The Hollywood Gossip (THG) vs CastLoop
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
The Hollywood Gossip (THG)
Stay updated with the latest entertainment news and celebrity gossip. Easily swipe through stories, follow your favorite stars and topics, and access over 20 years of archived content.
- Seamless browsing experience
- Swipe between stories
- Follow favorite stars and topics
- Access 20+ years of content
- iPhone and iPad optimized
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Never miss a story about your faves. The Hollywood Gossip brings you celebrity news, gossip, and drama the second it breaks — from the team that's covered Hollywood for over 20 years. • Follow your favorite stars and get push alerts when news drops about them • Swipe seamlessly between stories, just like your camera roll • Save articles to read later, synced across your devices • Breaking-news alerts curated by real editors, not algorithms • Dark mode, endless scroll, and 20+ years of archives Reality TV, the royals, music, movies, scandals — if Hollywood is talking about it, it's here.
CastLoop
Engage in AI-powered interactive story games where your choices shape the narrative. Watch cinematic scenes, make critical decisions, or even write your own responses to influence the plot and discover multiple endings across various genres.
- AI interactive story games
- Cinematic scenes
- Choice-based branching narratives
- User-written responses
- Multiple paths and endings
- Diverse genres (romance, mystery, fantasy, thriller, drama)
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A dangerous crush. A suspicious ally. One very bad idea. Welcome to CastLoop, where stories are made to be played. Watch cinematic stories and choose your next move. Or step into an interactive novel: pick a suggested action or write your own, and let AI continue the story. Your novel can have pictures, too. Illustrated mode adds two AI-generated images to each new turn. Keep reading while they load, or switch to text-only mode for your next turn. In supported cinematic stories, choice hints show effects or requirements before you tap, and on-screen stats let you follow changes as you play. Browse by genre and set your story preferences to find your next adventure. CastLoop+ includes unlimited text-only generation in interactive novels. Illustrated turns cost 10 Diamonds with membership or 20 Diamonds without it. Nonmembers can generate text-only turns for 5 Diamonds. Illustrated generation still requires Diamonds. Subscriptions and other in-app purchases are available. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: The Hollywood Gossip (THG) at 43% against CastLoop's 0%. The Hollywood Gossip (THG) also leads on rating (4.7 vs 4.0) and in-app purchases (none vs 10). On price, update cadence, ads and device support there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. CastLoop sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $14.99 per 7 days. The Hollywood Gossip (THG) asks for nothing beyond the download.
The Hollywood Gossip (THG) holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: The Hollywood Gossip (THG) has 87 ratings behind it against 4, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 43% of The Hollywood Gossip (THG)'s written reviews are positive against 0% of CastLoop's.
The Hollywood Gossip (THG) ships an update weekly, CastLoop every 8 days. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | The Hollywood Gossip (THG) | CastLoop |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.7 (87 ratings) — better | 4.0 (4 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 42.9% of reviews — better | 0.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 87 — better | 4 |
| Update frequency | Weekly — better | Every 8 days |
| Ads | Yes | Yes |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free — better | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad — better | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 16.0 — better | 16.4 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 30 MB | 193 MB |
| Age rating | 12+ | +12 |
| Developer | Mediavine | X Original |
Customer experience
The Hollywood Gossip (THG)
CastLoop
In-app purchases
The Hollywood Gossip (THG)
No in-app purchases
CastLoop
- CastLoop Plus Weekly Subscription$14.997 Days
- CastLoop Plus Annually Subscription$149.991 Year
- Diamond Pack 1$0.99
- Limited Deal$0.99
- Unlock Full Story$2.99
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- Diamond Pack 2$2.99
- Diamond Pack 3$5.99
- Diamond Pack 4$9.99
- Diamond Pack 5$19.99
- Diamond Pack 6$69.99
Questions
Is The Hollywood Gossip (THG) free?
Is CastLoop free?
Which has better reviews, The Hollywood Gossip (THG) or CastLoop?
Do The Hollywood Gossip (THG) or CastLoop have ads?
Which is updated more often, The Hollywood Gossip (THG) or CastLoop?
Other comparisons
