Some celebrities really do seem to just thrive on drama, while others can't escape it no matter how hard they try. Even more interesting, though, are the stars who seem intent on stirring it up themselves. There are a number of celebrities who are notorious for bringing drama on set and causing major disputes and feuds among cast members of both TV shows and movies. The unprofessionalism of it all is kind of surprising, despite the fact that many celebrities are so clearly attention-seekers, both personally and in their careers.
Hollywood is certainly a competitive industry, and apparently some celebs are totally OK with taking things to the next level to make their competition look bad. Meanwhile, others seem unable to handle not being the center of attention 100% of the time. Sounds a lot like high school, doesn't it? Especially since these spats seem to resurface even long after we thought they were over.
Just in case you've forgotten about some of these on-set feuds between celebrities, we've rounded up a list of stars who've been responsible for major drama while filming, just for your personal amusement. From cat fights to romantic spats, there's a bit of everything here. Keep reading to find out all the juicy details of these misbehaving celebs.
Ben McKenzie
Lots of drama reportedly plagued the young cast of the OC throughout the years, and believe it or not, some of it was tied back to actor Ben McKenzie, who later went on to star in Southland and Gotham. His costar Cam Gigandet told Elle in 2014 that Ben was "mean" to him, and Ben himself has said that he was a "jerk" at the time. (Overnight fame can definitely go to some people's heads.)
Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson
Although they've since made up, Dwayne Johnson and Tyrese Gibson have shared plenty of drama between them, with Tyrese often taking public jabs at The Rock. Some believe it all started on the set of Fast & Furious 6 during the improvised scene above. Dwayne made a joke about Tyrese's forehead that did not go over well.
Kim Cattrall
Sex and the City actress Kim Cattrall brought drama to the set of the HBO comedy repeatedly, but it was apparently for good reason: It was about the money. She felt that she wasn't being paid commensurately to the success of the show and later the movie, which stirred up tensions on and off set. She will not be appearing in the upcoming reboot of the series — so clearly, she's still not over it more than 15 years later.
Ryan Gosling
Ryan Gosling was apparently not a big fan of working with Rachel McAdams when they first started filming their hit movie The Notebook. According to director Nick Cassavetes, Ryan at one point asked for Rachel to be removed from the set.
"Ryan came to me, and there's 150 people standing in this big scene, and he says, 'Nick, come here.' And he's doing a scene with Rachel and he says, 'Would you take her out of here and bring in another actress to read off camera with me?' I said, 'What?' He says, 'I can't. I can't do it with her. I'm just not getting anything from this,'" Nick revealed in an interview.
Funnily enough, Ryan and Rachel went on to date for two years.
Shannen Doherty
Actress Shannen Doherty has a bit of a reputation, and it all started when she starred in the 1990s teen drama Beverly Hills, 90210. Although they seem to be friends now, according to costar Tori Spelling, Shannen initiated multiple altercations with Jennie Garth, at one point even getting physical.
Shannen Doherty — Again
When Shannen made her return to primetime TV with 1998's Charmed (after getting booted from 90210), things went swimmingly for a while. But by season three, rumors of tensions fueled by her attitude toward castmate Alyssa Milano had surfaced. The two reportedly went from being good friends to being on-set enemies. Shannen was once again let go from a hit series and later said, "There was too much drama on the set and not enough passion for the work."
Leonardo DiCaprio
Already becoming a respected actor when it was time to film 1995's Basketball Diaries, Leonardo DiCaprio was apparently not so keen on working with Mark Wahlberg, who at the time was mostly known as a rapper and an underwear model. "Leonardo was like, 'Over my dead [expletive] body. Marky Mark's not going to be in this [expletive] movie,'" Mark told the Hollywood Reporter about the on-set drama.
Katherine Heigl
Actress Katherine Heigl's departure from the long-running series Grey's Anatomy was not a pleasant one. She allegedly was not getting along well on set and was openly unhappy with the material she was being given, eventually making a major statement by turning down a 2008 Emmy nomination for her role as Izzie Stevens. She ultimately exited the show in 2010, never again to return to Shondaland.
Nicki Minaj
Back in 2012, when both rapper Nicki Minaj and songstress Mariah Carey served as judges on American Idol, Nicki couldn't help stirring up drama with Mariah. The rumors started before the season even premiered and then it all played out on TV screens when viewers watched as Nicki threw jabs at Mariah, culminating in an expletive-filled rant.
Chevy Chase
It was a huge disappointment when it came to light that funnyman Chevy Chase repeatedly made racist remarks to the uber-talented Donald Glover while the two were working together on the TV series Community. "Chevy was the first to realize how immensely gifted Donald was, and the way he expressed his jealousy was to try to throw Donald off," show creator Dan Harmon said, noting that it was difficult but Donald took it in stride.
Mischa Barton
There have been multiple reports of actress Mischa Barton's poor attitude while starring on the OC, including claims that she was difficult to work with and that she didn't get along with costar Rachel Bilson. She eventually opted to have her character killed off and then did the show the ultimate disservice by revealing the on-screen death before the episode even aired.
Alex Pettyfer
According to the actor himself, Magic Mike's Alex Pettyfer inadvertently caused some on-set drama with Channing Tatum, because he was so intimidated by the other actors in the film. "I actually did my work and I sat in the corner and listened to music because I had been told that anything I do is wrong by my reps," he said on Brett Easton Ellis' B.E.E. podcast.
"I was very insecure as a human being and that also gave me a bad rep because they said, 'Oh, Alex thinks he's [expletive] better than everyone else because he doesn't speak to anyone,' and that's not true," he said. "I was just genuinely nervous and scared to be myself. I was in character."
Isaiah Washington
Or maybe it was Patrick Dempsey. It's unclear who to place the blame on, but the two got into it on the set of Grey's Anatomy. Isaiah Washington claims Patrick showed up late one day and then refused to work until Ellen Pompeo arrived, prompting Isaiah to take a verbal jab at him. Patrick reportedly responded aggressively. Isaiah eventually left the show and alleged that he was treated poorly.
Heidi Montag
Drama is the name of the game when it comes to reality shows, but Heidi Montag was especially good at stirring it up when she starred on the MTV series The Hills. As was documented on the show, Heidi and her boyfriend at the time, Spencer Pratt, were allegedly responsible for rumors that Lauren Conrad made a sex tape. Lauren was so convinced that Heidi started the rumors that she dropped her as a friend, and they still don't speak to this day.
Jamie Foxx
Though it's hard to imagine it now, beloved and accomplished actor Jamie Foxx once slapped castmate LL Cool J on set. While the two were filming Any Given Sunday with Al Pacino, things got heated: Jamie slapped LL, and LL retaliated with a whopping punch, nearly knocking Jamie out. Cast and crew attempted in vain to intervene, and Jamie ended up calling the police. There's no bad blood between the two now, though.
Bette Davis
Legendary actresses Bette Davis and Joan Crawford were infamous Hollywood rivals, but despite their ongoing feud, they signed on to work together in the 1962 film Whatever Happened to Baby Jane? Production was not without incident, though: At one point, Bette intentionally hit Joan so hard during a fight scene that she needed stitches.
Johnny Depp
Both Johnny Depp's personal and professional lives have been dogged by drama. One on-set incident in 2017 resulted in a lawsuit and a film's US release being canceled. While working on the movie City of Lies, based on the investigation into the murder of rapper Notorious B.I.G., Johnny allegedly assaulted a location manager when he told Johnny they had to stop filming because they had gone over their location permit's allotted time.
Christian Bale
Christian Bale is an intense guy, especially when he's in character. In 2009, a recording of him berating Terminator: Salvation director Shane Hurlbut leaked and quickly went viral. The recording goes on for an entire four minutes, with Christian eventually threatening to quit the film, all because Shane walked into his line of sight on set.
