Famous Celebs Everybody Hates Working With

Working alongside some of the biggest names in Hollywood might sound like a job perk, but when the celeb you're working with happens to be incredibly demanding or boast a volatile personality, those feelings are sure to fade pretty quickly. Once an entertainer gets a reputation for being difficult, they can lose more than just a few fans. Some stars' nasty reps cost them big time, jeopardizing jobs, burning bridges with colleagues, or even limiting their access to the Hollywood scene.

Hey, everyone has bad days; it is not like we are all totally pleasant peaches all of the time. And sure, some of these stories could very well be rooted in sour grapes or simply based on an unfortunate one-off. But when you hear one negative tale after another about a certain celeb? Well, where there's smoke...

Without further ado, here are some celebs whose bad reputations precede them. 

Chris Brown seems to attract trouble, and that hasn't gone unnoticed by those in the industry. In 2011, he threw a temper tantrum on the set of Good Morning America after being questioned about his domestic abuse charges. Brown allegedly got so angry that he walked off set and chucked a chair at a window in his dressing room. Not exactly the kind of thing that gets one invited back for more TV interviews.

According to Billboard, former employees have lobbed fierce accusations against the R&B singer, accusing him of physically and emotionally abusing them, all while reportedly battling his own mental illness and drug use. "We would ask, 'What's the temperature today?'" said a member of his security detail at the time. "You didn't know how he was going to wake up. Were you going to get cool Chris? Or depressed or artsy and focused Chris, who would be very productive? Or the happy-go-lucky Chris, who would just joke around and have fun? It was a different person every day." 

A witness told Billboard that on the set of his "Grass Ain't Greener" music video, Brown supposedly threatened a cameraman before disappearing for two hours. According to the source, he was eventually found sleeping on a bathroom floor. 

Rapper Kanye West's signature arrogance, diva tendencies, and rants extend beyond music and into his other venture as a fashion mogul. According to designer and A.P.C. founder Jean Touitou, it took West two years to finalize designs for his first collection, which consisted of a pair of jeans, a hoodie, and a t-shirt. Touitou told W Magazine, "When we finally finished this collection, I felt like, Okay, if I made this happen, then I can achieve peace in the Middle East."

As for the music industry, we could wallpaper a studio with stories about West's assorted beefs with collaborators and competitors. "Kanye drives Def Jam more off the wall than any other artist drives anyone at any other label off the wall. He tortures them!" an insider told Page Six. From Taylor Swift to Wiz Khalifa to the cast and crew of Saturday Night Live; even former best bro Jay-Z has had problems with Yeezy.

In March 2021, Page Six reported West's former bodyguard Steve Stanulis has been in talks with two streaming services to make documentaries about his time working with the award-winning rapper. Stanulis hasn't been shy about his experience, telling the Hollywood Raw podcast (via HipHollywood) that West was "one of my least favorite people to work with."

Jennifer Lopez's list of demands apparently lost her the opportunity to perform at the opening ceremony of India's Premier League cricket tournament. An insider told Page Six that in addition to her usual wants, Lopez allegedly demanded a private jet and a large number of hotel rooms for her entourage. The tab noted that Lopez requested nine additional dressing rooms for her 90-person crew during a 2001 interview. J. Lo ultimately "priced herself out of the event" in India, the insider said. The huge gig went to Pitbull.

The American Idol judge allegedly kept up her diva antics on the set of What To Expect When You're Expecting. According to the Daily News, Lopez would only communicate with everyone else working on the movie through an assistant. And when Lopez was a dancer on In Living Color in the '90s, she evidently didn't get on with choreographer and actor Rosie Perez. In her 2014 memoir, Perez writes, "All of the girls were coming into my office complaining how [Lopez] was manipulating wardrobe, makeup, and me, all to her advantage."

Apparently, the complaints don't end there. When former celebrity stylist Tamaran took to TikTok (via Page Six) in 2020 to dish some of the dirt she's heard, she said J.Lo is apparently one of the "worst people to work with." In her video, the stylist claimed that people aren't allowed to look at the singer, sharing, "There's a reason why she can't hold down a costumer or a seamstress."

As the biggest diva in the game, many who've worked alongside Mariah Carey seem to come out on the other side with a few good stories. On her reality series Mariah's World, we have the pleasure of witnessing the day-to-day life of Carey's staff, which includes tying her shoes and setting up 20 humidifiers in her hotel rooms. Apparently, Carey can't sleep without all of her humidifiers, and when she can't sleep, she can't perform.

Which brings us to two choice performances. Remember her, um, eventful New Year's Eve show in 2017? She pointed her perfectly manicured finger at Dick Clark Productions for the technical difficulties-infused debacle. Or how about when she took the stage for NBC's Christmas in Rockefeller Center live special in 2014 and it didn't go so hot? Maybe she didn't have enough humidifiers on hand.

It sounds like Carey can a bit much on movie sets, too. When actor Rob Huebel appeared on Entertainment Weekly Radio in 2017, he had less-than-glowing things to say about working with her in the Will Ferrell/Amy Poehler comedy The House. According to Huebel, the songstress came to the set "four hours late," then made "amazing requests" like having "all white roses" in her trailer and stuffed animals, specifically "lambs." (Ferrell echoed these sentiments on Watch What Happens Live.) Carey, who was set to star as herself in the movie, apparently even demanded that her part be rewritten and refused to sing a song she was hired to sing. Mimi's cameo was eventually cut out of the movie.

It seems no one who has worked with Kiefer Sutherland has anything positive to say about the experience. The actor best known for his starring role on 24 has even been accused of having co-stars fired for outshining him on the show. Shohreh Aghdashloo, who played Dina Araz on the show, shared her experience with Fox & Friends: "I'm afraid working with him proved to be hard. That young man was pretty angry." Aghdashloo said someone recommended she not shine too bright on her first day on set; when she did, her character was suddenly killed off— something she feels Sutherland instigated.  

Freddie Prinze Jr. also fell victim to Sutherland's rage, telling ABC News that 24 almost led him to quit acting for good. "Kiefer was the most unprofessional dude in the world," Prinze said. "That's not me talking trash, I'd say it to his face, I think everyone that's worked with him has said that."  

All these years later and people are still talking about Sharon Stone's infamous scene in Basic Instinct, yet she's arguably failed to recreate that same level of success in recent years. A bad attitude may be to blame. 

Stone made her Italian film debut in 2014, working with director Pupi Avati and producer Antonio Avati on The Golden Boy. According to The Hollywood Reporter, her diva antics began before she'd even signed on to the film. "It was a negotiation that bordered on ridiculousness, concerning embarrassing details, as if Italy was a third world country," Avati said. "By the way, we do have electricity in Italy." Stone's camp denied the claims.

The star's ridiculous demands have allegedly cost her a gig or two along the way, including an invitation to luxury jeweler de Grisogono's annual party at the Hôtel du Cap-Eden-Roc. A source told Page Six that the actor demanded $300,000, eight hotel rooms for the week, and a private jet. She was ultimately passed up for the job; the appearance opportunity was reportedly given to Kim Kardashian for a pair of earrings, which she may or may not have been able to keep. 

It's hard to believe the actor known for playing America's sweetheart on Friends has a diva side, but it seems Jennifer Aniston may not be so easy to work with. An insider told Radar Online that while filming Life of Crime in Connecticut, "the only person who doesn't eat with everyone else is Jen. She quickly grabs a lunch to go and leaves." The source continued, "All the actors ride in normal production vans when they head to lunch, but Jen has her own luxury SUV. And not only is Jen's private trailer miles away from the set, but she heads all the way back there each day to eat her lunch away from everyone else." 

Okay, okay, maybe wanting to eat lunch alone does not a diva make, but there's more: If the rumors are true, Aniston reportedly had a fit on the set of She's Funny That Way over the name of a character in the script. According to Star Magazine (reported by Celebitchy), said character shared a name with the woman who arguably wrecked her marriage to Brad Pitt. The insider claimed Aniston wouldn't show up to set until the change was made. Still pulling for Team Jen ? 

Even Queen Bey's not immune to chatter about what she may or may not be like behind the scenes. There have been whispers of Beyoncé apparently being tough and even downright cruel to those who work for her, and employees have reportedly taken to social media to swap horror stories. MTO News relayed rumors about her screaming at backup dancers during rehearsals, and the Daily Star published a list of supposed demands, including titanium straws that cost hundreds of dollars, alkaline water served at precisely 21 degrees, everyone dressed in 100 percent pure cotton clothes, and freshly painted dressing rooms with brand new toilet seats. 

All that said, it is worth noting that backup dancer Ashley Everett had nothing but glowing things to say about Bey when talking to Refinery29 in 2017, even describing the pop icon as being "almost like a big sister." The outlet notes: "Any time her job or boss comes up, the tone of Everett's voice deepens a bit and her eyes widen, as if she's bursting with admiration and gratitude. She confirms that no matter how long you've worked with Beyoncé, you never really stop being in awe of her."

According to some reports, Megan Fox is apparently so difficult to work with that it's made it tough for her to find steady work in the industry. At the peak of her career, when Fox starred in Transformers, she evidently rubbed some people the wrong way. After the actor compared Director Michael Bay to Hitler, those who've worked with her started to speak up, revealing some of her worst on-set antics. 

Three crew members released an open letter claiming Fox was often late to set, wouldn't show up to events related to the film, and even complained when filming was canceled last minute in Egypt and Bay took the cast and crew on a tour of the pyramids to make up for it. Transformers screenwriter Ehren Kruger told GQ that Fox "was there for rehearsals. But she seemed like an actress who didn't want to be a part of it. She was saying she wanted to, but she wasn't acting like it." Fox is no longer a part of the blockbuster franchise.

Actor Mike Myers, best known for his movie roles in the Austin Powers films, is a comedic genius, but evidently not everyone finds working with him pleasant. Wayne's World director Penelope Spheeris told Entertainment Weekly that the actor "was emotionally needy and got more difficult as the shoot went along," adding that she had to ask her own daughter to come on set to "manage Myers' moods" and wait on him hand and foot. The very next year, director of 1993's I Married an Axe Murderer, Thomas Schlamme, butted heads with the star, after Myers would refuse to come out on set and work at times. "I think Mike's a visionary, but his way of getting what he wants is to emote and threaten and express anger," producer Rob Fried said in EW.

Actor Amy Hill, who worked alongside Myers in The Cat in the Hat, told The A.V. Club that her time on set was a "nightmarish experience." And uh, it sounds like the star was the reason. She recalled to the outlet, "He had his handlers dress his trailer, and his area was all covered with tenting because he didn't want anybody to see him. It was so weird. It was just the worst." She also said Myers had a person who apparently "held his chocolates in a little Tupperware" and would run them over to the star whenever he needed one.

In 2020, Ellen DeGeneres faced widespread accusations by her former employees of disturbing workplace conditions that included accusations of racism, unfair termination, and an overall toxic work environment, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The allegations surfaced after BuzzFeed published a story that saw several past employees discussing their time working for the television host, who is famously known to end her shows with the catchphrase "be kind to one another."

However, nothing kind was said in these past employees statements, which were mainly aimed at executive producers and other top-heads on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, according to BuzzFeed. A Black former employee of the show shared that she experienced racist comments and "microaggressions," adding that she was afraid of speaking out "because everyone knows what happens when you say something as a Black person. You're blacklisted."

Comedian Kevin T. Porter began a Twitter thread that went viral after asking his followers to share "the most insane stories you've heard about Ellen [DeGeneres] being mean," adding that the host is "notoriously one of the meanest people alive." His thread received thousands of replies, however, it was impossible to tell whose story was accurate, according to Insider. The outlet also noted that several celebs, including Brad Garrett, Lea Thompson, Kathy Griffin, and even her former resident DJ Tony Okungbowa, chimed in about mistreatment and toxicity on set of the show. Following the scandal, DeGeneres apologized.

Actor Charlie Sheen was at one point the highest-paid actor on television after earning $2 million an episode for the hit sitcom Two and a Half Men, according to Celebrity Net Worth. But his erratic behavior and troubles in his personal life got the best of him when he was famously fired in 2011 because of his "dangerously self-destructive conduct," according to a letter from Warner Bros. Television attorneys, that also stated he was being let go because he forgot his lines, was late or missed rehearsals (via Reuters). Sheen also verbally attacked the series creator, Chuck Lorre, several times in interviews, and was involved in drug-related incidents.

Jon Cryer, who starred as Sheen's character's younger brother, Alan Harper, recalled working with Sheen during this time and called it "crazy." "It was one of the first internet s***storms, plus there's the fact that all of our jobs are tied into this guy, and we're all his friends. It was very, very strange and [there were] aspects of it that I absolutely hated, but you know, I'm thankful for these years that were great," Cryer shared while on PeopleTV's Couch Surfing in 2020. Ultimately a decision was made for Sheen's character to get killed off the show, and actor Ashton Kutcher was welcomed as a new character for the remainder of the series.

There have been whispers of Chevy Chase being difficult to work with since his days as an original Saturday Night Live cast member, with Live From New York: The Complete, Uncensored History of Saturday Night Live as Told by Its Stars, Writers and Guests recounting instances between Chase and other actors, including a fistfight with actor Bill Murray. During his time on the late-night show, openly gay SNL cast member Terry Sweeney said Chase pitched a terribly offensive sketch involving Sweeney playing a character who has AIDS and gets weighed every week. "He was really furious that he had to apologize to me," Sweeney recalled in Live From New York, adding, "He was just beside himself. And it was just awful. He acted horribly to me. He acted horribly to everyone."

SNL alum Tim Meadows said in Live From New York, "He didn't care about what he said. He had no qualm about telling you're an idiot." Meadows' comments were spot-on about Chase, especially when he and actor Donald Glover starred in the sitcom Community together. In an interview with The New Yorker, Glover revealed that Chase was jealous of him and stated that he tried to throw him off, saying things like, "People think you're funnier because you're Black." Glover added, "A true artist has to be okay with his reign being over. I can't help him if he's thrashing in the water. But I know there's a human in there somewhere."

According to two very well-known directors, actor Bruce Willis was difficult to work with — one of them even called his experience with the mega-talented star "soul crushing." Director Kevin Smith, who worked with Willis on the movie Cop Out, appeared on Marc Maron's WTF podcast where he blasted the actor, sharing, "It was difficult. I've never been involved in a situation like that where one component is not in the box at all. It was f****** soul crushing. I mean, a lot of people are gonna be like, 'Oh, you're just trying to blame the movie on him.' No, but I had no f****** help from this dude whatsoever.'"

Director Antoine Fuqua, who worked with Willis on the film Tears of the Sun also admitted to having a hard time working with the action icon. "Pain in my a**, no problem about that. We just didn't get along. We got along off camera, but shooting [Tears of the Sun] we just didn't get along. Some men don't gel when it comes to work — you have different work ethics, different opinions, different points of views, different methods of film making — and we didn't gel," Fuqua revealed in an interview with BBC.

Supermodel Naomi Campbell has been labeled a diva by both her own personal staff and fashion designers. Oh, and former employees filed assault charges against her. As Time recounted, "Campbell has denied many of the allegations and most have been settled out of court; in 2007, she was found guilty of one assault charge and sentenced to five days of community service." As CR Fashion Book recalled, Campbell was seen out and about wearing a "Naomi Hit Me... And I Loved It" T-shirt in 2006.

Even during her career as a model, Campbell was accused of being a "drama queen" who arrived late for bookings. According to People, Elite Model Management cut her from their roster in 1993, with founder John Casablancas calling her "crazy, irrational, and uncontrollable." Casablancas claimed Campbell was "disloyal," adding, "She has been having people around here in tears. Our staff have killed themselves for her in terms of the number of lies told in order to protect her." Even her mother, Valerie Campbell, commented on her daughter's personality, stating, "She's no angel...but she's professional" (via People).

Fashion designer Isaac Mizrahi, who worked with Campbell several times, also spilled some details. On the Bravo series Fashion Queens, he maintained that the model was demanding and "not the easiest girl to work with."

Lady Gaga's former personal assistant Jennifer O'Neill sued the star for almost $400,000 in unpaid overtime, according to The Hollywood Reporter. O'Neill and the "Born This Way" singer faced each other in court, with the former assistant spilling shocking details of her life working with Gaga. In her deposition (via New York Post), O'Neill alleged that she had to be available "24/7," sleep in the same bed as the singer, and during one instance, had to wake up in the middle of the night to change a DVD because Gaga did not want to do it herself. O'Neill also claimed that Gaga would get "quite irate" when she couldn't get ahold of her then-assistant.

In her deposition (via Page Six), Gaga said O'Neill "knew there was no overtime" offered for the gig. "I'm quite wonderful to everybody that works for me, and I am completely aghast to what a disgusting human being that you have become to sue me like this," Gaga stated.

According to CNN, Lady Gaga and O'Neil settled out of court. Reportedly, O'Neill landed herself a tell-all book deal with Atria Books worth "up to $1 million," according to Page Six. As a source told InTouch (via PressReader), "Jennifer is going to reveal all the dirty secrets about Gaga's sex life, hard partying and how she treats people, especially the men in her life." However, as of this writing, no such book has been published yet.

Katie Couric has been on television for quite some time, having been a television host for all of the Big Three television networks, which include NBC, CBS, and ABC. However, her former colleague on NBC's Today show, Bryant Gumbel, painted a surprisingly negative picture of Couric, even though he did not specifically name her. During an interview with New York Times Magazine, Gumbel admitted to feeling underappreciated while his co-hosting mate got all the credit.

"I do think the comparison is a little unfair in light of the fact that I won in two different decades with two different cohosts," Gumbel shared, adding, "I won with different executive producers, I won with different studios." Not naming any names, the journalist went on to express that one of his former co-hosting mates wasn't as pleasant as everyone thinks. He claimed that the host "went through five [assistants] in five years" while he only had one, and that the person "who shall remain nameless" also went through "three or four" makeup and hair people. A Today insider told the Times that Gumbel and Couric, who he is widely believed to be talking about in his interview, were not the best of friends, admitting, "I don't think either of them wanted to spend much time together."

After the New York Times Magazine interview was released, Gumbel walked it back a bit, telling the New York Post that he and Couric have "always had a good relationship."

If you or someone you know is struggling with mental health, please contact the Crisis Text Line by texting HOME to 741741, or call the National Alliance on Mental Illness Helpline at 1-800-950-NAMI (6264).

If you or someone you know is struggling with substance abuse and mental health, please contact SAMHSA's 24-hour National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).