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20 Times David Letterman, Howard Stern, And Ellen DeGeneres Tried To Embarrass Their Guests For Laughs, And It Was Incredibly Inappropriate

Ellen really did a whole segment about words Sofía Vergara couldn't pronounce.

Ajani Bazile-Dutes
by Ajani Bazile-Dutes

BuzzFeed Staff

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A while back, we asked members of the BuzzFeed Community to tell us which celebrity interview moment was inappropriate or uncalled for. Here are some of the most shocking times hosts and interviewers crossed the line while trying to "poke fun" at their guests:

Warning: This post contains mentions of sexual assault. 

1. When Howard Stern body-shamed Anna Nicole Smith and tried to force her to weigh herself during her interview.

Howard Stern asking Anna Nicole Smith to get on a scale
E!

—danielleh4fa1a4fab

Watch the full moment here at the 21:00 mark:

View this video on YouTube
E! / youtube.com

2. When David Letterman's crew zoomed in on Jennifer Lopez's breasts, and he made comments about her chest.

Letterman looking at the green screen underneath his desk of his camera crew zooming in on Lopez's breasts, saying: "Yes, sir, look at that. That's pretty darn good"
CBS

—kaylayandoli

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Watch the moment here:

View this video on YouTube
CBS / youtube.com

3. When Ellen made a whole game out of which English words Sofía Vergara could and couldn't pronounce.

Ellen laughing at Sofia not being able to pronounce a word
NBC

"Ellen laughed at her the whole time."

—foxja2005

Watch the moment here at the 2:15 mark:

View this video on YouTube
NBC / youtube.com

4. When David Letterman kept asking and pressuring Madonna to kiss a random stranger in the audience, despite her repeatedly saying no.

David Letterman telling Madonna: "Go kiss the guy in the audience, it would knock him out! Like on the forehead"
CBS

—chucecheverria

Watch the whole moment here at the 2:00 mark:

View this video on YouTube
CBS / youtube.com

5. When David Letterman asked Lindsay Lohan questions about rehab that hadn't been approved.

David Letterman asking Lindsay Lohan about rehab and her saying that these questions were not approved
CBS

"Letterman started addiction-shaming her and her rehab failures, and kept pressing on her. She handled it well, but ew."

—jessicab44f8ce128

Watch the moment here at the 3:35 mark:

View this video on YouTube
CBS / youtube.com

6. When Ellen brought up Justin Bieber's nude paparazzi photos and displayed them on a huge screen.

Ellen displaying Justin's nude paparazzi photos and asking him about it.
NBC

"She was disregarding the fact that he was obviously uncomfortable."

—bhenaultbassett

Watch the moment here at the 1:00 mark:

View this video on YouTube
NBC / youtube.com

7. When Howard Stern interviewed Emma Bunton (aka Baby Spice) and was offensive and sexist the whole time.

Howard Stern saying that Emma lost her virginity when she was "Swallow Spice"
E!

—marwau

Watch part of the interview here:

View this video on YouTube
E! / youtube.com

8. When Janet Jackson told David Letterman she didn't want to talk about her performance at Super Bowl XXXVIII with Justin Timberlake, but he ignored her and still asked.

Janet Jackson saying she doesn't want to talk about the Super Bowl and David Letterman asking anyway
CBS

—kfish2325

Watch the moment here:

View this video on YouTube
CBS / youtube.com

9. When Howard Stern asked Sarah Michelle Gellar how hairy her vagina was.

Howard Stern asking Sarah Michelle Gellar how hairy her vagina is
E!

—lindsayh825

10. When Ellen put photos of famous men and Taylor Swift's exes on a big screen and asked her which ones she dated.

Ellen putting pictures of Taylor's exes on a huge screen
NBC

"Ellen was basically slut-shaming her. Taylor legit almost started crying, and Ellen was cackling like an old witch! It is so upsetting!"

—misteryahoo

Watch the interview moment here at the 2:05 mark:

View this video on YouTube
NBC / youtube.com

11. When Ellen repeatedly asked Taylor Swift and Zac Efron if they were dating when they went on her show to promote The Lorax.

Ellen telling Taylor Swift and Zac Efron they're a cute couple even though they weren't dating
NBC

"It was SO rude and uncomfortable for both of them."

—brennaboo

Watch the interview moment here at the 0:45 mark:

View this video on YouTube
NBC / youtube.com

12. When Howard Stern sexually harassed Mariah Carey during her interview, and she was visibly uncomfortable.

Howard asking mariah if she's wearing underwear, and her saying he's making a mockery of her
E!

Suggested by: lightsup333

Watch the full moment here:

View this video on YouTube
E! / youtube.com

13. When David Letterman had Britney Spears read a Top 10 List about things that would be different if she were president of the US, which made jokes of her struggles and of her intelligence.

Britney Spears doing a segment where she reads her list of things that would be different if she was president and the number 1 on the the list is "Finally the media would pay some attention to me"
CBS

—barbaras4cf94437c

Watch the moment here:

View this video on YouTube
CBS / youtube.com

14. When Jessica Alba described her reservations about wearing a revealing outfit while filming Honey, and David Letterman made sexual comments about it that made her uncomfortable.

Letterman repeatedly asking Alba "How tiny was it? Where was it tiny?"
CBS

—jeckadacowgodess

Watch the moment here at the 5:00 mark:

View this video on YouTube
CBS youtube.com

15. When Ellen made a joke about Drew Barrymore's childhood substance abuse issues.

Ellen making jokes about Drew Barrymore drinking as a child
NBC

Watch the full moment here at the 1:25 mark:

View this video on YouTube
NBC / youtube.com

16. When Ellen forced Mariah Carey to drink alcohol to prove she wasn't pregnant.

Ellen telling Mariah to toast to her not being pregnant.
Entertainment Tonight / NBC

"How messed up is that?!"

—frankiebkhan

You can watch the moment here:

View this video on YouTube
NBC /  youtube.com

17. When Ellen mispronounced Hasan Minhaj's name for laughs.

Ellen purposely mispronouncing Hasan's name for laughs
NBC

Watch the full moment here:

View this video on YouTube
NBC youtube.com

18. When Harry Styles was talking about his need for therapy, and Howard Stern made jokes about how Harry would sleep with his female therapist.

Howard telling harry he should have a male therapist instead, and then making a joke about how harry's going to fuck his female therapist
The Howard Stern Show

Suggested by: asyoufindmenow

Watch the moment here at the 1:19:15 mark:

View this video on YouTube
The Howard Stern Show / youtube.com

19. When Ellen tried to publicly accuse Dakota Johnson of not inviting her to her birthday party.

Ellen accusing Dakota of not inviting her to her birthday party
NBC

Watch the full moment here:

View this video on YouTube
NBC / youtube.com

20. And lastly, when David Letterman sucked on Jennifer Aniston's hair.

David Letterman sucking on Jennifer Aniston's hair
CBS

"She was clearly very uncomfortable but tried to stay professional. He’s so gross."

—katrawling

Watch the moment here at the 5:20 mark:

View this video on YouTube
CBS / youtube.com

What are other inappropriate times when TV hosts and interviewers embarrassed their guests for fun? Let us know in the comments.

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