Top 10 Most Shocking Guests on Dr. Phil

You have to be pretty darned memorable on this program to become a meme. Danielle Bregoli, now known as the rapper Bhad Bhabie, both stunned and entertained the world when she appeared on “Dr. Phil”; and her signature catchphrase, “cash me outside, how ‘bout dah?” instantly became a cultural sensation. But while that was funny and all, the then-13-year-old Bregoli was still a very scary and shocking guest. She openly admitted to stealing credit cards and vehicles, laughed while describing instances of physical violence towards her mother, and threatened to fight both her mother and the audience. So young, and so disturbing..

A woman by the name of Karla appeared on “Dr. Phil” claiming to be Tyler Perry’s wife, only, you know… she isn’t. According to her, "Perry" messaged her on Facebook and they instantly became friends. Once “Tyler” “proposed” (over the Internet), he asked for money for his various “charities,” and Karla sent him $100,000, leaving her flat broke. Her daughters rightfully assumed that it was all a scam, but Karla wasn’t having any of it. She also believed herself to be the mother of Perry’s real son (somehow...) It’s a sad and upsetting story combining the worst aspects of celebrity worship and gullibility.

A lot of things can tear a family apart, including racism. Guest Peyton’s dad is a member of the KKK, who served nine years in prison for manufacturing bombs to blow up an abortion clinic. He also refuses to acknowledge his grandson, Peyton’s child, because he is half-black. According to Peyton, her father has called her child “critter,” “monster,” and “ape.” In his words, his grandson is not human, because he’s not 100% white; and because he isn’t human, he couldn’t possibly be his grandson. It’s a sickening, heartbreaking story, and one of “Dr. Phil’s” most challenging to watch.

Nine-year-old Makenze is a hard child to manage, as seen in home videos of her toppling furniture, screaming, and attempting to bite her mother. Her mother also claims that she has punched her brother in the face, thrown scissors at a teacher, and attempted to topple her cousin’s crib. She also relays a horrific story of the time Makenze stood in traffic, hoping to die. She’s definitely a disturbed child, and her ongoing treatment, including heavy doses of pharmaceuticals, isn’t any comfort or help. Worse still, her father allegedly beats her with a belt. What a tragic and shocking story.

Now here’s a story for the ages. A 29-year-old teacher by the name of Tanya Ramirez gave her phone number to a 17-year-old student. This student then appeared at her doorstep one night and they had sex; and the student filmed the encounter with his phone. He then distributed the video to his friends, and it soon spread throughout the school, leading to Ramirez’s termination and a second-degree felony charge. She, in turn, sued the student and his mother for defamation. To make matters worse, the student’s mother called the sex tape “not that good,” implying that she, you know, watched her son’s sex tape. You can’t make stuff like this up.

It doesn’t get much worse than lying about cancer to get attention. A woman by the name of Patricia claimed to have had stage three cancer; and according to Patricia’s daughter, she told her story on a local news channel to receive attention and collect possible donations. Patricia then told Phil that she had had brain cancer, had numerous tumors removed, and that her entire face was detached for the procedure. And while she did, in fact, have some form of brain surgery, her medical records disprove almost everything else she said. According to Patricia’s daughter, she “made the story up after her husband died.” It’s exploitation but hey, that’s “Dr. Phil.”

Here’s another awful story, featuring 12-year-old Aneska. According to her parents, Aneska is a out of control, to put it mildly. How so? Well, she chases her siblings with knives, chokes her sister, and sets fire to comforters. They also say that she once killed the family hamster with a flashlight and squeezed a baby bird to death after finding a nest outside. According to Aneska, the voices in her head told her to do it. This is, by any standard, a terribly sad and disturbing case, and Aneska is easily one of Dr. Phil’s most troubled guests.

In 1996, child beauty queen JonBenet Ramsey was murdered in her house. The case remains unsolved; and after twenty years, her brother Burke broke his silence and granted an exclusive interview to Dr. Phil. Some people took issue with it. Many viewers noted Burke’s awkward and fidgety demeanor, and found him unsettlingly unreliable. This forced Dr. Phil to defend Burke on his show, claiming that Burke was just nervous. Burke is a shocking guest not only because of his emergence after twenty years with a horrific account of the night his sister was killed, but because his appearance caused so much controversy and discussion in the media.

In this episode, we watch as a heroin addict is chastised by her family. However, Niki is no ordinary junkie; she is an eight-month-pregnant opiate addict. According to the narrative related on the show, though Niki was very close to having a baby she lived in a van and dabbled in prostitution so she could buy herself and her boyfriend heroin. She also admitted to overdosing when she was seven months pregnant; and that she puts heroin before her baby. Sometimes “Dr. Phil” cases can shock you. Sometimes they scare you. And, in the case of Niki, they make you feel wicked shame and anger at the subjects involved.









Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few dishonorable mentions.



Haley





Mama June





Bailey

It’s not often that a convicted murderer gives an interview to Dr. Phil, but here you go. In 2012, teenager Zachary Davis bludgeoned his mother to death with a sledgehammer. Dr. Phil interviewed him two months before his trial, one which eventually led to a life sentence for Davis. And this was easily the creepiest and most shocking interview in “Dr. Phil” history. Davis detailed why and how he murdered his mother, and throughout the interview, he simply stares at the Dr. with emotionless eyes and speaks in an unnerving, Jigsaw-esque monotone voice. The interview is full of tension and horrific content, and we can barely stand to watch it.