History Main / HollywoodFire

* In the first ''Film/SpiderMan1'' film, Spidey and the Green Goblin have what amounts to a business meeting inside a raging inferno. In what might be a CallBack to the above, the second movie features a powerless Peter Parker heading into a burning building to save a toddler.

* ''VideoGame/TheEvilWithin2'' also opens with Sebastian bursting into his burning home to try and rescue his daughter, Lily; parts of the upper floor are collapsing around him and he reacts to the heat and smoke, but neither is able to stop him from getting to her room upstairs. Perhaps justified because it's a recurring nightmare for Sebastian, who is haunted by the fact that he wasn't around to even try saving her when the fire really happened.

In Hollywood, fire is dangerous and deadly, but not so much that the protagonists can't charge in and get everyone out just in time without suffering so much as a first-degree burn.

In [[RealLife reality]], any fire bigger than a typical hearth (a few feet or so wide and generated by a few logs) is hot enough that it's dangerous for a human to even approach, let alone enter; a fire the size of a ''building'' would generate interior temperatures upwards of 1,000 degrees Celsius - way in excess of what any human being could survive. More importantly, any large burning area would be completely filled with very dense and very deadly smoke (the vast majority of people who die in fires are killed or incapacitated by the smoke, which could be considered a mercy for those who would otherwise have burned to death - but not so much for those who would otherwise have escaped, or never been reached by the flames). And needless to say, the incredible temperatures caused by actual towering infernos are infamous for the structural damage they can cause - they don't even need to melt things, merely making any metal joints and whatnot ''somewhat'' more pliant is more than enough to push a building past its engineering tolerances.

May involve OutrunTheFireball. Often the only explanation for how a [[TheHero Hero]] can walk OutOfTheInferno and not be burnt to a cinder. See ConvectionSchmonvection (and, in video games, LavaIsBoilingKoolAid) for the lava-related equivalent. For materials that burn far more easily in fiction than in RealLife, see MadeOfIncendium.

[[folder: Anime and Manga ]]
* In ''{{Anime/Monster}}'', Johan walks into a sea of flames while daring Tenma and Nina to shoot him. He's utterly unharmed. Of course, since he may literally be TheAntichrist, an immunity to fire wouldn't be out-of-character.

* Averted in ''LightNovel/JuuniTaisen''. The dangers of a burning building are played realistically when [[spoiler: Horse is trapped in a burning building. While his SuperToughness protects him from the flames, the smoke overwhelms and eventually kills him when he becomes disoriented and unable to breathe]].

* ''ComicBook/UltimateSpiderMan'': The first fight between Spider-Man and the Green Goblin takes place in high school, that the Green Goblin attacked his fireballs.

[[folder: Film -- Animated ]]

[[folder: Film -- Live-Action]]

* Averted in the [[{{Hobos}} hobo]] movie ''Film/EmperorOfTheNorth''; Ernest Borgnine's character briefly climbs inside a burning boxcar, and proceeds to almost cough his lungs out from smoke inhalation.

[[folder: Literature ]]

[[folder: Live Action TV ]]

* In the ''Series/{{Heroes}}'' episode "Powerless", Niki saves Monica from a typical Hollywood Fire, but stays behind till the explosion. NoOneCouldSurviveThat.
** Subverted in the first season: Claire stepped from the gutted remains of her home (after sedating Ted before he went critical and took out the neighborhood) covered in third-to-fourth-degree-burns. of course, given her powers, by the time she made it into her father's arms halfway across the lawn she [[HealingFactor merely needed a shower and some clothes]]. But she was, for a time at least, hurt by the fire.

** Also, a flashback episode in season two revealed that one character had started working as a fireman. Considering his intangibility powers, that came in pretty useful.
* In one episode of ''Series/{{Smallville}}'', Clark does the same thing to protect a young boy from a meteor. The flames engulf both, but since the boy is "shielded" by Clark, he's unharmed.
** This is particularly strange, as the meteor in question is a ''lump of kryptonite'', so Clark should be in worse shape than the boy.

[[folder: Video Games ]]

* ''Videogame/AloneInTheDark2008'' is pretty blatant with its otherwise innovative fire system. No [[ConvectionSchmonvection convection]] or deadly smoke here.
* In ''Videogame/FinalFantasyVI'', the party's visit to Thamasa culminates with them having to enter a burning house to rescue Relm. Despite the fact that the walls are completely ablaze and the halls are patrolled by flaming, self-exploding bomb monsters, the heroes have no trouble breathing or walking around, even taking the opportunity to sidetrack for some rare loot. It's not until after the boss fight that the group realize they're trapped and collapse. [[spoiler:Even then, Shadow comes to the rescue, because ninjas are too cool for flames. He conceals the party's escape from the encroaching monsters with-- seriously-- a smoke bomb.]]
* In ''Videogame/TeenageMutantNinjaTurtlesTheArcadeGame'', the first level is like this. Flames span the bottom of the screen throughout the entire stage, even after you go into the room at the end of the hall, where the only smoke in the level is found. In the arcade version, there are also occasional patches of fire on the ground. None of the fire in the level hurts you even if you walk right into it.
* In the final act of ''Videogame/{{Bloodborne}}'', [[spoiler: Gehrman]] sets the workshop in the Hunter's Dream on fire to signify the end of the hunt, which can still be walked into and interacted with without difficulty. Justified by the fact that it exists inside an ethereal dream world.

[[folder: Western Animation ]]

In [[RealLife reality]], any fire bigger than a typical hearth (a few feet or so wide and generated by a few logs) is hot enough that it's dangerous for a human to even approach, let alone enter; a fire the size of a ''building'' would generate interior temperatures around 1,000 degrees Celsius - way in excess of what any human being could survive. More importantly, any large burning area would be completely filled with very dense and very deadly smoke (the vast majority of people who die in fires are killed or incapacitated by the smoke, which could be considered a mercy for those who would otherwise have burned to death - but not so much for those who would otherwise have escaped, or never been reached by the flames).

In [[RealLife reality]], any fire of that size would generate far more heat (easily around 1,000 degrees Celsius) than any human being could survive. More importantly, any large burning area would be completely filled with very dense and very deadly smoke (the vast majority of people who die in fires are killed by the smoke, which could be considered a mercy for those who would otherwise have burned to death - but not so much for those who would otherwise have escaped, or never been reached by the flames).

May involve OutrunTheFireball. Often the only explanation for how a [[TheHero Hero]] can walk OutOfTheInferno and not be burnt to a cinder. See ConvectionSchmonvection for the lava-related equivalent. For materials that burn far more easily in fiction than in RealLife, see MadeOfIncendium.

Fires are always an opportunity for major drama and heroics: How better to show that TheHero is a real badass than by having him literally walk through fire? And how better to show that he's selfless than by having him [[HeroicFireRescue save someone (preferably a child) from a burning building]]? Hollywood Fires are distinguished by lots and lots of flames... so many flames, in fact, that they cover nearly every object around. The flames obscure sight and form obstacles that can be dramatically jumped through. Burning debris is all over the place and falls from the ceiling to dramatically block escape routes. Also, in more action-oriented shows, the fire tends to stay strangely toned-down and never exceed certain boundaries, allowing enough room for an epic fight over a fire.

Related to ConvectionSchmonvection and OutrunTheFireball. Often the only explanation for how a [[TheHero Hero]] can walk OutOfTheInferno and not be burnt to a cinder. For materials that burn far more easily in fiction than in RealLife, see MadeOfIncendium.

* In ''Literature/GoodOmens'', NobleDemon Crowley's car bursts into flames, and he drives down the highway inside of it [[CrowningMomentOfAwesome literally holding it together through sheer will.]] Of course, he is a demon.

* In ''{{Anime/Monster}}'', Johan walked into a sea of flames while daring Tenma and Nina to shoot him. He was utterly unharmed.

* In the first episode of ''Anime/SamuraiChamploo'' this seems to be the case when the two lead ronin launch into a duel inside a burning teashop. Ultimately, they're knocked out by the smoke and pulled from the ruins by less-than-helpful rescuers.

* Perhaps the most egregious example in ''WorldOfWarcraft'' is the city of Stratholme that has been on fire for more than ''half a decade''. Despite this, people entering the streets of this inferno don't even face a penalty for the burning environment.

* In the beginning of ''Literature/ConsiderPhlebas'', the main character finds himself in a ship attacked by a [[Literature/TheCulture Culture]] spaceship. Said ship was hidden in the local ''sun''. Yep: the ship (which is sentient) ''willingly'' went ''inside'' the sun in order to surprise the enemy: one would wonder why the Idirans bother to keep fighting at this point.

* TheHardyBoysNancyDrewMysteries abuses this twice:
** "Mystery of the Flickering Torch" has Frank & Joe trapped inside a small closet while a fire rages outside; they break out and dodge through the flames to the outside without even a singe to their clothing.
** "Arson & Old Lace" has Frank, Joe, and Nancy all trying to escape a burning office building. To be fair, Joe nearly gets blown to kingdom come when he almost opens a door that has smoke pouring from under it (Frank knocks him out of the way), but then both Hardys are shown entering rooms with raging flames to rescue people, with no ill effects beyond a bit of smudge and coughing.

Fires are always an opportunity for major drama and heroics: How better to show that TheHero is a real {{Badass}} than by having him literally walk through fire? And how better to show that he's selfless than by having him [[HeroicFireRescue save someone (preferably a child) from a burning building]]? Hollywood Fires are distinguished by lots and lots of flames... so many flames, in fact, that they cover nearly every object around. The flames obscure sight and form obstacles that can be dramatically jumped through. Burning debris is all over the place and falls from the ceiling to dramatically block escape routes. Also, in more action-oriented shows, the fire tends to stay strangely toned-down and never exceed certain boundaries, allowing enough room for an epic fight over a fire.

* Averted in ''TheTerminator''. When Kyle Reese manages to blow up the fuel truck that the eponymous cyborg is driving, the ensuing fireball burns away the Terminator's clothing and flesh, revealing the metal skeleton underneath. The metal is also shown to be a very strong futuristic alloy.

* In one episode of ''{{Smallville}}'', Clark does the same thing to protect a young boy from a meteor. The flames engulf both, but since the boy is "shielded" by Clark, he's unharmed.
** This is particulary strange, as the meteor in question is a ''lump of kryptonite'', so Clark should be in worse shape than the boy.