From Stardom to Scandal: 12 of Hollywood's Most Brutal Downfalls

Amanda Bynes was once a sought-after actress during several TV stints in the 1990s and 2000s, playing roles in All That, The Amanda Show and What I Like About You. She, however, stepped away from the public eye in 2010 after working in Easy A and announced her retirement from the industry.

In 2013, Bynes appeared in headlines again when she was placed under a conservatorship due to her string of legal troubles and controversial tweets. But the conservatorship ended in March 2022, a month after she filed a petition to end the protection of the court.

Years after being away from the spotlight, she revealed in a 2018 profile on Paper how she had struggled for years because of substance abuse. She was also plagued by her mental health issues.

"I started smoking marijuana when I was 16. Even though everyone thought I was the 'good girl,' I did smoke marijuana from that point on," she said, revealing she was four years sober at the time. "I didn't get addicted (then) and I wasn't abusing it. And I wasn't going out and partying or making a fool of myself … yet."

RadarOnline.com reported Bynes' secret plot to return to the industry, including writing a tell-all like Britney Spears.

Fans of The Ellen DeGeneres Show witnessed the downfall of the eponymous daytime talk program and its host, Ellen DeGeneres, which started during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic.

At the time, comedian Kevin T. Porter posted a viral tweet in which he encouraged people to share their experiences with DeGeneres, whom he referred to as "notoriously one of the meanest people alive." Nearly a month later, the show's crew members and ex-staffers continuously shared their stories, which led to DeGeneres' further fallout.

After the toxic workplace environment allegations, BuzzFeed confirmed that WarnerMedia launched an internal probe to look into the issue.

"For the record, the day-to-day responsibility of the Ellen show is completely on us," a statement from executive producers Ed Glavin, Mary Connelly and Andy Lassner read. "We take all of this very seriously and we realize, as many in the world are learning, that we need to do better, are committed to doing better, and we will do better."

DeGeneres later released a statement in response to the allegations. Meanwhile, WarnerMedia found "deficiencies" in how the show was managed and ran over the years.

The controversy eventually led to the show's ending and DeGeneres' downfall.

Film producer Harvey Weinstein's career ended after he was accused — and was later found guilty — of rape and sexual assault by Los Angeles and New York courts.

The New York Times initially published a story about sexual harassment allegations against Weinstein, unveiling the stories of his victims, including Rose McGowan and Ashley Judd.

Weinstein revealed he would take a leave of absence from The Weinstein Company, but it announced he was sacked by its board following the controversy.

More women came forward to share their experiences with Weinstein in the months thereafter. Cara Delevingne dropped the bomb and disclosed the convicted s-- offender made unwanted advances toward her.

BAFTA, the Producers Guild of America and more groups and associations cut ties with Weinstein, who pleaded not guilty in 2018. In 2020, the jury found him guilty of third-degree rape and first-degree of criminal sexual act, leading him to get a sentence of 23 years of imprisonment. The conviction was overturned in April due to procedural errors.

Weinstein also received a 16-year sentence for a 2022 conviction for rape in California.

Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling made everyone turn their backs on her for the comments she made about the transgender community.

In 2020, she retweeted an op-ed about "people who menstruate" and questioned the article for not using the word "women."

Although Rowling immediately faced backlash, she reiterated her comment in another post.

“If s-- isn’t real, there’s no same-s-- attraction. If s-- isn’t real, the lived reality of women globally is erased. I know and love trans people, but erasing the concept of s-- removes the ability of many to meaningfully discuss their lives. It isn’t hate to speak the truth,” she tweeted. “The idea that women like me, who’ve been empathetic to trans people for decades, feeling kinship because they’re vulnerable in the same way as women—i.e., to male violence—‘hate’ trans people because they think s-- is real and has lived consequences—is a nonsense."

Rowling said she respects every trans person but clarified her life "has been shaped by being female."

The incident happened again when she shared a post on her website and a tweet that read "TERF Wars" in June 2020.

The public — even the Harry Potter cast members — denounced and canceled the author afterward.

Speaking with The Atlantic, the movie franchise's lead star Daniel Radcliffe reacted to Rowling's stance.

“It makes me really sad, ultimately because I do look at the person that I met, the times that we met, and the books that she wrote, and the world that she created, and all of that is to me so deeply empathic," he told the magazine.

Katherine Heigl hit rock bottom when Hollywood canceled her after her controversial Vanity Fair interview during which she commented about the movie Knocked Up being "a little sexist."

Years after getting blacklisted, Heigl said she felt "justified" in how she felt about the project.

“I got on my soapbox and I had some things to say, and I felt really passionate about this stuff. I felt really strongly,” said the Grey's Anatomy alum. “I felt so strongly that I also got a megaphone out on my soapbox. There was no part of me that imagined a bad reaction.

Over the years, Kathy Griffin has found herself in a hot seat due to the controversies she got involved in: from her derogatory comment about Jesus to her tirades about Donald Trump.

Griffin was ultimately canceled and nearly derailed her whole career when she posted a gruesome photo of the ex-POTUS' head.

"The stuff that came to my house! The FBI would show up and go, 'Miss Griffin, there is a credible threat against you. We have a duty to warn you.' I mean, that was my life. I was enemy No 1. Thank God my fans stayed with me," she told Closer.

Kevin Spacey's accolades and hit projects did not help him save his name after the first sexual abuse allegation struck him in 2017.

Anthony Rapp dropped the bombshell revelation in his interview with BuzzFeed, accusing Spacey of making inappropriate advances on him when he was 14. The International Academy of Television Arts & Sciences revoked its award afterward, while Netflix also cut ties with him amid the growing number of sexual harassment and assault allegations, which occurred between 1976 and 2013.

A Nantucket accuser filed a civil lawsuit against Spacey, but it was later dropped and dismissed without prejudice.

Spacey also got cleared from the assault charges in the U.K. trial in 2023. In March, he confirmed his return to the industry.

R. Kelly raised eyebrows when he wed then-underage Aaliyah in 1994. More controversies surfaced afterward, including accusations of him having inappropriate relationships with minors.

The embattled singer was slapped with child pornography charges in 2002, though he was acquitted years later. However, he began dealing with similar accusations following the release of Surviving R. Kelly in 2019.

After several women accused him of sexual, physical and emotional abuse, a trial put R. Kelly behind bars on federal charges, which include racketeering and s-- trafficking.

He was convicted in 2022, but his team appealed the ruling. A Chicago court correctly sentenced him to 20 years in prison in April.

Over the years, Roseanne Barr's controversial conspiracy theories and inflammatory remarks have put her in the hot seat. Among her eyebrow-raising moments include spitting after singing the national anthem, posing as Adolf Hitler and tweeting about the Parkland shooting.

In 2018, Barr targeted Barack Obama’s former senior advisor, Valerie Jarrett, in a tweet. She lost her Roseanne revival afterward, but it still did not stop her from stirring more controversies in the years thereafter.

Shia LaBeouf's legal battles outshined his work in Hollywood. Aside from his multiple arrests, the allegations FKA Twigs threw at him led the public to cancel him.

“I hurt that woman,” LaBeouf said during his "Real Ones" podcast appearance. “And in the process of doing that, I hurt many other people, and many other people before that woman. I was a pleasure-seeking, selfish, self-centered, dishonest, inconsiderate, fearful human being.”

He went on, “I f----- up bad. Like crash and burn type shit. [I] hurt a lot of people, and I’m fully aware of that. And I’m going to owe for the rest of my life.”

Acclaimed filmmaker Woody Allen became the center of one of the most disturbing stories in Hollywood. Dylan Farrow alleged that he sexually assaulted her in the attic of Mia Farrow's Connecticut home in 1992.

Woody also made headlines when he married Soon-Yi Previn, Mia and André Previn's adopted daughter from South Korea, wed. Soon-Yi is 35 years younger than the filmmaker.

"I feel if you’re going to be canceled, this is the culture to be canceled by. I just find that all so silly. I don’t think about it. I don’t know what it means to be canceled. I know that over the years everything has been the same for me. I make my movies. What has changed is the presentation of the films," he shared when asked about his thoughts about the ordeal.

Allen continued, "You know, I work and it’s the same routine for me. I write the script, raise the money, make the film, shoot it, edit it, it comes out. The difference is not is not from cancel culture. The difference is the way they present the films. It’s that that’s the big change.