Hollywood Consumed By Apocalypse Vibes as Wildfires Rage

“Hell, it must be like Los Angeles,” reads the poem “Contemplating Hell,” by Bertolt Brecht. The Marxist German playwright was largely critiquing the city’s culture. Yet in recent days, many images of wildfire devastation coming over the newswires made the City of Angels look every bit like Hades: raging infernos, charred skeletal remains of homes, a smoke-filled amaranthine sky, weeping residents. It was both shocking and all too familiar — haven’t we seen this episode before? During the Malibu wildfires of 1993, actor Mark Hamill told The Associated Press that the celebrity enclave “looks like a war zone.” Thirty-two years later, Hamill is again one of many stars being evacuated, this time calling out the devastation of the Pacific Palisades fire — now the most destructive fire in L.A. history, with more than 100,000 residents evacuated.

Yet some aspects have changed. Fire hydrants running out of water — that certainly feels like a late-season writers room twist (aging infrastructure, dry reservoirs and too much simultaneous demand are cited as possible reasons for this). The frequency and intensity of fires statewide likewise feels new — seven of the eight largest California wildfires of all time have occurred in just the past four years.

Perhaps the aspect that’s most unique isn’t any of the specifics, but the overall vibe that we’re living in an apocalyptic age, particularly in Los Angeles: the pandemic, the strikes, the election, homelessness, studio contraction, media downsizing and, yes, fires that are now more-bigger-worse — so much so that simply getting homeowners insurance has become impossible in some areas. It’s one thing for fed-up celebs like Joe Rogan to peace out to Texas, it’s another for YouTube advertising pathogen Liberty Mutual to allegedly give up on entire ZIP codes. The city Hollywood loves to spectacularly destroy in its movies keeps getting pummeled in real life.

Is there any cause for optimism? “Even the houses in Hell are not all ugly,” as Brecht wrote. The Golden Globes, after all, arguably just staged a much-needed comeback. There’s a surprisingly large number of highly anticipated titles coming this year to both cinemas and streaming. So, sure, there are reasons for hope. But sometimes, bad is just bad, a tragedy is simply tragic, and systemic downward spirals need to be recognized as such.

Hollywood manufactures escapism, but escapism can’t fill a fire hydrant, clear acres of low-level vegetation or prevent Mark Hamill from ever having to flee his home again. Calling something “apocalyptic” — a word heavily used in the press of late — is defeatist; it’s something you say when a crisis seems utterly overwhelming, a civilization-ending problem that’s impossible to solve. You can bet L.A. firefighters, wading into scorching purgatories, don’t think that way. They can’t. They put on their gear, gather their courage and get to work.

This story first appeared in the Jan. 9 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine. To receive the magazine, click here to subscribe.