History CreatorBreakdown / Film

* Creator/DarioArgento contemplated suicide for a few days after finishing ''Film/{{Suspiria}}''. Thankfully, he got better.

* Following the failure of his Kickstarter for the movie ''Rampage 3'', Creator/UweBoll [[https://youtu.be/VT1J65KHX8E uploaded a couple of]] [[https://youtu.be/qQJwEAqzFs4 rant videos]] giving a "[[TheReasonYouSuckSpeech Reason You Suck Speech]]" to those who didn't back up his kickstarter and Hollywood in general. [[Film/AloneInTheDark2005 Considering his]] [[Film/HouseOfTheDead track record]], though, it doesn't really come as much surprise as to why no one chose to. ('''Warning: Videos NSFW''')

* Creator/DavidORussell fell out with Lily Tomlin on the set of ''Film/IHeartHuckabees''. [[http://youtu.be/7SG43wa7Alo?t=1m6s Footage of that]] leaked onto youtube which created quite some fuzz at the time.

* George Lucas's divorce from Marcia (her work in editing being a major factor in the original trilogy's success) after the completion of ''Film/ReturnOfTheJedi'' is sometimes thought to have contributed to his long hiatus from working on ''Franchise/StarWars'' until the late nineties, his constant reedits of the films, and eventually selling ''Franchise/StarWars'' to Creator/{{Disney}} in 2012. Before that, the TroubledProduction of ''Film/ANewHope'' - where Lucas was even hospitalized in stress\shock - made Lucas give up on directing the sequels, and only take the helm again 22 years later with ''Film/ThePhantomMenace''.

* Paul Schrader went through a divorce and a breakup with a live-in girlfriend. He lived in his car for a few weeks. He stayed in the aforementioned former girlfriend's apartment for a few weeks as well. He was lonely and alienated. The result? He wrote ''Film/TaxiDriver''. Schrader has been struggling with drug addiction and emotional problems for decades. It tends to turn up in his work as a director.

* John Ford had a major alcohol-fueled one on the set of ''Film/MisterRoberts''. He had major conflicts with his cast and crew, including a physical confrontation with the film's star, Henry Fonda. (Fonda and Ford never forgave one another.) Eventually, Ford had a gall-bladder attack and left the production for good, but his behavior nearly destroyed his career. About a year later, he got a chance to go off into Monument Valley with his old friend John Wayne and make a movie with minimal studio interference. The result was ''Film/TheSearchers'', widely considered one of his masterpieces.

* Website/{{Cracked}} had [[http://www.cracked.com/article_20769_5-hilariously-awkward-meltdowns-hidden-dvd-commentaries.html an article]] on DVD commentaries where the speakers break into meltdown. Two are straight examples of this: Trey Parker saying he did ''Film/CannibalTheMusical'' to mock an ex (the same he later named [[WesternAnimation/SouthPark Cartman's]] [[ReallyGetsAround slutty mom]] [[TakeThat after]]) and going on lengthy tirades about her; and Mickey Rooney being a GrumpyOldMan on the guy who's trying to interview him about an episode of ''Series/TheTwilightZone'' he did.

** His marriage to Creator/GloriaGrahame was already in trouble when he decided to cast her into his film with Humphrey Bogart, Film/InALonelyPlace. Various stipulations in Grahame's contract could be considered spousal abuse if done now. They would undergo separation during the filming, further causing tension in part because of a fear that one of them would be replaced by the studio because of the incident. However, despite this, the film was considered the first that propelled Ray into an unsung hero in film, and the ending was altered to be ''somewhat'' lighter than the book it was based on. He alluded to his marriage when he explained his reasoning for the change:

* The French movie ''The Magnifique'', starring Jean-Paul Belmondo. The main character is a shy writer of a successful series of spy novels centered on an over-the-top Franchise/JamesBond {{Expy}}. Near the end of the movie, he finally rebels against his overbearing boss, and completes his last novel by having the main character get run over by an ambulance, becoming impotent, and [[HoYay making out]] with the BigBad.

* The film ''Film/AllThatJazz'' (a fictionalized version of the life of Bob Fosse) is pretty much dedicated to this trope. The main character even has duets with [[TheGrimReaper Death]], and [[spoiler:he dies at the end]].

* Creator/BillMurray was going through a divorce while making ''Film/GroundhogDay'' which, coupled with arguments with director and friend Creator/HaroldRamis over what direction the movie should take, [[WeUsedToBeFriends led to their friendship completely breaking down]]. [[CrowningMomentOfHeartwarming Happily, they reconciled shortly before Ramis' passing in 2014]].

** Subverted with "Manhattan Murder Mystery''; although made soon after Allen's relationship with Farrow imploded, it's a pretty light-hearted movie, and Allen specifically stated that he just wanted to do something a bit more cheerful to take his mind off things.

** Lucas's divorce from Marcia (her work in editing being a key factor in the original trilogy's success) after the completion of ''Film/ReturnOfTheJedi'' is sometimes thought have contributed to his long hiatus from working on ''Franchise/StarWars'' until the late nineties, his constant reedits of the films, and eventually selling ''Franchise/StarWars'' to Creator/{{Disney}} in 2012.
** Before that, the TroubledProduction of ''Film/ANewHope'' - where Lucas was even hospitalized in stress\shock - made Lucas give up on directing the sequels, and only take the helm again 22 years later with ''Film/ThePhantomMenace''.

* Creator/DarrenAronofsky suffered one after the release of his film ''Film/Mother2017'', the incredibly negative response from audiences and some critics, and its subsequent failure at the box-office. He evidently would talk about nothing but the movie and began having shades of CantTakeCriticism and DearNegativeReader. According to Creator/JenniferLawrence, this and the age difference between the two led to their breakup. To further rub salt on the wound, the movie ended up receiving three Razzie nominations, including Worst Picture.

* [Creator/JoshTrank's erratic behavior during the TroubledProduction of 2015's ''Film/{{Fantastic Four|2015}}'' (add a chaotic environment, ExecutiveMeddling, and Trank intoxicating himself for relief, and it wasn't pretty) became infamous that it ended up [[CreatorKiller destroying his career]] just as it was starting.

* [[Film/{{Chronicle}} Josh Trank]]'s erratic behavior during the TroubledProduction of 2015's ''Film/{{Fantastic Four|2015}}'' (add a chaotic environment, ExecutiveMeddling, and Trank intoxicating himself for relief, and it wasn't pretty) became infamous that it ended up [[CreatorKiller destroying his career]] just as it was starting.

* Creator/MartinScorsese came to the decision to make ''Film/RagingBull'' at the behest of actor and close friend RobertDeNiro when Scorsese had a life-threatening cocaine addiction. The tone of this movie with its themes of sin, punishment and redemption is largely inspired by the director's struggles to get his life back in order. Scorsese has described his experience making ''Film/RagingBull'' as "kamikaze filmmaking". The reason he had to be persuaded to make it was because he had intended to quit filmmaking altogether. Even after being persuaded to make it, his attitude was that if it was successful, he would keep making films, and if it wasn't, he would never make another film, but at least he went out with a bang. The screenwriter was Paul Schrader, who had fairly serious emotional problems and drug issues as well, not to mention his struggles with his Calvinist upbringing.

* Creator/DarrenAronofsky suffered one after the release of his film mother! and the incredibly negative response from audiences and some critics and it’s failure at the box-office. He evidently would talk about nothing but the movie and began having shades of CantTakeCriticism and DearNegativeReader. According to Creator/JenniferLawrence, this and the age difference between the two led to their breakup. To put salt on the wound, mother! ended up getting nominated at the Razzie Awards, including Worst Picture. Ouch.

* Website/{{Cracked}} had [[http://www.cracked.com/article_20769_5-hilariously-awkward-meltdowns-hidden-dvd-commentaries.html an article]] on DVD commentaries where the speakers break into meltdown. Two are straight examples of this: Trey Parker saying he did ''Film/CannibalTheMusical'' to mock an ex (the same he later named [[SouthPark Cartman's]] [[ReallyGetsAround slutty mom]] [[TakeThat after]]) and going on lengthy tirades about her; and Mickey Rooney being a GrumpyOldMan on the guy who's trying to interview him about an episode of ''Series/TheTwilightZone'' he did.

* Creator/RomanPolanski's version of ''Theatre/{{Macbeth}}'' is more bloody than other versions (and with a way darker ending than the play--and the play doesn't exactly end cheerfully itself, let us note) because it was made after his pregnant wife Sharon Tate was murdered by the [[UsefulNotes/CharlesManson Manson Family]]. [[spoiler:The end of the film is mostly shot from the perspective of ''Theatre/{{Macbeth}}'s head on a pike''.]] A few years later, he was asked to direct ''Film/{{Chinatown}}''. In an understandably dark place, he insisted upon changing screenwriter Robert Towne's ending from a somewhat optimistic one to an almost nightmarishly bleak one. Towne later acknowledged that the change was for the better.

* [[Film/{{Chronicle}} Josh Trank]]'s erratic behavior during the TroubledProduction of 2015's ''Film/{{Fantastic Four|2015}}' (add a chaotic environment, ExecutiveMeddling, and Trank intoxicating himself for relief, and it wasn't pretty) became infamous that it ended up [[CreatorKiller destroying his career]] just as it was starting.

* Creator/RomanPolanski's version of ''Theatre/{{Macbeth}}'' is more bloody than other versions (and with a way darker ending than the play--and the play doesn't exactly end cheerfully itself, let us note) because it was made after his pregnant wife Sharon Tate was murdered by the [[UsefulNotes/CharlesManson Manson Family]]. [[spoiler: The end of the film is mostly shot from the perspective of ''Theatre/{{Macbeth}}'s head on a pike''.]] A few years later, he was asked to direct ''Film/{{Chinatown}}''. In an understandably dark place, he insisted upon changing screenwriter Robert Towne's ending from a somewhat optimistic one to an almost nightmarishly bleak one. Towne later acknowledged that the change was for the better.
* Almost every possible form of musical-related CreatorBreakdown (as listed on the 'CreatorBreakdown/{{Music}}' subpage) is parodied in ''Film/WalkHardTheDeweyCoxStory'', in which almost every song Dewey Cox writes is a direct (and blatantly obvious) reflection of his current problems and emotional state at the time, from his complicated relationship with his father to how much he wants to sleep with his back-up singer to a Music/BrianWilson-writing-''Music/{{Smile}}'' style emotional collapse. It all culminates in his final song, "Beautiful Ride", which is an epic summing up of everything he has done and learned in his life to that point. [[spoiler: He dies literally three minutes after performing it.]]

* ''Film/{{Adaptation}}'' is a textbook example of this trope. Suffering from serious writer's block over being asked to write a screenplay about a book about flowers (in which nothing much happens), Charlie Kaufman writes himself and an imaginary twin brother into the story. While he becomes increasingly frustrated with his inability to write, his brother takes a three-day course and almost overnight starts turning out instant hit scripts of more conventional Hollywood fare. It's not until [[spoiler: the author and "star" of the book have killed Charlie's brother that his writer's block is broken]].

* Discussed in ''Film/MusicAndLyrics'', where the characters are writing a pop song; one of them makes the case that it's better to channel your personal issues and pain into creative endeavours that you can get paid for and see success as a result of, rather than sitting around moping, "being a little bit self-indulgent and creatively bloody moribund." [[spoiler: He puts this into practice when his writing partner, who he's fallen in love with, leaves him and he writes the first good song he's ever written solo to try and get her to come back.]]

* ''Film/AGunForGeorge'', where the violent crime novels the protagonist writes about a VigilanteMan called "The Reprisaliser" are clearly an outlet for the protagonist's own simmering and barely controlled anger issues [[spoiler: following the murder of his twin brother]]. Once people stop buying his books, publishers refuse to reprint them and libraries / bookstores refuse to stock them, it's suggested that there's nowhere else for his anger to be directed except at the world around him...

* The film ''Film/AllThatJazz'' (a fictionalized version of the life of Bob Fosse) is pretty much dedicated to this trope. The main character even has duets with [[TheGrimReaper Death]], and [[spoiler: he dies at the end]].

* During the filming of ''Film/WaynesWorld'', Creator/MikeMyers arrived on set one day to discover that the snack table only had butter and not margarine for his bagel. Myers reportedly became enraged, flipped the table over, stormed off the set, and did not come out of his trailer for hours. According to director Penelope Spheeris, incidents like this were very common with Myers. Although ''Wayne's World'' was a massive hit, Spheeris turned down the chance to direct ''Wayne's World 2'' because she'd had enough of Myer's moody attitude.

* [[Film/{{Chronicle}} Josh Trank]]'s erratic behavior during the TroubledProduction of 2015's ''[[FantasticFour2015 Fantastic Four]]'' (add a chaotic environment, ExecutiveMeddling, and Trank intoxicating himself for relief, and it wasn't pretty) became infamous that it ended up [[CreatorKiller destroying his career]] just as it was starting.

* George Stevens, before World War II, made rousing adventure films like ''Film/GungaDin'' and light comedies such as ''Film/SwingTime''. Then he joined the U.S. Army Signal Corps, and filmed both D-Day and the liberation of Dachau. When he came back, his work took a darker, serious tone, including what many critics think of as his masterpiece, ''Film/{{Shane}}''.

* This very nearly happened to Creator/PeterJackson on the set of ''Film/TheHobbit''. After he came on board to the director's chair in 2009 to fill in for friend and previously slated director Creator/GuillermoDelToro, he asked to be given more time to plan ahead since this meant they'd have to redo almost the entire film and that the release date should be moved to a more convenient time. [[Main/{{Jerkass}} Warner Bros. refused,]] and instead gave him only six months of pre-production. This was especially bad because his previous big-budget outings (''Film/TheLordOfTheRings and ''Film/KingKong2005'') had over two to three years of pre-production. Plus, he had to deal with a labor dispute when New Zealand unions charged the production with essentially using scab workers. Once production actually got rolling, Jackson then had to, in his own words, "wing it". He frequently gave the cast and crew long breaks because he had ''no idea'' what he was going to be shooting on any given day and was frantically coming up with dialogue and action sequences mere moments before cameras rolled. This, combined with [[Main/ExecutiveMeddling near-constant studio interference]] [[Main/TroubledProduction and the unforeseen consequences with turning two movies to three]] came to a head when it came time to shoot the Erebor sequences during pickups in 2012 and to plan out the battle of five armies and [[Main/TheWoobie nearly caused him to have an on-set breakdown where he finally asked for more time to plan and sort everything out]], to which he was finally granted. Makes you realize it's a miracle the trilogy even got made at all.

* After going through an emotionally painful divorce and the resulting custody battle over his daughter, Creator/DavidCronenberg made ''Film/TheBrood'', where experimental psychiatry enables the AuthorAvatar protagonist's psychotic wife Nola to [[TheHeartless manifest her mental trauma physically]] as [[CreepyChild deformed mutant children]] who abduct the AuthorAvatar's daughter and kill anyone whom Nola views as personal enemies. DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything?

* This very nearly happened to Creator/PeterJackson on the set of ''Film/TheHobbit''. After he came on board to the director's chair in 2009 to fill in for friend and previously slated director Creator/GuillermoDelToro, he asked to be given more time to plan ahead since this meant they'd have to redo almost the entire film and that the release date should be moved to a more convenient time. [[Main/{{Jerkass}} Warner Bros. refused,]] and instead gave him only six months of pre-production. This was especially bad because his previous big-budget outings (''Film/TheLordOfTheRings and ''Film/KingKong2005'') had over two to three years of pre-production. Jackson then had to, in his own words, "wing it". This, combined with [[Main/ExecutiveMeddling near-constant studio interference]] [[Main/TroubledProduction and the unforeseen consequences with turning two movies to three]] came to a head when it came time to shoot the Erebor sequences during pickups in 2012 and to plan out the battle of five armies and [[Main/TheWoobie nearly caused him to have an on-set breakdown where he finally asked for more time to plan and sort everything out]], to which he was finally granted. Makes you realize it's a miracle the trilogy even got made at all.

* During the filming of ''Film/WaynesWorld'', Creator/MikeMyers arrived on set one day to discover that the snack table only had butter and not margarine for his bagel. Myers reportedly became enraged, flipped the table over, stormed off the set, and did not come out of his trailer for hours. According to director Penelope Spheeris, incidents like this were very common with Myers. Although ''Wayne's World'' was a massive hit, Spheeris turned down the chance to direct ''Wayne's World 2'' because she'd had enough of Myer's moody, controlling, and arrogant attitude.

* There's a great deal of discussion about this relating to ''Deconstructing Harry''. It generally comes down to whether you take the eponymous character to be even more of an AuthorAvatar than Allen's characters in his previous films (something which is quite a debate anyway) or a fictional version of someone else (many claim he based the character on writers Philip Roth or Norman Mailer). Of course, the film takes a great deal from an Creator/IngmarBergman film (''Wild Strawberries'') and Freudian psychoanalysis, both of which are common Allen themes. In general it is difficult to not consider the very dark, nasty tone of ''Deconstructing Harry'', as well as preceeding films ''Husbands and Wives'' and ''Celebrity'', to be influenced by his then-recent, very ugly, very public breakup with longtime partner Mia Farrow.

** His marriage to Gloria Grahame was already in trouble when he decided to cast her into his film with Humphrey Bogart, Film/InALonelyPlace. Various stipulations in Grahame's contract could be considered spousal abuse if done now. They would undergo separation during the filming, further causing tension in part because of a fear that one of them would be replaced by the studio because of the incident. However, despite this, the film was considered the first that propelled Ray into an unsung hero in film, and the ending was altered to be ''somewhat'' lighter than the book it was based on. He alluded to his marriage when he explained his reasoning for the change:

* Paul Schrader went through a divorce and a breakup with a live-in girlfriend. He lived in his car for a few weeks. He stayed in the aforementioned former girlfriend's apartment for a few weeks as well. He was lonely and alienated. The result? He wrote ''TaxiDriver''. Schrader has been struggling with drug addiction and emotional problems for decades. It tends to turn up in his work as a director.

* Brad Silberling's ''Moonlight Mile'' (not [[Manga/MoonlightMile this one]]) was born out of the murder of his girlfriend, actress Rebecca Schaeffer. Though most of his movies concern death and loss to some extent (''Film/{{Casper}}'', ''Film/CityOfAngels'', ''[[ASeriesOfUnfortunateEvents Lemony Snicket's A Series Of Unfortunate Events]]''), none are as personal as this.
* ''Film/EightAndAHalf'', where the entire movie is about the director, Creator/FedericoFellini. Fellini's life at this point was at a low point, having a creative block while working on a movie, becoming disillusioned by directing in general, and going through the end of his marriage. All this is mirrored by the main character in the movie, also a director, who eventually has an ImagineSpot suicide before quitting his work on the movie he was directing and trashing the props, which had already cost a fortune to make. In the end, however, he finally feels a sense of relief for the first time in ages.

* Parodied in the movie ''Film/AMightyWind'', where folk music duo Mitch & Mickey broke up in a particularly messy romantic dysfunction, and Mitch proceeded to release several solo albums with titles and cover art demonstrating an increasingly absurd degree of emotional breakdown. One of these albums provides the trope picture.
* ''Film/TheWeddingSinger''.
** Parodied. Robbie's breakdown occurred ''while he was writing'' a love song for the woman who would later leave him at the altar; the lyrics and style of that song start with fluffy romance, switch suddenly to extreme rage, dissolve into shocked sadness, and finally end with despairing "kill me now" screaming.
** This also happens at the first wedding gig Robbie takes after the aforementioned 'abandoned at the altar' situation; he finally snaps and screams an extremely bitter cover of "Love Stinks" at the 'happy' couple. It eventually results in the father of the bride kicking his ass and throwing him in a trash bin.

%%* [[Film/{{Chronicle}} Josh Trank]]'s erratic behavior during the production of 2015's ''[[FantasticFour2015 Fantastic Four]]'' became infamous that it ended up [[CreatorKiller destroying his career]] just as it was starting.%%

* In-universe: ''Film/FunnyPeople'' has its main character George Simmons deliver a stand-up routine shortly after receiving news that he has a likely-terminal illness. Needless to say, his dark, joyless material doesn't get a lot of laughs, nor does he much care.

* ''Film/IndianaJonesAndTheTempleOfDoom'' was produced while Creator/GeorgeLucas was going through a divorce, as well as Creator/StevenSpielberg's then-recent breakup with Amy Irving. Lucas has admitted that this may partly be why the film was made so much DarkerAndEdgier in tone than its predecessor, although it was also partly an attempt to replicate the success of ''Film/TheEmpireStrikesBack'', which was ''also'' darker in tone than the [[Franchise/StarWars movie]] it preceded to great success (and owed to a minor version of this, as the first writer Lucas hired [[AuthorExistenceFailure died]] after delivering her first script and Lucas' next draft made changes such as Darth Vader being Luke's father and Han Solo being frozen).
** Lucas's divorce from Marcia (her work in editing being a key factor in the original trilogy's success) after the completion of ''Film/ReturnOfTheJedi'' is sometimes thought have contributed to his long hiatus from working on the franchise until the late nineties, his constant reedits of the films, and eventually selling ''Franchise/StarWars'' to Creator/{{Disney}} in 2012.

* The film ''Film/TheFall'' features this regarding its Story Within A Movie, due to its exploration of the relationship between narrative, creator, and audience.

* Played for laughs in ''Hamlet 2''; the Shakespearean sequel is very clearly a thinly-veiled representation of protagonist Dana Marschz's various hang-ups and neuroses, most particularly his [[WellDoneSonGuy difficult relationship with his (unseen) father]]. He sorts himself out by completely mangling the original ''{{Hamlet}}'' (which is oddly appropriate, in a warped way, given how relationships with fathers and father figures are a central subtext of the original) and casting himself as [[WhatDoYouMeanItsNotSymbolic Jesus]] in the process.

* The film ''Film/AllThatJazz'' (a fictionalized version of the life of Bob Fosse) is pretty much dedicated to this trope. The main character even has duets with [[TheGrimReaper Death]], and [[spoiler: he dies at the end]].

* In ''[[Film/FiveHundredDaysOfSummer (500) Days of Summer]]'', Tom's greeting cards vary widely based on how his relationship with Summer is going. When it's going well, he comes up with a card that says "I love us." When things aren't he writes "Roses are red, violets are blue... [[spoiler:Fuck you, whore]]" The film itself is based largely off the screenplay writer's life as he estimates about 75% of the film happened to him. The film also begins with "Author's Note: The following is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to persons living or dead is purely coincidental. Especially you Jenny Beckman. Bitch."

* [[http://www.cracked.com/article_20769_5-hilariously-awkward-meltdowns-hidden-dvd-commentaries.html Cracked]]once did an article about various commentaries where the commentators lose their cool.
** The Arnold Schwartzenegger commentaries are an inversion, as while the others were miserable, his ones are bursting with excitement.

* In-universe example with the French movie ''The Magnifique'', starring Jean-Paul Belmondo. The main character is a shy writer of a successful series of spy novels centered on an over-the-top Franchise/JamesBond {{Expy}}. Near the end of the movie, he finally rebels against his overbearing boss, and completes his last novel by having the main character get run over by an ambulance, becoming impotent, and [[HoYay making out]] with the BigBad.

* Occurs in-universe in ''Film/AGunForGeorge'', where the violent crime novels the protagonist writes about a VigilanteMan called "The Reprisaliser" are clearly an outlet for the protagonist's own simmering and barely controlled anger issues [[spoiler: following the murder of his twin brother]]. Once people stop buying his books, publishers refuse to reprint them and libraries / bookstores refuse to stock them, it's suggested that there's nowhere else for his anger to be directed except at the world around him...

* Discussed in ''MusicAndLyrics'', where the characters are writing a pop song; one of them makes the case that it's better to channel your personal issues and pain into creative endeavours that you can get paid for and see success as a result of, rather than sitting around moping, "being a little bit self-indulgent and creatively bloody moribund." [[spoiler: He puts this into practice when his writing partner, who he's fallen in love with, leaves him and he writes the first good song he's ever written solo to try and get her to come back.]]

* About halfway through ''Film/LaDolceVita'', this defines Fellini's career. For example, even Fellini's ''wife'' (and often lead actress) thought ''Juliet of the Spirits'' was about his struggles with his homosexuality, so much so that there were bitter, bitter fights about it between them as the movie was shooting.