There is no doubt 2022 has been an eventful year for Hollywood. From the salacious trial of the year, a giant slap to the face, to the fall of a DC rising star, we are closing the year with plenty of juice to relive. Here are the biggest Hollywood gossips, scandals, and epic fails.
The Slapgate
What was supposed to be a celebration of the Academy Awards returning to its former glory with proper award presentation turned into a fiasco dubbed the Slapgate. On March 27, viewers worldwide watched as Will Smith marched up the stage to slap presenter Chris Rock and muttered obscenities as he returned to his seat. Rock had made a joke about Smith’s wife, Jada, prompting the once Fresh Prince of Bel-Air to see blinding rage. At first, the audience thought it was a planned gag until it became clear it wasn’t. And to make things worse, Smith was allowed to return to his seat and, later, got back on stage to receive his Best Actor Award for King Richard. Eventually, Smith was “sentenced” by the Academy to a 10-year ban from the awards.
For more than a month, fans worldwide were riveted by the courtroom drama between two camps- team Johnny Depp and team Amber Heard. Depp had filed a defamation complaint against Heard amounting to $50 million in damages. Sordid details were shared, celebrity witnesses were called, and the actors were put on stands to defend themselves. The trial launched thousands of memes and, more importantly, placed Depp back on Hollywood’s radar. The megastar endeared with his low-key humour, and sincere delivery. His side of the story showed that celebrities, too, are vulnerable like the rest of us. The jury ruled in Depp’s favour, and we all heave a sigh of relief.
The Bizarre Case of Ezra Miller
What on earth happened to Ezra Miller? From one of Tinseltown’s most promising stars, with mega franchises like Fantastic Beasts and Justice League under their belt, they became Hollywood’s biggest liability instead. News of Miller’s erratic behaviour surfaced in 2020, when they reportedly strangled two people in Reykjavik, Iceland. Things escalated this year, when the father of Indigenous activist Tokata Iron Eyes accused Miller of grooming Tokata from the age of 12 and manipulating her with drugs. Shortly after that, Miller and the teen went missing and were later found hiding in Miller’s ranch. Following that, news spread that Miller was housing a 25-year-old mother and her three children, in a place where weapons and drugs were laid freely. Miller found themselves in trouble gain. As the actor’s woes pile up, we can only speculate what will happen to his movie-The Flash, slated to release in 2023.
Staggering Celebrity Carbon Emissions
We know the life of the rich and famous includes jet-setting around the world, and what better way to do that than travelling in your own private jet? Many celebrities own planes and have been racking up a carbon footprint hundreds of times more than mere mortals like us. A UK-based marketing agency, The Yard, released a surprising report in September on just how shocking the number of carbon emissions were released by famous celebrities. On the top of the list is Taylor Swift, with 8,293.54 tons of carbon dioxide emissions, and other A-listers on the list include Steven Spielberg (4,465 tons CO2), Mark Wahlberg (3772 tons of CO2) and Oprah Winfrey (3493 tons of CO2). Swift’s team came out to defend the popstar, citing that the megastar often leases her plane to others, and these emissions may not all be laid on her dainty shoulders.
The Conscious Re-Coupling of Bennifer
Who would have thought that we would see the original Bennifer together again? The couple first got engaged in 2002, and the paparazzi surrounding their relationship went so crazy that it terrified them. They eventually broke up a year later but stayed friends. In April 2021, the couple rekindled their relationship. They have broken up with their respective partners, and the timing seemed right. They went Instagram official in July, and things sped up after that. In April this year, they announced their engagement and wham! In July, the two got married. Two decades older but looking just as good, the couple seemed happier than before, and the world couldn’t be happier for them.
The Messy Case of Don’t Worry, Darling
It's a movie that could not catch a break. It was initially a celebrated movie. After all, it has Olivia Wilde at the director's helm. Wilde was lauded for her directorial debut- Book Smart, so we rejoiced when news of her sophomore effort came along. Girl Power! But since then, the movie's gossip overshadowed the film itself. First, the male lead, Shia LaBeouf, dropped out under mysterious circumstances. Wilde later claimed that she fired Labeouf, and he was quickly replaced with popstar turned actor Harry Styles. Soon after, news of Wilde cosying up to the lead actor surfaced, and this eventually led to her separating from her fiancé Jason Sudeikis. While Wilde was promoting the movie at CinemaCon, she was served mystery papers while on stage, which added to more drama. The papers turned out to be custody documents sent by her ex, Sudeikis. As publicity around the movie swells, Labeouf got tired of being "fired" and released a video sent by Wilde, which debunks her claim. He also told the director, "You and I both know the reasons for my exit. I quit your film because your actors and I couldn't find time to rehearse." Yikes.
And during a press event at Venice Film Festival, lead actress Florence Pugh reported skipped the whole shebang, inciting rumours that she had beef with the director. Reports of Wilde's unprofessionalism leading to Pugh's distaste swirled.
Then there was spitgate. A viral clip of Styles allegedly spitting on Chris Pine at the movie premiere at the Venice Film Festival had fans all shaken up. A rep for Pine quickly shot that absurdity down. Tragically, the off-screen drama of the movie overshadowed the brilliance of Florence Pugh, who is a force to be reckoned with in Don't Worry Darling.
