Top 10 Wildest Celebrity PR Nightmares We Forgot About
#10: A Low Vera
Julia Roberts personal life has been a consistent fixture of the entertainment news industry. Her romance with Daniel Moder, a married cinematographer, set the gossip mill on fire, and frankly, Roberts did her best to stoke the flames. Moders wife, Vera Steimberg, refused to grant him a divorce. Hence, the A Low Vera t-shirt Roberts wore in 2002. A pun on aloe vera, the shirt was a clear message to her lovers wife. She refused to confirm the shirts meaning in interviews, but given how not subtle the wordplay is, its not exactly a mystery. Despite the low blow, Roberts, her career, and the relationship survived the drama. Roberts and Moder have been married since 2002.
#9: David Lettermans Blackmailer
In 2009, the Late Night host went on air to describe how Joe Halderman, a 48 Hours producer, tried to blackmail him. The man had learned of David Lettermans numerous affairs with women who worked for him. The hosts marriage, career, and show were all on the line. There was the potential for a complete flameout here. Rather than give him the millions he asked for, Letterman opted instead to get Halderman arrested and confess his many affairs with women who worked on his show. He used his time slot to come clean to the world. While his damage control ultimately worked, blackmail like this had the potential to be devastating.
#8: Matthew McConaugheys Arrest
Its probably one of the least surprising scandals of all time. But its easy to forget there was a time when getting caught with a certain illicit substance could be a career-ender. Matthew McConaugheys 1999 arrest was initially the result of a noise complaint. Police arrived to find the Dazed and Confused actor nude and playing some bongos. Officers entered McConaugheys home after seeing paraphernalia, and he fought them off. Resisting police transportation could be a hard one to come back from. Luckily, a judge dismissed the charges, and McConaughey pled guilty to the noise complaint.
#7: Kendall Jenners Badly-Timed Pepsi
Pepsis 2017 Live for Now short featuring the model and reality star of Keeping Up with the Kardashians fame was supposed to be a call for peace. Unfortunately, the Internet was quick to point out the imagery of protesters and police were reminiscent of recent Black Lives Matter protests. Jenners proximity to one of the most famous families in entertainment didnt help matters. The ads message, that a soda could cure such intense social strife, was hailed as inauthentic at best, tone-deaf and offensive at worst. It was pulled, costing Pepsi millions, and Jenner became a laughing stock.
#6: Ariana Grandes Donut Fiasco
You visit a donut shop with your squad. You spot the big tray full of fattening and delicious donuts. Then, youre caught licking one of the displayed donuts on a security camera and saying you hate America. Weve all been there, right? In 2015, Ariana Grandes antics were caught on camera for all to see. She managed to offend a lot of people, drumming up the fury of many who love America and many who simply think licking food thats on display in public places is gross. There was even a local police investigation into the incident. In her apology, Grande said what she was actually critiquing was not America, but obesity rates. This explanation only required a second apology.
#5: Reese Witherspoons Arrest
The Atlanta cop who pulled over a car drifting out of its line probably had no idea he was about to meet a movie star. And Oscar winner Reese Witherspoon was more than willing to let him know. She and husband Jim Toth were pulled over in 2013. Toth, who was driving, was arrested for driving under the influence. Witherspoon was arrested for disorderly conduct after carrying on, disobeying police orders to stay in the car, and declaring her rights as an American citizen. Clearly, the two were in the wrong. Luckily, she was quick to apologize and take responsibility before any real damage could be done to her career.
#4: Justin Bieber at the Anne Frank House
A few years into his career, Justin Bieber was making more headlines for his behavior than his music. A dust-up with Orlando Bloom, a misadventure with a mop bucket and a random dig at former President Clinton, and even a few street races marred his public image. But he made the ultimate gaffe when visiting Amsterdams Anne Frank House in 2013. While visiting the former home turned museum dedicated to the famed diarist, Bieber wrote in the museums guestbook that he hoped she would have been a Belieber. He might have been making reference to Franks love of pop culture, evidenced in her famous diaries. Given the circumstances of Franks death during the Holocaust, it read as tone-deaf and self-centered.
#3: Christian Bales On-Set Rant
A big-budget film set is a stressful environment. Apparently, the stress got to star Christian Bale on the set of Terminator Salvation. He openly berated director of photography Shane Hurlbut in the middle of a take. The DPs adjusting of lights during a pivotal scene led the actor to lose it, launching into a rant that was threatening and deeply unprofessional. But a bad situation became worse when audio of Bales rant hit the Internet. Suddenly, everyone was weighing in on a workplace dispute that Bale and Hurlbut had privately settled months before. Other actors came to his defense, but the controversy probably did more to hurt the film than help it.
#2: Dave Matthews Band & the Chicago River
The events of August 8, 2004 have since passed into Chicago legend, but the Dave Matthews Band became the subject of a truly wild, and truly disgusting, PR crisis. The rock group known for hits like Crash into Me was touring in Chicago at the time. Their tour bus reportedly drove over a bridge and dumped hundreds of pounds of human waste into the Chicago River below. Clearly, whoever did the dumping did not see the tourist boat sailing under the bridge at the time. The passengers of the boat were soaked. The band themselves were not on the bus at the time, but they were sued by the state of Illinois and fined for the drivers actions.
#1: Kategate 2024
The Princess of Wales disappearance from public life at the start of 2024 became an instant topic of speculation and coverage. The royal familys attempts to make her withdrawal less conspicuous only drew more attention, especially after it was reported she had had surgery. Things reached a fever pitch when a Mothers Day photo of the princess with her children appeared to be edited. Meant to reassure the public of her good health, this obvious attempt to fool them just made the speculation worse. Kates own explanation, that she was just experimenting with photo editing, was not credible. Eventually, increasingly salacious gossip forced her to finally admit her scarce public profile was a result of treatment for cancer.
Did you remember these PR disasters? Tell us in the comments.
