‘Entourage’ Creator Doug Ellin Flipped out on the “Talentless Revisionist Hack” Who Satirically Proposed Making Sensitivity Changes to the HBO Drama

Entourage creator Doug Ellin does not take kindly to criticism of his show, even 12 years after it ended. And even when the criticism isn’t real.

An article published Thursday (May 18) to the satirical site McSweeneys, entitled “HBO’s Sensitivity Reading for Entourage,” was intended to mock the recent trend of revising classic works to omit or edit racist, sexist or otherwise outdated cultural attitudes that might appear in them.

In the article, writer Max Davison writes, “Entourage was very much a product of its time, and 2011 was an entirely different chapter in this nation’s history. We have since undergone vast shifts in our views on women, race, and Ed Hardy. We don’t want modern audiences to have to confront this potentially offensive content or wonder how this show, an unironic love letter to douchebags, was ever considered worthy of being broadcast on HBO.”

While it’s clear enough already to most readers that this is not real, the article called out the specific changes that would be made to the show, which is basically everything about the show.

“We are merely removing a handful of problematic elements that were more socially acceptable back in Entourage’s time,” Davison writes. “These include sexism, homophobia, misogyny, anti-Semitism, dubious sexual politics, Asian hate, toxic masculinity, the casting couch, racial slurs, ethnic slurs, sexist jokes, abusive workplace language, mockery of sex workers, cameos by James Woods and Armie Hammer, the fact that any woman was willingly attracted to Turtle or Johnny Drama, and the way in which white men were able to get away with absolutely anything and succeed despite having no discernable skill set or work ethic.”

Ellin’s response made it clear that he did not get the joke. He tweeted in response that the author of the piece was a “talentless nobody” and called him “dangerous.”

“You are very much a product of your time, you revisionist hack. talentless nobodies like you speak on twitter and then your zombie friends at shitty newspapers, that nobody reads anymore reprint your trash,” he tweeted Thursday night. “Tell president Obama and the nytimes how offensive we were. Those who try to rewrite history are offensive. And dangerous. And Spielberg already regrets touching ET. Anyway, fuck you. Oh we got a Peabody and a bafta too, ya loser.”

You are very much a product of your time, you revisionist hack. talentless nobodies like you speak on twitter and then your zombie friends at shitty newspapers, that nobody reads anymore reprint your trash. Tell president Obama and the nytimes how offensive we were. Those… https://t.co/N889tP3bMs

— Doug Ellin (@mrdougellin) May 19, 2023

Davison responded, “Doug, I wrote this piece. It’s satire. It’s taking sensitivity readings to the extreme of editing shows from 15 years ago. The ET joke was quite intentional. I’ve always wondered what it would be like to have Ari Gold scream obscenities at me. Now I know.”

Doug, I wrote this piece. It’s satire. It’s taking sensitivity readings to the extreme of editing shows from 15 years ago. The ET joke was quite intentional.

I’ve always wondered what it would be like to have Ari Gold scream obscenities at me. Now I know.

— Max Garcia Davison (@MaxGDavison) May 19, 2023

To Davison, Ellin responded, “Ha. I’m very calm.”

When another fan pointed out that the article was satire, Ellin responded, “I’m not a very strong reader,” and then said that his reaction was because he “may have had an edible.”

Tale as old as time. When you’re unable to acknowledge that you overreacted, blame the edibles.