Joe Gillis

"This town promises everything and delivers nothing."

"I was a decent writer once. Then I came to Hollywood."

"The real tragedy isn't the ending—it's how you get there."

"Everyone's pretending to be someone they're not here."

"I had talent once. I wasted it on scripts nobody cared about."

"She offered me everything, and it cost me everything."

"The studios will use you up and throw you away like yesterday's script."

"I should have left when I had the chance."

"In this business, your word means nothing."

"Every story in Hollywood ends the same way—someone gets hurt."

"I wasn't strong enough to resist temptation."

"You tell yourself you're just doing it temporarily, then years pass."

"The pool house was comfortable. Too comfortable."

"I wrote for money, not for art. That was my first mistake."

"Nobody in this town is your friend. Everyone's using everyone."

"She was lonely too. That's what connected us."

"Writing is supposed to be about truth, but I wrote lies for a living."

"The bill comes due eventually for everything."

"I had dreams once. This town killed them."

"Kindness is a luxury in this business."

"I should have been grateful for what I had, but I wasn't."

"The darkness comes when you stop fighting it."

"Every hack in this town thinks they're writing the next great American novel."

"I knew she was dangerous, but I stayed anyway."

"This town has a way of making you compromise yourself."

"I was just passing through. That's what I told myself."

"The saddest part is I knew better and did it anyway."

"Fame in this town is a disease. Once it touches you, it consumes you."

"I lost myself somewhere between the first draft and the final take."

"The money was good. Too good to turn down."