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Perhaps you grew up dreaming of being rich and famous. Hollywood stars seem to have it all. And celebrities have millions of fans around the world who love them, so how could they be unhappy? But the grass is always greener on the other side, and we often forget that there’s a darker side to the entertainment industry. Plus, it can be incredibly difficult to deal with any personal issues while the whole world is watching.
Redditors have been recalling some of the most tragic celebrity downfalls, so we’ve gathered their heartbreaking stories below. From stars that lost their battle with depression to talented artists who were absolutely destroyed by tabloids, these tales might make you extremely grateful for your quiet, private life.
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#1
All the women who lost (or were blacklisted for years)their careers for saying no to Harvey weinstein. Ashley Judd, Courtney love, and selma hayak.
Mel in Georgia 6 hours ago
I remember seeing Ashley Judd in something and thinking that she was a really good actress ... then nothing. This explains it. Such an evil man.
RELATED:
#2
Rick Moranis.
Guy is beloved everywhere, play in great movies then... his wife passes away. He stops everything to take care of his children full time.
a REAL hero.
I freakin' love and respect the man.
1-800-OMG-STFU 6 hours ago (edited)
He maybe having a comeback since his kids are all grown now. Isn't there another Honey! I [BLANK] the Kid/Us coming out soon?
#3
He hasn’t fallen, but knowing Bruce Willis is going to mentally deteriorate AT ALL made me really sad.
#4
Robin Williams...I have a mother with dementia and it's terrifying and soul crushing to watch someone you love forget activities they used to love. Me and my sister have prepared for the worse but that doesn't make it any easier.
Prion disease can eat a bag or richards ALONG with cancers!
Mel in Georgia 6 hours ago (edited)
Have a friend who is dealing with a mom who has Robin's affliction (Lewy Bodies Dementia) and feel that Robin did his family and himself a favor with his decision. It's a nightmare for all involved. And I say this as someone who had a mom with typical dementia. It's not the same thing.
#5
Anthony Bourdain.
That hurt the most. I honestly envied his life, I wanted to be him or to be what he showed everyday. Traveling around the world. Eating delicious food from all around the world. That was imo the absolute epitome of success. And it was so sad...seeing that it wasn't enough...was absolutely earth-shattering for me.
Louisa johnson 6 hours ago
He was an ex a****t so maybe his demons came back to haunt him at a time of stress. Whatever did happen truly tragic as he was a favourite of mine to watch. Very deep and interesting human.
Rafael 5 hours ago
Ex what? BP mangled your comment. I read his Wikipedia page and I think you mean "áddict", is that right?
Load More Replies... Mel in Georgia 6 hours ago
Yeah, this was one of those celebrity passings where I thought we really lost a good one. Who knows what inner demons he was struggling with.
#6
Britney Spears she was having a mental breakdown and the whole world was beating her further down at the time it was sad to watch.
Emilu 5 hours ago
I agree, but I think she's probably compensating for the freedom she didn't have for long and will 'come good'. At least, I hope so. She deserves health and happiness after what she's been through.
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TonjaLasagne 3 hours ago (edited)
What I hate is all of the people who are STILL screaming, "leave Britney alone!" The conservatorship was one of the best things that happened to her because it protected her money. Too bad it didn't also include ongoing mental health treatment because this woman needs it. I feel sorry for her sons having to see her like this and what's ironic? KEVIN was the sane and stable one in all of this. I mean come on: WHO raised her sons? It definitely wasn't her: SHE couldn't do it because she's a whackadoodle and people take advantage of that. She wouldn't be the first entertainer that had mental problems that were ignored and were taken advantaged of nor will she be the last. She needs ANOTHER conservatorship or she's going to lose it all and end up on Kensington Street.
Marie 2 hours ago
A conservatorship under someone who isn't in it for the money.
Load More Replies... #7
Amy Whinehouse.
I didn’t realise how little support she had and she was never the type of person to handle fame to well.
Such a talent but her Dad was a jerk and cared more about money. Plus the media just ambushed her. She never had a chance.
I didn’t know anything until I watched the documentary “Amy”. Highly recommend it.
Emilu 5 hours ago
I think I might have said this elsewhere, but I used to hate her singing voice as a teenager. It wasn't until my 30s that I realised what a gem she was and what the world actually lost when she passed away. 27... she was basically a kid (said by my mid 30s self, lol, but even still).
#8
Brendan Fraser. So many health issues, getting assaulted, a horrible divorce etc. I'm glad he's making a comeback. I've had health issues too and I know how much they can suck.
I hope he's okay now.
1-800-OMG-STFU 6 hours ago
He will always be imprinted in my brain as George of the Jungle. That movie still holds up.
#9
Celine Dion's forthcoming "downfall" is absolutely tragic. Woman loves to sing, adores her fans, and is eventually going to be unable to connect with said fans ever again due to a one-in-a-million disease.
If God is real, he has a sick sense of humor.
Marie 2 hours ago
Even if he were, the bible made it clear he isn't exactly a nice guy anyway.
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Bored Jellyfish 6 hours ago
Linda Ronstadt was also robbed of her amazing singing voice. She contracted a disease called: progressive supranuclear palsy.
#10
Janet Jackson after her Super Bowl mishap her career got ruined, and it wasn’t even her fault.
amy lee 3 hours ago
It's a whole misogyny thing isn't it. Women are indecent narrative. Eve's daughters etc etc
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Phantom Phoenix 4 hours ago
Mishap? What exactly was the intended hap? But yes, I'm baffled as to why this stunt affected Janet's career and not Justin's
Spencer's slave no longer 4 hours ago
Had it been Justins nip slip everyone would laugh about it but god forbid a woman has one? Oh, the double standards in the US.
#11
George Michael. Brilliant but gay in a time it was not easy. Same with Freddie m.
#12
Amanda Bynes. Child actor downfalls are sad because they’re victims of their environment and bad parents :(
ETA: there seems to be some debate on whether her parents were bad or not. IMO, they were terrible by exploiting her as a child and then didn’t protect her which led her to allegedly getting groomed by Dan Schneider.
Sally Moen 2 hours ago (edited)
I'm kind of angry at comments that she's ugly and her tattoos are unattractive, like who are you to say that? All the other celebrities with face tattoos and nose piercings, are they also ugly? Give her a tiny break atleast
#13
Jake Lloyd, I was reading into what happened to him after watching ‘Jingle all the Way’ and recognising him as a young Anakin Skywalker.
Apparently Hollywood and the Star Wars franchise in particular, really got to him, and he wound up being diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia. It’s a shame learning of these unfortunate stories concerning child actors; you can’t help but want to root for them, but the reality of their situation is often disappointing.
Edit: I hear what you guys are saying in regards to schizophrenia, and all the different reasons it could manifest in a person. I wasn’t suggesting that his role in Star Wars was the root cause of his psych history, just pointing out the correlation with young Hollywood actors and the decline in mental health they tend experience.
#14
Nicolas Cage, although that was self-inflicted. He owed a lot of money and had to make a bunch of low budget movies for years to make the money back. But he always gave a good effort, and some of those low budget movies, like Mandy and Pig, were pretty great. And after he played himself in Massive Talent, hes back doing studio movies, so hes good right now.
Sally Moen 2 hours ago
He lost a lot of money to that scammer, Bernie Madoff. That's why he started making films again. I'm actually a fan now that he's made some really interesting ones, like the Massive Talent film, that's so funny. He seems to be challenging himself more. It's great
#15
Will smith clearly has a toxic marriage and is not handling it well. Chris Rock caught the anger he clearly has towards the situation. Will smith is not okay.
#16
Martha Stewart. Only woman, only entrepreneur on NYSE board. Busted off to prison for some measly trading infraction. Guys steal billions and don't ever even get sanctioned.
Mad respect for Martha.
Mel in Georgia 6 hours ago
Yeah ... Martha's doing ok. She needs no one's sympathy. She's a bad bi*ch and might agree with you but then who knows what she gained from the fall.
Sally Moen 2 hours ago
The argument for her is an example of whataboutism. Well she was bad yes but these other people were also bad but they didn't get punished, therefore she shouldn't have. Honestly, she had for years been sneered at for pretending to be WASP when her family is Polish. She certainly cooked well but everything was so excess that she even starred in a commercial for a credit card that makes fun of her precise excessiveness. I do not respect her one tiny bit. I click no and turn off her recipes that pop up, and they are numerous! She's celebrated by other rich people and that's fine.
#17
Jennifer Lawrence
Everyone hated her for no reason.
Gets cast in Hunger games and all anyone talks about is her being to fat, even thought she is a skinny woman. She accuratly plays the quiet, shy PTSD victim the book described and everyone called her a bad actress.
she shows a charming personallity that feels more relatable (likes food, more honest anwsers, playful, doesn't take herself too seriously) everyone loves her!
Then suddenly we all hate that about her, because.... she is too... relatable. now she must be faking it.
Loudawg76 3 hours ago
I find her manufactured “quirkiness” and “I’m so clumsy” persona extremely irritating
1-800-OMG-STFU 6 hours ago
Her face is just not expressive enough. It was perfect for The Hunger Games, but I haven't found another fit role since.
Sally Moen 2 hours ago
I do remember the press saying how very perfect looking she is, well when the first HG film came out. Like nothing else was as important as her looks. I really liked her film about the entrepreneur mop lady.
Ace 4 hours ago
In what way has she had a "downfall"? Genuine question, I try to avoid the celeb gossip, but reading this it sounds like it may have just been a trend for some groups of people to claim they don't like her, like people make a big deal out of disliking highly successful bands like Coldplay or Nickelback. Is that what this is?
#18
Michael Schumacher. It hurts.
sktchld:
Wild that skiing is what did him in when he raced cars at 200mph and nothing ever happened.
Earonn - 1 hour ago
He didn't deserve it but he DID leave the marked track. He thought "it will all be okay", and then it wasn't. One small act of arrogance basically cost him his life.
Zoe Vokes 1 hour ago
Lots of people ski off piste. It’s not arrogance. It’s quite common for experienced skiers.
Load More Replies... #19
I'm not sure if this counts at all, since she wasn't cancelled or anything, but Jennette McCurdy. She was a child actress, and the director she was working for was a creep. The work environment sucked. Her mom used her for money and treated her badly. She was even offered hush money, if she didn't say anything about her experience at Nickelodeon. Yet, at least, before she wrote her book, people wrote about how she loved acting so much and that she's always wanted to act blah blah blah. I remember seeing a kids book that talked all about Jennette McCurdy, and it said that. I wonder if it's still around. Anyway, I'm glad she's found a better job.
Sally Moen 2 hours ago
I've listened to her book in audiobook format twice so far, she narrates it. "I'm Glad My Mom Is D3ad"
#20
Hayden Christensen. I know he decided by himself to step away from acting, but all the hate was extremely harsh and undeserved.
#21
Katherine Heigl.
Even seeing her interviews, she really just stood up for herself and was demonized. I love everything she’s been in.
Zoe Vokes 1 hour ago
I thought she was a really great actress in Grey’s Anatomy and other things I watched, but I think the issue was that (as well as the interviews) she chose to do nothing but romantic comedies for a few years and some of them were quite bad. If she had been more selective and picked better movies and more dramatic roles then her career wouldn’t have been over so quickly.
#22
Didn't Chrtina Ricci get royally screwed over by her guardians. She was showing real promise after growing out the Wednesday Addams fame into things like 'Black Snake Moan' but I recall reading she had some bizarre foster parent or estranged parent / custodian situation which poisoned her career. Was glad to see her in 'Matrix Resurrections' despite loathing the film as a whole.
#23
Gary Coleman
Coleman was the highest-paid child actor on television throughout the late 1970s and 1980s making over 100K an episode on "Diff'ent Strokes"
But due to medication to treat a kidney disease he never made it past 4'8 which led to more health problems growing up. Plus his parents basically robbed him of his money until he was nearly penniless to the point he had to take a job as a mall security guard.
He was on his way to making a comeback, but died on life support after a major injury.
(Ex-wife pulled the pulled).
#24
Fatty Arbuckle. Totally railroaded by a prosecutor who wanted to make a name for himself, finally acquitted after three trials, basically blacklisted by moralist dirtbags, and just as he was making his comeback he loses his life after a heart attack.
#26
I didn’t feel bad, but I was severely disappointed to learn that the great actor Kevin Spacey is an absolute creep.
Phantom Phoenix 5 hours ago
Has the title of this article changed? It's currently "37 Celebrities Who *Didn’t Deserve* The Downfall They Experienced" (emphasis added)...
Earonn - 1 hour ago
Yes, origianlly it was just "sad celebrity downfalls" (you can see it in the link).
Load More Replies... Mel in Georgia 6 hours ago
It was disappointing. He's played some great roles. But was anyone totally surprised? When I heard it was like, "Oh, I could see that he could be that way ..."
Zoe Vokes 1 hour ago
If he played nice guys all the time it would be surprising but he played creepy guys on screen and always seemed creepy in real life to me.
Load More Replies... Sally Moen 2 hours ago
It has completely ruined some films like KPax, and Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil. Good films, but his presence messes with the enjoyment now
#28
She hasn't fell gracefully yet, but whoopie Goldberg. She is just so ignorant and insensitive of people. Let her catch the Jewish flame like Kanye did.
#29
Lindsay Lohan. She actually really has a ton of talent but who could grow up with those parents plus be a child actor and NOT have a huge downfall? She was doomed from the start.
Sally Moen 2 hours ago
Watched a couple of holiday romcoms she was in last month. Oh and the sequel to Freaky Friday. She's very talented
#30
I haven’t seen this one yet so I’ll post on my own question:
Nikocado Avocado. I thought he was terrible until I saw his old videos and the young, gentle, friendly looking man he used to be, who had a pet bird on his shoulder and played violin and taught vegan recipes. Then after that I realized he wasn’t terrible, he was just a broken man blinded by fame.
#31
She’s doing well now, but Kristen Stewart around the whole cheating scandal. don’t get me wrong, she was wrong and I also felt bad for Robert Pattinson, but to take in the thing as a whole looking back on it, the way the media and her own fans treated her was horrendous. She was really young and the pressure to be a couple (if they even were) must’ve been immense. Especially when so much of the franchise that they were promoting depended on them “being in love” She lost roles because of it, which when you really think about it is ridiculous, how many men in Hollywood have had affairs and it not affect a thing about their work? Meanwhile the married, older director she had an affair with never seemed to get half the vitriol she did, the whole thing was just incredibly unfair.
Emilu 5 hours ago
That is incredibly true. I can't even remember the name of the director now, but I do remember the flack Kristen got after hooking up with him. Yeah, she fucked up. Lots of us do. We're just fortunate that we're not in the public eye so everyone gets to see and judge us when we do.
#32
Milli Vanilli. Basically did what all pop singers do now, only it was new when they were doing it. Also, they pretty much were conned into it by an evil music industry impresario who didn’t care about them.
To add insult to injury, you couldn’t even find the songs on streaming for years afterward, even though they were fairly decent late-80s pop, and massive hits at the time.
Ace 4 hours ago
Manufactured bands are nothing new, nor is the use of technology to 'enhance' a singer's voice, but they were different in that they did not sing at all on any of their records. Literally they were not involved in the recordings at all, they were just a couple of pretty boys that could move a bit.
#33
Al Franken - Put aside the politics, you have to admit he caught the business end of a tough break. Dismissed unceremoniously. Feel bad for how that situation went down and concluded.
#34
I think he’s kinda in the middle of it still, but John Mulaney’s divorce, rehab, sudden kid after being clear he wasn’t interested in having children, and suspicious relationship timeline makes me sad. It’s by no means the worst situation ITT, but it stings a bit.
#35
Probably unpopular opinion, but Kanye’s downfall has been hard to watch. He needs help and has needed help for a long time… instead people keep giving this dude air time for the views.
Emilu 5 hours ago
I don't think this is sad, personally. I think this belongs more in the thread of "celebs who lost it all and only have themselves to blame" (I am aware he is mentioned in there, by the way). He's always had his head up his own ass, just now some people are trying to justify that as mental illness (which it may be, but as we often say here, mental illness is not an excuse for poor behaviour).
Kim Steffen 5 hours ago
You're right- he doesn't have both oars in the water, but he's also dumb as a sackful of hammers.
Load More Replies... #36
Kevin Sorbo. Idolized the dude as Hercules / Dylan Hunt, but apparently one too many hits to the head made him the whackjob he is today.
1-800-OMG-STFU 6 hours ago
The only good thing he does is raise awareness for MS. But that's because his mother has it. If she didn't, he probably would not be a spokesperson.
#37
J.K. Rowling. She was an inspiration and the world she created was a huge part of so many people's childhoods. Now she's a blatant transphobe who uses her fame and influence to justify being a bigot. It's really sad.
Robyn Hill 6 hours ago
I thought this thread was about people whose downfalls weren’t their fault? Hers is 100% on her.
Sally Moen 1 hour ago (edited)
First of all, yes she wrote some books, made millions, influenced a generation of folks. Some of the concepts in her books, especially the first one, were not original to her, but nobody seemed to notice or care. Anyway, I get why the whole TERF thing came on her, and possibly why she got so involved in the ideas in the first place (covid lockdown), but really, she could definitely take a chill pill and step away on this. I seriously doubt she has ever talked to a trans woman
1-800-OMG-STFU 6 hours ago
Do people seriously not understand the definition of "phobia?" She isn't transphobic. She is a bigot... and that is worse.
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What do you think ?
Emilu 5 hours ago (edited)
Adelaide, I normally really enjoy your articles, but this one is on the nose IMO. Please learn the difference between 'sad celebrity downfalls' and 'celebrities who lost it all and have only themselves to blame', especially when both articles are readily available right now on BP.
Emilu 5 hours ago (edited)
Adelaide, I normally really enjoy your articles, but this one is on the nose IMO. Please learn the difference between 'sad celebrity downfalls' and 'celebrities who lost it all and have only themselves to blame', especially when both articles are readily available right now on BP.
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