What is more meta than a movie within a movie? How about a movie within a movie based on a TV show about a bunch of guys making movies in Hollywood where the executive producer is actually the inspiration for the protagonist?
That’s essentially the plot of HBO’s Entourage, the franchise inspired by Mark Wahlberg’s rise to stardom. The HBO series, created by Doug Ellin, won several Primetime Emmy and Golden Globe awards and its subsequent film garnered $49.3 million at the box office.
Entourage premiered on HBO in 2004, introducing viewers to movie star Vincent Chase (Adrian Grenier) and his main crew of supportive pals (Kevin Connolly, Kevin Dillon, Jerry Ferrara and Jeremy Piven). The Devil Wears Prada star plays the main character who attempts to balance friendship and personal gain in Los Angeles alongside the latter four stars.
“It was certainly a different time,” Grenier recalled his experience on set during a GQ Australia interview in November 2020. “We wouldn’t have been able to get away with the same things today that we did on the show. I’m glad that we got it done when we did.”
He continued: “I could have used a little more Vince in my life, actually. But I’m happy to say that I was able to play a role and then transition back to myself. … I was making documentaries in Mexico when I got the role, so it was quite a change.”
The entourage of Entourage was much larger than just the five main guys that fit on the poster. The cast also consisted of other stars — including Debi Mazar, Constance Zimmer and Emmanuelle Chriqui — who’ve made memorable cameos on the HBO drama.
Nearly four years after the award-winning series wrapped, the Hollywood crew reunited for a cinematic followup — set mere days after the finale’s cliffhanger scenes.
“We shot wide format from the beginning, like it was on a big screen,” Grenier told The Independent in June 2015. “Fans watched four or five episodes in a row. The only difference [for the movie] is that we’ve cut out the beginning and end credits.”
He added: “One of the things I like about this [project] is that it’s about how you bring up your neighbors and your friends and your family, how you support them. Even though it seems that the theme is about indulgence and materialism, it’s really not. It’s about supporting your friends.”
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Scroll below to see what the cast has been up to since the show — and movie — wrapped:
