"An Alan Smithee Film: Burn, Hollywood, Burn" is a satirical comedy film, released in 1997, that follows the story of Alan Smithee (played by Eric Idle), a fictitious director who is tasked to direct a big-budget action film called "Triumph over Disaster: The Epic of Motor City". However, as the production starts, Smithee soon realizes that the script is terrible, and the studio executives are meddling with his vision.
Smithee decides to disown the film and requests his name to be removed from it, but due to the rules of the Directors Guild of America, he can't use a pseudonym as he had done previously. Therefore, he chooses the name "Alan Smithee," a well-known pseudonym used by directors who do not want to be associated with films they have directed.
As filming continues, more problems arise, including the replacement of the original lead actor with a popular action star (played by Sylvester Stallone), who has no acting ability. The cast and crew soon become aware that the film is a disaster, and Smithee decides to take matters into his own hands by stealing the reels and leaving the production in chaos.
The film features various cameos from Hollywood celebrities, including Jack Nicholson, Whoopi Goldberg, and Harvey Weinstein, and is known for being notoriously panned by critics as well as a box office flop. The movie's disastrous reception led to a new rule in the Directors Guild of America that prevents film studios from using the Alan Smithee pseudonym in the future.