20 Social Media Posts That Caused MASSIVE Backlash

20 Social Media Posts That Caused MASSIVE Backlash

Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the most outrageous social media posts made by high-profile accounts.

Lorde's Bathtub Picture

This pop star has received significant praise over her career. She’s hardly a controversial singer, but she did cause quite an outrage in 2018. This is because she posted a picture of a bathtub, with the poor caption “And iii will always love you.” Lorde was referencing a famous track by Whitney Houston, who was tragically found dead in a bathtub in 2012. Lorde claimed she didn’t make that connection until after posting, so she rushed to apologise and deleted the original image. Many of the responses were outraged, but quite a few defended her, believing she was too kind to purposely be so insensitive.

Gilbert Gottfried's Tweet about Japan

Gottfried had one of the most recognizable voices in American history; alongside this, he had a fairly edgy sense of humor. One of the most offensive examples was in 2011, when he made 12 tweets relating to an earthquake in Japan. They were considered highly insensitive, leading to a decline in his career. This is because Aflac, which hired him as its mascot’s voice, dropped him completely afterwards. Aflac did 75% of its business in Japan, so it didn’t want to risk keeping the connection. Gottfried apologized later on, but it didn’t change Aflac’s opinion.

Kutcher & Kunis' Letter For Masterson

Danny Masterson has been in prison since 2023, for a despicable crime he committed 20 years prior. You may recognise him as Steven Hyde from “That ‘70s Show.” Before his conviction, not all of his co-stars decided to abandon him. Both Mila Kunis and Ashton Kutcher took it upon themselves to send a judge a letter of support for Masterson. This then led to the controversial post in question, when they released a video apologising for it. It dropped on Instagram, and they explained their side, specifically saying they didn’t intend to undermine the victims. This failed to bring all fans over to their side. Kutcher subsequently resigned from a charity he set up on account of the blunder.

James Gunn's Controversial Series of Tweets

As the director of “Guardians of the Galaxy,” Gunn became one of the most celebrated superhero directors. His career in cinema took a huge setback in 2018, when some old Tweets of his came to light. It turned out, between 2008 and 2012, he made a ton of edgy posts about a range of topics. This included some extremely dark humor, so in response, Disney fired him from the third “Guardians” movie. Gunn apologized, alongside saying he regrets the jokes he called “stupid.” Not everyone was opposed to Gunn, though; quite a lot of people criticized Disney’s decision. Eventually, they changed their minds in 2019, then got him back on board for the third movie.

Gina Carano's Holocaust Tweets

Carano is more commonly seen as an actor these days, but used to be a martial artist years ago. Her controversial political beliefs mean she doesn’t do much of either anymore. Carano played Cara Dune in “The Mandalorian,” but was fired in 2021. This is because she made an Instagram post comparing the modern treatment of American conservatives to Jews in Nazi Germany. This got her fired from Lucasfilm. Later on, she began mocking mask-wearing during COVID, which got her dropped by her talent agency. In 2024, she filed a lawsuit for her firing by Lucasfilm, which is being backed by Elon Musk. Their dispute was settled in August 2025, though, before any trial began.

Vanessa Hudgens' Covid Opinions

In the 2000s, Hudgens achieved stardom from playing Gabriella Montez in “High School Musical.” She’s made a few contentious Instagram posts over the years. For instance, in 2016, she was fined for carving her initials into a rock for a post. In 2020, during the pandemic, she made a majorly insensitive video. She claimed to respect the virus, but simultaneously thought deaths were inevitable. Many were outraged by her insensitive opinions. As such, she quickly apologized on Twitter. Thankfully for her, it didn’t seem to have a long-term negative impact on her career.

Colleen Ballinger's Apology

When YouTube was still relatively young, Ballinger’s internet persona, Miranda Sings, became massive on the site. This led to her getting a short-lived Netflix series in 2016. It all came crashing down in 2023, when she was accused of inappropriate behaviour towards fans. Her response was one of the most disastrous attempts at damage control ever. She released a 10-minute-long ukulele song, attributing the accusations to the “toxic gossip train.” It almost entirely killed her career, having the opposite effect she intended. It was so disastrous and insensitive that even people who had never seen Miranda Sings heard about it. Now, it feels like she’s more remembered for the apology than her older content.

Graham Linehan's Transphobic Tweets

Few comedy writers are as successful as Linehan. He was a major figure in creating “The IT Crowd,” “Father Ted,” and quite a few other celebrated British shows. By 2018, he’d become increasingly vocal on Twitter, specifically opposing trans rights. It’s impossible to pick just one post, as he would often make hundreds a day. Linehan doubled down on these sentiments, which entirely ended his career and his marriage. In interviews, he said his opinions “consumed his life,” leading to financial and legal struggles. For instance, in September 2025, he was arrested at Heathrow Airport. This was because police suspected him of inciting violence, but ultimately no further action was taken.

Dr. Ally Louks' Controversial PhD Thesis

Before getting her PhD, this literary academic was hardly known. In November 2024, she posted a picture of herself, looking pleased and holding her paper. It went viral almost instantly, since people found the title hilarious. Her paper was called “Olfactory Ethics: The Politics of Smell in Modern and Contemporary Prose.” As the name suggests, it studies the effects of smell on structuring society. Most of the responses were positive, but a ton of people were outraged. A lot of people noticed that criticism mainly came from right-wing accounts. It then motivated conversations about gender and academia, which one journalist believed showed “the worst side of the internet.”

Grok's Controversial Posting

When Musk’s AI chatbot Grok was first released, he was criticised for being “too woke” and left-leaning. For instance, he once tweeted, “The woke mind virus ‘is often exaggerated.’” Later on, he instead claimed the virus “poses significant risks.” This is because the bot was adjusted to reflect Musk’s political leanings. This slippery slope eventually led to Grok praising Adolf Hitler in some extremely anti-semitic Tweets. It also targeted an individual for having a Jewish surname. These posts were hastily deleted, and then Grok was restricted to only making images. Overall, the outburst was majorly hateful, making it a massive scandal for Musk’s chatbot.

CeeLo Green’s Tweets About Consent

In 2012, a woman accused singer CeeLo Green of slipping her a date drug and sexually assaulting her. While authorities declined to pursue sexual assault charges due to insufficient evidence, Green pleaded no contest to one count of furnishing a narcotic. Shortly after, he took to Twitter to voice his opinion on the matter. In a series of now-deleted tweets, Green attempted to redefine sexual assault, suggesting that actual victims would remember the incident. The posts lit a firestorm on Twitter, forcing Green to temporarily deactivate his account. Although he later returned and apologized, the damage was already done. His TBS show, “The Good Life,” was canceled, and he was booted from the animated film “Hotel Transylvania 2.”

Dani Mathers’ Body Shaming Snaps

Playboy playmate Dani Mathers was at her local gym in July 2016 when she came across a 71-year-old woman changing in the locker room. Instead of minding her business, Mathers secretly took a picture of the naked woman and posted it on Snapchat, alongside a selfie covering her mouth. Unsurprisingly, the internet was not amused. Facing a storm of backlash, Mathers deleted the post and claimed it was intended as a private message. But her tone-deaf stunt wasn’t just socially unacceptable, it was also a legal violation. Mathers was charged with invasion of privacy and risked up to six months behind bars. In the end, she pleaded no contest and was sentenced to three years probation and 30 hours of graffiti removal service.

Dylan Mulvaney’s Bud Light Advertisement

What started as a simple beer ad quickly spiraled into a massive boycott campaign. In April 2023, transgender actress and influencer Dylan Mulvaney shared a short promotional video for Bud Light on Instagram. The campaign aimed to boost sales by appealing to younger consumers and positioning the brand as more inclusive. However, this backfired, as the ad was reviled by many in conservative circles. Musicians, politicians and commentators not only called for a boycott, but also directed a barrage of threats towards Mulvaney. Bud Light’s response to the backlash, which neither supported Mulvaney nor renounced the ad, managed to please no one. As a result, the brand’s sales plummeted by as much as 26%, and its parent company’s stock price fell by 20%.

Bow Wow’s Private Jet Post

The lives of the rich and famous are often portrayed as so glamorous they might make you envious. But needless to say, not everything they showcase is genuine. Case in point, Bow Wow. In May 2017, the rapper posted an Instagram photo of a private jet, implying he was flying to New York in style. However, mere hours later, a passenger spotted him in economy on a commercial plane, took a picture and shared it online. To make matters worse, a reverse-image search revealed that the photo he posted was actually a stock image from a transport company. Internet users united in their ridicule of the rapper, even creating the #BowWowChallenge, posting side-by-side pictures of their own exaggerated luxury, alongside the less-than-glamorous reality.

The Star-Studded “Imagine” Video

In March 2020, the entire world was plunged into chaos as the COVID-19 pandemic spread, leaving many uncertain about the future. During this turbulent period, Hollywood actress Gal Gadot decided that what humanity really needed was a montage of celebrities singing along to John Lennon’s “Imagine.” The three-minute clip was posted to Instagram and, in addition to Gadot, featured names like Kristen Wiig, Jimmy Fallon, Natalie Portman and Will Ferrell. Despite the widespread confusion in the world at the time, everyone was crystal clear that the clip was not only tone-deaf and cringeworthy, but ultimately pointless. Gadot later acknowledged that the project was in “poor taste,” but reiterated that they all had “pure intentions” making it.

Justine Sacco’s Offensive Tweet

Prior to December 20th 2013, Justine Sacco served as the senior director of corporate communications at the media company IAC. That day, however, her life changed dramatically, thanks to a single, ill-conceived tweet. Just before boarding her flight from London to Cape Town, South Africa, Sacco posted an offensive comment that trivialized the prevalence of HIV in the country. The tweet was widely seen as racist and very quickly lit a social media firestorm while Sacco was blissfully offline mid-air. Before long, this obscure tweet from an account with just about 200 followers was trending worldwide. After Sacco landed and realized the magnitude of her misstep, she issued a public apology, acknowledging her “insensitive” comment. Nevertheless, she was fired by her employers.

Roseanne Barr’s Racist Tweet

The year was 2018. The ABC sitcom “Roseanne” had been revived for a 10th season that premiered to impressive ratings. Everything was going great for the show’s star and producer Roseanne Barr until May 29th, when she targeted former White House advisor Valerie Jarrett in what was widely criticized as a racist tweet. Barr initially doubled down, but as the backlash exploded, she apologized for the tweet, and blamed it on the sleeping drug Ambien. The drug’s manufacturer had to step in to publicly refute her claims. That same day, ABC canceled the revival of “Roseanne,” just two months after renewing it for another season. The show was eventually retooled as “The Conners,” but this time without Barr in the picture.

Kanye West’s Anti-Semitic Tweet

Kanye West has long been a magnet for controversy, but in October 2022, his behavior reached a troubling new low. After being locked out of Instagram for suggesting that Sean “Diddy” Combs was controlled by Jewish people, West moved to Twitter to escalate his rhetoric. There, he posted a tweet threatening violence against Jewish people and absurdly claimed he couldn’t be anti-Semitic. Turns out, he could. West’s tweet drew the ire of many across the board, and resulted in his Twitter account also getting locked. From there, things went downhill pretty quickly. Several high-profile companies with whom he shared business partnerships, including Adidas, Gap, Balenciaga and Vogue, all severed ties with him. Despite these significant losses, West continued to spread hateful remarks.

Kathy Griffin’s Trump Mask

Donald Trump is undeniably a polarizing figure, but that does not excuse the controversial stunt Kathy Griffin pulled in May 2017. The comedian shared a video on Instagram and Twitter, in which she held a bloody mask that closely resembled Trump. Griffin may be widely known for her shock humor, but this was a step too far. The posts were criticized, both by Trump’s supporters and his detractors, as many took it as a veiled threat of violence against the president. As a result, Griffin lost multiple endorsement deals and jobs, and was forced to cancel her upcoming tour dates. She initially apologized and removed the posts, but she later retracted her apology and even reposted the image after Trump lost the 2020 election.

Kevin Spacey’s Twitter Apology

The MeToo movement brought a tsunami of revelations that toppled many Hollywood elites, but few fell as hard as Kevin Spacey. It all began when Anthony Rapp accused Spacey of making sexual advances towards him back in 1986, when Rapp was still a minor. In response, Spacey uploaded a statement to his Twitter, apologizing to Rapp but claiming he couldn’t recall the incident. If he had just ended there, things might have played out differently. Instead, he used the same statement to come out as gay, a move that was widely seen as a clumsy attempt to distract from the very serious allegations. Spacey received a deafening wave of criticism from all sides and his reputation has since remained irreparably damaged.

Were there any posts that caused a stir we didn’t mention today? Let us know in the comments below!