--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: In Hollywood, Oscar is king." description: "\"In Hollywood, Oscar is king.\" — David Letterman" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/124/david-letterman-378_hollywood_in-hollywood-oscar-is-king-1357034_1357034.jpg" --- # In Hollywood, Oscar is king. ![“In Hollywood, Oscar is king.” quote by David Letterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/124/david-letterman-378_hollywood_in-hollywood-oscar-is-king-1357034_1357034.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/124/david-letterman-378_hollywood_in-hollywood-oscar-is-king-1357034_1357034.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/124/david-letterman-378_hollywood_in-hollywood-oscar-is-king-1357034_1357034.jpg) > “In Hollywood, Oscar is king.” [David Letterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-letterman/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The film industry places extreme value on Oscar awards, influencing careers and decisions. **In simple terms:** Oscars dominate Hollywood. Key Takeaway Consider the impact of awards on your work. Themes celebrity industry pressure recognition Mood critical analytical Type cultural industry When to use this quote - career planning - creative projects - marketing strategies Key Concepts media studies culture economics Questions to Reflect On - Do you chase accolades or personal fulfillment? - How does award culture affect creative choices? A Different Perspective Overemphasis on awards can stifle artistic risk. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Hollywood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hollywood/) [King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/king/) [Kings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kings/) [Oscars](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/oscars/) ## Related quotes > [I wasn't a kid growing up thinking, 'One day I'll get an Oscar and make a speech.' That wasn't on my mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-sandler/i-wasn-t-a-kid-growing-up-thinking-one-day-i-ll-get-an-oscar-and-make/) [Adam Sandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-sandler/) > [One of the more noble things the Oscars can do is pay attention to movies no one knows about. Blockbusters don't need much help.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-daniels/one-of-the-more-noble-things-the-oscars-can-do-is-pay-attention-to/) [Jeff Daniels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-daniels/) > [The year you win an Oscar is the fastest year in a Hollywood actor's life. Twelve months later they ask, 'Who won the Oscar…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cliff-robertson/the-year-you-win-an-oscar-is-the-fastest-year-in-a-hollywood-actor-s/) [Cliff Robertson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cliff-robertson/) > [My eldest brother Atticus just won an Oscar some years ago, as he wrote the music for 'The Social Network.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liberty-ross/my-eldest-brother-atticus-just-won-an-oscar-some-years-ago-as-he/) [Liberty Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liberty-ross/) > [When a woman wins an Oscar for telling a story from a woman's point of view, that's going to be the win. That's the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-davis/when-a-woman-wins-an-oscar-for-telling-a-story-from-a-woman-s-point/) [Julie Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-davis/) > [I had an existential crisis at the Oscars, sitting next to Sean Penn and Meryl Streep, and being like, 'What am I doing here?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-adams/i-had-an-existential-crisis-at-the-oscars-sitting-next-to-sean-penn/) [Amy Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-adams/) > [The Oscar nomination is great. It's a great pat on the back. And I like that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-bridges/the-oscar-nomination-is-great-it-s-a-great-pat-on-the-back-and-i-like/) [Jeff Bridges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-bridges/) > [When I won the Oscar, I made a point of actively going against that and doing adventure films like 'Con Air' and 'Gone in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicolas-cage/when-i-won-the-oscar-i-made-a-point-of-actively-going-against-that/) [Nicolas Cage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicolas-cage/) > [White boys always get the Oscar. It's a known fact. Did I ever get a nomination? No! You know why? Cause I hadn't played…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eddie-murphy/white-boys-always-get-the-oscar-it-s-a-known-fact-did-i-ever-get-a/) [Eddie Murphy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-murphy/) > [A make-up artist I know polished her Oscar and it lost its lustre. But if you don't polish it, it doesn't tarnish.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-broadbent/a-make-up-artist-i-know-polished-her-oscar-and-it-lost-its-lustre-but/) [Jim Broadbent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-broadbent/) > [The Oscars demonstrate the will of the people to control and judge those they have elected to stand above them (much, perhaps, as in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mamet/the-oscars-demonstrate-the-will-of-the-people-to-control-and-judge/) [David Mamet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mamet/) > [People say an Oscar validates your career. No, it doesn't. There's more good actors without Oscars than there are with Oscars.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-rock/people-say-an-oscar-validates-your-career-no-it-doesn-t-there-s-more/) [Tony Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-rock/) > [You don't do a play to compete for an award. This was the argument I always had over the Oscars. I didn't win them.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenda-jackson/you-don-t-do-a-play-to-compete-for-an-award-this-was-the-argument-i/) [Glenda Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenda-jackson/) > [The Oscar seems to have been confused with the Nobel Peace Prize.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-maslin/the-oscar-seems-to-have-been-confused-with-the-nobel-peace-prize/) [Janet Maslin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-maslin/) > [I don't care about Oscars. It's such self-aggrandizing nonsense. It's a way to manipulate people into believing that their choices are what's good. It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ewan-mcgregor/i-don-t-care-about-oscars-it-s-such-self-aggrandizing-nonsense-it-s-a/) [Ewan McGregor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ewan-mcgregor/) ## More by David Letterman > [Two things you need to know about taxes. They've extended the deadline to April 18, and when you write your check, just make it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-letterman/two-things-you-need-to-know-about-taxes-they-ve-extended-the-deadline/) [David Letterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-letterman/) > [You know Kim Jong Un, the evil dictator of North Korea? Apparently, a guy in his inner circle used his ashtray while smoking and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-letterman/you-know-kim-jong-un-the-evil-dictator-of-north-korea-apparently-a/) [David Letterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-letterman/) > [It's the first day of spring. That means this weekend I'll take down my Christmas lights.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-letterman/it-s-the-first-day-of-spring-that-means-this-weekend-i-ll-take-down/) [David Letterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-letterman/) > [There are a lot of New York City Thanksgiving traditions. For example, a lot of New Yorkers don't buy the frozen Thanksgiving turkey. They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-letterman/there-are-a-lot-of-new-york-city-thanksgiving-traditions-for-example/) [David Letterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-letterman/) > [I can hardly wait until Donald Trump announces his celebrity cabinet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-letterman/i-can-hardly-wait-until-donald-trump-announces-his-celebrity-cabinet/) [David Letterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-letterman/) > [Experts say this global warming is serious, and they are predicting now that by the year 2050, we will be out of party ice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-letterman/experts-say-this-global-warming-is-serious-and-they-are-predicting/) [David Letterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-letterman/) > [We make a lot of fun at President Clinton's expense. But this transition is going to be tough because it's been 25 years since…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-letterman/we-make-a-lot-of-fun-at-president-clinton-s-expense-but-this/) [David Letterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-letterman/) > [I'm worried about John Kerry, he's so confident now that he's already planning his White House sex scandal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-letterman/i-m-worried-about-john-kerry-he-s-so-confident-now-that-he-s-already/) [David Letterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-letterman/) > [“There is no off position on the genius”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-letterman/there-is-no-off-position-on-the-genius/) [David Letterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-letterman/) > [I vote Democrat because I'm way too irresponsible to own a gun, and I know that my local police are all I need to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-letterman/i-vote-democrat-because-i-m-way-too-irresponsible-to-own-a-gun-and-i/) [David Letterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-letterman/) > [Do I think there is a heaven? Uh, yeah I do. Like a really big gymnasium. How do I see myself there? With really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-letterman/do-i-think-there-is-a-heaven-uh-yeah-i-do-like-a-really-big-gymnasium/) [David Letterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-letterman/) > [If it wasn't for coffee, I'd have no discernible personality at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-letterman/if-it-wasn-t-for-coffee-i-d-have-no-discernible-personality-at-all/) [David Letterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-letterman/) > [Well, we're just a couple of weeks from new President Barack Obama being sworn in. And he's been very busy naming a lot of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-letterman/well-we-re-just-a-couple-of-weeks-from-new-president-barack-obama/) [David Letterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-letterman/) > [Sometimes when you look in his eyes you get the feeling that someone else is driving.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-letterman/sometimes-when-you-look-in-his-eyes-you-get-the-feeling-that-someone/) [David Letterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-letterman/) > [Prince William and Kate Middleton are in New York City. We have got to do something about immigration.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-letterman/prince-william-and-kate-middleton-are-in-new-york-city-we-have-got-to/) [David Letterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-letterman/) [Explore all 619 David Letterman quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-letterman/) ## More Hollywood quotes > [Hollywood is very much an industry town. Your life becomes caught up in all of the parties and this list and that list. That's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-johnson/hollywood-is-very-much-an-industry-town-your-life-becomes-caught-up/) [Don Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-johnson/) > [I love casting against type and doing things you wouldn't expect, because I think you get more interesting performances that way. Hollywood loves to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-s-goyer/i-love-casting-against-type-and-doing-things-you-wouldn-t-expect/) [David S. Goyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-s-goyer/) > [Why did Erich von Stronheim leave Germany? Why did Hitchcock leave England? If you were a director you'd like to work in Hollywood too.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roman-polanski/why-did-erich-von-stronheim-leave-germany-why-did-hitchcock-leave/) [Roman Polanski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roman-polanski/) > [Hollywood is so fixated on keeping it that way because it's generating the buzz, but that representation isn't right. I definitely feel like it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-boyega/hollywood-is-so-fixated-on-keeping-it-that-way-because-it-s/) [John Boyega](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-boyega/) > [In the movie, the stars above the ship bear no correspondence to any constellations in a real sky. Worse yet, while the heroine bobs...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/in-the-movie-the-stars-above-the-ship-bear-no-correspondence-to-any/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [“Artist Matthew Barney has made a film about “shit”. It is hardly original. Hollywood has made shit films for decades.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-cavanagh/artist-matthew-barney-has-made-a-film-about-shit-it-is-hardly/) [Dean Cavanagh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-cavanagh/) > [If you can believe it, Hollywood wanted to change my birthdate. I was born after Valentine's Day, so they wanted to change it to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cesar-romero/if-you-can-believe-it-hollywood-wanted-to-change-my-birthdate-i-was/) [Cesar Romero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cesar-romero/) > [In a lot of movies, African-Americans are either maids or slaves, but that's not all they were. We need to show that. And we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allison-schroeder/in-a-lot-of-movies-african-americans-are-either-maids-or-slaves-but/) [Allison Schroeder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allison-schroeder/) > [“I'm always looking for evidence to support my conjecture that celebrity in Hollywood is sort of like a Joel Peter Witkin photograph: It looks…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cintra-wilson/i-m-always-looking-for-evidence-to-support-my-conjecture-that/) [Cintra Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cintra-wilson/) > [I came to Hollywood to be a movie song-and-dance man just at the time those films were going out of style.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-berry/i-came-to-hollywood-to-be-a-movie-song-and-dance-man-just-at-the-time/) [Ken Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-berry/) > [Writing is the life blood of everything in Hollywood. Without writers, there are no scripts, no acting work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ali-wong/writing-is-the-life-blood-of-everything-in-hollywood-without-writers/) [Ali Wong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ali-wong/) > [Popular culture as a whole is popular, but in today's fragmented market it's a jostle of competing unpopular popular cultures. As the critic Stanley…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-steyn/popular-culture-as-a-whole-is-popular-but-in-today-s-fragmented/) [Mark Steyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-steyn/) > [Hollywood regency never goes out of style.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lara-spencer/hollywood-regency-never-goes-out-of-style/) [Lara Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lara-spencer/) > [Washington is a Hollywood for ugly people. Hollywood is a Washington for the simpleminded.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mccain/washington-is-a-hollywood-for-ugly-people-hollywood-is-a-washington/) [John McCain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mccain/) > [What is accurately portrayed is the rich humanity not just of Martin Luther King but of the movement, which was a multiracial movement. You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornel-west/what-is-accurately-portrayed-is-the-rich-humanity-not-just-of-martin/) [Cornel West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornel-west/) [Browse all 4,991 Hollywood quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hollywood/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "In Hollywood, Oscar is king.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "David Letterman" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-letterman/in-hollywood-oscar-is-king/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Hollywood" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-letterman/in-hollywood-oscar-is-king/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/124/david-letterman-378_hollywood_in-hollywood-oscar-is-king-1357034_1357034.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/124/david-letterman-378_hollywood_in-hollywood-oscar-is-king-1357034_1357034.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/124/david-letterman-378_hollywood_in-hollywood-oscar-is-king-1357034_1357034.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“In Hollywood, Oscar is king.” — David Letterman", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "David Letterman", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-letterman/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "In Hollywood, Oscar is king.", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-letterman/in-hollywood-oscar-is-king/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-letterman/in-hollywood-oscar-is-king/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```