Top 10 Celebrities Who Hate Being Famous
Maybe it's not all glitz and glamor after all! Turns out Sia, Robert Pattinson and Emma Watson are just a few of the celebs who are not fond of the spotlight. WatchMojo is counting down the stars who don't like being famous.
Special thanks to our users drewbrown, Strider Xanthos and Sanderson Sister for submitting the idea. Check out the suggest page here: WatchMojo.comsuggest/Top%2010%20Celebrities%20Who%20Hate%20Being%20Famous
Script written by Nathan Sharp
#10: Zach Galifianakis
As it turns out, this party animal from “The Hangover” may not be much of a party animal in real life. During a press conference for “Birdman” at the New York Film Festival, Zach really tore into his feelings about being famous, claiming it was “dumb” and not something he was interested in. He then went on to scathe the public’s inane interest in celebrities and their personal lives before attacking the industry itself, saying he finds “the way Hollywood congratulates itself” to be gross. Maybe that’s why he’s moved on to TV.
#9: Sia
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Sia once worked behind the scenes in the music industry, co-writing songs like Rihanna’s “Diamonds” and Ne-Yo’s “Let Me Love You,” while making her own music. It wasn’t until 2011 when Sia’s name became mainstream with the release of David Guetta’s “Titanium”, and her fame hasn’t relented since. Unfortunately, she absolutely hates it, as evident by covering her face at public events with her signature wig – but even prior to this, she had already begun wearing a mask on stage. Sia has said that she doesn’t do these things for attention, but because she’s trying to “maintain some modicum of privacy” as she finds being famous challenges her sanity.
#8: Marilyn Monroe
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You can see how becoming a sex symbol for an entire country could be detrimental to your mental well-being. Early in her career, Monroe was the sexy blonde bombshell to millions of people, and she initially loved the attention. However, she soon realized that she was being typecast, and desperately tried to be taken seriously. It was around this time she became depressed and addicted to drugs, from which she never recovered. Her mental health deteriorated, and she was placed in a mental institution shortly before dying by overdose. Former co-star Laurence Olivier later referred to Monroe as “the complete victim of ballyhoo and sensation.”
#7: Emma Watson
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Emma Watson is one of the biggest movie stars in the world: not only has she starred in one of the most popular movie series’ of all time, but she’s also played the lead role in the live-action adaptation of one of the most popular Disney movies of all time. So, it’s safe to say that millions know her name. However, she has since grown quite uncomfortable with the fame, describing it as not easy to deal with. She also rarely poses for photos with fans, calling it “the difference between being able to have a life and not.” However, she doesn’t refuse children, so rest assured there.
#6: Daniel Day-Lewis
This three-time Academy Award-winning actor is one of the most respected performers of all time, and is known for his dedication to the craft. However, he hates the attention that comes with it. He was forced to move away from his hometown of London because he hated being in the public eye, and he now resides in a county in Ireland, calling his life a “lifelong study in evasion.” He also rarely gives interviews, and in 2017 declared himself to be retired. So, if Day-Lewis has his way, we’ll probably never see his face again.
#5: Shia LaBeouf
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For someone who hates being famous so much, LaBeouf's attempts to stay out of the limelight often backfire. He also seems to just as often find himself in the spotlight for the wrong reasons. In 2014, LaBeouf famously announced via Twitter that he was retiring from public life after he was caught plagiarizing a Dan Clowes comic, and his red carpet bag stunt is now the thing of legend. On top of that, LaBeouf has told Variety that he feels “enslaved” as a celebrity and that being one “robs you of your individuality.”
#4: Robert Pattinson
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It’s a well-known fact that Robert Pattinson is not a fan of the “Twilight” franchise, the very series that made him a household name. That’s probably why he has spent so much time in the indie scene since the final “Twilight” film was released. Well, that and hating the fame that comes with starring in a blockbuster movie franchise. He told the Spanish edition of GQ that “you don’t have a normal life anymore” after becoming famous, and that “people don’t realize how lonely you are” once you become a household name. He probably wishes that he lived in the woods of Seattle right about now.
#3: Britney Spears
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Britney Spears has an infamously rocky history with fame and the dangers that come with it. While she now says that she “goes back and forth” regarding her fame, there once was a time when she absolutely despised it. In the 2008 MTV documentary, she simply said, “I’m sad” with tears in her eyes, and that image alone is startlingly effective and telling. She also had many run-ins with the paparazzi in the mid 2000s, which was a contributing factor, along with numerous personal issues, in her emotional breakdown in 2007. Today, Spears seems to be in a much better place.
#2: Dave Chappelle
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“Chappelle’s Show” was undoubtedly a cultural milestone back in the 2000s, and Chappelle was seemingly set. That is why everyone was stunned when he simply walked away during production of Season 3 and flew to South Africa for peace of mind. He later told Time being in South Africa meant not having the distractions of fame. Later, Chappelle would say that fame is a “horrifying concept when it's aimed at you”. Unlike many celebrities, the comedian lives a reclusive life, on a quiet farm in Ohio with his wife and children, well away from the hustle and bustle of Hollywood glamor.
#1: Kristen Stewart
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Like her co-star Robert Pattinson, Stewart abhors the fame that came with starring in the “Twilight” series. Stewart seems like a reserved woman, so it’s understandable that she would hate the attention that the spotlight and camera flashes bring. She initially wasn’t prepared for the onslaught of attention that being in “Twilight” brought her, calling it a “huge lifestyle shift” that came with “really heavy baggage” - although she didn’t hate it. Yet. She has since told Harper’s Bazaar UK that Hollywood is “disgustingly sexist” and that “fame is the worst thing in the world.” Sounds like she hates it now.
