The first to strike was Entertainment Weekly, founded in 1990. This entertainment magazine, barely in its third year, had become the fastest-growing subscription publication in the market and wielded significant influence in Los Angeles.
Entertainment Weekly compiled Hugo's "diva behavior" incidents, asserting that his reputation for being difficult was not a recent development but had long-standing precedents. Following the success of Scent of a Woman, Hugo's attitude toward fans reportedly changed during promotional activities. From initially being diligent and approachable, he began refusing autographs and photos at recording and promotional events—not once or twice, but repeatedly. The magazine highlighted a specific account from a fan.
The fan, Bob Ward from Chicago, recounted meeting Hugo during the taping of The Oprah Winfrey Show. Hugo was casually shopping, properly dressed and polite in demeanor, yet he refused Bob's requests for a photo, an autograph, and even a handshake. Bob left disappointed and angry.
Entertainment Weekly noted that the Bob incident occurred around the same time as the Evergreen Street fan blockade. Whatever happened that night, one fact was undeniable: Hugo no longer responded warmly to fans' support. The magazine emphasized that this behavior became more apparent as his films achieved commercial success. Such diva-like tendencies, growing alongside rising popularity, were conspicuous and concerning: if Hugo achieved even greater success, would his demands and behavior become even more extreme?
In truth, this Entertainment Weekly report was not unusual. Stories about celebrity-fan interactions appear frequently. Particularly in the United States, a country that values individuality and privacy, fans can feel disrespected if their requests go unanswered, while actors may feel their personal space has been violated and respond within reasonable limits. These conflicting expectations inevitably lead to occasional incidents for nearly every celebrity.
By itself, Hugo's behavior could hardly be called "diva-like" under normal circumstances; it could be attributed to being swept up in popularity. However, the timing of this report—immediately following the Golden Globe after-party brawl—made it particularly striking. It effectively marked the beginning of the "A-List Controversy," and subsequent reports would gradually make these suspicions appear real.
Next, the National Inquiry exposed Hugo's repeated tardiness. Reports revealed he arrived late on the first day of shooting of A Few Good Men, and they recast the Allegre incident, claiming Hugo had been bossy and made unreasonable demands, causing difficulties for Allegre and ultimately costing him the job.
Even more shocking, the National Inquiry revealed that Hugo had missed the audition for The Fugitive due to tardiness. Journalist Anthony Stewart reported that Hugo was an hour late, enraging producer Arnold Kopelson and leading to the breakdown of their collaboration. Such lateness, Stewart argued, was unprofessional and disrespectful.
However, Stewart's report placed the The Fugitive audition on the day before the Golden Globes, the 23rd, claiming Hugo had spent the previous night partying and then traveled from Malibu to Universal Studios for the audition, causing him to be late.
Hugo's "indulgent diva behavior" suddenly seemed increasingly plausible.
Shortly afterward, the supermarket gossip tabloid Universal Gazette boldly reported that Hugo had not accepted new scripts for six months after A Few Good Men , allegedly demanding no less than $8,000,000 per film. Production companies reportedly backed away, and Hugo's script preferences had become extremely exacting. Universal Gazette claimed that films including The Firm, Sleepless in Seattle, and The Fugitive had invited him to play the lead, but negotiations on salary and script revisions failed, challenging the authority of directors and producers. Consequently, while Hugo's films succeeded at the box office, he did not sign new projects for some time.
The National Inquiry pushed the "A-List Controversy" to its peak three days later, revealing a major scandal: Hugo had been close to signing a new $60 million project featuring a top-tier director and a stellar cast, a high-profile production. Yet Hugo ultimately missed the opportunity—not over salary disputes, but because he attempted to interfere with the casting process.
Anthony Stewart, writing the report, condemned Hugo: "Hugo tried to arrange for a male friend and a female friend to occupy lead roles, disrupting a collaboration already in the contract stage. The director and producer, a highly respected industry veteran, was shocked and angered by Hugo's actions. While Hugo has achieved notable success, he is still a young actor and has no right to dictate casting decisions. This interference led to the collapse of the project, and Hugo was completely removed from consideration."
Though Stewart did not name the film, speculation pointed to The Firm, Hugo's closest potential project in the past two months. Director Sydney Pollack, known to admire Hugo during A Few Good Men, seemed to confirm this. No other strong contenders were reported, lending credibility to this speculation. Yet by 1993, any collaboration between Hugo and The Firm vanished, leaving the public to draw their conclusions.
Amid this wave of escalating "diva" reports, Hugo's youthful arrogance and perceived entitlement were magnified. Even though much of this was based on rumors, it had a profound effect on public perception.
In reality, different media outlets held varying opinions on the matter.
For example, regarding the fan incidents, Entertainment Weekly largely ignored a key point: Hugo was in the middle of a hectic promotional period and simply did not have time to attend to every fan; he had to stick to his schedule. Similarly, regarding the A Few Good Men production, internal sources clarified that Allegre was the instigator and Hugo was actually the one affected.
Regarding The Fugitive, the audition did not take place on the 23rd, as reported, but rather on the morning of the 25th. Hugo's tardiness was due to Anthony Stewart's morning press conference that day. The problem was that Stewart knew about the morning events by the afternoon and reported them the next day, distorting the facts in the process—clearly, something was amiss.
As for salary demands, no insiders confirmed any of the claims, and the suggestion that Hugo interfered in the casting for The Firm was entirely baseless. Director Sydney Pollack never made any positive confirmation of such interference.
These defenses strongly indicate that the so-called "A-List Controversy" was largely fabricated.
For a time, the media were divided: some insisted Hugo was behaving like a diva, others found the claims absurd, some believed it was Hugo orchestrating the hype himself, and a few even speculated that Hugo and Stewart colluded to stage the entire affair purely to attract attention.
These chaotic narratives dominated entertainment news throughout the week. The brawl, initially expected to create a scandal, was largely forgotten, and the focus shifted to whether Hugo was truly being difficult. While some criticized and others defended him, one thing was clear: audiences were equally divided, with some believing and others doubting.
The most significant effect of the episode was a marked decline in Hugo's public image. Being at the center of such a storm, it was hard for people to believe everything was baseless. The old adage "the higher you rise, the more troubles you face" held true. Particularly with the so-called "diva behavior" incidents, these were not like criminal cases with verifiable evidence—more often, they were interpretations of a celebrity's attitude, leaving everyone to form their own judgments.
Hugo had become the eye of the media storm, as expected after the Golden Globe after-party, but not in the way he or his manager, Joseph, had hoped. He found himself in a difficult position: journalists were eager to dig up more stories, while film studios did not want to attract additional attention. This meant that the already idle Hugo would likely have to continue resting for some time.
What was once expected—that the success of Scent of a Woman and A Few Good Men would propel Hugo's career to new heights—had not materialized. Instead, it seemed to confirm the curse, "with fame comes trouble," as Hugo found himself entangled in controversies, making it extremely difficult to regain composure in the short term.
Over the past week, wherever Hugo went, reporters followed him relentlessly. He could not find even a single quiet moment, which naturally made him increasingly frustrated.
Although the fallout from the brawl had been mitigated, and the "A-List Controversy" discussions were balanced with both support and criticism, and although this intense attention was arguably better than being ignored… this was not the path Hugo had wanted.
.....
Hi For access to additional chapters of
Director in Hollywood (40 chpaters)
Made In Hollywood (60 Chapters)
Pokemon:Bounty Hunter(30 Chapters)
Hollywood:From Razzie to Legend(40 Chapters)
The Great Ruler (30 Chapters)
Join pateron.com/Translaterappu