History YMMV / TropicThunder

** Tugg Speedman killed a ''panda'' and was kidnapped by a group called "Flaming ''Dragon''." This film is distributed by [=DreamWorks=] and stars both Creator/JackBlack and Creator/JayBaruchel, both of whom went on to voice the main characters in two of [=DreamWorks=] Animation's most successful franchises, ''WesternAnimation/KungFuPanda'' and ''WesternAnimation/HowToTrainYourDragon'' respectively.

* HeartwarmingInHindsight: Robert Downey Jr.'s character has won several oscars within the movie but his actor had never won a real one before the film's release. Come the 2024 Oscars, he would finally win Best Supporting Actor for his role in Film/{{Oppenheimer}}.

** The entirety of the Simple Jack film is riddled with this as, like the {{blackface}} it was even controversial at the time in the film. Being such an offensive caricature of a mentally handicapped man would've annihilated Tugg Speedman's career if it came out in TheNewTwenties.

* MisBlamed: Inverse to the above, many teenagers in TheNewTwenties who had just discovered the film were notoriously offended by Downey's performance without understanding that one of the major points of the character is to ''criticise'' white actors who attempt to play non-white characters and take roles that should be played by equally deserving actors of color away from them (and, like the previous example, seem to ignore Alpa Chino's in-universe outrage). In fact, several black journalists and even the NAACP ''praised'' the film on its release for this very reason.

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*** The premise of the trailer also shared one of the stories from VideoGame/{{Pentiment}}, [[spoiler: which one of them involved Andreas’ discovery of two SecretlyGay monks during his murder investigations]].

** The Tivo being a premium gift. Nowadays it is all but forgotten as most cable or satellite boxes come with a built-in PVR, not to mention the fact most current (or at least recent) TV shows are readily available in streaming and VOD services has pretty much killed off one of the device's main selling points.

** Alpa Chino is a "glam" rapper. [[spoiler:He's also [[ArmoredClosetGay deep in the closet]], much to the surprise of his castmates]]. The GlamRap genre saw a decline in popularity following the 2008 financial crisis and TheNewTens marked [[spoiler:homosexuals]] gaining more public acceptance. Nowadays, with Music/LilNasX being [[spoiler:out and proud]] and largely acclaimed for doing so, it's a little trickier to imagine Alpa being so worried about it.

** Les Grossman came to more than a few people's minds in December of 2020, when Cruise was recorded on the set of ''Film/MissionImpossibleDeadReckoningPartOne'' raging and shouting at two crew members who slipped up and broke UsefulNotes/COVID19Pandemic production guidelines; it's hard not to hear it without picturing it coming out of Grossman's mouth.

* VindicatedByHistory: The film got plenty of scathing reviews and reception when it first released (helped greatly by the aforementioned controversy of RDJ’s character doing blackface) and a lot of critics in general simply wrote it off as dumb and nasty low-brow humour. Since then however most people have come to realise and appreciate what a surprisingly genius and layered {{Deconstruction}} and TakeThat of Hollywood and the film industry it actually is. Though it is dated in a few areas, ''Tropic Thunder'' still manages to greatly subvert and poke fun at MethodActing, {{Sequelitis}}, [[PrimaDonnaDirector Prima Donna Directing]], ExecutiveMeddling (the majority of which are still present — if not even worse in the years since 2008) and still be hilarious.

* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: The InUniverse movie being made is about a rescue mission in Vietnam. Out of universe, this could actually be the basis for a drama, especially since the opening scene, the actions scene are done so well, it feels like a Vietnam war movie.

* SpecialEffectFailure: While the effects, both practical and CGI, are mostly effective. It's not hard to to see the Panda that Tugg kills as nothing more than a bad taxidermy.

** Tom Cruise's cameo as Les Grossman is hilarious. Then you remember his notoriously close relationship with Scientology leader David Miscavige, who has been accused of such behavior with a side of assault on his own underlings. [[Literature/GoingClear And Cruise has been accused of copying that behavior]].

** Tugg Speedman killed a ''panda'' and was kidnapped by a group called "Flaming ''Dragon''." This film is distributed by [=DreamWorks=] and stars both Creator/JackBlack and Creator/JayBaruchel, both of whom went on to voice the main characters in two of [=DreamWorks=] Animation's most successful animated franchises, ''WesternAnimation/KungFuPanda'' and ''WesternAnimation/HowToTrainYourDragon'' respectively.

* FairForItsDay: The film's use of the word "retard" is far less acceptable today than it was in the 2000s. However, the gist of Kirk Lazarus' "full retard" speech is ''mocking'' the objectification of mentally challenged people for the sake of winning an Oscar, with Kirk spelling out to Tugg that his "Simple Jack" character would've been better received if he was ''more'' than just a mentally challenged person.

-->'''Tugg:''' ''[regarding [[spoiler:Cockburn's blood]], which he thinks is fake]'' It's CORN SYRUP GUYS! Corn Syrup and latex. ...Warm... blood-flavored... corn syrup.

-->'''Tugg:''' ''[regarding [[spoiler:Cockburn's blood]], which he thinks is fake]'' It's CORN SYRUP! ...Warm... blood-flavored... corn syrup.

** Cockburn's whole speech to the actors [[spoiler: right before he gets blown up]].

** "You just went ''full'' retard, man. ''Never'' go full retard," and by extension, the use of "Never go full X," (example: "Never go full Umbrella Corporation") snowclones.

* VindicatedByHistory: The film got plenty of scathing reviews and reception when it first released (helped greatly by the aforementioned controversy of RDJ’s character doing blackface) and a lot of critics in general simply wrote it off as dumb and nasty low-brow humour. Since then however most people have come to realise and appreciate what a surprisingly genius and layered {{Deconstruction}} and TakeThat of Hollywood and the film industry it actually is. Though it is dated in a few areas, ''Tropic Thunder'' still manages to greatly subvert and poke fun at MethodActing, {{Sequelitis}}, [[PrimaDonnaDirector Prima Donna Directing]], ExecutiveMeddling and the glorification of American [[PatrioticFervor jingoism]] in UsefulNotes/TheVietnamWar (the majority of which are still present — if not even worse in the years since 2008) and still be goddamn hilarious.

** The "Satan's Alley" trailer, where Downey's character carries an illicit relationship with a character played by Creator/TobeyMaguire, best known for his portrayal of Franchise/SpiderMan in the ''Film/SpiderManTrilogy'', is even funnier after ''Film/CaptainAmericaCivilWar'' had Downey's character Iron Man acting as a mentor to Spider-Man (albeit with the latter having changed actors).
*** Even more hilarious is that Creator/TobeyMaguire joins the Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse through ''Film/SpiderManNoWayHome'', as the very same Franchise/SpiderMan from the Raimi Trilogy.

** A rather [[BlackHumor dark]] meme spread after Creator/ChadwickBoseman's untimely death, when people joked that they should recast Robert Downey Jr. as the [[Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse Black Panther]], making various edits in which Kirk Lazarus' face is photoshopped onto images of Prince T'Challa.

** Just the whole ''idea'' of Kirk Lazarus and his style of MethodActing. A white American actor playing a black man is horribly offensive and outdated.... But a white American actor playing a white Australian actor going full-on as an ''African''-American, and ''lecturing an'' '''''actual''''' ''African-American on the dangers of NWordPrivileges'' is some kind of twisted genius. And it's taken further when he later masquerades as an Asian to infiltrate Flaming Dragon’s camp, ''while still wearing his {{blackface}}''.

** The "I'm a dude" line (again by RDJ's character) ends up as this thanks to two of his subsequent roles: [[spoiler: first was his "stealthy" pursuit (fake nose and all)]] in ''Film/{{Sherlock Holmes|2009}}'', and second was [[spoiler:with the reveal of Iron Man's [[MetaMecha Hulkbuster]] armor]] in ''Film/AvengersAgeOfUltron''.

* MisBlamed: Inverse to the above, many teenagers in TheNewTwenties who had just discovered the film were notoriously offended by Downey's performance without understanding that one of the major points of the character is to ''criticise'' white actors who attempt to play non-white characters and take roles that should be played by equally deserving actors of color away from them (and, like the previous example, seem to ignore Alpa Chino's in-universe outrage). In fact, several black journalists and even the [=NAACP=] ''praised'' the film on its release for this very reason.

** Alpa Chino is a "glam" rapper. [[spoiler: He's also [[ArmoredClosetGay deep in the closet]], much to the surprise of his castmates]]. The GlamRap genre saw a decline in popularity following the 2008 financial crisis and TheNewTens marked [[spoiler:homosexuals]] gaining more public acceptance. Nowadays, with Music/LilNasX being [[spoiler:out and proud]] and largely acclaimed for doing so, it's a little trickier to imagine Alpa being so worried about it.

* MisBlamed: Inverse to the above, many teenagers in The New Twenties who had just discovered the film were notoriously offended by Downey's performance without understanding that one of the major points of the character is to ''criticise'' white actors who attempt to play non-white characters and take roles that should be played by equally deserving actors of color away from them (and, like the previous example, seem to ignore Alpa Chino's in-universe outrage). In fact, several black journalists and even the [=NAACP=] ''praised'' the film on its release for this very reason.

** Les Grosman’s [[SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome epically]] [[AtomicFBomb profane]] rant towards the Flaming Dragons.

** "We're supposed to be a unit", "'''Suck''' my unit"

** Kirk Lazarus takes method acting to the point of {{blackface}}. He's also noted for being particularly rowdy off-camera (this was from a time Downey was still primarily known for this[[note]]While ''Iron Man'' was released months earlier, people still had doubts about his future[[/note]]). The next decade would see blackface become more controversial than ever and celebrities began to avoid the rowdy party scene following the career meltdowns of people such as Creator/LindsayLohan.

** Jeff Portnoy is a popular actor appearing in raunchy comedies, a genre which fell out of favor in TheNewTens.