Top 10 Times Celebs Acted Like Karens on Camera

Justin Bieber

Justin Bieber has a bit of a…reputation, you might say. For a while, there, he was known for not always showing grace. But, sometimes, he’s not always the biggest culprit at fault. In 2015, the Canadian singer attended the iconic Coachella music festival. Though he was looking to support Drake, and cited being invited by the rapper, a then twenty-one-year-old Bieber ended up being denied access to the artists’ entrance. According to reports, Bieber was turned away due to the area being at maximum capacity. Not wanting to be put in the main crowd in case he got swarmed by fans, the singer refused to leave. It was definitely not a civil altercation and security ended up putting him in a chokehold. Bieber later considered suing the festival for the mishap.

Joan Rivers

If there was one person you wouldn’t have wanted to verbally spar with, it was the late-great Joan Rivers. In 2014, she directed her ire at CNN’s Fredricka Whitfield. There to promote her book, “Diary of a Mad Diva,” Rivers went on the defensive immediately as Whitfield attacked her controversial comedy. But, it was when they talked about Rivers wearing fur on the book’s cover, that the wheels really came off. Rivers pointed out Whitfield’s hypocrisy and declared that she was not the right person to interview a comedian, among other things. Tired of what she felt was a negative and defensive exchange, Rivers ended the interview by storming off camera.

Björk

Being a famous musician is hard. On top of the grueling schedule, you’re constantly hounded by the press on your every movement. In 1996, it was the turn of Iceland’s Björk. Only, she went O-T-T. Arriving at what’s now known as Don Mueang International Airport in Bangkok, journalists were ready for her entrance. However, Julie Kaufman made a big mistake. Once she uttered “Welcome to Thailand” to Björk’s son, the singer suddenly launched herself at the reporter, knocking her to the floor. Then, she threw Kaufman around like a rag doll in her rampage before being dragged away. Afterward, the singer’s publicist said Kaufman had been hounding Björk for four days. While this certainly explains Björk’s reaction, she probably didn’t need to go as far as she did.

David O. Russell

Making a film is hard. A director is tasked with a lot, including keeping morale high. However, David O. Russell verifiably disregarded that part of the job while shooting 2004’s “I Heart Huckabees.” During a rehearsal with Lily Tomlin, the director lost his marbles when she brought up some of her concerns. Russell launched into a tirade filled with expletives and insults. On top of this, he threw props around like a toddler having a tantrum. Amazingly, Tomlin acted with grace and poise, considering the misogynistic words he spat at her. The behind-the-scenes clip continued with Russell still yelling in the background as the cast and crew stood around. Almost as if that wasn’t the first time Russell had exploded on set…

Cristiano Ronaldo

Athletes never like losing. But, they certainly should never take out that disappointment on fans. Well, former Manchester United forward Cristiano Ronaldo did not adhere to this in 2022. After his team lost one-nil to Everton in the Premier League, the Portuguese legend walked down the tunnel. One teenaged fan, Jacob Harding, was looking to film this memory and had his phone out. Shockingly, Ronaldo batted it out of the kid’s hands, purportedly damaging the device and Harding’s hand as he stormed off. On social media, after the scandal went viral, Ronaldo tried to make amends. However, the Football Association and the police wanted further penalty. He was cautioned by the cops, banned for two games, and fined £50,000 for his bizarre outburst.

Andrew Dice Clay

Andrew Dice Clay is a controversial comedian who often blurs the line between satire and terrible opinions. Still, one thing you don’t want to do is diminish his career on a live daytime interview, as CNN’s Allan Chernoff found out in 2003. The interviewer claims that Clay used to be a headline guy, causing the comedian to become defensive. Then, Chernoff asks Clay about the gym he runs. The only problem… Yeah, he didn’t run a gym. The ensuing results are as you might expect: Clay launches into a boatload of f-bombs over the lack of research, prompting audible gasps from the production crew. He then takes his mic off and heads out, as Chernoff, suppressing a smile, tries to move on to another segment.

Reese Witherspoon

It’s always a little icky when celebrities play the “do you know who I am?” card. Unfortunately, for Reese Witherspoon, her act was captured by a police dashboard camera in 2013. As her husband, Jim Toth, was being detained on suspicion of drunk driving, Witherspoon, who was also in the car, interfered. Because Witherspoon would not follow police orders, she was eventually arrested alongside her husband. This obviously didn’t bode over well for the Oscar-winning actress and she asked the cop if he knew her name. When he responded that he didn’t, she informed him that he was about to, resulting in an apology to the officer from Toth.

Lil Wayne

When performing live, there’s always the threat something will go wrong. And when it did for Lil Wayne in Florida in 2015, he didn’t handle it too well. After performing seven songs, the rapper expected to hear the instrumental for O.T. Genasis’ song “CoCo” so he could remix it. Instead, the DJ launched the original track. Rather than just speaking to the DJ quietly, changing the music, and continuing, Wayne decided to go to extremes. After exchanging words with the production crew, he threw his microphone toward the DJ’s booth and left the stage as a confused crowd looked on. Wayne later returned to berate the DJ, encouraging the crowd to also take part in the shaming.

Vanilla Ice

It’s probably not a great idea to invite a musician onto a show and mock their work to their face. It’s definitely not a good idea to do all that, then hand them a weapon. We’re not sure exactly what the line of thinking was but that’s exactly what MTV did for “25 Lame,” where they counted down the worst music videos of all time, as chosen by the public. In number nine, they brought out Vanilla Ice so the hosts could ridicule “Ice, Ice, Baby.” Afterward, they handed him a baseball bat and invited him to destroy the tape. Which he did. But then Ice went on a rampage across the set, smashing everything in sight. With all the debris flying about, Jon Stewart reportedly cut his hand in the carnage.

Christian Bale

Method actors are some of the most intense folk around. They take their work – and themselves – very seriously. Director of photography Shane Hurlbut learned this the hard way when shooting 2009’s “Terminator Salvation.” After accidentally ruining a take by walking in Christian Bale’s eyeline, the former Batman star launched into a curse-word-filled rant against Hurlbut, even threatening violence against the DOP. The gross incident made its way online and, yeah, people were not impressed. To be fair, the actor did profusely apologize for his actions after the scandal went viral, and admitted he was “way out of order” in a segment on KROQ radio station.