These celebrity backstories will shock you. Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re examining well-known celebrities who led lives filled with personal tragedies.
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00:00I remember a lot of the times looking back and really hiding my face, crying."
00:05Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're examining well-known celebrities
00:08who led lives filled with personal tragedies.
00:11We'll explore the sad events that haunted them
00:13and the potential problems that arose from them.
00:15I still believe in it, you know, the love you find with an audience.
00:22Glenn Close
00:23So yes, I had nothing in my toolbox except I could act.
00:28Today, she's one of the most beloved and successful actors in the industry.
00:32But for the first couple of decades of her life,
00:34Close lived a very different existence.
00:36When she was seven, her family joined the Moral Rearmament Movement
00:39and moved to the group's headquarters in Switzerland.
00:42So I think I really understand why they were so vulnerable to a group like that.
00:49Close described the MRA, now known as the Initiatives of Change,
00:52as a cult that dictated what members could do, say, or even wear.
00:57The group made their members believe that doing or thinking anything
01:00that benefited them was considered selfish.
01:02While Close managed to leave the MRA when she was 22,
01:05she has spoken about the scars negatively impacting
01:08her romantic relationships to this day.
01:10I know this is all so familiar, and I love you all so much.
01:14I know that sounds gross, doesn't it?
01:16Rose McGowan
01:17They won't join us willingly. I don't think I can do it alone.
01:22From the moment she was born in Italy in 1973 to U.S. parents,
01:26her life was troubled.
01:27McGowan's father ran the chapter of Children of God,
01:30a controversial group that twisted hippie philosophy into an authoritarian cult.
01:34When she was nine, McGowan's parents became disillusioned with the group.
01:38They believed their daughter could become a victim of the cult's alleged abuse.
01:41So they fled back to the States.
01:43Imagine what the world would have been like.
01:46People always say that people going into cults are lost,
01:48but I think people living in Ohio might also be lost.
01:51But McGowan struggled, becoming a runaway for a year due to an abusive stepfather,
01:56and later getting emancipated from her parents at 15.
01:59McGowan thankfully turned it around by carving out a successful acting career.
02:03Sadly, she had more tragedy when she spoke about her experiences
02:06with the convicted film producer Harvey Weinstein.
02:10Till it can soar.
02:12Matthew Perry
02:13You apologized to the people you were with, but they had to understand
02:17you had met somebody special to you,
02:19and you were going to talk to that person for the rest of the night.
02:22In 2022, The Friend's legend detailed how he spent $9 million on his substance use disorder,
02:28which included around 6,000 AA meetings, therapy twice a week for 30 years,
02:3314 stomach surgeries, and 15 stints in rehab.
02:36And it all began when Perry was 14 with alcohol,
02:39after feeling like an outsider in his family when his mother started
02:42having children with his stepfather.
02:44Your disease is just outside, just doing one-arm push-ups,
02:47just waiting, just waiting for you, waiting to get you along.
02:51Because alone, you lose.
02:53In 1997, it got worse for the actor when a jet ski accident left him hooked on painkillers.
02:59This caused Perry to not remember much for three years,
03:02between Friends seasons 3 and 6, as he rapidly lost weight on screen.
03:07His struggles caused numerous near-death experiences throughout his life.
03:10Perry would be taken from us too soon in 2023.
03:14Now, I may not understand why you have to win so badly,
03:17but if it's important to you, then it's important to me, because I love you.
03:20Joaquin Phoenix
03:24When he was born in Puerto Rico in 1974,
03:27Joaquin's parents had been involved with the infamous Children of God cult.
03:30Working as missionaries, the family traveled through South America
03:34and the Caribbean to promote the group.
03:35However, the method of flirty fishing, where women were used to entice men to join,
03:40and the group's twisted policies caused the family to leave.
03:44The siblings then began carving out their acting careers.
03:56However, in 1993, River Phoenix perished from an overdose at the Viper Room in Los Angeles.
04:01Joaquin's haunting 911 call for his brother was published everywhere.
04:05In the aftermath, the Phoenix family left for Costa Rica to heal from the tragedy
04:09before returning and restarting their acting careers.
04:13Chester Bennington
04:30During his youth, the legendary frontman for Lincoln Park was abused by a family friend.
04:34He spent years living in silence, afraid to tell anyone what was happening.
04:38Eventually, Bennington told his dad years later,
04:41but chose not to press charges against the predator.
04:52After this, being tormented at school and his parents splitting up,
04:56Bennington began his descent into substance use disorder as his mental health deteriorated.
05:00Eventually, he got everything under control.
05:02In 2011, Bennington spoke about quitting drinking after an intervention by his bandmates.
05:07In 2017, music icon Chris Cornell, a close friend of Bennington, passed away.
05:13A couple of months later, Bennington sadly lost his life.
05:25Lindsay Lohan
05:31Lohan won audiences over at age 11 with her dual role in The Parent Trap.
05:36She continued to show promise as a teenager,
05:38starring in hits like Freaky Friday and Mean Girls.
05:41Ever since receiving a DUI in 2007, however, it was all downhill for the actress.
05:53Over the years, Lohan would become synonymous with rehab as she struggled with substances.
05:58In addition to her various legal issues and substance use,
06:00Lohan has also been widely criticized for her poor film choices and the lackluster
06:05quality of her performances. Defending controversial figures like Harvey Weinstein
06:09and Donald Trump on social media has not helped to redeem Lohan in the public eye either.
06:13Although, she did stage a mini-comeback with a few popular Netflix movies.
06:26Brandon Lee
06:35In 1973, Lee's life changed dramatically after his legendary actor and martial artist father
06:42Bruce Lee died suddenly at a young age. Lee was pushed into following his father into martial
06:46arts, but grew disillusioned on seeing his photos in dojos. He was even asked to leave school as a
06:52teenager due to his behavior. Eventually, Lee decided to pursue acting, but avoided projects
06:57that involved martial arts. This later led him to be cast in 1994's The Crow. Sadly, just as his
07:08career was taking off, Lee's life came to a tragic end in 1993. During a scene that involved actor
07:14Michael Massey firing a prop firearm, a mistake by the crew caused a dummy bullet to fatally strike
07:20Lee.
07:36In 1964, at the age of six, the future king of pop joined the family band that would become
07:42the Jackson 5. Yet while everything seemed great on the outside, behind the scenes it was anything
07:47but. Managed by their father Joe, he watched his children rehearse with a belt in his hand,
07:51ready to punish them for mistakes, especially Michael. The Jackson patriarch defended his
08:04actions by claiming he kept his children away from trouble. Joe was also known to be mentally
08:09abusive, criticizing Michael's nose from an early age and banning friends from seeing him,
08:13making him feel alone. This abuse caused several of his children to cut ties with Joe,
08:18while some defended his methods.
08:37Seen as one of the nicest people in Hollywood, on the surface, no one would know the mountain
08:42of trauma Reeves has sustained. His father walked out on the family when he was three.
08:46The actor last saw his dad when he was 13. His father was later sentenced to prison for drug
08:51offenses. Reeves was even kicked out of school due to bad behavior. In 1993, his best friend
09:07and fellow actor River Phoenix lost his life from an overdose. In 1998, Reeves began dating
09:13Jennifer Syme. The following year, they sadly experienced a stillbirth. The devastating loss
09:18caused the couple to break up. However, they eventually reconciled. In 2001, Syme lost her
09:24life in a car accident. Kurt Cobain
09:34When he was nine, the future frontman of Nirvana experienced his parents' divorcing.
09:51After this, his mother saw his personality shift to become more withdrawn, as he resented his
09:56parents for taking away his quote, typical family. Feeling ostracized as his father began having
10:01children with another woman, Cobain saw his mom become a victim of domestic violence from her
10:05partner. Acting out, he started picking on kids at school, causing Cobain to be moved under his
10:10father's care and later with another family. Cobain then lived with his mom until she kicked
10:23him out, leaving him without a home. During these struggles, chronic stomach pain chipped away at
10:28the musician's mental health, leading him to use substances. In 1994, Cobain sadly took his own
10:35life. Corey Feldman
10:52In the 80s, this child star was a household name, thanks to his roles in The Goonies and Gremlins.
10:57As the years went by, though, Feldman became better known for substance use, while his acting
11:01career took a nosedive. Corey Haim, Feldman's close friend and frequent co-star, endured a
11:06similar fall from grace, eventually dying from pneumonia in 2010 at the age of 38.
11:20One year later, Feldman revealed that both he and Haim had been abused. Feldman referred to
11:26the predator as Ron, who also played a hand in his substance use disorder. Following the
11:30allegations against Harvey Weinstein in 2017, Feldman set out to self-finance a film exposing
11:36the evils of Hollywood. Kelsey Grammer
11:56As the legendary actor for Frasier, Grammer looks like he has it all. But before he reached the
12:01lofty heights of TV stardom, his family life was incredibly tragic. In 1968, his father was killed
12:07during the violence in the wake of Martin Luther King's assassination. In 1975, Grammer's sister
12:13Karen was kidnapped by a group of men led by Freddie Glenn. She was assaulted before having
12:17her life ended. Struggling with the loss,
12:25Grammer was expelled from the Juilliard School for not turning up. Glenn was sentenced for his
12:30crimes and handed three life sentences. Grammer has spoken at his parole meetings ever since.
12:35Finally, in 1980, two of Grammer's half-brothers perished during a scuba diving accident.
12:51Marlon Brando
12:56Are all thy conquests, glories, triumphs, spoils shrunk to this little measure?
13:02This acclaimed actor played a variety of iconic characters throughout his illustrious career,
13:06including Mark Antony in Julius Caesar. Despite finding incredible success on the silver screen,
13:12Brando's life off-screen was practically a Shakespearean tragedy. In 1990, Brando's son
13:17Christian was charged with murdering Dagdrelay, the boyfriend of his pregnant half-sister Cheyenne.
13:23How about a few more details on that subject?
13:25Pleading guilty to manslaughter, Christian went to prison for five years.
13:29Throughout her sibling's trial, Cheyenne attempted self-termination on two occasions.
13:33Suffering from mental health problems, she lost custody of her son and ultimately hung herself
13:38in 1995. Much like Don Vito Corleone, Marlon found himself at the head of a family riddled
13:44with death, infamy, and unspeakable turmoil.
13:52Jennifer Hudson
14:03For several years, Jennifer Hudson appeared to be on top of the world.
14:07She was a finalist on American Idol, won an Oscar for her performance in Dreamgirls,
14:11and released a debut album that went certified gold. Then, disaster struck Hudson's family in
14:172008. At her elder sister's home in Chicago, Hudson's mother and brother were shot to death,
14:30and her missing nephew was found dead three days later with multiple gunshot wounds.
14:34Hudson's brother-in-law was convicted for the heinous crimes, receiving three life sentences.
14:39Hudson walked away from the spotlight for a while in the wake of this tragedy,
14:43but came back with new projects. She is currently a coach on The Voice.
14:52Gary Coleman
14:57As a child, Coleman was diagnosed with a chronic kidney disease known as focal
15:01segmental glomerulosclerosis, requiring him to take medications that contributed
15:06to his stunted growth. He additionally went through multiple unsuccessful kidney
15:10transplants and dialysis, never growing taller than 4 feet 8 inches. Coleman retained a youthful
15:16appearance as Arnold Jackson on different strokes. Despite making $100,000 per episode at one point,
15:24he lost much of that fortune at the hands of his adoptive parents and advisors. Although
15:28Coleman sued them for misappropriation, he still suffered from financial and legal troubles.
15:33Filing for bankruptcy in 1999, following a failed marriage, attempts to take his own life,
15:38and ceaseless illness, Coleman died at age 42 from an epidural hematoma.
15:53Whitney Houston
15:55And I will always love you
16:05This record-breaking, award-winning singer had a great career in music,
16:09movies, and modeling. Sadly, Houston's professional success was only matched by
16:13the misfortune that plagued her life. In 2000, Houston and her husband Bobby Brown were found
16:18with marijuana at an airport. This only fueled rumors of Houston's substance use. Not too long
16:24after divorcing Brown, Houston confessed in an interview with Oprah Winfrey that her marriage
16:28did involve serious substance use. Then in 2012, Houston accidentally drowned in a bathtub at age
16:41a result of both her substance use and heart disease.
16:55Anna Nicole Smith
17:06Born Vicki Lynn Hogan, Anna Nicole Smith dropped out of high school when she was only 14.
17:11Eventually rose to fame and was featured on the cover of Playboy. Not too long after her
17:16modeling career took off, Smith divorced her first husband and married aging businessman
17:20J. Howard Marshall. When Marshall died at age 90 just over a year later, the widowed
17:24Smith found herself in the midst of a lengthy court battle over his estate.
17:34In addition to her inheritance issues, Smith lost her son Daniel to an overdose in 2006.
17:40Smith also died from an overdose less than a year later, leaving behind her newborn daughter,
17:44Dannielynn Burkhead. John F. Kennedy Jr.
18:01It's been speculated that there might be a Kennedy curse, considering the unbelievable
18:05bad luck that's hounded this political family. John F. Kennedy Jr. is perhaps the most tragic
18:10case of all. A mere three days before his third birthday, his father was shot in one of history's
18:15most infamous presidential assassinations. Heartbreak continued to follow JFK Jr. As his
18:30uncle was assassinated in 1968, his cousin died from an overdose in 1984, and his other cousin
18:36died during a skiing accident in 1997. Death loomed over this family like a shadow, and it
18:42inevitably caught up to JFK Jr., who died when he crashed the plane he was piloting into the Atlantic
18:47Ocean. Judy Garland
19:00With a smile that could light up a room, Judy Garland seemed like the epitome of everything
19:11wholesome. Behind the emerald curtain, however, was a deeply troubled human being crying out for
19:16help. During her early days at MGM, many executives deemed her unattractive, and the studio forced her
19:22to diet. This not
19:30only took a toll on Garland physically, but mentally as well. Although she reigned as one
19:34of Hollywood's most recognizable stars well into her adult years, Garland had a laundry list of
19:39money problems, including owing heavy amounts of back taxes. She was consumed by substance use,
19:45leading to a barbiturate overdose that claimed her life in 1969.
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20:17Marilyn Monroe
20:22Like Judy Garland, Marilyn Monroe was a film legend who hid ungovernable pain underneath glitz,
20:27glamour, and a lovable screen persona. Born Norma Jean Mortensen, Monroe moved between
20:32various foster homes and an orphanage throughout her youth. Marrying her first husband at age 16,
20:37Monroe went on to find enormous success in acting, singing, and modeling.
20:53Although she was widely adored, Monroe suffered from great depression brought
20:56on by her failed marriages, multiple miscarriages, relentless press coverage,
21:01and personal demons. Turning to substances, she died from a barbiturate overdose at age 36.
21:07While it's still debated whether or not this was intentional, there's no denying that Monroe's
21:11life was littered with tragedy. Which celebrity with a tragic past shocked you the most? Let us
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