The Shady Side Of Brian Austin Green
Brian Austin Green may be approaching his fifties, as of this writing, but for those of who grew up in the early '90s, he'll always be West Beverly Hills High School's most uncanny Vanilla Ice lookalike, David Silver. Yes, just like co-stars Jason Priestley, Shannen Doherty, and Jennie Garth, Green made his name on the only teenage soap opera that mattered in the original Bush era, Beverly Hills, 90210.
Of course, in more recent years, Green's romantic life has resembled that of a character in a glamorous Aaron Spelling drama. There's been the actor's on-and-off again marriage to a Hollywood pin-up, an increasingly bitter divorce from said pin-up, and numerous fallouts with the women he's dated before and after. And just like his dweeb-turned-DJ alter-ego, this former teen idol hasn't always handled all of these twists and turns with the utmost grace.
Here's a look at the times Brian Austin Green made moves even more questionable than his short-lived hip-hop career.
Brian Austin Green reportedly cut his son out of his life for five years
Much of the drama surrounding Brian Austin Green's personal life has stemmed from his four-year relationship with his one-time Beverly Hills, 90210 co-star, Vanessa Marcil. The pair split in 2003, shortly after they became parents to son Kassius Lijah, and have barely stopped warring with each other since.
There was a particularly bitter court battle, in which Green and then-wife Megan Fox unsuccessfully attempted to seek full custody of his first born. According to Marcil, who played ex-ice skater Gina Kincaid in the hit teen soap, her ex then decided to sever all ties. In a 2018 Instagram post, the actress claimed, "Five years ago on their own they decided to completely cut Kass out of their lives and his younger brothers' lives. Kass has never met his youngest brother and is not allowed to know where his bio father, stepmother and three younger brothers live. He has only seen his dad in passing in public places."
Within a year of the post making headlines, the father-son duo had reunited, with Kassius even traveling to Vancouver to visit his father on the 90210 reboot set. His mom couldn't have been more delighted, with Marcil writing on Instagram, "We all are grateful that they are coming back together. Here is to love and forgiveness for all of us on this planet. #LoveWins."
Brian Austin Green's ex describes him as an 'angry/sad human being'
Unfortunately, the apparent truce between Brian Austin Green and the mother of his first-born child, Vanessa Marcil, didn't last too long. In September 2020, the latter furiously denied a social media follower's claims that she was still in love with her former Beverly Hills, 90210 co-star. In fact, Marcil revealed that she'd "never loved" Green, before going on to reference the five years he spent apart from son Kassius.
Marcil wrote on Instagram (via Us Weekly), "That was part of his anger towards me and so the reason why he fought me for so long knowing it would hurt our son and change our son forever. I did however feel sorry for him. I still do. He's a very angry/sad human being who still has too much shame to take full responsibility for his actions as a father."
Unsurprisingly, these comments didn't go down too well with the man himself. Later that same month, Green sarcastically referred to Marcil's post on his eponymous podcast in a conversation about his qualities: "I'm angry, and I'm sad all the time. And I just don't know what to do about it." Calling his temper "legendary," Green added, "If you check around the industry, I'm known as the angry, sad guy, and the diva on set ... They're just complete opposites, being angry and sad, like they don't seem like they would mix together."
Brian Austin Green's cryptic 'butterflies' post
In May 2020, Brian Austin Green uploaded a photo to Instagram of a butterfly enjoying a rest on some purple flowery. Had the actor suddenly developed a keen interest in lepidopterology? Well, not exactly. It appears as though Green was simply using the image of the insect as a metaphor for the state of his relationship.
The Anger Management star posted the picture around the same time that rumors began swirling about his marriage to Megan Fox. The month previously, an insider had told E! that the pair were living apart from each other, while Green being spotted without his wedding ring, and Fox keeping regular company with Machine Gun Kelly had added further fuel to the couple's Splitsville fire.
So, what did the cryptic pic mean exactly? Well, it was no doubt a reference to the Transformers actress' back tattoo, which reads, "We will all laugh at gilded butterflies." Green also implied that his on-off partner of 15 years was ready to flee with this caption: "Eventually butterflies get bored sitting on a flower for too long. They start feeling smothered. It's a great big world and they want to experience it." Or, perhaps he was the butterfly all along?
Brian Austin Green questions Courtney Stodden's choices
Brian Austin Green didn't seem to waste much time getting back on the horse after his marriage to Megan Fox fell apart in 2020. Within a few months of their split going public, he'd been spotted enjoying the company of numerous blondes, including actor Doug Hutchison's ex-wife, model-actress-singer Courtney Stodden.
The pair were first linked in June 2020, after they were pictured getting a Mexican takeout, per TMZ. Shortly after, Stodden uploaded a curious Instagram video — later reposted to YouTube — in which she shared a hot tub with Green. As you might expect at this point, the man formerly known as David Silver wasn't too happy about this private moment going very public.
According to the Daily Mail, Green responded to a question about the clip, "I was just trying to be a nice guy, I shot a video for her friend Ashley, saying hello." The actor also claimed that the timing of its release had caused problems regarding his blossoming relationship with another woman, model Tina Louise. "That was a month-plus ago, that was back when the pictures of her and I came out," Green remarked after describing Stodden as "super nice ... but disappointing." He added, "I think she's a nice person, I just think she's making some bad choices."
Unsurprisingly, Stodden didn't take this judgment lying down, blasting Green as a "womanizer" who "wanted me to remain his little secret" in a statement given to Fox News.
Brian Austin Green trolls his ex-wife's new romance
You could argue that Megan Fox was practically inviting her soon-to-be ex-husband to poke fun at the OTT declaration of love she posted on Instagram in August 2020. Just a few months after her split with Brian Austin Green was officially confirmed, the Jennifer's Body star uploaded a black-and-white snap of her bikini-clad self standing next to her shirtless new squeeze, rapper Machine Gun Kelly. Alongside a love heart and a couple of knife emojis, she captioned it, "Achingly beautiful Boy. My heart is yours."
Unsurprisingly, Green wasn't too enamored with this very public display of affection and decided to play his estranged wife at her own game. The Masked Singer contestant posted Instagram pics of the three kids he shares with Fox — Journey, Noah, and Bodhi — as well as his son with Vanessa Marcil, Kassius, which he sarcastically captioned with, "Achingly beautiful boys ... my heart is yours."
The response to this blatant form of mockery was mixed. "Savage, love it, you're an awesome dad," responded one particularly impressed fan (via OK! magazine). However, others believed Green shouldn't have taken the bait, with one disgruntled follower commenting, "Now we know why she broke up with you. Your children must be more mature than you. Move on."
Brian Austin Green was slammed for allegedly using his kids on social media
In October 2020, Brian Austin Green posted what appeared to be a heart-warming Halloween pic on Instagram — as captured by the Independent — in which the actor, dressed up as a yeti, could be seen having fun with youngest son Journey, who's kitted out in an adorable Spider-Man costume. Unfortunately, his estranged wife, Megan Fox, didn't take too kindly to seeing their youngest paraded for all the world to see.
In the comments section, the furious Transformers star responded, "Why does Journey have to be in this picture? It's not hard to crop them out. Or choose photos that they aren't in ... I had a great Halloween with them yesterday, and yet notice how absent they are from my social media." Fox added, "I know you love your kids. But I don't know why you can't stop using them to posture [sic] via Instagram. You're so intoxicated with feeding the pervasive narrative that I'm an absent mother, and you are the perennial, eternally dedicated dad of the year."
Proving that she can dish out the sarcasm just as effectively as her ex, Fox continued, "Congratulations you truly are a remarkable human!" The actress later deleted her strongly-worded remarks, but her words had the desired effect. Green subsequently cropped Journey out of the picture, ensuring that the focus stayed solely on his abominable snowman cosplay.
Brian Austin Green was accused of allegedly assaulting a photographer
In March 2012, Brian Austin Green was accused of assaulting a photographer, who had allegedly been taking pictures of the star and his then-wife, Megan Fox, during their vacation in Hawaii in December 2010, resulting in paparazzi Delbert Shaw suing the actor for over $25,000.
Claiming that he was attacked after being subjected to a torrent of verbal abuse by the Hollywood couple, E! reports that Shaw also argued that Fox encouraged her husband to get physical by asking him, "Are you going to let him get away with that?" In response, Green allegedly chucked the celebrity snapper's phone into the sea, along with inflicting injuries. Infliction of emotional distress, false imprisonment, conversion, negligence, and conspiracy were just a few of the other charges that were filed against the pair.
The court initially appeared to favor the two stars, with a judge ordering Shaw to fork out $650 of their legal costs in 2013, while the photographer was also persuaded to hand over his laptop to the defense. Shaw's attorney, Sark Ohanian, was having none of it, though, telling the judge (via E!): "They are trying to paint my client as a reckless paparazzo and none of the discovery is focused on the incident. We haven't been trying to hide the ball on anything." Little news about the case has emerged since.
Brian Austin Green was also sued for selling an inauthentic car
Seven years after being sued by a paparazzi photographer for alleged physical and verbal assault, Brian Austin Green once again found himself facing court action. Only this time around it was the reported inauthentic sale of a classic Porsche that got the Beverly Hills, 90210 star into trouble.
TMZ reports that Green had sold a 1955 Porsche Speedster to Gonzalo da Silva Pinto for the sum of $330,000 in the spring of 2017. But after the vehicle was delivered to his German home, the buyer discovered via two experts that its engine stamp had been forged. Pinto subsequently filed a lawsuit in 2019 to recoup all the money he paid out for the Porsche's delivery and authentication. However, the man wasn't accusing Green directly of any wrongdoing.
Green, who'd previously told People that he was getting rid of several cars that didn't meet the practical needs of his family, isn't the only star to have inadvertently sold an inauthentic Porsche. That same year, comedian Jerry Seinfeld claimed that the bogus 1958 model he flogged for more than $1.5 million had also been bought by him under false pretenses.
Brian Austin Green contradicted his ex-girlfriend's claims about the 90210 reboot
In June 2019, Tiffani Thiessen was asked by ET why she wouldn't be reprising her role of Valerie Malone in the impending Beverly Hills, 90210 reboot. The actress replied, "My shoot schedule sadly won't allow [me to be a part of it], but I wish them well. I'm actually shooting season three of Alexa and Katie right now. So I am working at the moment and busy ... I'm literally in the middle of my season, and I go 'til September."
Either the former Saved By the Bell star was telling a joke or Brian Austin Green got his wires crossed. For the man formerly known — and soon to be known again — as David Silver gave a very different answer to Thiessen's absence while appearing on Bravo's gossip-mongering show Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen. When questioned by the titular host about why his ex-girlfriend and former co-star wouldn't be sharing the screen with him, Green replied, "Well, the reboot was the original cast, and she wasn't in the original cast. So, that was sort of our idea going back ... It was the original group of people that were there at the start. She came in, I think, season four or five." Hm.
Brian Austin Green said friend Robin Thicke 'sucks' at being a talent show judge
Brian Austin Green didn't hold back after revealing himself as a contestant on the third season of bonkers talent contest The Masked Singer. In a 2020 chat with Entertainment Weekly, the actor jokingly blasted judge Robin Thicke for failing to recognize that the man prancing around on stage in a giraffe costume was actually one of his real-life friends.
"No disrespect to him, because he's a super-nice guy, but he sucks at this. He's terrible," Green said. "I told the producers early on, if there's anybody on this panel that's going to guess me, it's him because we know each other so well ... He knows the way that I speak, and the timbre of my voice. For three years, we were best friends — we were at each other's house every day."
Green admitted that he thought he'd been rumbled when Thicke remarked upon the familiarity of his voice. But the "Blurred Lines" singer later mistook the Beverly Hills, 90210 star for Blink-182 drummer Travis Barker due to his walk. An exasperated Green added, "I'm in a costume, I could walk any f**king way I choose to, you have no idea! I'm not limited by anything. Walking. That's ridiculous. So yeah, I thought for sure Robin would figure it out, and he couldn't have been more wrong, but I still love him."