We often look at celebrities through rose-tinted glasses. They are our idols and people we look up to. Their status makes them seem above us, like nothing they do can is wrong. Unfortunately, that’s where the problem lies. Due to the way they are held in such high esteem, many celebs think they can do as they please. They have no regard for how they treat others. Of course, you have to remember that famous people are still human. They have bad days and moments where they might snap, but we aren’t talking about the odd altercation. This article is about the meanest celebrities in the entertainment world who have track records of behaving badly. People who have consistently hurt others and care little for people’s feelings. 

Many of the stories surrounding the people on this list are first-hand accounts from those impacted. As you will find out, Reddit is littered with stories about celebs acting badly. There is even a thread devoted to the meanest celebrities! So if you ever see someone famous out and about and are not sure how they will react if you approach them, here’s a guide to the ones to avoid. 

1. Ellen DeGeneres

One of the most popular talk show hosts got found out a couple of years ago. Ellen DeGeneres, whose motto is ‘be kind,’ got a rude shock when former employees began calling her out. In an article by BuzzFeed News, DeGeneres was labeled a bully and named as the culprit for creating a toxic work environment. One current and ten former employees anonymously gave their true thoughts about DeGeneres in the article. Issues of microaggressions and racist behavior from those close to DeGeneres were also detailed. 

Of course, when these allegations came out Ellen apologized for any hurt that had been caused and promised to do better. While the accusations haven’t hurt her bank balance, DeGeneres’ image has taken a beating as her status as one of the meanest celebrities in Tinstletown has been confirmed. 

2. Adam Levine 

The singer of Maroon 5 once called a fan ugly and refused to sign an autograph for them. If that’s not bad enough, in an interview with Cosmopolitan, Adam Levine also expressed his opinions on cheating, making excuses for why men do it. He also admitted to cheating himself and didn’t seem to upset about his actions. There have also been several occasions where he has been a dick on stage towards fans. To be honest, Levine has always acted like a bit of a tool, so it’s no surprise to find out he is one of the rudest celebrities out there. 

3. Catherine Zeta-Jones

You wouldn’t pick Catherine Zeta-Jones as someone with a bad attitude, but it appears that’s exactly what she has. The most famous story about her happened way back in 1998, so she might be much nicer now. An eight-year-old girl was attending a special screening of The Mask of Zorro. She went up to Zeta-Jones and asked her for some advice on acting, as that is the career path she wanted to follow. What wisdom did Zeta-Jones deal out? “You’re pretty enough, I suppose.” Ouch. Bit harsh to be telling an eight-year-old that. 

4. Tobey Maguire

While it is well known Tobey Maguire isn’t a fan of the paparazzi, he has also behaved questionably with others. One of the biggest incidents he was involved in occurred back in 2014 during a high-stakes poker game hosted by Molly Bloom. Maguire often took part in these games with other celebs, such as Leonardo DiCaprio and Ben Affleck. On one occasion, Spider-man showed his true colors when he offered Bloom a $1,000 poker chip if she barked like a seal. Maguire purposely embarrassed Bloom in front of other big-name celebs. It was soon revealed this was part of a plot to take control of the poker game, and that’s exactly what he did, sending Bloom out of business. 

Today, Maguire is a much more private person whose once over the top party lifestyle has been tapered down now he is a dad. There aren’t too many stories about him being a dick over the past decade, but for this incident alone he deserves a place on this list. 

5. Michael Jordan

His Airness has always had a reputation for being a prick, both on and off the court. It is all part of his winning mentality, with Jordan often playing mind games to get an advantage over his competitors. This has also carried on in the real world, with a host of stories surrounding Jordan’s bad behavior. He once tried to cheat at cards with an elderly woman due to his obsession with winning. He was also banned from the La Gorce Country Club in Miami after abusing staff members. You can read more about Jordon’s bad form on the court here. 

6. Demi Lovato

Demi Lovato suffers from mental health problems and addiction issues, which could be the reason for some of her shady behavior. There are stories of her calling fans fat and being generally mean towards them circulating the internet. She has been accused of punching a backup dancer and has been involved in many celebrity Twitter beefs. There was also a period of time during which she was promoting sobriety when she was in fact under the influence of alcohol and drugs. As mentioned earlier, Lovato suffers from mental health problems, so this has no doubt contributed to her behavior. But it also isn’t an excuse. Hopefully, she is getting the help she needs to become a better person. 

7. Tom Cruise

This one isn’t a surprise. Tom Cruise has always been a little odd, no thanks to his links to Scientology. Like many of the meanest celebrities on this list, he is another real life celebrity who has managed to upset people with his actions. The majority of Cruises’ misdemeanors occur during interviews, where he is often demanding, authoritative, and ignorant of other people’s views. There are also stories of Cruise being dismissive of fans and not signing autographs, along with some real divaish behavior. 

8. Rihanna

This one is a little devastating, as nobody wants to think of Riri as a bad person. But in 2016 Rihanna cyberbullied a young girl, which is just not on. 16-year-old Alexis Carter crafted a bat-winger pantsuit inspired by a similar dress Rihanna wore. Instead of congratulating her, Rihanna made fun of her. Riri tweeted an image of the dress side by side with the original that she wore. The images were accompanied by the hashtag #PromBat. This blew up the internet as thousands of people made fun of poor Carter. Rihanna kept the laughs going by retweeting some of the best jokes, such as one calling Carter ‘The Dark Thot Rises.’

“I was very offended,” Carter told Fox Baltimore. “Why throw shade on it when you had on the exact same thing. The poses was different but the outfit wasn’t. She don’t love her fans like she says she does.” Hopefully, now that she is about to become a mum herself, Rihanna is a little less trigger-happy on Twitter. 

9. Justin Bieber

Similar to Tobey Mcguarie, Justin Bieber’s track record over the past few years has been decent. It was during his late teen years and into his early 20s when the What Do You Mean? singer got a bad reputation for his actions towards fans. It’s hard to know where to start with his bad behavior.

There was the time he and some mates threw eggs at a neighboring house. Or when he was arrested for assault after attacking the driver of a car who he was in an accident with. Then a video of him telling a racist joke emerged in 2014 (he was 15 when he made the crack, not that that’s an excuse). He also made fun of a fans drawing and refused to have a photo with a young fan, who just happened to be Ronda Rousey’s little sister. That should be enough evidence to prove to you that the Biebs isn’t the nicest celebrity going around. 

10. Christian Bale

The Batman has a reputation for being obnoxious on movies sets, so it is no surprise this translates into the real world. When he’s not blowing up at the guy directing the lights, it seems he’s making young girls cry. In her tell-all book, Christian Bale’s former publicist revealed that he is often mean to fans who approach him. According to Harrison Cheung, Bale would “lecture little girls about being rude and intrusive until tears streamed down their faces, and their parents tugged them away from our table.”  Yikes. Commenting about a fan who sent him a fax, Bale exclaimed they should be “eliminated.”  His preferred method: “A screwdriver thrust through the eyeball into the brain prevents any screaming.” He sounds more like the Joker than Batman.

11. Ariana Grande

Ariana Grande has always appeared to be super sweet, but it may just be a facade. There are dozens of stories floating around Hollywood about her poor behavior. She is known to often block her fans on Twitter when they express a less than flattering opinion about her or her music, despite being all about people having the freedom to say what they like. She also got stuck into Mac Miller when he was going through his substance issues, but then supported Demi Lovato when it suited her narrative. There’s also a story about a man named Dan O’Connor who won a competition to meet Grande. He took his daughters along who were obviously really excited. After a long day of waiting, Grande finally met with them. She reportedly spent only 15 seconds with them, took a photo, then demanded the photo be deleted. Diva behavior much? 

12. Jared Leto 

Similar to Adam Levine, Jared Leto carries himself like someone who would be a dick in real life. Known for his wild method acting, Leto also carries on like a bit of a wanker when on tour with his band, Thirty Seconds To Mars. He has given the finger to audience members and been a general twat. The band has also built up a cult-like following and staged retreats where everyone wears white and follows Leto’s commands. Another more concerning aspect of Leto’s personality is his penchant for younger women. It is a well-known secret around Hollywood that Leto likes them young and has slid into the DMs of just about every young model in Los Angeles. In short, Leto is not a good dude. 

13. Lea Michele 

Actress Lea Michele has been another top Hollywood star outed for being one of the meanest celebrities. Rising to fame on the musical drama Glee, Michele has been branded mean-spirited and a bully. Many of her co-stars, including Samantha Marie Ware and Heather Morris, have spoken out against Michele’s behavior. As expected, Michele came out and issued an apology via her Instagram account, but people still haven’t forgotten about her mistreatment of co-stars. 

14. Russell Crowe

When he does good, Russell Crowe is hailed as an Aussie. When he turns bad, it’s the New Zealander in him. The actor and rocker has a long history of being a wanker. His most talked-about outburst was when he threw a phone at a hotel employee. Facing assault charges, Crowe settled out of court to avoid jail time. His violent temper got him into several scrapes during the late 90s/early 00s.

One of the lesser talked about but worrying incidents involves Crowe and rapper Azelia Banks. Crowe forcibly removed her from a party he was hosting. Not only was he said to have been violent, but he spat on her and used racist language directed at Banks. There seems to be a bit of he said she said to this one, with most witnesses backing Crowe’s version of events. Either way, you shouldn’t be manhandling a woman or using racist language, no matter what the situation is. 

15. Sandra Bullock

It’s hard to believe Sandra Bullock is mean. The actress has done so many good things in Hollywood, but there is one incident that means she appears on this list. The story goes that a veteran in a wheelchair with his wife went to approach Bullock to say hello and maybe grab a photo while she was filming The Heat in 2012. Bullock allegedly yelled at the duo and refused to interact with them. While this story is most likely true, as there would be no reason to make something like this up, it’s likely Bullock was just having a bad day and reacted in a negative way. She doesn’t have a history of being mean, so let’s think of this as an isolated event. 

16. Mike Myers

Funnyman Mike Myers is the last person you would believe is an asshole, but that seems not to be the case. The Wayne’s World and Austin Powers star has apparently pissed off most of his castmates at some stage, which is why he hasn’t made many movies of late. When it comes to fans, he also fails to show them the respect they deserve. One story in particular concerns a fan offering to buy Myers a drink. After telling Myers how much he enjoyed his work and offering to get his next drink, Myers replied; “I can afford my own drinks, asshole, save your money for my next movie.” Not what you want to hear from one of your favorite actors. 

17. Lucille Ball

While on the surface she appeared to be fun-loving and kind like the characters she played on the small screen, Lucille Ball was the total opposite. The star of I Love Lucy was meant to be very two-faced and notoriously rude to anyone who wasn’t on her level. She was said to not be a fan of people who weren’t in the movie business and would often ignore ‘normal’ people she encountered during her everyday life.

Richard Burton was one of the few actors to speak up about Ball’s actions, claiming, “She is a monster of staggering charmlessness and monumental lack of humor…She is a tired old woman and lives entirely on that weekly show which she has been successfully doing for 19 years. Nineteen solid years of double-takes and pratfalls and desperate upstaging and cutting out other people’s laughs if she can, nervously watching the ‘ratings’ as she does so…”

18. Jamie Foxx

It seems like Jamie Foxx went a little Hollywood after the success of Ray in 2004. He won an Oscar for his role as Ray Charles but also turned into a bit of a diva. He created lots of problems on the set of Miami Vice. Foxx wanted to be flown into Miami for scenes on a private jet and traveled with a large entourage. Things really hit the shit when Foxx refused to keep filming in the Dominican Republic due to escalating violence between the film’s security and local gangs. This meant the big finale that was to be shot in Paraguay was scraped and a new ending was written and filmed in America to appease Foxx. 

Along with this behavior, Foxx attended a special event screening of one of his films for a group of veterans. While there he refused to take his sunglasses off and didn’t stand or applaud the ex-servicemen and women. He also cheated on his then-girlfriend Katie Holmes, so you know, not a good dude. 

19. Rachael Ray

Celebrity cook Rachael Ray has a reputation for being a meanie. When talking with her audience before filming her show, she is often cold and disinterested. Many report that she would rather be somewhere else. But it’s not just fans and audience members that she has put offside during her career. There are several famous chefs that don’t like her. Martha Stewart, Emeril Lagasse, and the late Anthony Bourdain all had a crack at Ray and her behavior. 

20. Jon Hamm

Here is an interesting one. Jon Hamm always comes across as a fun, chill, down-to-earth guy in interviews, but it seems like he’s had some dodgy moments in his past. The worst incident recorded occurred when he was 20. He was charged with hazing and assault for a violent prank on younger students. While the event did take place 30 years ago, Hamm has never shown any remorse for what happened.

He’s also been chastised by comedian Kathy Griffin who claims Hamm is one of the rudest people she has ever encountered. In Kathy Griffin’s Celebrity Run-Ins: My A-Z Index she wrote, “You’ll never convince me to like Jon Hamm. The vibe I’ve always gotten from him is cold and somewhat disrespectful… toward me. I’m suggesting he’s one of these hot guys who’s mildly funny but actually thinks he’s comedian-level funny.”

21. Christina Aguilera

The majority of stories regarding Christina Aguilera being mean surround her time on The Voice. She was a judge on the musical reality show for six seasons. There are numerous times when she took aim at contestants for their singing and song choices in a way that was not very nice. She also asked one male competitor to take off his pants. Not sure why, but that’s not really suitable behavior. She is also said to have a bit of an attitude and would brush off fans’ requests for photos and autographs. 

22. John Mayer

He might be a guitar virtuoso, but that doesn’t stop John Mayer from being a dickhead. The man responsible for Your Body is a Wonderland has a history of bad behavior. He has regularly made sexist and racist comments throughout his career, especially about his ex-girlfriends. Somehow, despite his problematic behavior, Mayer has managed to continue to have a successful career without being canceled. It seems as long as you are selling records and making money you can get away with anything.