From Tuesday, forest fires have ravaged various neighborhoods in California, especially around the Los Angeles area.
Wildfires in California have killed at least 10 people and destroyed about 10,000 homes and structures, local officials said.
How did wildfires affect Hollywood?
Los Angeles is home to Hollywood, America’s entertainment center, and many Hollywood celebrities. Many of these celebrities lost their houses in fires.
The Sunset Fire, which broke out around 6pm (0200 GMT) on Wednesday, hit the Hollywood Hills particularly hard. Its cause is being investigated, but it devastated 17 hectares (42 acres) of land.
By noon Thursday, Mayor Karen Bass reported that the Sunset Fire was contained.
Which celebrities lost their houses?
Billy Crystal: The 76-year-old American comedian and star of the 1980s cult film When Harry Met Sally has lost the home he’s owned since 1979 in Pacific Palisades. Crystal and his wife, Janice, expressed their grief over the loss of the home where they raised their children and grandchildren. In a statement to CNN on Wednesday, he said: “We are of course heartbroken, but with the love of our children and friends we will get through this.”
Mel Gibson: The Mad Max star told NewsNation that his house was destroyed while filming in Austin, Texas. He said: “It’s a bit devastating. It’s emotional. You know, you live there for a long time and you had all your stuff. I am freed from the burden of my belongings, because everything is in ashes.”
Jeff Bridges: The Hollywood Reporter quoted a spokesperson for the veteran actor as saying that his Malibu home was destroyed in the Palisades fire.
Paris Hilton: The Malibu beach mansion of the television personality and socialite burned down, also in the Palisades fire. In posts on Instagram and X, Hilton wrote that she watched the disaster on live television. “Heartbreak is truly indescribable,” she wrote in an X post.
I’m standing here in what used to be our home, and the heartbreak is truly indescribable.💔🥺 When I first saw the news, I was in complete shock — I couldn’t comprehend it. But now, as I stand here and see it with my own eyes, it feels like my heart burst into a million pieces… pic.twitter.com/mJcFjQVVX7
— Paris Hilton (@ParisHilton) January 10, 2025
Cary Elwes: The Princess Bride actor also announced that his family home was destroyed. He told his followers on Instagram: “Unfortunately we lost our home, but we are grateful to have survived this truly devastating fire.”
Mandy Moore: Star This is us, she said Followers on Instagram that her family evacuated their Altadena home before it was badly damaged in the Eaton fire. “I love you, Altadena. I am thankful that my family and pets got out last night before it was too late… I am honestly in shock and feel numb for all that so many have lost, including my family. My children’s school is gone. Our favorite restaurants, straight.”
Milo Ventimiglia: Another This Is Us star he told CBS News that he and his pregnant wife, Jarah Mariano, lost their Malibu home. He said: “I think there’s a kind of shocking moment where you go ‘Oh, this is real and this is happening’ and then at a certain point we just turn it off. It’s like, what’s good to keep watching, you know. We kind of accepted the loss.”
The media also reported that homes Leighton Meesterknown for the television show Gossip Girl and Her Husband, Adam Brody from OC; Anthony Hopkins; John Goodman; Miles Teller from Top Gun Maverick; and Anna Faris from Scary Movie was also damaged or destroyed by fires. However, they have not made a public statement yet. Star of the comedy series Schitt’s Creek, Eugene Levywho is also the honorary mayor of Palisades, local media reported that he lost his $3.9 million worth of property. His son, Dan Levy, posted: “Heartbroken for my family, my friends and the people of LA affected by the catastrophic fires.” However, Eugene Levy himself did not confirm the loss of his home.
Other celebrities announced that they had evacuated their homes. These include model Chrissy Teigen and her husband John Legend; James Woods; comedian Marc Maron; and Star Wars actor Mark Hamill.
With firefighting resources thin, residents of the tight-knit suburb of Altadena are concerned that resources will be allocated to neighborhoods home to A-listers, Reuters reported.
“You’re going to have some people who won’t get what they deserve, and some people who might get more than they actually need,” Inez Moore, a lecturer at California State University, told Reuters. Moore’s family home in Altadena was destroyed in the Eaton fire.
Has the Hollywood sign burned down?
Social media users are sharing images of what appears to be the iconic Hollywood sign on fire.
The sign is located in Griffith Park which is closed for security reasons.
However, as far as we know so far, the sign is safe and has not caught fire. Jeff Zarrinnam, president of the Hollywood Sign Trust, told the Reuters news agency by email on Thursday that the sign was not affected.
Reuters reported that the images were likely generated by AI software.
