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'Hollywood': Release date, plot, cast, trailer and all you need to know about Ryan Murphy's Netflix series

From black lead actors to biracial directors, gay production managers and women in positions that the '40s Hollywood simply wouldn't have allowed - Murphy revolutionizes everything

After revolutionizing our ideas and perception with the somewhat dramatized and every bit riveting reality of the drag culture through 'Pose', Ryan Murphy is now tackling the 'Hollywood' of the 1940s, eponymously titled after the most popular film industry on the planet. Set in the golden age of Hollywood, the series sees a fictionalized version of closeted 'Dynasty' star Rock Hudson with his African American boyfriend making their first appearance together as a couple at the 1948 Oscars.

From black lead actors to biracial directors, gay production managers and women in positions that the '40s Hollywood simply wouldn't have allowed - Murphy's take on the industry is every bit as controversial as is most of his works. In that, it's meant to shake viewers up the way biases and prejudices should have long, long ago. Here's all you need to know about it.

Release date:

'Hollywood' premieres with all seven episodes on Friday, May 1 and will be available for streaming one minute past midnight (PT time), only on Netflix. 

Plot

According to the official synopsis provided by Netflix, Murphy's What-if? take on Hollywood sees "a group of aspiring actors and filmmakers in post-World War II Hollywood as they try to make it in Tinseltown—no matter the cost. Each character offers a unique glimpse behind the gilded curtain of Hollywood's Golden Age, spotlighting the unfair systems and biases across race, gender, and sexuality that continue to this day. Provocative and incisive, Hollywood exposes and examines decades-old power dynamics, and what the entertainment landscape might look like if they had been dismantled."

Cast

Murphy is known for working with his cliqued set of collaborators on most shows and 'Hollywood' is no different.

David Corenswet leads the cast as Jack Castello, a Second World War veteran aspiring to make it big in the American film industry. Darren Criss plays Raymond Ainsley, the bi-racial director, with Jeremy Pope joining as Hudson's on-screen black boyfriend, Archie Coleman; Laura Harrier plays lead actress of the movie at the center of the plot. Called Camille, the character is expected to be based on the real-life story of British actress Peg Entwistle, who jumped to her death from the Hollywood sign.

Samara Weaving plays aspiring actress, Claire Wood, and Dylan McDermott joins as Ernie - a gas station owner who moonlights as a gigolo. Holland Taylor plays Ellen Kincaid, casting boss at ACE studios who are creating the film. Jim Parsons plays real-life Hollywood talent agent Henry Willson and Jake Picking stars as the Rock Hudson himself. Patty LuPone also joins as silent film pro - Avis Amberg, and Rob Reiner plays her husband Ace Amberg - the real boss of ACE studios. 

Creator:

Coming from the man who has blessed us with some of TV's most iconic and finest like 'Pose', 'Fosse/Verdon', and of course, the decade-old 'American Horror Story', 'Hollywood' is the second output from Ryan Murphy's three-show deal with Netflix, the first one being 'The Politician'. Along with Murphy, Ian Brennan is serving as the co-creator slash showrunner. Brennan has earlier worked with Murphy on the iconic TV musical 'Glee', and also worked with AHS co-creator Brad Falchuk on 'Scream Queens'. 
 

Trailer:

As opposed to real life, Murphy's Hollywood sees Hudson as an openly gay big player within the tinsel town. Also, Hattie McDaniel (Julia Pace Mitchell) can be seen breaking out of the maid stereotype after her Oscar-winning role in 'Gone with the Wind' which could have never been a reality back in the day. Check out more stellar reel life takes of Murphy in the trailer here:

 

If you like this, you'll also love:

'Pose',

'Fosse/Verdon',

'The Politician',

'American Horror Story',

'Scream Queens'