Yahoo Lifestyle 39 Behind-The-Scenes Hollywood Secrets From People Who Work With Celebs That Range From Scandalous To Actually Kind Of Wholesome
A while back, Reddit user Notalabel_4566 asked, "People who have worked with celebrities, what don't we know about them?" People had a lot to say, and their responses were super interesting. Here's the down-low on what celebs are really like.
NOTE: We obviously can't confirm these stories or endorse these opinions!
1."I've known a bunch of minor B-C list celebs. Musicians, Broadway, movies, all of it. One of my very best friends is a C-list working actor. 15-20 years ago, in my younger years, we'd go to parties around Hollywood and run into other C-listers. One of the things that sticks out to me, as a theatre kid myself, is that they are ALL the obnoxious, annoying theatre kids who sang Sondheim in the hallways and had a lot of feelings. They all had that energy. The parties would sometimes get really weird. And deep down, these are not the cool kids. I always remember that when people hold celebs up to these super high standards and take political and life advice from them. They're just people. They're the theatre kid from school, and everyone needs to calm down."
2."I make movies and TV for a living. There are definitely differences between actors and 'movie stars.' Most actors are just normal, everyday humans that you wouldn't pick out of a crowd. They're usually quirky as hell, but just people. Movie stars tend to have a very specific charisma and a way about them that sets them apart. For example, my boss (who is a producer and has worked with tons of actors at all levels) went to George Clooney's for a meeting and said that it was hard not to feel starstruck because he made you feel like you had his full attention and you were the only one that mattered when he was speaking to you."
3."You'd be surprised at the bad hygiene and bad teeth on a lot of celebs, especially dudes. Also, there are lots of filthy mansions with pets using the floor as a pee pad. A lot of cars, clothes, and houses are borrowed from actual rich people who want proximity to celebrities. I can't emphasize enough how filthy some of these people are — like they've had no home training."
4.Relatedly..." Been in LA a long time, known or aquatinted with lots of A-D list peeps, and many of those houses look like a college student's first apartment inside. Like, it's shocking. Also, no concept of money; they'll hand you a hundred-dollar bill for your valet. Having said that, most are really nice golden retriever types who are just blissfully ignorant of the real world. I've only met one or two genuine assholes."
5."The Cyrus family is a lot more normal than people think. I won't go into detail about how I know (out of respect for the family member, a sibling of Miley), but the media really seemed to completely fuck Miley over the years. They are about as down-to-earth and normal as you could get. They each have their quirks, but they aren't the unstable, chaotic family some think they are. They never have been."
"I was just honestly shocked at how normal they are outside of the spotlight. Like being in their house hanging out, and I'm looking around like…' Is that a ____ magnet on your refrigerator???'
They are also very family-oriented. People can say what they want about Billy Ray/Miley/whoever else has been in the media recently, but I promise, they are just super genuine people and do the most normal things behind closed doors.
Also, I've been out to eat with one of the siblings several times, and they are super well-mannered and polite. Like so much that I thought, 'Your parents really raised you right.'"
6."Just because they worked with other celebs doesn't necessarily mean they were friends with those people. I have one friend who is very famous in his niche section of media. I've been asked, 'What does he say about ____/What does he say ____ is really like' (meaning other famous people he's worked with) for many years. I have to tell people that he doesn't actually talk about those people...at all. He's mentioned a couple of his coworkers who he's close to, but most of them never come up in conversation, and he's not friends with all of them. No one really expects us normies to be besties with people we worked with years ago, but we often assume celebs are BFFs with their costars, and often they just aren't. There may be no feud or bad blood, but they just aren't friends."
7."I used to be neighbors with a lot of actresses, singers, etc. ... Despite their kids never having to work a day in their lives, a lot of them were very anxious parents. Their kids had to take a million special classes, were on weight and exercise regimes in elementary school, and had continuous psychiatric help throughout their lives from toddlerhood, etc. There were a lot of micromanaged kids, but the parents didn't seem mean — just very, very worried. I would've thought they'd have cared less since the kids are automatically semi-famous and obviously rich."
"No matter how rich, most of them still have things they refuse their kids. One Uber-famous singer's son kept stealing my Lego men! His mother stopped buying them for him since he kept losing them. I will never stop being bitter."
8."I worked for one very long day on Batman Vs Superman. In between takes, my friend and I had a few minutes to talk with Zach Snyder, thanking him for the invite to come be in the film (he'd called into the sports radio station he was listening to locally while in town and offered extra roles to people at the station…I'm just the lucky friend of one). It wasn't like we knew the guy or anything, but for a few minutes, we were just chopping it up with another guy about sports…right after walking by the goddamned Batcave set! In hindsight, we both felt like maybe it wasn't so acceptable for a couple of extras to grab the director of a big-budget movie during a night shoot and just attempt to chit-chat with the guy, but he never made us feel like we were out of line or bugging him. He seemed genuinely happy we'd taken him up on the offer…and I even made it in the movie for like 1.2 seconds."
9."People really need to stop pretending like celebrities are the personas they portray on red carpets, in interviews, etc. Most of the actors I've worked with are noticeably different from how they behave in the public sphere, and it's not necessarily a bad thing. It's normal to not want to share every part of yourself with the public. A lot of them are a lot more weird, introverted, etc. than you would think based on their public appearances. I just hate when people see videos of their favorite celeb and think they know them cause they were kooky on an episode of Hot Ones. The truth is they're still usually playing a version of themselves."
10.For example..."Owen Wilson is one of the most introverted people I've ever met. He turns it ON for the camera and then goes to his chair and totally keeps to himself. He's not rude by any stretch, but just very, very introverted and quiet."
11."A ton of athletes smoked weed before it was taken off the banned substances list in most leagues (and a good amount do harder shit as well). The guys who got caught were just dumb about it."
"I dated a professional hockey player for a little bit, and I remember he was excited to be on the IR list because it meant he could smoke weed and not have to worry about being tested. He also definitely abused pain pills they were able to get from the team doctors."
12."I bartended in NYC for years, mostly in pretty humble, unpretentious bars (nothing I'd really classify as a dive). One bar in the East Village would get celebrity customers pretty often, probably because of its location and because it is a dark little place that would allow someone to go under the radar. The most striking thing to me was how goddamn awkward they tended to be. Like, they seemed so unsure of how to speak normally to a non-famous person. Often, I wouldn't even recognize them as celebrities until I interacted with them. They'd behave so awkwardly that I'd carefully look at the name on their card to find out who they were, and only then would the penny drop (or after some discreet googling). I can understand why they're like this, by the way. It's just funny how un-smooth many of these people act when they have such a cool public persona."
13."I've known Jack Antonoff since before his big come-up, and he is genuinely one of the nicest, kindest, most hard-working people in the industry. He is truly a really, really good guy who deserves all of his success. I don't love every person he's worked with, and I wish he would disconnect from some of the...not as good people, but he really is the best."
14."They are all frozen at the age they became famous. Christina Aguilera was always a 13-year-old girl. Adam Levine is a horny 18-year-old guy. Robin Williams was a hilarious and kind 25-year-old. etc…I think after you are famous, the systems around you stop saying 'no,' and stop supporting/disciplining you like they probably should. So, continuing to mature on the same path as normal people becomes harder. I never had a 'bad' experience with the celebs I worked with, and many I would say were friends, but my interactions were never totally in line with the 'regular' folks I really spent my quality time with."
15."I worked at a large celebrity PR agency in New York City. I feel like it could go either way — you have someone who is really great and grounded, or you have someone who is a complete nightmare and disaster. I had 12 celebrity clients I had to juggle. Some of these clients ranged from an A-list Stranger Things actor to a talk show host, and I learned a lot about the industry and how these people literally wear masks and know exactly how to display themselves on camera so that people will eat it up. ... It's wild to really see it happen in real-time. One celebrity, in particular, was a literal nightmare and one of the most insufferable women I have ever met. People in the United States LOVE her; she's basically America's sweetheart. She would not make eye contact with me, would not speak to me, and spoke to her assistant in front of me directly about what she wanted to communicate with me while I was RIGHT IN THE ROOM."
"One of my old clients has a heroin problem, and if anyone from his fanbase found out, he would be DONE FOR. Just anything involved with a celebrity eventually turns sour, messy, unhealthy, toxic, and FAKE. I left the job within a couple of months because the industry is dark and really produces many nasty people. Bad vibes all around — even the nice interactions with celebrities didn't even prove to be a silver lining. Don't work with celebrities."
16."One of my husband's best friends worked for Tommy Lee Jones on his cattle/polo ranch near San Saba. As I understand it, Jones is known in Hollywood for being a bit of a jerk. But my husband's friend said that TLJ is very reserved and private and honestly pretty socially awkward. He doesn't like to talk about himself at all but will happily discuss cattle breeds or what kind of polo saddle is best. His opinion is TLJ's awkwardness is what's given him his reputation."
17."The B/C listers are the worst to work with."
"B/C and below musicians, ESPECIALLY, are some of the worst people I've come across."
"This is so true. I used to pretty regularly appear on the talk show circuit because of my job, and I spent a lot of time in green rooms. The B/C celebs always brought a whole army of people with them — usually family and friends — while the A-listers maybe had just one assistant or something. And the B/C celebs themselves could be pretty chill, but their 'entourages' were usually, like, completely lacking in anything resembling chill, social skills, or even just basic manners.
During one thirty-minute live-to-tape show I did, the green room had a lot of little bottles of wine/beers/etc. meant for the talent to sip on prior to the show (relaxed talent makes for better TV is the thinking there), and one minor celeb's family members (I will NOT name the celeb; it wasn't their fault, it happened while we were on stage) were like, stuffing their bags with the bottles and all the snacks, and security almost threw them out before a PA ran up to the celeb during commercial break and dragged them over to defuse the situation. It was so ridiculous."
18.Specifically..."As someone who lives in Vancouver, I can confirm there is almost nobody worse than a C (and maybe temporarily B, if they're lucky) list CW actor. A few of them are truly great people who treat the crew and locals great. But the majority of them are awful — I'm saying this from my and my family's experiences working on set for the duration of the shows. In contrast, most of the A-listers I've met or my family has worked with have been incredible, genuine, and down to earth. They treated cast, crew, and locals miles better than C listers."
19.In contrast..."Not me but a friend of mine worked on the set of Queen Charlotte (the Bridgerton series on Netflix). Had nothing but great things to say about the cast. She especially loved India (the lead actress). India was only about 20, I think, while filming, but she said she was so professional, kind, hardworking, and just an overall joy. My friend is in her late 20s. She said what she found super funny was that several of the male extras had the biggest crush on India, and it was like she was oblivious to it. She was probably just so focused on her work, and it was a lot of pressure leading a multimillion-dollar production, but I just found that funny. Stars…they can be clueless just like us."
20."A lot of them are so insecure. There's one actor I worked with who is ADORED throughout their very fervent fandom. I met them at a season launch party, and while the party was ongoing, this one actor was schmoozing and gregarious and putting on the charisma. As soon as the party ended, he dropped the big smile and kept voicing complaint after complaint to his entourage. He kept trying to smell his own breath and was deeply concerned the garlic in the Caesar salad he had eaten was giving him bad breath, so he started breathing in the faces of all the folks in his entourage and asking everyone if his breath smelled okay."
"Meanwhile, everyone in his entourage was on the phones looking for the next spot to hit up because the actor kept complaining that the party sucked and he didn't have any fun, and that he wanted to actually do something worthwhile with his night. His whole attitude struck me as whiny, self-conscious, and negative, and from the way he was interacting with his crew of yes men and women, it was clear he thirsted for and fed off their validation. It just felt desperate and so off-putting, in my opinion. I was invited to come along to the next location with them to hit up another party, but I declined because the vibes were so off. My takeaway was, 'None of y'all are going to have fun no matter where you go because your attitudes are wack.'
When I've talked to people in the show's fandom, I see them get goo-goo-eyed talking about the ~dreamy~ cast and how charismatic and adorable they are when they've met them at cons. I just shrug and say nothing while remembering Mr. Charisma breathing his garlic breath in everyone's face and asking if it smelled okay."
21."I went to college with a few nepo babies. Behavior ranged from typical wealthy apathy/cluelessness to actively trying to buy off people to keep their secrets. The one with the most famous parent was the most low-key and very kind."
"I have known nepo babies my whole life despite not growing up around the industry. The nepos with truly accomplished parents, whether that means movie stars or kids of famous elected officials, are usually more normal regarding manners, self awareness, and not that entitled. The ones with semi-famous parents are nightmares."
22."Will.i.am (black-eyed peas) is an extremely genuine person. He's wholesome, thoughtful, caring, and full of empathy. He doesn't have a mind for business, really; the people advising him lead him down the wrong path ethically. Personality: he is like a step below Bob Ross, Keanu, Steve Irwin, etc; not quite as wholesome, but he's up there."
23."A lot of the men are very horny. I used to talk to this male actor from a Hulu show, and he was always snapping me during his sex parties. But anyways, yeah, he was always horny. They just have to hide it better. He first started talking to me after I messaged him on Instagram and told him I was a fan. He DMed me off a throwaway Instagram and added me on a throwaway snap."
24."Kiss and intimate scenes (I know you want to know): it is true that it's not a romantic setting, and while some actors will switch on/off like that, others will joke around in a flirtatious way with their partner during the whole shoot, and that's very weird knowing they have a wife/husband at home."
25."My parents used to work for one of the companies that supply Super Bowl memorabilia, and they got to meet Gisele Bundchen this way. She brought her kids to the booth where they were working before the game started so they could pick something out. The company's rep tried to give them everything, but she insisted on paying. My dad said she was very sweet and soft-spoken until a reporter caught up to her and started grilling her about Tom Brady. Her security was trying to get him to leave without putting his hands on him, and he was being rude. She flipped a switch and yelled at him that Brady was just one person on an entire team, that he worked very hard, and they needed to stop expecting him to do everything. As soon as the security team hauled the reporter off, she went back to sweet and kind person. My dad said it was like Jekyll and Hyde."
26."Not me, but a close friend of mine was a nanny for a celebrity — she told me that the celebrity woman was very lonely and didn't feel she could trust anyone. Once she trusted the nanny enough, she actually hired another nanny to take care of her kids and kept my friend as a 'nanny' but really just to keep her around as a friend. It was very sad."
27."I worked for the first time with a major A-List talent many years ago when I was first starting out. They (trying to remain gender neutral so as not to give too much away) have quite the reputation for being phenomenally talented but also rude, abrasive, and arrogant."
"Going in, I knew that I had to tread carefully around them because of their reputation, but I was a little surprised by how not rude they were. ... Because they were rather friendly with me from the get-go, I didn't have to walk around on eggshells while interacting with them and could be myself. Also, I'm generally not the kind of person who ever asks for pictures, autographs, etc., so that helped.
A couple weeks in, we had a quiet moment together, and they broke down in front of me. At first, I thought to myself, 'Oh shit, I'm fucked,' but those were tears of joy. I was the first person in a long time to have treated them like a normal person and not as some diva or someone who should be placed on a pedestal.
They opened up about the fact that they enjoyed acting as an art form but hated much of the pageantry and attention they got as a celebrity and much of their abrasive personality came from years of being exploited by people who they assumed to be friends and feeling like a 'zoo animal' whenever they were out and about with people treating them like they were the latest attraction to see and forgetting that there was an actual person underneath.
Are there some genuinely horrible people in Hollywood entertainment, etc? Absolutely. But it also taught me not to always judge a book by its cover, and a lot of times when famous people come across as abrasive, it's a bit of a defense mechanism."
28."I was close friends with one of Ewan Mcgregor's kids in high school, and Ewan is the loveliest man ever. So sweet, down-to-earth, and engaging. I remember being intimidated the first time I went to her house, but both of her parents couldn't have been any nicer!!!"
29."Most of them are super small (short, thin, large heads), extremely insecure, and weirdly socially inept. It's like being 'on' all the time has made them incapable of acting like regular, relaxed people. I can’t really explain it. Other observations..."
1.) Most celebrities are cheap as fuck. They get things comped so often that they eventually just expect it. Clothes, meals, hotel rooms…you name it, they probably aren't actually paying for it. And when they do, they tip poorly or not at all.
2.) They almost never eat at parties and events. My theory is that they are too insecure around each other to ever relax enough to have a full meal. If they do eat, they are literally picking at their food
3.) Most are…dumb. I don't know how else to say it. You'd think people who spend so much time traveling the world and experiencing the finer things in life would, you know, LEARN along the way, but they don't. I've known several who couldn't do basic math. And others who have never read anything that wasn't a script or casting call."
30."You know how you meet a really, really dumb person, and they somehow end up incredibly smart about one specific thing? That's how I would describe a lot of actors. Since they don't have in-depth education but were educated on sets or by part-time tutors, they just come off as…kind of dumb. This is a huge generalization, but I never really got the feeling that a lot of them were 'intellectuals,' if you know what I mean. That being said, I met a few actors who were genuinely charismatic and appreciative of BG and the crew. I remember Sacha Baron Cohen was that kind of guy. He was genuinely very nice and pleasant."
31."I dated someone who was barely C-list. He had been a TV personality since he was 15. He had zero accountability; all of his 'friends' were financial benefactors or ultra-wealthy. It was hard to be around someone who didn't understand that buying me expensive gifts didn't gloss over our issues. Truthfully, I feel bad for him. Even as little known as he was, we couldn't go anywhere without being interrupted. Within weeks of our breakup, a few of his best friends were shooting their shot."
32."I've worked in Nashville, primarily in the music industry, since I was 18. I've done everything from being a runner who just gets coffee and does dry cleaning for the talent to being a hired gun who plays on a record (a SMALL record). But I have the benefit of having worked with big names in country and rock music. I can only speak for who I've worked with, so here's the skinny on all of 'em…Jack White is taller in person than you would think and is very down to earth. Loved spending time with him. Same with Jelly Roll. Looks can be deceiving, but he was a surprisingly intelligent fella who even invited me to golf with him. ... Probably the biggest name I ever worked for was Garth Brooks."
"I swear to God…he is the weirdest man I've ever met. While he was kind and hospitable…it seemed like everything he did was an act. Like he had imposter syndrome but didn't want anyone to know."
33."These people I'm going to talk about are all pretty much dead, but what the hell? In college and right after, I worked at a famous sporting event that would attract a bunch of celebrities. James Garner was a total charmer and had zero airs about him. He joked around a lot but also asked you questions. I think he was not really wealthy because any time people said they liked something, he'd joke that he should have asked for more money."
Florence Henderson was an absolute pro — really easygoing and friendly. I remember someone bonked her on the head with a boom mic or something similar, and she didn't get mad; she just rolled her eyes and smiled. She was just a delightful person.
Regis Philbin was high-strung and rude. He complained a lot about things like the cue cards and the weather. One time, I spent the morning before the event driving him and George Steinbrenner around in a golf cart on the grounds. People went nuts for Steinbrenner, yelling 'mean' things, and he just laughed and played along. He was really polite with the 'please' and 'thank yous' and took tons of pics with fans. He and Regis got along, but I think Regis was jealous of all the attention Steinbrenner got.
I drove Paul Newman in a golf cart to a shoot on the grounds, and he was really quiet and kind of intimidating; he was not rude, but there was zero small talk. He never cracked a smile, but he wasn't being a jerk — just very self-contained. It was just me and the camera guy in the room with him, and he changed around all the lights and the camera shot before he did his video tribute, which was fine; we didn't make a peep. He complained a little about the teleprompter, but I think it was because he didn't want to wear his glasses for the video. He was in his seventies and small and gray-haired but still handsome with those piercing eyes.
David Letterman had a resting cranky face and was not interested in small talk but was on time and professional. He cracked a couple of jokes at his own expense when he fudged up a line. He was not rude or demanding; he just did his shit and jetted.
Dick Clark was an absolutely professional and really friendly dude. His wife traveled with him, and you could tell he adored her. At one point he asked me about my future plans and gave me the advice to 'always be on time' to do something I loved."
34."I've met a fair number of musicians, but probably the nicest was Weird Al. My daughter was shy but really wanted his autograph, and he was so kind! I understood why the line (after a show) was so slow. He took time with each person, made a little personal connection, and left them feeling seen and heard. It was honestly amazing."
35."Many of them have really different natural voices from what you hear on camera. Reeeeaaally different."
36."They REALLY look like that. From Victoria Secret supermodels, to A-list actors, to Grammy-winning musicians — they truly look that good. Yeah, I definitely had to catch my breath once or twice."
37.Specifically..."Lee Pace is fucking beautiful in real life. Like jaw dropping, head turning, drop dead gorgeous. Lee Pace, if you're reading this, I apologize for gasping loudly and rudely staring at you that spring a couple of years ago. I'm genuinely sorry, but I couldn't help it because you stood out (it doesn't help you're so tall, too). 😭"
38."I work in TV, and I would just say, in general, that there is usually not any relationship between the character a person plays and how they actually are in real life. Sure, sometimes you get a writer-actor who is writing themselves, or maybe a really famous person who has a lot of control over the script, but that's not common. In general, they are their own distinct personalities who get a script written by a completely different set of humans. I know it's easy to feel like you know them or understand their relationship with their castmates, but you just don't. They are strangers you do not know."
39.And finally..."Ye is exactly what you'd expect."
Do you work with celebs? What behind-the-scenes secrets can you share — about specific celebs or about the industry as a whole? Let us know in the comments below or via this anonymous form!
Submissions have been edited for length/clarity.
