Top 10 Celebrity Paparazzi Fights

Not usually one to get in scraps, at least in real life, Tarantino couldn’t help but let one member of the paparazzi have it, though can you really blame him? The “Kill Bill” director was just trying to enjoy a nice cup of Starbucks coffee, when a paparazzo abrasively approached him, flashing and filming. Tarantino’s initial reaction was to go after the man, who flees in cowardice, however, when the paparazzo approaches again, this time baiting the director to assault him, Tarantino demonstrates an impressive amount of patience and restraint, choosing instead to walk away. That’s one lawsuit he didn’t need.

What idiot thought it would be a good idea to pick a fight with Iron Mike? Did you see this guy in his prime? Haven’t you heard the stories? Back in 2009, the champ was catching a flight at LAX, a nightmarish process in and of itself, when a member of the paparazzi began harassing him. Tyson did his best to avoid confrontation, walking away to find a peaceful spot alone. He even had two TSA agents escort him to a private area, but when the paparazzi wouldn’t quit, he took matters into his own hands. With the TSA agents screaming for him to stop, Tyson approached the cameraman. Understandably, he got scared and passive real quick.

The Biebs has had so many run-ins with the paparazzi; it’s honestly hard to pick one occasion that stands out above the rest. While we have a certain amount of love for the time in 2012 when he allegedly threw his shoe at a paparazzo steadfastly blocking his car, the moment that makes this list was his 2013 scuffle with a London cameraman. Just trying to catch his ride, Bieber is verbally abused and insulted by a paparazzo with a rude vocabulary. Overcome with emotions, Bieber tries to fight through his bodyguards to retaliate. The whole scene makes you feel for Justin, as it’s a reminder that, despite his massive fame and success, he’s still just a kid.

Remember back when you were a kid fighting with your siblings, and you all go run to mom or dad and tell completely different stories, and it winds up being a huge investigation to find out who’s telling the truth? Well when it’s paparazzi versus the stars, the same idea tends to apply. In this case, footage emerged of Sam Worthington and Lara Bingle beating down a photographer, Sheng Li, in New York City. After the ordeal, Worthington and Bingle claimed Li had kicked Bingle, but the video seems to suggest otherwise. Oddly enough, Li supposedly had no idea who Worthington was; he just wanted shots of the Australian model.

This entry may just be the most shocking on the list, as it features celebrity and paparazzi in a complete role reversal. Typically, it’s the paparazzi doing the harassing, but on this occasion, it’s our celebrity doing the abusing. In a five-minute video of the event that’s emerged, Jamiroquai front man Jason Cheetham, aka Jay Kay, absolutely hurls abuse at a paparazzo, who for quite some time just stands there and takes it. Eventually, however, he simply cracks and retaliates with a devastating head-butt. In an instant, the musician has a face full of blood and probably a few regrets over his choice of words.

While he tends to play the charming rom com dreamboat buffoon in most of his film roles, in his day-to-day life Hugh Grant doesn’t have much of a problem getting nasty. While it’s pretty funny that he kicked a paparazzo in the groin in 2009, we have to travel back to April 2007 to find the entry that earned a place on this list. Trying to go about his shopping, Grant couldn’t escape an incessant man clicking away with his camera. In retaliation, Grant allegedly threw a container of baked beans at the paparazzi, kicked him, and said he hoped his children died of cancer. Pretty brutal for the same guy from “Love Actually.”

It seems fair to say that, on their worst of days, every person may have fantasies of going a bit postal and letting all of their anger out. Now most people find a way to channel that rage in a healthy, appropriate, law-abiding manner, but that wasn’t the case for Coldplay lead singer Chris Martin in 2003. After an Australian paparazzo refused to leave him alone, Martin cracked. When the cameraman took a break, Martin kindly smashed his car window and slashed his tires, presumably looking to give the paparazzo a taste of his own medicine. Maybe it wasn’t an eye for an eye exchange, but we bet it felt pretty damn good.

These days, it doesn’t matter what time of the year it is, what’s happening on the music scene, or what’s happening in world news, the only man who seems to make headlines is Kanye West. But he wasn’t always like this. There was a time in the mid 2000s when West didn’t dominate the media nearly as much, so when he clashed with paparazzi in 2008, it was kind of a big deal. Trying to make his way through the American Airlines terminal at LAX, Kanye was harassed by paparazzi. Retaliating, he smashed a photographer’s camera before his bodyguard did the same thing to a TMZ reporter. The police booked the two, but not before West rushed the reporters.

Like so many on this list, Britney’s 2007 clash with the paparazzi was a manifestation of the pop star reaching her breaking point. Smack dab in the middle of the public breakdown that saw Spears shave her head, the “… Baby One More Time” singer blew up at a gas station. After patiently and politely begging for her privacy, the paparazzi refused, and Spears lost it. She emerged from her car wielding an umbrella, hitting it against the paparazzi’s SUV until it broke. Already defeated from her inability to escape the public eye, this incident didn’t help, as the entire scene was caught on video.

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

Kate Moss

Russell Brand

Sean Penn

Though she doesn’t top charts a whole lot these days, there was a time when the Icelandic singer was on top of the world. Many Grammy nominations should paint the picture of this star’s career, but we have a sneaking suspicion she may be known for the vicious attack she delivered to a paparazzo one fateful day in 1996. Arriving in Bangkok, the singer went from 0 to 100 in a split second, brutally beating down a female reporter in a horrific attack. The singer blamed reporters for violating her son’s privacy, while the press claims the attack was unprovoked. Whatever the case, this is by far the most infamous paparazzi attack in celeb history.

Do you agree with our list? What do you think is the craziest fight between celebs and the paparazzi? For more eye-opening Top 10’s published every day, be sure to subscribe do WatchMojo.com.