“It’s an actual rabbit hole to go down, how awful and evil of a person he is.”

I'm a Senior Staff Writer based in New York City, where I've been covering classic BuzzFeed-style content since 2020.

"She platformed a bunch of truly awful people over the years, like Jenny McCarthy (spouting anti-vax nonsense*), Dr. Phil, and Dr. Oz. She didn't seem to have any personal agenda or spin behind who she'd have as guests, other than who she thought would keep viewers' eyes glued to the screen. No matter how bad the ideas are, they're controversial and novel, so that people will watch."

*McCarthy has stated she is not anti-vaxx, but "pro-safe vaccines." Nevertheless, she has continuously espoused the theory that vaccines cause autism in children (stating this was the case with her son, though she says he is now "cured" due to embracing a more naturalist lifestyle and reducing exposure to chemicals), which has no scientific basis.

"In 2019/2020, she was on RuPaul's Drag Race as a guest judge. Then in 2025, she's on stage with JD Vance at PAC.  What the hell happened in between that time???"

"He's from my hometown and one of the two good things I'd mention about that place. When a mental health charity opened a shop in the town center, he turned up on opening day, drew huge crowds, and spoke about the incredible work they do. Was always talking about the importance of mental health, how to better treat drug addiction.

Some more info: In 2023, Brand was accused of sexual assault and abuse, and was later charged with rape, indecent assault, and sexual assault. The case is set to go to trial later this year; he's entered a plea of "not guilty" and denied all allegations.

"He was also 'scared' of lesbian cartoon characters kissing."

Some more info: While initially critical of Trump, Snoop later said he had "nothing but love and respect" for Trump after he pardoned Death Row Records (Snoop's label, which he later became CEO of) co-founder Michael Harris. He also performed at Trump's Inaugural Crypto Ball, attracting backlash. Replying to the controversy, Snoop said, "Can't none of you muthafuckers tell me what I can and can't do. But I'm not a politician. I don't represent the Republican Party. I don't represent the Democratic Party. I represent the muthafucking Gangster Party period point blank, and G shit we don't explain shit so that's why I didn't explain. That's why I didn't go into detail when muthafuckers was trying to counsel me and say he a sellout."

Snoop also attracted controversy for comments he made on a brief scene featuring a lesbian couple in Lightyear, saying his grandson asked, "Papa Snoop? How she have a baby with a woman? She’s a woman." He said he didn't know how to answer the question, adding, "I'm scared to go to the movies now. Y’all throwing me in the middle of shit that I don’t have an answer for." He also said, "These are kids. We have to show that at this age? They’re going to ask questions. I don’t have the answer."

He later apologized with "my bad," writing on Instagram that he was just "caught off guard" because he didn't know what to say to his grandson. "My bad for not knowing the answers for a 6 yr old. Teach me how to learn. I'm not perfect." Afterwards, he partnered with GLAAD to release the song "Love Is Love" for his kids' YouTube show "Doggyland," stating, "It's a beautiful thing that kids can have parents of all walks [of life], and be able to be shown love, and be able to be taught what love is ... whether it's two fathers, two mothers, whatever it is, love is the key."

"He's proud to say he's a friend of Jared Kushner. They just 'don't talk politics.'"

"And he's BFFs with Rupert Murdoch (who arguably started Thiel and everyone else on their current courses)."

"I was in late middle school/early high school when That '70s Show was released and its first peak seasons. There was definitely that hearsay that Topher Grace 'thought he was better than his costars' or was overall stuck up because he wasn't hanging out with the rest of the younger cast. He was right to nope out of all that crap."

Some more info: In 2023, That '70s Show actor (and Scientologist) Danny Masterson was found guilty of sexual assault and sentenced to 30 years to life in prison. Many were shocked and disappointed to learn that Hollywood darlings Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis — who costarred with Masterson on That '70s Show — wrote letters to the judge in his case asking for leniency for the disgraced actor. 

Costar Wilmer Valderrama has also come under fire for his relationship with Demi Lovato when he was 30, and she was 18. However, it may have begun earlier; her song "29" is all about "dating" a 29-year-old at 17 and feeling taken advantage of, and many believe it's about Valderrama. The two had met when she was 17, and Demi called it "love at first sight."  He also dated Mandy Moore when she was "16 and 17," according to Moore herself. Valderrama would've been in his early 20s. And he dated Lindsay Lohan when she was 18 — though they were first linked when she was 17. On her 18th birthday, they were seen kissing. He was 24.

"This one really broke me. I'm not exaggerating when I say Sandman meaningfully changed the course of my life.

I met him once in my early twenties, got a very long hug from the guy, and floated on air for years about it. Reading about what he's done turned that memory, which was once something very bracing, into something pretty unsettling."

Some more info: In 2024, Gaiman was accused of sexual misconduct by multiple women, which he denied and called a "smear campaign." Some of the allegations mention non-consensual BDSM; Gaiman's reps stated: "sexual degradation, bondage, domination, sadism and masochism may not be to everyone's taste, but between consenting adults, BDSM is lawful." Gaiman said all sexual encounters were consensual.

"She treated celebrities like garbage on camera, too."

"My mum would watch her every day. I wasn't a fan of hers. That Justin Bieber interview when he kept saying, 'You're making me uncomfortable,' and she kept going, sexualizing him."

"She forced Mariah Carey to announce a pregnancy. Mariah lost the baby."

Some more info: Ellen was accused of helping create a toxic work environment on her daytime talk show in 2020. In light of the allegations, many of her past interviews appeared problematic, in particular her asking Justin Bieber about nude photos paparazzi had taken of him (projecting them — albeit blurred — to the audience) and pressuring Mariah Carey to drink champagne when she was pregnant but had not yet revealed it to the press. 

Some more info: Dr. Oz has been criticized for repeatedly promoting homeopathic treatments, pseudoscience like iridology and "energy medicine," and sham "miracle" cures on his show, especially regarding diet pills and weight loss remedies that were later proven ineffective or lacked proof that they worked. He was also critical of lockdowns during and after the COVID-19 pandemic (despite initial support), promoted COVID "treatments" like the anti-malaria drug hydroxychloroquine, which the FDA stated was not effective or safe for treating COVID, and has been critical of vaccine mandates.

Some more info: Burr has drawn backlash in the past for insensitive jokes, but the largest recent controversy was when Burr participated in the Riyadh Comedy Festival in Saudi Arabia, a nation full of human rights violations. Burr called it "a mind-blowing experience. Definitely top three experiences I've had." In response to backlash, he said, "The general consensus is, 'How dare you go to that place and make those oppressed people laugh, you fucking piece of shit. I can't believe you went to that place. I can't find it on a map, and this bot said I was upset about it so now I am.'" He continued, "It's one thing to wear clothes made by sweatshop labor. It's quite another to go to the factory and make 'em laugh. I can't believe how much anger I had about this issue after it went viral."

"To me, he came back and kept doing the exact same kind of bits. He didn't realize that the audience he used to have had grown up without him, shifted their interests, and became more critical of the world around them.

When he realized the same jokes he used to make 20-some-odd years ago weren't getting the same kind of reception, he didn't update his material. He just changed his audience and started to punch down. He's basically Ricky Gervais."

Some more info: Chapelle has come under fire in recent years over his anti-trans jokes. Chappelle said that the media had misrepresented his jokes and used them as "rage bait." He said, "I would say that, you know, not everything is for everybody. I don't tell country artists what to sing about if I'm not going to go see a country show," indicating that he would consider listening to criticism from trans people if they bought tickets to his stand-up events. "I don't feel like anything I do is malicious or even harmful," he also said, though he said he resented that Republicans had "weaponized" similar messages to his and run on that platform.

"Jesus, he had such an inspirational story. Then we learn what a lying sack of shit cheater that he was. I hope he's too embarrassed to leave his home."

Some more info: Doping allegations followed Armstrong for years, but nothing ever stuck — until 2012, when he was officially charged and ultimately banned from competing (he had actually retired in 2011 after the allegations started ramping up). He then admitted to the claims in 2013 after many years of strongly denying them.

"Roseanne had one of the earliest gay marriages on TV, one of, if not the first, bisexual characters on TV. It was the first family sitcom I saw that openly disapproved of spanking and went into why Roseanne hated and didn't believe in the concept, only for the reboot to push for Darlene to hit her kids. She genuinely broke my heart seeing how far she's fallen into her hatred."

Some more info: Roseanne Barr was fired from the Roseanne reboot after making an offensive and racist comment about Barack Obama's adviser, Valerie Jarrett, referring to her as if "muslim brotherhood & planet of the apes had a baby." She later apologized and claimed she hadn't realized Jarett was Black, saying she was referencing the message about fascism in Planet of the Apes and Jarrett's role in the 2015 Iran nuclear deal. She also said she'd been on Ambien and antidepressants and had two beers when she posted the tweet. However, more recently, she said she regretted saying sorry: "I made the mistake of apologizing, and it only got worse after that. Never apologize to the Left because they rub that jackboot right in your face in the mud if you apologize." She also said, "God told me to do what I did," so...make of that what you will.

Some more info: Pitt's then-wife, Angelina Jolie, filed for divorce from him in 2016. Soon after, reports emerged of an alleged physical altercation on a private plane that same year. Reports claimed Pitt "grabbed Jolie by the head and shook her, and then grabbed her shoulders and shook her again before pushing her into the bathroom wall," and that he choked and hit two of his children as they tried to defend Jolie from his attacks. Pitt has strongly denied that there was any physical violence. The Department of Child and Family Services later cleared Pitt of child abuse allegations, and the FBI did not pursue criminal charges. 

"Part of what's bad about him is that what he did renders a lot of his act unfunny in retrospect. A big part of his stage persona is that he's a grimy-looking dude who vocalizes the gross thoughts in his head that we all have. He talks about wanting to do sick things, but it's a joke because he wouldn't actually do these things. Well...it turns out that he wasn't joking about being a sex pest."

Some more info: C.K. admitted to masturbating in front of colleagues in 2017 after the New York Times published an article accusing him of this behavior. In a statement, he wrote, "At the time, I said to myself that what I did was okay because I never showed a woman my dick without asking first, which is also true. But what I learned later in life, too late, is that when you have power over another person, asking them to look at your dick isn't a question. It's a predicament for them. The power I had over these women is that they admired me. And I wielded that power irresponsibly."

Some more info: Spacey's career quickly derailed after Anthony Rapp made sexual assault allegations against him, leading to multiple other assault allegations, all of which Spacey denied. He was ultimately found not liable in the Rapp trial and acquitted in a London trial over other assault allegations, then settled with other victims.

"Sure, we can say 'he's human,' but too many mistakes become 'he's spoiled and refuses to learn.' I revered him once. No more."

Some more info: Woods suffered a major fall from grace after it was revealed in 2009 that he had cheated on his wife, Elin Nordegren, with multiple women. He's been charged with a DUI twice since; he took a plea deal the first time, and the more recent DUI charge has not gone to court yet. 

Some more info: Whedon was accused of a slew of problematic remarks and abusive behavior towards actors and writers on his projects, which ultimately tanked his decades-long career. He later spoke of his behavior on the Buffy and Angel sets. "I was young. I yelled, and sometimes you had to yell. This was a very young cast, and it was easy for everything to turn into a cocktail party." He also said he was "not mannerly" in his response to Carpenter becoming pregnant while appearing on Angel. However, he denied many of the more serious claims of misconduct, saying he never physically harmed or intentionally humiliated anyone. He did admit to having affairs on sets that he regretted due to the "power dynamic." As for Justice League, he denied threatening Gal Gadot on the set of Justice League, saying he'd misunderstood her due to his "flowery" speech (English is not Gadot's first language; Gadot denied she'd misunderstood). And he said he'd reduced Ray Fisher's role in the film because he didn't like his acting and felt the storyline "logically made no sense." He also called Fisher "a malevolent force" and "a bad actor in both senses," calling his accusations untrue.

*Trachentberg's comment read, "There was a rule, saying [Whedon] is not allowed in a room alone with Michelle again." She also called his behavior "very. Not. Appropriate." Whedon said he didn't know what she had been referring to.

"I used to think he was IT. Loved his music sooo much. Then I read his biography. He's not a nice man."

Some more info: In 1976, Clapton asked "foreigners" at his concert to raise their hands, then asked them to leave, going on a racist rant that included sentiments like "England is for white people." He later apologized for his racist remarks.

Post-COVID lockdowns, Clapton was also critical of vaccines and frequently played in Red-state venues that didn't require proof of vaccination in the latter half of 2021. At one show, he posed backstage with controversial Texas Governor Greg Abbott, intesifying backlash.

"It also seems like he doesn't understand that we're laughing AT him, not WITH him, in regard to his very public foot fetish. He may know how to create entertaining movies, but it's by making each of his films a carbon copy mixtape of films already made by others."

Some more info: Quentin was a friend of Weinstein (and frequent collaborator) and apologized for staying silent, saying, "I knew enough to do more than I did. There was more to it than just the normal rumors, the normal gossip. It wasn't secondhand." As for Dano and Lillard, last year, Tarantino called Dano "the weakest male actor in SAG," saying, "I don't care for him, I don't care for Owen Wilson, and I don't care for Matthew Lillard." And the foot fetish thing...people for years have been talking about the prominence of bare feet in Tarantino's films, which Tarantino defended, saying, "There's a lot of feet in a lot of good directors' movies. That’s just good direction. Like, before me, the person foot fetishism was defined by was Luis Buñuel, another film director. And Hitchcock was accused of it and Sofia Coppola has been accused of it."

"I loved his portrayal of awkwardness and his filmmaking. The reality of it fucking sucks."

Some more info: Woody Allen was accused of molesting his and Mia Farrow's adoptive daughter, Dylan (he has continually denied this), and then later married one of Mia's other adoptive daughters (whom he had not adopted, but had known since she was underage), Soon-Yi Previn.

"Dude is the complete antithesis of the incredible heroes he wrote and played. He's a fake, plastic dipshit."

Some more info: Anthony Kiedis of the Red Hot Chili Peppers wrote about having sex with a 14-year-old in his autobiography Scar Tissue. The girl — who reportedly inspired the song "Catholic School Girls Rule" — came backstage at his concert, and the two had sex. According to Keidis, she then continued on with the band to Baton Rouge. After their show, the girl revealed that she was 14 and her father was the chief of police in her town, adding that "the entire state of Louisiana" was looking for her because she'd been reported missing.

Keidis said he wasn't scared "because, in my somewhat deluded mind, I knew that if she told the chief of police she was in love with me, he wasn’t going to have me taken out to a field and shot, but I did want to get her the hell back home right away. So we had sex one more time.” He was in his mid-20s at the time. He was also convicted of sexual battery and indecent exposure in 1990, when he was 27.

Some more info: Manson's ex-fiancée, Evan Rachel Wood, accused him in 2021 of sexual assault and abuse. Other women quickly came forward with their own allegations against Manson, though he denied them all. Manson sued Wood for defamation but later dropped the lawsuit. He was investigated by the LAPD, but no criminal charges were filed. He was also sued in civil court by multiple accusers, with the cases either getting dismissed, dropped, or settling, though one assault suit that was initially dismissed was reopened earlier this year (Manson has denied the assault occurred).

Some more info: Seinfeld came under fire for his relationship with Shoshanna Lonstein Gruss, which was initially reported to have begun when she was 17; however, he claims she was 18 when they began the romantic aspect of their relationship. After she turned 18, he told Howard Stern, "I didn't realize she was so young. This is the only girl I ever went out with who was that young. I wasn't dating her. We just went to a restaurant, and that was it." He confirmed their relationship a few years later.

"He has a history of cheating on his partners. Though surprising, the secret family wasn't entirely shocking. If there's any positive from it all, he is heavily involved in the kid's life, so there's that good takeaway at least."

Some more info: In 2024, Grohl admitted to cheating on his wife and fathering a child out of wedlock on his Instagram, and this was not his first cheating scandal. He admitted to cheating on his ex-wife, Jennifer Leigh Youngblood.

"I used to think J.K. Rowling was smart, wise, and a good person. She's full of hate and arrogance nowadays. It's tragic how she destroyed her own legacy like that."

Some more info: Rowling has a long history of anti-trans comments since her 2020 essay on the subject, continuing until today. A few months ago, the UK Supreme Court ruled that the legal definition of a woman does not include trans women, so the Equality Act's legal protections for women only apply to biological women (it does have separate protections for trans people). After For Women Scotland, which advocated for this ruling, was not invited onto Alastair Campbell's podcast, Rowling supported them on social media, calling the hosts "exceptionally arrogant men whose understanding of this issue drips with classism and misogyny." She also recently expressed happiness at the ban on transgender women from competing in women's categories at the Olympics.

"I used to respect the hustle when it was about rockets and engineering, but the mask is officially off. It turns out the 'genius' was just a marketing cover for massive greed and a god complex. Watching him go full MAGA and actively dismantle the foundations of our democracy is the ultimate proof that enough money can turn anyone into a billionaire wrecking ball."

"It's an actual rabbit hole to go down, how awful and evil of a person he is."

Some more info: Simmons has generated backlash numerous times over the years, including after making comments about poor people perceived by some as elitist and insensitive ("I don't remember the last poor person who gave me a job" and "get out of your losers mentality"), comments perceived by some as racist about how rap doesn't belong in the hip hop hall of fame ("I don't come from the ghetto. It doesn't speak my language"), and controversial comments about how celebrities should stay out of politics ("Basically, shut the f-ck up. Do your art and shut up. Nobody's interested in your opinions").

As for his comments about rap, Simmons said he stood by them and pointed out that the term "ghetto" was initially used in reference to Jewish people in Nazi Germany. He denied racist intent, saying, "How could you be, when rock is Black music? It's just a different Black music than hip-hop, which is also Black music." He continued, "Rock 'n' roll owes everything to Black music, statement of fact, period. All the major forms of American music owe their roots to Black music."

Some more info: In 2019, several of Franco's former students at his acting school Studio 4 sued him for “widespread inappropriate and sexually charged behavior toward female students by sexualizing their power as a teacher and an employer by dangling the opportunity for roles in their projects." Franco's lawyer called these claims "false and inflammatory" and "legally baseless"; the case was eventually settled. Franco did eventually admit to having sex with his students, but claimed sex addiction left him "blind to power dynamics" and that he hadn't created his acting school as a "master plan" to sleep with students.

"I hate Bill Cosby for making me hate Bill Cosby."

Some more info: Cosby was initially convicted on three counts of aggravated indecent assault and sentenced to 3-10 years in prison in 2018; his conviction was overturned, and he was released from prison in 2021 due to the old district attorney having assured Cosby that Andrea Constand's allegations (which led to the 2018 trial) would not lead to criminal charges. This led Cosby to testify in a lawsuit brought by Constand rather than pleading the Fifth. The court claimed the 2018 case's prosecutor was still bound by the district attorney's word and that Cosby should not have been tried. 

Constrand's case was certainly not the only accusation leveled against Cosby (he has denied all 60+). Just a few months ago, Cosby was found liable for the 1972 drugging and sexual assault of a woman. (Cosby's lawyers say they plan to appeal.) He was also found liable in 2022 for a 1975 assault of a then-teenager.

"I used to absolutely love his movies. But words fail to capture how weird it felt watching him humiliate himself brutally over just two years, after decades of admiration. It all just came crashing down."

The singer, Justin Sane, denied the rape allegations. One alleged victim sued him for rape; Sane received a default judgment after declining to respond to the lawsuit and was ordered to pay her damages. 

Some more info: Ye's controversial actions include saying that slavery was a choice (he later apologized), selling t-shirts with a swastika on them, making pro-Hitler comments (and releasing a song called "Heil Hitler"), denying the Holocaust occurred, and more. 

Earlier this year, Ye paid to take out a large ad in the Wall Street Journal to apologize for his anti-Semitic remarks and other problematic comments and behavior. He attributes this conduct to a 2002 car crash that damaged his frontal lobe, stating he thinks it was a factor in developing bipolar disorder (he was diagnosed with bipolar I in 2016). This caused him to have manic episodes that led him to lose touch with reality, he said. “I regret and am deeply mortified by my actions in that state, and am committed to accountability, treatment, and meaningful change," he stated in the ad. "It does not excuse what I did, though. I am not a Nazi or an antisemite. I love Jewish people." He continued, "To the black community - which held me down through all of the highs and lows and the darkest of times. The black community is, unquestionably, the foundation of who I am. I am so sorry to have let you down. I love us."

Submissions have been edited for length/clarity.