TV Show Hosts Who Treat Their Staff Like Garbage

Behind every television show is a team of producers, camera operators, directors and more who help the show find success, yet it's those who are the face of the show who get the most recognition. Television hosts might put a lot of work into the direction and themes of their shows, but they sometimes forget to appreciate the people behind the scenes, for whom without the show wouldn't even exist. Understandably fame can get to one's head, but these horrific stories prove that some television hosts just go too far.

We've all heard Tyra Banks can be a bit of a diva, and anyone who's seen America's Next Top Model knows she doesn't necessarily hide it, but it seems the talk show host is much worse when the cameras aren't rolling. After The Tyra Banks Show wrapped up for good, past crew members on the show started speaking out against the model, saying it was more than just difficult to work for her. A source revealed to New York Daily Mail, "There had been a high turnover of employees for years ... She and the higher-ups on the production staff could be extremely brutal. She really is a diva." It seems that Banks insisted everything be done her way, regardless of how it affected her employees.

Reports had surfaced while The Tyra Banks Show was still airing that Banks held a holiday party for her employees at a dive bar in New York City, and neglected to supply her staff with any food. Since they were all drinking on empty stomachs, crew members were getting incredibly wasted. It got so bad fights broke out, people were getting sick on the dance floor, and one woman was even sent to the hospital. A source revealed Banks showed up to the party late, and used a poor choice of words when revealing her surprise for the crew. The source was quoted saying, "She told staffers, who relocated from LA to New York for her, 'I want to thank you guys for working so hard. I have a special guest, here's Santa!'" The source then explained the staff excitedly rushed over to a man dressed as Santa expecting to receive a holiday bonus. However, they were instead gifted with burgers from McDonald's. At least someone was thoughtful enough to inform the diva she'd dropped the ball on forgetting to mention to her crew there would be no food at this party of theirs. However, it seems the sting of not getting a bonus only encouraged them to drink harder, likely causing even more drunken shenanigans.

Simon Cowell is best known for throwing insults at contestants on shows like American Idol and X Factor, so it shouldn't come as much of a surprise the talent judge isn't so nice to the show's staff and crew members, either. Most recently, Cowell had a minor meltdown during a live taping of X Factor after a cameraman failed to give him his close up. Whether or not this is a requirement is unknown, but Cowell surely didn't let this poor cameraman get away with his error. Rather than provide the singer on stage with his feedback, Cowell instead snapped at the crew member saying, "Why aren't I in the close-ups by the way? I should be on that screen!" In this statement he was referring to one of the two large screens, one that showed the performer's face and another that showed the judge's face who was speaking so the audience could clearly see what was going on. Talk about a diva moment!

Before Donald Trump was elected president, he was the host of The Apprentice, a show most iconic for the phrase "You're fired!". While Trump certainly didn't hold back when voicing his opinions about contestants, his personality was, at the time, considered to be just another part of the show. However, after the show wrapped up, many prior contestants and staff members have come forward to reveal what kind of person Trump was behind the scenes and he has since been accused of being a dictator, egotistic, and sexist.

One of the biggest problems staff members had while working for him was his cold demeanor and dismissal of anyone he felt was beneath him. A writer for Deadline interviewed several producers who had worked on the show, and one spoke about a time when they and another producer saw the billionaire on set, made eye contact with him, and both put their hands out to shake the man's hand only to be brushed off. "We had started to put out our hands to say hello to him and he just looked through us and kept walking. We both felt it was kind of funny. This had been a hard shoot, and it was an opportunity for him to say, 'Hello and thanks for the work,' but he literally looked right through us. I've worked on many, many shows, and you are all members of the team, cast and crew. But not Trump."

Other staff members recall how Trump had forced many of the lower level employees to come to work during Hurricane Sandy, a thought that is inconceivable to anyone who resided in New York at the time. Film crews and the actual contestants on the show weren't required to work, leaving many of the staff members who were forced to show up with little or no work to do. The Daily Mail spoke to several employees who were put to work just hours after the storm had hit, and one spoke candidly saying, "The whole city was shut down. It was really irresponsible and selfish... Like, no one was under the illusion that we were making fine art here, that it had to be pushed that hard. It was crazy. Business in the city had basically shut down."

Not everyone was thrilled when Christina Aguilera returned as a judge on The Voice after taking maternity leave for two seasons. Singers Shakira and Gwen Stefani filled in during the pop star's absence, but Aguilera's diva demands ensured they'd be long gone by the time of her return. A source revealed to Radar Online after Aguilera's return that, "Everyone really misses Shakira and Gwen. NBC was actually hoping to keep one of the girls so that they would have two female and two male judges, but Christina said absolutely not, and that she would be the only female judge or she would not do it at all." Apparently, Aguilera felt she brought in the show's ratings, and according to the same source, she was known to call it her show.

It seems Ms. Aguilera started acting this way from the start of her return, reportedly showing up late and refusing to follow direction during the shoot of the shows TV spot promo. A source told Radar Online that "She showed up late and acted like she owned the shoot. The entire thing had to be about her or else she would have flipped out." While she was on the show, the crew gave into her every need, as it's easier to let her have things go her way than to fight with her. You would think that with her singing career having become practically irrelevant these days, she would have bent over backwards to keep her spot on the show — but apparently not, since her chair has been filled by someone else this year.

Dance Moms has led to the success of several dancers, giving some of these kids opportunities that they could never have even dreamt of before starring in the Lifetime show. It might sound like a dream come true, but these kids are practically tortured by the owner and instructor at the dance school, Abby Lee Miller. Miller most recently made headlines in the news after she was charged with fraud (and will be sentenced in 2017), but before that, her harsh teaching styles and feuds with several of the moms on the show had the media buzzing. It seems one dance mom has had enough of the abuse however, and has filed a lawsuit against Miller and the producers of the show. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Kelly Hyland is suing them for breach of contract, the intentional deliverance of emotional distress toward her and her two daughters, and unpaid wages. Hyland is the mother of show regulars Brooke and Paige, and knew Miller as a child.

Hyland went public saying, "The children on the show were being subjected to abusive and unlawful working conditions," claiming they were in violation of Pennsylvania's child labor laws. The lawsuit went on to describe Miller's behavior during filming saying, "Miller screams at the girls in front of the other dancers, moms and production crew, causing them to cry, and then Miller derides them for being emotionally weak when they do. Miller even tossed a chair during a confrontation with Paige." The show has since gotten new producers, who shockingly don't get along with the studio owner. In an exclusive interview with TMZ, Miller admitted to intentionally causing her students to cry on film. She also accused the new producers of not watching any of the earlier seasons of the show, saying they know nothing about the show and nothing about dance. Miller claims the producers are unnecessary, as she has been pushing the buttons of these dance moms for over thirty years, and proudly announces she can make any of the kids cry in thirty seconds or less. Not exactly the kind of person you want around your children, but she does seem to produce successful dancers.