Celebrity interviews are usually about trying to appear fun and relatable, but some famous figures end up falling a bit short. These entertainment icons have a history of making things awkward for their interviewers.
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00:00Celebrity interviews are usually about trying to appear fun and relatable, but some famous figures end up falling a bit short.
00:08These entertainment icons have a history of making things awkward for their interviewers.
00:13No one pegged Blake Lively as a difficult interviewee when she did the rounds for Gossip Girl back in the late 2000s.
00:20She appeared to be casual, relaxed, and willing to take the opportunity to promote her work.
00:25However, there's been a different side of her that's emerged in recent years.
00:29In 2016, reporter Kirsty Flaher spoke to Lively and co-star Parker Posey on the press tour for their film Café Society.
00:39Flaher congratulated Lively on her pregnancy, or at least she tried to.
00:43First of all, congrats on your little bump.
00:46Congrats on your little bump.
00:48From there on out, Lively avoided eye contact with the reporter as she strictly engaged with Posey, and the interview took an awkward turn.
00:57Years later, Flaher revealed that the interview almost made her quit her job because she was dealing with fertility struggles herself at the time.
01:04She added that Lively had yet to apologize for her behavior, and that another reporter reached out with a story about experiencing something similar in their interaction with the actor.
01:14The interview resurfaced in 2024 as Lively embarked on a controversial press tour for her film It Ends With Us.
01:22She once again caused a stir by promoting her other business ventures while appearing to miss the serious nature of the theme of the film, which deals with domestic abuse.
01:32While there were some who defended her conduct in interviews, others suggested she was thoughtless and insensitive about the issues addressed in the project she was involved with.
01:42In terms of pure blockbuster entertainment and high-quality soundbites, director Ridley Scott might just be the best possible person to interview.
01:50Unabashedly honest and a straight shooter, Scott leaves no doubts about his thoughts on any topic as he speaks off the cuff, regardless of whether the attention toward his projects is good or bad.
02:01However, Scott apparently subscribes to the mantra that the best form of defense is a good offense.
02:06When negative criticism strikes, he lashes back with no mercy.
02:10The reaction toward his 2023 film Napoleon, starring Joaquin Phoenix, is a prime example.
02:17The project, while entertaining, isn't 100% historically accurate, and French critics were quick to remind him of this.
02:24During the press tour, Scott took aim at his detractors, telling the BBC the French don't even like themselves.
02:31He called out historians in The Times by saying,
02:37In 2021, Russian journalist Anton Dolin discovered Scott's prickly side when he attempted to compliment The Last Duel in an interview.
02:47Dolin started off by saying that The Last Duel appeared to look more realistic than some of Scott's other movies, such as Robin Hood and Kingdom of Heaven.
02:57Scott cut him off to say,
03:05Hugh Grant's ex-girlfriend Elizabeth Hurley once revealed that her friends referred to the actor as
03:13Unsurprisingly, this comes across in many of his interviews too.
03:17Famously, Grant doesn't do well on talk shows.
03:20He appeared on The Jon Stewart Show in the 90s, and there's no hiding from the fact that Grant looks like he would rather be anywhere else but there.
03:37Years later, Grant met the host once again, for an appearance on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart,
03:42which led Stewart to say he would never have the actor back on the program because of how unpleasant he was,
03:49even to the people who worked on the show.
03:51To his credit, Grant owned his behavior, posting on social media,
04:03Of course, Stewart wouldn't be the only recipient of Grant's crankiness.
04:06As interviewer Ashley Graham found out at the 95th Academy Awards,
04:11In the less-than-a-minute interview, Graham asked Grant which films he was excited about,
04:15which stars he'd like to see win, and what he was wearing.
04:19He provided non-answers to everything she asked.
04:29Billy Bob Thornton often delights in interviews, as he infuses his natural charisma in his answers.
04:35However, that's only if the interviewer stays on topic, as radio host Gian Gomeschi discovered.
04:41Thornton and his band members from the Boxmasters appeared on Gomeschi's show Q to promote their album Mod Billy in 2009.
04:49When Gomeschi introduced the band, he briefly mentioned Thornton's acting career,
04:54which would seem entirely natural since it's an unavoidable topic,
04:58and Gomeschi focused the rest of the interview on the music.
05:01The tension simmered as Thornton dodged Gomeschi's questions, or simply proved unhelpful in his responses.
05:07Eventually, the reason for Thornton's attitude revealed itself when he told Gomeschi wasn't supposed to have mentioned his acting career.
05:14Gomeschi tried to smooth over the issue, but Thornton left the interview and decided to not perform with his band on air.
05:22Thornton's publicist Arnold Robinson told Entertainment Weekly that no one told Gomeschi what he could or couldn't ask,
05:30but it was true that Thornton doesn't like to discuss his film career when he's doing press for the band.
05:35Robinson added,
05:39Quentin Tarantino holds the ability to be one of the most captivating interviewees around,
05:44as he not only discusses his own films, but others.
05:48That said, he's also liable to lose his cool,
05:51like he did during a sit-down discussion with reporter Krishnan Guru-Murthy about Django Unchained.
05:58Guru-Murthy probed about the violent nature of the movie,
06:01finally asking Tarantino,
06:09Tarantino was immediately offended and refused to answer.
06:19The interview continued to get heated, as Tarantino stressed he was there to promote his movie,
06:24not discuss the impact of violence.
06:27Guru-Murthy stood his ground, explaining that it's a reporter's responsibility to ask the hard questions.
06:32The pair argued back and forth before the interview went on, albeit awkwardly.
06:36Back in 1997, Tarantino told the New York Times that he views interviews as opportunities to sell his movies,
06:44and that's why he participates in them.
06:46He also claimed that he isn't bothered by negative criticism, stating,
06:57I was made fun of and kicked around a little. I learned pretty early on to stop reading that stuff.
07:02Some celebrities bask in the fanfare that surrounds them and enjoy talking about their work, but not Harrison Ford.
07:08No matter the movie, no matter the time, Ford looks like he would rather be chilling at home than dealing with the media.
07:15Even though he's associated with multiple mega-franchises,
07:18Ford's press appearances don't try to hide the fact that he's only there out of contractual obligation.
07:24In 2013, GQ published an interview with the actor in which he barely answered the journalist's questions.
07:31At the time, they were discussing his performance in Ender's Game,
07:34but Ford didn't seem too keen on chatting about all the nuts and bolts of such a film.
07:39When the interviewer asked if he had a method to make silly pieces of dialogue work, the actor replied,
07:45Yeah, that's my job. That's why I get paid.
07:47Ford isn't afraid to throw subtle shade at interviewers either,
07:51as demonstrated by his handling of a question from Entertainment Weekly in 2024.
07:56After being asked which of his characters, Indiana Jones or Thaddeus Thunderbolt Ross,
08:01deals with snakes better, Ford quipped back,
08:15I will not answer that stupid question.
08:18But thank you.
08:21Delighted to have the opportunity.
08:23Kiss Basist
08:25Gene Simmons never shies away from controversy.
08:28His comments often rile people up and stir the pot, as he isn't afraid to antagonize others.
08:33Just one example.
08:35During an interview with a South American reporter wearing an Iron Maiden shirt,
08:39Simmons told the journalist to swap out the shirt for a kiss one.
08:43When the reporter refused, Simmons threw around a few passive-aggressive remarks
08:48until he turned the shirt inside out.
08:50It isn't only journalists whom he upsets,
08:52as Simmons managed to trigger his wife, Shannon Tweed, during an appearance on The Joy Behar Show.
08:58After Behar played a clip in which fellow rocker Alice Cooper discussed Simmons' long list of lovers,
09:04Simmons made a boastful quip that irritated Tweed, who proceeded to storm out of the live interview.
09:09Appearing on The Joe Rogan Experience, comedian Bert Kreischer revealed that
09:14Simmons was one of the worst celebrity experiences he ever had when he hosted The X Show.
09:20He explained that he was a massive Kiss fan, but when he went to speak to Simmons before a show,
09:25Simmons dismissed him.
09:27In addition, Simmons refused to be interviewed by Kreischer,
09:30insisting that another reporter do the interview instead, as Kreischer just sat in on the conversation.
09:36Matters didn't improve from there, as Simmons continued to big-league him on the program.
09:41Kreischer stated plainly,
09:48Machine Gun Kelly provided a pretty abrupt walkout during a 2018 chat at the Billboard Hot 100 Festival.
09:55MGK discussed several topics, but he appeared to work himself into a frenzy
10:00after getting into how he wants to make his daughter proud.
10:03From there, he veered off into a tangent about how he's terrible at interviews,
10:07and people mustn't judge who he is.
10:10All of a sudden, he exclaimed he didn't want to do the interview anymore and walked off the stage.
10:15This isn't the only awkward exchange that MGK has had with the press,
10:19as he hit the headlines after his exchange with Sky Sports at the Formula One Brazilian Grand Prix in 2023.
10:26From the get-go, it was clear that this interview wasn't going to pan out
10:30as presenter Martin Brundle might have expected.
10:33When Brundle asked him how his career was going, MGK was far from descriptive.
10:39My career? I don't think about my career. I don't think about it.
10:45Needless to say, the rest of the conversation didn't fare any better or provide any insightful discussion.
10:51Replying on social media to a fan who criticized his behavior,
10:55Kelly suggested he was ambushed by the reporter and couldn't hear him over the loudness of the track.
11:01Soccer legend Cristiano Ronaldo's name will forever be etched into the annals of soccer history
11:07for his unmatched athletic achievements.
11:09But despite all the records broken and trophies won, Ronaldo is also renowned for his petulance,
11:15especially when events don't go his way.
11:18In 2015, Ronaldo appeared on CNN en Español to discuss the launch of his new headphones.
11:24However, the big story at the time was all about the corruption scandal surrounding soccer's governing body, FIFA.
11:31The journalist brought up the topic to Ronaldo,
11:34who tried to defuse the situation by saying it doesn't bother him at all.
11:38After some more pressing from the journalist, a visibly agitated Ronaldo took off his headphones
11:44and spoke to someone off-camera about the interview being derailed and how he didn't care about FIFA.
11:49While playing for Real Madrid in 2016, Ronaldo also didn't react kindly to a reporter
11:55who asked him about his lack of goals away from home at the time.
11:59He pointed out that no other player had scored more goals away from home in Spain's La Liga since his arrival in the league,
12:05then grabbed his jacket and exited the press conference.
12:08Later that year, while on international duty with Portugal at Euro 2016,
12:13Ronaldo was approached by a reporter while out on a walk with the team.
12:17Instead of speaking to the journalist, the soccer star decided to grab the reporter's microphone and throw it into the lake.
12:24Russell Crowe isn't afraid of confrontation in his interviews.
12:28He's more than happy to correct journalists on the difference between rugby league and rugby union,
12:33or perhaps tell someone to get their ears checked if they misidentify his accent.
12:38Case in point, during the press tour for his 2010 movie Robin Hood,
12:42Crowe became agitated after a BBC reporter suggested his character's accent was Irish during an interview.
12:49When the reporter tried to backtrack and ask if he was attempting a northern English accent,
12:53Crowe replied,
12:55No, I was going for an Italian. Missed it.
12:57When a question about Gladiator was posed next, Crowe was not entertained and evacuated the studio.
13:03Appearing on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen,
13:06Juliana Rancic said interviewing Russell Crowe at a movie premiere was quite the experience, and not in a good way.
13:13She explained that when she asked Crowe about his excitement for the event,
13:17he responded that he was only there because he was contractually required to be.
13:22Caught off guard, Rancic followed up by asking how he felt seeing all the fans around,
13:27to which he responded,