The Disaster Artist: My Life Inside The Room, the Greatest Bad Movie Ever Made (Paperback)

The Disaster Artist: My Life Inside The Room, the Greatest Bad Movie Ever Made By Greg Sestero, Tom Bissell Cover Image
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Description


Now a major motion picture—directed by and starring James Franco

From the actor who somehow lived through it all, a “sharply detailed…funny book about a cinematic comedy of errors” (The New York Times): the making of the cult film phenomenon The Room.

In 2003, an independent film called The Room—starring and written, produced, and directed by a mysteriously wealthy social misfit named Tommy Wiseau—made its disastrous debut in Los Angeles. Described by one reviewer as “like getting stabbed in the head,” the $6 million film earned a grand total of $1,800 at the box office and closed after two weeks. Ten years later, it’s an international cult phenomenon, whose legions of fans attend screenings featuring costumes, audience rituals, merchandising, and thousands of plastic spoons.

Hailed by The Huffington Post as “possibly the most important piece of literature ever printed,” The Disaster Artist is the hilarious, behind-the-scenes story of a deliciously awful cinematic phenomenon as well as the story of an odd and inspiring Hollywood friendship. Greg Sestero, Tommy’s costar, recounts the film’s bizarre journey to infamy, explaining how the movie’s many nonsensical scenes and bits of dialogue came to be and unraveling the mystery of Tommy Wiseau himself. But more than just a riotously funny story about cinematic hubris, “The Disaster Artist is one of the most honest books about friendship I’ve read in years” (Los Angeles Times).

About the Author


Greg Sestero is a French-American actor, producer, and writer. He costarred in the cult phenomenon The Room.

Tom Bissell is the author of several books and a winner of the Rome Prize and a Guggenheim Fellowship. He writes frequently for Harper’s and The New Yorker.

Praise For…


"The Disaster Artist has to be one of the funniest, most deliciously twisted tales I have ever read. This extraordinary book is many things: a guide on how to succeed, sort of, in Hollywood; a life lesson in the virtues of deaf, dumb, and blind persistence; a very surreal variation on the archetypal American story of the immigrant dream. But at its heart lies the story of a deep and abiding friendship that survives against all odds, and the insanely bizarre film that stands as proof."
— Ben Fountain, National Book Critics Circle Award-winning author of Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk

"Finally, a hilarious, delusional, and weirdly inspirational explanation for the most deliciously awful movie ever made."
— Rob Lowe, actor and author of Stories I Only Tell My Friends

“A great portrayal of hopefuls coming to Los Angeles to pursue their ambitions, and an even greater examination of what it means to be a creative person with a dream and trying to make it come true….In so many ways. Tommy c’est moi.”
— James Franco, VICE.com

"The Disaster Artist is not only the terrifically engaging tale of a bad Hollywood movie, it's one of the most honest books about friendship I've read in years."
— Los Angeles Times

“A book about a cinematic comedy of errors . . . sharply detailed . . . funny.”
— The New York Times

"Even if you haven’t seen Tommy Wiseau’s cult film phenomenon, The Room, it would be a mistake to not pick up The Disaster Artist. "
— The New York Observer

"Hilarious . . . the stories behind the making of The Room are even more bizarre than one might expect; truly, like the film itself, they must be seen to be believed.”
— The Paris Review

“A story of obsession and friendship that only Hollywood can birth . . . Readers aren't propelled through this book simply wondering what will happen, they're more concerned with how in the world it all happened—whether they've never heard of The Room or they've watched it dozens of times.”
— The Oregonian

"I laughed so hard reading The Disaster Artist that I cried."
— RollingStone.com

The Disaster Artist delivers an evenhanded portrayal of Wiseau and elucidates more than Room superfans had ever dreamt of learning about their craggy, pale-faced idol.”
— Esquire.com

"Very funny."
— The AV Club

“Possibly the most important piece of literature ever printed.”
— The Huffington Post

"A revelatory and moving look at both the man and the movie that have proved so fascinating for so many . . . filled with juicy, jaw dropping stories that are too good to spoil here. . . .You don't need to have seen The Room to love The Disaster Artist."
— Asbury Park Press

“Sestero recounts this surreal filmmaking experience 10 years later with grace, intelligence and thoughtfulness. He and Bissell deftly put together an eloquent, wry, absolutely hilarious story. Wiseau’s blunders and Sestero’s dry observations make for laugh-out-loud experiences every chapter.”
— Roanoke Times

"How bad is [The Room]? You should watch it and find out for yourself. Then you should read actor Greg Sestero's tell-all memoir, The Disaster Artist, to find out how and way everything about the movie went so wrong. . . . Hilarious and surprisingly touching."
— The Daily Oklahoman

"In The Disaster Artist, we learn some fascinating tidbits . . . [Sestero] is an engaging storyteller who takes us from football games in Golden Gate Park to ludicrous parking lot film shoots, peppering the journey with whip-smart insights and laugh-out-loud jokes."
— Los Angeles Magazine

"Hilarious and unexpectedly moving."
— Los Angeles Review of Books

"The book's behind-the-scenes tales are so outsized that they are due to become part of movie-making lore."
— The Brooklyn Rail

"Downright thrilling . . . a making-of book like no other."
— Booklist, starred review

"Funny, engaging first-person account of the making of The Room. . . . A deft, energetic narrative . . . an improbably resonant tale of warped creativity and friendship."
— Kirkus Reviews

"Make no mistake about it: The Disaster Artist is terrific. Every page is a treasure that reveals more background information for one of cinema's famous train wrecks."
— Man Cave Daily

"Hysterical . . . a terrific sense of humor is the book's greatest asset."
— Bookgasm

"Hilarious, and often poignant . . . If you're a fan of The Room, or if you're just looking for a memoir unlike any you've ever read, don't hesitate to pick up this book."
— ChicksDigBooks.com

"A human drama that's compulsively readable, a tale of men whose bond allows them both to stumble their way into cinema history."
— CriticSpeak.com

"One of the worst movies of all time has spawned one of the most entertaining books I've read in years. It's a happy ending worthy of Hollywood."
— A. J. Jacobs, author of Drop Dead Healthy

"A surprising, hilarious and compelling account of the making of the modern Plan 9 from Outer Space."
— Patton Oswalt, comedian and author of Zombie Spaceship Wasteland

The Disaster Artist doesn’t just answer the question: How do awful cult movies get made? It also reminds us how confusing, hilarious, and wonderful it is to be in your 20s, and why you’re glad you don’t have to do it twice. It’s like a wonderfully weird mash-up of a contemporary Candide and Sunset Boulevard.”
— Joel Stein, author of Man Made: A Stupid Quest for Masculinity

"Hysterical, rollickingly entertaining."
— San Jose Mercury News

"Like disaster porn...memorable for being actually inspiring, to my surprise."
— TheWire.com


Product Details
ISBN: 9781476730400
ISBN-10: 1476730407
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Publication Date: October 7th, 2014
Pages: 288
Language: English