10 Living Celebrities Rumoured to Have DIED
#10: Macaulay Culkin
Macaulay Culkin’s band the Pizza Underground played at the Fun Fun Fun Fest in Austin, Texas in 2014. Culkin’s first words to the audience when they hit the stage were apparently, “I’m alive!” It might seem like a weird thing to say to a crowd of people before a show, but Culkin wasn’t just stating the obvious. He was disproving a rumor that he had died. We’re not sure if a bunch of people had just watched “My Girl” for the first time and thought it was a documentary - but the rumors had gotten so loud that legit outlets like People and MTV News reported on him being alive.
#9: Cher
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Normally we’d say that CNN is a very trustworthy source for information. But that’s only if it’s actually CNN and not a fake Tweet credited to the outlet reporting on Cher’s passing. Indeed, news of the star’s supposed death in 2012 came from a sham post, and, well, you know how it goes. Soon enough even Kim Kardashian was tweeting about her shock and confusion. Once she found out it wasn’t true, she posted again, writing: “Can't believe people would make up a sick joke like Cher died. These people need to get a life!” We imagine she wasn’t the only one who felt that way. Sadly, this wouldn’t be the last time a death hoax about Cher would circulate.
#8: Jeremy Renner
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On January 1st, 2023, Jeremy Renner was in a horrible snow plow accident that almost killed him. However, he survived and embarked on a recovery journey after a successful surgery and some time in the ICU. The actor actually sent out a message mere days after the incident, showing the world he was okay. A few months later, however, a fake story circulated. In June, Twitter was home to yet another celebrity death rumor that went viral. This time, it was Renner, and the cause was said to be a “freak escalator accident”. If you were on the platform back then, you might’ve noticed the trending hashtag, #RIPJeremyRenner.
#7: Steven Seagal
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While many celebrities have to suffer through one death hoax in their lives, there are some who see fake reports of their passing multiple times. One of those stars happens to be controversial actor Steven Segal. In 2013, an “R.I.P. Steven Seagal” page was created on Facebook. It was bogus. In 2015, it was “reported” that he had died following “a massive heart attack”. Yet here we are, nearly a decade later in 2024, and we can assure you that while Steven Seagal isn’t as active in the industry as he once was, he is still very much alive.
#6: Jackie Chan
Given the stunts Jackie Chan does in his movies, it’s safe to say he finds himself in danger far more than most of his fellow celebrities. Considering that, news of his death might seem more believable when it’s initially reported. But the truth is Chan among us despite multiple stories claiming otherwise throughout the decades. We don’t need to go through each hoax one by one. But in at least three cases, news of Chan passing away has circulated online. The supposed causes cited for these fake deaths have ranged from accident to heart attack. Thankfully, each of the reports thus far have been baseless.
#5: Lindsay Lohan
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Lindsay Lohan defined many of our childhoods back in the ‘90s and 2000s, with roles in iconic flicks like “The Parent Trap” and “Mean Girls.” With that much fame also came a lot of attention, and practically her every move and struggles with things like substance use were made public. In 2010, the public was falsely led to believe that she had lost her life. It reportedly started via an edit to the actress’ Wikipedia page, before social media took over, helping the misinformation spread far and wide. Of course, Lohan was thankfully not dead. In recent years, she’s made something of a comeback in the industry, while also starting a family.
#4: Morgan Freeman
In “The Shawshank Redemption” Andy Dufresne speaks iconic words to his friend Redding. [“Get busy living or get busy dying.”] In 2012, the man who brought Redding to life — actor Morgan Freeman — was rumored to have done the latter. The hoax began with a post reporting that “beloved actor Morgan Freeman passed away due to [an] artery rupture.” It gained traction, and was promptly debunked. This wouldn’t be the first or last Freeman death hoax, either. At one point, he reacted flawlessly, posting, “Like Mark Twain, I keep reading that I have died. I hope those stories are not true... But if they are, I'm happy to report that my afterlife seems identical to my life when I was alive.”
#3: Dwayne Johnson
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We’re all thankful that today, in 2024, we can smell what the Rock is cooking! However, there have been multiple occasions in which fans thought that Dwayne Johnson had left us. He has been the victim of false death reports involving stunts gone awry a few times. There were ones back in 2014 that had him falling from the Kauri Cliffs in New Zealand while filming “Fast 7”. Then, in 2019, he was falsely reported to have perished due to a stunt gone wrong once more. That hoax spread because of a fake BBC headline. Don’t worry, the Rock is okay!
#2: Avril Lavigne
While many celebs have to deal with false death reports, Avril Lavigne’s situation is more, shall we say “Complicated”. It goes beyond a few fake articles claiming she’s dead. Indeed, there’s a whole conspiracy theory. This is how it goes: some believe she took her own life in 2003. But what about all those Avril Lavigne concerts and albums and live appearances since? Well, as the conspiracy goes, Lavigne’s body double — Melissa Vandella — was used by the label as a “replacement” to continue making money off the star’s name. Lavigne has repeatedly said these rumors are false. The blog post at the root of the whole thing even stated it “was created to show how conspiracy theories can look true.” There you have it!
#1: Paul McCartney
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Paul McCartney is one of the most popular musicians of all time, from one of the most popular bands of all time. So it would only make sense that the hoax surrounding his supposed death would be, according to Time magazine, one of “the world's most enduring conspiracy theories”. The “Paul is Dead” conspiracy was born in 1966 with the belief that McCartney had passed away in a car accident. The nonsense theory posits that a doppelgänger then took his place. Britain’s security service is even said to have helped make it happen. McCartney for his part wasn’t amused by it, calling the rumors “bloody stupid” in a 1969 interview with Life magazine. Which death hoax shocked you the most? Let us know in the comments!
