The Smashing Pumpkins’ 1998 album Adore was a striking deviation from their previous three releases. Coming off the back of Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness, a lot was riding on the band’s next project. But the process was fraught with personal problems within the band, pushing everyone to their limit creatively and emotionally. Then, upon release, it divided the fan base despite praise from critics.
Still, it remains a pivotal entry in the Smashing Pumpkins’ history. The lead single, “Ava Adore”, notably came with an elaborate music video. It was filmed in a single take, which required an expensive set design, with the whole thing costing roughly $800,000. But, according to Billy Corgan, a mistake occurred during filming that he left in the final video.
“I think we built somewhere between 10 to 12 sets, so think of it like a big ‘U’ [shape],” Corgan said during a July 2025 episode of his podcast The Magnificent Others, featuring Micky Dolenz of the Monkees as his guest. “We would move through the different sets,” he continued. “And the camera would just follow us along.”
Billy Corgan Explains Why He Left a Mistake in the ‘Ava Adore’ Music Video That Changed the Entire Narrative
So, the Smashing Pumpkins are making a music video in one take. It should go smoothly enough; Weezer did it for “Undone”, after all, and they even unleashed a bunch of dogs for their shoot. But, in comparison, “Ava Adore” called for more than 100 extras, an enormously elaborate set, precise timing for the slow-motion visual effects, and, most importantly, $800,000.
The slow-motion effects, which created the illusion of a stable camera while Corgan lip-synced in normal time, dragged production out way longer than anticipated. Everyone was restless. The Smashing Pumpkins considered scrapping the whole thing. But, again, $800,000. That’s a lot of money to just throw away.
Perhaps all this contributed to Corgan leaving a mistake in the final cut of the video. That way, they wouldn’t have to re-shoot with such limited time. To hear Corgan tell it, however, the crew initially didn’t want to let him have the mistake. He went on to explain exactly what went down.
“Something happened where they reached a point with the camera, I can’t remember what it was, I think it was an accident, and maybe because they thought it was a test take,” he said. “The camera operator swung around, and you saw the entire set just for one moment.”
This mistake revealed all the different sets stacked up like dominoes in the “U” shape. It also showed the crew and the dolly track for the camera. The scene continued its smooth transition, landing again on Corgan standing under dripping water. But for that moment, the fourth wall was broken. The entire vibe of the video shifted.
Corgan explained that he wanted to watch the test take to figure out how to make the video work. The crew tried to urge him along, as they were running out of time for the shoot. But, as Corgan said, there was $800,000 on the line. The video had to work.
“So [the crew] freaked out that the camera operator … had swung the camera and you saw the entire set, the [dolly] tracks, the crew with the coffee,” he continued. “And I said, ‘No, leave it.’ So now, with the clock running, they’re arguing with me, ‘No, you can’t have this break-the-fourth-wall moment in your video.’
“And I said, ‘It’s my f—ing video,’” Corgan added, “‘And I think it’s perfect.’”
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