The Shady Side Of Jennifer Lopez
Having scored multiple chart-topping singles, picked up several Golden Globe nominations and delivered arguably the sexiest pole dance in modern cinema, Jennifer Lopez is widely regarded as one of the ultimate modern-day triple threats. But there's more to her talents than singing, acting, and busting a move.
The Bronx native has also enjoyed success as a talent show judge, entrepreneur, producer, model and philanthropist. Oh, and she's an expert when it comes to throwing shade, too. Yes, the woman also known as J-Lo, Lola and Jenny from the Block has certainly lived up to all those claims about keeping it real. And she could never be accused of punching down, either.
Indeed, Lopez has often saved her most scathing remarks for her fellow A-listers — in one particularly infamous interview she managed to take down about half a dozen in one fell swoop. Here's a look at the times the Hustlers star mastered the art of the sidelong insult.
Jennifer Lopez called Salma Hayek publicity-hungry
We'd loved to have been a fly on the wall at the next big showbiz bash Jennifer Lopez attended following her remarkably candid chat with Movieline in 1998. While promoting Steven Soderbergh's thriller Out of Sight, the star appeared to burn her bridges with numerous other high-profile actors. And poor Salma Hayek perhaps got it in the neck more than anyone.
Lopez sure was keen to distance herself from any comparisons when asked for her opinion on the From Dusk Till Dawn star: "We're in two different realms. She's a sexy bombshell and those are the kinds of roles she does. I do all kinds of different things." The supremely confident Lopez also claimed that Hayek had been telling a few fibs, adding, "It makes me laugh when she says she got offered Selena, which was an outright lie. If that's what she does to get herself publicity, then that's her thing."
More than two decades later, Hayek once again insisted that she'd been approached by Selena's producers to portray the tragic singer. Appearing on Watch What Happens with Andy Cohen, the star revealed — via The Oprah Magazine — that she'd found the offer "a little bit distasteful," having been put on the table so soon after Selena's death. Nevertheless, she refrained from criticizing Lopez for having no such qualms, adding, "I think Jennifer did a great job. I really do think it was for her."
Gwyneth, Cameron, and Madonna caught shade from J-Lo, too
We could fill this entire list with remarks Jennifer Lopez made in the 1998 Movieline interview which resurfaced on social media over 20 years later. The actor also gave backhanded compliments to Winona Ryder ("never a big fan of hers ... she's cute and talented, though") and Cameron Diaz ("a lucky model who's been given a lot of opportunities I just wish she would have done more with. She's beautiful and has a great presence, though ...) before slighting the Queen of Pop.
When questioned about Madonna, J-Lo replied, "Do I think she's a great performer? Yeah. Do I think she's a great actor? No. Acting is what I do, so I'm harder on people when they say, 'Oh, I can do that — I can act.' I'm like, 'Hey, don't spit on my craft.'" Only a year earlier, Madge had picked up Best Actress in a Motion Picture — Musical or Comedy Golden Globe for her lead performance in Evita.
Lopez doesn't seem to agree with awards favorites, in general. She also blasted Gwyneth Paltrow, asking, "Tell me what she's been in? I swear to God, I don't remember anything she was in. Some people get hot by association. I heard more about her and Brad Pitt than I ever heard about her work." It's unlikely that Paltrow's performance in Shakespeare in Love that same year escaped Lopez's attention — it saw her crowned Best Actress at the 1999 Academy Awards.
Jennifer Lopez hinted at Ben Affleck's lack of bedroom prowess
Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck were one of Hollywood's sexiest couples in the early '00s. But judging by the former's comments on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen in 2014, they might not necessarily have been one of the most sexually compatible.
While appearing on the gossipy Bravo show, J-Lo was asked during the game segment "Plead The Fifth" whether musicians, singers, or actors were better in bed. Us Weekly reports that instead of opting to remain silent on the subject, like she later realized was probably the safer option, the New Yorker replied, "I have to say that, in my limited experience, anybody involved in music, so I would say singers and dancers."
Lopez's low-key character assassination of the man she famously starred with in the megaflop, Gigli, didn't end there. She also suggested that Affleck had little clue when it came to clothes: "I did kind of like say, 'You need to be, you know, you're a movie star! You should wear a suit, you know? You should do this with your hair." She did add, "He didn't do anything he didn't want to do. ... He had some good fashion moments when he was with me."
J-Lo ghosted Rosie Perez
In her 2014 autobiography Handbook for an Unpredictable Life, actor Rosie Perez recalled how she first met Jennifer Lopez when the pair worked together on In Living Color back in the early '90s. And she wasn't exactly complimentary.
Perez was working as a choreographer on the hit sketch show and was instrumental in the casting of J-Lo as a dancer. But when Perez addressed complaints about the Bronx native's diva-ish behavior, Lopez reportedly went on the attack like "some ghetto biatch, screaming and pounding her chest" while claiming her talents were superior to those of her colleagues. Even when the "Play" singer left the show, the beef continued. In fact, Perez claims that she was continually insulted and then essentially ghosted by the woman she'd given a job to. Mirror quotes Perez as writing, "I was blindsided. I'd thought we were cool. I called her up. She wouldn't pick up. Frustrated, I left her an irate message on her answering machine. Instead of calling me back and hashing it out like friends do, she went on a major talk show and reiterated my lashing." Lopez later acted like they were still BFFs when they saw each other in a club, but Perez soon put the star in her place.
Fortunately, however, Perez didn't hold the grudge forever. She later told CNN, "I have great respect for [J-Lo] ... yes, we had a tiff, and it was 20 years ago ... I've moved on and I'm sure she has also."
Jennifer Lopez dissed all of her ex-loves
From ex-husbands Ojani Noa, Cris Judd, and Marc Anthony to former boyfriends P. Diddy, Ben Affleck and Caspersite Smart, Jennifer Lopez's long line of past loves no doubt felt their ears burning when the star appeared on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen in 2015. It's unlikely, however, that they'd be too flattered about what they heard.
Although the "Love Don't Cost a Thing" singer didn't reference anyone in particular, she did reveal that when it comes to her taste in men, model looks aren't exactly a major priority: "I would say my type of man is, I like manly — I don't like, kind of, a softer edge ... I like somebody who makes me laugh. ... I'm not a looks person. I don't know if you noticed, over the years. I go more for essence, for strength, for, like, the manliness — fun, the laughter. Sexy's important but I don't feel like good looking is necessarily sexy."
When Cohen tried to defend the likes of Affleck, People magazine's Sexiest Man Alive of 2002 you may recall, Lopez offered another masterful backhanded compliment: "I thought they were all hot. Other people might be like, 'What the hell was she thinking?' but I don't care."
Did J-Lo really dog A-Rod's baseball skills?
It's not just Jennifer Lopez's long list of former romantic conquests that she's happy to throw shade at. The "On the Floor" singer has no qualms about poking fun at her on/off squeeze, Alex Rodriguez, either. In 2019, the Golden Globe nominee donned a New York Yankee jersey for a festive softball game with her family including boyfriend A-Rod. It may have been Christmastime but that didn't stop Lopez indulging in some trash talk, according to the MLB legend who she's been dating since 2017.
Alongside an Instagram picture of the pair seemingly in the midst of a heated mid-game debate, Rodriguez revealed exactly what went down on the field. "Come on, Jen. I was a Gold Glove winner. Let me play some shortstop." These are the words A-Rod claimed were coming out of his mouth at the time, referencing the award he picked up in consecutive years in the early '00s. And his girlfriend's comeback? "Key word: Was."
Luckily, on this occasion, it seems as though Lopez's response was made in pure jest. And perhaps as a way to knock Rodriguez off his game, too. For her sister Lynda revealed in the caption of her own Instagram clip of J-Lo pitching that "Someone is very very competitive in the family Christmas softball game."
J-Lo's first two marriages don't count, according to J-Lo
Jennifer Lopez walked down the aisle on three occasions before she'd even turned 40. However, considering the remarks she made during a behind the scenes video diary to promote her It's My Party tour, the singer only thinks of herself as a one-time bride.
While discussing her impending on/off nuptials with Alex Rodriguez, Lopez reflected on her previous wedding ceremonies: "I've never been married in a church — I've been married three times, and once was nine months and once was 11 months, so I don't really count those." The first husband she dismissed, of course, was Ojani Noa (above right), while the second was Cris Judd, whom Lopez divorced over irreconcilable differences.
We can certainly understand why Lopez would want to forget about Noa. The former waiter once tried to publish a tell-all book about his brief marriage to the superstar. Lopez subsequently managed to get an injunction which banned her ex from casting her in a negative light. She also received a court injunction barring Noa and his associates from releasing video footage taken on their honeymoon which is said to be of an uncompromising nature. That battle, which started in 2009, was still waging as late as 2015 when Noa's business partner Ed Meyer told In Touch that they were still attempting to release the footage, having "found a legal loophole."
Drake was just a booty call for Jennifer Lopez
In 2016, Drake and Jennifer Lopez nearly broke the internet when they were pictured in an intimate embrace on Instagram, a move which reportedly didn't go down well with the rapper's ex, Rihanna, or her army of fans, either. But within a few months, the new power couple were no more.
Drake later referenced their brief relationship on 2017 track "Free Smoke" ("I drunk text J-Lo/Old number, so it bounce back"). And a year later he alluded to rumors that he'd cheated on the Maid in Manhattan star on the song "Diplomatic Immunity" ("I lost a J-Lo"). Lopez herself had kept quiet about the whole affair until 2019 when she appeared on stage at Los Angeles' The Forum.
Yes, on the opening date of her That's My Party tour, the triple threat started dancing to her ex's chart smash "Hotline Bling." But as reported by Hollywood Life, when the line, "You used to call me on your cell phone" played, J-Lo stopped throwing shapes and, much to the audience's delight, quipped, "Huh — booty call." Many saw this as a sign that J-Lo hadn't taken the relationship as seriously as Drake.
Jennifer Lopez claims all men under 33 are useless
In 2018, Jennifer Lopez made the seemingly unlikely step of taking to Tinder. Well, kinda. The star hit the dating app in order to find a 20-something fan named Brooke her perfect match in a feature called Swipe Sessions.
And she had some words of wisdom for the singleton while doing so, too. "Guys, until they're 33, are really useless," the self-appointed love guru proclaimed after going through numerous unsuitable suitors. So is there a particular reason why Lopez considers anyone below this very specific age a no-go?
Well, in a pretty big coincidence, J-Lo did walk down the aisle with her second husband Cris Judd when he was 32. Although she mustn't have adopted this rule immediately after their divorce. Ben Affleck was only 30 when he and Lopez formed the power couple known as Bennifer in 2002. And backup dancer Casper Smart was even younger, 24 to be exact, when he began dating the triple threat ten years later.
This wrongly accused makeup artist felt the wrath of J-Lo
But not every bit of Lopez's shade-throwing is directed toward the rich and the famous. In the mid-'00s, the star essentially banished her longtime makeup artist Scott Barnes (above left) after rumors surfaced that someone had leaked info to the press about her and Marc Anthony's secret marriage ceremony.
Speaking on The Jeff Probst Show in 2012, Barnes revealed that the woman he considered a friend cast him aside for an entire year until it was confirmed that someone else was responsible for the leak. "It was like I had the plague," he told the host. J-Lo did give Barnes his old job back again after learning the truth but apparently failed to apologize for being so ruthless.
The makeup artist, who's also lent his talents to another of Lopez's targets, Gwyneth Paltrow, added via Radar, "I went right back to work with her, and we just never spoke about it again — which is even weirder." In fact, Barnes spent a further six years on the star's payroll and insisted that they remain on good terms: "She sat for the cover of my first book and we're friends ... she's an amazing woman and she's like, 'I love you, you know,' and I say 'I love you too' ... we're friends."
Jennifer Lopez zoned out during a Mariah Carey performance
Unusually, Jennifer Lopez appears to have bitten her tongue when it comes to the star many consider to be her number one nemesis, Mariah Carey. But as the saying goes, actions speak louder than words.
The supposed feud allegedly began when Carey was beaten to the punch over a sample she'd intended to use for the Glitter soundtrack. According to the diva's 2020 memoir (via Metro), her ex-husband Tommy Mottola had got wind of the idea and passed it on to Lopez for a track on her sophomore, "I'm Real," in an act of revenge. Shortly after, Carey spawned a thousand future memes when she was asked her opinion of J-Lo and memorably replied, "I don't know her."
Lopez kept schtum about the apparent beef until 2014 when, via E!, she told Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen, "I've read things that she's said about me that were not the greatest, but we've never met." A year later, though, the Enough star appeared to get her own back when she was filmed browsing Instagram during Carey's Billboard Music Awards performance (shown above). Lopez explained in 2016 that she wasn't being disrespectful during another appearance on Cohen's show, but couldn't resist throwing in what many considered to be a sly dig: "First of all, that was not fair with the texting thing because I watched a lot of it — it was a long performance."