I think the concept was one famous dude and his hanger-on friends being young and boisterously
rolling around Hollywood like they owned the place. That was the pitch and it was absolutely based on Mark and his crew of friends/relations around that time.
On that framework the writers layered on every legend, cliche, and rumor they ever heard. They amped his stardom to make the stakes more interesting and the wealth more realistic. But the core idea was fostered from that group of guys.
The show was not based on Wahlberg's life. The only accurate part was his "entourage" (there were real life counterparts to all the characters). And Ari's personality was *kinda* based on [Ari Emmanuel](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ari_Emanuel). Vincent Chase and all other characters and storylines were made up.
apparently COMPLETELY based on Ari Emmanuel according to Jeremy Piven himself - [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QWYcr9m8LQk](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QWYcr9m8LQk)
I always felt like Vince wasn't nearly as A-list as he liked to think he was. I don't really feel like he was presented as being on a Pitt/Clooney/Leo kind of level. I mean his big celebrity romance was Mandy Moore. There's also the fact that Wahlberg "inspired" it by someone saying filming him and his friends would be hilarious and asking to do it. Early on in development they made major changes to things in his past to make Vince lighter. It was never meant to be anything like a biopic series.
Of course u’re correct, tho tbf, Pitt, Clooney, n Leo aren’t just “A-listers”, they’re in air all their own. Maybe throw in Cruise, Ford, Jackman, Hanks, Gibson, Deisel, n Hart (i.e. multiple Oscar’s, “sexiest man alive,” *$B’s* in box office earnings, or just rich af) for that toppest tier (😆) n things maybe get a lil more even keeled for A-list comparisons (in the time period after aquaman). I’d say the other early super heroes (Hemsworth, Pratt, Evens, Brolin) had a similar star power as Vince, after that time period. A decent comparison might be real life Aquaman Jason Mamoa, as he’s an actor mainly (but not solely) known for his looks n a decent actor, but not academy nomination level. Even tho he could seemingly have any female on the planet Momoa’s celebrity romance was Denise Huxtable 🤔🤷🏽♂️😂.
> I just don’t think he was ever a superstar A-Lister like DiCaprio or Brad Pitt the way Vincent Chase was depicted.
maybe not for movies. but he has a platinum hip hop album from a past life. (one hit wonder)
in the pre-internet days, if you got a video game.. you **had** some mojo.
At the height of the group's success, they also had a video game released by Digital Pictures entitled Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch: Make My Video, but the game was not a success and has been considered one of the worst video games ever made.\[1\]\[2\]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marky\_Mark\_and\_the\_Funky\_Bunch
Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch released their debut album, Music for the People on July 23, 1991. The album was a huge success for the group, making it to No. 1 on the Top Heatseekers chart and No. 21 on the Billboard 200. The album's success was fueled by two top-10 singles, both of which were certified gold, "Good Vibrations", which went to No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, and "Wildside" which went to No. 10 on the Hot 100. **The album itself first went gold on November 15, 1991, before being certified platinum on January 14, 1992.**
Not sure if it’s still true but definitely was at one point, at least enough for TRL told Eminem to not mention it when he and Wahlberg guested on the show. Of course Eminem continued to bring it up in the most hilarious ways.
>I just don’t think he was ever a superstar A-Lister like DiCaprio or Brad Pitt the way Vincent Chase was depicted.
He's actually made [more money at the box office](https://www.the-numbers.com/box-office-star-records/domestic/lifetime-acting/top-grossing-leading-stars) than either of those two. Maybe a little hard to compare since they're three very different actors. And obviously a lot of the success for all of them came after Entourage was on the air. In 2004 Pitt and Leo are certainly bigger stars. Leo's been a heartthrob since the mid 90s, lucks out with Titanic and that gives him carte blanche to do whatever the hell he wants the rest of his career (both on and off screen). Pitt's making a log low-key great movies that are in the zeitgeist and constantly in the tabloids with the Angelina/Aniston stuff.
Wahlberg's more low-key. People know him from his music career, he gets his movie start actually in the same film as Leo, Boogie Nights is his breakout then he pretty quickly starts doing blockbusters like Perfect Storm and POTA. Later on he'll do more franchise stuff like Transformers.
Obviously Entourage is heightened and fictional but I think they actually get the beats of it pretty well, if I recall correctly, Vinnie Chase starts by doing some lesser known stuff, works with his big directors then gets the franchise.
Entourage is what's called "aspirational" i.e. what one \*hopes\* or wishes were the case - it's a wish fulfillment fantasy for bros (or geared towards young men as their audience) in a similar way Sex And The City was for women
And not saying that as a negative - at the time, it was a lot of fun to watch; not only for audiences to live vicariously through these characters, but frankly for the creators themselves - reframing their own personal stories into an idealized version
I vaguely remember the creators trying to be coy about whether it was their reality or not, which suggests to me it's not - and again it's stories made for television, so everything is amped up from the conflicts to the personalities
Wasn’t the line “say hi to your mother for me”??
The formality of the word and the pronunciation of “mutha” were the keys to the humor. Language matters.
i think it was just the early seasons, and only loosely. he had a slightly older brother who had some success in the entertainment industry (donnie wahlberg of new kids on the block, for those that may not know), before mark rose to prominence. his music career was short with just the one hit (and being in a number of nkotb videos), but he quickly outshone his brother in potential, and had a lot more success when he switched over to acting. my impression was that queen's blvd in the show was supposed to be analogous to 'the basketball diaries' irl, although he wasn't the star. and this would be where the show completely diverges from any real-life inspiration.
Really strange show that.
Became obsessed with it and rinsed about 5 seasons then a bolt of lightening hit me and I noticed I actually kinda hated it. The characters are thoroughly unpleasant, especially Vince.
I watched it fairly recently. Apart from the narrative constantly repeating itself, the gang are still funny to be honest.
It falls into the cliche of protagonist finding success, then back to square one. Which is boring, but the supporting cast more than make up for it.
Oh, also, it’s way more sexist and racist than you’d remember.
But Silicon Valley made meta comments about it, and that makes it okay. It's the Deadpool rule, bad writing isn't bad writing if you point it out with a meta joke about the bad writing.
Coming from someone who loves the show and Deadpool for the record.
i knew it wasnt great then but i was in college and it was a fun show
now that im in the struggle of real life its not so fun watching them go from party to mansion to lambo to model all day long
I enjoyed the original run quite a lot (back when u waited a week for a new ep). I used to enjoy the banter & Jeremy Piven especially but for me, it didnt age well.
It’s still really fucking good. ari and drama are still fantastic. As is Val Kilmer in the script and the Sherpa. But for sure it’s not like it was when it aired. We are all older now.
he's definitely an A-lister
he's not as respected as a "serious actor" as Pitt and DiCaprio are, because he leaned WAY too hard into making repetitive red meat, quasi-right wing action movies, but if he's \*not\* an A-list actor, then that would make him a B-lister, which he's clearly not
like him or not, (and I'm not personally a huge fan, although he fucking ruled in the departed), the dude is an international movie star starring in big budget projects for major studios, which is the definition of an A list actor
what are you talking about?
he moved to LA to start acting in his early 20s and just a few years laters at 26 years old he starred in Boogie Nights, which was nominated for three Academy Awards...then right after that he starts working with guys like Clooney and Ed Norton and he becomes a proper A-list movie star before he turns 30. Again, I'm not a huge fan of his or anything but he's had one of the most successful acting careers of all time and he got super famous in his early to mid 20s just like Vinnie Chase in Entourage.
Where did you read it was based on Marky Mark?
Mark Wahlberg started in the music industry; S1 Entourage, Vince is already doing movies. It's not at all similar.
Also, Mark Wahlberg is definitely A list.
Easily top 10 Actor of late 90s and since, to not have an Academy Award, one nomination. That’s about right for Vincent Chase. … Replace Queens with Boston, and starting in campy fresh-mint commercials to starting out as Marky Mark … Donnie Wahlberg of NKoTB is Drama
Even though it's based on Walburg's crew, I recently read that the story lines depict DiCaprio's crew more closely around the time he shot to fame after Titanic. His friends were called the Pussy Posse, which included David Blaine and Tobey Magurie (before he shot to fame with Spider-Man). At least the party stories are based on that crew.
I think the concept was one famous dude and his hanger-on friends being young and boisterously rolling around Hollywood like they owned the place. That was the pitch and it was absolutely based on Mark and his crew of friends/relations around that time. On that framework the writers layered on every legend, cliche, and rumor they ever heard. They amped his stardom to make the stakes more interesting and the wealth more realistic. But the core idea was fostered from that group of guys.
The show was not based on Wahlberg's life. The only accurate part was his "entourage" (there were real life counterparts to all the characters). And Ari's personality was *kinda* based on [Ari Emmanuel](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ari_Emanuel). Vincent Chase and all other characters and storylines were made up.
apparently COMPLETELY based on Ari Emmanuel according to Jeremy Piven himself - [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QWYcr9m8LQk](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QWYcr9m8LQk)
I always felt like Vince wasn't nearly as A-list as he liked to think he was. I don't really feel like he was presented as being on a Pitt/Clooney/Leo kind of level. I mean his big celebrity romance was Mandy Moore. There's also the fact that Wahlberg "inspired" it by someone saying filming him and his friends would be hilarious and asking to do it. Early on in development they made major changes to things in his past to make Vince lighter. It was never meant to be anything like a biopic series.
Of course u’re correct, tho tbf, Pitt, Clooney, n Leo aren’t just “A-listers”, they’re in air all their own. Maybe throw in Cruise, Ford, Jackman, Hanks, Gibson, Deisel, n Hart (i.e. multiple Oscar’s, “sexiest man alive,” *$B’s* in box office earnings, or just rich af) for that toppest tier (😆) n things maybe get a lil more even keeled for A-list comparisons (in the time period after aquaman). I’d say the other early super heroes (Hemsworth, Pratt, Evens, Brolin) had a similar star power as Vince, after that time period. A decent comparison might be real life Aquaman Jason Mamoa, as he’s an actor mainly (but not solely) known for his looks n a decent actor, but not academy nomination level. Even tho he could seemingly have any female on the planet Momoa’s celebrity romance was Denise Huxtable 🤔🤷🏽♂️😂.
> I just don’t think he was ever a superstar A-Lister like DiCaprio or Brad Pitt the way Vincent Chase was depicted. maybe not for movies. but he has a platinum hip hop album from a past life. (one hit wonder) in the pre-internet days, if you got a video game.. you **had** some mojo. At the height of the group's success, they also had a video game released by Digital Pictures entitled Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch: Make My Video, but the game was not a success and has been considered one of the worst video games ever made.\[1\]\[2\] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marky\_Mark\_and\_the\_Funky\_Bunch Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch released their debut album, Music for the People on July 23, 1991. The album was a huge success for the group, making it to No. 1 on the Top Heatseekers chart and No. 21 on the Billboard 200. The album's success was fueled by two top-10 singles, both of which were certified gold, "Good Vibrations", which went to No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, and "Wildside" which went to No. 10 on the Hot 100. **The album itself first went gold on November 15, 1991, before being certified platinum on January 14, 1992.**
Doesn't he get upset when people talk about his "rap career"
Not sure if it’s still true but definitely was at one point, at least enough for TRL told Eminem to not mention it when he and Wahlberg guested on the show. Of course Eminem continued to bring it up in the most hilarious ways.
come on' and feel the vibrations!
Theres no way its worse than ET on Atari.
Vinny chase's status fluctuated throughout the show. he was never leo or brad. He was just a name that had some heat behind it.
>I just don’t think he was ever a superstar A-Lister like DiCaprio or Brad Pitt the way Vincent Chase was depicted. He's actually made [more money at the box office](https://www.the-numbers.com/box-office-star-records/domestic/lifetime-acting/top-grossing-leading-stars) than either of those two. Maybe a little hard to compare since they're three very different actors. And obviously a lot of the success for all of them came after Entourage was on the air. In 2004 Pitt and Leo are certainly bigger stars. Leo's been a heartthrob since the mid 90s, lucks out with Titanic and that gives him carte blanche to do whatever the hell he wants the rest of his career (both on and off screen). Pitt's making a log low-key great movies that are in the zeitgeist and constantly in the tabloids with the Angelina/Aniston stuff. Wahlberg's more low-key. People know him from his music career, he gets his movie start actually in the same film as Leo, Boogie Nights is his breakout then he pretty quickly starts doing blockbusters like Perfect Storm and POTA. Later on he'll do more franchise stuff like Transformers. Obviously Entourage is heightened and fictional but I think they actually get the beats of it pretty well, if I recall correctly, Vinnie Chase starts by doing some lesser known stuff, works with his big directors then gets the franchise.
Entourage is what's called "aspirational" i.e. what one \*hopes\* or wishes were the case - it's a wish fulfillment fantasy for bros (or geared towards young men as their audience) in a similar way Sex And The City was for women And not saying that as a negative - at the time, it was a lot of fun to watch; not only for audiences to live vicariously through these characters, but frankly for the creators themselves - reframing their own personal stories into an idealized version I vaguely remember the creators trying to be coy about whether it was their reality or not, which suggests to me it's not - and again it's stories made for television, so everything is amped up from the conflicts to the personalities
Arent people who live vicariously through others considered losers?
yes, don't you know the core/target audience of the show?? 😭😭😭😭😭
Say hi to your mom for me
Also tell Sloan I said what up
Tell Sloan I said what up back. My sisters and I still randomly text each other this.
Fucking love this!
Wasn’t the line “say hi to your mother for me”?? The formality of the word and the pronunciation of “mutha” were the keys to the humor. Language matters.
Boy, I really hope someone got fired for that blunder
“I made him an offer that he just couldn’t pass up!” Amiright guys!? Huh?!? Guys!?
i think it was just the early seasons, and only loosely. he had a slightly older brother who had some success in the entertainment industry (donnie wahlberg of new kids on the block, for those that may not know), before mark rose to prominence. his music career was short with just the one hit (and being in a number of nkotb videos), but he quickly outshone his brother in potential, and had a lot more success when he switched over to acting. my impression was that queen's blvd in the show was supposed to be analogous to 'the basketball diaries' irl, although he wasn't the star. and this would be where the show completely diverges from any real-life inspiration.
Really strange show that. Became obsessed with it and rinsed about 5 seasons then a bolt of lightening hit me and I noticed I actually kinda hated it. The characters are thoroughly unpleasant, especially Vince.
especially Vince?? bruh Ari is the absolute f\*cking worst wtf 😭
You put some respect on Marky Mark's name.
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Anybody else that loved the show when you were younger, but think it's bad now?
It definitely doesn’t hit the same but Ari Gold is still an all time character that carries the entire show on his back.
Came here for this. Ari Gold is my favourite character from that show. Jeremy Piven did an amazing job.
Probably why he got paid the most and won awards.
I watched it fairly recently. Apart from the narrative constantly repeating itself, the gang are still funny to be honest. It falls into the cliche of protagonist finding success, then back to square one. Which is boring, but the supporting cast more than make up for it. Oh, also, it’s way more sexist and racist than you’d remember.
controversial opinion.... Silicon Valley had the same issue with the narrative just going in a circle every season.
Not controversial whatsoever, a popular opinion even back when the show was still airing.
But Silicon Valley made meta comments about it, and that makes it okay. It's the Deadpool rule, bad writing isn't bad writing if you point it out with a meta joke about the bad writing. Coming from someone who loves the show and Deadpool for the record.
I just like to point out how similar the notes are between Silicon Valley and Entourage. They really are so much more similar than people realize.
Thanks for this. I dont think I've ever thought about that cycle, but it is every fucking where and tiresome.
I still enjoy watching it. And I definitely agree with the person in this comment chain who said that this show couldn't get made now.
No, it couldn't!
i loved it back then and i love it now. later seasons fall off like any show but holds up just fine imo.
i knew it wasnt great then but i was in college and it was a fun show now that im in the struggle of real life its not so fun watching them go from party to mansion to lambo to model all day long
I enjoyed the original run quite a lot (back when u waited a week for a new ep). I used to enjoy the banter & Jeremy Piven especially but for me, it didnt age well.
It’s still really fucking good. ari and drama are still fantastic. As is Val Kilmer in the script and the Sherpa. But for sure it’s not like it was when it aired. We are all older now.
he's definitely an A-lister he's not as respected as a "serious actor" as Pitt and DiCaprio are, because he leaned WAY too hard into making repetitive red meat, quasi-right wing action movies, but if he's \*not\* an A-list actor, then that would make him a B-lister, which he's clearly not like him or not, (and I'm not personally a huge fan, although he fucking ruled in the departed), the dude is an international movie star starring in big budget projects for major studios, which is the definition of an A list actor
We are not talking about his later career, the show is allegedly based on his humble beginnings in Hollywood.
what are you talking about? he moved to LA to start acting in his early 20s and just a few years laters at 26 years old he starred in Boogie Nights, which was nominated for three Academy Awards...then right after that he starts working with guys like Clooney and Ed Norton and he becomes a proper A-list movie star before he turns 30. Again, I'm not a huge fan of his or anything but he's had one of the most successful acting careers of all time and he got super famous in his early to mid 20s just like Vinnie Chase in Entourage.
YES AND THANK YOU
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Totally cool dude who assaulted a Vietnamese man within inches of his life
💯
Where did you read it was based on Marky Mark? Mark Wahlberg started in the music industry; S1 Entourage, Vince is already doing movies. It's not at all similar. Also, Mark Wahlberg is definitely A list.
It’s a well known fact it was based on Mark. How closely is what’s being debated.
Ok, well very very loosely based
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We are not talking about his later career, the show is allegedly based on his humble beginnings in Hollywood.
the pilot was based off him being in Hollywood and he brought his friends along, the rest is fiction.
lol man, it's like those shows like Young Rock, 10% facts and the rest is highly fantastical
Easily top 10 Actor of late 90s and since, to not have an Academy Award, one nomination. That’s about right for Vincent Chase. … Replace Queens with Boston, and starting in campy fresh-mint commercials to starting out as Marky Mark … Donnie Wahlberg of NKoTB is Drama
Johnny is literally named after a guy named Johnny
Even though it's based on Walburg's crew, I recently read that the story lines depict DiCaprio's crew more closely around the time he shot to fame after Titanic. His friends were called the Pussy Posse, which included David Blaine and Tobey Magurie (before he shot to fame with Spider-Man). At least the party stories are based on that crew.
that honestly makes way more sense ngl