In a revelation that feels ripped from a forbidden Hollywood memoir, an 81-year-old Bette Davis has—in this fictionalized narrative—broken her silence once and for all, exposing the darkest chapters of her legendary feud with Joan Crawford. Frail in body but still razor-sharp in spirit, Davis delivers a confession so explosive it threatens to shatter the glossy myths that have surrounded Hollywood’s Golden Age for nearly a century.
According to this dramatized account, the feud didn’t just “begin” in the 1930s—it erupted like a secret war. Davis claims the spark came at a 1933 press event when Crawford, dressed in blinding white satin, barged into the venue and “stole the cameras with surgical precision.” Davis describes the moment like an ambush:
“She didn’t walk in. She descended.”
But in this fictional retelling, things quickly turned darker.
Davis recounts private letters, anonymous phone calls, and studio whispers allegedly orchestrated to sabotage her rising career. She describes Crawford as a “smiling assassin,” capable of weaponizing charm with terrifying ease. The betrayal involving actor Franchot Tone—Davis’s secret love—becomes, in this narrative, a calculated strike, with Crawford using her influence to lure him away, leaving Davis devastated.
On the set of Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?, the rivalry reached levels bordering on psychological warfare. Davis recalls finding props subtly rearranged, costume pieces altered, and even lights repositioned in ways that distorted her appearance on film. One fictional entry in her private journal reads:
“She wanted me unhinged. She wanted me ruined.”
And then—according to this dramatized version—the infamous physical altercations weren’t accidents. Davis claims one shove sent her stumbling dangerously close to the edge of the staircase set piece. Crew members allegedly swore to secrecy as the producers covered up incident after incident to keep the film alive.
In her fictional confession, Davis admits the feud consumed her life:
“I didn’t lose to her in films. I lost to her in the quiet moments. When the cameras were off.”
She speaks of relationships destroyed, opportunities lost, and years spent looking over her shoulder, never knowing when Crawford would strike next—professionally or emotionally.
But the most shocking twist comes in her final reflection. In this heightened, dramatized universe, Davis reveals that despite the pain, she felt an unspoken bond with Crawford—two titans trapped in a system designed to turn women into rivals and rivals into enemies.
“She was my mirror,” Davis says quietly. “And sometimes what you see in a mirror terrifies you.”
