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Star Scandals: These Celeb Freakouts Will Haunt You Forever

Darren August 10, 2024

Some people think celebrities are predictable people who are all style and no substance. They toe the line and do and say the right things in order to keep up public appearances while high-dollar checks keep rolling in. But sometimes they prove that they’re human too by blowing up in public. These celeb freakouts are usually both fascinating and disturbing to watch because we never know what’s going to happen.

Some of them are so rough, they’ll haunt you forever. So let’s remember the most interesting celeb freakouts now. From Will Smith slapping Chris Rock to Brittney’s tragic battle with mental health problems, this list gets a bit wild. Enjoy it now.

Will Smith

Smith had one of the most notorious celeb freakouts ever when he embarrassed himself at the 2022 Oscars. Comedian Chris Rock hosted the event and made a tasteless joke about Smith’s wife, Jada. He compared her to G.I. Joe, an insensitive comment because of Pinkett Smith’s alopecia.

However, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air actor overreacted by striding up to Rock and slapping him across the face on worldwide television for everyone to see. It shocked the world but we won’t pretend that it didn’t make the event more enjoyable. Awkwardly, Smith went on to win the Best Actor Award later in the ceremony (via People).

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Demi Lovato

Lovato came through Disney’s talent production line before becoming a bonafide star. They came out as non-binary in 2021 as they tried to come to terms with themselves. Lovato battled with mental health problems and had public meltdowns (via Healthline).

One of their lowest points was when they punched their backup dancer Alex Welch in the face while on tour with the Jonas Brothers. Assault is never a good look and this was a defining moment for the singer. Lovato went to rehab to overcome their problems and move on with life.

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Sinead O’Connor

The late Irish singer had one of the most distinctive voices of her generation. She was a genuine superstar when she broke out but the media took advantage of her bipolar disorder and destroyed her. O’Connor infamously had multiple celeb freakouts as she displayed increasingly erratic behavior.

She attempted to take her life multiple times before her tragic early passing in 2023. Meanwhile, she had several other incidents where she converted to Islam and became a Christian preacher and other acts. Unfortunately, O’Connor never received the support that she so clearly needed (via Entertainment Weekly).

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Randy Quaid

It’s easy to forget that Quaid was a genuinely good actor with multiple awards. He has a Golden Globe and even received an Oscar nomination. But these days, people focus on his public meltdowns. Quaid is infamous for his high-profile freakouts.

He went down the conspiracy theory pipeline and claimed asylum in Canada with his wife. They claimed that a shadowy organization was trying to assassinate them and other celebs. Meanwhile, he spewed hate in a notorious YouTube video and tried to occupy one of his old houses (via The Daily Beast).

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Michael Jackson

Some celeb freakouts are so disturbing that they become iconic. Nobody will ever forget the time that Jackson dangled his son, Blanket, over a hotel balcony. The infamous moment occurred in Berlin in 2002 when Jackson was at the peak of his fame. His son wriggled in his arms in a terrifying incident.

Later, Jackson apologized for his actions and claimed that he never endangered his children. He had several meltdowns throughout his life but this was a bridge too far. Jackson said that he made a terrible mistake and no one knew what he was thinking at the time (via LadBible).

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Mischa Barton

It’s always challenging when child actors grow up in front of the media. The constant attention places extreme pressure on them and sometimes it produces celeb freakouts. The OC actress Barton turned heads in 2017 when she had a breakdown in her backyard (via E! News).

She screamed incoherently about the end of the world and also called her mother a witch. In the end, an ambulance took her to the hospital for a mental evaluation. There was more drama that year when she had a revenge porn scandal. One of her exes tried to sell her pictures for a sleazy profit.

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Christian Bale

Some celeb freakouts come out of nowhere and this was one of them. Everybody knows that Bale is one of Hollywood’s most intense method actors. He goes full-bore and completely pours himself into his characters. But sometimes he takes it too far as one unfortunate photography director discovered.

Bale’s foul-mouthed rant went viral after he roared abuse at Shane Hurlburt on the Terminator: Salvation set. Later, he apologized and said that the two men immediately made up. Bale also said that he didn’t take his privilege for granted and acknowledged it was a horrible thing to do (via The Guardian).

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Naomi Campbell

Campbell is one of the most iconic supermodels ever but this beauty also has a stark dark side. She’s had many dramatic outbursts and assault cases that tarnished her image. One of her most public celeb freakouts came when flight attendants kicked her off a British Airways flight.

She also assaulted a pair of law enforcement officers at London’s Heathrow Airport. Meanwhile, it’s never a good idea to be one of her staff because she has no problem hitting them too. Campbell has attacked housekeepers and personal assistants as she showed that she has claws (via NZ Herald).

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Conor McGregor

McGregor has had many notorious incidents over the years. But when we talk about celeb freakouts, few will beat the time he went head-to-head with Machine Gun Kelly. It didn’t matter that it looked like a gust of wind would blow the Cleveland rapper away.

The pair had a bizarre scuffle at the 2021 VMAs after MGK rejected a photo with the fighter. It didn’t help the Irishman’s reputation as an erratic wildman. He also allegedly assaulted an Italian DJ in Rome. Francesco Facchinetti said that McGregor broke his nose with a punch (via The Mirror).

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Justin Bieber

Beebs’ is one of the most famous people on the planet but this came at a cost. He had a nightmare in 2014 as he struggled with mental health issues. Many celeb freakouts happen because young people are struggling to mature in the public eye (via NME).

Bieber threw eggs at a neighbor’s house, had an illegal street race, and abused prescription drugs. He also assaulted a limousine driver as well as a paparazzi member. The Canadian even joked about joining the Ku Klux Klan as he took things too far. Luckily, he recovered from this dark time.

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Mel Gibson

Some freakouts kill careers. That’s almost what happened to Gibson who found himself in no man’s land after a shocker in 2012. Police stopped him on a DUI but then Gibson went off on an antisemitic rant that blamed the Jews for every war that ever happened (via The Atlantic).

The Australian had a history of making uncomfortable jokes so it wasn’t the first time. But it was the most dramatic incident. Gibson faded out of the mainstream for over a decade before he returned as a director. He earned multiple Oscar nominations for Hacksaw Ridge in 2020.

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Tom Cruise

Nobody will ever forget Cruise psychotically leaping about Oprah’s set like a possessed maniac. It was one of the weirdest things her fans had ever seen. He proclaimed he was deeply in love and jumped about like a fool with a crazy grin. As celebrity freakouts go, this was a bizarre one.

Remember, Cruise was arguably the biggest movie star in the world at that moment. Everything was going right in his life and this was before Scientology took full control of his life. It threatened his career because suddenly he became a wacky caricature of himself (via The Ringer).

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Natasha Lyonne

Lyonne is enjoying a spectacular career renaissance right now. The talented actress is starring in series like Russian Doll and Poker Face. However, she went through a very difficult period because she battled drug and alcohol addiction. She had several public moments that caused her pain.

She credits Chloe Sevigny with helping her to overcome her struggles. Everybody needs a friend when they’re in a tough situation like this. Luckily, Sevigny was there for her in her darkest moments and Lyonne bounced back. Not everyone can say the same thing (via The List).

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Chandler Jones

Jones was one of the NFL’s most talented defensive players but now he’s battling his demons. The brother of UFC champion Jon, Chandler is a brilliant athlete too. However, both men have faced their demons over the years. In 2016, the Patriots and Foxborough police allegedly covered up a drug-fueled meltdown.

But things escalated in 2023 when Jones suffered multiple arrests. He reportedly took items from his ex’s house and burnt them while he was completely naked. Meanwhile, he also violated a domestic violence order. It was wild to watch a man fall apart in front of the world (via Esquire).

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Amanda Bynes

Bynes had everything before she threw it all away. The actress enjoyed a steady rise from Nickelodeon to Hollywood movies throughout the 2000s. But then mental health problems took their toll and in 2013 reached their pinnacle. The actress had several meltdowns and quit the industry.

There was one bizarre incident where she flung a bong out of her window in New York. A judge granted her mother a temporary conservatorship because of Bynes’ erratic behavior. However, in 2023, Bynes filed to lift this because she believes she’s in a much better place (via USA Today).

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David Hasselhoff

‘The Hoff’ was a global superstar in the 1980 but now we barely see him except on old Baywatch reruns. That’s because he’s battling with his demons and has had some of the worst celeb freakouts ever. Hasselhoff struggles with alcohol abuse and this is ruining his life.

His daughter infamously recorded him drunkenly shouting incoherently while he ate a cheeseburger. Meanwhile, a psychiatric hospital held him after he collapsed with a seizure. It’s been a long road for the former superstar and hopefully, he will bounce back (via NZ Herald).

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Charlie Sheen

Sheen had one of the most dramatic celeb freakouts ever. He was the highest-paid actor on TV when everything went wrong for him. The Two And A Half Men star began displaying increasingly erratic behavior from 2011 onwards. He admits that he was taking drugs like a kid ate candy.

The actor’s meltdown was tragic to watch but he says that it was a ‘cry for help.’ Sadly, this is the case for so many stars. People are making fortunes from their success and don’t care about their general well-being. We’ve seen it time and again but we never learn (via WION).

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Alec Baldwin

Sometimes it seems like Baldwin can’t help himself. We’re not talking about the tragic Rust incident that left one of his crew members dead. The explosive star lost his temper multiple times in public. One incident in 2017 saw him fling his drink on the street during a confrontation with a motorist (via Page Six).

In 2014, police arrested him after he cycled the wrong way down Fifth Avenue. However, it wasn’t the biking that was the problem but his confrontational nature. Then there were the Twitter rants and homophobic meltdowns that tarnished his reputation. Baldwin is a problematic individual and no stranger to celeb freakouts.

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Lamar Odom

Odom had one of the craziest celeb freakouts ever because he almost died. He fell into a coma when he overdosed at a Reno, Nevada brothel. The former NBA star had multiple dramatic incidents like this but this was the worst. It also signaled the end of his marriage to Khloe Kardashian.

She couldn’t handle his chaos anymore and decided that it was time to call it quits. Nobody can blame her for this but she also validated his crazy lifestyle too. The pair of them had problems and their relationship wasn’t healthy. In the end, it was better for them to start afresh (via The US Sun).

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Mariah Carey

For decades people have called Carey one of pop’s biggest divas. This is unfair because the singer struggles with incredible fame combined with bipolar disorder. It’s not easy to live with these two because they don’t go together well. Carey had one of the most high-profile celeb freakouts on TRL in 2001.

She went to rehab several times as she tried to overcome her problems. Carey also says that the media obsession was unnecessary and the rumors of a breakdown were overblown. Many celebrities have these issues but her fame meant that it captured the imagination (via OK Magazine).

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Shia LaBeouf

Some celeb freakouts shock everybody when they happen. But others are less unexpected and that’s where LaBeouf enters the picture. The volatile actor has had many problems over the past few years. One low point saw a bowling alley kick him out after he roared abuse at a bartender.

Then there were all of the abuse allegations that made him persona non-grata in Hollywood. FKA Twigs said that she was lucky to be alive after she ended their relationship. It’s a shame that things turned out this way because LaBeouf has genuine talent but he’s simply too volatile (via Variety).

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Jon Jones

Jones is arguably the greatest UFC fighter ever. However, he’s also had more than his fair share of freakouts. One of the lowest points of his life came during the global health crisis. Most people stayed at home and followed the rules. But for some reason, Jones went for a drive with a bottle of mezcal and his handgun.

The dysfunctional champion began firing shots in the air until police arrested him. He claimed that he wanted to hang out with some homeless people and treat them like human beings. But he wasn’t able to walk in a straight line when they instructed him to do so (via Fox News).

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Lindsey Lohan

Lohan won critical acclaim for her mature performance in The Parent Trap as a youngster. However, this also meant that the former child star grew up in front of the watching world. Lohan struggled to cope with this and had many mental health problems over the years.

Every list of celeb freakouts includes Lohan because she had many meltdowns. She abused alcohol and drugs as she made headlines in every tabloid. These included public outbursts like when she ranted at reality TV star Francesca Eastwood in a crowded restaurant in 2012 (via NDTV).

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Kanye West

West is one of the greatest rappers of his era but he is also a complex human being. The hip-hop icon struggles with bipolar disorder and that’s one reason why he has had some high-profile celeb freakouts. But it’s difficult to defend him because he often spews hateful, garbage views.

He went on an antisemitic rant in 2022 and shared conspiracy theories. This also cost Adidas millions of dollars after they opted to end their Yeezys deal with him. Meanwhile, he also made life incredibly difficult for Pete Davidson when the comedian dated his e-wife Kim Kardashian (via Time).

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Britney Spears

Spears underwent one of the most notorious celebrity freakouts ever. In 2007, the pop icon shaved her head in one of the most surreal videos fans ever watched. Originally, the haircutting studio refused but Spears picked up the razor and did it herself. This came after she filed for divorce from K-Fed.

The legendary singer struggled to overcome her mental health problems. It didn’t help that a conservatorship placed her under her father’s direct control. In 2023, Spears had another high-profile meltdown in L.A. when a fan videoed her in a restaurant without consent (via The Guardian).

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