Celebrity apologies are a show unto themselves. Popularity doesn’t come with a ‘How-To’ book on screwing up or the PR disasters that follow, and often, an apology only makes it worse. From poorly-timed social media posts to public statements that anger more than they appease, Hollywood’s missteps in apologizing can be as dramatic as the scandals themselves. Here are 10 celebrity apologies that had us wincing, confused, and wondering if anyone in their team was paying attention.
10. Anne Hathaway – The Witches Backlash
Anne Hathaway faced a backlash after she was accused of using a prosthesis to act out disabled three-fingered hands for sure in The Witches, a move considered insensitive to mock people who have a limb difference. Anne Hathaway apologized on Instagram, saying she is “sorry for the pain caused” and that she “would do better.” The apology, sincere as it was, came only after the storm was raised; hence, it is just another reminder that representatives need to think before speaking.
9. Bryan Adams – Instagram rant on COVID-19
Bryan Adams sparked outrage on social media when he appeared to blame “virus-making greedy bastards” and wet markets for the pandemic in an Instagram post. A second message, an apology that referred to “those who took offense,” tried to pivot to animal rights. To many people, though, it sounded evasive and insincere – the classic non-apology.
8. Hannah Brown – N-Word Incident on Instagram
Reality star Hannah Brown faced backlash after rapping along to the N-word in DaBaby’s Rockstar on Instagram Live. Making it worse, she at first denied doing so and tried to play it off. The initial apology she posted on Instagram Stories received enough backlash that she issued a second, more heartfelt one, a sure sign the first was lacking.
7. Lea Michele – “Perception” Apology
Following accusations of workplace microaggressions from former Glee co-star Samantha Marie Ware, Lea Michele issued an apology that blamed her behavior on being “perceived as insensitive.” By deferring responsibility onto other people’s perceptions, Michele’s statement was widely characterized as evasive and tone deaf, a textbook example of how not to apologize.
6. Jimmy Fallon – Blackface and Workplace Allegations
Jimmy Fallon faced backlash for a blackface skit he did in 2000. As he said in his tweet, “This is something that cannot be excused. I am very sorry for making this extraordinarily offensive choice.” More recently, allegations of a toxic work environment at The Tonight Show led to an internal Zoom apology, described as awkward and unaccountable; the kind of evidence that even public confessions can fail.
5. Will Smith – Oscars Slap
Will Smith slapping Chris Rock at the 2022 Oscars was the most memorable image of the night. Smith first made an apology during his acceptance speech without directly addressing Roc,k, then followed it up with one on social media. To many people, those apologies were done for the cameras and thus not sincere. They serve as a perfect example of how partial apologies can actually cause more harm than good.
4. DaBaby – Rolling Loud Controversy
At Rolling Loud 2021, he made some homophobic remarks, and it drew a lot of backlash pretty quickly. He initially refused to apologize, but later on, he did, and that too on Instagram. His apology was mostly regarded as a fake one, and he had been merely reacting to the situation. Pretty soon, supporters concluded that, instead of hurting people with his actions and words, the reason for his apology was more about the loss of opportunities.
3. Chrissy Teigen – Courtney Stodden Bullying
In the assortment of abandoned behaviors from Chrissy Teigen’s side, there was a point about hateful direct messages that were sent to Courtney Stodden, because of which Stodden lost endorsement deals. Teigen apologized publicly, saying that she had sent a message to Stodden in private; however, Stodden replied that she was still blocked. A great number of people who protested against this apology thought that the recognition of the offense was not an indication of guilt but rather a way of saving the parts of the business that are related to the operation, thus demonstrating the dangers of performative apologies.
2. Ellen DeGeneres – Toxic Workplace
When the workers on The Ellen DeGeneres Show accused the set of being a toxic workplace, and staff received a letter from Ellen, as well as an apology that was broadcast on the air. However, the communiqué was surrounded by jokes and a laugh track, which made it less serious, and for a large number of people who watched, the sorry sounded like a fake one.
1. Kevin Spacey – The Most Infamous Apology
As a matter of fact, Kevin Spacey’s apology is frequently named as the worst kind of mistake to apologize improperly. Just because such an enormous number of people found the denial and the manner in which the letter was written so unbelievable, the apology itself became almost as infamous as the accusations and, therefore, made Spacey’s apology one of the references to the dark side of fame in the realm of pop culture.
They expect celebrity apologies to bring back their image; however, these hardly ever work in that way, and celebrities end up in an even bigger mess. When a star is going down and becoming a topic of trending, it’s time to see things closely-sometimes the apology is the drama that gets the most of the public’s attention, and therefore is worthy of the corn.