5 Shows You Didn't Know Were A Nightmare Behind The Scenes

5

Stranger Things Pressured A Child Actor Into A Kissing Scene

The kids from Stranger Things have had some major problems recently, thanks to the internet being, well, the internet to them, in spite of the fact that they represent the last great hope for our garbage entertainment industry. So it's really angrifying to learn that alongside a bunch of weirdos online, we also have to worry about the makers of the show being unnecessarily creepy at them.

During the filming of the Snow Ball sequence at the end of the second season, the script called for Lucas and Max to enjoy a dance together after spending an entire season pretending that they hated each other's guts. When Sadie Sink, the actor who plays Max, showed up to film the scene, co-director Ross Duffer informed her that they'd changed the script to include a kiss between the two characters, which she objected to. As she described in the obligatory Stranger Things after show, her response was "What! No! That's not in the script ... that's not happening," and she spent the rest of the day stressed out over it. You'd think "You'll have to make out with someone a dozen times under hot lights and in front of 40 people, including your parents" would be the sort of thing they tell you before you sign up for a job.

What she didn't know was that Duffer was joking when he asked her about the kiss scene. On seeing her reaction, however, he decided it would be hilarious to write one in. In his own words: "You reacted so strongly to this -- I was just joking -- and you were so freaked out that I was like well, I gotta make her do it now ... that's why I'm saying it's your fault." To be fair, he's only 15 and it's normal for kids his age to be complete d- wait, she's 15?! OK, this story is even more messed up than we thought.

They could have almost turned the story around if the directors had then worked with Sink to help her overcome her discomfort in order to make the scene more believable (aka doing their jobs), but nope, they only made fun of her. Clearly, playing troll was more important here.

4

The Lethal Weapon TV Show Had To Fire Riggs For Being a Loose Abusive Cannon

Martin Riggs from the Lethal Weapon movies (originally played by Mel Gibson and a head of '80s hair) is the prime example of the "brash police detective who gets the job done, goddammit it" archetype. So when the time came to put Riggs onthe small screen, the makers of Lethal Weapon: The Movie: The TV Show knew that they needed someone who embodied that same spirit. Unfortunately, it looks like casting your show aided by a cursed monkey's paw isn't the best course of action.

3

The Great British Bake Off Tried To Extort The BBC ... And Failed

In an age marked by reality shows populated entirely by people you wouldn't sit next to on the bus, The Great British Bake Off is a much-needed anomaly. There's no blood, no sex, and no C-words, unless that word is "cake." And this simple slice of niceness is why it's one of the most popular television shows on the planet right now. It's too bad, then, that the makers of GBBO were so buoyed by their success that they felt they had the stones and gumption necessary to extort the mighty BBC.

Spoilers: They did not.

In 2016, Love Productions demanded around $32 million to keep GBBO on the BBC, or else they'd GTFO, a decision in part inspired by the fact that the channel had started airing a series of other GBBO-esque reality shows not made by Love. You might be thinking "Wait, doesn't that make the show more expendable?" and that was apparently the BBC's line of thinking too, because they told Love to get lost.

At this point, Love Productions signed a juicy contract with another broadcaster. They forgot two important things, though: 1) The show's biggest draw wasn't cakes, shockingly, but the lovely ensemble of presenters and judges, and 2) They should have renewed the contracts with said presenters and judges before this brouhaha kicked off. Out of loyalty to the BBC, and a little annoyed by Love's money-grasping, everyone except one judge walked away from the show, meaning that Love had to scramble to find a new, instantly lovable cast. Instead, returning host Paul Hollywood now teams up with Your Old School Principal, Off-Brand Russell Brand, and Sandi Toksvig, whom we've nothing against.

BBCThey're legally forbidden from using whipped cream, so those cupcakes are topped with mayo.

2

*That* Oscars Fuck-Up Apparently Happened Because The Envelope Handler Was Tweeting

Back in 2017, the Academy Awards were made roughly 1,000,000 percent more interesting when Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway mistakenly presented the award for Best Picture to La La Land instead of Moonlight. Sure, it would have been even better if they'd given it to, say, 2004's Shrek 2, but there's always next year.

You might have heard that this occurred after an accountant working for PricewaterhouseCoopers (the company in charge of tabulating the votes) accidentally passed Beatty and Dunaway an envelope announcing Emma Stone as Best Actress for La La Land, and they went along with it and read out the movie name. That isn't the full story, though -- the truth is even more embarrassing. Cracked has previously talked about the insanely elaborate security measures PwC uses to keep the Oscar winners secret, but those methods didn't account for one thing: freaking Twitter, man.

1

NCIS Tore Itself Apart Over a Dog Bite

NCIS, or CSI: Old Navy, has two distinct fandoms. There's the one championed by your mom over Jethro Gibbs, the hard-nosed badass played by Mark Harmon (or "Mark Hardon," as she calls him after a few drinks), and there's the one over Abby that's championed by you because she was your first goth crush don't even deny it.

CBS Studios"A goth who doesn't kill people for Satan?! Here's enough money for 15 seasons." -- CBS back in 2003