Top 10 Shocking Celebrity Stories of 2014
Celebrity

An actor playing a police officer on TV show accused of shooting his wife and a celebrity couple breaking up after nearly two decades of marriage are among shocking news this year.

AceShowbiz - Stars never stop making headlines throughout the year as fans are always thirsty for stories from their idols. While last year brought sad news such as the death of Paul Walker in a fiery car crash and a celebrity cheating scandal, this year people witnessed considerably more crime-related news such as scandalous stories shaking players at the NFL.

To give a look back to some headline-grabbing events in Hollywood showbiz this year, AceShowbiz has compiled Top 10 Shocking Stories in 2014. Earlier this year, the news was dominated by the leak of naked celebrity photos and a medical procedure gone wrong while a sex assault scandal hitting a comedian dominated the later part of the year.

10. Adrian Peterson Was Accused of Child Abuse

An NFL player caught people's attention for the wrong reason this year. Adrian Peterson of the Minnesota Vikings was charged with felony injury to a child in September after admitting to spanking his young son with a branch as a form of discipline. "I am not a perfect but I am, without a doubt, not a child abuser. I am someone that disciplined his child and [did] not intend to fuse him any injury," he said in a statement following the charge. A week after the charge, he was accused of beating his other son. His attorney denied the allegations, saying, "The allegation is more than one year old and authorities took no action. An adult witness admittedly insists Adrian did nothing inappropriate with his son." He was suspended indefinitely due to the case and requested an appeal. His appeal was stopped and the suspension would be upheld until April 15, 2015.

9. Antonio Banderas Split From Melanie Griffith

Earlier this year, Antonio Banderas and Melanie Griffith caught people by surprise after a report of their separation after 18 years of marriage surfaced. Rumors of their marriage crumbling actually started to emerge two years ago, suggesting that a longtime affair contributed to their marital problem. According to TMZ, Griffith cited irreconcilable differences as the reason of the split as she filed for divorce in June. She wants sole physical and joint legal custody of their only daughter Stella and seeks spousal and child support. Griffith, who has an "Antonio" tattoo on her upper arm, apparently covered the tattoo with makeup when she made her first appearance at a film festival in Italy, since news of their separation broke out.

8. Audio of Stephen Collins Admitting to Exposing Himself to Underage Girls Emerged

Stephen Collins, who probably is mostly remembered for playing a father/Reverend Eric Camden on TV series "7th Heaven", had been out of the radar for some time. But for the wrong reason, earlier this year he made headlines after an alleged audio of him admitting to exposing himself to some children in the 1980s surfaced on TMZ. The audio was secretly taken by his estranged wife Faye Grant in 2012 during a therapy session. In the wake of the emergence of the audio, "7th Heaven" was pulled from TV networks. Collins lost his upcoming gigs in "Ted 2" and "Scandal" and was also dropped by his talent agency a week later. Collins' camp alleged that the video was released by Grant as an attempt to extort the actor during their ongoing divorce battle, but Grant denied the claims. In November, Collins asked the judge to eliminate any future spousal support payments, saying that he lost future earning due to the scandal.

7. Ray Rice's Video of Elevator Assault Surfaced

Ray Rice, a running back for the Baltimore Ravens, was accused of hitting his then-fiancee Janay Palmer earlier this year and was suspended for two games in July, but the case exploded and took people by surprise in September after a graphic video of the pair's elevator fight emerged on TMZ. The video, showing Rice punching Palmer and dragging her unconscious body out of an elevator at the Revel Hotel and Casino in Atlantic City in February, prompted huge reaction on social media with people talking about their experience in abusive relationship, especially the reason they stayed or left after Palmer showed her support to her husband. Hours after the video surfaced, his team announced his contract was cut by his team and he was suspended indefinitely by the NFL. In late November, he won his appeal and could go back to the NFL. Another video from the incident emerged in December, showing the couple kissing after the attack.

6. Gwyneth Paltrow Split From Chris Martin

Gwyneth Paltrow and Chris Martin's who once were reported to have marital problem suddenly announced their 11-year marriage ended in late March. The pair, who share two children together, broke news of their separation in a blog post famously titled "Conscious Uncoupling". Despite their decision to go separate ways, the "Iron Man 3" actress and the Coldplay vocalist stay amicable and were seen in several occasions together. Martin was reported to have been dating Jennifer Lawrence after the split, but they apparently broke up after about four months. Paltrow, meanwhile, was romantically linked to "Glee" co-creator Brad Falchuk after the split.

5. Michael Jace Accused of Shooting His Wife

Michael Jace, who plays a police officer named Julien Lowe on "The Shield", was rarely on the news. However, he suddenly made headlines in May after he was accused of shooting his wife April at their Los Angeles home when their two young children were also at home. Police said he later called 911 to report the incident. A recording of his father-in-law's emergency call was released, suggesting that he called April's father to take the kids. He pleaded not guilty during an arraignment in June. In November, he showed up at the Foltz Criminal Justice Center for a pre-trial hearing for the case.

4. Bill Cosby Sexual Assault Accusers Speak Out

Many people probably see Bill Cosby as a nice family man like his character on "The Bill Cosby Show". This year, however, Cosby was hit with sex assault allegations made by numerous women. The debacle started after his biography does not mention a sexual assault suit he faced a few years ago. Back then, Cosby and the accuser Andrea Constand settled the case. Comedian Hannibal Buress then called Cosby a rapist in his stand-up shows. Since then, 20 women including former model Janice Dickinson came forward and shared their stories, alleging that Cosby drugged and assaulted them. One of the women named Judy Huth additionally filed a civil suit against Cosby. He countersued, claiming the suit was "meritless and unsupported." The comedian's lawyer has denied the accusations several times. His wife Camille and daughter Evin also defended her in December after the actor lost some gigs but the effect of this scandal kept snowballing with reruns of his show getting pulled from TV networks, his star on Hollywood Walk of Fame being vandalized and him losing his position on Temple's board of trustees.

3. Joan Rivers' Sudden Death

No one saw it coming, nor Joan Rivers herself. That September morning, the comedienne went to Yorkville Endoscopy clinic in Manhattan for a throat procedure. What was supposed to be a simple procedure went awry when she stopped breathing during the procedure. She passed away after a week in coma at the age of 81. Despite her brash personality, she was still loved by friends and colleagues and it's evident when the likes of Sarah Jessica Parker and her husband Matthew Broderick, Howard Stern, Diane Sawyer, Kelly Osbourne and Giuliana Rancic attended her funeral. Authorities did not let this pass without an investigation. Later in November, a report by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) obtained by CNN showed that the clinic made serious mistakes such as failure to identify deteriorating vital signs and provide timely intervention and failure to consistently document the dose of Propofol, a sedative, administered.

2. Naked Celebrity Photos Leaked

Many stars were enraged after their private photos unexpectedly hit the web via 4chan board in September before spreading to other sites. Among the first batch of celebrities whose photos were stolen and spread online included Jennifer Lawrence, Kate Upton and her boyfriend Justin Verlander, Kaley Cuoco, Gabrielle Union, Hayden Panettiere and Rihanna. Lawrence, Mary Elizabeth Winstead and Kirsten Dunst confirmed the photos were real, while other stars like Ariana Grande said they were fake. Other photos purportedly show stars like Kim Kardashian, Cara Delevingne, Vanessa Hudgens and U.S. soccer star Hope Solo were also illegally shared. In the wake of the hacking scandal, Apple denied that the leaks were caused by a security breach to their iCloud system, explaining that hackers purposefully targeted the celebrities' accounts. In an interview with the Wall Street Journal, Apple's CEO Tim Cook assured their customers they would add more measures to prevent similar incident in the future.

1. Robin Williams Committed Suicide

Robin Williams' untimely death was a great loss for entertainment world. He was found dead of apparent suicide by hanging at his home on Monday, August 8. Early theory on what led to this unfortunate event arose after his family said the actor, who was popular for his roles in "Dead Poets Society", "Mrs. Doubtfire" and "Night at the Museum" among others, was diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease and was battling depression before his death at the age of 63. He was cremated and the ash was scattered at San Francisco Bay. One of the beloved actors in Hollywood, he was mourned by celebrity friends like Ben Affleck, Matt Damon, Steve Martin, Whoopi Goldberg and Ellen DeGeneres at his funeral. The "Mork & Mindy" star was given a proper tribute at the Primetime Emmy Awards led by his close friend Billy Crystal. Later in November, the Marin County coroner confirmed the actor was sober when he took his own life. There was only "therapeutic concentrations" of medication found in his system.

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