- yesterday
Hollywood can be a rough place, and sometimes celebrities find themselves wrongly accused of serious crimes. From misunderstandings to outright false allegations, we're diving into the stories of stars who were unfairly targeted by accusations that threatened to destroy their careers and reputations.
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00:00Commentary about me, it doesn't make any sense and it's not good for my self-image.
00:05Welcome to Miss Mojo, and today we're looking at the stars who were the target of major false allegations.
00:11The President of the United States was targeting you personally.
00:14It didn't feel good. He had better things he should have been focusing on.
00:19Nicolas Cage. The face-off actor is also known for his eccentricity and his steadfast dedication to his craft.
00:25Hallelujah! Hallelujah!
00:30But Nicolas Cage vehemently denied charges leveled in a former colleague's memoirs.
00:34In 2008, Cage's Peggy Sue Got Married co-star Kathleen Turner made no bones about disliking him.
00:41I think it makes a lot of sense.
00:44Refresh my memory.
00:46How could you forget? We talk about seeing other people and you forget.
00:50But her big mistake was alleging that he was arrested not once, but twice, for impaired driving.
00:55More than that, she also recounted a story about how he stole a chihuahua.
00:59Cage sued Turner for libel and won, forcing her to apologize, add a correction to the book, and pay damages.
01:06Whereas this Nick is an exaggerated screaming psychopath, it really just doesn't exist.
01:14Keanu Reeves.
01:15Running down the paparazzi doesn't sound like something one of the nicest guys in Hollywood would do. That's because he didn't.
01:30Keanu Reeves ended up the target of a lawsuit for supposedly hitting a paparazzo, Alison Silva, with his car.
01:36We probably went fast.
01:37So fast, like irresponsibly fast.
01:41Yeah, yeah. If we were on third at night, yeah, we could get on it.
01:45Silva reportedly stood in front of Reeves' car and insisted the actor had struck him, causing injuries to his wrist and knee.
01:51That story fell apart quickly.
01:53His knee injury switched sides between the incident and the trial, and footage of him disproved his argument that his hand was too injured to do his job.
02:00The jury cleared Reeves of all charges.
02:03What, the kid, the outrage. You definitely had me, fools.
02:07Youssef Kat Stevens.
02:09In the aftermath of 9-11, airport security became much tighter.
02:13Through a case of mistaken identity, British singer-songwriter Youssef Islam, previously known by his stage name, Kat Stevens, was detained as a suspected terrorist.
02:23When something like that happens, do you feel you personally get tarred by it?
02:28Yeah, I reckon the, you know, the media has played a kind of a rather, a non-positive role in creating my image.
02:37The reasons for this were frustratingly vague.
02:40His name was flagged by TSA as a potential associate of terrorist organizations, but that was about as far as the explanations went.
02:46Stevens denied this charge, of course.
02:49I think that it's time that people listen to my words, and what comes from my heart.
02:54His dedication to peace and charity should have spoken for itself.
02:57He was sent back to the UK after his plane was diverted, and he was denied entry to the US.
03:02Just me, fruits and sand.
03:07Mabel Normand.
03:08A trailblazer of her time, the silent film actress and director, was known for her hard-partying lifestyle.
03:13But in 1922, that came back to bite her in a big way.
03:17Mabel was the last person to see Taylor alive, besides the killer, of course.
03:21Her friend, collaborator and alleged lover, William Desmond Taylor, was found murdered in his home, shot to death.
03:28She was the last person to see him alive, and immediately fell under suspicion.
03:32The case is still unsolved, with myths about Normand's involvement and a Hollywood cover-up persisting for years afterward.
03:39To aim the bullet at that special point, they'd also have to have been in a very tight embrace.
03:44Even after the police cleared her as a suspect, Normand's reputation was damaged.
03:48Frequent news reports about her escapades and substance use still loom large over her legacy.
03:54Suddenly, the 29-year-old actress was caught in a web of vicious rumours.
03:58In all honesty, I don't think the press was all that interested in the truth.
04:03Jane Fonda.
04:03In the 1970s, the movie star lent her celebrity to social causes, throwing herself into activism, aimed at ending what she and millions saw as an unjust war in Vietnam.
04:14The decision to travel behind enemy lines to North Vietnam was controversial enough.
04:18But many Americans decreed her as a traitor when she was photographed sitting on a weapon that would ostensibly be used to shoot down American aircrafts.
04:26Called a traitor after she visited the capital of North Vietnam during the height of the Vietnam War.
04:32She was even photographed, you may recall, with enemy troops, with a helmet and a gun.
04:36She was never formally charged with treason, but it didn't stop many from accusing her.
04:40He wanted to figure out how they could get me for treason.
04:44For years afterward, Fonda would cite this moment as one of her biggest regrets.
04:54As I've said many times, I will go to my grave regretting that.
04:58Lana Turner.
04:59She was the biggest star of the 1940s, and he was one of the criminal underworld's most fearsome figures.
05:05When Johnny Stompanato was found stabbed to death in the home of longtime girlfriend Lana Turner, people assumed there was more to the story.
05:12Well, it's not something that one just closes a door on, you know, when one is responsible for someone's life ending, whether it's a justifiable act or not.
05:23Turner's daughter, Cheryl Crane, was charged with the killing, but due to Stompanato's violent nature, it was seen as justified.
05:29You're very proud of your mother.
05:30Oh, boy, yes.
05:32You understand what she was going through.
05:33Yes.
05:34You used to go to the set to watch her make movies.
05:36Mm-hmm.
05:37You knew what that red light meant.
05:39Yes, you better be quiet, not open that door.
05:41Or don't open the door.
05:43Or open that door.
05:43However, rumors persisted for years that Turner was really one who murdered him and that she was set up by her daughter to take the fall.
05:50Her tearful testimony at the trial only furthered public distrust of the real story.
05:55What kind of rumors?
05:56Oh, that I caught him and my daughter in bed together and that she caught the two of us in bed.
06:01I mean, terrible, horrible things that were absolutely not true.
06:06Mitski.
06:07Some celebrities have expressed hesitance to engage with their fan base on social media.
06:12I think it got really unhealthy very quickly for me to have access to thousands, tens of thousands of strangers' opinions of me.
06:23A 2019 incident involving singer-songwriter Mitski is a prime example of why.
06:28A Tumblr user posted a since-deleted series of elaborate and deeply upsetting accusations against Mitski.
06:33These allegations involved some truly heinous incidents of abuse and conspiracy that also implicated the artist's family.
06:40And then walking out like he's the hero is just so...
06:46The story fell apart fairly quickly, exposed by journalists and associates of both the singer and her accuser that proved it was a complete fabrication.
06:53Mitski's response was measured, asking for compassion for the accuser, whose mental health she was concerned for.
06:59Someone like me...
07:00Right.
07:01...who feels like they want to channel or embody that energy of a cowboy.
07:08Connor O'Burst.
07:09The indie rock sensation faced an accusation of misconduct from a fan of his band, Bright Eyes.
07:14In 2013, a woman alleged that singer-songwriter Connor O'Burst attacked her after a concert.
07:19O'Burst's credentials as a feminist and ally to women were stomped out by the ensuing internet firestorms.
07:25I challenge any artist out there.
07:27Online sleuths poked holes in the story until the accuser recounted her allegations entirely and offered an apology.
07:33O'Burst sued the woman for defamation, but the damage had been done.
07:37No, I don't miss my old music career with all the adoring fans and glowing reviews.
07:42He suddenly found himself in the middle of an ideological tug-of-war between internet feminists and men's rights activists.
07:49That was an extremely expensive guitar I smashed.
07:52You rock, my friend. Well done.
07:54Ricky Martin.
07:55In 2022, the Livin' La Vida Loca singer was hit with a damning accusation from his nephew, Denis Yadiel Sanchez Martin, alleging an inappropriate relationship.
08:06Ricky Martin denied this ever happened.
08:08It has been so painful. It has been devastating for me, for my family, for my friends.
08:13I don't wish this upon anybody.
08:16Then, in another shocking turn of events, his nephew withdrew the case and recanted the story entirely.
08:22Martin, however, sued his nephew for damages, alleging that he was being shaken down for money, and his nephew's accusations were part of a larger extortion scheme.
08:30Martin is seeking financial compensation of at least $30 million.
08:33In dollars, this touched off a new round of legal disputes that finally ended in 2025, with both parties dropping their claims.
08:41The accuser confirmed to the court that his decision to dismiss the matter was his alone.
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09:01Roscoe Fatty Arbuckle
09:03While the true details of what happened the night of Virginia Rappé's death may never be known,
09:08the myths surrounding the case ballooned out of proportion almost immediately.
09:11The young actress became ill and soon died after attending a party in the hotel room of silent film comedian Fatty Arbuckle.
09:18No one will ever know what really happened.
09:20But next thing, Fatty emerged, saying the girl was sick and needed help.
09:23He was accused of assault, which was said to have caused her death.
09:27Kiwanis' stories changed several times, and salacious, untrue details of Arbuckle's encounter with Rappé,
09:33spread like wildfire.
09:35The tabloids had a field day, printing insinuation about Arbuckle's bottle party.
09:39The actor was tried three times for manslaughter and finally acquitted after the third.
09:44While he may not be entirely innocent, several accusations levelled at him were patently untrue
09:48and had been exaggerated in the press and in later retellings.
09:53Fatty suffered through three trials and was found innocent each time, but the public found him guilty.
09:58Arbuckle's films were withdrawn.
10:00His $3 million contract was cancelled, and his unreleased films were junked.
10:05Which of these accusations did you find the most shocking?
10:08Tell us in the comments.
10:09And just say, I'm so sorry.
10:12I'm so sorry.
10:14I'm so sorry.
10:15I'm so sorry.
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