic abuse in the entertainment industry, labor rights, what being a good leader could mean, etc.

There are plenty of infuriating anecdotes, interviews with lovely people such as Tananarive Due, Evan Rachel Wood, and Harold Perrineau, and a general feeling of the book being entertaining, galvanizing and cathartic - like my favorite types of art :) (Finally read this, I remember vaguely I'd started it when it came out, but only recently remembering it's on my list and immediately finding the audiobook on my app, great timing, considering... Well, everything).

[TinaNoir · Rating 4 out of 5]

I mainly getting this for the Sleepy Hollow chapter.

[Chris Boutté · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ll start by saying that Maureen Ryan is an incredible journalist and an amazing writer. The book is fantastic. With that said, the entire time, all I could think was that the book should have the title Duh!: Every Terrible Thing About Hollywood That You Should Already Know. Maybe it’s because I think the majority of rich and powerful people are the worst people on the planet, but there’s nothing in this book that came as a surprise to me. I basically read this book to confirm what I already knew and assumed.

Again, Maureen is a phenomenal journalist and writer. She’s been writing about all of the awful things going on in Hollywood for about two decades now, and it’s all in this book. All of your favorite movies, TV shows and productions have terrible stories going on behind the scenes. There are stories of verbal, physical and sexual abuse along with racism, sexism and every awful thing power-hungry narcissists can do to others.

At the end of the day, I think this book is written for people like the author. There’s one chapter in the book where you truly see how innocent and naive she was/is. She discusses the award shows and how she believed what these people said and that outside of the films and shows, these actors and people in power live by the principles they depict on screen. Then she learns that’s not the case.

What’s interesting about the book is that for her and many others, they know what’s going on, but they have to battle this cognitive dissonance and try to separate the art from the artist.

In this book, you may learn about very specific stories that make you think differently about movies, shows and the people who work there because you didn’t know about the stories. Personally, I assume all of them are awful until proven otherwise. What I do respect about the author is she ends with a few chapters on solutions.

I hate to be a pessimist, but I assume 99% of the people the author thinks are “the good ones” have awful stories as well that nobody has spoken up about yet.

[Tanya · Rating 3 out of 5]

This thing gave me rage headaches. A quote:

"When someone is loyal it's because they feel like the company gives a sh$t about them and they're getting a fair deal in working for them as this is a transaction of labor for money. Elder generations have lionized suffering as a necessary part of labor - a belief that very rarely survives the simple test of asking "How exactly did that help you?"

This book is ostensibly about Hollywood but let's be frank - it can be applied to any industry, in any city, country, town around the world. No one deserves to be in a workplace that devalues them, is physically or emotionally abusive - period. I can sit here and make this my diary and tell you my horror stories but to what end? There has to be a change in the culture and accountability.

The book gets 3 stars b/c the author inserted herself a bit too much. But big kudos to the quotes and thoughts of Orlando Jones and Harold Perrineau. Next time we start talking about the "golden age of tv" and recounting tv shows about toxic white men, let's stop and think for a moment about who was running the shows and writing rooms. Take a second. You'll get it.

[Alexis · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have a love/hate relationship with Hollywood. I love watching movies and good tv, but I understand that there are many, many problems within the system. Maureen Ryan, a reporter who specializes in writing about Hollywood, takes no prisoners with this book. She talks about the structure of abuse and toxicity in Hollywood, and how the workplace/system is fundamentally flawed. Some chapters deal with specific cases- apparently Lost had a major racism problem. Sleepy Hollow also had a major race problem. SNL is a highly toxic workplace and Bill Murray and Chevy Chase are both creeps.


The book discusses sexual abuse, harassment, toxic behaviour, racism and misogyny. In the second part of the book, Maureen Ryan offers some solutions to some of the problems in Hollywood. This book made me furious, but it also opened my eyes to the problems in Hollywood, and how those problems are impacting the current situation in Hollywood.

[Cait · Rating 3 out of 5]

reading this book: woof

reading this book during the double WGA/SAG-AFTRA strikes: WOOF

[Peacegal · Rating 4 out of 5]

BURN IT DOWN is a fascinating, and disturbing, peek behind the curtain of the entertainment industry. All of us, myself included, have movies and TV shows we love and feel have had impact upon our lives. Few of us consider the huge amount of work that goes into getting a production on screen.

We focus upon the big-name stars and directors, but for every one of them, there may be hundreds of other workers on-set and involved in production in some way--and usually, nothing about their lives is wealthy or glamorous. In fact, as this book details time and time again, their experiences may be downright dangerous, even abusive.

One thing this book made me really stop and consider is the trope of the out-of-control creative person. It has become so expected that directors, artists, etc., behave abusively toward those in their employ that workers often cringingly accept awful treatment and formerly down-to-earth people begin adopting these behaviors as they move up the ladder in the industry. Ryan makes a great point in which she discusses how Hollywood influences society's outlook, and it has become troublingly accepted that it is okay for creative people to be abusive because "that's just the way artists are."

[Sheila · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 stars--amazing book. Bias alert: Maureen is my husband's cousin.

This book details the abuses in all areas of Hollywood, which is enraging. But I think it shines in the last couple chapters, which offer actual advice for change. I think that's important--not only that we burn it down, but build it back up in a healthy way.

[Matty · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first third is an interesting (though depressing) look inside the machinations of Hollywood… some info you wish you didn’t know as it might spoil your favourite TV show or movie. The author obviously went to lengths to anonymise her sources where necessary - and of course it’s necessary - but frankly the more interesting sections are where identities are outlined. The last section turns into a leadership handbook which is less interesting, and not what i was expecting. Some interesting case studies among these pages though.

[Chelsea 🏳️‍🌈 · Rating 4 out of 5]

My thanks to Maureen Ryan for the hard, brutal work researching decades long stories of abuse and misconduct. I’ll have to sit with this one for a bit.

It's been a really long time since I've taken notes on a book. This time, I took notes partially because there was some really great commentary on the Hollywood cultture and partially because I'm definitely going to do a TikTok on the stories about Nicole Beharie's treatment on Sleepy Hollow. Ryan's writing is sharp and packs a real punch when she wants to. There is a wealth of information and statistics on Hollywood's history of casting and directing "diversity" and the changing stats on harassment in the workplace. I hope this book is introduced in film studies curriculums because the ending proves how far we have to go in changing these dynamics.

This book discusses how Hollywood has taught those within it not to value themselves or fight for better treatment, unless you're one of those in power. The way that tied into what happened with Allison Mack was, shamefully, not a perspective I had considered before. I still think there's a limitation to how much someone's bad acts can be tied to an unprotected childhood, but it's worth noting that the Hollywood machine probably didn't help her develop stronger will.

There's a wide range of topics here from toxic workplace environments for those behind the camera and those in front of it. It discusses what happened on Lost (and that Mr. Eko story will haunt me for quite some time), Sleepy Hollow (Beharie deserved better), X Files, The Muppet Show, American Hustle, and I will certainly never look at SNL the same way. They cover a wide range of people in the industry from staff in talent agencies to big TV actors like Harold Perrineau and Orlando Jones.

There's a lot of love in the way Ryan writes about the magic television and film and create and how it blinds some of the public to the hell people went through to create it. I think this book does a good job of not shaming the reader for any hesitance to learn about the way the sausage is made because once you know what went on behind the scenes for some of these productions, you can never love the work the same way again. It ends on a hopeful note, with a healthy does of skepticism because a lot of progress in this country seems to be cyclical. Representation, fighting toxicity in the workplace, once the hashtag stops trending, a lot of this stuff just fades from the public consciousness. There was a tweet circulating this past week about how 4 major studies let go of their officers in charge of Diversity and Inclusion. How much work could they have gotten to do if the articles about their hiring were 2 or 3 years old? You want to hope any changes made in the interest of progress were permanent, but we've seen time and time again that they usually aren't.

Anyway, this wasn't a fun read because of the nature of the subject matter. It was detailed without being sleazy or sensationalized, which I appreciate. Looking up the names of the some of the actresses discussed in this book and the reporters that dissected the "juicy" bits were way less respectful with their headlines. I will say, there were times I paused in reading this because it was quite dense and occasionally repetitive. I believe the density is more Ryan's writing style, especially when it veered into anecdotes that sometimes took me out of the flow of the book.

However, I definitely recommend this. I got some new recommendations for diverse shows to watch and it references some books on representation that I've added to my TBR.

[Cynthia · Rating 5 out of 5]

How do you review a scathing criticism of the film and television industry?

I’ve been sitting on this one for days, unsure of what to say.

Burn It Down: Power, Complicity, and a Call For Change in Hollywood was phenomenally conveyed, meticulously detailed, and startlingly eye opening. I loved how firm Maureen Ryan was with higher ups in the industry who tried to talk their way out of responsibility. She held them accountable. She keeps holding them accountable any time one of us reads her book. Ryan called for a transformation in dynamics and believes true consequences need to start occurring in Hollywood. She is not wrong. She provided sufficient (as well as sad and scary) evidence to support the reasoning behind this demand.

What’s particularly frightening was how familiar the power plays were. I think many of us may relate to this on a smaller scale, and Ryan does address the fact that this is a worldwide problem early on in her book, but that doesn’t make having a large scale focal point wrong. I do think, aside from learning how exceedingly problematic the industry can be, this may also help readers recognize things they may have accepted as “just the way it is” in their own lives, as nothing will ever change if abusers of power never face an opposition that makes them answer for their behavior in a way that leads to meaningful ramifications.

My only regret is that I listened to this on audio. While listening, I continually wished I had my own copy to read from, as there was so much content I wanted to underline and take notes on. I’ll need to remedy this by purchasing a physical copy for myself and reading it again in the near future.

[micki · Rating 3 out of 5]

Decent narrator.

TBH, if you've read any of Ryan's past articles, other writers exploring the subject, or the articles--with excerpts--promoting this book, you've got the gist. Ryan is a good writer, but this felt repetitive and VERY padded. It really could've been an article or, more accurately, a few articles. In my opinion.

That said, power imbalances and people exploiting others--in Hollywood and other industries--are subjects worthy of discussion and action. Bad things can never be completely eradicated, but they can be SIGNIFICANTLY reduced, and systems can be put into place to help (instead of hurt) if something bad happens.

[Ryan Dell]

The book is constantly interrupted by awkward digressions and immature Twitter-isms along the lines of “I love that for me” or “Big yikes”. The title is her biggest one and I feel like it misled me into expecting that this book would be about boycotting or destroying the corrupt institutions in American media. “Burn It Down” is just a catchphrase of hers not to be taken literally - a more explicit goal for the author is to be able to watch new episodes of CW shows like “The Expanse” and “Sleepy Hollow” without having to feel guilty about it

[Andy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Important dissection of the powers that be in the entertainment industry. I appreciated that this wasn’t strictly a textbook recitation of the facts — there was a lot of tone and commentary here provided by the author that called these bad men out in appropriately colorful language. I also really liked that the second part of the book dealt with a plan to figure how to fix the system going forward. It offered strategies but acknowledged the difficulty in changing the current system. The only downside to this book is that it didn’t contain as much information about several cases I wanted to know more about, but contained a lot of information about situations that I had no idea of. This, of course, should be a painful reminder that so many stories of the corruption of those in power and the abuse of those below them on the ladder go unspoken about. It shouldn’t be that and Maureen Ryan does an excellent job of letting you know why.

[Robyn Arnecke · Rating 5 out of 5]

It’s a very good time to read this book.

[Rebekkah Wilkin · Rating 1 out of 5]

Ugh. Preachiest, most boring book I've read in years. Very little drama, mostly self-help philosophizing. I'll sure there's an audience for this, but it ain't me. Very repetitive and tedious, could've been half the length 😕

[Carol · Rating 3 out of 5]

I know it must be frustrating for people in the entertainment industry to see and experience shitty behavior on the regular over the course of decades. But at some point you have to say "enough." I said it on page 220.