20 Heartbreaking Celebrity Stories You Never Knew”

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You may know their fame, but not their pain.  Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re taking a closer look at celebrities whose lives have been marked by heartbreaking tragedy behind the scenes.   Despite their success, these stars have faced unimaginable struggles — from loss and addiction to family trauma and personal battles that shaped who they are today.  Our countdown includes emotional stories from stars like:   Matthew Perry,   Lindsay Lohan,   Keanu Reeves,   Whitney Houston,   And many more.   These stories remind us that fame doesn’t shield anyone from pain.   Which celebrity backstory surprised you the most?  Let us know in the comments — and don’t forget to show some love for the strength it takes to keep going in the spotlight.

Transcript

00:00A photograph was also worth a fortune to an aggressive paparazzi.

00:04Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the most egregious instances

00:09where paparazzi crossed the line in their relentless quest to get the latest scoop on a celebrity.

00:14Sean was protective of his misses in those early days, famously feuding with the paparazzi and the media.

00:22Number 20, Niall Horan gets dragged to the floor.

00:25When it comes to the paparazzi, patience certainly isn't one of their watchwords.

00:30Back in November 2013, the boys of One Direction touched down in Los Angeles

00:34to promote their upcoming album, Midnight Memories.

00:41Upon exiting the terminal at LAX airport,

00:45they were overwhelmed by crowds of screaming fans and aggressive photographers.

00:49Amid all of the chaos, Niall Horan was apparently knocked to the ground

00:53by the rowdy paparazzi just outside the airport.

01:06After making it out of there in one piece,

01:08Horan took to social media to express his frustration,

01:12blaming the maniacal photographers for preventing him from interacting with fans.

01:17Number 19, Tori Spelling's Pretty Big Accident.

01:21No matter how famous they are, celebrities sometimes just want to engage in everyday activities

01:26without having to deal with the paps.

01:28But things hardly ever pan out that way.

01:31How you doing, Tori and Dean?

01:33Everything good?

01:34Good.

01:35Take Tori Spelling, for example.

01:37In 2011, the actress, who was pregnant at the time,

01:40was chased down by paparazzi while dropping her kids off at school.

01:44As she attempted to evade the relentless photographer,

01:46Spelling ended up crashing her car into a school wall.

01:50Shockingly, even that didn't dissuade the cameraman from taking more pictures of them.

01:55Fortunately, neither Spelling nor her kids were hurt,

01:58but it's alarming to consider just how awry the situation could have gone.

02:02Number 18, Keep Your Hands Off Jennifer Lawrence's Dog.

02:06Who knew Jennifer Lawrence could give John Wick a run for his money?

02:09We're pretty intensely passionate dog owners.

02:11Yeah, if you're not crazy, I don't know if we'll have anything to talk about.

02:14The Oscar-winning actress may have no problems being harassed by the cameras,

02:18but she draws a hard line when it comes to her beloved dog.

02:21While leaving LAX airport in 2017,

02:24Lawrence was ambushed by a TMZ reporter.

02:26After getting no response to his questions,

02:28the guy then reached down and tried to pet her dog.

02:31Needless to say, that was a huge mistake.

02:34Lawrence immediately scooped up the pooch

02:36and unleashed her wrath on the paparazzo

02:38before getting into her car.

02:40Can you touch my dog?

02:42Always remember, paps,

02:44touching Jennifer Lawrence's dog is a line you should never cross.

02:49Number 17, Zero Privacy for Prince William and Kate Middleton.

02:53During their 2012 vacation in Provence, France,

02:56Prince William and Kate Middleton

02:57found themselves unwittingly exposed to paparazzi.

03:00Flashing easy smiles in public

03:02that offered no hint of their private anguish.

03:05But make no mistake,

03:06the publication of the topless photos of Catherine

03:09has left the future king and queen fuming mad.

03:12While soaking up the sun on a terrace,

03:14Middleton took off her top,

03:16unaware of the long lens cameras snapping away from a distance.

03:20Subsequently, several topless photos of the Princess of Wales

03:23were published in the French magazine Closer,

03:25which left Middleton deeply saddened

03:27and outraged the royal family.

03:29We're in the celebrity press business

03:31and we know that these images are full of joy,

03:33not degrading,

03:34and concern a princess who's pretty

03:36and is making the whole world dream.

03:38The controversial images

03:40were further distributed in an Italian gossip magazine

03:43across a 26-page spread.

03:46As a result,

03:47the royal couple took legal action against Closer

03:49and won a settlement of roughly $120,000.

03:53The magazine was forced to pay the price,

03:55unable to argue that they were only experimenting with editing.

03:5916. Paparazzi Scales Fence

04:02For the Clooney Twins

04:04When a Hollywood power couple welcomes a baby,

04:06the media typically goes to great lengths

04:08to obtain the first photos of the child.

04:11George Clooney is in a rage.

04:13Clooney is lashing out at a French magazine

04:15for publishing photos of his infant twins.

04:17The photos appear on the cover of Voici.

04:20However, there should ideally be a line,

04:23or in this case, a fence,

04:24when dealing with the young ones.

04:26In 2017, George and Amal Clooney

04:29became parents to twins Ella and Alexander

04:31and later vacationed at their home in Lake Como, Italy.

04:35Eager to capture the first images of the kids,

04:37a paparazzo trespassed onto the private property,

04:40climbing over the fence and up a tree

04:42to take pictures of the family.

04:44The publication of these images

04:46in the French magazine Voici

04:48infuriated George Clooney,

04:50who vowed to take legal action against everyone involved.

04:53And now they got themselves a lawsuit,

04:55so we'll see how that turns out.

04:57Number 15, Olivia Colman,

04:59leaves London to avoid paparazzi.

05:02You know things have gotten out of hand

05:03when paparazzi essentially drive a celebrity

05:06to relocate to a different city.

05:08That was the case for Oscar-winning

05:10English actress Olivia Colman.

05:12Colman previously resided in London

05:14with her husband and three children,

05:16but grew increasingly frustrated

05:17with the relentless intrusion of paparazzi

05:20into their lives.

05:21Oh, we've moved out of London

05:22because I couldn't actually cope with it.

05:25And I had nothing compared to what they had.

05:28The actress recounted a particularly distressing incident

05:31where she and her family were chased by two cars.

05:34The terror she felt left her in tears,

05:37while the offending paps laughed at her.

05:39Fed up with the constant invasion of their privacy,

05:41Colman and her family were forced to leave London

05:43for her hometown of Norfolk,

05:46seeking a more peaceful environment.

05:48This is a group of people who feel nothing for anybody else.

05:52Number 14, Ron Galella's Tireless Pursuit

05:55of Jackie Kennedy Onassis.

05:57Known as the godfather of the US paparazzi culture,

06:01Ron Galella pioneered some of the stalking tactics

06:04used by paps around the world.

06:06He pioneered the candid shot,

06:07captured when stars were least expecting it.

06:10You have to hide to get the off-guard picture.

06:12By asking permission,

06:14you're going to get the pose picture,

06:15which I don't want.

06:16His methods drew the ire of many celebrities,

06:19including Marlon Brando,

06:20who once punched him,

06:22and Sean Penn,

06:23who spat on him.

06:24But Galella's main focus

06:25was former First Lady Jackie Kennedy Onassis,

06:29whom he relentlessly stalked and photographed.

06:32His fixation resulted in what is arguably

06:35his most famous picture,

06:37the iconic, wind-blown Jackie.

06:39I call it my Mona Lisa,

06:41because the smile was on her eyes and lips.

06:46The beginning of the smile.

06:48However, Onassis detested this constant intrusion

06:50and dragged Galella to court twice,

06:53ultimately obtaining a restraining order against him.

06:56Despite this,

06:57Galella continued to hound Onassis,

06:59until he was banned from photographing her

07:01and her children.

07:03Number 13, Daniela Siccarelli's steamy video

07:06makes it online.

07:08In 2006,

07:09Brazilian model and TV host,

07:11Daniela Siccarelli,

07:12got embroiled in a scandal

07:13when a paparazzo filmed her with her boyfriend

07:16on a beach in Spain.

07:17The video,

07:18which captured intimate moments between the couple,

07:21was then broadcast on the Spanish TV show,

07:23Dolce Vita.

07:24It quickly took off from there,

07:26making its way onto YouTube

07:27and several other websites.

07:29Siccarelli took the case to court,

07:31resulting in the temporary blocking

07:33of YouTube in Brazil for two days.

07:35This action sparked major outrage in the country,

07:38with thousands sending protest emails

07:40to MTV Brazil,

07:42where Siccarelli worked,

07:43demanding her dismissal.

07:45In 2015,

07:46following a lengthy legal process,

07:48Siccarelli and her boyfriend

07:49were awarded settlements of $64,000 each.

07:53Number 12,

07:54paparazzo allegedly breaks into Sean Penn's room.

07:58Once upon a time,

07:59Sean Penn and Madonna

08:00were Hollywood's hottest power couple.

08:02Soon after their wedding in 1985,

08:04the couple signed on to star in a Shanghai surprise

08:07and headed to Macau for filming.

08:09I think we've found our man.

08:12Mr. Burns,

08:12you can't be serious.

08:14However,

08:15the production faced constant intrusion

08:17from paparazzi,

08:18one of whom allegedly

08:19broke into Penn's hotel room

08:21to take pictures of the couple.

08:23Penn and his personal assistant

08:24confronted the intruder,

08:26identified as Lionel Borrallo,

08:28and reportedly threatened him

08:30by hanging him over the balcony

08:31of the ninth floor room.

08:32You go in knowing

08:33that that's another thing,

08:35but, you know,

08:36when you're sitting there

08:38on the toilet or something

08:39and there's a camera

08:41out the window in the bushes,

08:42that's a problem.

08:44The incident resulted in both Penn

08:45and his assistant being arrested

08:46and charged with assault.

08:48According to the actor, however,

08:49the pair later escaped from jail

08:51and fled to Hong Kong.

08:53Number 11,

08:54Ryan Reynolds'

08:54hit-and-run incident.

08:56In 2015,

08:57while shooting his movie

08:58Deadpool in Canada,

09:00actor Ryan Reynolds

09:00found an unlikely adversary

09:02in a Vancouver paparazzo

09:04named Richard Fadiq.

09:06Fadiq allegedly stalked

09:07and harassed Reynolds for weeks,

09:09leading to a physical confrontation

09:10in the parking lot

09:11of the actor's hotel.

09:13It's one of those things,

09:14you know,

09:14it's one of those things

09:16where you get to just sit back

09:16and let due process do its thing

09:18and you don't really have to get involved.

09:19During the incident,

09:20Fadiq apparently struck Reynolds

09:21with his car

09:22while attempting to flee the scene.

09:24Fortunately,

09:25the actor didn't sustain

09:25any significant injuries

09:27and continued with production

09:28of the movie.

09:29Fadiq, on the other hand,

09:30was arrested a few days later

09:32and brought up on charges

09:33of assault with a weapon,

09:34dangerous operation

09:35of a motor vehicle

09:36and criminal harassment.

09:38Fadiq has been released

09:39on eight conditions,

09:40including staying out of the city

09:41until Reynolds leaves town

09:43in mid-June.

09:45He's also been ordered

09:45to have no contact

09:46with Ryan Reynolds,

09:48his wife or their family.

09:49Number 10,

09:50reporter kisses Will Smith

09:52on the mouth.

09:52Ukrainian reporter

09:54slash prankster

09:55Vitaly Saduk

09:56seems to be looking for trouble.

09:58At the 2012 Men in Black 3

10:00premiere in Moscow,

10:01Saduk kissed the fresh prince.

10:03Oh my God,

10:04thank you, thank you, thank you.

10:05Thank you, thank you.

10:07Thank you, thank you.

10:08Smith didn't take kindly

10:10to the lip lock,

10:11giving Saduk a backhanded slap.

10:13Perhaps Saduk forgot

10:14that Will played Muhammad Ali.

10:16Smith said,

10:17he's lucky I didn't sucker punch him.

10:19Perhaps Will was also lucky.

10:20It's just awkward, Dave.

10:22I couldn't see where it would be.

10:30Saduk has since,

10:31in separate incidences,

10:32given Leonardo DiCaprio,

10:34Bradley Cooper,

10:35and Brad Pitt

10:35what could be best described

10:37as red carpet crotch hugs.

10:40And Kim Kardashian

10:41has had two run-ins with Saduk,

10:43one where he allegedly shoved her,

10:45and another where he tried

10:46to kiss her arse,

10:47literally.

10:49Number nine,

10:49Reese Witherspoon assaulted by paparazzo.

10:52Reese Witherspoon doesn't like the paparazzi.

10:55Check that,

10:56Reese Witherspoon really doesn't like the paparazzi.

10:59That's totally irresponsible.

11:01You're a public nuisance,

11:03you realize that?

11:04Maybe this contentiousness

11:05started at her daughter's sixth birthday party

11:08at Disney California Adventure Park in 2005.

11:11The happiest place on earth wasn't so happy

11:13when pap Todd K. Wallace

11:15allegedly became angry

11:17when Reese and her friends

11:18declined to be photographed.

11:20Wallace faced battery charges

11:22as he,

11:23according to prosecutors,

11:24struck a girl with his camera

11:26and shoved two park employees.

11:28It wasn't Wallace's first arrest.

11:31The previous year,

11:32he faced charges

11:32stemming from his pursuit of Misha Barton.

11:36Number eight,

11:37Chris Brown Chase Causes Crash.

11:39Chris Brown hasn't exactly been

11:41anyone's favorite celebrity

11:42since he pled guilty

11:43to assaulting Rihanna in 2009.

11:46Still,

11:46that doesn't mean we have to like

11:48what happened to him in 2013.

11:50Brown was driving to an LA area charity event

11:52when two paparazzi vehicles

11:54allegedly blocked his car,

11:56with the paps jumping out

11:57to shoot pictures.

11:58Trying to escape,

11:59Brown was reportedly cut off

12:00by two more vehicles,

12:02causing him to swerve into a wall.

12:04Brown walked away,

12:05but his Porsche was totaled.

12:07This may not have been

12:08Brown's only car wreck,

12:10but this incident appears

12:11to be another example

12:12of overzealous paparazzi.

12:15Number seven,

12:16Arnold Schwarzenegger

12:17and Maria Shriver boxed in.

12:19Before Kim and Kanye,

12:21there was Arnold and Maria.

12:23The marriage between

12:24the Terminator and Shriver,

12:26a journalist who was also

12:27John, Robert and Ted Kennedy's niece,

12:30could be called a marital mismatch

12:32made in media heaven.

12:33However,

12:34a jury determined that

12:35paparazzi Giles Harrison

12:37and Andrew O'Brien

12:38took it too far in May 1997.

12:41The two chased,

12:42then blocked from leaving,

12:44a car carrying the couple's

12:45three-year-old,

12:46a five-month pregnant Shriver,

12:48and Schwarzenegger,

12:50who himself had recently

12:51undergone open-heart surgery.

12:53The actions were considered

12:54so egregious

12:55that Harrison got 90 days

12:57and O'Brien 60 days in jail,

13:00both found guilty

13:01of false imprisonment.

13:03Number six,

13:03Nicole Kidman run over

13:05by paparazzo on a bike.

13:07In 2013,

13:08Kidman was entering

13:09Manhattan's Carlisle Hotel

13:10when paparazzo Carl Wu,

13:12blazing down the sidewalk

13:13on a bike with camera shuttering,

13:16lost control

13:16and careened into the Oscar winner.

13:18New York City

13:19is a dangerous place.

13:20You might get hit by a bicycle,

13:22even if you're a celebrity.

13:23While the actress

13:24was knocked to the ground,

13:25she was uninjured.

13:26Wu,

13:27considered one of the most

13:28disliked members

13:29of the paparazzi,

13:30did apologize

13:30and called it an accident.

13:33While Wu wasn't arrested,

13:34he was issued a fine

13:35for reckless driving.

13:36This particular paparazzo

13:38is one of the most detested

13:41by celebrities

13:41in New York City.

13:43He's known to be

13:44particularly aggressive,

13:45particularly pushy.

13:46With this

13:47and a 2010 run-in

13:48with Lady Gaga's bodyguard,

13:50let's just say

13:50we're not surprised

13:51that a

13:52F.U.

13:53Carl Wu

13:53Tumblr page existed.

13:56Number five,

13:56Lindsay Lohan's car

13:57intentionally crashed into.

14:00Off the screen,

14:00Lohan has acquired

14:01quite the

14:02party-friendly reputation.

14:04Part of that rep

14:05comes from the fact

14:05that she's not exactly

14:06kind to her cars.

14:08Things got a little

14:08too close for comfort

14:09between the Mean Girls star

14:11and an overzealous member

14:13of the paparazzi

14:14Tuesday

14:14when the photographer

14:15smashed into her car.

14:17However,

14:18a crash in 2005,

14:20the same year

14:20her film

14:21Herbie Fully Loaded

14:22hit theatres,

14:23can be blamed

14:23on an overzealous lensman.

14:25Paparazzo

14:26Galo Cesar Ramirez

14:28followed Lohan,

14:29but when she was

14:30about to report it

14:30to the police,

14:31Ramirez reportedly

14:32rammed her Mercedes.

14:34Ramirez was arrested

14:35for assault

14:35with a deadly weapon,

14:36but as it turns out,

14:37there was already

14:38an outstanding warrant

14:39for his arrest

14:40on a $5,000

14:41narcotics charge.

14:43Lohan wasn't injured,

14:45but the photographer

14:46was arrested

14:46for suspicion

14:47of assault

14:48with a deadly weapon.

14:49Number four,

14:50blocking Britney Spears'

14:51ambulance

14:52on way to the hospital.

14:53Britney has given

14:54the paparazzi

14:55a lot of stories

14:56over the years,

14:57like when she

14:57shaved her head,

14:58then days later

14:59went after a car

15:00with an umbrella,

15:01or when she almost

15:02dropped her baby

15:02in front of a zillion

15:03photographers.

15:05There's also

15:05the countless nights

15:06she stepped out

15:07on the town

15:07sans underwear.

15:09So did they really

15:10have to block

15:11her ambulance?

15:12In January 2008,

15:13Britney was taken

15:14to the hospital

15:15for a mental health

15:16evaluation.

15:17The throng of

15:18photogs ignored

15:19sirens and honking

15:20horns until

15:21they got their shots,

15:23a move as reckless

15:24as it was,

15:25potentially

15:26life-threatening.

15:28Number three,

15:28Jennifer Aniston

15:29photographed topless

15:30in her backyard.

15:32So no one told Jen

15:33life was gonna

15:34be this way.

15:35Back in 1999,

15:37at the height

15:37of Friends popularity,

15:39a paparazzo scaled

15:40an eight-foot wall

15:41at the Malibu home

15:42Aniston shared

15:43with then-husband

15:44Brad Pitt.

15:45Armed with a

15:46high-powered lens,

15:47the photog took

15:48several shots

15:49of a topless Aniston

15:50sunbathing in her

15:51backyard.

15:52The photos appeared

15:53in tabloids worldwide,

15:55but Jennifer didn't

15:55take the intrusion

15:56lying down.

15:57Instead, she sued

15:59the photo's

15:59distributor,

16:00Francois Navarre,

16:02for invasion of

16:02privacy, trespassing,

16:04and misappropriation

16:05of her likeness.

16:07The case was settled

16:07out of court

16:08with the Friends star

16:10receiving over

16:11half a million dollars

16:12in damages.

16:14Number two,

16:14Sean Penn and

16:15Madonna's wedding

16:16interrupted by

16:17helicopters.

16:18It was hard to find

16:19a higher-wattage

16:20celebrity couple in

16:21the 1980s than

16:22Sean Penn and

16:23Madonna.

16:24After their engagement,

16:26countless media outlets

16:27salivated at the

16:28possibility of getting

16:29the ultimate shot,

16:31Sean and Madge

16:31tying the knot.

16:33Guests reportedly

16:34had to call a secret

16:35number a half an hour

16:36before the wedding

16:37to find out where

16:38to show up.

16:39It took rooting

16:39through the couple's

16:40trash for the paparazzi

16:41to ultimately unearth

16:43the location of the

16:44top-secret nuptials,

16:45a cliffside home

16:46in Malibu.

16:47Held on Madonna's

16:4827th birthday,

16:50multiple helicopters

16:51descended on the

16:52wedding,

16:52wearing so loudly

16:54the couple's

16:54vows couldn't be heard.

16:56Swarms of copper

16:57swarled overhead,

16:58making it hard for

16:59the couple to hear

17:00their vows.

17:01Madonna responded

17:02to the disruptions

17:02with a one-finger salute

17:04and Penn wrote

17:05F off in the sand

17:06below.

17:07But really,

17:08can anyone blame them?

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17:26Number one,

17:27contributed to

17:28Princess Diana's death.

17:30Paris,

17:30August 31st,

17:321997.

17:33It's the moment

17:34that arguably turned

17:35the public and celebrities

17:36alike against the paparazzi.

17:38Peace and happiness

17:39proved too elusive

17:40with a woman who died

17:42at 36

17:43and was once

17:44the major player

17:45in a fairytale.

17:46Princess Diana,

17:47reported boyfriend

17:48Dodi Fayed,

17:49and their driver

17:50Henri Paul,

17:51died when their car

17:52crashed into the

17:53Pont de Lauma

17:53road tunnel.

17:55At the time,

17:56most fingers pointed

17:57at the overzealous

17:58paparazzi chasing

17:59Diana's car.

18:01An 18-month

18:01French judicial

18:03investigation

18:04blamed the crash

18:05on an inebriated

18:06Paul,

18:06while a British inquest

18:08found both the paps

18:09and Paul

18:10equally responsible.

18:11There is real anger

18:12at the fact that

18:13the press may have

18:14had a hand

18:15in driving this

18:16princess to her death.

18:17However,

18:17no paparazzi did

18:18time for her death.

18:20In the court of

18:20public opinion,

18:21however,

18:22the paparazzi

18:23will always be

18:24inexorably linked

18:25to the death

18:26of the people's

18:27princess.

18:28What's your take

18:29on the celeb

18:29paparazzi dispute?

18:31Should celebrities

18:31have their privacy

18:32respected,

18:33or does the public

18:34have a legitimate

18:35interest in knowing

18:36about their personal

18:36lives?

18:37Share your thoughts

18:38in the comments

18:39below.

18:39That's fine,

18:40but don't talk

18:41to me.

18:42I don't want to

18:42hear paparazzi

18:43talk to me.

18:44Did you enjoy

18:45this video?

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