A number of celebrities have been forced to lay low and halt their careers after their images are tarnished due to various controversies in these past five months.
- May 30, 2021
AceShowbiz - Staying in the spotlight always comes with the good and the downside. While it helps boost one's popularity, negative portrayal of a public figure can easily bring harm to one's reputation. With the fast-spreading social media talks and cancel culture, celebrities are prone to public's judgment that matters a lot when their jobs also deal with people's perceptions and receptions.
In these past five months alone, a number of public figures have been brought down by damning allegations, even before they are proven valid or proven guilty by the law. Whether they acknowledge the mistake or not, these embattling celebrities choose to halt their careers and lay low to avoid further chastisement.
For a quick recap on how it happened, below are the list of stars who have fallen from grace in 2021 so far.
1. Armie Hammer
Armie Hammer was heading into 2021 with so much positivity and ambition, tweeting, "2021 is going to kneel down before me and kiss my feet because this year I'm the boss," but little did he know that this year would bring him more bad lucks than last year. When his personal DMs in which he described sexual fantasies involving rape and cannibalism were leaked in the very first month of the year, it was only the beginning of expose of his alleged abuses.
A former girlfriend claimed he branded her by carving his initial "A" into her pelvis, and another said that he had been emotionally abusive, reporting that he said he wanted to eat her flesh, and would suck or lick her wounds if she had "a little cut on [her] hand." "The Social Network" actor dropped out of several projects, namely "Shotgun Wedding" and drama series "The Offer", and was dropped by his talent agency WME, but that was not the end. While he has been laying low in the Cayman Islands, the LAPD confirmed that he is under investigation for sexual assault since February, though his legal team has denied all allegations.
2. Marilyn Manson
Marilyn Manson's music earned him reputation as a controversial figure, but that doesn't make his personal behaviors less controversial. On February 1, his former fiancee Evan Rachel Wood detailed in a statement on Instagram and Vanity Fair how the rocker had been allegedly emotionally, physically and sexually abusive during their relationship over a decade earlier. Denying the claims, he released a statement in which he stated that "these recent claims about me are horrible distortions of reality" and claimed that his ex-partners "are now choosing to misrepresent the past, that is the truth."
Regardless his claim of innocence, the musician was dropped by distributing record label Loma Vista Recordings, his talent agency Creative Artists as well as his long-time manager Tony Ciulla. On February 19, the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department confirmed that Marilyn is under investigation due to allegations of domestic violence. Later in April, his other ex, Esme Bianco, filed a lawsuit against the eccentric musician, accusing him of sexual, physical and emotional abuse, and also accusing Marilyn and his former manager of a violation of human trafficking laws which all have been denied by his legal representative.
3. Piers Morgan
Piers Morgan was once almost implicated in a phone hacking scandal during his time as an editor of Daily Mirror, but ultimately it's his outspoken views that brought him down. Having made controversial comments under the pretense of his job numerous times on social media and "Good Morning Britain" where he served as the host, he angered many with his comments about Meghan Markle, Duchess of Sussex, regarding her claims about having suicidal thoughts during an interview with Oprah Winfrey.
In the days following Piers' controversial comments about Meghan, Ofcom received plenty of complaints, including from the duchess herself. Still, the former "America's Got Talent" judge refused to apologize for his remarks and decided to quit his job at "Good Morning Britain". Defending himself, he cited freedom of speech as he said, "I said I didn't believe Meghan Markle in her Oprah interview. I've had time to reflect on this opinion, and I still don't. Freedom of speech is a hill I'm happy to die on. Thanks for all the love, and hate. I'm off to spend more time with my opinions."
4. James Charles
James Charles went from one of highest-earning YouTubers to making zero money from the platform. It was all after he faced multiple allegations of inappropriate texting with minors. In February, a 16-year-old TikTok user claimed the beauty guru sent photographs and pressured him into inappropriate conversation on Snapchat. The influencer quickly issued a denial on Twitter, writing, "The accusation that I have groomed this person is completely false."
After another boy, a 15-year-old, shared on TikTok screenshots from conversations and photos he had exchanged with James, the 21-year-old posted a video titled "Holding Myself Accountable" in which he admitted to his guilt. While he insisted that he thought the boys were both 18 or older, he said, "There are no excuses for them and I don't plan on making any." As he was taking a break from social media to "further reflect and educate myself on these topics," YouTube decided to temporarily demonetize his channel, which means turning off the ads that play in videos or preventing content from being recommended.
5. Sharon Osbourne
When talking about Piers Morgan's scandal that unseated him from "Great Morning Britain", one cannot forget Sharon Osbourne. A friend of the British journalist, the wife of Ozzy Osbourne defended his negative comments toward Meghan Markle in a March 10 episode of "The Talk", resulting in a heated exchange with co-host Sheryl Underwood. In the same month, a 2018 clip from "The Talk" resurfaced in which Sharon was discussing the Duchess of Sussex's skin color. She said at the time that Meghan "ain't black" and that "she doesn't look black."
Following the heated on-air debate, "The Talk" went on a week hiatus, while CBS conducted a review on Sharon. The network then concluded that the 68-year-old's "behavior toward her co-hosts during the March 10 episode did not align with [CBS] values for a respectful workplace." She ultimately left the show, later claiming that she has been blacklisted from U.S. television following the controversy.
6. Morgan Wallen
Morgan Wallen had several times dodged being canceled due to arrest for public intoxication and disorderly conduct, and violation of COVID-19 protocols in 2020, before he was caught in an N-word scandal, when he barely stepped in the prime of his career. In February, a video surfaced of the country music star hurling a racial slur to his friend when returning home in Nashville following a drunken night out. Radio stations immediately banned his music, while several streaming platforms removed his songs and promotional photographs from their featured playlists.
In a video posted on Instagram, he expressed his remorse, saying, "My words matter. My words can truly hurt a person and at my core, that's not what I'm okay with." Nevertheless, more parties, including several awards shows, chose to distance themselves from the "Whiskey Glasses" singer. Though his music remained popular, with his album sales surging after the incident, the 28-year-old decided to take more time to reflect and educate himself, vowing not to return to stage this summer.
7. Chrissy Teigen
Chrissy Teigen is always known for her brazen personality, but not many were aware of her past mean streak. Thus, it came as a shock when her old tweets to Courtney Stodden resurfaced earlier this year. The former teen bride claimed the cookbook author sent them hateful messages when she was 16. "[Chrissy] wouldn't just publicly tweet about wanting me to take 'a dirt nap' but would privately DM me and tell me to kill myself," so the non-binary model claimed. "Things like, 'I can't wait for you to die'."
Chrissy admitted to her wrongdoings, saying in a statement posted on Twitter that she felt "lucky" to be "held accountable" for her past actions. "I'm mortified and sad at who I used to be," she admitted. "I was an insecure, attention seeking troll. I am ashamed and completely embarrassed at my behavior." While she vowed to "forever work on being better than I was 10 years ago, 1 year ago, 6 months ago," she remains stepping away from the spotlight and restrains from posting on social media.
8. T.I. and Tiny
As a successful rapper from Atlanta, T.I. was often hailed as the face of the city, but for some people who know him personally, he is no saint. Starting with Sabrina Peterson's claim that he once put a gun to her head and threatened to kill her years before, multiple women spoke to the entrepreneur about their experience of alleged sexual abuse at the hands of the rapper and his wife Tiny Harris a.k.a. Tameka Cottle.
By March, attorney Tyrone A. Blackburn said that more than 30 women have come forward with allegations against the couple including "forced drugging, kidnapping, rape, and intimidation in at least two states, including California and Georgia." In May, it was reported that the hip-hop couple is under investigation for alleged drugging and rape after one of the victims met LAPD detectives virtually in April. Their lawyer has denied the allegations, branding them "baseless and unjustified."
