Top 10 Celebrity Careers RUINED By Morons
#10: Janet Hubert
Janet Hubert is best recognized as Aunt Viv from the first three seasons of “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air”. When Hubert initially rejected the contract she was given for the 4th season, she expected a renegotiation. Instead, Hubert was replaced. She blamed this devastating turn of events on her rough working relationship with Will Smith. What made the contract rejection worse was that she was labeled as being difficult in post-show interviews. In the wake of this turn of events, Hubert struggled to land recurring roles for nearly a decade. After almost 30 years had passed, the fictional aunt and nephew reconciled during a reunion special for the show. Smith apologized for his actions and acknowledged his lack of empathy for Hubert’s difficulties.
#9: Jenna Cooper
Where You've Seen Jenna Ortega Before
At the end of the 5th season of “Bachelor in Paradise”, Jenna Cooper had everything she’d hoped for. Fellow contestant Jordan Kimball had proposed and they were set for a happily ever after. However, everything changed when popular blogger Stephen “Reality Steve” Carbone released scandalous screenshots. They allegedly showed text messages between Cooper and another man. She soon saw her fiancé break off their engagement while others attacked her character and integrity. When the texts were proven to be fake, “Reality Steve'' removed them from his site and apologized for the inaccurate images. Unfortunately, his apologies came after Cooper had to endure a lot of criticism.
#8: Jake Lloyd
Jake Lloyd raced into the public’s eye as the young Anakin Skywalker in “Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace”. Although he was only 10 when it was released, many fans took their dislike of the film out on the child actor. The excessive attention led to negative criticism from both the press but also his peers. At first, Lloyd voiced the character for games and attended cons. But he ultimately retired from acting in 2001 for his own mental well-being. After being arrested for a violent incident in 2015, Lloyd was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia and placed in a psychiatric facility. In 2020, his family took over his care and hoped he would soon regain his happy personality.
#7: Lance Bass
Lance Bass rose to fame as a member of the pop boy band NSYNC. In 2001, he further explored his teen heart-throb status by starring in the romantic comedy “On the Line”. After years in the public spotlight, he appeared on a 2006 cover of People magazine to announce he was gay. Bass genuinely wanted to share this news with fans so they’d know him better. But his open declaration also allegedly cost him some business opportunities right away. Fortunately, Bass was able to weather negative opinions and keep working steadily in various mediums. And In 2021, he and his husband Michael Turchin announced that they were the parents of twins Violet and Alexander.
#6: Orlando Bowen
Orlando Bowen was an up and coming Canadian football player. One night in 2004, he was ready to celebrate a new contract with friends. While waiting outside a nightclub, he was approached by two plainclothes police officers who asked if he had illegal substances. He insisted he didn’t have any several times before they forcefully took him down to the ground and arrested him. After the harrowing incident, he was arrested for drug possession and resisting arrest. But Bowen was finally cleared when one of the arresting officers was convicted of the same crime the player was. Unfortunately, the concussion he got during the attack stopped him from returning to the sport. He now works as a motivational speaker who talks about hope and forgiveness.
#5: The Chicks
Top 10 Celebrities Who Ruined Their Careers in 2022 so far
In the early 2000’s, the group formerly known as The Dixie Chicks had multi-platinum albums and a stellar reputation among country fans. However, things majorly changed during a 2003 concert when lead singer Natalie Maines was critical of the Iraq War. She also said “Just so you know, we're ashamed the president of the United States is from Texas.” Her comments sparked a ton of backlash against the band. Although Maines went on to say she had faith in the military, it didn’t help matters much. After the comments, they received less radio play, saw concert sales dip and got death threats in the U.S. They took a hiatus before returning and finding success once more.
#4: Ashley Judd
Ashley Judd’s movie career was on the rise in the 90’s. She was praised for her roles in hit movies like “Heat”and 2002’s “Frida”. But after the latter film, she seemed to get less and less leading roles. The reasoning behind this trend became clear in 2018 when Judd sued Miramax executive Harvey Weinstein for harassment and defamation. She claimed that after rejecting his advances during the filming of “Kiss The Girls”, he’d spread lies that ruined her career. Film director Peter Jackson also reported he didn’t cast Judd in “The Lord of the Rings'' because of Weinstein’s comments. Although Judd hasn’t hit the career heights she once had, she’s been praised by many for exposing horrible behavior.
#3: John Garfield
John Cena VS The Rock
John Garfield was one of the most popular Hollywood actors of the 30’s and 40’s. He was nominated for Academy Awards, entertained troops overseas during WWII and was a box office star. In 1951, Garfield was caught up in the communist scare and had to testify before the House Committee on Un-American Activities. When asked to name suspicious people, the actor didn’t single anyone out. He declared, “I am a Democrat by politics, a liberal by inclination, and a loyal citizen of this country by every act of my life”. After Garfield’s testimony, he remained largely blacklisted and rejected by Hollywood studios for the rest of his life.
#2: Mira Sorvino
After Mira Sorvino won Best Supporting Actress for “Mighty Aphrodite”, she expected her career to take off. But a few years later, she was still struggling to grab comparable roles. Sorvino believes that one major reason behind her struggles was due to Harvey Weinstein. After she rejected the exec’s advances, she found that her prospects were being limited. Sorvino eventually shared her story with the New Yorker in 2017. While she expected to take another big career hit, people largely came out in support of her. In the 2020s alone, Sorvino has become more in demand for big TV roles.
#1: Rubin "Hurricane" Carter
Rubin "Hurricane" Carter was a world famous boxer aiming for the World Middleweight Boxing Championship. In 1966, he was arrested and charged for taking the lives of three people. Although there was no forensic evidence to tie him to the crime, he still spent over a decade in prison. Many people believed in Carter’s innocence through the ordeal. Bob Dylan even wrote the song “Hurricane”to bring more attention to this injustice. Finally, in 1988, a judge declared that the prosecution was “based on racism rather than reason and concealment rather than disclosure”. After his release, Carter served as the executive director of the Association in Defense of the Wrongly Convicted.
