We recently asked the BuzzFeed Community to tell us the most toxic things famous people do. Here are the surprising results:
1. "EDITING PHOTOS! We all know they don’t look like that, and they still do it, even though people relentlessly call them out for it."
2. "Asking us (who earn a fraction of what they make) to donate to something — when they clearly can do it and then some."
—herefortea
3. "When celebrities with famous parents and/or families deny nepotism played a role in them having their careers, when it clearly did."
"I can think of a good number of celebrities who wouldn’t be famous if they weren’t born into it."
4. "At the start of the pandemic, in lockdown, they were posting things like: 'Stay home, it's not that hard; we're all in this together.'"
"Like, yeah, it wouldn't be hard for me to stay home all day when I have a cinema, tennis court, swimming pool, and god knows what in my home!"
—s463b03bd4
5. "Being hypocritical. Don’t preach about sheltering in place and then fly to the beach for a vacation."
After 2 weeks of multiple health screens and asking everyone to quarantine, I surprised my closest inner circle with a trip to a private island where we could pretend things were normal just for a brief moment in time.
—emmanz
6. "When celebrities use their fame to push pseudoscience and general quackery. Actors/models/singers are not doctors; they shouldn't be giving medical advice, and no one should be listening to it."
—bbomb2112
7. "When they say, 'If I can do it, so can you!' Actually, most of us can't. We don't have access to personal trainers, chefs, nannies, housekeepers, drivers, personal assistants, and so on."
"We don't all have the same 24 hours a day."
—baweston85
8. "Claiming to care about the environment, saying that they are extremely concerned about climate change, and then catching private jets."
—emmanz
9. "I don't need to know about your marriage (i.e, secret affairs and orgasms.) Looking at you, Will Smith."
10. "The 'I lost my baby weight before I had my baby' posts. Not everyone can afford a nanny, nutritionist, and personal trainer to allow them to work out constantly after having a baby. Plus, who wants to do that anyway?"
—sthomson0288
"The 'snap back' after giving birth. I don’t need to have children myself to know that’s not a healthy expectation for most women."
—panda_13
11. "When they break the law and get reduced sentences or fines just because they’re famous and can hire glitzy attorneys."
12. "Word-vomiting their marital problems to seem relatable to us peons, posting pictures of their lavish parties, and forcing their kids to be on their social media accounts."
13. "I wouldn't call it toxic, but lately, celebrities seem hell-bent on telling us private, gross information to seem 'relatable.'"
14. "Altering their appearance through plastic surgery and/or Photoshop and claiming it’s all natural — and then using that to sell products."
—hollsm405
"I don't mind when celebs aren't willing to come out and say they've had cosmetic surgery — that's their private business. But when they outright deny having work done, it's so damaging to the average person because we all kill ourselves with diet and exercise, trying to attain results that are not realistic. What's worse is when they take it a step further and attribute their 'perfect' appearance to some very specific product/diet/exercise."
—mclift
15. "Posting photos of their children in hospital when they are ill! That's private and the child doesn't need those images out there."
—sthomson0288
16. "What's most cringey to me is when they insert themselves into a public discourse that doesn't need them to."
"Like, during the height of the BLM protests, Madonna patting herself on the back for her 'wokeness' with the 'Like A Prayer' video."
17. "Not knowing the names of producers, camera operators, and other people on the set of a movie/talk show."
18. "Only equating their success to hard work and never mentioning the luck of being rich and famous."
19. "'Do you know how hard it is to do interview after interview answering the same questions?' Yeah. Most of us go to the same job and do the same work every day, too."
20. "Definitely sole promotion. I started following Jennifer Lopez on Instagram, and damn, she’s boring."
21. And finally: "Complaining about things that so many people would be grateful for. They're not living the same reality most of us are and still don't get it."
YIKES. Do you agree with these? What are some other things famous people do that are actually toxic? Let us know in the comments below.
Note: Some responses have been edited for length and/or clarity.