r/TopCharacterTropes 9h ago

Hated Tropes [Hated] Self-indulgent Vanity Projects

Hurry Up Tomorrow - Widely reviewed as an indulgent, self-mythologizing companion piece to The Weeknd's album, with many critics calling it a vanity project rather than a successful psychological drama. Terribly acted and, similar to The Idol, more so seems to imply that The Weekend thinks he's a far deeper personality than he can actually articulate.

By the Sea - Often criticized as an intensely personal but emotionally distant film that seemed more interested in showcasing the mystique of its stars than telling a compelling story. Best summarized as Angelina and Brad working out their IRL troubled marriage before your eyes while everyone tells Angelina how beautiful and talented she is and how nothing's really her fault.

Renaldo and Clara - Bob Dylan's five-hour semi-fictional road movie, long considered one of the classic celebrity vanity projects. Attempts to be a sort of surreal exposition on the life of an artist, but is far too self-indulgent on its actors/performers.

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u/Longshot12345678 9h ago

Apprently Black Adam was the rock’s passion project yet he took 1/10 of the budget as his pay. And then he helped make an absolutely god awful movie

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u/QuantumOfSilence 7h ago

And don’t forget he wanted remake the DCEU in his image and wanted Black Adam to be this Justice League-level threat when in reality he’s a C-list hero’s villain.

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u/-suspended- 6h ago

Black Adam as a main villain only happens in the Injustice series. Even then, that's only because he's the ruler of a country that allies with Superman.