Zach Stone Is Gonna Be Famous

Premise

Zach Stone, an 18-year-old from Boston, graduates high school and decides to pursue fame instead of college. Using money saved from his grocery store job, he hires an MTV camera crew to film his daily life as a pre-celebrity. Lacking real talent, he attempts various stunts—such as becoming a celebrity chef, creating novelty ringtones, and going missing—to gain attention. He aims to achieve stardom over the summer before his friends leave for college.

Background

MTV commissioned the series in September 2010, ordering a half-hour put pilot about a high school graduate pursuing the new American dream of celebrity without talent. The show was inspired by a study where 40% of graduating high schoolers chose 'famous' as their desired career. The pilot was filmed in 2011, and the rest of the season in 2012. Burnham initially planned a dark satire that would punish the protagonist for shallow priorities, but came to see Zach as sympathetic—a product of his culture. The series spoofs youth culture, celebrity, and the pursuit of fame, with Zach projecting a public image that often cracks to reveal insecurity.

Reception

Zach Stone Is Gonna Be Famous struggled in ratings, premiering to 650,000 viewers and declining to half that by mid-season. Originally airing Thursdays at 10:30 p.m. in May, it was moved to 11 p.m. in June. MTV scheduled episodes eight and nine back to back, then burned off the final three the next week, cancelling the series on June 26. Critical reception was generally positive.

Brian Lowry of Variety called the concept unoriginal but fresh and timely, noting MTV's obliviousness to the irony. Entertainment Weekly praised the pilot as a promising debut, highlighting the empathy in Burnham's portrayal. The New York Times commended the show's aim at the dark underbelly of fame fantasies. The A.V. Club's Pilot Viruet found the off-camera moments more satisfying than typical reality-show send-ups. Newsday described the show as almost too clever for MTV, praising its gentleness and relatability.