The Tiny Details You May Have Missed In The Hollywood Opening Credits

Netflix's Hollywood gives a major rewrite to the history of the movie industry, showing a more diverse, inclusive side to the 1940s Golden Era. As actor Jeremy Pope (who plays Archie) described Hollywood to Elle, "What if we had given these men, these women, the queer community, black people opportunities — how different could it be?" This reimagining is best illustrated in Hollywood's opening credits.

The credits show the actors climbing the famous Hollywood sign on their way to greatness. It's a nod to the fictional movie Meg that's produced in Hollywood, which was inspired by actress Peg Entwistle's real tragic death. She died after jumping from the sign in 1932, but Meg gives her story a happier ending, just like it does for all of Hollywood's aspiring actors, screenwriters, and directors.

But the opening sequence is more than an obvious reference to Meg. Here are all the small details you may have missed.

Jack (David Corenswet) is wearing white Converse Chuck Taylor shoes as he begins climbing the sign. After the Olympic basketball team wore the shoes in 1936 and they became the Army's official sneaker for American soldiers in World War II, the brand became super popular. As an army veteran, Jack would have been used to wearing the shoes, which could be part of why he's wearing them in the credits scene.

The sign in the credits is filled with holes that lets little bits of light through, kind of like the small steps into the spotlight that actors have before they make it big and get to the top.

Jack, being the white, straight male actor is the first one up the sign — like in real Old Hollywood. But as he's climbing, he turns around and gives Archie a hand as well. Archie is a black, gay, aspiring screenwriter who would not have been given much attention in real Old Hollywood. This is the beginning of Murphy's shift as he rewrites the past.

Camille (Laura Harrier) is the black actor who against all odds gets cast in the lead role of Meg. That certainly didn't happen back in the '40s, with most black actors relegated to the role of maid or other similar positions. But in this version of history, Camille is the star, and white actor Claire (Samara Weaving) needed Camille's help to get to the top, not the other way around.

But instead of falling to his death, he's making the leap into his future. He lands on the letter already occupied by Rock Hudson (Jake Picking) who in this version of history is a proudly out gay man who begins dating Archie.

Once they reach the top of their letter, Archie and Rock share a cuddly hug. It's a public display of affection that would have been widely frowned upon in the '40s when LGBTQ+ people were made to feel ashamed of their sexual orientation, and in many cases, outright prevented from being themselves.

The big band music fades away when the characters reach the top of the letters. They stand alone but together, each on a letter watching the sun rise over the city. It's a powerful reminder that while they each have their own stories and journeys, they didn't get to where they are alone. They were made better by helping each other and standing together as a team.

Now if only it wasn't a fantasy and '40s Hollywood really had tried to elevate people of colour and queer people to new heights. But however they did manage to climb up in real life, we're glad that all kinds of people are finally starting to make it to the top. It just took a few decades longer than it could have.