Entourage Creator Blasts Critics Who Say the Show Is Too Offensive

Don’t suggest to Entourage creator Doug Ellin that the show needs to be retroactively censored. On Thursday, writer Max Davison launched an article for McSweeney’s that was presented as an HBO exec announcing that Entourage would have edits made to make the comedy series would be less offensive for today’s audiences. It was compared to how Steven Spielberg later edited firearms out of E.T., a decision the director would later regret, along with the recently announced updates to classic literature from authors like Agatha Christie and Roald Dahl.

The article itself is satire, written to spoof these kinds of edits being made retroactively to movies, TV shows, and books many years after the fact. But it still struck a chord with Ellin, who responded to the article with a fiery post on Twitter. Ellin refuted that the show is as “offensive” as it’s made about to be, pointing to the great success garnered during its run. While the satire piece prompted the response, it still shows Ellin’s thoughts on retroactive censorship in general.

Ellin’s tweet reads, “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 sh*tty newspapers, that nobody reads anymore reprint your trash. 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, f**k you. Oh we got a Peabody and a bafta too, ya loser.”

Ellin would claim in a follow-up post that he was “on edibles” when he made that initial tweet, seemingly explaining why he wasn’t quick to catch on that it was strictly satire. He also poked fun at himself in another tweet where he noted he was “not a very strong reader.” With that said, he seems to stand by what he said when it comes to critics who say Entourage is too offensive, saying in one post, “I do hate critics.”

“I don’t know. Didn’t make me laugh and I didn’t like the insults. I don’t care either way. Just bored,” Ellin also said to another Twitter user pointing out the satire.

Related: Entourage: Ari Gold’s Best Moments, Ranked

Would Entourage Fly in 2023?

While it’s hard to say just how many people out there are truly calling for Entourage to be edited or even removed from HBO Max, there are many fans who’ve speculated that the show might be more problematic if it were to be revived in today’s landscape. Comedy seems to get much more scrutiny these days than in years past, and the Ari Gold (Jeremy Piven) character in particular is one that many fans think may push too many buttons to stick around for long. Even so, Piven feels that a revival would do just fine and has even recently pushed for executive producer Mark Wahlberg to make it happen.

“[Wahlberg] knows the reach of that show,” Piven told TMZ, referring to the show’s enduring popularity. “We really connect with people. I see them because I’m performing on stages, so I see in real time that people really miss it, and I think Mark knows that as well, because he hears it and he feels it. So it’s just a matter of him stepping up.”

You can stream Entourage, with no edits, on HBO Max.